What Trump Missed at the Kennedy Center
The president may love Les Mis—but he completely misunderstands it.
He Surfed a Different Kind of Wave
Music wouldn’t be the same without Brian Wilson. That’s not an overstatement.
A Stephen King Adaptation With (Almost) No Scares
The Life of Chuck takes a difficult-to-translate novella and turns it into a feel-good film.
Two Paths for the Pop Star
Miley Cyrus and Addison Rae are taking their music very seriously, with different results.
The Singer Who Saw America’s Best and Worst
Sly Stone fused joyful visions of the country with a deep understanding of its worst ills.
Inside the Exclusive, Obsessive, Surprisingly Litigious World of Luxury Fitness
How Tracy Anderson built an exercise empire
How One Animal Divided Europe
A new book explores what the wolf’s return to the continent means for people who have never known its presence.
When a Nasty Habit Is Part of Your National Identity
As France bans cigarettes in most public places, it stands to lose a strong cultural signifier.
‘Look, This Show’s Good. It’s Essentially Moral.’
The Simpsons has always been a wholesome show—even if some critics didn’t necessarily understand that.
The Trap of the Cinematic Side Quest
The new John Wick spin-off shows that expanding a franchise is harder than it may seem.
Dear James: I Love Going Naked on the Beach
But I’m experiencing Catholic guilt.
What to Read When You’re Ready to Say No
Purposeful refusal, far from depriving us, can make way for unexpected bounty.
Under a Supermoon
Money Is Ruining Television
Depictions of extreme wealth are everywhere on the small screen and, well, it’s all quite boring.
Looking Up
What we see when we stare at the night sky
Fast Times and Mean Girls
What the great teen movies tell us about American adolescence
Wes Anderson Lets the Real World Filter In
The Phoenician Scheme is the director’s latest film to let modern life seep into his high-concept worlds.
What Hula Taught Me
Keeping a culture alive, one step at a time
What Happens When People Don’t Understand How AI Works
Despite what tech CEOs might say, large language models are not smart in any recognizably human sense of the word.
An Innocent Abroad in Mark Twain’s Paris
My quest for a true literary experience resulted in choucroute, a surprise organ feast, an epiphany at the Louvre, existential dread, and a rowboat.
/media/img/mt/2025/06/2025_6_2_AI_Illiteracy/original.gif)