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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

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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

Lewis Pullman and Danielle Brooks announce the nominees for Original Score

Arts And Culture

The Academy Missed Some Of 2025’s Best Film Scores

<p>Former Defector intern, now freelancer.</p>
<p>For professional inquiries or tips please write lucybl00m@protonmail.com or yuck.20 on Signal.</p>
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Lucy Bloom

Politics

A Helpful Explainer Of Kansas’s Lunatic Anti-Trans Law

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


Owen Lewis

A view of the court at the Australian Open

Tennis

How I Became A Target For Right-Wing Freaks At The Australian Open

<p>Flatbush Local, Culture Writer, Former Mayor of New York City.</p>


Abe Beame

Lost Recipes


<p><a href="https://twitter.com/petesegall?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pete Segall</a> lives in Chicago. His fiction has appeared in <em>The Bennington Review</em>, <em>Conjunctions</em>, <em>The Drift</em>, and elsewhere.</p>


Pete Segall

A collage featuring three of the different paperback covers for "Cleo Birdwell"'s 1980 novel Amazons.

Don DeLillo’s Funniest Novel Is A 1980 Hockey Sex Romp He Won’t Acknowledge

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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

Soccer

The NWSL Offseason Put Important New Faces In New Places

<p>Erin Somers is the author of the novel <i>The Ten Year Affair</i>.</p>


Erin Somers

Interviews

Talking To A. Natasha Joukovsky About Men, Myths, And March Madness

Nate Rogers

Jason Lee at Netflix and Shondaland's "The Residence" Los Angeles Premiere at The Egyptian Theatre

A Complimentary Profile Of Jason Lee That Was Surprisingly Difficult To Publish

<p>The author can be reached at postpostdoc@protonmail.com.</p>


Post-Postdoc

Mech Mind automatic vending robot gives a thumbs-up after fetching beverages from a shelf at the exhibition area of the 2025 World AI Conference (WAIC) and High-Level Meeting on Global AI Governance on July 27, 2025 in Shanghai, China.

The Machines

Something Of Moderate Size And Importance Is Happening

Hannah Seo

What Should Recorded Musicals Do?

<p>Maya Goldberg-Safir writes about women’s basketball and splits her time between Chicago and Oakland, where she was born and raised. She is the creator of <a href="https://wnbaroughnotes.substack.com/">Rough Notes</a>, a newsletter chronicling women’s basketball from the court, the road, and the heart.</p>


Maya Goldberg-Safir

Women's Basketball

Cardte Hicks Played Above The Rim And Ahead Of Her Time

<p>Harry Krinsky is a producer and media consultant living in Brooklyn. He is the cohost of <em><a href="https://defector.com/tag/nothing-but-respect">Nothing But Respect</a></em>.</p>


Harry Krinsky

Rich Paul stands in front of a white board

Media Meltdowns

Rich Paul’s Podcast Was Built To Be Useless

Veronica de Souza

Make It Nice

Make It Nice: Curtains, Linens, And How To Figure Out What You Like

<p>Lesley Ryder is a writer and a host covering the Chicago Red Stars. She co-created <a href="https://galpalsports.com/">Gal Pal Sports</a>, a platform that lives to make women’s sports fun for everyone.</p>


Lesley Ryder

Kendall Coyne #26 of Team United States controls the puck against in the second period during the Women's Playoffs Semifinal match between United States and Sweden on Day 10 of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on February 16, 2026 in Milan, Italy.

Olympics

All I Want Is A Women’s Hockey Broadcast That Talks About The Hockey

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<div dir="ltr">Georgia Cloepfil is the author of <i>The Striker and the Clock</i> (Riverhead, 2024). Her other writing can be found in <i>The Yale Review</i>, The New York <i>Times</i> Magazine, <i>n+1 </i>and elsewhere.</div>
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Georgia Cloepfil

The Suffering Of Lindsey Vonn

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


Nicholas Russell

Where Is Cinema?: An Interview With A.S. Hamrah


<p>Michael is a writer who has worked with The Atlantic, The New Yorker, WIRED, Vox, The New York Times, and other publications. His first book, <em>The Other Olympians</em>, which uncovers the stories of several European athletes who transitioned gender in the 1930s, is now available for purchase.</p>


Michael Waters

Officials in hazmat suits remove a medal around an olympian's neck

Chromosome Testing Will Take Sports Back To The Dark Ages

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<div>Rena Behar is a Brooklyn-based writer and editor specializing in responsible travel and various international oddities.</div>
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Rena Behar

An illustration of a skier going down the mountain while holding picket signs

Capital

The Outdoor Industry Needs Workers, And Workers Need Unions

<p>Libby Watson is a writer, <a href="https://www.twitch.tv/libtron">streamer</a> and <a href="https://www.patreon.com/whatsallthisthen">podcaster</a>.</p>


Libby Watson

The exterior of breakfast, lunch, and pizza

Food

I Traveled 800 Miles To Eat Breakfast, Lunch, And Pizza At Criss Angel’s Breakfast, Lunch, And Pizza

<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

Animals

The Westminster Dog Show’s Youngest Handlers Don’t Know If They Want To Do This Forever

Rafaela Bassili

Sara Jane Moore, the woman who attempted to assassinate President Gerald Ford, is shown as she leaves San Mateo County prison en route to San Francisco where she is to to appear in the US District Court, October 28th 1975.

‘Suburban Fury’ Is Strange, Blinkered, And Very Compelling

<div>John is a history teacher, researcher, and writer. He lives in the D.C. area.</div>
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John Mohr

Artist Scott Adams, the creator the "Dilbert" comic series, poses with a cutout of his character in Dublin, Calif. on Feb. 7, 1996. (Photo by Michael Macor/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)

I Watched The “Lost” Live-Action ‘Dilbert’ Pilot Episode, And It’s Clear Why It Didn’t Get Picked Up

The Secrets Of Human And Canine Fashion At The Westminster Dog Show

Carlos Alcaraz celebrates on the court after winning the Australian Open.

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