Television

Alabama Senator Katie Britt in a kitchen

Senator Katie Britt: A Star Is Not Born Senator Katie Britt: A Star Is Not Born

The Alabaman’s disastrous debut was so weird even Scarlett Johansson—who’s played everything from a man-eating alien to Black Widow to Maggie the Cat—couldn’t do it justice.

Mar 11, 2024 / Jeet Heer

The Era of Nicki Minaj

The Era of Nicki Minaj The Era of Nicki Minaj

How the queen of rap revolutionized American music.

Feb 21, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Bijan Stephen

Humphrey Bogart in “Casablanca”

Can We Afford to Sit Out the Fight Against Fascism? Can We Afford to Sit Out the Fight Against Fascism?

Choosing the lesser evil is never inspiring. Still, it’s a choice all of us will have to face.

Feb 20, 2024 / D.D. Guttenplan

A scene from True Detective: Night Country.

The Unanswered Questions of “True Detective” The Unanswered Questions of “True Detective”

Like a Raymond Chandler detective story, Night Country ultimately wants to turn its audience’s attention away from the mysteries of the dead toward those of the living.

Feb 19, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Jorge Cotte

Jon Stewart on the set of The Daily Show.

Jon Stewart Is Not the Enemy Jon Stewart Is Not the Enemy

You don’t defeat Trump by rejecting comedy.

Feb 16, 2024 / Jeet Heer

Charleston Removes John C. Calhoun Statue From City's Marion Square

The Party of Lincoln Is Really the Party of Calhoun The Party of Lincoln Is Really the Party of Calhoun

Nikki Haley and Greg Abbott echo the theorist of secession.

Feb 2, 2024 / Jeet Heer

The Metaphysical Horror of “The Curse”

The Metaphysical Horror of “The Curse” The Metaphysical Horror of “The Curse”

From its first moments to its antic end, the series exposes its viewers to an abundance of anxious perturbation but it does something else too: It reveals the absurdity all around...

Jan 12, 2024 / Books & the Arts / Sarah Chihaya

New York Times columnist Andrew Ross Sorkin and Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger speak during the Times’ annual DealBook summit, on November 29, 2023 in New York City.

Do as I Say, Not as I Do Do as I Say, Not as I Do

The comforting lessons in good will and friendship Apple, Netflix, and Disney flaunt are benign distractions that deflect attention from their two-fisted business behavior.

Jan 8, 2024 / Peter Biskind

James Stewart, as George Bailey, points at Lionel Barrymore in a scene from “It's a Wonderful Life.”

Whose “It’s a Wonderful Life” Is It Anyway? Whose “It’s a Wonderful Life” Is It Anyway?

How everybody’s favorite Christmas movie about the perils of monopoly capitalism became a victim of monopoly capitalism.

Dec 25, 2023 / Ray Nowosielski and David Cassidy

How 2 Companies Came to Dominate the Media Business

How 2 Companies Came to Dominate the Media Business How 2 Companies Came to Dominate the Media Business

Once upon a time, six companies controlled the media in this country. That, it turns out, was the good old days…

Dec 13, 2023 / Feature / Thomas Schatz

x