By Ryan Teague Beckwith Businessweek, March 20, 2021 Susan Wise Bauer’s editor reached out to her last year about updating her 2008 book The Art of the Public Grovel, about how politicians apologize when accused of sexual misdeeds. …

Watergate-era law on documents relies on trusting officials Mishandling occurs more often than realized amid records glut By Ryan Teague Beckwith Bloomberg News, Jan. 24, 2023 A Watergate-era honor system for safeguarding top-secret information in the White House clearly isn’t working. Revelations that Donald Trump, Joe Biden and now Mike…

Strategies from civil lawsuits may not fly in criminal cases Five lawyers are unindicted co-conspirators in latest charges By Ryan Teague Beckwith Bloomberg News, Aug. 5, 2023 Donald Trump is learning the hard way that the bare-knuckles tactics he used in civil cases as a businessman can backfire dramatically in…

Six key states have laws that would bar a third-party run Legal experts say Trump would face extensive litigation By Ryan Teague Beckwith Bloomberg News, March 6, 2023 Donald Trump hates losing so much that he has suggested he will mount a third-party campaign if he doesn’t win the Republican…

Lawmakers seek to curb early, mail-in and curbside voting Measures spark backlash among voters with disabilities By Ryan Teague Beckwith Bloomberg News, July 12, 2023 Republican efforts to restrict voting have sparked a backlash among people with disabilities, hurting the party’s appeal to a key group of swing voters. Disability…

Feature stories are like a meringue: a light, airy confection that requires a lot of work behind the scenes to pull off. For the reader, a feature story is a fun diversion from the news of the day, an interesting glimpse into other people’s lives or a simple reminder of…

“Slaughterhouse-Five” is Number 4, if you’re interested Credit: Maya Eilam Sources: “A Man Without a Country” and “Palm Sunday” by Kurt Vonnegut

A running list Atoms Q: Why can’t you trust atoms? A: Because they make up everything. Protons A proton is running late to church. When it finally gets there, it finds services have already ended. “But Father,” says the proton, “how could you have mass without me?” Neutrons A neutron walks into a…

Government meetings are boring, tedious, drawn-out affairs that are also the source of some of your most interesting and compelling stories. The trick is knowing where to look. If you are covering a branch of government as a beat, then you’ll need to attend every meeting, arriving early and leaving…