A Tycoon’s Deep-State Conspiracy Dive

Sheelah Kolhatkar on an American entrepreneur’s affair with a Russian agent. Plus: the best jokes of 2020. View in browser | Update your preferences A Reporter at Large A Tycoon’s Deep-State Conspiracy Dive Patrick Byrne, of Overstock, had always been outspoken. Did an affair with a Russian agent push him too far? By Sheelah Kolhatkar 2020 in Review The Best Jokes of 2020 From Trump impressions to extinction comedy and Sacha Baron Cohen’s punking of Rudy Giuliani, the humor of 2020 managed to make light of a dark time. By Ian Crouch The New Yorker Radio Hour Atul Gawande on Taming the Coronavirus The staff writer on some of the challenges to vaccination. Plus, the film critic Richard Brody talks with the director Steve McQueen about his new film series, “Small Axe.” Cover Story Edward Steed’s “Tree of Life” The artist discusses his inspiration for his image of a creation tale during the holidays, when many people are contemplating a winter of gloom. By Françoise Mouly From the Archive The New Yorker Interview Fran Lebowitz Is Never Leaving New York The writer on growing old, life in quarantine, and the sadness of seeing her city shut down. By Michael Schulman From the Magazine Dept. of Juvenilia A Dad-Rocker in the State Department Back at the Harvard Crimson, Biden’s Secretary of State nominee, Antony Blinken, dreamed of being Lester Bangs. By Nick Paumgarten The Great Outdoors Zosia Mamet Is a Horse Girl Post-“Girls,” the actress is starring in “The Flight Attendant,” an HBO Max mystery series, and spending quality time with her six-year-old mare. By Naomi Fry Humor and Puzzles Crossword Today’s Crossword Movement whose name comes from the Greek word for “good news”: fourteen letters. By Natan Last Daily Shouts The Year That Wasn’t We all had high hopes for 2020. By Lawrence Lindell Daily Cartoon Monday, December 7th By Amy Hwang This e-mail was sent to you by The New Yorker. To insure delivery, we recommend adding newyorker@newsletters.newyorker.com, to your contacts, while noting that it is a no-reply address. Please send all newsletter feedback to tnyinbox@newyorker.com. For more from The New Yorker, sign up for our newsletters, shop the store, and sign in to newyorker.com, where subscribers always have unlimited access. Contact us with questions. View our Privacy Policy Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2020. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.