The Trials of Bob Menendez

Why Not Be Honest? • “Identity Hijacking” • Brain Worms [View in your browser]( | [Update your preferences](newsletter=vf) [Vanity Fair Hive logo image]( The Trials of Bob Menendez Good morning. Fundraising brought Bob Menendez “particular dread,” as one of his congressional staffers [told]( Dan Adler for VF. “I just want to win the lottery and say fuck you to everyone,” the staffer recalled Menendez saying. “He wanted to get rich,” they said, adding, “he knew he was gonna do it.” Of course that’s just one piece of color from a very heady tale set in New Jersey, with a cast of animated characters including Menendez, his wife, and a halal exporter. The criminal proceedings against the senator have made national headlines, with a second corruption trial slated to begin on Monday. Elsewhere, Amy Chozick, a journalist and cocreator of The Girls on the Bus, [responds]( to criticisms of the show ahead of its final episode on Max, noting that too many portrayals of journalism on the big and small screens adopt a holier-than-thou tone: “Yes, journalists are vitally important, but it takes more than us to maintain democracy,” she writes. “Why can’t journalists be human? Why can’t we be honest? Infallible? Flawed? Extremely stoned in our Hilton Garden Inn, but only after we’ve thoroughly fact-checked and filed a story?” Plus, Nick Bilton [details]( the three-decades-long story of William Woods and his pilfered persona, showing us just how destructive identity theft can be, even without manipulating today’s emerging technology. Fraudsters today, meanwhile, are upping their antics with advanced AI, and the ease with which identities can be appropriated is wildly daunting. Thanks for reading. [Image may contain: Robert Menendez, Paparazzi, Person, Accessories, Formal Wear, Tie, Glasses, Electronics, and Mobile Phone]( [The Case of the Developer, the Halal Exporter, US Senator Bob Menendez, and His Wife]( By [Dan Adler]( [The criminal proceedings against the New Jersey lawmaker, whose second corruption trial is scheduled to begin on Monday, have made national headlines and recast international relations. But they’re also a tale of a singular political ecosystem and a handful of its shrewdest inhabitants.]( [Read more button](   [The Girls on the Bus Are Messy, Flawed, and Driven—Just Like the Best Journalists I Know]( By [Amy Chozick]( [Ahead of Thursday’s final episode on Max, the show’s creator explains why the portrayals of sanctimonious scribes speaking truth to power don’t fit the times.]( [Read more button](   [Identity Theft Is a “Kafkaesque” Nightmare. AI Makes It Way Worse.]( By [Nick Bilton]( [From hyperrealistic deepfakes to voice cloning, fraudsters are upping the threat level, potentially heralding, as one expert warns, the era of “identity hijacking.”]( [Read more button](   [RFK Jr. Says His Brain Was Partially Eaten by a Worm That Crawled Inside and Died: Everything You Need to Know]( By [Bess Levin]( [For one thing, his campaign says it won’t affect his ability to serve as president.]( [Read more button](   [Donald Trump’s Legal Luck Doesn’t Seem to Be Running Out]( By [Eric Lutz]( [The former president might be getting a beating in his Manhattan trial, but Trump continues to get break after break in Florida, Georgia, and DC.]( [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