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Benjamin Wittes is the Editor-in-Chief and co-Founder of the Lawfare blog, an online publication dedicated to national security issues, published by the Lawfare Institute in cooperation with the Brookings Institution.  Lawfare was started by Ben and Robert Chesney, Texas at Austin law professor.  And what began as a fun little project in 2010, quickly turned into a massive news source for those interested in national security law.  In 2017, alone, the site had 15 million page views.  A graduate of Oberlin College where he studied English Literature and Japanese History, Ben tried his hand at writing novels and short stories, but he didn’t feel inspired by that genre of writing. Eventually, he discovered a passion for legal affairs and decided to combine it with his original passion: writing. 

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE:

• What an Editor-in-Chief actually does day-to-day
• What it took to build up a successful online news outlet like Lawfare
• How Lawfare has evolved and is influencing national security law
• How to get involved in the legal field without going to law school and becoming a lawyer
• How failure can often inspire future professional success
• Why it’s a good idea to take a break after college and give yourself time to recharge your battery