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News & Politics

The Lede

Why Is the Riverside Church’s Century-Old Preschool Facing Closure?

Despite a venerable history—and a citywide child-care crunch—the Weekday School is on the chopping block.
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Reporting & Essays

Personal History

Tabula Rasa: Volume Five

A project meant not to end.
A Reporter at Large

How Religious Schools Became a Billion-Dollar Drain on Public Education

A nationwide movement has funnelled taxpayer money to private institutions, eroding the separation between church and state.
Letter from Israel

Netanyahu’s Media Poison Machine

The talk-show host Yinon Magal is at the center of a campaign to protect the Prime Minister and destroy the opposition.
Profiles

Lorne Michaels Is the Real Star of “Saturday Night Live”

He’s ruled with absolute power for five decades, forever adding to his list of oracular pronouncements—about producing TV, making comedy, and living the good life.

Commentary

The Lede

The Dangerous Work of Clearing Russia’s Deadly Mines from Ukrainian Lands

Donald Trump has promised to bring a swift end to the war in Ukraine, but Russian troops have already booby-trapped the country with thousands of mines that will take years to remove.
The Lede

“An Oligarchy Is Taking Shape”

In his farewell address, a weary President Biden issues an essential warning.
The Lede

How Much of the Government Can Donald Trump Dismantle?

His war on the “deep state” ties into a long debate about the power of bureaucrats to thwart the President’s agenda.
The Lede

The Shock of a Gaza Ceasefire Deal

In Israel, grief and frustration about a long, brutal war is mixed with joy that some hostages may soon return.

Conversations

Q. & A.

Why the Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Is Happening Now

After months of frustrating the Biden Administration, Benjamin Netanyahu seems poised to accept a deal on the eve of Trump’s return to the White House.
Q. & A.

How Did the Los Angeles Fires Get So Out of Control?

A climate scientist discusses how to think about and weigh the variables that led to the current disaster.
Q. & A.

Tracking the Threats to German Democracy

With elections looming, Germany faces a weak economy, a rising far right, and a faltering political class.
Q. & A.

How Widening Israel’s War Saved Benjamin Netanyahu

The Prime Minister’s domestic popularity has rebounded to pre-October 7th levels, despite his refusal to prioritize a hostage deal in Gaza.

From Our Columnists

Fault Lines

The Victims of the L.A. Fires Have Nowhere to Turn

In the age of social media, every politician who has to stand in front of a camera after a tragedy turns into just another battle site in an endless culture war.
The Financial Page

What Imperialist Game Is Donald Trump Playing with Greenland?

The President-elect’s brand of America First isolationism has always sat awkwardly with his Napoleonic tendencies.
The Sporting Scene

Coco Gauff Edits Her Game

Will the tennis star’s small technical adjustments deliver big at the Australian Open?
The Financial Page

Why the MAGA Fight Over H-1B Visas Is Crossing Party Lines

Critics from the left and the right say Big Tech companies are exploiting the visa system for high-skilled workers to reduce labor costs and boost profits.

More News

Annals of Communications

Is the TikTok Ban a Chance to Rethink the Whole Internet?

The billionaire Frank McCourt is launching a “people’s bid” to buy the app, replace its addictive algorithm, and give users greater control of their data. Is it a publicity stunt or a sincere attempt to reform the digital age?
Dispatch

Will L.A.’s Fires Permanently Disperse the Black Families of Altadena?

In a Los Angeles suburb, multigenerational families like the Benns found affordable housing and a deep sense of connection. After the devastating fires, many wonder whether they’ll be able to rebuild what they’ve lost.
Letter from Trump’s Washington

“The Trump Effect”: On Deal-Making and Credit-Claiming in Trump 2.0

The once and future President is back to wielding leverage like a club, in the Middle East and on Capitol Hill.
The Lede

The New Combustible Age

The Los Angeles fires hark to the nineteenth-century blazes that ravaged our cities—and point toward an even more flammable future.
The Lede

The Pressure Campaign to Get Pete Hegseth Confirmed as Defense Secretary

Supporters of Donald Trump’s nominee have intimidated potential witnesses and suppressed the F.B.I. background check of the former Fox News host in the run-up to his Senate hearing.
Comment

The Inauguration of Trump’s Oligarchy

Certain business titans have made Mar-a-Lago a scene of such flagrant self-abnegation, ring-kissing, and genuflection that it would embarrass a medieval Pope.
The Lede

Could Other Countries Prosecute Soldiers in Gaza?

A growing legal movement has turned to the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows national courts to take on war-crimes cases, regardless of where those crimes were committed or the nationality of the perpetrator.
The Weekend Essay

What’s a Fact, Anyway?

Journalists put more stress on accuracy than ever before. The problem is, accuracy is a slippery idea.