How the Ivy League Broke America
The meritocracy isn’t working. We need something new.
What the Broligarchs Want from Trump
Tremendous power is flowing to tech and finance magnates.
The Business-School Scandal That Just Keeps Getting Bigger
The rot runs deeper than almost anyone has guessed.
The Right Has a Bluesky Problem
The X exodus is weakening a way for conservatives to speak to the masses.
A Good Country’s Bad Choice
And what I got wrong about the 2024 election
Three Ways to Become a Deeper Thinker
You don’t have to become a Buddhist monk to realize the value of contemplating hard questions without clear answers.
The People Who Quit Dating
Being single can be hard—but the search for love may be harder.
The Atlantic Gift Guide
The Atlantic has chosen 65 gifts for bringing more merriment, adventure, and wonder to the ones you love.
Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid
It’s not just a phase.
The Fairy Tale We’ve Been Retelling for 125 Years
Every generation has an Oz story, but one retelling best captures what makes L. Frank Baum’s world sing.
Donald Trump’s Most Dangerous Cabinet Pick
Pete Hegseth considers himself to be at war with basically everybody to Trump’s left, and it is by no means clear that he means war metaphorically.
What Pete Hegseth’s Nomination Is Really About
Revenge on the military is just the start of it.
The Sense That Most Defines a Culture
Yáng Shuāng-zǐ’s Taiwan Travelogue shows how colonization shapes a country’s culinary landscape.
Climate Diplomacy’s $300 Billion Failure
Climate negotiations at COP29 ended in a deal that mostly showed how far the world is from facing climate change’s real dangers.
How I Demolished My Life
A home-improvement story
Seventy Miles in Hell
The Darién Gap was once considered impassable. Now hundreds of thousands of migrants are risking treacherous terrain, violence, hunger, and disease to travel through the jungle to the United States.
Your Armpits Are Trying to Tell You Something
The best time to apply antiperspirant is right before bed. Seriously.
How One Woman Became the Scapegoat for America’s Reading Crisis
Lucy Calkins was an education superstar. Now she’s cast as the reason a generation of students struggles to read. Can she reclaim her good name?
The Secrets to a Successful Potluck Dish
Six writers and editors share their go-to recipes
Best of “How To”: Spend Time on What You Value
How to make the most of your downtime