Julie Beck digs deep into news silos, alternative facts, and cognitive dissonance.
michelleweber
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
A Small Town Crushed By a Big Weight — the Military-Industrial Complex
This meticulously-reported piece explores the bungled investigation into a 1994 double murder in Oak Grove, Kentucky, a small town weighed down by the military-industrial complex.
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
Before the Avon Lady, There Were a Bunch of Monks With a Bottle of Vinegar
Meet the lifestyle and wellness hawkers of 13th century Italy: the Monks of Santa Maria Novella.
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Reclusive Hedge Fund Tycoon Behind the Trump Presidency
How Robert Mercer exploited America’s populist insurgency.
Posted inEditor's Pick
When Medieval Monks Couldn’t Cure the Plague, They Launched a Luxe Skincare Line
Whether you were European royalty desperately seeking a cure for impotence or a working-class neighbor looking for the latest deodorant, Santa Maria Novella was the place to go.
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
I’d Gladly Pay You Tomorrow For a Hamburger Today, If Only My Debit Card Weren’t Frozen
Ubiquitous digital payments: harbinger of a glorious future, or smokescreen for powerful interests that want to control (and undermine) choice and capitalism?
Posted inEditor's Pick
Chromophobia
Western architecture is paralyzed by a fear of color, argues David Batchelor in this extract from his classic polemic, Chromophobia. Paralyzed — and fascinated.
Posted inEditor's Pick
This Article Won’t Change Your Mind
The facts on why facts alone can’t fight false beliefs.
Posted inEditor's Pick
A Town Under Trial
What an unsolved double murder in Kentucky reveals about America’s military-industrial complex.
Posted inEditor's Pick
In Praise of Cash
Cash might be grungy, unfashionable and corruptible, but it is still a great public good, important for rich and poor alike.