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Hi 👋 

Welcome back to The Lazy Reader, where we curate some of the best longform journalism across the internet ✨ 

Seems like this is going to be our new normal, no? Just a near-daily stream of flip-flopping declarations, confusing press statements, depressing news. It’s quickly getting so tiresome and overwhelming to follow (though I suspect that is the point of it all).

Not to add to the deluge, but I do still believe that there is value in deeply reported true stories. That we can learn so much—and feel so much—if we go beyond just current affairs and dig into the people and events underneath it all. Plus: it’s fun. Getting lost in these longform stories is fun and we could all use a little more fun in our lives these days.

If you missed last week’s newsletter, here’s a few stories that you might enjoy:

• Left behind after the biggest spaceship crash in U.S. history.

• A real-estate tragedy.

• Mrs. Kidnapper.

ALSO: I’m still looking for feedback on new types of content you’d like to see from TLR. Interviews? Other types of reading recommendations? Games or quizzes?

As with last week, please let me know what you think of the list this week by voting in the poll below.

Happy reading and see you again next Monday!

PS - Thanks to 1440 Media for sponsoring this week’s newsletter. Please, please consider clicking their ad link after the fold below. It’s free, easy, and a really effective way of helping me out. Thank you so much!

Story in Spotlight

Easily the longest story on this week’s list, and also probably the most fleshed out both in concept and reportage.

It’s an interesting premise that’s been allowed to breathe and given the space to run its course: Three social recluses who find a place to belong online. They all also turn out to be computer geniuses, and eventually discover that their programming acument gives them a huge amount of power. Then, the usual: A series of escalating (cyber)crimes, young boys drunk on power, incompetent law enforcement, a few dogged investigators, and, ultimately, a massive fallout.

These story beats are tired, sure, but they’re reliable. That’s why True Crime is such a huge phenomenon.

What sets this story apart is its willingness to take its time. It doesn’t rush through the story beats to satisfy a structure. It doesn’t cut corners to keep readers hooked. It just trusts that the characters and story beats are interesting enough. As a result, we get to see the people involved grow through and out of the entire ordeal, which is both riveting and emotionally satisfying. In my opinion, that’s the strongest aspect of this story.

Just a minor gripe: There were a few mentions of external threats in this story, but when it turned out that the hackers were internal, it feels like all the subtext of national security evaporated. Suddenly, there wasn’t the threat of terrorism. Feels like a major oversight on the editor’s part, in my opinion.

Very, very long. Probably 2 hours, maybe even more. 

The Longform List

Glen McCurley Strangled Carla Walker in 1974. Was She His Only Victim? | TexasMonthly, $

This is from Skip Hollandsworth, which is almot enough to tell you everything you need to know about this piece. Really compelling crime story, with some very sad turns. Skip shines here, diving thoroughly into the details and mining the psyches of the different people involved in the crime. Top-tier read for sure.

The Great AI Art Heist | Chicago Mag, Free

I’ve always sided with artists in the AI debate. After all, it’s their livelihoods that are threatened, their labor that is stolen. But I concede that it’s a much more complicated conversation than that. This story voices some of the most pertinent questions, at least for me: How human does art need to be for it to be art? What even is art?

This piece ponders those questions and more, almost academically, but then it makes its own definitive stand. That’s really powerful, I think, especially given the massive money and power behind AI.

How the US Created a World of Endless War | The Guardian, Free

Really eye-opening. I mean, I always knew, by virtue of experience, that the U.S. government, regardless of who’s in power, is violent and imperialistic. But this story helps buttress that notion with details, showing how even Democrat darlings and Nobel Peace Prize winners are, in truth, warmongers who have the blood of thousands on their hands.

The Rebel Saint of South Sudan | Roads & Kingdoms, Free

Yet again, this relatively unknown and niche publication does social justice stories much, much better than most of the legacy outlets out there. And while this story is ostensibly a profile of the titular rebel saint, it still does a decent job of giving providing a thorough crash course into the Sudan conflict. It should, at the very least, make readers curious enough about the entire ordeal to seek out information on their own.

The Wetsuitman | Dagbladet, Free

Starts out as a True Crime story, searching for the identity of two bodies that washed ashore. But then it quickly (and brilliantly) pivots to the refugee crisis, but without being too in-your-face about it. Prose is a bit choppy and unrefined in some spots, but English isn’t the first language of Dagbladet, so that’s very easy to overlook. And the research more than makes up for it anyway.

Massive plus for being from a relatively obscure outlet. Always on the lookout for those. We definitely need more players in the longform arena.

A Florida Nurse was Stalked, then Killed. Why Didn’t Police Arrest Her Ex? | Tampa Bay Times, $

The inaction here is infuriating. The prose is a bit self-indulgent (enough that it started grating on me in the first third of the article), but the story itself was way too gripping for me to let that bother me. I think the writer did really well here to show how shamefully the system failed the nurse and how, despite glaring gaps in the process, authorities still don’t seem to care.

The Curious Cons of the Man Who Wouldn’t Die | GQ, $

One of those classic GQ stories that I think perfectly defines what types of stories the publication runs. Top-notch reportage (who would have discovered this type of story in the first place?) and writing, bringing to life a history of pain, desperation and surprising resilience. It’s almost a shame that this one hasn’t spun off into its own book yet.

When Your Child Is a Psychopath | The Atlantic, $

Boy I miss when The Atlantic routinely ran stories of this caliber—ones where they don’t seem to be chasing after outrage clicks or currying some sector’s favor. Because look at what happens when they just allow their stories breathe: An honest and level-headed look at what is probably a highly taboo topic.

Plus points for grounding the psychosocial discussion on neuroscience. Harmony between the social and so-called hard sciences makes for much stronger narratives, I think.

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Thanks for reading! Please, please reach out if you have feedback, suggestions, or questions. Alternatively, you can fill out this super quick survey form. I promise it won’t even take five minutes of your time, and it’ll be a HUGE help!

ALSO: I know some of the stories I recommend might be behind paywalls, and maybe I can help you with access to those. Send me a message and let’s see what we can do 😊

Until next Monday! 👋