Madras Check
A look at the city of Chennai’s passion for chess.
Why McConnell Dumped Trump
An analysis of how the Republican Party’s leader in the Senate has shifted his position as regards Donald Trump, and why.
How the Most Hyped U.S. Oil Merger in a Decade Went Bust
The story of a huge oil deal where things quickly got very sticky.
Interviewing MPs
A Professor of Politics at Queen Mary University draws on his experience interviewing around 1,000 politicians to provide a paper covering “stuff I wish someone had told me at the beginning”. Note — this is a link to a page where you can read the abstract of the paper and download the full PDF or read it in your browser.
The Epic Hunt for One of the World’s Most Wanted Men
The story of the search for Félicien Kabuga, a Rwandan businessman who was accused of helping to enable the Rwandan genocide in 1994, and was on the run for more than 20 years.
Nextdoor Is Quietly Replacing the Small-Town Paper
A look at the ultra-local social network Nextdoor.
Intel Problems
An asssessment of five significant problems facing Intel, and two potential solutions.
How Europe fell behind on vaccines
A story looking at vaccine procurement in the EU and elsewhere. The article summarises the trade offs arising from the EU’s centralised approach in the following way — “EU countries stuck together even as the U.S. and the U.K. bought, approved and began injecting vaccines at a faster clip. The result: lower prices, with higher accountability for drugmakers, and shots for the whole of the EU — but also delays in delivery and rising tensions among EU member countries resentful about the tradeoffs.”
Who’s Making All Those Scam Calls?
A look at the raft of scam phone calls that plague consumers and the “multibillion-dollar criminal industry” behind them.