The Atlantic
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Exploring the American idea through ambitious, essential reporting and storytelling. Of no party or clique since 1857. http://theatlantic.com
A radical new academic field questions people’s tendency to see their emotions mirrored in historical figures. Boris Kachka considers how to integrate the field’s research into our interpretation of characters from classic literature:
Do We Really Know How Isabel Archer Felt?
Fictional people, especially those from the past, are interesting because they are both strange and familiar.
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December 14, 2025 at 4:15 AM
A radical new academic field questions people’s tendency to see their emotions mirrored in historical figures. Boris Kachka considers how to integrate the field’s research into our interpretation of characters from classic literature:
Donald Trump’s executive order targeting state AI regulations is his latest gift to Silicon Valley, argues Matteo Wong:
Sam Altman Got What He Wanted
For now
bit.ly
December 14, 2025 at 2:45 AM
Donald Trump’s executive order targeting state AI regulations is his latest gift to Silicon Valley, argues Matteo Wong:
The white-supremacist influencer Nick Fuentes is more powerful than ever and is “laying groundwork to go even bigger,” Ali Breland reports. Read what Breland learned after a marathon viewing of Fuentes’s show:
I Watched 12 Hours of Nick Fuentes
The white-supremacist influencer is laying the groundwork to go even bigger.
bit.ly
December 14, 2025 at 2:15 AM
The white-supremacist influencer Nick Fuentes is more powerful than ever and is “laying groundwork to go even bigger,” Ali Breland reports. Read what Breland learned after a marathon viewing of Fuentes’s show:
Miriam Cabas is one of Spain’s few female bullfighters, Begoña Gómez Urzaiz writes. What does her success mean for bullfighting, and for Spain?
By the Horns
Miriam Cabas is one of Spain’s few female bullfighters. What does her success mean for bullfighting, and for Spain?
bit.ly
December 14, 2025 at 1:15 AM
Miriam Cabas is one of Spain’s few female bullfighters, Begoña Gómez Urzaiz writes. What does her success mean for bullfighting, and for Spain?
If the AI revolution fails to materialize as expected, the financial consequences could be ugly, Rogé Karma argues: “The last time the economy saw so much wealth tied up in such obscure overlapping arrangements was just before the 2008 financial crisis.” theatln.tc/IXjh5rc9
December 14, 2025 at 12:15 AM
If the AI revolution fails to materialize as expected, the financial consequences could be ugly, Rogé Karma argues: “The last time the economy saw so much wealth tied up in such obscure overlapping arrangements was just before the 2008 financial crisis.” theatln.tc/IXjh5rc9
Hong Kong’s response to a fire that killed more than 160 people suggests the city is becoming more authoritarian, Timothy McLaughlin argues—and this will only compound problems that “contributed to last month’s tragedy and that raise the risk of future ones”:
The Real Reason for the Hong Kong Fire
Don’t blame the bamboo scaffolding.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 11:15 PM
Hong Kong’s response to a fire that killed more than 160 people suggests the city is becoming more authoritarian, Timothy McLaughlin argues—and this will only compound problems that “contributed to last month’s tragedy and that raise the risk of future ones”:
The 13th day of the 18th annual Space Telescope Advent Calendar features an image portraying part of a dense cluster of galaxies—a wide variety of shapes, colors, and distances.
Every day until December 25, this page will present a new image of our universe:
Every day until December 25, this page will present a new image of our universe:
Day 13 of the 2025 Space Telescope Advent Calendar: A Sea of Galaxies
The 13th day of the 18th annual Space Telescope Advent Calendar features part of a dense cluster of galaxies—a wide variety of shapes, colors, and distances.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 10:15 PM
The 13th day of the 18th annual Space Telescope Advent Calendar features an image portraying part of a dense cluster of galaxies—a wide variety of shapes, colors, and distances.
Every day until December 25, this page will present a new image of our universe:
Every day until December 25, this page will present a new image of our universe:
When the Federal Reserve cut rates by another 0.25 percent this week, it did so under a cloud of speculation about who the next Fed chair might be. In The Atlantic Daily, @willgottsegen.com explores what’s at stake for Trump’s pick:
The Fed’s Succession Drama
Trump’s choice of a new Federal Reserve chair could reflect a broader power play.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 9:15 PM
When the Federal Reserve cut rates by another 0.25 percent this week, it did so under a cloud of speculation about who the next Fed chair might be. In The Atlantic Daily, @willgottsegen.com explores what’s at stake for Trump’s pick:
Donald Trump may have thought the rules of political gravity don't apply to him, “but not even the most fearsome and durable leader escapes the eventual decay of their power,” @dgraham.bsky.social argues in The Atlantic Daily.
Read more and sign up: theatln.tc/8HYDcQb7
Read more and sign up: theatln.tc/8HYDcQb7
December 13, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Donald Trump may have thought the rules of political gravity don't apply to him, “but not even the most fearsome and durable leader escapes the eventual decay of their power,” @dgraham.bsky.social argues in The Atlantic Daily.
Read more and sign up: theatln.tc/8HYDcQb7
Read more and sign up: theatln.tc/8HYDcQb7
“Therapy-speak” terms such as “gaslighting” and “love-bombing” have become ubiquitous, @olgakhazan.bsky.social writes. She asked couples therapists how these labels are affecting actual therapy:
Why Couples Therapists Are Sick of ‘Therapy-Speak’
What happens when spouses accuse each other of gaslighting? Nothing good.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 7:15 PM
“Therapy-speak” terms such as “gaslighting” and “love-bombing” have become ubiquitous, @olgakhazan.bsky.social writes. She asked couples therapists how these labels are affecting actual therapy:
The white-supremacist influencer Nick Fuentes is more powerful than ever and is “laying groundwork to go even bigger,” Ali Breland reports. Read what Breland learned after a marathon viewing of Fuentes’s show:
I Watched 12 Hours of Nick Fuentes
The white-supremacist influencer is laying the groundwork to go even bigger.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 6:30 PM
The white-supremacist influencer Nick Fuentes is more powerful than ever and is “laying groundwork to go even bigger,” Ali Breland reports. Read what Breland learned after a marathon viewing of Fuentes’s show:
In “West End Girl,” Lily Allen’s “deadpan delivery and gliding melodies land the plot twists crisply; the beats melt dancehall and soul elements into a drooping, numbed dreamscape,” @skornhaber.bsky.social writes.
See his top 10 albums of 2025: theatln.tc/SunxPyd7
See his top 10 albums of 2025: theatln.tc/SunxPyd7
December 13, 2025 at 5:45 PM
In “West End Girl,” Lily Allen’s “deadpan delivery and gliding melodies land the plot twists crisply; the beats melt dancehall and soul elements into a drooping, numbed dreamscape,” @skornhaber.bsky.social writes.
See his top 10 albums of 2025: theatln.tc/SunxPyd7
See his top 10 albums of 2025: theatln.tc/SunxPyd7
“Unlike pretty much every other conservative party in the industrialized world,” American Republicans seem resigned to bleed out on health care, @jonathanbchait.bsky.social argues. Why can’t the GOP make peace with Obamacare?
Obamacare Changed the Politics of Health Care
It’s one thing for Republicans to deny hypothetical care. It’s another to take this tangible benefit away.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 5:15 PM
“Unlike pretty much every other conservative party in the industrialized world,” American Republicans seem resigned to bleed out on health care, @jonathanbchait.bsky.social argues. Why can’t the GOP make peace with Obamacare?
"'Happy holidays,' being plural and inclusive, captures a genuinely pious—Christian—sentiment," Elizabeth Bruenig argued in 2024: theatln.tc/e57vCE1C
December 13, 2025 at 5:00 PM
"'Happy holidays,' being plural and inclusive, captures a genuinely pious—Christian—sentiment," Elizabeth Bruenig argued in 2024: theatln.tc/e57vCE1C
Events in Somalia suggest that “America First” in practice can look very different from what Donald Trump has described, Nancy Youssef reports:
So This Is What ‘America First’ Looks Like
The practical application of Trump’s isolationism is hardly the big break he promised.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Events in Somalia suggest that “America First” in practice can look very different from what Donald Trump has described, Nancy Youssef reports:
Hong Kong’s response to a fire that killed more than 160 people suggests the city is becoming more authoritarian, Timothy McLaughlin argues—and this will only compound problems that “contributed to last month’s tragedy and that raise the risk of future ones”:
The Real Reason for the Hong Kong Fire
Don’t blame the bamboo scaffolding.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Hong Kong’s response to a fire that killed more than 160 people suggests the city is becoming more authoritarian, Timothy McLaughlin argues—and this will only compound problems that “contributed to last month’s tragedy and that raise the risk of future ones”:
Donald Trump’s executive order targeting state AI regulations is his latest gift to Silicon Valley, argues Matteo Wong:
Sam Altman Got What He Wanted
For now
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Donald Trump’s executive order targeting state AI regulations is his latest gift to Silicon Valley, argues Matteo Wong:
Tina Peters is beyond the reach of Donald Trump’s pardon powers—but he’s trying to get her out of prison anyway, Yvonne Wingett Sanchez reports.
The Last MAGA Prisoner
Trump desperately wants Tina Peters released but can’t make it happen without help.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Tina Peters is beyond the reach of Donald Trump’s pardon powers—but he’s trying to get her out of prison anyway, Yvonne Wingett Sanchez reports.
Handel’s "Messiah" was Western music’s first classic, Jan Swafford wrote in 2024. It’s also the weirdest hit in history: theatln.tc/HfIRtRdg
December 13, 2025 at 1:45 PM
Handel’s "Messiah" was Western music’s first classic, Jan Swafford wrote in 2024. It’s also the weirdest hit in history: theatln.tc/HfIRtRdg
The food writer Tamar Adler espouses a use-everything approach in the kitchen, imbuing simple ingredients with a heady materialism. Lily Meyer talks with her about her new book, “Feast on Your Life,” and her philosophy of scraps:
The Philosopher of Scraps
Tamar Adler’s food writing imbues simple ingredients with a heady materialism.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 12:21 PM
The food writer Tamar Adler espouses a use-everything approach in the kitchen, imbuing simple ingredients with a heady materialism. Lily Meyer talks with her about her new book, “Feast on Your Life,” and her philosophy of scraps:
Donald Trump has made the end goal of his military campaign in the Caribbean clear—but whether he has a plan for what happens if Nicolás Maduro falls is an open question, Vivian Salama and Sarah Fitzpatrick report:
How Not to Plan for War
The goal of Trump’s Venezuela squeeze is clear, but how to get there isn’t.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 12:06 PM
Donald Trump has made the end goal of his military campaign in the Caribbean clear—but whether he has a plan for what happens if Nicolás Maduro falls is an open question, Vivian Salama and Sarah Fitzpatrick report:
“Unlike pretty much every other conservative party in the industrialized world,” American Republicans seem resigned to bleed out on health care, @jonathanbchait.bsky.social argues. Why can’t the GOP make peace with Obamacare?
Obamacare Changed the Politics of Health Care
It’s one thing for Republicans to deny hypothetical care. It’s another to take this tangible benefit away.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 11:15 AM
“Unlike pretty much every other conservative party in the industrialized world,” American Republicans seem resigned to bleed out on health care, @jonathanbchait.bsky.social argues. Why can’t the GOP make peace with Obamacare?
See images of the Hong Kong fire-engulfed high-rise, protests across America, Volodymyr Zelensky’s Oval Office visit, and more of the most striking 2025 news photos. These selections “take your breath away, bring you close,” Alan Taylor writes—via The Atlantic Photo.
Top 25 News Photos of 2025
Powerful images from the past 12 months
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 10:15 AM
See images of the Hong Kong fire-engulfed high-rise, protests across America, Volodymyr Zelensky’s Oval Office visit, and more of the most striking 2025 news photos. These selections “take your breath away, bring you close,” Alan Taylor writes—via The Atlantic Photo.
Modern vocabulary for describing emotions can be limited and vague. An emerging field of history that investigates how our forebears experienced feelings could allow people to better understand the emotions of the past—and present. @galbeckerman.bsky.social reports:
You Had to Be There
An emerging field of history asks if we can ever really understand how our forebears experienced love, anger, fear, and sorrow.
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 9:15 AM
Modern vocabulary for describing emotions can be limited and vague. An emerging field of history that investigates how our forebears experienced feelings could allow people to better understand the emotions of the past—and present. @galbeckerman.bsky.social reports:
More than 18,000 regular-season and postseason games have been played in the NFL, and not a single one of them has ended in a score of 36–23. Josh Levin looks into the league’s most enduring scoreboard mystery:
The Mystery of the Missing NFL Score
Why has a game never ended 36–23?
bit.ly
December 13, 2025 at 8:15 AM
More than 18,000 regular-season and postseason games have been played in the NFL, and not a single one of them has ended in a score of 36–23. Josh Levin looks into the league’s most enduring scoreboard mystery: