‘Let’s enlist universities directly in the war effort.’ Our video pick of the day is this 2008 talk (1 hr.) by entrepreneur and Stanford professor Steve Blank about how the defense industry first shaped Silicon Valley—starting with Stanford, which after World War II “became a full partner in the military-industrial complex.” For a connection between […]
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The Pixel Painter
“When I lost my eyesight I thought my painting days were over.” Our video pick of the day is this 8-minute documentary on Hal Lasko, a 97-year-old man whose family introduced him to Microsoft Paint 15 years ago and “he took off with it.” Lasko, who suffers from macular degeneration, works in a style that’s a […]
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Patti Smith's Advice to the Young
“Build a good name. Keep your name clean. … And if you build a good name, that name will be its own currency.” Our video pick of the day: Words of wisdom from Patti Smith, from the Louisiana Literature festival, August 2012 (6 minutes) (via @PocketHits)
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Our Longreads Member Pick: The Prophet, by Luke Dittrich and Esquire
For this week’s Member Pick, we’re excited to share “The Prophet,” the much-talked-about new story from Luke Dittrich and Esquire magazine investigating the claims made by Dr. Eben Alexander in the best-selling book Proof of Heaven, about Alexander’s own near-death experience. Dittrich, a contributing editor at Esquire since 2008, has been featured on Longreads many times in the past and his work has […]
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Free BBC Documentary on the Early Days of Queen and Freddie Mercury
Our video pick of the day, from 2011: “Queen: Days of Our Lives” (2 hours)
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Reading List: A Bizarre Institution
Emily Perper is a freelance editor and reporter, currently completing a service year in Baltimore with the Episcopal Service Corps. What do Scientology, child abuse, financial exploitation, and millionaire parents have in common? They’ve all got a niche in the education system. 1. “Surviving a For-Profit School.” (Stephen S. Mills, The Rumpus, July 2013) A […]
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Reading List: A Bizarre Institution
Emily Perper is a freelance editor and reporter, currently completing a service year in Baltimore with the Episcopal Service Corps. What do Scientology, child abuse, financial exploitation, and millionaire parents have in common? They’ve all got a niche in the education system. 1. “Surviving a For-Profit School.” (Stephen S. Mills, The Rumpus, July 2013) A […]
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Longreads Guest Pick: Matthew Zeitlin on Mina Kimes's story about Sears
Matthew is a business reporter at BuzzFeed. My longread of the week is ‘At Sears, Eddie Lampert’s Warring Divisions Model Adds to the Troubles,’ by Mina Kimes in Bloomberg Businessweek. This is not a profile of Eddie Lampert, the hedge fund manager who masterminded Kmart’s acquisition of Sears and is now running the struggling retailer. […]
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Video Pick: The Journey of Transgender Rocker Laura Jane Grace
If you’ve been following Longreads for a while, you may have seen this excellent Rolling Stone story from last year by Josh Eells, “The Secret Life of Transgender Rocker Tom Gabel”, about Against Me! singer Laura Jane Grace’s transition. This MTV House of Style short reveals more about her life, and the small things she’s […]
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College Longreads Pick: 'Silenced Voices' by Tyler Jett, University of Florida
Every week, Syracuse University professor Aileen Gallagher helps Longreads highlight the best of college journalism. Here’s this week’s pick: Rape on college campuses draws outrage, but rarely enough media coverage. Tyler Jett’s story about a serial offender in Gainesville is told with a balance of sensitivity and skill. Jett interviewed survivors, advocates, and police officials […]