Pete Wells Has His Knives Out
The life and work of the New York Times restaurant critic.
How Martin Luther Changed the World
A profile of the Augustinian friar who five hundred years ago significantly altered the course of history, when at the age of thirty-three he initiated the eventual split in the Catholic Church.
The Trafficker
One from the New Yorker archives (2010), this is the story of one of the world’s leading arms dealers. Monzer al-Kassar was a man who lived up to many stereotypes of his profession – speaking many languages, piloting his own private jet, and running a fleet of Mercedes to get about town.
The Showman
A May 2016 profile of Preet Bharara, the charismatic United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, who announced yesterday that he had been fired by the Trump administration after refusing to stand down.
Thomas Heatherwick, Architecture’s Showman
This profile of Thomas Heatherwick looks at his career, and recent work on the Vessel, a huge installation in one of New York’s largest and costliest new developments. The piece is waspish enough to keep things interesting, whilst also providing an insight into the rarefied world of star designers and architects.
The Spy Who Came Home
A story about Patrick Skinner, currently a local cop in Savannah, Georgia, but formerly a CIA case officer directly engaged in post-9/11 operations. The piece jumps between his two careers and relates how he is applying lessons from the CIA to community policing.
Trying to Remember J.F.K.
An elegaic personal essay reflecting on President Kennedy’s legacy in his centenary year.
The Afterlife of Pablo Escobar
The controversial and bloody legacy of the world’s most famous drug trafficker remains a profitable business for many, including some members of his family and former associates.
Reddit and the Struggle to Detoxify the Internet
Though it is currently the 7th most visited site in the world (and 4th in the US), it’s easy to underestimate the sheer scale of Reddit, the self-styled “front page of the internet”. That scale, and its anarchic traits, have made it the front line in figuring out what is acceptable online behaviour. This insightful and often darkly funny piece meets the people trying to draw the lines.