Culture
Must a Palestinian Win an Oscar for the World to Care When He’s Attacked? Must a Palestinian Win an Oscar for the World to Care When He’s Attacked?
The assault and arrest of Ballal Hamdan is horrendous, but the framing of the incident reproduces the idea that some lives are more worthy of defense than others.
Bombing Yemen: Signalgate Deserves to Be a Major Scandal Bombing Yemen: Signalgate Deserves to Be a Major Scandal
But the assault on Yemeni civilians the hapless conspirators discussed in their private chat group is an even bigger disgrace—though so far the press haven’t paid much atten…
Feminism Against Itself Feminism Against Itself
Sophie Lewis grapples with the ways the feminist movement has harbored prejudices and abetted wrongdoing in Enemy Feminisims.
In Fred Moten’s Music, Theory Is Put Into Practice In Fred Moten’s Music, Theory Is Put Into Practice
In the poet’s recent musical projects, he has pushed the sonic potential of verse to its limits.
Books
The Making of a Cold War Spy The Making of a Cold War Spy
The life and work of Frank Wisner, one of the CIA’s founding officers, offers us a portrait of American intelligence’s excesses.
The Cruel World According to Stephen Miller The Cruel World According to Stephen Miller
How did he become the Trump era’s architect of hate?
Henri Bergson’s States of Change Henri Bergson’s States of Change
Why did one of the early 20th century’s most famous philosophers go out of fashion?
Film
Must a Palestinian Win an Oscar for the World to Care When He’s Attacked? Must a Palestinian Win an Oscar for the World to Care When He’s Attacked?
The assault and arrest of Ballal Hamdan is horrendous, but the framing of the incident reproduces the idea that some lives are more worthy of defense than others.
JFK Assassination: The Final Secrets JFK Assassination: The Final Secrets
The release of the John F. Kennedy papers sets a standard for transparency that must also be applied to the current administration.
Art Spiegelman and the Inescapable Shadow of Fascism Art Spiegelman and the Inescapable Shadow of Fascism
The creator of Maus has learned that the past is always present.
The Berlin International Film Festival in a Time of Crisis The Berlin International Film Festival in a Time of Crisis
During the Berlinale’s 75th anniversary, it felt like the world was coming apart—but at least we had the “borderless realm” of film.
Backlash or Blacklist? Hollywood’s Pro-Gaza Protesters Feel the Heat Backlash or Blacklist? Hollywood’s Pro-Gaza Protesters Feel the Heat
In whisper campaigns and puzzling career reversals, pro-Palestinian actors say that they’re being punished for speaking out.
Television
Trump’s Threat to Canada Won’t Be Defeated by Centrist Nostalgia Trump’s Threat to Canada Won’t Be Defeated by Centrist Nostalgia
You can’t fight fascism with cozy memories.
Chuck Schumer Is the Weakest Link Chuck Schumer Is the Weakest Link
The Senate minority leader wants to make sure everyone else is fighting for democracy—so he’s not at risk.
The Not-So-Golden Age of MAGA Troll Comedy The Not-So-Golden Age of MAGA Troll Comedy
In a blind rush to appease a phantom Trump demographic, media executives and billionaire owners are granting influential platforms to bigots, hacks, and panderers.
Architecture
How Atlanta Became a Walkable City How Atlanta Became a Walkable City
The Beltline and Georgia’s experiment in pedestrian spaces.
Parts of LA Are Not Going to Be Habitable Parts of LA Are Not Going to Be Habitable
Insurers have figured out that risk is too high in parts of California. We need to re-conceive how people are housed, and fast.
Yto Barrada’s Rules of the Game Yto Barrada’s Rules of the Game
The artist’s installation at MOMA PS1 is not just a public work of art in the form of a playground but also a comment on postcolonial architecture and experimental pedagogy.
Music
In Fred Moten’s Music, Theory Is Put Into Practice In Fred Moten’s Music, Theory Is Put Into Practice
In the poet’s recent musical projects, he has pushed the sonic potential of verse to its limits.
Trump Took Over the Kennedy Center, but Silencing the Arts Will Not Be So Easy Trump Took Over the Kennedy Center, but Silencing the Arts Will Not Be So Easy
Our last best hope for sharing, shaping, and wrangling over independent ideas may turn out to be America’s scrappy and disparate arts spaces—if they can hang on financially.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s Voice From the Past Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s Voice From the Past
The Pakistani qawwali icon sang words written centuries ago and died decades ago. He’s got a new album out.
How the “Subversive Genius” of Kendrick Lamar Sent Trump Home a Loser How the “Subversive Genius” of Kendrick Lamar Sent Trump Home a Loser
The Philadelphia Eagles and Kendrick Lamar’s collective of geniuses made this the Super Bowl we needed.
How Spotify Remade the Music Industry How Spotify Remade the Music Industry
On this episode of Tech Won’t Save Us, Liz Pelly on the music streaming service.
Publishing
Trump Took Over the Kennedy Center, but Silencing the Arts Will Not Be So Easy Trump Took Over the Kennedy Center, but Silencing the Arts Will Not Be So Easy
Our last best hope for sharing, shaping, and wrangling over independent ideas may turn out to be America’s scrappy and disparate arts spaces—if they can hang on financially.
Novelist on a Deadline: Barry Malzberg, 1939–2024 Novelist on a Deadline: Barry Malzberg, 1939–2024
A speed demon at the typewriter, Malzberg wrote quickly and brilliantly in a variety of genres including mystery, thrillers, and erotica, but his core work was in science fiction….
The Impossible Story of Communism The Impossible Story of Communism
How do you tell the history of a global movement in all its hope and contradiction?
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Donald Trump picked on the wrong athlete. Even though Jackie Robinson died in 1972, last week he bested Trump in a contest about the role of racism and the civil rights movement.
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The appeal of the Apple TV+ series is how it dramatizes our alienation from labor.
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Will Scholars Take a Stand Against Scholasticide in Gaza? Will Scholars Take a Stand Against Scholasticide in Gaza?
The fight inside the historical profession heats up.
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What the Paiva Family Means to Brazil What the Paiva Family Means to Brazil
In I’m Still Here, one Brazilian clan’s confrontation with the military dictatorship dramatizes the last half-century of Brazil’s democratic travails.
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