Ideas 2016

7 Ways to Find Meaning at Work

David Brooks and Arthur Brooks offer advice on how to turn a job into a vocation.

• Uri Friedman
• Jul 4, 2016

Why Would a Republican Hawk Support Donald Trump?

Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton makes his case.

• Uri Friedman
• Jul 3, 2016

Gingrich: ‘There's No Evidence at All That Trump Is a Racist’

The former Speaker of the House, who’s reportedly being vetted as Donald Trump’s running mate, expounded on the presidential candidate’s strengths and flaws.

• Sophie Gilbert
• Jul 2, 2016

What If the Terrorists Are Already Here?

How to talk about terrorism today—and how to stop talking about it

• Uri Friedman
• Jul 2, 2016

Why Is Populism Winning on the American Right?

The answer may have less to to with the Trump phenomenon, and more daunting implications, than it seems.

• J.J. Gould
• Jul 2, 2016

How Gay Culture Helped Everyone Come Out of the Closet

The queer-rights movement, Dan Savage argues, helped American culture do something it has traditionally been reluctant to do: talk honestly and openly about sex.

• Megan Garber
• Jul 1, 2016

The Moral Panic About Online Porn

The psychotherapist Marty Klein argues that most anxiety about its pervasive influence is misplaced.

• Sophie Gilbert
• Jul 1, 2016

Trust in Government Is Collapsing Around the World

The trend helps explain Trump and Brexit. What’s next?

• Uri Friedman
• Jul 1, 2016

Is Reason Losing Out to Instinct and Emotion?

A journalist and an artist reflect on our relationship with Enlightenment ideals.

• Conor Friedersdorf
• Jul 1, 2016

A Chancellor at Rutgers on Admissions and the Meritocracy

The growing diversity of today’s educational cohort prompts the question, “Whose talents do we as a nation need to cultivate?”

• Conor Friedersdorf
• Jul 1, 2016

Can Existing Institutions Produce the Leaders That the World Needs?

A inquiry into the skills required to address the coming century’s problems

• Conor Friedersdorf
• Jul 1, 2016

Should Journalism Be Subject to Anti-Trust Laws?

Nina Totenberg’s thought-experiment about the future of the press

• Conor Friedersdorf
• Jul 1, 2016

The Typical College Student Is Not Who You Think It Is

What percentage graduated from high school and enrolled within a year at a four year institution where they live on campus?

• Conor Friedersdorf
• Jul 1, 2016

What Does It Really Mean to Be 'Single'?

There needs to be more nuanced language to describe the expanding demographic of unmarried Americans.

• Megan Garber
• Jul 1, 2016

Loretta Lynch: ‘I Certainly Wouldn’t Do It Again’

The nation’s top law-enforcement official speaks out on her tarmac meeting with Bill Clinton, and how she’ll handle the investigation of Hillary Clinton.

• Uri Friedman
• Jul 1, 2016

Challenging Culture's Whiteness by Default

As the art and entertainment industries begin to look increasingly unlike America, how can people in power better expand their pipeline for talent?

• Sophie Gilbert
• Jul 1, 2016

Is American Culture Asking Too Much of Marriage?

The relationship therapist Esther Perel thinks so—and argues that it’s time to rethink matrimony and, with it, infidelity.

• Megan Garber
• Jul 1, 2016

What About Convicts of Violent Crimes?

An incarceration-reform advocate and former inmate makes the case for broader rehabilitation efforts.

• Conor Friedersdorf
• Jul 1, 2016

Should Any Ideas Be 'Off the Table' in Campus Debates?

University leaders and observers discuss the intersection of student protests, free speech and academic freedom.

• Conor Friedersdorf
• Jun 30, 2016