The Last Conspiracy
Many of the darkest interpretations of the Jeffrey Epstein story—an evil global cabal, a failed justice system, corrupt figures wielding unchecked power—would have been unthinkable just years ago, Joshua Rothman writes. Today, though, they fit perfectly into patterns we take for granted.
Profiles
Leap of Faith
In a Texas primary that may indicate the future of the Democratic Party, Senate candidate James Talarico believes that he can win by appealing to higher values. Will a politics “based on love” succeed in the age of Trump?
By Tad Friend
Personal History
Heaven Sent
My husband, who died at a hundred and one, was utterly secular. So where are these dogs coming from?
By Margaret Moorman
What We’re Reading
A story collection that nests questions of existence and death in narratives of dailiness and relationships; an exploration of people on the fringes of Chinese society—a feminist activist, a gay entrepreneur, a sci-fi writer, a rapper—who find purpose and community online even as the space for free expression narrows; and more.
The New Yorker Interview
Conan O’Brien Is Ready for the Oscars
The comedian and television host talks about the decline of late night, the death of Rob and Michele Reiner, and why he loves when things go wrong onstage.
With David Remnick
Losing Faith in Atheism
I spent years searching for a livable secular world view, but none of them quite offered the value of belief.
By Christopher Beha
The Invention of Childhood
For most of history, parents couldn’t buy their kids dolls, action figures, or the like. Then playtime became big business.
By Alexandra Schwartz
The Death of Book World
What the closing of the Washington Post’s books section means for readers.
By Becca Rothfeld
Is the Rat War Over?
In New York, a rat czar and new methods have brought down complaints. We may even be ready to appreciate the creatures.
By Rivka Galchen
The Weekend Essay
A Childhood in Jewish New Orleans
To assimilated German Jews in the South, the Holocaust was unimaginable. One solution was to shut it out.
By Nicholas Lemann
Annals of Inquiry
Up All Night
The need for eight hours of sleep is medical dogma, but some rare individuals, whom scientists call “short sleepers,” thrive with much less.
By Shayla Love
In Case You Missed It
Living in Tracy Chapman’s House
Fresh out of college, we were a bunch of misfits, in a chaotic, run-down communal home, desperately trying to figure out who we were meant to be.
The Good Old Days of Sports Gambling
Recent memoirs by the retired bookie Art Manteris and the storied gambler Billy Walters provide a glimpse of an industry in its fledgling form—and a preview of the DraftKings era to come.
She arrived at J.F.K. just past midnight after a four-hour flight delay. Her mind was blurry and her heart felt like a deep crater with something lurking at the bottom of it. It was her first trip to New York in more than a decade. She had come back to attend a memorial for a formerly close friend, Carley, with whom she had shared a life that was now alien to her. Though the airport was well appointed and maintained, it appeared nonetheless on the ragged edge.Continue reading »
Daily Cartoon
“If you don’t help dig out the car, then I can’t take you to school, and if you don’t go to school I’m going to lose my friggin’ mind. You don’t want Mommy to lose her friggin’ mind, do you?”
Cartoon by Guy Richards Smit