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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

Alex Sujong Laughlin

Ray Ratto

charismatic megafauna (they/them)

Sabrina Imbler

Staff Writer
Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.19

Chris Thompson

Kathryn Xu

Woman holding her hand over a crystal ball and gazing into the future. Seated 1/2 length photograph.

Defector Reads A Book

‘The Artist’s Way’ Week 10: Reflecting Near The End

1990s Single Male Anna Hummingbird Calypte Anna Western USA And Canada (Photo by T. Ulrich/Classicstock/Getty Images)

Creaturefector

The Hummingbirds Brought Me Around

Providence-based band The Whelks, which is composed of at least two Defector subscribers.

‘The Artist’s Way’ Week 9: We Are Annoyed

a photo of Sabrina Valenti, formerly a budget analyst for NOAA. Sabrina has brown curly hair and is standing against a floral background.

Interviews

An Interview With A Fired NOAA Budget Analyst

Do Not Be Bamboozled By The New Fluffy Mouse

Kelsey McKinney

Tate McRae kicking her leg up into the splits like a Barbie.

Music

Two Tate McRae Fans Explain Everything They Know About Tate McRae

A gamer wears a gem head decoration that was handed out at the SIMS exhibit in the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) at the Los Angeles Convention Center on June 16, 2010 in Los Angeles, California.

‘The Artist’s Way’ Week 8: We Are Burnt-Out Sims

a photo of Kaesee Bourne, a former fish and wildlife biologist at the USFWS, holding a shovel in front of a wetland

An Interview With A Fired USFWS Biologist

Clark's anemonefish​ Amphiprion clarkii in a bubble-tip anemone Entacmaea quadricolor

Clownfish Fatten Up Their Best Buddies To Upgrade Their Homes

I Tried A Cockatoo’s Innovative New Snack

Mercury astronauts in simulated weightless flight in C-131 aircraft flying trajectory at Wright Air Development Center, Ohio, 1959.

‘The Artist’s Way’ Week 7: The Third-Quarter Slump

op down image of a pile of dirty dishes and saucepans sitting on a countertop in a kitchen

Life Lessons

The Year Of No Dishwasher

This Is The Last Thing You See Before You Die (If You Are A Crab)

A screenshot of a graphic including a photo of Sam Nordquist, a Black transgender man with a moustache, wearing a backwards cap and staring at the camera. The top of the graphic says "Gone But Not Forgotten" with two doves on either side. And the rest of the image states: Sam Nordquist. Canandaigua, NY. Last seen: January 1, 2025. Age: 24

Politics

Who Gets To Determine A Hate Crime?

a photo of a flock of whitish swimming sea cucumbers in the deep sea

It’s Snowing Sea Cucumbers At The Bottom Of The Sea

Defector Up All Night

The Lydia Tár Of Mantids

An abstract work of art featuring some line-drawn faces.

‘The Artist’s Way’ Week 6: Are We Feeling Abundant?

an image of a fly larva (maggot) that has the face of a termite

Hell Yeah: This Maggot Has A Face On Its Butt

a baby loggerhead turtle does a happy turtle dance inside a bucket of water

Are You Entranced By The Turtle Dance?

A Blue Whale swimming underwater is showing her tail fin

Cautious Whales Sing In A Whisper Orcas Cannot Hear

An alligator-y creature behind museum glass.

‘The Artist’s Way’ Week 5: Looking For Small Evolutions

Man Eating Soft Ice Cream on Cone with Clear Plastic Spoon

Science

Everything I Would Eat With The Spoon Inside My Brain

a chimpanzee stares out between the leaves

Chimpanzee Culture Is Disappearing Because Of Us

a pink Amazon River Dolphin floating on back in slightly brown water