Playbook PM: The new Supreme Court scrutiny

Fourteen months ago, our colleagues Josh Gerstein and Alex Ward’s revelation of the Supreme Court’s draft Dobbs opinion didn’t just upend American politics and abortion policy — it also ushered in a new era for the media’s coverage of the court.

No longer do SCOTUS reporters principally cover only the cases before the high court. Now they’re focused more regularly and aggressively on “the justices’ business dealings, relationships, and ethical issues,” as well as the broader politics around the high court, Vanity Fair’s Charlotte Klein reports in a new story that interviews Josh about the shift.

It’s exemplified by recent stories asking explosive ethics questions about Justices CLARENCE THOMAS, SAMUEL ALITO, SONIA SOTOMAYOR and more. Top newspapers are putting more resources into this mode of reporting, including the NYT and WaPo (though the court doesn’t make it easy with access).

And a recent New Republic article from Melissa Gira Grant questioning the factual foundations of the same-sex wedding website case “begs the question,” writes Klein: “Shouldn’t mainstream outlets give similar scrutiny to the origins of cases in the Supreme Court’s docket from the get-go?”

More From Politico: