Ali Wong’s Radical Raunch

A profile of comedian and writer Ali Wong, whose work takes on the last taboos of female sexuality: pregnancy and motherhood.

Author: Ariel Levy
Source: The New Yorker
Published: Sep 26, 2016
Length: 16 minutes (4,209 words)

Some Like It Bot

Algorithms and artificial intelligence can now be used to write screenplays – but will they entertain human viewers?

Published: Sep 29, 2016
Length: 6 minutes (1,700 words)

The People Who Collect Strangers’ Memories

Vintage snapshots tell stories, project tantalizing mysteries, and teach collectors about death, time, trauma and themselves. It’s not all about aesthetics.

Author: Roc Morin
Source: The Atlantic
Published: Sep 26, 2016
Length: 11 minutes (2,970 words)

When Your Regional Symbol Becomes an Extinct Fish

Up and down the West African coast, the mighty sawfish — one of the region’s cultural anchors — has all but disappeared. Will it ever return?

Author: Jori Lewis
Source: Hakai Magazine
Published: Jun 14, 2016
Length: 13 minutes (3,300 words)

The Future of Disaster Relief Isn’t the Red Cross

Team Rubicon breaks rules to put veterans to work and assist people in need. Is this the facelift the aid industry needs?

Source: Outside
Published: Aug 25, 2016
Length: 20 minutes (5,009 words)

My Son, The Prince Of Fashion

Chabon takes his 13-year-old son to Paris fashion week and gains a greater understanding of who he is.

Source: GQ
Published: Sep 27, 2016
Length: 20 minutes (5,240 words)

The Surprising History and Ongoing Controversy Behind the True Panama Hat

“What North Americans refer to as the Panama Hat is actually a hat that is made in Ecuador. But the hats that are actually worn throughout the country of Panama, known as sombreros pintados, are quite different. On a recent journey to Panama to replace his worn-out Panamanian-made sombrero, travel writer Darrin DuFord met with one of the country’s most renowned hat makers to discover the origins of the infamous controversy and to find out that sombreros pintados are more than merely a simple fashion accessory for rural Panamanians — they are both a symbol of victory over foreign influence and a device for communicating one’s mood.”

Source: Compass Cultura
Published: Sep 27, 2016
Length: 13 minutes (3,340 words)

Dispatches from the Rap Wars

University of Chicago professor Forrest Stuart describes the time he spent inside one of Chicago’s most notorious gangs.

Published: Sep 19, 2016
Length: 17 minutes (4,484 words)

A Reading List About Utopias

Here are five stories about utopian societies.

Source: Longreads
Published: Sep 27, 2016

Ruback

A newspaper journalist’s attempt to correct the record.

Source: Longreads
Published: Sep 27, 2016
Length: 16 minutes (4,136 words)