CIVIL RIGHTS UNDONE

In late 2020, even as the instigators of insurrection were marshaling their followers to travel to Washington, D.C., another kind of coup-a quieter onewas in the works. On December 21, in one of his departing acts as attorney general, Bill Barr submitted a proposed rule change to the White House. The change would eliminate the venerable standard used by the Justice Department to handle discrimination cases, known as \"disparate impact.\"

EXTREMISTS EMBOLDENED

Until the very end of his presidency, Donald Trump's cultivation of the Proud Boys, the Oath Keepers, and other violent far-right groups was usually implicit. He counted on their political support but stopped short of asking them to do anything.

TRUMP WILL GET AWAY WITH IT

If Donald Trump regains the presidency, he will once again become the chief law-enforcement officer of the United States. There may be no American leader less suited to \"take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed,\" as the Constitution directs the president. But that authority comes with the office, including command of the Justice Department and the FBI.

WOMEN WILL BE TARGETS

Strange as this might be to say of the only American president found legally liable for sexual abuse, the only leader of the free world accused of dangling a TV gig in front of a porn performer seemingly as an enticement for sex, the only commander in chief to publicly denigrate the sexual attractiveness of both Heidi Klum (\"no longer a 10\") and Angelina Jolie (\"not a great beauty\"), I don't believe Donald Trump hates women. Not by default, anyway. \"When it comes to the women who are not only dutifully but lovingly catering to his desires,\" the philosopher Kate Manne wrote in her 2017 book, Down Girl, \"what's to hate?\"

A MAGA JUDICIARY

Thanks to Donald Trump's presidential term, the conservative legal movement has been able to realize some of its wildest dreams: overturning the constitutional right to an abortion, ending affirmative action in college admissions, and potentially making most state-level firearm restrictions presumptively unconstitutional.

Zombie History Stalks Ukraine

In a haunted novel, memories of a brutal past transform bodies as well as psyches.

TRUMP WILL STOKE A GENDER PANIC

After decades of gains in public acceptance, the LGBTQ community is confronting a climate in which political leaders are once again calling them weirdos and predators.

CHINA WILL GET STRONGER

After four years of Joe Biden, China's leaders would likely be relieved to have Donald Trump back in the White House.

IS JOURNALISM READY?

The relationship between Donald Trump and the news media has always been a little disingenuous, like a pair of fighters trading insults and throwing air punches at a weigh-in. The hostility is real, but the performance benefits both sides.

LOYALISTS, LAPDOGS, AND CRONIES

When Donald Trump first took office, he put a premium on what he called \"central casting\" hires-people with impressive résumés who matched his image of an ideal administration official. Yes, he brought along his share of Steve Bannons and Michael Flynns. But there was also James Mattis, the decorated four-star general who took over the Defense Department, and Gary Cohn, the Goldman Sachs chief operating officer who was appointed head of the National Economic Council, and Rex Tillerson, who left one of the world's most profitable international conglomerates to become secretary of state.

THE SPECTER OF FAMILY SEPARATION

Almost as soon as Donald Trump took office in 2017, agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement were dispatched across the country to round up as many undocumented foreigners as possible, and the travel ban put into limbo the livelihoods of thousands of people from majority-Muslim countries who had won the hard-fought right to be here-refugees, tech entrepreneurs, and university professors among them.

The Bizarro Buddy Comedy of Please Don't Destroy

How SNUs video sketches spoof the rituals of male bonding

The Demise of the "IBM Way"

The companys peculiar culture fueled its success, and eventually its fall from industry dominance.

2023: The Year in Medicine

Drugs for obesity, Alzheimer's, and infectious diseases herald a new era of innovation in the pharma business

THE NATION BUILDERS

ISRAELIS AND PALESTINIANS WHO STEPPED UP AFTER THЕ ОСТ. 7 АТТACK

BEST of CULTURE

THE ART THAT ENTERTAINED, MOVED, & INSPIRED US IN 2023

2023: THE YEAR IN CLIMATE

For the young plaintiffs in a landmark environmental case, victory was \"a great first step\"

2023: THE YEAR IN POLITICS

The GOP front runner kept his eyes on the Oval Office, even as the court cases mounted| The White House struggled with public opinion even in its moments of success

ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: LIONEL MESSI

MESSI WON THE BALLON D'OR AS THE WORLD'S BEST PLAYER FOR THE EIGHTH TIME IN OCTOBER

CEO OF THE YEAR: SAM ALTMAN

'IT IS, FOR MANY PEOPLE, THE YEAR THAT THEY STARTED TAKING AI SERIOUSLY.'

ALEX NEWELL

BREAKTHROUGH OF THE YEAR

Upcycled Buildings Around the World

Buildings that were once palaces, monasteries and jails are finding new life in the modern world.

Ben Mankiewicz

\"Nostalgia is a really powerful and important emotion. It is the emotion that connects us to our past.\"

America's Animal Shelters Are Broken

Rescue centers and humane groups are under pressure due to a huge drop in adoptions, especially of dogs

THE UNION FIGHT FOR THE FUTURE OF WORK

APPROVAL OF ORGANIZED LABOR IS AT ITS HIGHEST LEVEL IN THE U.S. SINCE 1965. BUT THE MOVEMENT'S TARGET GROWTH SECTORS-WHICH STAND TO BENEFIT FROM BIDENOMICS-MAY PROVE THE HARDEST TO UNIONIZE

Putin's Suicide Squad

The Kremlin has recruited tens of thousands of prisoners for its 'Storm-Z' units, including at least two cannibals

Can America Cure Its Online Fraud Epidemic?

Other Western countries use regulation to stop the spread of crime. But the US is lagging, leaving millions exposed-and the problem may soon get worse

Immersive Natural Escape Destinations

The natural world is all around us, but sometimes it requires taking a step back from the grind of our daily lives to truly appreciate it.

Kathy Griffin

WHEN A PHOTO OF KATHY GRIFFIN HOLDING THE FAKE DECAPITATED head of former President Donald Trump went viral in 2017, her entire world stopped

I Was Canceled for a Cartoon

I stand by my depiction of Hamas' human shields and its critics. Journalists must not kowtow to the voices of dissent