Inside the Haywire World of Beirut’s Electricity Brokers
The complicated business of Beirut’s independent electricity grid.
The Other Side Of Paradise: How I Left A Buddhist Retreat In Handcuffs
The author writes about his experience going to a full-on meditation course where things didn’t end well for him.
The Philosopher Redefining Equality
A study of the philosopher Elizabeth Anderson, and the theory she has “elaborated across decades”. The theory, in its essence, is that “equality is the basis for a free society”.
Jamal Khashoggi’s final months as an exile in the long shadow of Saudi Arabia
An nuanced account of the murdered author’s last few months.
The Case of Jane Doe Ponytail
The story of Song Yang, a woman working in one of Queens’ notorious massage parlours, but brought up in Liaoning, China. The story starts with her death, but it goes on to explore how she came to that moment, and the brutal environment in which she found herself, in a finely nuanced portrait.
The Big Hack: How China Used a Tiny Chip to Infiltrate U.S. Companies
This one could run and run. Of all the forms of cyber warfare, hacking the hardware (i.e physical machines), is perhaps the hardest to pull off. It also has the potential to be the most damaging. The story alleges that cloud servers owned by Super Micro, a big player in the tech infrastructure industry, contained tiny processors that could enable back door access to devices, programmes or networks that used them. Super Micro clients have included Amazon, Apple and numerous other blue chips, as well as several branches of the Federal government. The organisation that is alleged to have perpetrated the hack – the People’s Liberation Army of China.
The Long Shots
The story of Luvo Manyonga, a hugely gifted South African long jumper, and also a one time user of tik, a local variant of crystal methamphetamine. The story looks at his life and career and the lives of the people who saw his potential and sought to help him.
Trump Engaged in Suspect Tax Schemes as He Reaped Riches From His Fathe
The result of months of investigative work, this story examines Donald Trump’s finances and tax arrangements in detail. In doing so, it kills off one of the key Trump myths – that he was self-made, and it suggests that the family’s approach to tax was highly creative.
Devin Nunes’s Family Farm Is Hiding a Politically Explosive Secret
Devin Nunes is amongst President Trump’s most enthusiastic cheerleaders in Congress, so his family running a large scale dairy in Iowa employing undocumented workers would be politically inconvenient. The investigative aspect of the story is gripping – featuring uncomfortable interactions with Nunes family members, chance meetings in the local cafe, sit downs with the mayor and the priest, and being followed around town by mysterious white SUVs. Of even greater value perhaps are the nuanced portraits of Iowans carefully balancing politics, faith, immigration, the global economy, personal finances, and human relationships.