Deja view

I am taking a very brief break from book-writing and heading to 30 Rock for a live segment on NBC News NOW, so let me use the time in the car to say hello.

First, a recommendation: If you haven’t read John Herrman’s latest bit of brilliance for NYMag, “The Nowhere Election,” check it out today. Herrman nails how and why the 2024 election will be an informational nightmare.

It may also feel like a repeat episode. My latest column for Vanity Fair, running in the summer print issue, is about Biden, and Trump, “The Office,” the gerontocracy, revisionist history, and politics as a rerun. The title: “Deja View.”

After a short-term stint covering the Fox-trial-that-wasn’t, I’m also back behind the mic for Vanity Fair, hosting the weekly Inside the Hive podcast. Recent guests have included Wesley Lowery, Joe Hagan, Marisa Lagos, and Robert Costa. Ideas for future guests are more than welcome: Just reply here!

When Esquire offered me a chance to contribute to “What I’ve Learned,” a feature I’ve been reading for 25 years, I jumped at the chance. I interviewed “NBC Nightly News” anchor Lester Holt and learned so much about him. This quote resonated most: “More than ever in my career now, I measure the words. I measure every word.”

I guess I haven’t sent out one of these updates in a while! When a leadership change was imminent at CNN, I filed a story for NYMag’s Intelligencer about why it was happening, and afterward I wrote an essay for the Washington Post about the network’s next chapter.

Otherwise I haven’t been writing much I have been writing a couple thousand words a day, but mostly in the form of book chapters that won’t be out until this fall. Do you know what it feels like when your enthusiasm about a project gets stronger and stronger every day? It’s electric. It's what I feel working on “Network of Lies.” Pre-order here!

And whenever I hit a writing wall, I go do this instead:

I’ll write again when I finish the manuscript,

–Brian