When the recent slate of Jeffrey Epstein emails dropped, one line immediately jumped out: “I think you should let him hang himself.”

It was part of a 2015 email exchange between journalist Michael Wolff and his source, Jeffrey Epstein, discussing whether they should give Donald Trump a heads-up that Wolff had heard CNN was planning to question Trump about his relationship with Epstein.

We dissect this startling exchange by talking with three journalists, who each had a different take on it – and what this sentence means for journalism, access, and the boundaries reporters might cross to get information.

Question Everything is a production of KCRW and Placement Theory. And don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter.

Guests:

Isaac Saul, Founder and executive editor of Tangle, a nonpartisan politics newsletter
Susan Zakin, veteran journalist and Substack writer
Tara Palmeri, The Red Letter Substack and host of the Tara Palmeri Show

‘Let Him Hang Himself’

Question Everything

‘Let Him Hang Himself’