More than a century before GoPro, Thomas Stevens’ around-the-world bike ride vaulted first-person “sports porn” into the mainstream.
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Best of 2023: All of Our Number One Story Picks
Every piece we selected as our top story of the week in 2023, all in one place.
Finding a Path in a Broken System
Thailand is a top destination for gender confirmation surgery. Its success is a symptom of Western failure.
The Reluctant Propagandist
Massood Sanjer, Afghanistan’s most famous radio host, had an unlikely start to his career as a beacon of free speech. Under the Taliban rule, his voice used to carry Taliban propaganda all over the world.
At War with the Truth
“A confidential trove of government documents obtained by The Washington Post reveals that senior U.S. officials failed to tell the truth about the war in Afghanistan throughout the 18-year campaign, making rosy pronouncements they knew to be false and hiding unmistakable evidence the war had become unwinnable.”
Where the Men are Scarier than the Minefield on the Mountain
“No longer should women feel weak.”
Don’t Pretend Like You Don’t Love Wikipedia
Without it, you’d have to actually, y’know, be productive.
The Hare Krishnas of Coal Country
The world is full of make-believe. Some of it is sweet, some of it is sick. It persists because we have found no other antidote for pain.
‘The American People Have Been Constantly Lied To’
“U.S. officials constantly said they were making progress. They were not, and they knew it.”
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
This week, we’re sharing stories from Craig Whitlock, Keren Blankfield, Ash Sanders, C.J. Hauser, and Brian Kevin.

