TheNewsGal, Edition No. 87
What a week! These are the standouts.
All the things
I’ve Covered Nine Olympics. Nothing Prepared Me for Seeing My Daughter Win a Medal. Pretty cool. (Pat Forde, Sports Illustrated, ~11 min.)
She risked everything to expose Facebook. Now she’s telling her story. Sophie Zhang, a former data scientist at Facebook, revealed that it enables global political manipulation and has done little to stop it. I’m so impressed by her. (Karen Hao, MIT Technology Review, ~15 min.)
The Strange Persistence of First Languages: After my father died, my journey of rediscovery began with the Czech language. A gorgeous piece. (Julie Sedivy, Nautilus, ~16 min.)
The Aftermath: Officer Mike Fanone survived the Capitol Riots. Then his trials began. If you read one thing this year. I MEAN IT. (Molly Ball, Time, ~31 min.)
The Amazing Adventure of the Overnight Olympian: Matt Ludwig was the odd pole vaulter out at Team USA. Then he was told to get on a plane, fast. So fun. (Jason Gay, Wall Street Journal, ~6 min.)
Why is English spelling so weird and unpredictable? Don’t blame the mix of languages; look to quirks of timing and technology. Promise this isn’t boring. (Arika Okrent, Aeon, ~15 min.)
The Unlikely Story of a Sex Trafficking Survivor and the Instagram Account That Saved Her Life. Don’t miss this. (John H. Tucker, Elle, ~19 min.)
Sympathy for the Girlboss: Once-celebrated female entrepreneurs are being torn down for “failing at feminism.” Is this progress? Excellent. (Leigh Stein, AirMail, ~6 min.)
Why Doesn’t the Rock Get to Make Out More Onscreen? An important investigation. (Alison Willmore, Vulture, ~5 min.)
What I Heard in the White House Basement: I knew the president had clear and straightforward talking points — I’d written them. Trump’s Ukraine call, my god. (Alexander Vindman, The Atlantic, ~21 min.)
Andrew Cuomo Remains a Fucking Creep to the Bitter End. Just the best. (Danielle Tcholakian, Daily Beast, ~7 min.)
If you read one thing this week
My mom would have been 92 today. I struggle with what to call every first occasion without her. My heart. (Benjamin Dreyer, USA Today Opinion, ~5 min.)