A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Brand
Social media is turning self-promotion into a full-time, alienating preoccupation.
Features
Is Facebook Making Us Lonely?
For all the connectivity of the social- media age, research suggests that we have never been lonelier. A report on what this epidemic is doing to our bodies, our souls, and our society.
The Most Dangerous Gamer
The video-game developer Jonathan Blow is his industry’s harshest critic. In trying to prove the artistic capacity of his medium, Blow may cement his legacy—or end his career.
Video: Taylor Clark shows what makes Jonathan Blow's video games so subversive and extraordinary.
Six Rules for Dining Out
How a frugal economist finds the perfect lunch
Video: Tyler Cowen discovers an exceptional Vietnamese bistro in a suburban strip mall near Washington, D.C.
How to Make a Hollywood Hit
Charting the new globe-trotting science of moviemaking
Kanye West, American Mozart
Intense and emotional, the hip-hop superstar has become a national joke. Could a concert tour with Jay-Z, his preternaturally controlled friend and rival, offer redemption—or disaster?
Interview:: Rap legend Rakim talks to David Samuels about the state of hip-hop today, the state of hip-hop when he started—and how he ended up living in suburban Connecticut.
Dispatches
Can the Tea Party Take Japan?
Tokyo conservatives look westward for inspiration.
Alaska by Dogsled
A journey through the wilderness renews friendship and invites solitude.
The Army Bands of Afghanistan
The United States is hoping to leave the country with a fully functioning military. That includes training musicians who can sound "like sixth-grade band class."
Qaddafi’s Child
Bad tidings reach the despot's son Saadi.
Iron Lungs and Steely Nerves
Off the Kona Coast of Hawaii, a diving enthusiast learns to plunge 100 feet on a single gulp of air.
The Data-Driven Parent
Will statistical analytics make for healthier, happier babies—or more-anxious adults?
Columns
Why You Can’t Get a Taxi
And how an upstart company may change that
The Filthy Morality of Louis C.K.
How the comedian became America’s unlikely conscience
Books
The Art of Fielding: A Swing and a Miss
Why the latest hyped-up work of staggering genius strikes out
Critiquing the Critic
Essayist Dwight Macdonald had a rhythmic voice and "a poet's eye for detail."
Cover to Cover
Richard Diebenkorn’s vision of California; Sir Walter Raleigh gets his due; stylish ghost stories; and more
Telstar Brings World Closer (1962) 
The Information Machine (1958) 
Synthetic Biology 
