New Yorker picks Bannon to headline, drops him

NEWYORK — The New Yorker caused a wave of controversy Monday after announcing that former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon would headline the 19th annual New Yorker Festival.

Later, the magazine dropped Bannon from the festival lineup.

Bannon, who left the White House in August 2017 and has moved on to helping far-right groups in Europe, was scheduled to speak with New Yorker Editor David Remnick on “the Ideology of Trumpism” Oct. 5.

Remnick said he was planning for a “serious” conversation with Bannon.

“I have every intention of asking him difficult questions and engaging in a serious and even combative conversation,” Remnick told the New York Times.

But outrage followed, including from others scheduled to appear at the festival.