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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

David Roth

US former football player Tom Brady walks the runway during the Gucci Cruise 2027 collection fashion show at Times Square in New York on May 16, 2026.

Arts And Culture

Tom Brady: The Leather Years

Lauren Theisen

Daniel Radcliffe seen onstage during curtain call at "Every Brilliant Thing" Opening Night at Hudson Theatre on March 12, 2026 in New York City.

Daniel Radcliffe Will Talk You Off The Ledge

Patrick Redford

09 June 2023, North Rhine-Westphalia, Cologne: Polish author Olga Tokarczuk speaks on the panel at Phil.Cologne, the international festival of philosophy. Photo: Horst Galuschka/dpa (Photo by Horst Galuschka/picture alliance via Getty Images)

The Machines

The Written Word Is Having A Rough Week

<p>Lindsey Adler is a writer based in Brooklyn. She exclusively covered sports for a decade but has other interests, too.</p>


Lindsey Adler

Consider The Sister

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


Sabrina Imbler

two computer-animated sheep peering through a window

‘The Sheep Detectives’ Made Me Baaaawl My Eyes Out

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


Grace Byron

Patrick Radden Keefe’s ‘London Falling’ Tries To Separate Fact From Fiction

<p><a href="https://katedries.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://katedries.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1778682596117000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0nTLmZnCJ7W_WrwEZAFeZH">Kate Dries</a> is the Executive Editor of Dwell. She previously worked at VICE, Jezebel, BuzzFeed and WBEZ, and has written for many other publications.</p>


Kate Dries

Anna Wintour and Meryl Streep attends the world premiere of The Devil Wears Prada 2

The Devil Wears Prada, Too

Kelsey McKinney

jeff probst snuffs Ozzy's torch in Survivor 50

Jeff Probst Is Ruining ‘Survivor 50’

Brandy Jensen

Finally, An Austen-ish Adaptation Worth Watching

<p>Jake Romm is a New York City-based writer and the Associate Editor of Protean Magazine.</p>


Jake Romm

Franco Berardi’s ‘Thinking Gaza’ Fails To Think

anne hathaway and meryl streep wear sunglasses in the Devil Wears Prada 2

Even In The Movies, Journalism Is Fucked

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<div>Abigail Segel is a contributing writer at Defector. She is also an editor for The IX Soccer and the Equalizer. Her work has been published in the Guardian and the Montreal Gazette.</div>
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Abigail Segel

Jules Boykoff’s ‘Kicking’ Is Clear-Eyed And Warm-Hearted

Jack Hanson

The Torpor Of ‘Converts’

Mark Asch

Charli XCX Is Firmly In Her Cinephile Era

Israel Daramola

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

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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

Gwendoline Riley’s Phantom Lives

a woman stands on a plank while a bunch of hotties watch from the yacht

How Close To The Stanford Prison Experiment Can A Reality Show Get?

Alex Sujong Laughlin

Image of the cover of "Famesick" by Lena Dunham with cutouts of the pair of legs from the cover copied all around it.

Lena Dunham Can’t Help Herself


<p><a href="mailto:tara@taraariano.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tara Ariano</a> co-hosts the podcasts <a href="https://www.extrahotgreat.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Extra Hot Great</a>, <a href="https://listentosassy.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Listen To Sassy</a>, and <a href="https://www.againwiththis90210.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Again With This</a>. She is also the co-author, with Sarah D. Bunting, of <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Very-Special-90210-Book-Absolutely/dp/1419747460?tag=decider08-20" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>A Very Special 90210 Book: 93 Absolutely Essential Episodes From TV’s Most Notorious Zip Code</em></a>. Her byline has appeared in the <em>New York Times Magazine</em>, <em>GQ</em>, <em>Vanity Fair</em>, <em>New York</em>, <em>Slate</em>, Vulture, Salon, and The Awl, among many others. She lives in Austin.</p>
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It's a photo of Tara Ariano. She has big sunglasses on.

Tara Ariano

James Garner (left) and Joe Santos in a still from an episode of the television series, 'The Rockford Files,' circa 1974.

‘The Rockford Files’ Remains One Of Television’s Greatest Hangs

Becca Young

The Fatherless Fantasy Of ‘Bridgerton’


<p>Corey Atad is a freelancer writer based in Toronto with an unhealthy Air Bud obsession.</p>


Corey Atad

Interviews

Steven Soderbergh And Ed Solomon Talk About Their Best Collaboration Yet

<p>Craig Fehrman last wrote for Defector about <a href="https://defector.com/it-never-ends-like-it-should" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://defector.com/it-never-ends-like-it-should&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1775741247521000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1R6Fh05yMdaM2z1ukPQtbb">the death of Iris</a>, his NBA-loving neighbor. His book <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/This-Vast-Enterprise/Craig-Fehrman/9781982174248"><i>This Vast Enterprise: A New History of Lewis and Clark</i></a> comes out on April 21.</p>


Craig Fehrman

Map showing the route taken by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on their first expedition from the Missouri River near St. Louis, Missouri, to the mouth of the Columbia River at the Pacific Ocean in Oregon and the return trip to St. Louis. The expedition took place from May 14, 1804 to September 23, 1806.