Miss Teen America Finds Freedom, for a Day
On the lonely life of a for-profit pageant queen.
You Can Only Hope to Contain Them
On having breasts and playing sports.
Brendan I. Koerner is a contributing editor at Wired and the author of The Skies Belong to Us.
"It was this big review in The New York Times and I was terrified that it was going to say something awful about the book or about me as a writer. And my son said to me — he's 5, I should say — "If it's bad, you won't die." That's a good point, you know? So I always think of that when I pick up a new review and take that risk of someone slamming something that I've genuinely poured my heart and soul into. You'll live to fight another day."
Thanks to TinyLetter and the The Literary Reportage concentration at NYU's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute for sponsoring this week's episode.
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The Chelsea Hotel Had Its Own Eloise
How Gaby Hoffman, who had roles in Field of Dreams, Uncle Buck and Sleepless in Seattle, survived child stardom.
What Is to Be Done About the Banks?
On the dangerous state of U.K. banks—“an existential threat to British democracy, a more serious one than terrorism, either external or internal”—and how it can be fixed.
The Bin Laden Files
Following the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, the Pakistani government set up a commission to establish how U.S. forces could have violated Pakistani sovereignty without repercussions, and how Bin Laden came to reside secretly in Pakistan for so long. This is what they found.
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The Bin Ladens' Life on the Run
The day-to-day monotony and close calls of Bin Laden’s years on the lam.
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Bin Laden Raid Reveals 'State Failure'
How Pakistan helped allow Bin Laden to go undetected for so long.
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The Raid: How It Happened
The story of the night Bin Laden was killed, as told by those in the crosshairs.
First Lost, Then Murdered
The story of Melissa Barthelemy, a prostitute killed in a string of murders on Long Island in December 2010.
Mursi's Downfall
An inside account of the Egyptian leader’s last day in power.
“Why Did You Shoot Me? I Was Reading a Book”
On the militarization of America’s police forces.
40 Minutes in Benghazi
The story of the attack that killed U.S. ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, told from the persepctive of the security agents there to protect him.
In Rural Tennessee, a New Way to Help Hungry Children: A Bus Turned Bread Truck
Riding along on the Lunch Express.
John Wayne: A Love Song
On set in Mexico with the Duke.
Open Waters
Encounters with the sea.
Manhattan Fold ’Em
How a high-stakes poker game that started at Tobey Maguire’s house became part of a $100 million gambling and money-laundering operation orchestrated by the Russian mob.
Reflections on Violence
“Violence, being instrumental by nature, is rational to the extent that it is effective in reaching the end which must justify it.”
The Endless Summer Of Bob Uecker
Nine innings with Mr. Baseball.
Female Workers Face Rape, Harassment in U.S. Agriculture Industry
The dangerous work of harvesting your food.
Bash Your Neighbor Like It's 1300 A.D.
The author participates in the Society for Creative Anachronism’s “Crown Lyst, the twice-yearly event when knights will battle with ancient weapons and the victor will be named the new king.”
Where Did the Hockey Millions Go?
How a financial advisor for NHL players may have orchestrated a massive fraud.
How to Win in Washington
The rise and fall and rise of Hill flack Kurt Bardella, and what it says about D.C. culture.
Building New York's Subway
“Morning and night the hordes of clerks and stenographers and business men who fill the offices of down-town New York have poured across Newspaper Row and City Hall Park with scarcely a glance at the labor progressing underfoot that is going to bring them so many minutes nearer their work in the morning, and at night so many minutes nearer their play.”
An Oral History of the March on Washington
A pivotal Civil Rights rally recalled, 50 years later.
The World Ends With a Handshake: Unraveling the Apocalypse of 'Southland Tales'
A Southland Tales fanboy goes down the rabbit hole with the movie’s director.
The Letter
How Robert Gottlieb quelled a rebellion and saved The New Yorker.
Note: Elon Green is a contributing editor to Longform.
Yrs. Truly, A Lincoln
On the grifter who made a living forging the signatures of American heroes.
