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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

Sarah Borus

Why Did The Brewers’ VP Of Communications Retweet This Racist Crap?

Kathryn Xu

Clementine the tuxedo cat looking like a snake.

Life's Rich Pageant

How I Became An Itinerant Cat Tutor

Ray Ratto

Claude Lemieux carries the torch in the opening ceremony of Game Three of the Eastern Conference Final of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Montreal Canadiens and the Carolina Hurricanes at the Bell Centre on May 25, 2026 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

The Tragedy Of Appreciating SOBs Too Late

charismatic megafauna (they/them)

Sabrina Imbler

The dead whale lies bloated off the Danish island of Anholt. It is the humpback whale known as Timmy, which first beached off Timmendorfer Strand at the end of March and was transported to the North Sea around a month later

Creaturefector

The Long, Sad, And Totally Fucked-Up Tale Of Timmy The Whale’s Trip To Germany

Giri Nathan

The New York Knicks celebrate with the Bob Cousy Trophy after defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers 130-93 in Game Four of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals

What Is This Alien Feeling Of Watching The Knicks Without Pain?

Diana Moskovitz is Defector&#8217;s investigations editor. You can contact her at diana@defector.com or dfmoskovitz@protonmail.com. She&#8217;s also on Signal @dmoskovitz.99

Diana Moskovitz

Olympic gold medalist Alysa Liu performs during the Skating Club of Boston's annual benefit ice show "Ice Chips 2026: A World Journey" at the Tenley E. Albright Performance Center on February 28, 2026.

Figure Skating

You Don’t Know Alysa Liu’s Power Until You See It In Person

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

<div><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/mattribel.bsky.social">Matt Ribel</a> writes about the intersection of science, technology, and politics. His features have appeared in WIRED, Washingtonian, and elsewhere.</div>

Matt Ribel

An illustration of a hand taking a circuitous route to a mailbox to send in a tax return, while a number of other hands try to block it.

Politics

Free, Easy, Dead: The Difficult Birth And Predictable Death Of IRS Direct File

Dave McKenna

Policing

Five Years After Peyton Ham’s Killing, Lawsuit Against State Trooper Who Shot Him Lives On

Samer Kalaf

Jason Collins warms up for the Brooklyn Nets

Jason Collins Got To Tell His Own Story

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 Point B. Handsomest man in the world.

Drew Magary

The Pittsburgh Steelers stand in a darkened tunnel

Steelers, Longing For A Quiet Death, Willing To Wait For Aaron Rodgers

Ben Dowsett is a freelance technology and sports nerd based in Utah. His other recent work can be found at Wired, ESPN and elsewhere.

Ben Dowsett

Scientists look at a digital rendering of a basketball player taking a jumper

Can The Jumper Be Hacked? Inside Basketball’s Next Arms Race

Mason Westfall

The Machines

The Claude Delusion

Amy McCarthy

Food

Lesbians And Legalized Gambling Are Vying To Save The American Sports Bar

Albert Burneko

You Should Never Be The Most Sycophantic Participant In A Conversation With A Chatbot

Jack Hanson

The Torpor Of ‘Converts’

Two boys with fishing poles and cans of worms walk along a rural gravel road.

Minor Dilemmas

How Can I Resolve Conflicts Between My Younger Kid And His Older Brother?

E.Y. Zhao is a writer and editor from St. Louis. Her debut novel, <a href="https://astrapublishinghouse.com/product/underspin-9781662603266/">Underspin</a>, set in the world of competitive table tennis, is out now. She holds a BA in history from Harvard College and an MFA from the University of Michigan.

E.Y. Zhao

Berkeley's Sid Naresh hits a forehand on the move.

Table Tennis

The Biggest Tournament In Collegiate Table Tennis Is Underdog Utopia

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

John Semley is a writer and researcher based in Philadelphia.

John Semley

The merch table at the Rob Schneider comedy show