Culture

Salman Rushdie appeared at the New Orleans Book Festival, pushing back against his role as a free-speech icon—and raising urgent questions about a new kind of censorship.

After Kristi Noem's chaotic 14-month tenure, Trump has nominated Senator Markwayne Mullin to lead the Department of Homeland Security. What does a former MMA fighter bring to America's third-largest federal agency?

The 2026 Academy Awards finally arrive Sunday—five months after the season began. Who will win, who should win, and what this exhausting race tells us about Hollywood's creative bets.

From a foiled synagogue attack in Michigan to rising antisemitism across the West, a new wave of hate is reshaping culture—and algorithms are helping it spread.

A 1975 experiment convinced millions that dieting causes binge eating and obesity. Decades of new research tell a different story—and the implications reach far beyond the dinner table.

Progressive supranuclear palsy kills brain cells while mimicking Parkinson's. A new study identifies the first molecular clue that could change how doctors diagnose and treat this overlooked disease.

Before a single click could summon any sound imaginable, electronic music pioneers had to wire, solder, and splice their way to new sonic worlds. What did that friction cost — and what did it create?

A columnist who spent years arguing government waste was overstated just changed his mind—after luxury jets, branded SUVs, and $15 million in steak surfaced inside Trump's own administration.

Grammarly's 'Expert Review' feature used famous writers' names without consent to power AI editing advice. The backlash reveals a deeper anxiety: what happens when your voice becomes someone else's product?

From cryonics to de-extinction, biotechnology is redrawing the line between life and death. What does that mean for how we live, grieve, and understand ourselves?

Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles declared "Muslims don't belong in American society." His district has 40,000 Muslim constituents. What happens when a democracy produces representatives who reject pluralism itself?

Republican lawmakers are openly declaring that Muslims don't belong in American society. What changed between John McCain's 2008 rebuke and today's GOP silence — and what does it mean for pluralism?