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(John Johnson/HBO Max)

"Lanterns" finds its power in fear

Melanie McFarland

"Lanterns" finds its power in fear

Melanie McFarland

To fulfill his destiny, John Stewart embraces what he was trained to reject — and so should we

FEATURED

The logo of Russia's consumer and health watchdog Rospotrebnadzor sits on its grounds' fencing in Moscow on October 5, 2026. Russian officials on October 5, 2026 downplayed reports that a laboratory technician in Siberia had died of plague, insisting the situation was under control and that post-mortem tests had not found traces of the disease. (Photo by Igor IVANKO / AFP via Getty Images)

Russian plague catches Trump's eye

Troy Farah

A 28-year-old lab technician's could be a highly fatal disease but a cause of death has yet to be released
(L-R) Steve Zahn, Tom Everett Scott, Johnathon Schaech, Liv Tyler and Ethan Embry in "That Thing You Do!" (20th Century Fox / Everett Collection)

The fake hit song we could all agree on

Alex Galbraith

Tom Hanks' directorial debut produced a fake song that was undeniable
Theodore "Ted" Kaczynski, center, is escorted by federal marshals to his arraignment in Helena, Montana, on April 4, 1996. (Michael Macor/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)

I grew up next door to Ted Kaczynski

Jamie Gehring

Netflix's "Unabomber" wants to know what "made" him. I was his neighbor. There was no single moment
President Richard Nixon holding a press conference (Steve Northup/Getty Images)

The dark love affair with Richard Nixon

Heather Digby Parton

MAGA needs to maintain its grip on the GOP after Donald Trump — and the 37th president is key

MOST POPULAR

AEW wrestler Pac's death exposes pro wrestling's labor problem

Wrestler Pac's death was a labor issue

Alex Galbraith

Pro wrestling turns the precarity of American gig workers into a glorious spectacle

Brad Pitt's comeback act has faltered

Brad Pitt's comeback act has faltered

Coleman Spilde

"Avengers Endgame: Encore" snapped its fingers to make Pitt's "Heart of the Beast" disappear

Susan Collins' time is up as Maine's Houdini

Susan Collins no longer Maine's Houdini

Heather Digby Parton

The senator cannot make her role as Donald Trump's enabler disappear

Trump's failure hides Project 2025 success

Trump's failure hides Project 2025 wins

Heather Digby Parton

OMB director Russell Vought is quietly remaking the federal government, and Congress is next

Trump's superpower is fading. Can he recharge before the midterms?

Trump's superpower is fading

Brian Karem

Relentless persistence has driven his quest for grift and revenge. With midterm payback coming, it's not enough

Eric Schmitt's failed Jack Smith gotcha exposes GOP propaganda

Jack Smith attack exposes GOP propaganda

Sophia Tesfaye

MAGA media was ready to amplify the Missouri senator's conspiracy theory. It turned out to be laughably false

NEWS & POLITICS

Members of the right-wing group, the Patriot Front, as they prepare to march with anti-abortion activists during the 49th annual March for Life along Constitution Ave. on Friday, Jan. 21, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

What causes white nationalism's spread

Patrick Egan, Joshua A. Tucker, James Bisbee - The Conversation

How extensive is white nationalism’s appeal among the broader public, and who is drawn to this extremist ideology?
Sign outside Etihad Stadium in Manchester, England, May 9, 2026. (Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Man City scandal isn't about soccer

Andrew O'Hehir

It's a tangled tale of global corruption and cynicism, and we're all complicit
President Trump has a more complicated relationship with Fox News lately, as he complains a lack of coverage of their preferred politician — him. (Joe Raedle / Getty Images)

Trump demands Fox cover more Trump

CK Smith

Trump demanded more rally coverage as Fox was covering his Ohio rally, warning supporters could stop watching Fox
There is often a gap between educational idealism and the hyper-competitive reality of schooling. (Getty Images)

We have no business running a school

Jennifer Smith Richards, Jodi S. Cohen, Jennifer Berry Hawes, Milo Strain, Carli Brosseau - ProPublica

Our reporting has shown how easily people have founded their own private schools in barns, strip malls and more
Christa Pike, the only woman on Tennessee's death row, appears in an undated Tennessee Department of Correction photo. (Illustration by Salon / Tennessee Department of Correction)

Christa Pike needed competent doctors

Austin Sarat

Christa Pike needed competent doctors

Austin Sarat

Lethal injection is a cruel procedure. If it's going to be done, doctors should be allowed to administer it
Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana calls out Trump for crossing the line over daylight savings time and mulls a run for president on Meet the Press. (MANDEL NGAN / Getty Images)

Senator on Trump: "0 to a-hole in 3 sec"

CK Smith

The GOP senator says Trump crossed a line by posting Sen. Tom Cotton's phone number over daylight saving time

Cornell case exposes a legal gap

Shefali Luthra - The 19th

Voluntary intoxication laws can make it harder to prosecute an assault when the person attacked chose to drink

Trump demands Tom Cotton release the sun

CK Smith

The president wants more daylight and more golf, but fewer clock changes and fewer criminals working in the dark
MORE NEWS & POLITICS

CULTURE

(Courtesy of Netflix © 2026)

Maybe we've misread "East of Eden"

Melanie McFarland

Maybe we've misread "East of Eden"

Melanie McFarland

Zoe Kazan's adaptation of Steinbeck's classic asks us to rethink what leads to evil
(Curly_photo via Getty Images)

Please don’t send me your robot music

Troy Farah

Generative AI can churn out endless songs. Its evangelists miss why we hit play

SNL’s Rubio & others panic over midterms

CK Smith

The cold open imagines Republicans scrambling for a winning midterm message as Trump offers voters a $5,000 bribe

The film Cornell has people rewatching

Coleman Spilde

The Cornell Daily Sun staff's courage points to what Emerald Fennell's debut got right

A magical comedy for a mad world

Melanie McFarland

Produced by Lilly Wachowski, this show is a darkly funny delight for occult history buffs
Contestants from left, Beth L., Rachel L., Marnie R., Merline N., Christina T., Sarina V., Belinda B., Kelly A. and Cindy I., stand onstage during "The Swan Pageant," the first-season finale of Fox's "The Swan," which aired May 24, 2004. (Courtesy Everett Collection)

How "The Swan" gave us Mar-a-Lago face

Melanie McFarland

Erin Lee Carr's documentary explores the era before extreme surgical makeovers became a MAGA status symbol
Skyler Gisondo and Robert Pattinson in "Primetime" (A24)

Why Gen Z sees itself in "Primetime"

Coleman Spilde

A24's Chris Hansen biopic cleverly reveals the surveillance state's rapid escalation
San Francisco 49ers players Eli Harold, left, Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid kneel during the national anthem before a game in Santa Clara, California, on Oct. 23, 2016. (Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images)

Kaepernick would kneel again

Rann Miller

In "Perilous Fight" Kaepernick doesn’t need permission to stand up for Black people
MORE CULTURE

MONEY

Christian athlete and celebrity Tim Tebow helped promote a financial organization that is now under investigation for its predatory practices under the guise of a worship event. (Derek White / Getty Images)

The controversy of Tim Tebow & LifeSurge

CK Smith

Christian star is taking heat over Life Surge, but dozens of celebs lent credibility to questionable financial org
President Donald Trump (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Pro-Trump ads paid for by taxpayers

Troy Farah

The controversial ads have invited bipartisan criticism. The White House said it was “educational" and "patriotic"
A Wendy's burger is seen in Ohio on Aug. 4, 2026. (Marcin Golba/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Fast food and the private equity fallout

Alex Galbraith

The places Americans once loved for being cheap are a lesson in what buyouts do
Flock license plate reader and camera with solar panel against a blue sky, Pleasant Hill, California, April 16, 2026. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)

Texas unplugs over 900 Flock cameras

Ayden Runnels - The Texas Tribune

Fourteen cities and counties have dropped Flock contracts or cut their number of cameras
A collage of restaurant loyalty cards and receipts (Ashlie Stevens)

I don't want another restaurant app

Ashlie D. Stevens

I don't want another restaurant app

Ashlie D. Stevens

In an age of predictive shopping and fake-friendly alerts, a paper punchcard respects your appetite

Young man worried about saving money and paying bills (Getty Images/Westend61)

Personal bankruptcy filings are soaring

Jay L. Zagorsky - The Conversation

Here's what to know about this growing trend

Kalshi kicks out George Santos forever

Troy Farah

Meanwhile, a federal appeals court ruled 3-0 that states can regulate prediction markets like gambling

Trump's Iran war has economists aghast

Troy Farah

No "endgame" in sight, says JPMorgan, as gas prices keep soaring
MORE MONEY

SCIENCE & HEALTH

The cost of scheduling conversations

Nicole Karlis

What’s lost when spontaneous communication declines?

New MLB ballpark could be in Grand Teton

CK Smith

MLB & federal officials are considering Grand Teton for future game, despite strict rules protecting national parks

Fat Bear Week should be every week

Troy Farah

Give me the "American Idol" version of meadowlark songs

Are we in the AI end times?

Troy Farah

Anxiety over the dangers of artificial "intelligence" says more about human nature than about the machines

Suing Ken Paxton over abortion access

Shefali Luthra - The 19th

The case argues that Texas’ near-total abortion ban violates the state and U.S. constitutions
MORE SCIENCE & HEALTH

FOOD

Employee making a bowl at Cava (Dixie D. Vereen/For The Washington Post via Getty Images)

We’re over restaurant slop

Ashlie D. Stevens

We’re over restaurant slop

Ashlie D. Stevens

From ghost kitchens to AI menus and PE slop, diners are hungry for food that feels like somebody meant it
MORE FOOD

LIFE STORIES

Mystic ritual with tarot cards, vintage objects, cross and candles. (Getty Images/Vera Petruk)

My affair with witchcraft

Sarah Herrington

Reeling from two break-ups — romantic and spiritual — I went to a local witch's Halloween healing event
Devil Mask (Getty Images)

"Where will you spend eternity?"

S.J. Stover

An evangelical theater experience like "Sleep No More" meets Dante's "Inferno," as interpreted by Franklin Graham
Ghost in a corn field (Massonstock/Getty Images)

I smell dead people

Kelly McClure

You may believe that ghosts don't exist because you've never seen one, but eyes aren't the only indicators

A woman facing a cemetery (Photo illustration by Salon/Photo courtesy of the author/Getty Images)

What owning a cemetery taught me

Sarah Gundle

Despite being featured on Zillow Gone Wild, the house — a renovated church — sat on the market for nearly a year
MORE LIFE STORIES
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