big & tall
The gang of macho strongmen in power across the globe—from Putin to Orban to Xi to Modi—keeps getting bigger. Getting rid of them is the tricky part.
Matt Hanson is a contributing editor at The Arts Fuse, Boston's online independent arts and culture magazine. His work has also appeared in The Baffler, The Guardian, The Millions, The New Yorker, and elsewhere. He lives in New Orleans. www.hansonmatthew.com
SKELETON KEYS
In “Ancestor Trouble,” Maud Newton probes her family’s past, which includes racists, fundamentalists, and a man who married 12 women. She talks to The Daily Beast about her search.
TERRIFIED AND LOVING IT
The celebrated film critic talks to The Daily Beast about his book that explores why we love disaster movies and apocalyptic scenarios, even when they invade the Oval Office.
MIND CONTROL
Author Joel E. Dimsdale unravels the elusive concepts of mind-control behind brainwashing.
TOWER OF BABEL
The noted journalist talks about his latest book, which describes the U.S. as a nation walled into four impermeable silos.
FUR AND FEATHER PROBE
Author Mary Roach talks to The Daily Beast about all the mind-bending stuff she learned while writing her book “Fuzz,” about animals out of control.
POSSUM TROT
Tyler Mahan Coe talks about the second season of his acclaimed podcast Cocaine and Rhinestones, which does a deep dive on Jones and the Nashville Sound.
TRUE LIES
The host of the “Hidden Brain” podcast argues that logic and reason make poor weapons when you try to talk someone out of a delusional belief.
LOVE ISN’T BLIND
In “Of Thee I Sing: The Contested History of American Patriotism,” historian Ben Railton argues that patriotism can be a challenge to the status quo.
DISHING THE DIRT
The latest season of You Must Remember This, the hit podcast about behind-the-scenes Hollywood, looks at the women who practically invented the gossip column.