Kara Swisher Played a Secret Role in Breaking RFK Jr.’s Sexting Scandal
The veteran tech reporter said she passed on details she knew about “sexual” messages between Kennedy and a journalist to New York magazine.
Belinda Jiao/Reuters
Kara Swisher appears to have played a role in breaking one of the most salacious media stories in recent memory.
In a profile for The New York Times, the veteran tech reporter turned popular podcaster revealed how she became aware of “sexual text messages” exchanged between New York magazine’s Washington correspondent Olivia Nuzzi and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was then running for president as an independent.
Swisher passed details of the exchanges to New York magazine. The story of Nuzzi’s sexting relationship with Kennedy was first reported by journalist Oliver Darcy in his media newsletter, Status, in September 2024, with the magazine confirming that Nuzzi had been placed on leave as a result.
Reporter Olivia Nuzzi was profiling Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during his presidential run.
Stefani Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
Nuzzi stated the relationship with Kennedy was “never physical” but acknowledged it should have been disclosed to the magazine to avoid the appearance of a conflict.
The relationship is also believed not to have begun until after a November 2023 profile Nuzzi wrote on Kennedy was published.
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Nuzzi and New York magazine parted ways a month after she was placed on leave. The publication said it found no “inaccuracies nor evidence of bias” in her reporting.
A spokesperson for Kennedy—who is married to actress Cheryl Hines—said in a statement at the time that he had met Nuzzi just “once in his life for an interview she requested, which yielded a hit piece.”
Kennedy eventually suspended his White House bid in August 2024 to endorse Donald Trump and was confirmed as his health and human services secretary in February.
RFK Jr. was accused of having a personal relationship with Nuzzi during his 2024 presidential campaign.
Leah Millis/Reuters
Swisher’s role in the story was a small but notable detail in the Times profile, which chronicled her continued ascent in the media world.
Despite years of interviewing tech titans like Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg at The Wall Street Journal, it was her podcast Pivot, co-hosted with entrepreneur Scott Galloway since 2018, that brought her widespread recognition.
“At the end of this long career, it’s like, ‘Oh wow. I make something people really like,’” Swisher, 62, told the Times.
When Swisher and Galloway’s contract with Vox Media—also the owner of New York magazine—to host Pivot and four other podcasts came up for renewal, the duo explored other offers. One offer on the table was reportedly for $40 million over four years.
In the end, they re-signed with Vox under an unusual revenue-sharing agreement: They’ll keep 70 percent of all podcast earnings, with Vox taking 30 percent.
Galloway estimates that the podcasts could make around said $100 million in revenue over the next four years, meaning he and Swisher are on course to pocket $70 million from the deal.
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