Russia: Life After Trust

Michael Idov, who’d returned to his native Russia for work a few years ago, recalls the culture of cynicism and sense of hopeless defeat under a deceitful, immovable “hybrid regime…an autocratic one that retains the façade of a democracy.” He suggests Americans take note, as we may be headed in that direction ourselves.

Published: Jan 22, 2017
Length: 10 minutes (2,717 words)

The Movie Set That Ate Itself

The rumors started seeping out of Ukraine about three years ago: A young Russian film director has holed up on the outskirts of Kharkov, a town of 1.4 million in the country’s east, making…something. A movie, sure, but not just that. If the gossip was to be believed, this was the most expansive, complicated, all-consuming film project ever attempted.

Source: GQ
Published: Nov 1, 2011
Length: 17 minutes (4,336 words)

I Was a Russian Tabloid Star

The Russian GQ had rented out the theater, a hideous 1990s edifice glowing at the sidestreet’s end, to hold its Man of the Year awards: “the unofficial start,” in the breathless tabloid formulation, “of Moscow’s social season.” In New York, I don’t usually get to such events without a reporter’s pad. Here, I couldn’t have a deeper cover if I tried. I was a nominee in the Writer of the Year category.

Source: The Awl
Published: May 4, 2011
Length: 17 minutes (4,428 words)

Steven Slater’s Landing

When an irate female passenger cursed him out after their plane arrived at JFK, the then-38-year-old JetBlue flight attendant with twenty years in the flying business grabbed two cans of beer off the beverage cart, activated the emergency-escape chute, and promptly exited the aircraft, his job, and much of his former life. He now refers to that day simply as “August 9th,” as if it were a major disaster or Independence Day—both of which, in a sense, it was.

Published: Jan 31, 2011
Length: 11 minutes (2,862 words)

The Demon Blogger of Fleet Street

Nick Denton cast himself as a media outsider. That’s how he made it inside.

Published: Sep 26, 2010
Length: 16 minutes (4,051 words)

Clash of the Bearded Ones

[Not single-page] Hipsters, Hasids, and the Williamsburg street.

Published: Apr 11, 2010
Length: 16 minutes (4,065 words)