Today's Liberal News

“Stripped for Parts”: Secretive Hedge Fund Accused of Plundering U.S. Newspapers

The new documentary Stripped for Parts: American Journalism on the Brink looks at how hedge funds have gutted newsrooms across the country. The hedge fund strategy of “distressed asset investing” involves buying up industries that are struggling to turn a profit, and then selling off their assets and laying off workers. “You have people who are interested solely in making money off of the newspapers and not in serving the community and doing good journalism,” says director Rick Goldsmith.

What’s Going On With Marjorie Taylor Greene?

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Way back in 2018, before she had ever held any kind of political office, Marjorie Taylor Greene reportedly endorsed a plan to murder former President Barack Obama. “Stage is being set,” she wrote in response to one Facebook commenter’s request to “hang” Obama and Hillary Clinton. “We must be patient.

A Surreal New Revelation About the L.A. Fires

Updated at 7:13 p.m. ET on October 9, 2025
The origin story of L.A.’s Palisades Fire, according to a criminal complaint announced yesterday, reads like a scene from an art-house film. Shortly before midnight on New Year’s Eve, a son of missionaries visits a scenic overlook near the Los Angeles coast. The clearing is known for the Buddha statues hikers leave behind in the hollowed-out stump of a power pole. The man listens to a French rap song about the malaise of modern life.

Today’s Atlantic Trivia

Updated with new questions at 4:25 p.m. ET on October 9, 2025.
Welcome back for another week of The Atlantic’s un-trivial trivia, drawn from recently published stories. Without a trifle in the bunch, maybe what we’re really dealing with here is—hmm—“significa”? “Consequentia”?
Whatever butchered bit of Latin you prefer, read on for today’s questions. (Last week’s questions can be found here.)
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Why the Latest Nobel Prize Winner Makes Perfect Sense

László Krasznahorkai, who won the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature today, is not the easiest writer to read. His sentences can go on for hundreds of pages; his plots don’t resolve, they dissolve; and his persistent mood is existential dread. But the Hungarian novelist’s central theme is easily parsed and sadly evergreen. Krasznahorkai writes about the stultifying effects of political oppression, but he also writes in defiance of people’s readiness to accept them.

The Director Who Fell in Love With Losers

The Upper West Side deli where I meet Benny Safdie is filled with a particular kind of grumpy old-school Manhattanite. They’re the type of figure who has tended to populate the filmmaker’s movies: many of them neurotic, and more concerned with finding a means to their own ends than placating the people around them. With his brother, Josh, Benny has built a career on his fascination with these occasionally surly characters, often men on the downswing.

5 Days in Israel’s Desert Prison: Jewish Flotilla Activist David Adler on Harrowing Detention Ordeal

Israeli forces have abducted over 500 peace activists over the past week who were sailing to Gaza in an effort to deliver humanitarian aid to the besieged territory. Organizers of the Global Sumud Flotilla say most of the participants were sent to Ktzi’ot Prison, notorious for harsh and abusive conditions. Some have reported physical abuse, humiliation and inhumane treatment by Israeli soldiers.

A Ceasefire Deal, But Not a Peace Agreement: What Will Happen in Gaza After Hostages Are Released?

President Donald Trump says Israel and Hamas have agreed to the “first phase” of a U.S.-backed ceasefire deal for Gaza. The 20-point roadmap includes a swap of captives and a phased Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, though details on many of the planks remain sketchy. Democracy Now! spoke with Palestinian and Israeli analysts on how to interpret the peace plan.
“We’re now at a fork in the road,” says Mouin Rabbani, a Palestinian Middle East analyst.

“Celebration and Sadness”: Reaction from Gaza as Israel & Hamas Agree to First Phase of Ceasefire Deal

Celebrations broke out in Gaza and Israel overnight after President Trump announced Israel and Hamas have agreed on the first phase of a hostage-ceasefire deal. Trump said the remaining Israeli hostages held in Gaza would likely be released on Monday. Israel has also agreed to release hundreds of Palestinians held captive in Israeli prisons, but a final list of prisoners has not been released.