Stories

Another sudden, grim, creepy reminder to journalists to save PDFs. One former staffer: “Heart is breaking for the folks that have been there so much longer, poured so much of themselves into it just for it to be taken away with ZERO notice. How is this ok?” - The Verge

“There was splendor before me. … You know, James Baldwin was not very tall, but he was tremendous looking.” - NPR

Casey McQuiston explains why romance is literature - if you know how to read it. “Romance holds a mirror to our wants and needs. If we want to study works that sit within a greater literary tradition, romance has one of the richest.” - Time

The merchification of the movie-going experience was incomplete until Dune 2 kicked it off. Now? Viral merch may be helping save movie theatres. - Vulture

The second wave feminist idea is new again: Women have all of the art - and more: “We are asking visitors to ... take a leap of the imagination and think what it would be like if governance and decision-making were in the hands solely of women.” - The Observer (UK)

The DOJ says that TikTok “knowingly allowed children under 13 to create accounts in the regular TikTok experience and collected extensive personal information from those children without first providing parental notice or obtaining verifiable parental consent.” - Wired

Then try this 700-page Australian prizewinning novel that “is 'more like an experience’ than a story,” according to its publisher. Then there are the five million feral donkeys. - The Guardian (UK)

If you watch reality TV, you’ll understand why The Queen of Versailles is hitting so hard. And, of course, Gatsby never gets old. - The New York Times

For instance, neither Deadpool nor Wolverine can die, and that makes them boring. “An entire generation has never known a time without the MCU and its reliable narrative architecture, with its wash, rinse, repeat of clever rejoinders, conflict resolution through fist fights and celebrity cameos.” - Salon

Maybe when you’re old enough to appreciate it. “It turns out, being wrong is one of the best things in life.” - The New York Times

But he was young, see? So it was just a boy being a boy! MrBeast, for those who don’t know, makes a lot of money as the person running. YouTube's most subscribed-to channel. - Los Angeles Times (MSN)

Is this real? Absolutely. Roy Cockrum won Powerball in 2014, and since then has given millions to nonprofits. “The question I put to artistic directors is, ‘Is there a project you’ve always dreamed of doing that you couldn’t afford?’” - The New York Times

Those lessons in a particular brand of “femininity” aren’t super. Ballerinas “are taught to dance through pain, to perform roles with troubling messages, and that the gaze of an audience (historically male, but even now, certainly patriarchal) gives them worth.” - Vogue

“It is the first new film category to be introduced by Bafta for five years, and will be awarded for the first time in 2025.” - BBC

The CSO says that "the new agreement provides salary increases of 23% over the life of the contract, more flexible scheduling,” and “industry-leading audition and tenure practices” that will be clearly committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. - CityBeat