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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

Charlotte Rosen

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)

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

Sohini Desai

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

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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

‘The Furious’ Kicks Ass

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

<p>Nicholas Russell is a writer from Las Vegas.</p>


Nicholas Russell

Gross distressing AI image of the disparate threads of the American flag wrapping themselves into the shape of Civil Rights marchers, like something out of John Carpenter's The Thing.

Darren Aronofsky’s AI Videos Are A Fitting Tribute To America, I Guess

<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

Life's Rich Pageant

Only A Complete Asshole Would Get Married At Madison Square Garden

Colombia's singer Shakira holds the Jo'bulani football that will be used for the final of the tournament during a press conference on July 10, 2010 at Soccer City Stadium in Soweto, South Africa.

Soccer

A Brief History Of The World Cup Song

Corley Miller

Left In The Dungeon

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’?

Emily C. Hughes

Diabolical Motherhood

Sarah Borus

Summer Is For Baseball, Hot Dogs, And Watching A Bunch Of Horny Teens Get Murdered In The Woods

Eight Years Of Rituals With Rosalía

Bekah Waalkes

Five Self-Obsessed Danes Make For A Surprisingly Fun And Sexy Summer Read

Megan C. Reynolds

Looking For A Job Has Become An Alienating Humiliation Ritual

Interviews

John Early’s Secret Is Total Commitment

<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

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

‘New Skin’ Offers A Fresh Take On Body Horror

Kelsey McKinney

two van gogh paintings on a dark background

Misery And Memory In Two Van Goghs

Maitreyi Anantharaman

Justin Ellis TELLS ALL About Minneapolis Life In This EXCLUSIVE Interview

Observing And Breathing At Calder Gardens

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


Heather Wei-Xi Chen

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