Bread and Circuses
Columns
Sex, Lies, and Videotape
September 27, 2017
It seemed that the celebrity sex tape had gone the way of the dodo or the Juicy Couture tracksuit—a relic of early-aughts paparazzi quarry—until recently, that is. In early September, a woman claimed she had a sex tape featuring Usher. And a little more than a week ago, it ...
Tragic Kingdom
September 14, 2017
HBO’s The Deuce traces exploitation in the porn industry back to 1970s Times Square—before its total Disneyfication.
The Destructive Character
August 28, 2017
So long as straight white men rule culture and politics, the dangerous oddball white guy will linger in media.
New People, Old Words
August 14, 2017
Danzy Senna’s hilarious New People honors the canon of American works that take on multiracial identity.
In Defense of the Money Phone
July 31, 2017
JAY-Z has come out against the ostentatious kitsch of rap’s nouveau riche. We prefer the money phone.
Once Upon a Time in the Kingdom of Crack
July 14, 2017
After years of half-baked official narrative, TV presents the crack epidemic’s origin story—and it’s a fairy tale.
Nail Art Power
July 05, 2017
TNT's new show ”Claws” privileges rebellious and resourceful art made in an all-female space.
Preserve Yourself!
June 19, 2017
“All Eyez on Me” is the world's first superhero hagiography hologram biopic of black musical mortality.
It Is Happening Again
June 04, 2017
David Lynch has expanded the world of “Twin Peaks," but it's depiction of people of color remains sadly the same.
Repair Work
May 19, 2017
Perhaps as a function of main star’s burgeoning shallowness, this year’s Master of None excels more in featuring solo players.
How to Settle Down with Dystopia
May 05, 2017
Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale steeps the viewer in the slow-mo accretion of disaster.