Vic Verbalaitis
Vic Verbalaitis is a Night Breaking News Reporter at the Daily Beast who focuses on fast-moving stories about Trump, his allies, and the wider machinery of power, law enforcement, and media. His copy tracks late-breaking developments in American politics, legal conflicts, and public controversies, often through sharp headlines and tight, high-impact narratives. His background in feature and human interest writing informs a style that foregrounds personalities and stakes even when he is filing on deadline.
Trump, power and the legal grind
Much of Verbalaitis’ recent work follows Trump’s political and legal orbit, with an emphasis on conflict, humiliation, and risk.
He writes on figures in Trump’s circle such as former economic adviser Kevin Hassett, framing on-air confrontations over polling as emblematic of the campaign’s struggles. In coverage of “DOJ goons” escalating legal battles with top law firms, he tracks how loyalists and institutions clash in court and in public, highlighting the pressure points in the legal system around Trump. Pieces on Jeffrey Epstein’s “chilling” Trump-related confession and on what “terrifies” Trump draw on new revelations and expert commentary to connect personal vulnerability, foreign entanglements, and political fallout.
Across these stories, he keeps the focus on how power is exercised, challenged, and exposed, rather than on process for its own sake.
Russia, Putin and international entanglements
Verbalaitis regularly surfaces stories where Trump’s world intersects with Russia and Vladimir Putin. Headlines on Trump “fearing” Putin and on the “most jaw-dropping” Putin-related scandal follow the trail of investigative reporting and expert analysis, distilling complex financial and political ties into clear, accessible narratives. In covering reports that a Trump family wedding was financed by a Russian oligarch close to Putin, he situates personal events within a larger pattern of dependence and influence. His writing in this lane tends to foreground key revelations, quotes and money flows, bringing the international dimension of Trump’s politics into the nightly news cycle without losing the immediacy of breaking developments.
Podcast coverage and royal and political commentary
Alongside straight news pieces, Verbalaitis writes regularly from the Daily Beast’s podcasts, turning long-form conversations into concise stories.
For episodes probing why Trump is in a “terminal tantrum” or why his “dark fantasies” are crumbling, he pulls out the most striking characterizations and arguments from authors and analysts, emphasizing health, behavior and the durability of Trump’s hold on the political system. He also covers The Royalist and related shows, including analysis of a royal “blunder” by King Charles and its impact on Prince William, treating the monarchy as another arena where image, missteps and power dynamics matter. These podcast write-ups rely on deft summary and careful selection of quotes, giving readers the core takeaways without requiring them to listen in full.
Breaking news beyond the Trump beat
Although politics is a central focus, Verbalaitis’ archive shows a broader breaking-news remit. He has reported on an ICE agent shooting a man in Austin, following official accounts and demands for answers to capture both the incident and the accountability questions it raises.
In an obituary for a legendary NFL general manager, he documents the passing of a major sports figure with the same straightforward, deadline-driven clarity he brings to political stories.
He has also covered developments that could give millions of Americans an extra day off work, linking policy and labor decisions to everyday life. This wider breaking-news work shows he is used to moving quickly across topics while keeping a consistent emphasis on impact and consequences.
Feature and human-interest grounding
Before joining the Daily Beast in his current role, Verbalaitis built experience across magazines, newspapers and local outlets, writing and photographing stories for mastheads including Newsweek, People, Epicenter-NYC, Chelsea News NY, the Arizona Daily Star and the Arizona Republic.
He has worked across beats such as breaking news, crime, arts and entertainment, human interest, celebrities, health, solutions journalism and the cannabis industry. That range underpins his present-day approach: even in short breaking-news pieces, he prioritizes vivid framing, memorable quotes and clear human stakes.
His work at the Daily Beast combines that feature sensibility with high-volume, night-shift output on politics and power, making him a reliable byline for rapid coverage of Trump-era turmoil and related controversies.
4 more politics journalists.
Aaron D'Andrea
Aaron D’Andrea is a supervising online journalist at Global News who treats politics as part of a wider news ecosystem, combining breaking-news speed with close attention to how decisions and incidents shape public life. He focuses on high-impact politics and breaking stories for a national audience, especially where provincial power struggles and national politics collide, and how premiers, opposition parties and activist groups can turn local moves into national questions. He reports on digital deception and politics, including deepfake scams targeting public figures, and covers crime and public safety when cases rise to national significance. His background includes covering the 2018 Toronto van attack, local reporting for Metroland Media with award-winning coverage, and earlier work in television production. He now also oversees online content from journalists across the country while still contributing fast, visually driven, fact-first stories.
Abhishek De
Abhishek De is a senior journalist at India Today who turns complex political and security developments into clear, accessible stories. He covers foreign affairs, geopolitics, defence and politics, with a focus on strategy, alliances, military doctrine, domestic power struggles and party accountability. His reporting on Trinamool civic battles and Abhishek Banerjee puts internal party dynamics, civic governance and institutional power at the centre of the story. He has also worked on news desks in print and digital media and has filed on politics, health and sports. His style is direct and controlled, with clean structure, tight language and strong explanation.
Adam MacVicar
Adam MacVicar focuses on how local government decisions become budgets, transparency fights and changes for residents. He is Global Calgary’s city hall reporter, covering municipal governance and politics, Alberta’s referendum on its place in Canada, independence campaigns, investigations and party politics. His beat also includes major civic projects, transit, public spaces, redevelopment and housing affordability. He has reported on leaked budget documents, property tax pressures, closed-door meetings, a proposed lobbyist registry, the RCMP corruption probe into city hall and allegations of voter fraud in a provincial party leadership race. He has covered the Olympic Plaza transformation, the Green Line LRT route, the Symons Valley Centre library and housing supply. His work uses leaked documents, economic analysis and reporting from council chambers and project sites. He has worked with Global Calgary since 2017, after earlier radio and television news roles.
Aishwarya Dudha
Aishwarya Dudha reports on how politics, justice and public decisions affect vulnerable people. She works for CBC News, covering immigrants, Indigenous communities, people with disabilities and families facing loss. Her beat includes crime, policing, courts, housing, homelessness, climate policy, economic decisions, local development, sport, health and disability. She has previously worked for CBC News Network and Global News. Dudha connects official decisions and events to lived experience. She centres under-represented voices and examines the human stakes of homicides, trials, institutional failures, public infrastructure, industrial projects and community safety. Her reporting combines timelines, policy and public response with family perspectives, testimony, workplace details and local context. She also profiles athletes and community efforts, keeping personal stories central while showing how law, economics and public systems shape daily life.