Michael Schaffer is an American magazine editor and journalist who grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Brown University in 1992. After early career stints in Washington, D.C., including at the Legal Times and as a staff writer at Washington City Paper under Carr, Schaffer advanced through prominent publications, serving as a staff writer, media critic, and culture editor at The New Republic from the early 2000s until around 2009. From 2009 to 2019, he worked at Politico, initially as a senior writer focused on media and politics, and later as deputy editor of Politico Magazine beginning in 2014. He has contributed freelance pieces to outlets such as Slate and The Daily Beast, often analyzing media trends and political journalism. He is recognized for his incisive commentary on the Washington press corps and power dynamics. Based in Washington, D.C., Schaffer serves as editor of Washingtonian magazine, continuing to shape coverage of the city's elite through his editorial leadership, emphasizing investigative reporting on local influence networks.