TVNewser stopped in to the Kimberly Hotel last night for a book party thrown by MSNBC president Phil Griffin in honor of Chris Hayes, who is the first-time author of “Twilight of the Elites: America After Meritocracy.”
Yvette Miley and Alex Wagner were also on hand to toast the “Up” host, who told us the writing process was “like exercise — it feels painful while doing it, but there’s a sort of endorphin rush from the process of it mentally.”
“Writing the book and doing the show are my two favorite things I’ve ever done,” Hayes said.
But writing a book and hosting a live television show are extremely different, which Hayes recently learned the hard way after he was sharply criticized for saying on “Up” that he was uncomfortable calling soldiers heroes. So which medium does he prefer?
“I love them both,” Hayes said. “I wouldn’t want to give up either one. What I love about the show is those two hours require total, 1,000 percent concentration. You can’t be distracted on live TV. You have to be attentive.”
The book, which will be released on Tuesday, also required Hayes’ full attention for the better part of two years, which is how long it took him to research and write it. Despite several ideas for future books (“those I’m keeping to myself,” he joked), Hayes said that in the immediate future his plans are “doing my show and being a dad.”
“That will be what I do,” he said. “I’m sort of looking forward to that for a little bit.”