Senior editor at The Atlantic (arts x politics, and much more) and proprietor of http://hedswillroll.tumblr.com.
Turns out @emilyrcwilson.bsky.social knows a lot about ancient epics www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
A Trojan Horse Is Supposed to Have Humans Inside ItChristopher Nolan’s Odyssey is full of contradictions about deceit and violence.www.theatlantic.com
Despite the whining about “ historical accuracy,” the racist backlash to the casting in Nolan’s Odyssey is about the right wanting to justify racial hierarchy by projecting it into a past where it did not actually exist. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
Some abolitionists once played up an antislavery version of George Washington to try to end slavery. Now the Trump administration is doing it to deny slavery mattered at all. I wrote about the new exhibit at the President’s House in Philly for @theatlantic.com. www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026...
Washington, the Useful AbolitionistIn Philadelphia, the Trump administration downplays the importance of slavery to understanding the first president.www.theatlantic.comNEWS: The Trump admin is trying to loosen historic preservation rules — the Section 106 review — to ease approval of projects like the triumphal arch. From @janaykingsberry.bsky.social www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026...
Inside Trump’s Rush Job to Build His ArchA previously unreported regulatory change could lower the bar for new additions to Washington.www.theatlantic.com
For @theatlantic.com's August issue, I wrote the sons Ethel and Julius Rosenberg left behind, and their decades-long quest for the truth: www.theatlantic.com/magazine/202...
The Rosenberg BoysWhen Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were executed by the U.S. government, they left behind two sons, ages 6 and 10. All these years later, Robby and Michael are still trying to make sense of what happened...www.theatlantic.com
Some odd developments over at the Kennedy Center... Great reporting from @janaykingsberry.bsky.social: www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026...
The Kennedy Center’s Latest Defense Raises a New MysteryWhat is the Trump Kennedy Center Foundation? And why is it being mentioned only now?www.theatlantic.com
We are announcing three new staff writers at The Atlantic: Josh Partlow, @arielsabar.bsky.social, and Sebastian Smee. More info here: www.theatlantic.com/press-releas...
The Atlantic Announces Joshua Partlow, Ariel Sabar, and Sebastian Smee as Staff WritersNonewww.theatlantic.comExcellent reporting from @clintsmithiii.bsky.social, just published... The inside story of Trump's attempts to take control of the Smithsonian: www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026...
Inside Trump’s Plan to Seize the SmithsonianHow long can the museum system’s leader, Lonnie Bunch, survive?www.theatlantic.com
NEW: Donald Trump has a new nemesis, with a name worthy of a supervillain: Scenedesmus. We gathered samples of the Reflecting Pool and had them tested. They seem to have killed off one algae, but created conditions for another to flourish. My latest: www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
Tests of the Reflecting Pool Turn Up a SurpriseEforts to clean the pool might be making the problem worse.www.theatlantic.com
NEW: They have requested a 12-hour extension on their homework. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
So the two DOGE staffers who used ChatGPT to cut all those grants and programs and who struggled to define DEI in that viral deposition footage have a new startup: DOGE for the public sector. I wrote about them and the myth of the “builder” as a disguise for something more insidious
The DOGE Bros Want Another ShotTwo former staffers have created a new, perplexing company.www.theatlantic.com
wonderful piece from @clintsmithiii.bsky.social that, among other things, makes abundantly clear that pete hegseth and the trump administration are engaged in a racist purge of black officers under the belief that being black and having "merit" are mutually exclusive.
The Betrayal of Black PatriotsThey devoted their lives to serving the United States. Now the nation’s top military leader is sending the message that they’re not welcome.www.theatlantic.com