taking notes: alex friedman

of substack's hot tip

Welcome to our third installment of “taking notes” where I pester both internet and IRL friends about what makes them tick, their creative process, and how the hell they got so cool. In this edition:

Alex Friedman

.

---

I started following Alex pretty much as soon as she launched her Substack, Hot Tip. Something instantly struck a chord when it came across my feed. Perhaps it was her ability to point out the big issues of the day in a way that didn’t make we want to cry, or maybe it was that she captured the feeling of absurdity I had been feeling in a very coherent and funny way. Regardless, since I stumbled upon it, it’s been a must read for me every time it lands in my inbox.

I wanted to chat with Alex about how she navigates this weird (and horrifying) time through the lens of comedy, how she keeps herself sane during these trying times, and what she’s keeping a close eye on in the news these days.

She’s charming, she’s witty, she’s brilliant.

Hope you enjoy!

---

First, let’s start with the basics:

What’s your name? Technically Alexandra Friedman, but everyone who isn’t the IRS calls me Alex.

What do you do? I’m a writer at the intersection of journalism and comedy. Journady? Comedism?

Where did you grow up, and where do you live now? What brought you there?

I’m from Marietta, Georgia, and now live in LA by way of New York, D.C., and Atlanta. I came out here to be a comedy writer, but I stayed for the great weather, lovely friends, and ease of breakfast burrito access.

What’s your favorite thing about where you live? Least favorite?

Weather is huge for me, which is why I was so depressed living in New York. LA is sunny and warm most days, and my mental health has improved tenfold being here. Least favorite are fires and earthquakes. This past January was one of the toughest things I’ve ever experienced, but the people of this city really showed up for each other.

What does your household look like? Partner? Pets?

A one bedroom apartment where I am constantly making new holes in my walls because I realize the art on this wall would actually look better on that wall. I kissed my security deposit goodbye a long time ago. Tons of tchotchkes that mostly belonged to my ancestors, and a few things I’ve acquired at flea markets or on my travels. No pets, but I do treat my plants like my children. I’ve got several small trees that I raised from birth (planted the pits of fruits I ate, and then was very patient.)

Walk me through a typical morning at your house.

If I’ve remembered to bake muffins over the weekend – from a box mix I like with some fruit or nuts added, nothing fancy – I start with that and a cold brew. I use Trader Joe's cold brew concentrate and a rotating non-dairy creamer that’s usually hazelnut or vanilla flavored. I don’t know exactly what happens at the end of your 20s and beginning of your 30s that makes your body think cow’s milk is a dangerous threat, but the shift is real and swift. If no muffin, then eggs on sourdough with avo and hot sauce or hummus. While I eat, I listen to a podcast about the news, usually The Daily, Up First, or something from Crooked Media. Then I start writing.

What does your day to day look like?

A ton of reading the news and contemplating new ways I can make fun of J.D. Vance, either at my desk or at a coffee shop nearby. I also write scripted comedy, so when I’m working on a pilot or a pitch, it’s sitting at my laptop and rewriting things over and over again until I make myself laugh, which is embarrassing.

Where can we find you on the weekends?

Always a farmers market, often a movie, usually a long walk in my neighborhood, and there’s typically at least one brunch or dinner with pals. Very few people in LA have a normal job with regular hours, so weekends and weekdays do sometimes blend together. I don’t mind.

Moving on!

I’m obsessed with your Substack, Hot Tip. Where did you come up with the idea, and what led you to start writing?

Thank you so much!!! I honestly can’t say enough how much it means to me that it’s resonating with people. I had a very active Twitter (RIP) but quit and deleted my account when America’s Next Top Inseminator took over. So I needed somewhere else to land, but I wasn’t quite sure of what I wanted my newsletter to be until about ten months ago. I had just returned from a trip to Paris, and the news was very bad, but I also had just eaten and experienced some of the greatest moments of my life. It all sort of came together for me when I thought about my enthusiasm for sharing info, whether it’s a really great pastry or the headline of the day. I’ve worked in both news (ABC, CNN) and comedy (Late Night with Seth Meyers), so I live at that intersection of entertainment and information. I love telling people about things that I think are worth knowing, and I’ve always been someone very attuned to news and politics, by choice. I figured, well, I’ll be reading about all the mess anyway, so might as well make something cool and productive out of it. I’ve been experimenting with the format over time, but that’s where Hot Tip started. It is sort of my take on a late night show, but for a more modern, fast-paced, online generation. I’m a firm believer in the power of humor to make things more digestible. And I wake up excited to work on it every day.

With so much going on in the world right now, how do you decide what to discuss in your newsletter, and are there any topics you prefer to write about - or which to avoid entirely?

I will say I generally avoid anything that can’t be made at least a little bit funny. There is a lot of stuff that is too bleak, and I’m like, that’s what the New York Times is for. I’m here to inform people with a headline AND a giggle, and then provide the option to dig deeper into it if they desire. I do want people to feel like they got genuine info out of my newsletter that helps guide them through this awful political moment, but also want to be someone who tells them about a great new cookbook, a weird development in scientific research, or which Muppet just earned an honorary degree. So it’s mostly just what I think is a) important b) interesting c) cool and/or d) something for which I can come up with a solid punchline.

Writing about such objectively depressing things can take a toll. How do you keep yourself sane?

Honestly, writing Hot Tip is the way I keep myself sane. It’s all about striking that balance between real headlines and contemplating whether the new Pope has AMC A-List like me. I get to make things funny, and reach a growing audience, all on my own terms. As a writer, that’s basically the dream. Now I just want to keep making it bigger, and therefore myself saner. That’s how that works, right?

Is there something that’s alarming you more than others these days? What should people be focusing on, when it comes to getting angry and taking actions?

Definitely the random street kidnappings of undocumented people who are in no way a threat or a danger to anyone. They work, pay taxes, contribute to our economy, and just want a better life for their families–and they are being disappeared to countries a) they didn’t come from and b) with no due process. It’s horrifying to anyone with eyes and a normal conscience. And of course the censorship. It’s scary to see massive news organizations choosing to pay out tens of millions and “settle” with Trump instead of fighting for their First Amendment rights. But collective action can and does work. We saw Target receive a ton of (deserved) blowback for ending their DEI programs, and people have just stopped shopping there. It’s been a huge financial burden for them. So we absolutely need to not just cooperate with these new corporate moves and policies. A newspaper you read is obeying in advance (cough cough, Jeff Bezos’ Washington Post)? Cancel your subscription. When it hurts enough ($$$), big companies will have to reconsider their shitty behavior.

Tell me, if you were running for office, what would your main platform be? And if you were advising Democrats right now, what would you tell them?

My platform would be I WON’T TEXT YOU WEIRD NOVELS ASKING FOR MONEY. And my advice would be STOP TEXTING ME WEIRD NOVELS ASKING FOR MONEY. Clearly this method of communication is ~not working~ and just pisses people off. An email from Nancy Pelosi’s office with the subject line, “ALEX, I SERIOUSLY JUST NEED THREE DOLLARS” ain’t hitting. There are so many tech savvy, smart, cool, funny Dems in Congress (Jasmine Crockett, AOC, Sarah McBride, Greg Casar, and Maxwell Frost, to name a few.) Don’t be afraid to use them and pass the freaking torch. Hire some creative and funny millennials and Gen Z-ers to write for you. Focus more on the message than the money. If the message is good, the money will follow.

You’re independent, and that allows you to retain a strong sense of voice. What do you think most media outlets get wrong about covering the news and communicating with viewers that might be feeling burnt out by it all?

I think my biggest issue is the obsession with both sides-ing fascism. I don’t need to hear from a panel of twelve people who are weighing both sides of whether all humans should have equal rights. When Trump threatens to start deporting and jailing American citizens, having a MAGA sycophant on air to say “no, he’s just being silly” is an affront to our intelligence. An op-ed in the New York Times explaining why one loser dude agrees with banning birthright citizenship isn’t helping anyone, nor is it based in reality. And similarly, don’t engage with stupidity. Stop asking Trump if he plans to run for a third term. He can’t. It’s rage bait and all it does is normalize the behavior of criminals who just want to do more crimes!!!

I’m curious about your writing process. How do you structure your time, and with the news changing by the minute, how do you ensure what you’re putting out is still relevant when you send out your newsletter?

My newsletter comes out twice a week, so it is usually still timely, but I’ve considered a shorter, daily version to keep up with the ever-evolving news. I’m truly just constantly refreshing Google News as I write. I often have CNN or MSNBC on in the background, bringing down their daytime age demographics in a big way (you’re welcome, CNN News Central.) There isn’t always relevant info there, and a lot of the time it’s just people screaming at each other, so I mute it until it’s actual news. I start the mornings with a broad look at the big and/or interesting stories of the week and hone/trim as I go. But yeah, sometimes something I’ve written in the morning is different by the afternoon, and I have to take it out. It’s extra sad if it’s funny and/or at the expense of Ted Cruz, but I’ll bookmark it for another day. He’ll suck again.

How do you combat burnout, both with the news and constant influx of information, and when it comes to writing?

I take breaks and go for walks, a lot. Some days it just feels like the writing isn’t coming naturally, so I try not to force it. I watch Youtube videos about what’s in a celebrity’s bag or Pedro Pascal doing just about anything, I water my plants, or read other people’s Substacks that I love (like Mom Friend!) Usually a little bit of movement, food, and time make a big difference. And then I get back to it.

I talk a lot about fashion and shopping on here, so I’d be remiss if I didn’t ask you about your personal style. How do you view fashion in relation to your work, and do you have any favorite brands/pieces/style tips to share with our readers out there?

I wasn’t always good about it, but I’m trying to view my fashion as an extension of myself, and therefore Hot Tip. I want to look like someone you would trust to get your news from, and sometimes that’s as simple as not writing in my pajamas, which would be very easy for me to do when I work from home. Also, I’m 31, so I’m sort of in this in-between phase with my fashion where I’m trying to look like someone who is put together, but on a relative budget. I’ve been investing in more quality basics from places like Madewell and Gap, and I love thrifting pieces that are a bit more colorful or patterned. There’s so much garbage in the world, so if I can reuse something beautiful and prevent it from ending up in a landfill (at a discount, no less!), I’m all for it.

Rapid fire round:

Favorite restaurant in LA: All Time. I’d be embarrassed by how much I go there if it wasn’t such a perfect place. On weekends when there is a long line, they serve wine, coffee, and doughnut holes to people waiting. I mean, come on.

Most worn item in your closet: I love my Blundstones. I had a pair for 11 years and when they finally broke, the company replaced them for free. A real lifetime guarantee.

Can’t live without product: Can I just do my whole nighttime skincare routine here? Because I’m a super firm believer in it. I start with Caudalie grape water, then layer Sunday Riley C.E.O. Vitamin C serum (the most expensive thing I put on my face), A313 (an inexpensive retinol and French pharmacy staple), and then CeraVe moisturizer. End with Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask, the only thing that actually hydrates my otherwise very dry lips. I use it in the daytime, too. I know, I’m wild.

Dream vacation spot: A small but extremely charming top floor apartment in Paris or Amsterdam with a skylight and a boulangerie downstairs. When I open the window in the morning, I can smell the fresh croissants. In a true dream world, it rains for 30 minutes every afternoon, but otherwise is sunny.

Favorite place for creative inspiration: On a walk or a drive. I think movement and not being bound to my laptop tends to help me get out of my head. I text myself my ideas and hope I remember later what I meant.

Currently reading: Carrie Soto is Back, by Taylor Jenkins Reid. The perfect accompaniment to the French Open.

Currently watching: Hacks Season 4. I’ve been really impressed by the comedy and heart this season. Special shout outs to Meg Stalter, Paul W. Downs, and Robby Hoffman, who are making an art form out of their supporting roles.

Can’t miss podcast: Good Hang with Amy Poehler. She’s my hero in this and every other life.

Song/album/artist you have on repeat? It’s sister bands right now! HAIM, who have a new album coming out in June, and Aly & AJ, whose new album Silver Deliverer rocks.

Anything else you want readers to know? Where can they find you? You can find my newsletter at readhottip.com and Hot Tip’s Instagram @readhottip and me anywhere with a breakfast burrito on the menu.

Jen here again: that’s it from me today! See you Friday for more rambling thoughts and shitty mirror selfies!

xx

jen