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Meller and Swift shake hands over the board

Two Scrabble Superstars Explain Their Unbelievable Championship Match

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printing press

Transactions, August 10

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NICE, FRANCE - AUGUST 09: Demi Vollering of Netherlands and Team FDJ United - SUEZ - Yellow Leader Jersey celebrates at finish line as stage and final overall race winner during the 5th Tour de France Femmes 2026, Stage 9 a 99.2km stage from Nice to Nice / #UCIWWT / on August 09, 2026 in Nice, France. (Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images)

The Tour de France Femmes Was A Contentious, Hypercompetitive Classic

45

Blogs of Note

Don Nelson Followed His Bliss And Changed Basketball

Sophie Cunningham Has Quite A Journey To Get Back To Basketball

Alligator Alcatraz Isn’t Just An American Fantasy

Let’s Unpack LaMelo Ball’s Sugary Abode

Mike Krukow, One Of Baseball’s Greatest Hangs, Is Ready To Go

Kayla McBride #21 of the Minnesota Lynx celebrates a three-point basket with Napheesa Collier #24 and teammates during the second half against the Dallas Wings at Target Center on August 9, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
WNBA

Kayla McBride Keeps It Ethical

34
A picture I took from the Brooklyn Bridge the first week I lived in New York, almost a decade ago.
Podcasts

What Does It Take To Make Big City Dreams Work?

12
FLOWERY BRANCH, GEORGIA - MAY 27: Michael Penix Jr. #9 of the Atlanta Falcons runs through drills alongside Tua Tagovailoa #1 as head coach Kevin Stefanski looks on during OTA’s at IBM Performance Field on May 27, 2026 in Flowery Branch, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Michael Penix Jr.; Tua Tagovailoa; Kevin Stefanski
Why Your Team Sucks

Why Your Team Sucks 2026: Atlanta Falcons

275
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks
Politics

The “Ground Zero Mosque” Strategy Makes An Even More Pathetic Return

143

The last good website.

Why Your Team Sucks

Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones

Why Your Team Sucks 2026: Dallas Cowboys

311
Jeff Hafley

Why Your Team Sucks 2026: Miami Dolphins

268
Joe Burrow poses at the Met Gala

Why Your Team Sucks 2026: Cincinnati Bengals

394

Why Your Team Sucks 2026: Kansas City Chiefs

Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Andy Reid

Why Your Team Sucks 2026: New Orleans Saints

288
Tyler Shough

Why Your Team Sucks 2026: Washington Commanders

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (L) speaks with U.S. President Donald Trump as Commanders team owner Josh Harris looks on at the NFL football game between the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium

Why Your Team Sucks 2026: Cleveland Browns

Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders
This Is So Stupid

CarJitsu Is Precisely As Dumb As It Sounds

138

Arts And Culture

Claire Stapleton Helped Write The Myth Of Google, But Now She’s Trying To Tell The Truth

50
Collage: An old drawing of people in a lifeboat struggling against rough seas; in front of them a modern woman is popping out of the water, taking a photo of herself.

What Are You Banning When You Ban Influencers?

182

The Best Music Of 2026 So Far

Still image from Drake's music video for "Burning Bridges."

‘I Want Your Sex’ Is A Raunchy Plea For Young People To Have More Fun

Podcasts

Here is the logo of the Normal Gossip podcast

Normal Gossip

The Distraction podcast

The Distraction

Try Hard

Only If You Get Caught

Nothing But Respect

Science

a still of ESPN reporter Lindsey Thiry batting away a big bug

What Big Bug “Attacked” An ESPN Reporter At Rams Camp?

We Wouldn’t Be Here Without Poop

an ichthyosaur eats a pterosaur, all above the gaping maw of a pliosaur

Would You Eat This Cretaceous Turducken?

English: Tufted gray langur (Semnopithecus priam) stroking a Grizzled giant squirrel (Ratufa macroura) caringly at Yala National Park - Sri Lanka.

Can A Monkey Have A Pet?

WNBA

MLB

Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Miami Heat speaks to the media during an introductory press conference at Kaseya Center on July 16, 2026. The Distraction logo is at upper right.

Mugged By Seagulls, With Rohan Nadkarni

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Jefry Yan #84 of the New York Mets celebrates after striking out Angel Martínez #1 of the Cleveland Guardians for his first career strikeout during the sixth inning of his major league debut on August 5, 2026.

It’s Jefry Yan Time

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Tarik Skubal #29 of the Los Angeles Dodgers reacts against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Oh No: Dodgers In Unrecoverable Tailspin After Sixth Straight Loss

103
Paul Skenes in the rain.

Paul Skenes Is Stuck Being A Guy While The Pirates Require A Dude

81

Advice

A little boy walks among the tombstones at Arlington National Cemetary in Washington D.C.

How Do I Talk To My Kid About Death?

104
Kristaps Porzingis with blood on his forehead from a collision.

Concussion Protocols Are A Sham

482
A man carries his child sideways in his arms as he walks up a road

Is It Even Possible To Discipline A Two-Year-Old?

115
Shirtless Broncos fans yelling

Will People Ever Stop Attending Sporting Events?

466

Crosswords

Passengers arrive on an Amtrak train at Union Station on December 04, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. Amtrak carried a record 32.8 million passengers in their 2024 fiscal year, a 15 percent increase over the same period in 2023.

The Crossword, Aug. 10: Midpoint

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JR Ritchie #60 of the Atlanta Braves pitches in the second inning during the game against the Washington Nationals at Truist Park on August 2, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia.

The Crossword, Aug. 3: Lucky Stars

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Serena Williams of United States prepares to serve against Maya Joint of Australia during their Ladies' Singles first round match on day two of The Championships Wimbledon 2026 at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on June 30, 2026 in London, England.

The Crossword, July 27: Way Downtown (Themeless)

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ABC/ESPN sideline reporter Katie George interviews head coach Kirby Smart of the Georgia Bulldogs after the Friday afternoon college football game between the UGA Bulldogs and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on November 28, 2025 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA.

The Crossword, July 20: No Half Measures

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More

Staff Chat

Staff Chat Starts Now? Staff Chat Starts Now

934
Undated group photo of the original "Our Gang."
Announcements

The Defector Interns Say Fogo de “Ciao”

78
Sarah and Sohini eat dinner
This Is So Stupid

Defector Also Investigating How Our Super Powerful AI Tool Broke Contain

171
ILLUSTRATION - 17 May 2024, North Rhine-Westphalia, Cologne: A person works at a computer with an illustrative image generated by artificial intelligence on the screen, showing code from various programming languages and a neural network diagram. At the meeting of telecommunications ministers on May 21, the EU countries are expected to finally adopt the AI law in the EU. The European Parliament had already given the green light for the project beforehand. Photo: Oliver Berg/dpa (Photo by Oliver Berg/picture alliance via Getty Images)
MLB

Miles Mikolas Now Better At Hitting Than Pitching

52
Miles Mikolas #36 of the Washington Nationals lays down a sacrifice RBI bunt in the top of the 11th inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park
Golf

LIV Golf Claims It Will Be Rescued From The Toilet Any Day Now

173
Bryson DeChambeau tees off at a LIV Golf event
Tennis

Alex Eala Is Catching The WTA’s Best Off Guard

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WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 01: Alexandra Eala of the Philippines celebrates after winning a women's singles match against Naomi Osaka of Japan on day six of the Mubadala DC Open 2026 at William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center on August 01, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
Politics

New York’s Use Of AI For Family Policing Summarizes The Last 30 Years Of City Politics

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A huge crowd of protesters marching in support of Black families. As the Black Lives Matter and Defund The Police movements are gaining momentum, activists are pushing to get rid of institutions that police and oppress black people. Activist in Brooklyn gathered at MetroTech plaza for a march to defund the Administration for Children's Services (ACS)
MLB

For One Night Only, A Rookie And His Sweet Folks Make It Possible To Enjoy The Yankees

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George Lombard Jr. smiles in the Yankees dugout.

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Interviews

Life's Rich Pageant

Let Me And A Food Scientist Sample The Abandoned Fish Sauce Terrorizing A Small Canadian Town

Interviews

Colson Whitehead Talks About Embracing Change, Pulling Off A Heist, And Finding A Good Coffee Table

Interviews

An Interview With Three Italian Backpackers Who Crossed The Pyrenees And Accidentally Ran Into The Tour de France

Arts And Culture

Meet The Broadway Actor Teaching Public Defenders How To Win In Court

Interviews

John Early’s Secret Is Total Commitment