Trump's Bizarre 'Piggy' Remark and Oval Office Confrontation
This week witnessed another extraordinary moment from former President Donald Trump, whose 'quiet, piggy' admonishment of a female reporter aboard Air Force One sparked widespread debate. The incident, which many observers interpreted as a catastrophically misguided attempt at affection or flirtation, highlighted Trump's characteristic inability to communicate appropriately. The effect was, as usual, entirely inappropriate and disastrous.
The following day, Trump's behaviour took a more sinister turn during an Oval Office meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. When ABC News correspondent Mary Bruce courageously questioned the Saudi leader about his alleged orchestration of Jamal Khashoggi's murder and raised concerns about the Trump family's $50 million in Saudi business deals in 2024 alone, the former president erupted in explosive rage. His response, calling Bruce a 'terrible person and a terrible reporter,' demonstrated what many find most unnerving about his communication style - that babyish register that feels more sinister than adult criticism.
Vanity Fair's Controversial All-Male Hollywood Issue
In publishing news, Vanity Fair created significant controversy with its decision to feature an all-male lineup in its annual Hollywood Issue. Under new editor Mark Guiducci, the magazine presented actors including Glen Powell, Michael B Jordan and Andrew Garfield under the banner 'Let's hear it for the boys!' This move subverts the publication's traditional format and aligns with what critics describe as the awkward 'what-about-men' lobby seeking underdog status for the demographic that still earns more than women.
The debate coincides with discussions around masculinity ignited by David Szalay's Booker Prize win, which has prompted claims that male journeys aren't sufficiently celebrated and that women dominate publishing to the detriment of male writers. These assertions persist despite the fact that twice as many men have won the Booker Prize as women over the past 15 years, and that publishing salaries remain low partly because it has historically been a female-populated field.
Media Scandals and Publishing Cancellations
The week also saw the culmination of what's been unfortunately termed the RFK Jr 'sexting scandal' involving former New York magazine reporter Olivia Nuzzi. Nuzzi was fired after her inappropriate communications with the presidential candidate she had profiled for the magazine. The situation attracted additional attention through a blog post by Ryan Lizza, Nuzzi's ex-fiancé who was himself fired from the New Yorker in 2017, and a New York Times profile that attempted to frame Nuzzi's story as a state-of-the-nation piece.
In other publishing news, Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York, faced continued fallout from the Epstein scandal with the cancellation of her children's book 'Flora and Fern: Kindness Along the Way.' The book about two rabbits learning 'kindness and community' was postponed from October in hopes the controversy would subside, but the publicity tour has now been entirely cancelled.
A Positive Note in Publishing
Amid these controversies, a positive publishing story emerged with the success of Danish author Solvej Balle's seven-part novel 'On the Calculation of Volume'. The remarkable literary work, which took 30 years to write and unfolds over a single day, has become a publishing sensation despite commercial odds. The heptalogy earned a place on the International Booker shortlist this year, offering a refreshing contrast to the week's other media stories.
