On this week’s episode, I’m joined by New York Times film critic Alissa Wilkinson to discuss her new book about Joan Didion, We Tell Ourselves Stories. I mentioned the book in a newsletter a couple of weeks back, but I wanted to focus on the ways in which the political world has borrowed showbiz’s penchant for image calibration, from the ways in which issues are decided upon to the means by which politicians decide which voters to target. Didion, of course, was a natural observer of these shifts, having spent years in Hollywood before becoming one of the nation’s most interesting political observers. If you enjoyed this episode, I hope you both pick up a copy of Alissa’s book and share this with friends!
I was not aware of Joan Didion until I read the obits after she died, so I'm late to hear of her observations about Reagan during his govenorship. When I encountered him at multiple events between 1991 and 1993, I saw a glaringly on-stage / off-stage presence; speaking behind the podium he was the president you saw in the 80s, but when not playing the role, he seemed fragile. Now I know there was nothing new to that. It was a long standing, deeply ingrained characteristic.
Sonny, could we try to remember that it was Barry Goldwater who went to the White House to tell Nixon to resign? There were multiple perspectives but a complete loss of morality and the absence of belief in American democracy was NEVER an issue.