Paper Trail

Rachel Kushner on Sartre and skiing; Marina Ovsyannikova’s on-air protest of the Ukraine invasion


Rachel Kushner. Photo: Lucy Raven.

Marina Ovsyannikova, a Russian journalist at a state-run network, faces charges for interrupting a news broadcast with an anti-war sign. In a video posted before the protest, Ovsyannikova said she regretted her role as an editor at Channel One: “I’m ashamed I told lies from the television. Ashamed that I let them zombify the Russian people,” before closing with defiant words, “It is in our power to stop this lunacy. Go to protests, don’t be scared, they can’t detain us all.” 

Rachel Kushner is now writing the “Easy Chair” column for Harper’s Magazine. Kushner will alternate with Hari Kunzru on the monthly feature, which blends personal writing with criticism and reporting. Kushner’s first column, “Skiing and Nothingness,” is about her history with the sport and Sartre’s philosophy of it: “He treats skiing with an ontological importance few have given it. Few, that is, besides Martin Heidegger, who wore his ski suit to teach in Freiburg after spending the morning making turns near his Black Forest hut.”

Gina Chua, the executive editor of Reuters, will be joining Ben Smith and Justin Smith’s as yet unnamed global media start-up in April. 

The spring issue of n+1 is online now, including Haley Mlotek’s essay on Deborah Levy’s memoirs, Hannah Zeavin on psychoanalysis and whiteness, Sarah Resnick on crypto Twitter, Will Tavlin on the future of moviegoing, and more. 

The Drift magazine is having a launch party for its new issue tonight

Tonight, the Free Library of Philadelphia welcomes Elie Mystal for an in-person event about his book, Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy’s Guide to the Constitution. Mystal will be in conversation with law professor Danielle M. Conway.