Vanity Fair is currently looking into the conduct of its new West Coast editor, Olivia Nuzzi, following allegations raised by her former fiancé. He claims she had an affair with ex-South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford.
The magazine, owned by Condé Nast, is reassessing its decision to bring on Nuzzi less than a year after she departed from New York Magazine amid revelations regarding her personal relationship with publicist Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as reported by the New York Times.
Concerns among Vanity Fair executives reportedly grew after Ryan Rizza, a former colleague of Nuzzi at Politico, published a newsletter detailing how he found out his live-in girlfriend had been intimate with Sanford.
Staff members at Vanity Fair are said to be “shocked” by Rizza’s claims, with many questioning whether the management made an erroneous choice in hiring Nuzzi.
Lisa Nuzzi, who previously wrote about Sanford for the September 2019 issue of New York, appears to have begun a relationship with the former governor a few months after that article’s publication.
In a separate newsletter, Rizza recounted discovering a handwritten love note addressed to “Mark” in his girlfriend’s backpack, which he interpreted as evidence of an affair. He alleged that Nuzzi secretly communicated with Sanford, sending him explicit messages and eventually admitted to being intimate with Rizza at Sanford’s home while claiming she was taking care of her ailing mother.
Rizza described Nuzzi’s past as “tumultuous,” referencing her time with Keith Olbermann, who he said supported her while she was at Fordham University.
A Vanity Fair spokesperson stated that they are surprised by the allegations and are reviewing the situation.
Before Rizza published his explosive newsletter, Vanity Fair had released an excerpt from Nuzzi’s upcoming memoir, “American Canto.” In the excerpt, she discusses her feelings for RFK Jr. and how they expressed affection for one another.
She writes, “I love him, I thought. Oh no, I love him so much.” The two shared candid conversations about their physical attributes, with RFK Jr. even commenting on Nuzzi’s mouth while mentioning another topic.
News of Nuzzi’s relationship with RFK Jr. also gained attention, similar to the recent allegations about Sanford, and was a factor in her exit from New York Magazine.
Nuzzi’s lawyer, Ari Wilkenfeld, remarked that in “American Canto,” she only refers to one instance in her journalistic career where she had an inappropriate relationship with someone she interviewed. He further criticized those trying to tarnish Nuzzi’s reputation.
The Post has reached out to Condé Nast, Nuzzi, and Rizza for responses.
