The XX Factor : Vanity Fair

The Cute-ocalypse is Coming

Kerry Howley — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:48:00 GMT

Like Lauren, I enjoyed Jim Windolf's insightful attack on cute culture, but I find the otters-holding-hands/Iraq War connection to be a bit of a stretch. Windolf suggests that we're asking for forgiveness through penitential offerings of cuteness, but...(read more)

The Dangers of the Cute-R-Net

Samantha Henig — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:51:00 GMT

A post from DoubleX writer Lauren Bans: Several times a week I walk by the marketing section of my office and see a group of grown men and women in their business-casual attire standing over someone’s computer screen giggling and cooing. Almost daily,...(read more)

Enough Out of You, Young Levi

Jessica Grose — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:55:00 GMT

The juicy bits from Levi Johnston's article in Vanity Fair are now online. The most talked-about excerpt is sure to be that Sarah Palin wanted to keep Bristol's pregnancy a secret ... (Read more in DoubleX )...(read more)

Heath Ledger Profile Shows How Fame Can Destroy the Psyche

Jessica Grose — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 13:38:00 GMT

Sara, you said that childhood stardom was such a destructive force for Michael Jackson , and you were right. But the current issue of Vanity Fair has a cover story on Heath Ledger that shows for a sensitive adult, stardom ain't all its cracked up to be,...(read more)

The Car Seat Taboo

Emily Bazelon — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:17:00 GMT

Palin is back among us not only as a God-loving runner (is that a strange shot with the flag , or what?) but also as a hard-charging mama bear. In Todd Purdham's Vanity Fair profile, which Dayo and Jess dissected earlier this week, are new tidbits about...(read more)

The Sarah Palin Saga: Why Doesn't She Get it?

Dayo Olopade — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:22:00 GMT

Like Jessica, I devoured Todd Purdum's blistering report in the current issue of Vanity Fair about Sarah Palin that draws on sniping from former John McCain aides, shrugging statements of disownment from acquaintances in Wasilla, and sorrowful head-shaking...(read more)

Sarah Palin's Uneasy Relationship with the Truth

Jessica Grose — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:24:00 GMT

There are many things that I find deeply upsetting about Sarah Palin. But in the new Vanity Fair assessment of Palin 's current place in the political universe, the most disturbing thing Todd Purdum reveals is her inability to discern or care about the...(read more)

Is It Wrong to Feel Sympathy for Eliot Spitzer?

Susannah Breslin — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 12:47:00 GMT

I have a strange fascination with Eliot Spitzer. There, I said it. It's true. I suppose that's in part due to the fact that when Spitzergate roared its way into the headlines, I was running a project in which I was (for reasons that now escape me) collecting...(read more)

Bernie Madoff: "Nothing Gets By Ruth"

Bonnie Goldstein — Wed, 06 May 2009 20:03:00 GMT

Eleanor Squillari , Bernie Madoff's former executive assistant cooperated with Vanity Fair reporter Mark Seal for a juicy secretary's point of view on her crooked ex-boss that will appear in the VF June issue. Squillari spent two months helping the FBI...(read more)