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Term Feature Four - Books

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Term Feature Four - Movies

Term Feature Four - Music

Term Feature Four - TV

CULTURE

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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Israel Daramola

Arts And Culture

For Better Or Worse, ‘The Odyssey’ Is Peak Christopher Nolan

Leander Schaerlaeckens is a long-time soccer writer, currently contributing to The Guardian and elsewhere. He is the author of <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/722130/the-long-game-by-leander-schaerlaeckens/">The Long Game: U.S. Men&#8217;s Soccer and its Savage, Four-Decade Journey to the Top, or Thereabouts</a>. He teaches journalism and sports communication at Marist University. He will cover his fourth World Cup in 2026.

A photo of the author Leander Schaerlaeckens taken by Asha Fuller.

Leander Schaerlaeckens

U.S. President Donald Trump reacts next to FIFA President Gianni Infantino after presenting the FIFA World Cup Winner's Trophy to Spain in the World Cup Final. Trump's kind of leaning like there's a very heavy wind.

Soccer

FIFA Got What It Came For

Giri Nathan

Luguentz Dort #5 of the Oklahoma City Thunder celebrates after a play against the Los Angeles Lakers at the Paycom Center on April 2, 2026 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Zaccharie Risacher #10 of the Atlanta Hawks reacts during the third quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at State Farm Arena on January 7, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia

Lu Dort And Zaccharie Risacher Involved In Depressing Trade

Tom Ley

Announcements

Hey Look, We Redesigned Our Website

Kathryn Xu

George Russell climbs out of his car after crashing out on the opening lap.

Racing

Is Mercedes Conspiring Against Its Own Driver? (No.)

Sarah Borus

Sohini Desai

Ronald Acuña Jr. #13 of the Atlanta Braves reacts after being called out for runner's interference

Where Am I Supposed To Look When I Look At Baseball?

page

Charlotte Rosen

Books

How Cops Consolidated So Much Power Over Local Governments

Defector Staff

Children watching a movie at the Bankside Film Theatre in London, UK, 27th July 1973. (Photo by Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Defector At The Movies

What’s The Worst Movie You’ve Ever Watched In A Theater?

Dinaw Mengestu speaks onstage during the 2026 PEN America Spring Literary Gala at American Museum of Natural History

PEN America’s “Silent Moratorium” Prompts Very Loud Criticism

Listening Habits

Who’s Afraid Of A Scammer Anthem?

‘Citizen Vigilante’ Is The Latest Product Of The Culture Of Petulance

Tajja Isen

‘Famous Men’ And Ambitious Women

Grace Byron is a critic, reporter, and novelist based in Queens. Her writing has appeared in The New Yorker, Granta, Bookforum, and elsewhere. Her debut novel Herculine is out now.

Grace Byron

Neatly Arranged Scalpels Repetition Pattern on Purple Background Directly Above View.

‘New Skin’ Offers A Fresh Take On Body Horror

charismatic megafauna (they/them)

Sabrina Imbler

Interviews

Cat Fitzpatrick On Writing Transsexuals Into Iambic Pentameter

Joshua C. Kendall was born in New York City. An award-winning freelance journalist, he has written on history, 
politics, biography, health care, and neuroscience for many national magazines and newspapers. He is currently an associate fellow of Yale’s Trumbull College. His previous books include First Dads, The Man Who Made Lists, and The Forgotten Founding Father.

Joshua Kendall

Book Excerpts That Don't Suck

“Awfulness For Decades”: A Short History Of Trump And Doonesbury

A photo of a bunch of old-timey green barstools with the cover of the NYRB Classics edition of Robert Coover's Universal Baseball Association in the middle and the Defector Reads A Book logo at left.

Defector Reads A Book

There Is A Whole World In ‘The Universal Baseball Association, Inc. J. Henry Waugh, Prop.’

Owen Lewis is a former Defector intern and has written for The Guardian, The Second Serve, The Athletic, and other publications.

Owen Lewis

1978 Ladies Singles Final, Wimbledon, Chris Evert v Martina Navratilova, Wimbledon Tennis Championships, Friday 7th July 1978. Martina Navratilova wins in three sets (2?6, 6?4, 7?5), Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova, together on Centre Court.

Tennis

‘The Final Set’ Tells The Story Of Tennis’ Greatest Rivalry Becoming A Friendship

two computer-animated sheep peering through a window

‘The Sheep Detectives’ Made Me Baaaawl My Eyes Out

US actor Jaafar Jackson poses for photogaphers as he arrives on the red carpet for the world premiere of the Michael Jackson biopic "Michael" at the Uber Eats Music Hall in Berlin on April 10, 2026.

‘Michael’ Is The Most Cynical Attempt At Biopic Myth-Making Yet

A still from the trailer for Hoppers showing a beaver standing on a pile of machine rubble and proselytizing to a crowd of animals

Dam It All To Hell

Music

25 Rap Songs For America’s 250th

How Jay-Z Changed Rap With ‘Reasonable Doubt’

Eight Years Of Rituals With Rosalía

What Does It Mean To Be A “Black Artist”?

David Roth

Melanie and Corey "explore a new connection" in the 6/23/26 episode of Love Island. It's two hot people sitting on a couch.

Podcasts

Folkways Of The Contemporary Sex Idiot, With Kelsey McKinney And Alex Sujong Laughlin

two hot people kiss while a dozen hot men sit on bean bags in the background and clap

What Do We Think About This Season Of ‘Love Island USA’?

Ray Ratto

Alexi Lalas attends the Fox Sports FIFA World Cup 2026 Media Day event at Lavan on May 21, 2026 in New York City.

Alexi Lalas Has Already Worn Out His Welcome

Heather Chen is a former Defector intern and the managing editor at the Columbia Daily Spectator. She loves hockey, photography, and the good ol’ state of Michigan.

Heather Wei-Xi Chen

‘Off Campus’ Can’t Sell The Hockey Player Fantasy

Arts and Culture