The New Yorker
The New Business of Breakups
When Al Green sang “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart,” the question was rhetorical. Now there is the Mend app, which offers an online course that will “turn your breakup into a breakthrough.” After getting dumped (by text), Jennifer Wilson investigated the feverish boom in heartbreak apps, breakup coaches, and get-over-him getaways.
Today’s Mix
A Coup, Almost, in South Korea
President Yoon Suk-yeol declared martial law, then backed off, in a matter of hours. He now faces impeachment and mass protests.
The Essential Reads of 2024
Our editors and critics on the year’s best new fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
How the Syrian Opposition Shocked the Assad Regime
A historian explains why U.S. sanctions and Iran and Russia’s entanglements in other wars helped create an opening for rebel groups to overrun the Syrian Army.
The Best Podcasts of 2024
Despite industry turmoil, old and new shows continue to innovate, whether investigating Elon Musk, high-school mysteries, or our relationship to death itself.
Pete Hegseth’s Secret History
A whistle-blower report and other documents suggest that Trump’s nominee to run the Pentagon was forced out of previous leadership positions for financial mismanagement, sexist behavior, and being repeatedly intoxicated on the job.
The Lede
A daily column on what you need to know.
Is Contraception Under Attack?
You can now buy a pill over the counter, but a conservative backlash is promoting anti-contraceptive disinformation.
Biden’s Pardon of Hunter Further Undermines His Legacy
The pardon now gives Trump and his allies the opportunity to call Biden a hypocrite and proceed having their own way with the law.
Stopping the Press
After spending years painting the media as the “enemy of the people,” Donald Trump is ready to intensify his battle against the journalists who cover him.
What You Can Do with an Electric Volkswagen Bus
I took the new VW ID. Buzz for a drive down memory lane. Things got bumpy.
Javier Milei Wages War on Argentina’s Government
The President, a libertarian economist given to outrageous provocations, wants to remake the nation. Can it survive his shock-therapy approach?
Our Columnists
The Strange Science of Scheduling a College-Football Season
“Cupcake games” are a critical part of the sport’s ecosystem—but why?
Donald Trump’s Interesting Pick for Treasury Secretary
In the second MAGA Administration, the hedge-fund manager Scott Bessent will have the job of acting as a voice of reason.
What Google Off-loading Chrome Would Mean for Users
A landmark antitrust ruling could change the Internet’s power balance, but the industry is shifting regardless.
Donald Trump’s Go-To Dance Move Has Invaded Sports
It’s not clear whether the popular gesture is celebrating the President-elect or mocking him. But does that distinction even mean anything?
Sarah McBride Wasn’t Looking for a Fight on Trans Rights
The first trans person elected to Congress discusses how to respond to a bathroom bill and transphobic attacks from her new colleagues in the House.
The Critics
The Deep Elation of Working with Wood
In “Ingrained,” Callum Robinson honors not just the art of carpentry but the passion of labor itself.
The Best Albums of 2024
It’s possible that I listened to more music this year than any other. I lost interest in podcasts. I lost interest in silence. There was too much extraordinary work out there.
A Portrait of the Artist as an Amazon Reviewer
Between 2003 and 2019, Kevin Killian published almost twenty-four hundred reviews on the site. Can they be considered literature?
Little Treats Galore: A Holiday Gift Guide
An annual roundup of things to make life a bit sparklier, a bit easier, or just a bit sillier.
Looking Back on a Fallen Life in “Oh, Canada”
In Paul Schrader’s latest film—his most audacious religious vision yet—a documentarian on his deathbed confesses, on camera, to a lifetime of misdeeds.
“Wicked” and “Gladiator II” Offer Nostalgic, Half-Satisfying Showdowns
With a musical return to Oz and a bloody epic of ancient Rome, Hollywood studios double down on blockbuster spectacle.
What We’re Reading This Week
A genre-bending work about tribal membership that blends reportage, memoir, and history; an off-kilter novel that captures the feverishness of a child’s inner life; a granular book that traces how American college education became as expensive as it is today; and more.
Open Questions
Joshua Rothman’s weekly explorations drawing on science and philosophy.
Why Is Gratitude So Difficult?
When we feel grateful, we’re doing something that’s more complex than it seems.
Why Do We Talk This Way?
Technology is dramatically changing political speech, rewarding quantity and variety over the neat messages of the past.
Could Steampunk Save Us?
A goofy-seeming sci-fi subgenre holds useful lessons about managing technology in an accelerating age.
Houston’s Thriving West African Food Scene
As the city has welcomed more immigrants from Nigeria and neighboring countries, the local restaurant landscape has flourished.
Puzzles & Games
Take a break and play.
In Case You Missed It
It’s not really hot enough for swimming. It’s not quite pool weather. It’s, like, seventy-five or something. Still, they spend most of the day poolside—there isn’t anything else to do.Continue reading »
The Talk of the Town
