GRAPHOMANIA

Officially New Year’s Eve! Here are the ten best things I wrote in 2018. I hope you enjoy at least one of them.

• My examination of the way the CIA gamed the media to get Gina Haspel confirmed https://www.cjr.org/analysis/the-cias-unprecedented-pr-push-to-make-gina-haspel-its-director.php

• My explainer of what exactly Vladimir Putin wants out of Donald Trump, and what he seems to be getting: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/when-putin-asked-for-help-on-sanctions-trump-listened
• My examination of the group of Russian right-wing maniacs trying to use the NRA as a recruiting vehicle for credulous and/or horny Republican operatives and officials https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/exclusive-russian-gun-group-with-ties-to-nra-backed-by-right-wing-extremists
• My profile of comics deity Frank Miller https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/apr/27/frank-miller-xerxes-cursed-sin-city-the-dark-knight-returns
• My investigation into the group of contrarian waiters who didn’t want raises and turned out to be an astroturf group working on behalf of restaurant owners https://www.cjr.org/analysis/77-referendum-astroturf-tipping.php
• My explanation of why the Republican line of idiotic, illiterate questioning of tech execs on Capitol Hill is more sinister than it looks https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/google-should-have-been-grilled-more-intelligent-lawmakers-house-republicans-ncna947221
• My interview with Marcy Wheeler: https://www.cjr.org/tow_center/emptywheels-marcy-wheeler-knows-more-than-she-tells-but-she-tells-a-lot.php
• My laundry list of reasons for the press to step back and take stock of itself after the Maria Butina indictment: https://www.cjr.org/tow_center/tldr-from-russia-with-love.php
• My essay on comics as therapy https://woollymag.com/culture/comic-books-are-self-care.html
• My feature on the Kalashnikov factory in Florida that *probably* does not exist. https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/rick-scott-sanctions-and-a-shady-gun-maker-with-russian-ties

That’s it! It wasn’t a particularly glamorous year but I’m surprised by how proud I am of my work, which I think mostly holds up pretty well. I’m also *incredibly* proud of the work of my colleagues at the Tow Center and the wonderful people at CJR who let me hang out in their office and yell story ideas in the morning meeting.

In general I spent a lot more time parenting and husbanding and drawing and reading and walking than I did last year. I’m glad I did, and I think it made my writing better, too.