Even as the Oppenheimer Film Rights a Historic Wrong, the Memo That Smeared Him Remains Redacted Even as the Oppenheimer Film Rights a Historic Wrong, the Memo That Smeared Him Remains Redacted
The physicist was punished for opposing development of the hydrogen bomb, and for warning about the dangers of nuclear proliferation.
Jul 21, 2023 / Peter Shinkle
Ron DeSantis, American Psycho Ron DeSantis, American Psycho
The Florida governor’s irony-poisoned ad uses far-right memes to sanction homophobic and transphobic violence.
Jul 10, 2023 / Jeet Heer
Don DeLillo’s Cold Wars Don DeLillo’s Cold Wars
His 1980s novels take the story of America’s postwar years, usually seen as a triumphal rise to perpetual dominance, and converts it into one about a long and chaotic decline.
Jun 26, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Siddhartha Deb
Fordism Comes to the Gallery—and AI Comes for the Artists Fordism Comes to the Gallery—and AI Comes for the Artists
Though hyped in the media as the latest thing, the images generated by AI art are actually old, trapping the viewer in a time loop of kitsch.
Jun 14, 2023 / Dwayne Monroe
The Enduring Grift of the Washington Operator The Enduring Grift of the Washington Operator
A new book argues that D.C. became a swamp in the Trump years, but like any company town it has always been a hive of influence peddling, self-dealing, and graft.
Jun 12, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Chris Lehmann
How CNN Went From Bad to Worse How CNN Went From Bad to Worse
Chris Licht’s disastrous reign is governed by reactionary centrism.
Jun 5, 2023 / Jeet Heer
Truth in the Age of the Deepfake Truth in the Age of the Deepfake
Could our interest in true-crime podcasts and celebrity biopics be telling us something about our collective discomfort with faking it?
Jun 2, 2023 / Highlights / Marianela D’Aprile
Katherine Dunn’s Counterculture Parables Katherine Dunn’s Counterculture Parables
Dunn’s books are often described as cult classics, which fits not only in the sense that they inspire devotion but also in the sense that cults of personality always appear in them...
Jun 1, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Nora Caplan-Bricker
What Are Rules For? What Are Rules For?
A conversation with historian Lorraine Daston about her recent book on the history of rules and how they have structured life across centuries.
May 23, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Ishan Desai-Geller
The Indulgences of Rainer Werner Fassbinder The Indulgences of Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Ian Penman’s study of the German filmmaker’s work elucidates his “cocaine communism”—an aesthetics and politics of revolution and pleasure.
May 18, 2023 / Books & the Arts / Andrew Marzoni