The Baffler

  • From Henry James’s speculation that Roosevelt’s initials stood for Theodore Rex to the Emperor-like Obama: Is the United States a monarchy? “In the words of one late 19th Century American newspaper: ‘Great Britain is a republic, with a hereditary president, ...

•  In an exhaustively reported story, Bloomberg Business details how Elon Musk’s SpaceX ambitions nearly cost him his terrestrial company, Tesla. As one fellow executive recalls, “Elon showed up . . . and started telling us it was his destiny to launch things into ...

• Leah Hunt-Hendrix is here with a lesson in “effective philanthropism,” which doesn’t sound so different from the “venture philanthropy” skewered by Rhonda Lieberman in Baffler No. 24. • The “Startup Castle” in Woodside, CA, is ...

• Ira Glass states that “Public radio is ready for capitalism.” At a marketing event called “Hearing is Believing,” he ventured hopes that podcasts would “move away from a model of asking listeners for money and join the free market.” The Baffler has no more to ...

• Verizon, the Benevolent Data Pillager that plays a prominent role in the NSA’s operations, is buying AOLwith the goal of “improving ads and Web video content.” Last year, Verizon launched a “tech blog” called SugarString, but hastily shut it down after reports ...

• In The Nation this week, Baffler contributing editor Eugenia Williamson reviews Scott Timberg’s Culture Clash: “Unfortunately, Timberg’s argument is hampered significantly by his account of class . . . African-American jazz musicians able to afford college only through ...

  • A new app called Split helps users divide a restaurant bill “fairly, not equally,” thus reducing the amount of human interaction needed to have dinner out with friends. • Today in the jet set: don’t worry if your spring social calendar isn’t ...

• Earlier this spring, the construction site for German intelligence agency BND’s new headquarters suffered from what the Twitterverse is dubbing its own #Watergate, a set of literal leaks caused by the theft of some newly installed faucets. We at The Baffler are holding ...