With his very last words, Charlie Kirk was deploying a glib talking point meant to reinforce a racist myth in service of a program of laying Gestapo siege to Democratic-majority cities.

Giving a toddler a bath is the real cure for perfectionism, you have to accept they’re only kinda clean because there’s definitely pee in that water

"Mamdani’s opponents understand that defund is toxic, which is why they want to tie the mayoral frontrunner to his previous stance," writes @mychaldenzelsmith.bsky.social.

it's telling that in the face of all of Pablo's (really incredible) reporting, the only defense Mark Cuban can muster is "Steve Ballmer is not stupid" which is both an example of class solidarity among the ultra-wealthy and a repetition of the lie at the heart of so much of U.S. rot

We're excited to share that @mychaldenzelsmith.bsky.social’s essay "Scholar's Mate" has been selected by Hanif Abdurraqib to appear in The Year’s Best Sports Writing 2025 (@triumphbooks.bsky.social). Read it now on our site. www.thebeliever.net/scholars-mate/

Pre-order The Year's Best Sports Writing 2025 with @barnesandnoble.com: buff.ly/FBQRUv7 @mychaldenzelsmith.bsky.social @imogenwk.bsky.social @autostraddle.bsky.social @noemamag.com @theguardian.com @espn.com @levernews.com @literaryhub.bsky.social @defector.com @blockclubchi.bsky.social

Hanif Abdurraqib has curated an extraordinary collection showcasing incredible feats and diverse perspectives across the world of sports. We're honored to announce this year's featured writers! Pre-order The Year's Best Sports Writing 2025 today: buff.ly/7gs9meT

For folks not in DC: - There are full-on police checkpoints most nights - Gangs of 30+ federal agents roam DC - National Guard folks w/ guns patrolling a Harris Teeter - Every day, multiple friends see ICE kidnapping ppl - Daycares are scared to have kids go on walks due to ICE

Taught my child to say “Zohran will you please be my mayor?” so I’ll just be over here waiting for that father of the year award

For @newrepublic.com, I wrote about Jamaica Kincaid's new collection newrepublic.com/article/1986...

a sharp review of the chatterton book that notes the author’s total refusal to engage with history and his insistence that a “serious” or “good faith” discussion requires participants to exist in an eternal present where individuals exist free of context www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/0...

absolutely delicious lede here

I, too, reviewed Thomas Chatterton Williams' new book: www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/0...

dunking on tcw summer 😎

I, too, reviewed Thomas Chatterton Williams' new book: www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/0...

Amy Sherald says the Smithsonian suggested removing a painting of a transgender woman as the Statue of Liberty from her upcoming show at the National Portrait Gallery “to avoid provoking President Trump.” Sherald: “I cannot in good conscience comply with a culture of censorship”

The Mrs. and I were talking about the character of Theo, and how the writers made him much more than his faults. As someone who struggled with certain academic courses in school, I really related to him. The more you learned about the man and his talents, the more you liked him.

Malcolm-Jamal Warner deserves every remembrance that is sure to come in the next days and weeks. I offer mine here, for @time.com: time.com/7304321/malc...

Malcolm-Jamal Warner deserves every remembrance that is sure to come in the next days and weeks. I offer mine here, for @time.com: time.com/7304321/malc...

You can’t have your siren on and take time to perfectly parallel park, if you’re gonna lie about there being an emergency you gotta fully commit

Mamdani struggled against Andrew Cuomo in majority-Black precincts — but his lackluster performance may not tell the whole story.

For @theintercept.com, I wrote about Zohran and the “black vote”: theintercept.com/2025/07/18/m...

Happy Clipse Day to one and all, but most importantly to my fellow Virginians—here, a throwback to when I wrote about Lord Willin’ for @pitchfork.com pitchfork.com/thepitch/15-...

“How you tell a story, and what parts you tell, matters.”–In “Chosen History” from Issue 105, @mychaldenzelsmith.bsky.social‬ takes notes on the state of Virginia. Read the full essay: https://shorturl.at/2iA3n Art: “Jefferson,” by Maxine Helfman

Issue 150 is out today! To celebrate, we’re kicking off a 12-hour flash sale, starting now. Subscribe before 7pm PST and get an annual subscription for 40% off—that’s four issues for just $35.

anyone remember how to celebrate good things happening?

had some feelings about Mahmoud Khalil's release from prison, wrote them down: mychaldenzelsmith.substack.com/p/fatherhood

had some feelings about Mahmoud Khalil's release from prison, wrote them down: mychaldenzelsmith.substack.com/p/fatherhood

dying empire wants to take everyone else with it

the single image every genuinely freedom-loving american has been waiting for

Normalize making fun of people who are afraid of the subway. www.hamiltonnolan.com/p/the-subway...

My career hasn’t gone the way I envisioned it the past few years. I wrote a bit about how and why here: mychaldenzelsmith.substack.com/p/rough-patch

My career hasn’t gone the way I envisioned it the past few years. I wrote a bit about how and why here: mychaldenzelsmith.substack.com/p/rough-patch

Highly recommend subscribing to Mychal's substack. He's a fantastic writer and I can't wait to see what he does with the rebooted newsletter

Like so many writers/media people, I started one of those newsletters in the days we all thought it would be the secret to everyone surviving the industry—ha! But I’ve dusted it off to reflect on where the industry is/where my own career is at the moment open.substack.com/pub/mychalde...

Pre-parenthood, I told myself it would be important to always apologize to my child in the event I hurt their feelings I just didn’t realize it was going to be because I had to take the Play Doh she bit a huge chunk of out of her mouth

love to live in a country where the health officials want you dead

Child wanted me to make a diamond while we sang “Twinkle, Twinkle” and I reflexively threw up the Roc, everything they said about rap music ruining our brains was true

In what might be the logical endpoint of American Zionism, the Heritage Foundation has declared that pro-Palestinian activism is not just antisemitic, but is in fact a shadowy global conspiracy … led by Jews. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/18/u...

second time in as many weeks I've heard a car blasting some early career Mary J. Blige, which is the biggest indicator that we're all going through it right now

whether he could deliver or not, definitely think Zohran should run on a platform of expropriating the Knicks

The grift is eternal

Volume up

“Do you wanna listen to Andre 3000?” I ask my toddler as if she really had a choice in the matter

“Chess isn’t simple, and it isn’t meant to be, but the scholar’s mate... seems to suggest there is a means of winning that bypasses all critical thinking in favor of memorizing a cheap trick.” —from “Scholar’s Mate,” an essay by @mychaldenzelsmith.bsky.social www.thebeliever.net/scholars-mate/

Child requested that all three of us lay down together for her nap, and it felt very sweet and wholesome and of course we obliged Until she turned to me and said “Go away, daddy” with the same level of sweetness, letting me know exactly where I stand

A few weeks ago, I had the most beautiful checkmate I’ve ever had, seen here where my opponent made the mistake of thinking their discovered check was ore powerful than it was, and oops, my queen takes that rook and added bonus gets out of the check with my own checkmate.

Imagine converting to Catholicism and, a few short years later, meeting the Pope, who then dies immediately

amazing article reporting how scientists inspecting planets at an unfathomable distance identified the remote possibility of extraterrestrial life— a holy grail of science and perhaps all humanity— and then the end is “anyway Trump took all our money so that’s that” www.nytimes.com/2025/04/16/s...