Marty Baron on the Washington Post’s “Spineless” Endorsement Decision

Plus: Jesse Eisenberg on his new film, “A Real Pain”; Soccer Mommy’s latest album “Evergreen”; and fiction from Yukio Mishima. View in browser | Update your preferences Sunday, October 27, 2024 In today’s newsletter, Isaac Chotiner speaks with Marty Baron, and then: • Jesse Eisenberg has a few questions • Soccer Mommy’s visceral chronicle of loss • A newly translated story by Yukio Mishima The New Yorker Interview Jesse Eisenberg Has a Few Questions The multihyphenate discusses his new film, “A Real Pain”; grappling with what it means to be good; and the scripts, songs, and jokes that “never see the light of day.” By Michael Schulman Watch The New Yorker Festival Live: Today, a live stream will broadcast events featuring Rachel Maddow and more. Tune in now » From the News Desk Q. & A. Marty Baron on the Washington Post’s “Spineless” Endorsement Decision The former executive editor discusses his relationship with the newspaper’s owner, Jeff Bezos, who was reportedly behind the last-minute call to kill an editorial supporting Kamala Harris. By Isaac Chotiner Comment Trump’s Health, and Ours Studies increasingly suggest that a healthy nation depends on a healthy democracy. By Dhruv Khullar Louisa Thomas Army, Navy, and That Old-Timey Football Photograph by Mike Langish / AP “These days, college football can look more like the vast military industrial complex than any ennobling pursuit,” Louisa Thomas writes. There is some irony, then, in the fact that the Army and Navy football teams, with their surprising shared success this season, are doing it the old-fashioned way. Read the column » The Sporting Scene publishes every Sunday. Culture Dept. Listening Booth Soccer Mommy’s Visceral Chronicle of Loss On the new album “Evergreen,” the artist Sophie Allison makes sadness come alive and transform. By Hanif Abdurraqib The Food Scene Quick, Affordable Sushi That’s Still a Cut Above At Sendo, a Tokyo-style sushi-ya in midtown, the food’s level of sophistication well surpasses its price point. By Helen Rosner Fiction “From the Wilderness” When I saw the youth trembling in the dimness of my study, I had the feeling that I was looking at my own shadow. By Yukio Mishima This Week in Fiction On a Newly Translated Story by Yukio Mishima A conversation with John Nathan, a biographer of Yukio Mishima, who translated the story “From the Wilderness” in this week’s issue. By Deborah Treisman The Critic Recommends Helen Shaw Staff writer The latest hyper-youthful production of “Romeo + Juliet,” one of the Broadway shows I write about for this week’s issue, reminded me of how much I loved a recent film, which also contains those star-crossed lovers: the small, near-perfect drama “Ghostlight,” directed by Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson. Keith Kupferer plays Dan, a big, inexpressive guy, grappling with his son’s death, who stumbles into a community-theatre rehearsal. Unaware of his bereavement, the company casts him as a grizzled Romeo; his daughter (played by Kupferer’s actual daughter, Katherine Mallen Kupferer) horns in to play Mercutio. Seen this way, obliquely and in fragments, Shakespeare’s drama tastes newly bitter. Mercutio is usually a minor death on the way to the big blowout in Juliet’s tomb, but here we observe his scene with double vision. Dan, performing Romeo, dulls a real grief by pretending to experience it, which is a superb way of explaining both the mechanics of Shakespeare’s tragedy—each stabbing prepares us for the next—and our own desire to see it again and again. If you know someone who would enjoy this newsletter, please share it. Was it forwarded to you? Sign up. Fun & Games Dept. Shouts & Murmurs I Am a Leaf Blower You’ve probably heard me. Right now, for example. Sure, put that pillow over your head. That should help. By Steve Macone Name Drop: Can you guess the identity of a notable person—contemporary or historical—in six clues? Play our trivia game » P.S. Taylor Swift’s “1989” was released on this day in 2014. Before she was the Taylor we know today, Lizzie Widdicombe profiled the pop star, remarking that she has “an Oprah-like gift for emotional expressiveness,” and “a quietly ironic sense of humor.” What did you think of today’s newsletter? Let us know. If you like the daily newsletter, browse more New Yorker newsletters. You’re receiving this e-mail because you signed up for the daily newsletter from The New Yorker. Manage your preferences | View our Privacy Policy | Unsubscribe Copyright © Condé Nast 2024. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.