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Defector


<p>charismatic megafauna (they/them)</p>


Sabrina Imbler

Kelsey McKinney


<p>Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.</p>


Dan McQuade

Ray Ratto

The two Eurovision hosts are surrounded by dancers holding giant fondue sticks.

Music

Can You Do Racism Against Italians? A Eurovision Roundtable

Samer Kalaf

Journalismism

The New York Times Really Asked Ms. Rachel If She’s Paid By Hamas

Patrick Redford

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - MAY 12: Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors looks on from the bench during the first quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game Four of the Western Conference Second Round NBA Playoffs at Chase Center on May 12, 2025 in San Francisco, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

For A Limited Time

Dave McKenna

Horse Racing

One Last Trip To Pimlico, A Dead And Damned Racetrack

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<p>Robert Rubsam writes fiction and nonfiction. His work has appeared in the NYT Magazine, the Atlantic, the Washington Post, the Baffler, and Liberties. He is a contributing writer for Commonweal Magazine.</p>
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Robert Rubsam

Arts And Culture

Netflix Keeps Ruining Action Movies

Maitreyi Anantharaman

Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve and Napheesa Collier #24 talk with referee Tim Greene after a foul call in the fourth quarter against the New York Liberty during Game Five of the WNBA Finals at Barclays Center on October 20, 2024 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The New York Liberty defeated the Minnesota Lynx 67-62 in overtime to win the championship.

WNBA

An Old Grudge, A New Team, A Swole Caitlin: The 2025 WNBA Season Preview

Joe Don Baker, in a loud white shirt with color slots on it, sits in a blue car talking to a kid in a yellow shirt. Silhouettes of a man and three robots are in front of the image.

‘Mitchell’ Is Part Of Joe Don Baker’s Legacy, For Better Or Worse

David Roth

Honorary pace car driver, Alan Ritchson attends the "Reacher" activation on the midway prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway on February 16, 2025 in Daytona Beach, Florida. The Distraction logo is at upper right.

Podcasts

Hands Like Small Turkeys, With Brandy Jensen

Swole Woman Casey Johnston Has Written A Swole Book

Albert Burneko

The obnoxious Grok logo, on a phone screen, in a hand silhouetted against a neon green background.

The Machines

Elon Musk’s Idiot Chatbot Goes Full Boer

<p>Violet Lucca is the author of <a href="https://bookshop.org/p/books/david-cronenberg-clinical-trials-violet-lucca/21170132"><i>David Cronenberg: Clinical Trials</i></a>. Her writing has appeared in the <em>New York Times</em>, <em>Art in America</em>, <em>Sight and Sound</em>, the <em>Village Voice</em>, and elsewhere. She was the VP of Digital at <em>Harper’s Magazine</em> and Digital Producer at <em>Film Comment</em>, and was the host of their respective podcasts.</p>


Violet Lucca

Defector At The Movies

‘The Shrouds’ Is David Cronenberg’s Typically Prescient Epitaph For Our Present And His Career

Lauren Theisen

sarah snook on stage with several screens showing her

‘The Picture Of Dorian Gray’ Is A Digital Monument To Vanity

Soraya Roberts

‘Friendship’ Can’t Sustain The Relationship

Barry Petchesky

TORONTO, ON- MAY 14 - Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett (9) and Toronto Maple Leafs center David Kampf (64) battle in the snow in first period action as the Toronto Maple Leafs play the Florida Panthers in game five in the second round of the NHL Stanley Cup play-offs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. May 14, 2025. Steve Russell/Toronto Star

Toronto Once Again Wins The Stanley Cup Of Angst

<p>Staff Writer</p>
<p>Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.19</p>


Chris Thompson

Torey Lovullo gives the business to an umpire.

No, You’re Outta Here!

<p>Maya Goldberg-Safir writes about women’s basketball and splits her time between Chicago and Oakland, where she was born and raised. She is the creator of <a href="https://wnbaroughnotes.substack.com/">Rough Notes</a>, a newsletter chronicling women’s basketball from the court, the road, and the heart.</p>


Maya Goldberg-Safir

History

How The Japanese-American Basketball Leagues Built Natalie Nakase

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - MAY 13: Luguentz Dort (5) of the Oklahoma City Thunder reacts to making a three pointer as Nikola Jokic (15) of the Denver Nuggets prepares for the inbound during the fourth quarter of OKC's 112-105 win at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on Tuesday, May 13, 2025. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)

Nikola Jokic Is Outnumbered

Interviews

An Interview With A Fired Contract Specialist At The Office Of Personnel Management

<p>Columnist. Author of many <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Drew-Magary/e/B001JS8R52/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1">fine works of literature</a>, including <em>Point B</em>. Handsomest man in the world.</p>


Drew Magary

College Football

Bill Belichick Brought Along His Merry Band Of Losers

Javier Báez #28 of the Detroit Tigers is showered with ice water after hitting a three-run walk-off home run

Javy Báez Comes Back For Seconds

Group shot of the 1919 White Sox. They would after this year be known as the "Black Sox Scandal" team, due to the allegation that eight members of the team accepted bribes to lose the 1919 World Series to the Cincinnati Reds.

Baseball Frees Its Gambling Ghosts

<p>Jae Towle Vieira [they/them] works as a producer for Normal Gossip. Their fiction has been published in <i data-stringify-type="italic">The Normal School</i>, <i data-stringify-type="italic">New England Review, Carve Magazine, Passages North, Fairy Tale Review</i>, and elsewhere.</p>


Jae Towle Vieira

Normal Gossip logo with cartoon characters gossiping

Stewing In Anger

Tyrese Haliburton greets fans after defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers 114-105 in Game Five of the Eastern Conference Second Round NBA Playoffs.

No One Ever Sees The Pacers Coming

DALLAS, TX - MAY 13: Dallas Stars center Mikael Granlund (64) scores a goal for a hat trick during game 4 of round 2 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Dallas Stars and the Winnipeg Jets on May 13, 2025 at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Mikael Granlund Takes Jets Downapeg

Kathryn Xu

Marc Marquez of Spain and Ducati Lenovo Team, Alex Marquez of Spain and BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP during the 2025 MotoGP Michelin Grand Prix of France at Circuit Bugatti on May 11, 2025 in Le Mans, France.