The New Yorker
The Crime Rings Stealing Everything from Purses to Power Tools
In Los Angeles, a task force of detectives is battling organized retail theft, in which boosted goods often end up for sale online—or commingled on store shelves with legitimate items. To fight back, Paige Williams reports, the cops are carrying out “blitzes” on businesses favored by professional shoplifters.
Above the Fold
Essential reading for today.
A Musical for—and About—Grammar Sticklers
“The Angry Grammarian” asks whether two lovebirds can overcome differing opinions on the Oxford comma.
How Gaza and Ukraine Became Campaign Issues for 2024
This year, what happens in the rest of the world seems to matter a bit more than usual to Americans.
Who Are Latino Americans Today?
A big new book dispels stereotypes in an effort to get beyond Latino 101.
The Mystery of Ocean Warming
A startling rise in sea-surface temperatures suggests that we may not understand how fast the climate is changing.
How Quinta Brunson Hacked the Sitcom
With “Abbott Elementary,” the comedian and writer found fresh humor and mass appeal in a world she knew well.
The Lifelike Illusions of A.I.
Animators, toy designers, and video-game creators have spent decades creating believable fictional characters. Are artificial-intelligence researchers doing the same?
MAGA Mike
Mike Johnson is the first proudly Trumpian Speaker of the House. Though he has adopted a “nerd constitutional-law guy” persona, he is in lockstep with the law-flouting former President.
The Critics
The Best Bio-Pics Ever Made
The genre presents very particular artistic challenges, but here are thirty-three films that transcend them.
How Candida Royalle Set Out to Reinvent Porn
As a feminist in the adult-film industry, she believed the answer wasn’t banning porn; it was better porn.
“3 Body Problem” Is a Rare Species of Sci-Fi
The Netflix adaptation of Liu Cixin’s trilogy mixes heady theoretical questions with genuine spectacle and heart.
Gustav Klimt’s Hunger to Please
The artist can still dazzle, but his achievements sometimes come at the cost of passion or purpose.
The Kate Middleton Photo That Was Too Good to Be True
A doctored image of the Princess of Wales and her children has become the most captivating episode of her entire public career.
Ian Munsick Puts the Western Back in Country
He brought his cowboy hat and ranch experience to Nashville, where he sings about the Wyoming life he left behind.
The Best Books We Read This Week
Hannah Durkin’s “The Survivors of the Clotilda,” a history of the last known slave ship to reach the U.S.; Katherine Min’s “The Fetishist,” a wistful and sometimes humorous novel; and more of our editors’ and critics’ reading recommendations.
Introducing the New Yorker Mini Crossword
A little brainteaser for your busier days.
Has Putin’s Invasion of Ukraine Improved His Standing in Russia?
As Russians go to the polls, the economy is booming and the public feels hopeful about the future. But the politics of Putinism still depend on the absence of any means to challenge it.
Ideas
America’s Last Top Models
For decades, inventors sent in models with their patent applications—gizmos that reveal a history of unmet needs and relentless innovation.
Among the A.I. Doomsayers
Some people think machine intelligence will transform humanity for the better. Others fear it may destroy us. Who will decide our fate?
Activist Narcissism and the Problem of Political Despair
An animal-rights leader and provocateur discusses the isolation of modern life and what “safetyism” does to protest movements.
Percival Everett Can’t Say What His Novels Mean
The author of “Erasure” is renowned for his satires of genre, identity, and America. But his great target may be language itself.
Have the Liberal Arts Gone Conservative?
The classical-education movement seeks to fundamentally reorient schooling in America. Its emphasis on morality and civics has also primed it for partisan takeover.
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