Politics and History

Take it to the streets

Occupy Wall Street co-creator says activists are following an outdated script.More

Sherman Alexie

Some trips are more about psychic distance, like that of novelist Sherman Alexie. He's spent his whole life shuttling across cultural divides.More

American flag

Journalist Zach Beauchamps guides us through what he calls the "Russiasphere," the online world of liberal fake news.More

Twitterstorm of bots

Computer scientist Filippo Menczer has evidence of a bot campaign targeting one of Twitter's biggest power users: President Trump.More

Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not after you.More

soda

Journalism professor David Dennis on how popular conspiracy theories in the black community find their roots in abuses that actually happened.More

Fence

There are currently 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. Jose Angel N is one of them.More

Sunjeev Sahota

In "The Year of the Runaways," British novelist Sunjeev Sahota tells the story of three recent immigrants to the UK, and with deft precision examines their struggles, fears, and relationships.More

Immigrants on ocean steamer passing the Statue of Liberty, New York City, 1887

University of Chicago historian Tara Zahra looks at the period of mass migration to America between 1846-1940. She says it was characterized by deep anxiety, both in the US and Europe.More

open borders

Economist Bryan Caplan and producer Rehman Tungekar explain how an "open borders" policy could end global poverty.More

To The Best Of Our Knowledge

My conversation with Turkish writer Elif Şafak back in April still sticks with me as the year comes to a close. In many parts of the...More

Donald Trump

People with a heightened sense of entitlement that they feel gives them a free pass. You and I have a word for these people. Philosopher Aaron James has an entire theory about them.More

"inventing america"

Eric Liu reviewing “Inventing America” by Gary Wills.More

Gavel

Martha Nussbaum may be one of the most well-respected living philosophers in the world today.  She tells Steve Paulson that retribution and payback aren't compatible with true justice.More

Barbed wire

Most of us will never know what life in prison is really like, but criminal justice reporter Shane Bauer had a wild idea to gain access: for four months he worked undercover as a guard at a private prison.More

Philosopher Jason Brennan offers a provocative idea: let's bring back flogging as an alternative to imprisonment.More

Bastøy Prison from the air

For two years, criminal justice advocate Baz Dreisinger traveled the world, touring prisons in nine different countries. She points to Norway as a model of humane reform.More

Attica Prison entrance

The Attica Prison riot is remembered as one of the bloodiest and savage of its kind, but historian Heather Ann Thompson is challenging that familiar narrative.More

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