The Destruction of the Department of Justice
When people at the department embrace Trump’s scorn for the law, the law, as a practical limitation on government action, ceases to exist.
How to Define Old Age
Why would the World Health Organization want to call “old age” a disease?
The U.S. Threat Looming Over Canada
The consequences if Trump followed through on his belligerent rhetoric about a “51st state” would be catastrophic.
Read The Atlantic’s Interview With Donald Trump
A conversation with the president about executive power, Signalgate, and 24-karat gold
Why Are Young People Everywhere So Unhappy?
Here’s the answer to that—and what we can do about it.
Fact-Checking Is Out, ‘Community Notes’ Are In
People “actually” each other on social media all the time—is that enough to curb misinformation?
‘The Worst Internet-Research Ethics Violation I Have Ever Seen’
The most persuasive “people” on a popular subreddit turned out to be a front for a secret AI experiment.
Parenthood Cannot Be Optimized
Amanda Hess’s new book examines a surplus of experts and gadgets that promise to perfect the experience of raising children.
What Parents of Boys Should Know
Daughters tend to receive higher levels of affection and patience at home than sons. But the sons might need it more.
The Most Infamous Narcissist in Literary History Gets a Smartphone
A new stage production of The Picture of Dorian Gray conveys the cost of posturing online.
A Trip Into Alaska’s Copper River Valley in 1902
At the end of the 19th century, an estimated 100,000 people joined the Klondike Gold Rush, seeking their fortunes in the interior of Alaska and Canada’s Yukon territory. Many gold seekers who chose the arduous path inland from Alaska’s port of Valdez also discovered rich copper deposits along the way. The U.S. Army soon started work on the Valdez Trail, which would become the main route between the mining fields and Valdez. Several competing businesses rushed to build a railroad along the route. In 1902, one of those groups sent a team of photographers, the Miles Brothers, to document the town, the growing trail, the landscape, its newly arrived residents, and Alaska Natives. Prints of these photographs were collected into an album I was able to digitize recently at the U.S. National Archives, giving us a remarkable glimpse into daily life along a rough trail into the Alaskan interior, nearly 125 years ago.
Who Gets Panzer Tattooed on Their Arm?
The ink that tells the story of Trump’s second term
We’ve Been Thinking About Love All Wrong
What illness taught me about true friendship
Donald Trump’s Cruel and Unusual Innovations
Deporting illegal immigrants is lawful. Imprisoning them in El Salvador makes a mockery of the Eighth Amendment.
How to Stay in Touch With Your Friends
The Atlantic’s writers and editors share what they do when life gets in the way.
The Plight of the Eldest Daughter
Women are expected to be nurturers. Firstborns are expected to be exemplars. Being both is exhausting.
How the Ivy League Broke America
The meritocracy isn’t working. We need something new.
Is Anthony Weiner Ready to Go Another Round?
The ex-congressman whose name became a punch line is running for New York’s city council. In some ways, he hasn’t changed a bit.
The Writer Who Understood Aloneness
Mavis Gallant’s short stories are about people, especially women, who prefer to live on the social margins. I cherish one of them most of all.
A Defense Against Gaslighting Sociopaths
If you can recognize their signature move, then forewarned is forearmed.
/media/img/mt/2025/05/HTAU_episode_Template_death/original.gif)
/media/img/mt/2025/05/notes/original.gif)