Steve Kornacki on Vibe Shifts, Anxiety, and Democracy

When the fate of the country hangs in the balance, Steve Kornacki is our go-to guy. MSNBC’s normcore king was the star of Election Night 2020, a soothing presence in the face of uncertainty who crunches the numbers and makes the always-intimidating electoral map his bitch. Tell us how you do it, Kornacki. — MEL OTTENBERG

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ELECTORAL COLLEGE

“Method by which we elect the president.”

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MAKEUP

“The less, the better.”

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RACHEL MADDOW

“Incredibly kind and generous person.”

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AMERICA

“Great country.”

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THE SUPREME COURT

“Nine members. No one ever seemed to care more about it than they do now.”

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KHAKIS

“I still don’t understand why people care.”

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SNOOZE

“I use it too much on the alarm clock if that’s what you’re asking.”

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LIBERALISM

“Democrats have really embraced it.”

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SWEETGREEN

“That’s the salad place downstairs, right? Yeah. I’m trying to go there more.”

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POLLS

“I think there are a lot of issues, but they get a bad rap overall. They’re still valuable.”

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CLOSE CALLS

“I guess it makes me think of how many times I’ve almost screwed up terribly on the air, or fatally off the air.”

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FLYOVER COUNTRY

“I see it as a derogatory term, but I do think it captures a problem in the media.”

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ALL-NIGHTERS

“In this day and age, it seems like every election night.”

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NEWSMAX

“I would say it’s one of the voices you need to listen to, to understand where the right is today.”

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ESPN

“I was one of the first in my class to start watching it, back in the ’80s when we got cable in our town. Made me a huge college basketball fan.”

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VIBE SHIFTS

“I’m not even sure what they are.”

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DIET COKE

“I’ve tried to stop. Everybody tells me it’s the worst. I’ve had thousands of gallons in my life.”

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THIRST

“Trying to drink more water.”

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DEMOCRACY

“It’s a great system. Lets me do this.”

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DATA

“There can be too much of it. And I think the challenge, and what I try to do, is find what’s most important, what’s most meaningful, and then try and communicate it in a way that’s actually useful. Because I think data can guide you, can lead you, but it can also mislead you.”

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ANXIETY

“I get a lot of that. Yeah.”

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THE GAP

“I think they make these pants.”

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MAPS

“I love them, even though I can still get lost in front of the driveway.”

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PRESIDENTIAL RACES

“Nothing like them. First one I can remember following was 1988, a little bit as a kid. I understand it more now obviously than I did then, but I’ve been following them ever since.”

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HORSE RACES

“I’ve been following those almost as long.”

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NORMCORE

“Who?”

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Photography Assistant: Peter Fisher