The Radical Art of the Depression Years The Radical Art of the Depression Years
By working within the constraints of the WPA, artists like Philip Guston discovered new modes of representation and irony.
Nov 27, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Rachel Hunter Himes
You Have “The Right to Be Lazy” You Have “The Right to Be Lazy”
Paul Lafargue's anti-work manifesto is newly relevant in a time when the very idea of labor is changing.
Nov 23, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Clinton Williamson
How “Reservation Dogs” Changed the TV Landscape How “Reservation Dogs” Changed the TV Landscape
The pioneering FX show offered a window into contemporary Native life in all its joys and vicissitudes.
Nov 21, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Vikram Murthi
How Gender Is Policed in America How Gender Is Policed in America
Paisley Currah’s wide-ranging study Sex Is as Sex Does examines how transphobia emerged in America as a result of contradictory and self-serving sex classification policies.
Nov 20, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Sam Huber
The History of Equality: It’s Complicated The History of Equality: It’s Complicated
A conversation with the historian Darrin McMahon about his new book Equality: The History of an Elusive Idea and the strange and contradicting development of the liberal version o...
Nov 16, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Daniel Steinmetz-Jenkins
The Bipartisan Attack on Public Schools The Bipartisan Attack on Public Schools
In New Jersey, liberal and conservative forces poured resources into the charter school movement. This effort helps explain the woes of the public school system in the country.
Nov 15, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Sam Russek
How Pinochet’s Chile Became a Laboratory for Neoliberalism How Pinochet’s Chile Became a Laboratory for Neoliberalism
A new book examines how a group of University of Chicago–trained economists sought to remake the Chilean economy in the aftermath of 1973.
Nov 14, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Vincent Bevins
Influence and the Rise of Digital Celebrity Influence and the Rise of Digital Celebrity
A history of social media from the perspective of the poster, Taylor Lorenz’s Extremely Online examines the roots and rise of our sponsorship-saturated ecosystem.
Nov 11, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Tarpley Hitt
The Misunderstood History of American Wrestling The Misunderstood History of American Wrestling
A recent biography of WWE executive Vince McMahon presents him as an entertainment tycoon who changed culture and politics. The real story of his rise is as banal as it is brutal....
Nov 10, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Nadine Smith
Wang Bing, the World’s Hardest-Working Director Wang Bing, the World’s Hardest-Working Director
In his new film, Youth (Spring), the prolific director examines how the People’s Republic became the workshop for much of the world.
Nov 9, 2023 / Books & the Arts / J. Hoberman