Books and Ideas

One Weird Trick for Destroying the Digital Economy

One Weird Trick for Destroying the Digital Economy One Weird Trick for Destroying the Digital Economy

Tim Hwang thinks we should burst the bubble of the ad-supported internet before it’s too late.

Oct 13, 2020 / Q&A / Marie Solis

Stanley Crouch, 1945–2020

Stanley Crouch, 1945–2020 Stanley Crouch, 1945–2020

Even many of those who at times wanted to throttle Crouch will miss him now that he’s gone.

Oct 12, 2020 / Gene Seymour

Two activists with painted faces stand, holding a sign that reads

The Hardest Thing About the Green New Deal The Hardest Thing About the Green New Deal

Three new books raise the question: What does global solidarity look like at this late hour?

Oct 12, 2020 / Wen Stephenson

Tom Tomorrow cartoon

We’re Living in a Simulation We’re Living in a Simulation

Someone’s making all of this up, right?

Oct 8, 2020 / Tom Tomorrow

John Luther Adams’s Songs for a Vanished World

John Luther Adams’s Songs for a Vanished World John Luther Adams’s Songs for a Vanished World

A conversation, conducted via satellite phone, with the legendary composer about his new memoir, Silences So Deep, and the music of his life.

Oct 7, 2020 / Rumaan Alam

Trump wearing a mask

Why Trump Doesn’t Wear a Mask Why Trump Doesn’t Wear a Mask

“As any woman can tell you, the masks smear makeup. The president is afraid of makeup stains on his mask and unsightly smears on his photographed face.” —letter to The New York Ti…

Oct 6, 2020 / Column / Calvin Trillin

Yaa Gyasi’s Family Chronicle

Yaa Gyasi’s Family Chronicle Yaa Gyasi’s Family Chronicle

At the center of Gyasi's new novel are the unspoken bonds and tensions between mothers and daughters.

Oct 6, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Lovia Gyarkye

Richard Hofstadter’s Discontents

Richard Hofstadter’s Discontents Richard Hofstadter’s Discontents

Why did the historian come to fear the very movements he once would have celebrated?

Oct 6, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Jeet Heer

Nicholson Baker’s Maddening Search for the Truth

Nicholson Baker’s Maddening Search for the Truth Nicholson Baker’s Maddening Search for the Truth

Denied access to files about the use of biological weapons during the Cold War, the novelist transformed his new book into a study of how America keeps its secrets.

Oct 6, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Charlie Savage

Who Will Save the News?

Who Will Save the News? Who Will Save the News?

Victor Pickard’s new book argues that without a public intervention American journalism faces a dire future.

Oct 6, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Anya Schiffrin

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