Journalist Michael Hastings Dead at 33

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Michael Hastings, most recently of Buzzfeed but well-known and respected for his fearless reporting in Rolling Stone, Newsweek, and elsewhere, has died at the age of 33

By Alexander Abad-Santos

6:22 PM ET

It Takes 'Morning Joe' to Make Russell Brand Likeable

Today in viral videos: Russell Brand gets sympathetic, 50 (completely unscientific) ways to trick people into thinking you're smarter than you are, and summer treat from Disney. 

Comments | 2,407 Views

By Connor Simpson

2:34 PM ET

Ed Snowden Is Planning His Next Move

The former government contractor who leaked National Security Agency documents that turned the world's digital privacy expectations upside-down appears to be keeping up with his plan to seek asylum in Iceland, with an assist from Wikileaks, of course. And the Icelandic government tells The Atlantic Wire that won't be easy.

Comments | 1,751 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

1:07 PM ET

North Korea Says NSA Spying Makes the U.S. a 'Kingpin of Human Rights Abuses'

North Korea, land of gulags, government-enforced information blackouts, and humans so hungry they eat other humans, has finally weighed in on the NSA-spying controversy and has become ... an advocate for American civil liberties. 

Comments | 656 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

12:02 PM ET

Happy 500th Fugitive to the FBI's 'Ten Most Wanted' List

A former college professor accused of going overseas to have sex with minors has become the 500th person to hold a spot on the FBI's famous Ten Most Wanted List. Here's a look back at some "fun" facts about the publicity stunt turned surprisingly effective law-enforcement tool.

Comments | 219 Views

By J.K. Trotter

11:58 AM ET

Today's Best

Five Best Tuesday Columns

George Packer on the reach of Silicon Valley, Tim Shorrock on consolidating our spies, Leigh Alexander on the future of video games, Noreene Malone on Michael Bloomberg's composting plan, and Ramesh Ponnuru on the coming judgment of the Supreme Court.

Comments | 219 Views

By Abby Ohlheiser

Jun 17, 2013

Obama: Syria Isn't Another Iraq

President Obama defended the administration's decision to "ramp up" their support to Syrian rebel forces by, among other things, providing some lethal aid, during a sprawling interview with Charlie Rose that aired late Monday night on PBS.

Comments | 657 Views

By Philip Bump

Jun 17, 2013

The Prisoners at Guantanamo, by the Numbers

In April, The New York Times' Charles Savage asked the government to release a list of the people still detained at the government's prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. On Monday the Justice Department responded, providing one of the first complete looks at who the United States is holding, and what it plans to do with them.

Comments | 1,751 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Jun 17, 2013

Anti-Abortion Advocates May Be Behind the Blind Chinese Activist's War on NYU

The story of blind Chinese dissident and human rights activist Chen Guangcheng, currently a visiting scholar at NYU, has taken an all-too-familiar turn: Chen has reportedly fallen in with a group of strident religious conservatives who have persuaded him to accuse NYU (falsely) of evicting him.

Comments | 875 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jun 17, 2013

Feds Are Out for 7-Eleven in 'Modern Day Plantation' Immigrant Abuse Ring

A disgusting plot involving the smuggling of Pakistani immigrants, stealing their wages, and forcing them to pay for housing was busted by federal agents in New York and Virginia. This is going to look very bad for your local Slurpee shop, and the great bodega takeover of New York City.

Comments | 4,377 Views

By Philip Bump

Jun 17, 2013

If Snowden Is a Chinese Spy, He's a Very Strange Spy Indeed

It is possible that Edward Snowden is a Chinese spy, as Dick Cheney might have you believe. If he is, Snowden is one of the most capable and least predictable spies in American history. A cursory look at the evidence at hand suggests that Cheney is wrong.

Comments | 2,626 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jun 17, 2013

The Summer's Best (and Most Difficult) Cookbooks

I have no idea where to even begin the process of procuring an 8-pound half of a pig's head. As I typed "half pig head ... New York" into Google, I couldn't help but feel that Franny's: Simple, Seasonal, Italian, which is being lauded as one of this season's best cookbooks, was belligerently lying to me about the "simple" part.

Comments | 875 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jun 17, 2013

The Supreme Court Decided Your Silence Can Be Used Against You

A nation continues to wait for final word on the Supreme Court's Big Four cases, but the justices' closest call arrived first on Monday, in a ruling that just made your right to remain silent a lot more complicated — just ask Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Comments | 31,952 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Jun 17, 2013

Today's Best

Five Best Monday Columns

Heidi Moore on the recent impact of financial lobbying, Joan Walsh on the return of Sarah Palin, Mary Ann Mason on the challenges women face in academia, Hendrik Hertzberg on the security state laid bare, Adrian Walker on Gabriel Gomez's troubled Senate campaign.

Comments | 2,189 Views

By Philip Bump

Jun 17, 2013

The Big Gay Supreme Court Media Bias Is the Line Between Fact and Opinion

We may have to wait another week or so for the Supreme Court's decisions on two key same-sex marriage cases, but we at least now have a better sense of which media outlets reflect our prejudices on the issue. Supporter of same-sex marriage? You're in luck; nearly every outlet leaned that way. Opponent? Meet Mr. Limbaugh.

Comments | 1,751 Views

By Abby Ohlheiser

Jun 16, 2013

Chicago's Violent Weekend Was the Worst of the Year

We're halfway through one of the least-deadly years in recent Chicago homicide history, but here's a reminder that summer is just getting started: over 40 were shot and 7 killed in Chicago this weekend. 

Comments | 5,252 Views

By Connor Simpson

Jun 16, 2013

Kids, Chuck Schumer Is Coming for Your Adderall

Are you a student in New York using prescription performance enhancing drugs like Adderall or Ritalin to finish your work in a timely manner? Well, let's hope you've got a rock solid diagnosis because Sen. Chuck Schumer wants to crack down on "academic doping."

Comments | 657 Views

By Connor Simpson

Jun 16, 2013

Jerrold Nadler Does Not Think the NSA Can Listen to U.S. Phone Calls

An exchange between Rep. Jerrold Nadler and FBI director Robert Mueller is coming under some scrutiny after a reporter claimed it concretely proves that NSA analysts can listen to domestic phone calls without a warrant. 

Comments | 12,256 Views

By Connor Simpson

Jun 15, 2013

The Majority of Senate Skipped a Classified PRISM Briefing

There was a classified meeting for Senators wanting to learn more about the National Security Agency's PRISM program from the top security officials, including Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and NSA chief Keith Alexander, but attendance was sparse.

Comments | 4,596 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Jun 14, 2013

Bloomberg's Terminal Snooping More Widespread Than Wall Street Thought

According to an alarming report published by The New York Times on Friday, reporters at the company were for decades not only permitted, but frequently and forcefully encouraged, to monitor potential story subjects with the terminal software's U UID function.

Comments | 1,313 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jun 14, 2013

Here Is $250,000 Worth of Speeches, Thank Us Later

While you waste the last drips of this Friday afternoon at your desk, just know there's someone out there who is much more famous than you, is much less deserving than you, and gets paid more than some people make a year to talk about motivational things for about half an hour. The gory, torturous details are all in the latest issue of The New Republic.

Comments | 438 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jun 14, 2013

Lululemon Is Looking for a Powerful (Maybe Satanic?) Leader

Lululemon, purveyor of crotch-flashing yoga wear, is looking for a new CEO after Christine Day stepped down this week.  They placed an ad looking for the position that is looking for someone who will "wear The Mansy to lead our company-wide morning chant and kombucha ritual" to lead their company. They're joking ... we hope?

Comments | 875 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Jun 14, 2013

Sharyl Attkisson's Computer Was Hacked but CBS Doesn't Know Who Did It

Yes, journalists: even you can get hacked. On Friday morning, a spokesperson for CBS News announced that veteran reporter Sharyl Attkisson's computer had been "accessed by an unauthorized, external, unknown party on multiple occasions late in 2012."

Comments | 2,188 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Jun 14, 2013

Today's Best

Five Best Friday Columns

Kirsten Powers on the backlash to Edward Snowden, Glenn Greenwald on his long week, Francis X. Rocca on the new pope's relationship with Jews, Sherrilyn A. Ifill on the future of affirmative action, and Sasha Weiss on our age of online exposure.

Comments | 1,094 Views

Searching for the 'Widowhood Effect' on Father's Day

When his father dies just months after his mother, a reporter searches for answers — and finds more than just a coincidence.

Comments | 1,532 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jun 14, 2013

Snowden Is Using 'Specific' Evidence of the U.S. Hacking China to Stay Out of Jail

We knew Snowden had new information about hacking, but new reports today suggest that he has targets — and that they may affect diplomatic relations as the leaker seeks to put off extradition back home.

Comments | 4,377 Views

By Rebecca Greenfield

Jun 14, 2013

The Afterlife of an Unpaid Intern Who Sues His Old Boss

What happens to the unpaid intern that sues their former employer? Good news for the two former underpaid Condé Nast magazine slaves who just filed a suit: It turns out filing a very high profile lawsuit against one of the biggest names in the industry doesn't ruin your career — depending on exactly what kind of professional life you want, that is.

Comments | 7,221 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

Jun 14, 2013

This Commander of a Nazi Unit Has Been Living in Minnesota for 60 Years

An investigation by the Associated Press has found that a 94-year-old man who moved to the United States in 1949 was actually the commander of Nazi SS-led unit during World War II.

Comments | 30,526 Views

By Abby Ohlheiser and J.K. Trotter

Jun 13, 2013

You Can Still Protest the Supreme Court

Have faith, Supreme Court rabble-rousers: the highest bench in the United States remains open to protests, speeches, demonstrations, and vigils. You may have to follow a few ground rules, though. 

Comments | 657 Views

By Rebecca Greenfield

Jun 13, 2013

Look at the Almost-Derecho That Almost Ate DC

There was a big storm set to attack the East Coast heading into this weekend, and it hit Washington, D.C. — and hit hard — until it didn't. By Thursday evening the ominous impressionist-grey skies over the nation's capital had turned yesterday's-news blue, leaving behind only photo evidence and a windswept, powerless streak of a so-called "derecho" that never quite was.

Comments | 2,607 Views

By Abby Ohlheiser and Elspeth Reeve

Jun 13, 2013

The White House Will Reportedly Arm the Syrian Rebels

 Based on multiple media reports, all citing unnamed officials, the Obama administration has decided to start supplying some Syrian rebel groups with arms and ammunition. 

Comments | 1,312 Views

By Philip Bump

Jun 13, 2013

The Feds May Start Monitoring the NYPD Over Stop-and-Frisk

If a federal court determines that the NYPD systematically violated the civil rights of residents through its stop-and-frisk behavior — which the court probably will — the Department of Justice may provide a monitor for oversight. Bloomberg is mad about it, to which there is only one reasonable response: Get over it.

Comments

By Rebecca Greenfield

Jun 13, 2013

Poorly Paid Interns Sue Condé Nast

Following the big Black Swan unpaid intern win yesterday, former unpaid laborers at Condé Nast have sued the magazine publisher for back wages.

Comments | 1,751 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jun 13, 2013

Who Has the Advantage with the Silencing of the Trayvon Jury?

Judge Debra Nelson ordered the deciders-in-waiting to be sequestered for the length of the trial, in a kind of side jab at the defense potentially signaling that she is unwilling to let George Zimmerman's attorneys sway objectivity with a public smearing of Martin's past. But this may not be a direct blow to Team Zimmerman.

Comments | 4,158 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Jun 13, 2013

Rep. Steve King Thinks High-Schoolers in His Office Are an Invasive Alien Species

Congressman Steve King is no fan of immigration reform — nor, apparently, the democratic process.

Comments | 2,626 Views

By Philip Bump

Jun 13, 2013

White People Problems: Census Finds More Whites Are Dying Than Being Born

Last year, for apparently the first time, more non-Hispanic white people died than were born. Other trends confirmed by the Census compilation of population estimates for the year 2012 were expected: the U.S. population is shifting to the Southwest, getting older, with more people moving to cities.

Comments | 6,128 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Jun 13, 2013

Today's Best

Five Best Thursday Columns

Margaret Carlson on Marco Rubio's GOP campaign, Laurie Shrage on forced fatherhood, Jim Naureckas on how journalists identify with states, Sonja West on Anthony Kennedy's gay marriage decision, Rachel Arons on TV's recent depictions of Jewish people.

Comments | 1,751 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jun 13, 2013

The SCOTUS Affirmative Action Ruling Is Still Delayed, and Isn't That Big a Deal

The Supreme Court announced one ruling of relative landmark status on Thursday — on gene patenting — but the justices kept America in waiting on three key issues on which it still holds the key to the future: gay marriage, the Voting Rights Act, and affirmative action. The latter of those, well, the wait will last longer than the end of the Court's spring term later this month.

Comments | 2,182 Views

By Jen Doll

Jun 13, 2013

A.O. Scott Reviews the Park Slope Coop: 'A Neo-Realist Fable Involving Cheese'

Did you know that the Brooklyn-based Food Coop has its own official newsletter, The Linewaiters Gazette? It's been around since way back in 1973, and it is its own source of fascinating information. In the latest issue, The New York Times' A.O. Scott dissects the Coop.

Comments | 1,532 Views

By Dashiell Bennett

Jun 13, 2013

Inspector of Philadelphia Building That Collapsed Committed Suicide

The man responsible for inspecting the Philadelphia construction site where a building collapse killed six people last week, reportedly committed suicide yesterday.

Comments | 2,845 Views

By Alexander Abad-Santos

Jun 12, 2013

Science: Your Legos Are Getting Angrier

Lego figurines are increasingly being designed to look full of "anger" and "disdain," according to a group of New Zealand researchers. But before you throw the building blocks out with the bathwater and lose all faith in humanity over a long-time childhood staple, there's a logical explanation for why Legos are bringing out the bad in people. And it involves Harry Potter.

Comments | 1,313 Views

By J.K. Trotter

Jun 12, 2013

Does Obama Still Know How to Stump?

After enduring weeks of acronym-heavy scandalmania — IRS! DoJ! NSA — President Obama is refocusing on his favorite acronym from the stump: GOP. Yes, Obama is back — albeit temporarily — in campaign mode

Comments | 218 Views

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