The Bounty Hunter of Wall Street
A profile of a man who makes a lots of money identifying and exposing financial chicanery.
Oscar-Zero: Notes from a Nuclear Tourist
A detailed tour of a Minuteman III Launch Control Center and the missileers tasked with ‘turning the key’ in the event of nuclear war.
Libor scandal: the bankers who fixed the world’s most important number
A look deep inside the Libor scandal that reads like a Hollywood clich of corporate malfeasance.
Fractured Lands: How the Arab World Came Apart
This extraordinary piece, spanning the Iraq War right up to the present day, takes up an entire issue of New York Times magazine and is the result of 18 months of reporting.
Federalist 10
James Madison, 4th President of the United States, wrote this essay on how to mitigate the “mischiefs of faction” in government in 1787. He noted the need to find balance – “In the first place, it is to be remarked that, however small the republic may be, the representatives must be raised to a certain number, in order to guard against the cabals of a few; and that, however large it may be, they must be limited to a certain number, in order to guard against the confusion of a multitude.” http://www.bit.ly/yale-madison
How an Ex-Cop Rigged McDonald’s Monopoly Game and Stole Millions
This story of how an inside man perpetrated a huge fraud on McDonald’s multi-million dollar Monopoly sweepstake is made for cinema. It in fact appears likely to make it to the big screen, as Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are reported to have started work on a film version.
Anthony Bourdain’s Moveable Feast
A 2017 profile of the much loved broadcaster and writer Anthony Bourdain, who died this week.
Style Is an Algorithm
A piece examining the somewhat terrifying possibility of entirely algorithmically driven cultural tastes, from fashion to art, music, food, home decor and more. It asks what our response is to the central promise of recommendation algorithms “If you like this, you will get more of it, forever” and the new value exchanges that are their outcome.
The Lottery Hackers: Jerry and Marge Go Large
The story of a retiree couple that succeeding in cracking the lottery, through a mixture of maths and the hard graft required to buy thousands upon thousands of tickets. It was almost plain sailing – until they ran into some competition.
The strange figures behind a secret trade
McMafia author Misha Glenny digs into the sophisticated organised crime networks behind the rhino poaching trade.