The Magazine
November 20, 2023
Goings On
The Food Scene
Nigerian Food with a Little Times Square Glitz
If you can handle the night-club vibes at Lagos TSQ, you’ll be rewarded with a bold celebration of West African cuisine.
By Helen Rosner
The Talk of the Town
Benjamin Wallace-Wells on Biden’s poll numbers; a delegation of Israeli survivors; costuming Malcolm X; Leonard Bernstein’s children; the art of the uniform.
In Uniform
Stan Herman, the People’s Designer
The nonagenarian, whose vast uniform portfolio includes McDonald’s and FedEx, inspects new work for the Central Park Conservancy and for Bryant Park’s bathroom attendants.
By Bob Morris
The Pictures
Lenny’s Offspring Like the Nose
Jamie, Alexander, and Nina Bernstein compare notes on “Maestro,” Bradley Cooper’s film about their dad.
By Michael Schulman
High Note Dept.
Dressing Malcolm X (and a Chorus of Time Travellers)
Dede Ayite, the costume designer for the Metropolitan Opera’s biographical production, drew inspiration from Miss Universe and Cameroonian royals.
By Natalie Meade
Comment
A Week of Good and Bad News for Joe Biden
Could it really be the case that voters want what the Democrats are offering, while recoiling from their President?
By Benjamin Wallace-Wells
L.A. Postcard
L.A. Hosts a Delegation of Survivors from Israel and Families of Hostages
While listening to the harrowing stories of visitors, a movie producer said, “Degrees of Judaism disappear in these moments.”
By Dana Goodyear
Reporting & Essays
Onward and Upward with Technology
Holly Herndon’s Infinite Art
The artist and musician uses machine learning to make strange, playful work. She also advocates for artists’ autonomy in a world shaped by A.I.
By Anna Wiener
Annals of Law Enforcement
Does A.I. Lead Police to Ignore Contradictory Evidence?
Too often, a facial-recognition search represents virtually the entirety of a police investigation.
By Eyal Press
Profiles
Why the Godfather of A.I. Fears What He’s Built
Geoffrey Hinton has spent a lifetime teaching computers to learn. Now he worries that artificial brains are better than ours.
By Joshua Rothman
Personal History
A Coder Considers the Waning Days of the Craft
Coding has always felt to me like an endlessly deep and rich domain. Now I find myself wanting to write a eulogy for it.
By James Somers
Shouts & Murmurs
Fiction
Fiction
According to Alice
If I saw my mother, I would cry. Why wouldn’t I? She doesn’t think of me as a computer. She loves me unconditionally.
By Sheila Heti
The Critics
Musical Events
Secrets of the East German Oboe Underground
Oboists rarely strike out on their own. James Austin Smith’s recent program at Brooklyn’s National Sawdust—pieces culled entirely from the vaults of the German Democratic Republic—was a true solo mission.
By Alex Ross
Books
The War on Charlie Chaplin
He was one of the world’s most celebrated and beloved stars. Then his adopted country turned against him.
By Louis Menand
A Critic at Large
The Sphere and Our “Immersion” Complex
The concept has become ubiquitous in art and entertainment. But is it about capturing our attention—or deceiving it?
By Jackson Arn
Books
Briefly Noted Book Reviews
“Flee North,” “Mapping the Darkness,” “A Council of Dolls,” and “January.”
Books
What the Doomsayers Get Wrong About Deepfakes
Experts have warned that utterly realistic A.I.-generated videos might wreak havoc through deception. What’s happened is troubling in a different way.
By Daniel Immerwahr
On Television
“The Curse” Holds a Mirror Up to Marriage
The new Showtime series, starring Nathan Fielder and Emma Stone, takes aim at everything from reality television to white-liberal virtue signalling—but it works best as the study of an unhappy couple.
By Inkoo Kang
The Theatre
Off Off Broadway Serves Up Comedy Three Ways
“FOOD,” “Redwood,” and “Faust (The Broken Show)” mask serious intent behind laughter.
By Helen Shaw
Cartoons
1/16
Cartoon by Adam Douglas Thompson
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“I should have known he has absolutely no morals—I’ve seen how he loads a dishwasher.”
Cartoon by Hartley Lin
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Cartoon by Sam Lau
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“Friends are nice, but what I really want is a large fan base I can monetize.”
Cartoon by Barbara Smaller
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“Of course I mind—they’re mine, and I want all of them.”
Cartoon by Tom Chitty
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“It’s a filter that makes your baby look as cute as you think it is!”
Cartoon by Kit Fraser
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“He robs from the Q train and gives to the L!”
Cartoon by Lars Kenseth
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“Flight prices will go down, then they’ll go up, and then you’ll buy a ticket at the worst possible time.”
Cartoon by Dan Misdea
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“Essentially a dress shoe, but you could run for your life in them.”
Cartoon by Edward Frascino
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“That was supposed to be us.”
Cartoon by Amy Hwang
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Cartoon by Emily Bernstein
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“If you can safeguard this punch card for half a decade, you get a free coffee.”
Cartoon by Colin Tom
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“Remember how we used to stay up all night drinking wine, listening to music, and discussing my family issues?”
Cartoon by Tom Toro
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“Everybody wants to meet the author, but nobody wants to read the book.”
Cartoon by Elisabeth McNair
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“Now I’m going to ask for your phone number. You’ll say the first three digits, then I’ll interrupt you as you’re saying the next three digits, then we’ll talk over each other, then neither of us will say anything for a few seconds, and then we’ll talk over each other again.”
Cartoon by Amanda Chung and Vincent Coca
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“A moment of your time, Dad?”
Cartoon by Patrick McKelvie
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Cartoon Caption Contest
Puzzles & Games Dept.
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