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In politics: Just days after Donny T assured us a deal was nigh—again—the US is back at bombing Iran. Maybe I missed that day of ceasefire school but that does feel like definitively non-ceasefire behavior? And to be clear, we are not just hitting military targets—Pete Hegseth is taking breaks from grapevining too close to the sun to hit water facilities that 20,000 people rely on for drinking with precision-guided munitions. A war crime, and Dick Cheney isn’t even alive to see it, sad! Meanwhile, Iran is hitting US assets across the region, the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, and the guy in charge is napping at the NBA finals. But at least we can buy a $12k commemorative White House cage match coin, just like the founding fathers dreamed!!!

California has finally landed on its gubernatorial candidates, with voters set to choose in November between Democrat Xavier Becerra and pale dry crumpet that wished to be a real boy Steve Hilton. Of course, that leaves out billionaire Tom Steyer, who shelled out more than $200 million of his own fortune this go around, after spending $300 million to run for president in 2020. And I thought my Erewhon spending habits were bad. Truly, have any of these guys ever considered starting with city council? Oh and by the way—

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In bad business: With her tenure at CBS News already going off without a single hitch (more like 85 hitches and counting) Bari Weiss may be poised to also run CNN after Paramount’s WBD acquisition, but potential salvation from that Bill Maher wet dream could be coming from across the pond. The UK’s antitrust authority—aka the Competition and Markets Authority—has formally launched an investigation into the merger, while the EU is probing the Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds used to make the deal happen. It’s all further evidence that European things (The Other Bennet Sister, croissants, willingness to fight fascist takeovers of historic companies in the name of press freedom, etc.) are better. I will honor them by eating my way through Rome and Paris later this month.

In good marketing: As a general rule, I am anti iPhone-as-Big-Brother, but I am a fan of the new iOS feature that will show flight information when you’re on the phone with an airline—or more realistically, screaming “representative!!!” at a robot who insists they can help. I am already a longtime ILIA skin tint girlie, but a new HAIM x ILIA collab really seals the deal pour moi. And Serena is back on the court (Hot tip: she won in doubles Wednesday with Victoria Mboko) which she announced with Nike last week.

Winners, winners: Schmigadoon! for Best New Musical at the Tony Awards. 19-year-old Mirra Andreeva at the French Open. The New York Knicks last night, by 1 point, after pulling off the biggest comeback in NBA Finals history. And all of us, watching Nancy Mace get last place in the South Carolina primary election.

Hot Tip’s June read is KIN by Tayari Jones. Sign up here to join le book club.

FYC: I haven’t had the chance to try it yet, but there’s a new Jewish-style deli in Mid-City LA called Mish that based on the menu alone is calling my name, pastrami siren-style. And yet another opportunity to ride the D this summer!!!!

Previously on Hot Tip:

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The winner: Polish tennis player Maja Chwalińska, who (win or lose) will be playing tomorrow in her first ever major final after starting the French Open as a qualifier—meaning, she wasn’t ranked, and had to earn her spot in the tournament. She is the lowest-ranked player (114 in the world) to ever reach the French Open finals and will face off against world no. 8 Mirra Andreeva at 6 am PT, so I’ll be doubling up on coffee and watching from bed.

The loser: Bari Weiss, who fired (or didn’t renew the contracts of) several of 60 Minutes’ most dedicated and experienced correspondents—and also the show’s longtime executive producer—in favor of Nick Bilton, an ex-NYTimes tech journalist who recently worked as a staff writer on Sam Levinson’s other exploitative-toward-women series The Idol, which sits at 18% on Rotten Tomatoes.

The good news: Hundreds of thousands of votes are still being counted in the Los Angeles mayoral race, and Spencer Pratt’s current 2nd place lead over 3rd place candidate (and Harvard/MIT-educated Urban Planner/Councilperson) Nithya Raman continues to shrink. Reminder: The top two candidates after the primary go to a November runoff, and only one of them said 9/11 was an inside job.

The bad news: Iran is threatening to expand Trump’s (still illegal) war if he doesn’t accede to their demands of releasing tens of billions in frozen Iranian assets.

Best look: Hunter Biden taking over social media + giving zero fucks, particularly where Jake Tapper is concerned.

Worst look: Maine Senate Candidate Graham Platner’s primary woes are going from bad to worse, with several of his former romantic partners detailing his allegedly “toxic” and “unsettling” behavior to the New York Times. I was admittedly initially excited by his campaign, but it’s been one controversy after another with this guy—perhaps next time we go with someone who doesn’t have a Nazi tattoo? Food for thought.

The yes, this really happened: If you’ve ever caught yourself wondering how tall the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool would be if it was not a pool, I’ve got great news for you.

The song: “High Hopes 3000” from ROLE MODEL’s upcoming album.

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The tickets: Knicks/Spurs tickets at MSG will cost you a pretty penny even in the nosebleeds—and by that I mean at least $7,500 a pop (so, 750k pennies.) And if you want to be courtside with Ben Stiller and Spike Lee? You can choose between a down payment on a house or a seat.

The I would pay good money to see that: Trump’s name is coming down off the Kennedy Center after a judge declared the move unlawful. It has to be removed from signage, documents, and merch by June 12.

Stay tuned: A woman in Charleston, SC says she is the rightful owner of one of Gustav Klimt’s final portraits based on familial ties and has filed a lawsuit in New York.

Best call: Dua Lipa and Callum Turner getting married—again—this time with guests in Palermo, Sicily.

Worst call: Gmail sending me an email about automatically opting me into Gemini without my consent, which prompted me to turn all of my AI settings off—easy-to-follow instructions on doing that found here.

The snack: Stone fruit. Your weekend mission, should you choose to accept it, is to buy every last pluot and cherry you can get your hands on at the farmers market.

The hack: Paula’s Choice is 30% off + free shipping through 6/11. I especially love their SPF 50 Hydrating Fluid—a super sheer and light sunscreen—as well as their exfoliating toner.

Previously on Hot Tip:

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Welcome back to this very special edition of Hot Tip, the summer guide!!!!!! As always, I polled some of the coolest, smartest, and hottest people I know to give you their best tips, tricks, and recommendations heading into June + July, because the world may be bad (politics, general vibes, White House Cage Fighting Match™️) but there are also many, many good things to do and try (tomato sammies, Meryl Streep-narrated audiobooks, Edinburgh Fringe, Philly water ices, etc.)

TOMATO GIRL SUMMER

• Capitalize on tomato season by making a vat of gazpacho! If you love hot soup on a cold day, you're gonna love cold soup on a hot day! I like to riff on this NYT times recipe, and will sometimes add whatever veggies call my name—a red pepper, some avocado—into the mix. — Zoe, Copywriter

• My favorite things to splurge on in the summer are giant beefsteak tomatoes from the farmer's market to make BLTs—a perfect sandwich, imo. The key is a thick, salted tomato slice and a generous heap of mayo (on both sides). Good bacon helps but isn't necessary, as it should be secondary to that gorgeous tomato. I am extremely passionate about this, and my love of summer BLTs get me through our most abysmal, sweltering days in New York. — Jennifer,

• Tomatoes! TLDR: make a bunch of tomato sauce, soup, etc. and can/freeze it. Tomatoes in the summer are amazing, and the rest of the year they suck. AND if you care to know why this is the case, listen to the “Tomatoes: A Love Story” episode of Gastropod. — Aaron, Self-described “produce snob”

  

• A not-groundbreaking-but-hits-everytime, 3-for-1 summer tip: an al fresco lunch break with iced coffee, heirloom tomato on toast, Elin Hilderbrand novel on lap. — Carly, Illustrator, Carly Martin Studio

OTHER SNACKS + BITES

• For the perfect light summer appetizer try these Dilly Snap Peas from Eating Well Magazine. Everyone always asks for the recipe! So easy to prepare, just delicious, and so pretty, too. Just make sure you use dill seed and not dill weed. — Annette, my mom!!!!

• I can’t believe I’m done gatekeeping this, but my go-to “bring to a summer gathering” treat is a cobbler. Sounds simple!!! And here’s the secret… it is. I combine the filling from this recipe (could be anything—I use peaches and blackberries) with the topping from THIS recipe, a simple shortbread that is truly so good that you’ll be eating it from the bowl. I promise this is the way, the truth, the light. Summer is for cobbler. — Michelle, TV Writer + Producer

• (Philly) John’s Water Ice!! 10/10. Always worth waiting in line for the storefront, or follow @johnswatericetruck to see where they'll pop up around the beautiful city of Philadelphia! — Jordyn, Veterinarian

• I love a summer BBQ, but here is my pitch: vegetarians do not want to eat Impossible Burgers. Give us VEGGIE burgers or BEAN burgers. We love beans! The floppy veggie burgers that fell apart at the shiver of a spatula are mostly a thing of the past. They adhere now! Food science is a marvel. But the meat substitutes scare us and leave us hovering over the grillmaster, worried that our franken-burger is going to be swapped with the real deal and send us into a poolside existential crisis. Save the substitutes for the cholesterol-conscious carnivores, and the veggie freaks in your life will thank you. — Jill, Development Executive

• After being pregnant for nine months, I'm ready for a raw bar summer. Leaning into seafood in all of its forms. — Ali,

• The perfect summer lunch is a snack plate. Bonus points if you eat it outside! My favorite snacks to include right now are fresh mozzarella (preferably the kind packed in water), peaches or apricots, and these lemon-stuffed olives from Trader Joe’s. — Skylar,

IN YOUR BAG

• When I tell you that I cannot live without my Bink, I am not actually speaking hyperbolically, because it’s the only reason I drink any water, which we apparently “need” for “survival.” I love the Day Bottle and I LIVE for the Lounge Straw Cap. Their color selection is primo, as is the chic, functional, and dishwasher safe combo of silicone and glass. 10/10. — Grace, Writer

• This tip is for my fellow migraine girlies! Do you get headaches from bright sunlight? Theraspecs sunglasses are here for you. Created by a husband and wife who both suffer from migraines, these sunglasses have changed the game for me. Now I can go for super sunny hot girl walks in the middle of the day without fearing neurological punishment. Wishing everyone a headache-free summer!!! — Azza, Documentary Filmmaker,

• Allow me, if you will, to talk about the bags themselves. I recently purchased this ludicrously capacious (compliment) Calpak carry-on bag for my upcoming Eurotrip, knowing I wanted something that could fit my laptop, my toiletries, and the dress for my friend’s wedding in Sicily—just in case my luggage doesn’t make it right away. It’s made in part from 27 recycled water bottles, and who doesn’t love a purchase that makes them feel both chic and like a good person at the same time? For daytime excursions with enough room for my camera + wallet, I remain obsessed with the baggu loaf bag, which weighs .03 lbs (estimated purely based on vibes), is super cute, and lies flat in my suitcase. Also: Have a friend getting married in Sicily. Huge win for me, personally. — Alex, Hot Tip Curator-in-Chief

ON YOUR BOD

• If you’re traveling to Europe this summer, buy sunscreen there & bring it home! I find the quality and the protection is much better. Stock up! — Courtney, EVP Client Services

• Coco and Eve Self-Tanner (currently on big time sale!) — Caroline, Actor

• I keep a tin of Fat and the Moon Lip Salve in every important corner of my world: bedside table, bathroom drawer, desk, backpack, car. Running out is not an option. Support this beautiful small business of good-smelling, healthful tonics and potions. (I am also a huge fan of their Bod Cleanse and Bod Oils.) — Lex, Writer

• Get a good tinted moisturizer. You want something to even out your skin tone while allowing the evidence of summer—your sun-kissed cheeks and freckles—to shine through. I recently grabbed a bottle of Make Up For Ever’s Super Boost Skin Tint after seeing Devon Lee Carlson rave about it. I can confidently say it lives up to the hype. — Rebecca,

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SUMMER SCENES

• Got summer travel plans? Download some audiobooks to get you through long flights/drives. I just finished my annual re-listen to the best audiobook of all time: Meryl Streep reading Nora Ephron's Heartburn. — Brennan, Writer + Journalist

• It is a truth universally acknowledged that THE OTHER BENNET SISTER is set to be your next summer obsession. Six episodes of this warm, delightful, moving, and utterly charming show have already dropped on Britbox (and yes, it’s worth the subscription!), with the finale coming out by the end of June. Starring the absolutely endearing Ella Bruccoleri and the world’s soon-to-be Irish boyfriend, Dónal Finn (my fellow musical theatre girlies know him as the West End’s original Orpheus!), this show has already captured my heart and will be your summer hyper fixation. — Brenna, Performer

• One Day by David Nicholls. Emma and Dexter first meet on July 15th, 1988, the night they graduate college—or “uni” I guess, since it’s the UK 🙄. The book follows their lives over the next two decades, but we only see them on July 15th each year. Whether they’re together, apart, or not even on speaking terms, their love for each other remains strong—even if it’s not always evident on the surface. One Day is about a relationship, but I wouldn’t say it’s a romance, definitely not a romcom. The Netflix show is incredible as well, and—though I can’t believe I’m saying this as a person who loves books more than life—I’m actually glad I watched the Netflix show before reading the book?? Enjoy, but don’t blame me for any strong emotional response you may have to this book! — Megan,

• IS GOD IS by Aleshea Harris (it was a play, is now a movie in wide release, maybe avail for VOD by the time you read this). It's a contemporary Greek drama, tinged with Tarantino, the Coen Brothers, and a singular perspective all Aleshea's own. If you're craving a new and fully realized cinematic voice, complete with bulge and butt shots of Sterling K. Brown, look no further. — Chase, Writer + Photographer

THE GREAT OUTDOORS

• My friend Emma just introduced me to this one (shoutout Emma!) If you live in California, you can rent a state park pass for free from the library! I went into a branch to rent one thinking, “This is too good to be true...” but guess what? It was smooth as heck! I got my free pass, and I’m going hiking tomorrow. — Mary, Screenwriter

• If you live in the LA area, I grew up going to R.A.T. Beach in Palos Verdes, which stands for Right After Torrance. Parking is plentiful and because it’s a sandy beach set adjacent to a dramatic cliffside, if you squint, it feels like you’re in Italy. It’s my happy place. Also, this bathing suit is stupid expensive, but I’ve been waiting for them to get this color back in stock for a YEAR. — Leah,

• (LA) I can’t believe I’m going to blow up my spot but there’s nothing lovelier than sitting outside at Village Pizzeria on Larchmont with a slice of pizza, a glass of wine, and a good book. You don’t need Great White or Max & Helen’s. — Lily, Extra Special

• (Chicago) Pizza Portofino’s patio when they open at 11. Super kid-friendly while still a little vibe, multiple types of spritzes for mom, watch all the boats pass by, bonus if you take the CTA home for a fun toddler adventure. — Anna, Finance Manager

THE GREAT INDOORS

• (NYC) Shameless plug: Check out Oberon, the restaurant opening in the expanded New Museum this summer. The OMA-designed restaurant is made primarily of carbon-storing cork and features commissioned works by artists Ian Cheng, Laurie Anderson, + Minjae Kim and an approachable, seasonal menu by Julia Sherman. Post-lunch and dinner services, the space transforms into an after-hours culture destination for premium cocktails and late-night bites with access through Freeman’s Alley. — Larry, Restaurant Operator

• This is for my wfh hotties who don’t have access to a pool: Run a cold bath and then hop in and out all day. Even for just 5-10 mins, you can relax and really cool down without wasting a bunch of water or time waiting for the bath to fill. When London had a May heatwave (not great, not normal), I got into the same cold bath four times in one day. And I fully intend to beat my own record by September. — Amy,

• (LA) The local watering hole I will be frequenting to stay ~cool~ and to stay COOL is Tap with Howard in Silver Lake. You will NOT find a better spot for a thirst TAP ;) — Rachel, Nurse

• (LA + Edinburgh) Come see my clown show Boyoyoyoyoing at The Elysian in July and at Edinburgh Fringe all of August! CRANK IT. — Matt, Actor

• When things start to warm up in LA, I like to take in the cool air conditioning of a classic movie palace. Now that you can ride the D all the way to Wilshire/Fairfax, the Tedd Mann Theatre at the Academy Museum—feat. green velvet seats and superior sound—should rise to glory. — Benzi, Architect

Previously on Hot Tip:

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Emily Horne has the wildly impressive resume of a Keri Russell character: National Security Council Spokesperson and Senior Press Director (Biden Administration), State Dept. Spokesperson and Press Advisor (Obama Administration), aaaand Head of Global Policy Communications at Twitter (not X, never X), among many other cool as hell roles. She has since founded her own strategic comms firm and writes Spin Class on Substack, theoretically also finding time to eat, sleep, parent, and generously answer questions for us here about how the fuck we wade through the mess of information we wake up to–often in the middle of the night, in a cold sweat.

Thank you so much for being here. I can’t wait to talk about our (dying? resurrectable?) media ecosystem with you–and how we make sense of it all.

I’m so glad to be here! I’m a big Hot Tip fan.

Trump 2 is very different from Trump 1, which was deeply insane and horrible, but had some adults at the table to force a tiny side of vegetables with all the bullshit. But now it’s just deep fried Big Macs and Kash Patel-branded whiskey. How different does the quality of information we’re getting feel to you, as someone whose job it was to communicate with the press and the public?

It’s utterly overwhelming and so gross. The infamous Steve Bannon edict to “flood the zone” with shit has become standard operating procedure, and as a result so many people have given up trying to make sense of it and are tuning out—which, as someone who spends an unhealthy amount of time consuming news, I get. And it’s not just quality of information: the scale of what constitutes news or outrage has been completely upended. When everything is a scandal, nothing is a scandal.

To put it another way: Picture a bedroom where everything is tidy and clean, but the bed is unmade. Your eyes go straight to it, and all you can see is the unmade bed. But imagine a second bedroom where, yes, the bed is unmade, but there are also dirty clothes piled everywhere, old crusty dishes on the floor, water leaking from the ceiling, a dead bear cub’s corpse in the corner, and a bunch of screaming people being set on fire atop said unmade bed.

In both cases, the reporter’s job is to go in and cover what’s messy in that bedroom at that exact moment. They can’t say of the first room, “here’s all the stuff that isn’t on fire,” even if the bed is unmade. Yet that’s exactly the context that people need.

Yup. As VP Kamala Harris would say, these things “exist in the context of all in which [they] live.” So why is CNN calling them RFK’s “new initiatives to help Americans get off anti-depressants” and not just “man with toilet bowl cocaine habit expresses opinions about which he knows objectively nothing”?

Reporters run on scoops. Scoops can only exist when people keep secrets. And a lot of secrets, especially personal ones, are based in shame.

But when the people reporters cover simply refuse to experience shame, baldly lie to your face, and operate with total impunity, reporters need to change how they do their job. Repeat relevant facts and context, and don’t assume that audiences have all the necessary backstory as to why this is all deeply abnormal. It’s not possible to list every cocaine toilet or Epstein encounter, but if something is relevant to the story they’re reporting, it needs to be included.

For example: every single article that notes Jared Kushner’s role in Iran or Israel diplomacy should also be clear that he runs a $6 billion hedge fund paid for by the same Gulf monarchies with whom he’s supposedly negotiating. That’s not editorializing, that’s a relevant fact!

Jared openly operates as both hedge fund manager and unconfirmed diplomat. He has simply decided the rules don’t apply to him, and refuses to be shamed by it. And while there has been some good standalone reporting into his obvious conflicts of interest, most beat journalists now cover his role in Middle East peace negotiations as they would any other envoy, because the fact of his corruption is old news, and reporters report new news. The horse race reporting of most political beat journalism normalizes the abnormal.

And it’s abnormal as hell out there right now!!!

I recently did a story that forced me to read lots of recent Trump transcripts—press gaggles, briefings, remarks at Oval Office events, etc. It was such a powerful reminder of how regularly mainstream political press sanewashes his actual words by summarizing or clipping something out of context. You really do get a completely different picture of what’s actually happening by reading or watching the raw feed versus consuming the political press coverage.

We’re all fairly numb to the ways Trump communicates: the ugliness, the insults, the AI slop memes and middle-of-the-night Truth Social rampages. But it’s clearly getting worse as he ages/decompensates, and that’s a marked difference from Trump 1. Jonathan Lemire recently pointed out that because Trump is physically imposing, loud, and dominates every conversation, he gets covered as an aging president differently than Biden, whose voice and physical presence both diminished over the course of his presidency. There are other factors at play, but it’s a solid point.

It doesn’t help that legacy media is now dominated by Bari Weisses and tech CEOs who care less about editorial integrity and more about flattering our naked-ass emperor and sending Katy Perry to space in a penis-shaped rocket.

We’re in a Wild West moment. Legacy media is under massive threat from corporate consolidation, political interference, and declining audience trust and attention (these things are likely related). We also don’t talk enough about the collapse of local news, even though 50 million Americans live in news deserts with little to no access to local reporting. That’s a crisis.

But at the same time, we’re living amidst an explosion of content creators, influencers, and independent journalists breaking news, providing vital analysis, and connecting with audiences in ways legacy media can’t or won’t. There are a lot of risks, but I’m overall optimistic: Break down the silos and barriers to entry!

Institutional backing doesn’t necessarily produce higher-quality coverage. The recent revelations about Eric Swalwell are an interesting case study: when Arielle Fodor (aka Mrs. Frazzled) received tips about Swalwell’s predatory behavior, she worked closely with his victims and their legal teams, vetted and corralled their stories, and helped them find legal representation and prepare for the fallout. Only then did everyone go to legacy media outlets with the kind of reach that really makes a story break through.

Meanwhile, there are still a lot of legacy outlets with high standards, diligent reporters, and resources to do solid reporting and analysis. And it’s not always the obvious ones: When I was in government, some of the best producers and fact checkers with whom I worked were with comedy shows! Last Week Tonight with John Oliver is sneakily one of my favorite platforms for policy news: they care about getting the details factually accurate because they have to have a solid foundation on which to make jokes, and they do longform TV like practically no one else. Show me another American show that will do a 15-minute segment on the President of Turkmenistan!

Is part of the solution moving towards these independent journalists and content creators? Hungary recently ousted its authoritarian leader with the help of political influencers. You’ve talked about “begging [your] colleagues in national security and foreign affairs to take content creation seriously” and reaching people where they are. Which is, for better and worse, their phones.

Even as audiences are increasingly distrustful of institutions like political parties, that doesn’t take away the human desire to have trust in something. So, where does that trust go? People are finding that trust not just in their IRL communities, but in influencers who mirror and validate their audiences: yes, this is happening, I see it too, you’re not crazy.

Audiences trust influencers because they recommend products we like, or validate our frustrations as a parent, or remind us of someone we know. They sit in between aspirational and accessible. We see them in living rooms or walking down the street on our phones, hear them in our headphones while we clean the apartment. They’re not at podiums or sitting behind imposing cable TV desks. It’s a completely different relationship, and so the intimacy and trust levels are different.

But. Trying to convince the donor class that the future lies in something that they don’t understand and don’t personally value, despite all the evidence of its reach and power, has been…challenging.

Dems want to see ROI on absolutely everything by the next cycle. They are not comfortable with experimenting, losing their grip on the key messages, or ceding control of the brand to non-elites. They are more likely to purity test and find reasons to exclude nontraditional messengers and validators, where MAGA will associate with pretty much anyone, for any reason. They’ve been throwing money at influencers for a over decade.

Not to mention that mainstream journalists are now being called–and I’m barely paraphrasing here–stupid, annoying bitches by the president.

It’s shameful that the White House Correspondents Association hasn’t pushed back harder against the way this administration regularly insults and abuses individual reporters, and the press generally. In any other workplace, that kind of treatment would be immediate grounds for HR discipline. Nobody should have to put up with being called a traitor or a bitch while doing their job. And reporters should worry more about audiences seeing journalists all taking this abuse without pushback, which reads like permission for it to continue.

But when White House reporters refused to band together in support of the AP immediately after the “Gulf of America” nonsense, it was game over. They’re concerned that pushing back would further curtail their access. And it’s true that they would face more retaliation, potentially even being kicked out of the room. But that’s already happening, anyways!

Contrast that with the Pentagon press corps’ refusal to comply with restrictive policies that would have severely curtailed their reporting. That’s what backbone looks like. Defense reporters getting their press passes yanked hasn’t really impacted their ability to do their jobs. If anything, several of them have told me, it’s brought in new sources eager to share what’s really happening. And, hilariously, many of the reporters whose passes were revoked still regularly come back for briefings, because Hegseth wants a full house for the cameras and the new crop of right-wing influencers aren’t super-reliable about attending 8AM pressers.

Pushback works. Journalists can do it professionally, without making themselves the story. Bullies almost always back down when confronted, especially when it’s a collective pushback.

Now, onto Iran. You recently wrote that “from the Iranian perspective, the more Trump threatens but doesn’t follow through, the weaker he appears.” You’ve–correctly, in this publication’s opinion–read his nonstop bravado as an admission of failure. How should we interpret this current moment, wherein we’re both being told that we’re moments away from a resolution, but have also just restarted bombing them during a “ceasefire?”

As my colleague Ariane Tabatabai noted, U.S. media tends to overfocus on what Trump officials say is happening vs. what’s actually happening. Part of the reason is U.S. outlets have large teams covering the administration, the Pentagon, etc. but comparatively smaller reporting on the ground from the region, Iran itself, etc.

The key point to remember is that there’s no going back to a pre-March 2026 world, where the Strait of Hormuz was fully open. The best-case scenario is that the current war ends in something like refried JCPOA (Obama’s Iran deal), but with Iran having learned that it can control the global economy by de facto closing the Strait of Hormuz. He’ll say it’s the strongest deal that anyone has ever negotiated, ever. But that will all be spin. He knows if he’s filling the space with drama of deal or no deal, everyone will be waiting for that decision.

In addition to banning journalists from the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth is known for his penchant for rhyming and riddling his way through press briefings. Do you wish you’d used more slam poetry when you were at the NSC?

I’m an elder Millennial, so my thing is more dumb Friends memes. I’d caption this one: “The Chinese PLA breaching the Taiwan Strait median line.”

We are less than six months out from the midterms, but Democratic comms feel so unhelpful and out of touch. Is there anyone you think is doing a good job communicating with voters right now who–and I’m just spitballing here–Hakeem Jeffries could copy? He’s so bad at it.

Good comms follows the rules of good improv: You “yes, and” with your audience. But Dems so often premise their communications on “I have something to inform you about.” Which, no. Think about it: would you rather listen to someone who tells you you’re right, or someone who tells you “you’re wrong, and I’m here to tell you why?” Spencer Pratt, God help us, may well become the next mayor of Los Angeles because he is savvy about this and his Dem competition is… not.

The most successful communicators win trust with their audiences by validating where their audiences already are, and using that as a springboard to “and here’s what I’m gonna do about it.” Dems like James Talarico, AOC, Jon Ossoff, and Mamdani are all phenomenal at making their audiences feel seen and validating where they are. It also doesn’t hurt that these Dems are all young, optimistic, and conventionally attractive at a moment where decrepit, venal, and tacky is dominant.

Also, Ilana Glazer’s “Explain It To Me Like I’m High” housing policy video with Brad Lander was adorable and needs to become a regular series. Ilana, call me! I have so many policy nerds for you!

I’d love your analysis on some Trump talking ranting points. He regularly screams about immigrants from “insane asylums” entering the US with–obviously–nothing to back it up. In your professional opinion, what is the likelihood someone told him that these people are seeking asylum, he misunderstood what that meant, and no one corrected him?

That’s clearly what happened. No doubt in my mind. And now everyone is running around praising the Emperor’s new suit.

Do you think the ballroom is really about a ballroom, or about what he’s purportedly building underneath it? (A massive military bunker.)

I think it’s about the ballroom! Truly. Trump and Putin have lots in common, but one of them is that they often directly say what it is they want (a big ballroom, Ukraine, military parades, etc.) and well-intentioned, very smart people search for deeper meaning or purpose, because they need it to make sense on their own terms. If it means something else, then we didn’t elect a President of the United States who spends this much time on a freaking ballroom.

Alas, that’s exactly what we did.

How do we ever recover trust between the White House and the American public, and the White House and the rest of the world? Maybe we melt the gaudy gold in the Oval Office and use it for some kintsugi?

This is what keeps me up at 3AM (that and Googling “[X] perimenopause symptom”). Our kids’ kids will likely still be dealing with the fallout from Trump’s second term.

I’d personally like to see a new administration prioritize tackling the self-dealing and corruption that’s flowed like boxed wine at a sorority house during Trump 2. There have to be meaningful, swift consequences for people who have been openly flouting the law and self-dealing. I think this would actually be pretty popular across the political spectrum—show me the rural Ohio diner where everyone’s main issue is “the Trump sons should never get audited.”

We’ve got to get ourselves in order if we want to be trusted to lead again on the world stage. In retrospect, we didn’t do nearly enough of this when Biden came in and it was a mistake (to be fair, we were in the middle of a fucking pandemic and global economic collapse, so—)

On the comms side, I doubt the US will ever be able to meaningfully teach media literacy at scale in my lifetime. Our politics are too toxic for it and the technology is evolving too quickly. But greater transparency and public understanding of how algorithms work, how media works, and diverse sourcing can help us all be better media consumers, and build trust between media and its audiences.

Which gets harder when we live in a world where we’re regularly getting duped by videos of puppies choosing their own owners at a shelter. Not that that’s ever happened to me.

I’m not a default AI hater, but we gotta all be honest that AI is a massive driver of distrust with many audiences, and as the technology becomes ubiquitous that will likely intensify. There’s a lot of vectors to AI skepticism (jobs displacement, environmental impact) but for these purposes I’m most worried about the trust aspect—the violation humans feel when we learn we’ve been fooled is a powerful emotion. Done right, it can incite delight (“A surprise party! For me?!”) or visceral, furious disgust (“you used ChatGPT to write our wedding vows, DANIEL?”).

When in doubt: put down the screen, walk away, and talk with a real person, even if you disagree. No one has ever said on their deathbed “I should have fought in the comments more.”

What inspired you to start your newsletter, Spin Class?

I launched Spin Class to explore how media and comms actually function in our current hellscape: a relentless deluge of information that somehow keeps us trapped in our own information bubbles, which are curated by a messy mix of algorithmic agendas and powerful humans. I was also tired of operating only in Very Serious™️ DC spaces, where people are more likely to use Clausewitz than Real Housewives as a frame for understanding our world. Both are valid, but we’re living in a reality TV show presidency! Stupid times need stupid rubrics.

Some of my favorite Spin Class pieces are about how to spot a White House-planted story in the wild, how a right-wing slop factory tweet got laundered into the New York Times, and how Trump insiders are leaking against his Iran War. I love questions that get at how the sausage gets made: “why am I seeing this,” “why am I seeing this NOW,” “who wants me to see this,” and “what am I not seeing?”

I’m super bullish on audience appetites for going deep on how news gets made, and why our media is the way it is. When GRWM and unboxing videos are a legit genre of media and deep-dive podcasts on niche subjects pull huge numbers, it says to me that people want to literally unpack the world around them, and understand why they’re seeing what they’re seeing.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Spin Class

Politics, policy, and culture through a communications lens.

By Emily Horne

Previously on Hot Takes:

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Note: This is a long-ass list and cannot possibly be done every Sunday. Consider it the 'everything shower’ of your home, only to be done once a month or so, and then pick and choose what your space needs in between.

BASICS

• Vacuum. I’m an adherent of three religions: Judaism, The Great British Baking Show, and this Levoit vacuum cleaner. The order depends on the day. Some additional spots you may not have considered: Under your bed (move it, it’s dusty as fuck under there), your couch cushions (not just under the cushions, the cushions themselves with the hand vac attachment—if you never do this prepare to be horrified), behind and around trash cans. After vacuuming, mop or Swiffer.

• Empty aforementioned trash cans. And immediately put fresh bags in them, because the situation can otherwise devolve very quickly into just throwing things into one of the many Trader Joe’s paper bags you have in your coat closet.

• Replace filters. When was the last time you changed your water filters? Your AC filters? (If you rent, have you ever changed your AC filter? Because I never once thought about it til the LA fires.) Write down today’s date somewhere, either on the filter itself or in a planner, so you know when to do it next. If you live in a city where the air and water are clean enough as is, god bless!!! But if you don’t—I use these for drinking water, this for my bathroom sink, a variety of air purifiers (in a 700 SF space, I know, but it helps), and MERV 13 AC filters.

LAUNDRY + DISHES

• Do laundry all day long, if it’s in your building or apartment. Start with all your bedding and your towels, your bathroom rugs, your kitchen runner (one of my better decisions was getting this machine washable one.) Every time a laundry cycle ends, start the next one. Don’t leave your sheets til 10 pm, lest you just end up sleeping on a bare mattress and thus defeating the purpose of cleaning your sheets in the first place. (But who would do such a thing???) After home stuff, then wash your clothes. And don’t forget high traffic items: throw pillow cases, sofa blankets, kitchen towels, fabric scrunchies. I said what I said.

• Wash and put away all your dishes. Whether via dishwasher or by hand, but either way—the reason your kitchen smells weird is because your egg pan has been “soaking” for three days. Then deep clean the kitchen sink and dish drying rack. Baking soda and steel wool go a long way here.

DE-GROSSIFY

• Fridge deep clean. This includes the shelves, and the items themselves. Wipe the sticky exterior of the hot sauce bottles with a wet paper towel. Pour out and throw away the kombucha you opened and drank half of six weeks ago. Take seltzers and sodas out of the box and organize condiments in a neat, color-coded way that would make people come over and think, damn, she has several kinds of mustard—and therefore must have her shit together.

• De-crumb. Vacuum under your table, in the table seams + on your kitchen chairs. Wipe the crumbs and seeds and burnt bits out of your toaster/air fryer, oven, and stovetop.

• Don’t avoid the tasks that suck. Clean your toilet. Wipe down your shower curtain liner/shower door and counters. Spray and scrub the tub. Dust your bookshelves and ceiling fan blades. Clean your espresso machine’s drip tray and throw away old coffee grounds. Windex your windows and mirrors and the glass coffee table you got fingerprints on while eating late night chicken nuggets.

  

PREP FOR THE WEEK

• Buy and grind fresh coffee beans. Hot tip: Most coffee shops give you a free cup of drip or cold brew when you buy a bag in person.

• Do small things to make Wednesday you grateful to Sunday you. Meal prep easy items, like roasted sweet potatoes, a pot of farro or rice, black beans, balsamic roasted cherry tomatoes, chia seed pudding, overnight oats, etc. Bonus points for making things you can just throw together in a bowl with lettuce and sauce. I also like to boil water and make a bunch of iced tea for the week.

• Set reasonable expectations. Put one book on your nightstand that you actually want to read, not a pile of books that mock you every time you get in bed. Don’t shame yourself if you want to reread something, or if you’re not into reading at all. I also love doing the NYT Crossword Puzzle before sleep.

ORGANIZE + RESET

• Schedule. Get your planner/Google Cal set up for the week. Doctors appointments, meetings, lunches, séances with the souls of wronged women, whatever is on your to-do list.

• Re-fold and hang stuff. Open your dresser drawers and properly fold the clothes that are likely just in piles. Get the clothes off the chair in the corner and hang them up. Sit in your chair and appreciate the use of it as a chair. Consider an ottoman. You probably don’t have room, but it was fun to think about, wasn’t it?

• Refill items. Put new heads on your razor and toothbrush and refill your hand soap. And if you don’t have any—order new heads for your razor and toothbrush and more hand soap. Wash the cup and/or toothbrush stand and wipe down the dish with all your skincare products on it.

• To-go. Prep a small pouch to keep in your car or purse with things like floss, deodorant, gum, lip balm, mini sunscreen, and ibuprofen. Hand wash your sunnies with warm water and dish soap. You are now prepared for almost anything the universe plans to throw at you.

• Switch from overhead light to lamps at 7 pm. I also have two of these very chic nightlights (a phrase I didn’t know was possible but is) that make my bathroom a peaceful place to be on a Sunday evening.

BONUS POINTS

• If your rug or couch need cleaning, the Bissell mini green is great.

• Wear Bala bangles while doing any and all of this for a little extra workout.

• Go through the car wash and vacuum out your seats/floor mats. Your commute will feel 20% chicer tomorrow.

• Water your plants, repot the ones that have outgrown theirs, prune dead/unhelpful leaves, and put out a bouquet in water if you have time to go buy one—or if your neighbors won’t miss a few of their roses.

PERSONAL CARE

• Start off the day strong. For me, this means a morning trip to the farmers’ market, a coffee, and a pastry.

• Brick your phone. You don’t have to go totally tech-free, but social media free while you’re doing all of this helps. It’s a slippery slope from watching one story to learning everything about your former roommate’s ex-boyfriend’s (who you never even liked) wedding in Portugal.

• My favorite once-a-week skin, body, and haircare products: Christophe Robin scalp scrub, Ouai thick hair treatment mask, Peter Thomas Roth peeling gel, Caudalie pore minimizing mask, Celisse cuticle oil. Drink some tea while you have a mask on and lie in your robe in your clean sheets and watch last night’s SNL.

• Survey your kingdom. Before you go to bed, just stand there and look at your clean as hell space. You did that!!! Sunday scaries, be gone.

Previously on Hot Tip:

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I’m back with another Weekender to combat the May Gray in Los Angeles. For the uninitiated: while the weather tends to improve this time of year ~everywhere else~ in the northern hemisphere, in LA it gets so consistently weird and spooky and overcast, the micro-season has an official name: May Gray (to be followed next month by June Gloom, which, you’re correct, does not technically rhyme.) Luckily halfway through that I’ll be on my way to a wedding in Sicily*.

*if you have packing tips for more than two weeks but less than one month in Europe, I’m all ears. Literally, you should see my baby pictures.

The winner: Carlos Alcaraz, who can’t play at the French Open this year due to an injured wrist but who is on the cover of Vanity Fair covered in clay anyway.

The losers: Spencer Pratt, and everyone who is supporting and/or platforming this hateful, inexperienced dum dum running for LA mayor. That includes Lakers minority owner Jeanie Buss, deeply loca boy Taylor Lautner, and guy who has never once gotten it wrong before Joe Rogan (who also, mind you, doesn’t live in LA.)

Ice cold tips: Spencer sold photos of Mary Kate Olsen when she was a teenager, used to pal around with Sandy Hook conspiracy theorist Alex Jones whom he has called “an American hero,” and is just trying to turn this entire thing into a reality show. Where have I heard this one before?

The good news: Grogu got to walk the red carpet at the premiere of his new movie.

The bad news: Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN) is ending his reelection campaign after the state’s GOP chopped up his district last week. He’s Tennessee’s only Congressional Democrat.

Best look: I continue to be floored by the grace with which Stephen Colbert is exiting CBS, because I know I would personally be much pettier than he is. But I also thoroughly enjoyed watching him and David Letterman throw furniture off the roof of the Ed Sullivan Theatre, which landed on the target below—a very familiar giant eye.

Worst look: Ka$h Patel wins again, outed recently for having his own personalized bourbon bottles and publicly challenged to take an alcoholism questionnaire by Sen. Chris Van Hollen. Then this week we found out about a trip under the sea he took last year (under seemingly no duress whatsoever, completely of his own volition, by total choice), the scuba excursion from hell. I guess maybe catch him this summer on a Segway tour of Arlington National Cemetery?

The book: I finally had time this week to dive into ’s recently published Girls Our Age, and am loving this perfect ode to 30-somethinghood.

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The drink: As a gal who can’t get into martinis no matter how hard she tries—they just taste like straight vodka to me—I am desperate to try this summer olive mocktail, via . Hot tip: I may try it with pickle juice and pickled jalapeño brine, too.

Best call: A Neue Galerie merger with the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2028, just announced yesterday. The collaboration brings pieces into the Met Collection where it’s lacking, and preserves Neue (and Café Sabarsky) with its collection of Klimts as is.

Worst call: More female celebrities shilling the “girls don’t get left behind by AI!!!!” argument. Admittedly, one of them is a big time plagiarist, so—if the shoe fits.

The lol: After Trump fell asleep at his desk during an Oval Office event, the White House defended it by saying he was “blinking.” And whomst among us doesn’t enjoy extended, minute-long blinks while Dr. Oz calls women “under-babied?”

The snack: It would not be an exaggeration to say my life was permanently altered via potato chips this week—specifically Graza’s Zesty Caesar flavor from their new line at Target.

The hack: As a long-time double cleanser (oil-based, then water-based), I was overjoyed to discover CeraVe’s version of the former, which costs half of what I usually pay.

The meh, it’s fine: Laurel Supply is the new ~it~ grocery store in West Hollywood, and I found it pretty but mostly underwhelming. My only asterisk is that the baked goods are excellent—I went with rosemary focaccia and a hazelnut cocoa cookie.

Still thinking about: John Mulaney’s two-hour set last week at the Hollywood Bowl, at least 45 minutes of which was an RFK Jr. impression that had me wheezing (in a much cuter, less creepy way than RFK does.) Thank you to Netflix and Substack for sending me and putting me in the same general radius as Jon Stewart, too.

Previously on Hot Tip:

Btw: Sales from any affiliate links included in this email generate a small commission for me, at no additional cost to the buyer—but I only promote products I actually use, love, and pay for myself.

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In politics:

Once again, we are sending in the small, weird, random guns—Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff—to try to negotiate an end to the Iran “Not a War” War, this time without the VP; apparently the only thing more offensive than the president’s non-government employee son-in-law definitely using a war to make money is the mere presence of JD Vance and honestly, I get it. (**Since writing, he has now decided not to send them, perhaps because he felt shamed by Hot Tip, perhaps because he’s a dementia-ridden creep. We may never know.**) But it’s not happening ASAP: Trump says he doesn’t want to “rush” it despite raging gas prices, an unshocking revelation from a guy who said this the most recent time he was in the front seat of a car:

Quick tips: Federal firing squad executions are back, in case it wasn’t already feeling enough like 1859. Tucker Carlson may suddenly be apologetic-ish, but he’s still a raging bigot/antisemite. It’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner weekend in D.C., and in lieu of a comedian, the WHCA has picked “mentalist”/magician Oz Pearlman to—I’m assuming—guess the nuclear codes? Which—I’m assuming—are just B00B$? But hey, at least we can rely on journalists to continue speaking truth to power whilst choking down room temperature well-done ketchup-dipped steak—

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In business:

The federal government will soon be returning $166 billion to corporations like Costco, Gap, and Walmart after their tariffs were ruled illegal, but you’re not likely to see a dime of it—okay, can we at least get a free Costco hot dog???

Apple has a new CEO, bed and bath are beyond once more—in the form of combined stores with The Container Store—and Meta is laying off 8k employees and Microsoft is offering buyouts for up to 7% of its US workforce as both companies turn towards AI and away from ~you just writing your own damn emails!!!!~

👀: The Victoria Beckham x GAP collection, which is selling out fast.

72 hours in New York.

I lived in New York in my early 20s, and I wasn’t very good at it. But I am good at visiting New York, which I got to do this week for the Broadway opening of Schmigadoon!—yes, adapted from the AppleTV show and yes, company managed by one of my best friends. It’s a great time for anyone who wants to hang out in an old, beautiful theatre for two hours with Ana Gasteyer (everyone on earth, I must assume) and who appreciates dancers so good you contemplate signing up for adult classes despite the fact that, babe, you’ll simply never bend that way!!!

Of course, I also go to New York to eat. The best place to get breakfast and a sarcastic remark from an impatient waiter (compliment, I tip extra for this in New York) remains always and forever Barney Greengrass. I take great pride in the fact that I’ve always ordered the very same dish there as former regular Anthony Bourdain—eggs scrambled with nova and onions, giant block of cream cheese, and a bagel (everything for me.) And since my usual non-dairy lifestyle was already out the window, I also stopped by Radio Bakery in Prospect Heights, for both a triple chocolate croissant and a turkey pesto focaccia sandwich. And if I may, Radio Bakery:

In pretending I’m in a different tax bracket: I finally ventured into Printemps, a Parisian department store outpost in FiDi, and while I touched ~almost nothing~ due to the risk of breaking and buying, the store itself is a work of art, and absolutely worth perusing. I had a similar experience poking my head—and body, it was raining—into the Drawing Room at SoHo’s very chic Crosby Street Hotel. I like operating under the “pretend like you belong until someone notices you don’t,” general rule, and usually that works.

Other highlights included McNally Jackson, shoppy shop Greenwich Letterpress, a Shabbos stroll in Central Park, and a very good latte from Kona Coffee. But the best part, duh, was seeing six different friends—opening new shows, starting new jobs, having new babies, and generally thriving. Also, public transportation to the airport. Make note, LA.

Read: This piece from Jake Reiner on the loss of his parents, Rob and Michele.

FYC: I’m convinced pounding Zicam and a recent Covid booster shot prevented me from getting sick after two recent big trips. And I’ve recently begun using Living Proof’s smooth styling serum and my at-home blowouts have a) never looked better or received more compliments and b) last days.

Previously on Hot Tip:

Btw: Sales from any affiliate links included in this email generate a small commission for me, at no additional cost to the buyer—but I only promote products I actually use, love, and pay for myself.

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I won’t deny that shit feels bleak right now—and by right now, I mean for the last decade+ that Sir Shits-a-Lot has been in our lives—but remember: there are always joys, wins, and breakfast sandwiches worth celebrating. For me this month, that’s a visit by my whole family to C…

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