The president of Cornell hit two students with his car, lied about what happened, and got away with it. The story illustrates an under-reported crisis in higher education: administrators and the trustees they answer to are increasingly hostile to the idea of college itself. I wrote about it here:

The latest episode of Nothing But Respect features the great Noah Kulwin and is out now: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/k...

I wrote about some people who need to have some self- (and for that matter, species-) respect:

"for all practical purposes, this money has been awarded to Trump himself, by Trump himself, to distribute as he sees fit." - @redford.bsky.social defector.com/donald-trump...

Has anyone here gone up to the Sierras/Tahoe in the last few weeks? How much snow is there still?

not unrecognizable but he does look like if Belgium had a dictator

Very good time talking about Wemby, the lead paint-scented Cavs/Pistons series, and outdoor music venues with our California Lifestyle Bureau Chief this week: defector.com/the-too-larg...

Even a bad Valkyries game is a pretty great time:

Time to go knuckle deep into NBA playoff talk, with @redford.bsky.social! art19.com/shows/the-di...

the valkyries may have lost but Kiah Stokes and i have agreed on a deal to collectivize rim protection

I still don’t think the Valkyries are big enough to really win stuff that matters but Nakaseball is legit, they’re gonna be able to score on anyone

Joel Embiid doesn’t dunk directly anymore but he has learned to remotely pilot Kelly Oubre to the rim so he can dunk for him

Over at defector, I wrote about what it means to be a great American songwriter defector.com/what-makes-a...

The stuff the @oaklandreviewofbooks.org has been pumping out has been incredible. Subscribe now!

a couple weeks ago my friend and I journeyed all the way around the bay on public transit only. i wrote about the things we saw, for @oaklandreviewofbooks.org:

The WNBA is back, and so is @defector.com's TEN MINUTE QUARTERS at Littlefield in Brooklyn on Monday May 18. We’ll have giveaways, games, goofs, and as always a lineup of hilarious comics. Go to defector.com/wnbashow for tickets, use code LETSGOLIBS for 10% off

the celtics went out like chumps because they faced away from the holy truth that basketball is about doing Cool Moves. they geared their whole shit away from anything Cool, thus they deserve their fate

We are currently in production of Only If You Get Caught's second season! It will drop later this year, giving you a few months to get caught up on the first season 👇 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/o...

Fun backstory here. Sabs blogged about how much they hated those Grammarly commercials. The actor, Jude, turned out to be a Defector reader and was down to make this ad happen. defector.com/vindicated-a...

It is always extremely fun to read Mark Asch. Here he is on two movies starring Charli XCX

OR ELSE

My book is debuting at #6 on the NYT nonfiction best seller list. I am stunned and so grateful that readers are embracing not just Lewis + Clark but York, Ordway, Black Buffalo, and more. This goes especially for @defector.com readers -- the response to my dog attack essay has been incredible.

Somehow a professional sports front office is poaching from @defector.com's business team, so I need to hire a new Director of Revenue. Apply here: apply.workable.com/defector-med...

The playoff crew chief is the most important and prestigious role in NBA officiating, one only entrusted to a select few refs. And it could be headed toward a crisis. For @defector.com: defector.com/one-of-the-n...

the unexpected intersection of climate change and tennis court surface! spoke to two geoscientists doing fascinating work defector.com/how-much-goo...

‘Michael’ is the most cynical attempt at biopic myth-making yet: defector.com/michael-is-t...

Does Lake Merritt smell? The answer isn't so simple.

The current leader for the 2025-26 NBA Playoffs award for Explosive Muscularity is Carter Bryant

this is a perfect example of what we are looking for on the Broke Jumper Tip Line

ANNOUNCEMENT: Nothing But Respect is rolling out the Broke Jumper Tip Line. We want any info on the basketball games, preferences, or associations of any celebrity or public person or elected official! Call (347) 380-6426

Victor Wembanyama has a concussion. I wrote about that means: painful uncertainty defector.com/the-scariest...

Warriors comeback is a big win for millennial excellence

I wrote about Dianna Russini, the constant pressure female reporters face to prove they aren't sleeping with sources (plus the pressure we do get from sources to get involved with them), and why all of this is so uncomfortable to talk about. Gift link:

The NBR playoff mega-preview is out now, starring @seankuhn.bsky.social @highkin.bsky.social @kylietcheung.bsky.social @ichotiner.bsky.social @eamonwhalen.bsky.social @jacobrosenberg.bsky.social @islemcelroy.bsky.social @maitreyiaa.bsky.social @toley.bsky.social. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/n...

World Cup transit is broken before it has begun: defector.com/world-cup-tr...

wishing you all a very ethereal and diaphanous play in tournament

some good news for once. Judge Sansone has again rejected the government's claim that I am a dangerous criminal who needs strict supervision & thus as of today am free to travel anywhere in the continental u.s., no longer have daily random drug tests, etc. Thank you to everyone who helped out.

Wout van Aert forever: defector.com/wout-van-aer...

samuel beckett was born on this day 120 years ago. astonishing to think that if he had survived, and could run 100m in 9.57 seconds, he would be not only the oldest but also the fastest man in the world - together with his nobel prize for literature, an astonishing trifecta

in other words, a good samurai will carry the blow

becoming increasingly jealous of the Finnish concept of "Jokamiehenoikeus" bsky.app/profile/cait...

Had me dying. Clip via @alexgoldennba.bsky.social

I wrote about the end of the U.S. Forest Service and the arrogance of trying to kill something like a forest: defector.com/the-trump-ad...

🚨 We had great @davidjroth.bsky.social on Nothing But Respect this week 🚨 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/y...

"Black sonic politics in Oakland, in nine sounds," a playlist. By Alex Werth (as told to Tommy Craggs): www.oaklandreviewofbooks.org/black-sonic-...

I love learning often about basketball with the help of Google Gemini!

Wout van Aert is going to win Paris-Roubaix

I went to Erewhon, had the best smoothie of my life, and realized that it's a Baudrillardian interactive museum in the form of a grocery store: defector.com/erewhon-is-n...

I went to a generative AI summit where Hollywood/tech insiders compared gen-AI to the film camera, the printing press and…the harnessing of flame by man. But don’t worry: they’re NOT being “hyperbolic.” Some thoughts for @wired.com