It was the engagement that basically broke a very specific, very nerdy corner of the internet. If you spent any time on Twitter or listening to political podcasts between 2011 and 2022, Jon Lovett and Ronan Farrow weren't just a couple; they were a mood. A vibe. One was a former Obama speechwriter who made neuroticism an art form on Pod Save America, and the other was a Pulitzer-winning investigative journalist dismantling systemic corruption at The New Yorker.
They were the ultimate intellectual power duo.
Then, things changed.
If you're looking for the messy, tabloid-style explosion, you won't find it here. Honestly, the way they ended things was almost as quietly high-brow as the way they lived. But as of 2026, the landscape of their lives looks drastically different than it did when they were buying a multi-million dollar house in Los Angeles together.
The Catch and Kill Proposal
Let's look back at how we got here. Most people remember the proposal because it was, frankly, a bit of a flex. In 2019, Ronan was finishing his bombshell book Catch and Kill. He didn't do the traditional "get down on one knee at a restaurant" thing. Instead, he wrote the proposal into a draft of the book and sent it to Jon to "fact-check."
Jon, being Jon, reportedly read it and replied with something along the lines of "Sure."
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It was peak them. It was smart, it was literary, and it felt like they were going to be the "it" couple of the progressive media world forever. They’d been together since 2011, navigating the transition from D.C. operatives to L.A. media moguls. They survived the pressure of Ronan’s Weinstein reporting and the explosion of Crooked Media.
The Breakup Nobody Saw Coming
The bubble burst in March 2023. It wasn't a press release or a dramatic Instagram post. Jon simply mentioned on an episode of his podcast, Lovett or Leave It, that he was single.
Ten and a half years.
Just like that, the "golf buddies" (as they jokingly called each other) were done. He described the end of the relationship as the conclusion of a "10 and a half year" journey. For fans, it felt like a weirdly personal loss. You’ve spent a decade hearing Jon make tiny, self-deprecating jokes about Ronan’s high-intensity work schedule or Ronan’s obsession with work-life balance (or lack thereof).
Why did it happen? People love to speculate. Some point to a song Ronan allegedly co-wrote with Leigh Nash that dropped hints about being "dead inside," while others just look at the reality of two hyper-successful, hyper-busy people growing in different directions. Ronan himself once mentioned they were too "swamped with work" to even plan a wedding. Sometimes, "too busy" isn't an excuse—it's the cause of death for a relationship.
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Where are Jon Lovett and Ronan Farrow now?
Life didn't stop. In fact, for Jon Lovett, it took a pretty sharp turn toward a new chapter.
In early 2025, the news broke that Jon Lovett got engaged again. This time, it’s to Ari Schwartz, the Chief of Staff at Crooked Media. They went public around late 2024, sharing photos from the Minnesota State Fair—a far cry from the high-stakes world of investigative drafts and Pulitzer ceremonies.
It seems Jon found a different kind of rhythm. By March 15, 2025, the engagement was official.
Ronan, meanwhile, has remained his usual, enigmatic self. He’s still the gold standard for investigative reporting, recently publishing deep dives into police negligence and international surveillance. While Jon’s life is often an open book on his podcasts, Ronan keeps his private life behind a very thick, very professional curtain.
Why we still talk about them
There's a reason this specific breakup lingers in the public consciousness. It represents the end of an era in digital media.
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- The "Parasocial" Factor: Listeners felt they knew Jon's neuroses and, by extension, his relationship.
- The Intellectual Symmetry: It’s rare to see two people at the absolute top of their respective (and very different) fields together for a decade.
- The Survival Aspect: Jon even went on Survivor (Season 47), which felt like a literal manifestation of his "new life" phase.
Moving Forward: Actionable Insights
If you're still mourning the end of the Lovett-Farrow era, it might be time to look at what their story actually teaches us about modern relationships and public life.
1. Longevity isn't the only metric for success.
Ten years is a massive achievement. Just because a relationship ends doesn't mean it "failed." They built companies and broke some of the biggest news stories of the century while together.
2. Work-life balance is real.
Even if you're a genius, you can't outrun the "swamped with work" trap forever. If you find yourself saying "we'll get to the wedding eventually" for five years, it's a red flag you should probably address in therapy rather than in a book draft.
3. Privacy is a choice.
Note how differently they've handled the aftermath. One is open and moving forward publicly; the other is focused strictly on the work. Both ways are valid, but they show how two people can experience the same loss in totally opposite ways.
The best thing you can do is follow their current work. Subscribe to the The New Yorker for Ronan’s latest reporting, or check out Pod Save America to see how Jon is navigating the 2026 political cycle and his new engagement. They’ve both clearly moved on, and honestly, we probably should too.