Tabloid Tales of Donald Trump

“Surreal” Trump Trial Moments • Media Bromance • Student Arrests Amid Gaza Protests [View in your browser]( | [Update your preferences](newsletter=vf) [Vanity Fair Hive logo image]( Tabloid Tales of Donald Trump Hello from the Hive! In these early days of Donald Trump’s historic hush money trial, which is expected to last six weeks, the case has accrued what Dan Adler [describes]( as a “narrative flourish, taking jurors into the almost comically sordid world of supermarket tabloids and a man who has loomed large over them.” David Pecker, the former National Enquirer publisher and Trump’s longtime friend and ally, was the state’s [first witness]( in the trial, which started last week. On the stand, he called the ex-president a “mentor.” Hollywood Reporter special correspondent Lachlan Cartwright, who was an editor at the Enquirer during the scandal, [recounts]( on Inside the Hive this week what it was like working under Pecker, who admitted in court to using “checkbook journalism” to suppress a story about Trump’s alleged extramarital affair with former Playboy Playmate Karen McDougal. Pecker “created this incredibly toxic newsroom, which was governed by fear and paranoia,” says Cartwright. Elsewhere, protests over the war in Gaza have spread to [college campuses]( across the country, which has us reflecting on the 1968 [Columbia uprising](. Plus, Pablo Manríquez [writes]( about John Fetterman, the Democratic senator from Pennsylvania who has been unequivocal in his support for Israel despite a growing shift among Democrats to rebuke the military response in Gaza. Thanks for reading, and we’ll see you back Monday. [Image may contain: Donald Trump, Face, Frown, Head, Person, Sad, Photography, Portrait, Accessories, Formal Wear, and Tie]( [Trump Trial: David Pecker’s Testimony and the Long Life of a Media Bromance]( By [Dan Adler]( [Taking the stand in Donald Trump’s historic hush money trial, the former National Enquirer publisher described how the supermarket tabloid became a campaign instrument—and rehashed his glory days.]( [Read more button](   [“You Can’t Believe This Happened”: A “Surreal” Trial and Tabloid Tales of Donald Trump]( By [Brian Stelter]( [Vanity Fair’s Dan Adler paints a vivid picture of his time in the courtroom, while The Hollywood Reporter’s Lachlan Cartwright recounts the atmosphere of fear and anxiety at the National Enquirer under David Pecker.]( [Read more button](   [Republicans Add Fuel to the Fire as Student Arrests Sweep College Campuses]( By [Eric Lutz]( [Mike Johnson has called for the deployment of the National Guard at Columbia University, while Greg Abbott argued that University of Texas protesters “belong in jail.”]( [Read more button](   [From the Archive: “The Whole World Is Watching”: An Oral History of the 1968 Columbia Uprising]( By [Clara Bingham]( [In April 1968, hundreds of students at Columbia University took over campus buildings in an uprising that caught the world’s attention. Fifty years later, they reflect on what went right and what went wrong.]( [Read more button](   [Image may contain: Tie, Accessories, Accessory, Electrical Device, Microphone, Human, Person, Suit, Coat, and Clothing]( [John Fetterman, Fervent Israel Backer, Has Never Actually Been]( By [Pablo Manríquez]( [Perturbing his staff, the Democrat from Pennsylvania has been unequivocal in his support for Israel since October 7, despite a growing shift among Democrats to rebuke the military response in Gaza.]( [Read more button](   Get on the list Subscribe to our Hollywood newsletter for your essential industry and awards-season news, every day. [Sign Up Now](   [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn](   This e-mail was sent to you by The Hive. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, vanityfair@newsletter.vf.com, to your address book. View our [Privacy Policy]( [Unsubscribe]( Sent from Condé Nast, 1 World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007 Copyright © 2024 Condé Nast