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Mythili Rao

@mythili.bsky.social
88 followers 80 following 127 posts
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 16/10/2026
Why have data centres become a political bogeyman in America? Our “Checks and Balance” podcast investigates
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The data centre backlash
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, why the buildings are so unpopular with voters
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 15/10/2026
“Reproduction is kind of the whole ballgame,” is how Gloria Steinem put it. For @theguardian.com, I reviewed Generation Maybe: Why We're Having Fewer Children, and What It Means for Us All by Camilla Cavendish: www.theguardian.com/books/2026/o...
theguardian.com
Generation Maybe by Camilla Cavendish review – what’s really behind the fertility gap?
An evidenced-based account of the difficult choices facing couples across the world – from America to Iran
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 10/10/2026
What do Republicans and Democrats have to offer Christian voters? Our “Checks and Balance” podcast investigates
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The Christian vote
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, the shift in how both parties talk about religion
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 12/10/2026
I recently tried to order the American Girl books for my daughter and discovered they’re mostly all out of print. Time for a reissue. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
American Girl Built a Fortune by Taking 9-Year-Old Girls Seriously
Amanda FitzSimons’ An American Girl traces the rise of a doll empire built on history, nostalgia and expensive trappings.
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
Jack El-Hai @jackelhai.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Now available on Audible, an audio program in which I played a role along with many other intriguing and knowledgeable people.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
I hope you'll listen so you can meet Roberta. She shared a trove of diaries, letters, scrapbooks, medical records, and memories of her mother Gretchen which together with Walter Freeman's papers paint a coherent and shocking picture of how this procedure was justified and abused. adbl.co/4AVV0C8
adbl.co
Audible | Listen to Audiobooks, Podcasts, & Originals
Try Audible free for 30 days. Discover best-selling audiobooks, free podcasts, and exclusive Audible Originals. Listen offline with the Audible app.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
A series I worked on with Niall Breslin, Jessica Hatcher-Moore, and the teams at RAW TV and Audible is now out in the world. "Severed Minds" investigates the history of the lobotomy through the doctor who popularized the procedure and one of his patients.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
You can catch Killing Anna on @channel4tv.bsky.social next Monday, October 12th!
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
Eliot Higgins @eliothiggins.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Bellingcat's latest documentary, Killing Anna, has new broadcast and festival dates: VPRO Netherlands : 4th October UK Channel 4 : October 12th at 11pm LTV Latvia : October 13th Prix Bayeux - 5th October Double Exposure - 13th October Doxumentale - Stories of Freedom - November 11th
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 20/09/2026
How worried are Americans about AI? Our “Checks and Balance” podcast discusses
bit.ly
Will America’s politicians do something about AI?
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, how Washington could respond to fears about AI safety
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"They are documenting the challenge in a podcast, 'War With a Mate,' which has run for 93 episodes so far. Once again, to be clear, they haven’t actually started playing yet." www.nytimes.com/2026/09/18/w...
nytimes.com
Can Two Friends Complete a Game No One Has Ever Finished?
The Campaign for North Africa, a staggeringly complicated World War II board game, has stymied players for decades. Now two guys in England are giving it a serious go.
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 14/09/2026
“He lost his town, his home, his culture, his heritage, his family, his friends and neighbors to Islam. Luton's gone.” Why is Luton the crucible of Tommy Robinson’s story? Listen to “Shire folk”, our new series on “The Weekend Intelligence”
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Shire folk
1: Tommy’s Town
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Talking to Jill was so clarifying for me. She's really distilled what makes this period of technological upheaval we're living through particularly scary and strange
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
It also looks back at the fascinating science fiction stories and failed political movements that foreshadowed this moment.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
This book gives a name to the dreams of machine-driven dominance harbored by Silicon Valley’s billionaires and charts what’s happening to our democracies as those dreams become a reality.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
I spoke with the brilliant historian and New Yorker staff writer Jill Lepore about her new book, The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State for @intelligence2.bsky.social: open.spotify.com/episode/6zdQ...
open.spotify.com
Can Democracy Survive the Age of AI? With Jill Lepore
Intelligence Squared · Episode
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
I somehow forgot to post this on BlueSky when it came out, but it’s as timely as ever (and has been on my mind amid all the talk of AI ending us all!)
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 11/09/2026
Republicans are predicted to do badly in America’s midterm elections. Our “Checks and Balance” podcast discusses what the party can do to change this
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Why Republicans might lose the midterms
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, whether to blame Donald Trump if his party does badly at the polls
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Thank you, Deborah! 🙏🏽
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
I spoke with Marlon James about Jamaica's forgotten AIDS crisis, Nirvana, Toni Morrison, why his characters read so much, the gay Jamaican experience he missed out on as a young man, and why The Disappearers isn't a book about class. At @intelligence2.bsky.social: open.spotify.com/episode/0ynP...
open.spotify.com
NYT’s Novel of the Century? Marlon James on The Disappearers
Intelligence Squared · Episode
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The New York Times @nytimes.com · 28/08/2026
In @nytopinion.nytimes.com In the 18th century the East India Company was the most powerful and dangerous corporation the world had ever seen — that is, until the A.I. giants turned up, William Dalrymple writes.
nyti.ms
Opinion | What It Took to Dismantle the Most Powerful Company in the World
A playbook to curb the growing power of Big Tech.
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 14/08/2026
How do you follow Ron DeSantis as Florida’s governor? Byron Donalds is likely to succeed him, and joins our “Checks and Balance” podcast to discuss his plans for the state
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How Ron DeSantis transformed Florida
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, the state that became the centre of MAGA-land
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
This is a pretty good new genre of celebrity content, I think.
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 07/08/2026
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, responding to rapid technological change in the workplace
bit.ly
How to prepare American workers for AI
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, responding to rapid technological change in the workplace
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
Her book looks at how our favorite cliches about birth order stack up against the research, and how we tend to underestimate the value of sibling relationships. And what it all means in a world of falling birth rates and digital isolation … all of which we discussed! Do listen.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
🎧 New for @intelligence2.bsky.social: I spoke with Catherine Carr about sibling bonds. Send this one to your bro or sis (or your only-child pal!—we talked about it all, from the joy of being annoying to the hard stuff like sibling estrangement and bereavement): open.spotify.com/episode/1ITs...
open.spotify.com
How Do Our Sibling Relationships Shape Us? With Catherine Carr
Intelligence Squared · Episode
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 02/08/2026
The Michigan microcosm: another Senate primary, another outsider v the establishment. But do the usual categories hold? Listen to the latest episode of “Checks and Balance”
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Michigan’s messy primary
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, what’s at stake in Michigan’s Democratic primary
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
Pulitzer Center @pulitzercenter.org · 02/08/2026
Journalists: We are offering special grants for in-depth reporting on democracy in the U.S. We're looking for projects that examine issues including: - Voting rights - Civil and free-speech rights - Election transparency - Government accountability Apply by August 31! bit.ly/4bpmMvV
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 24/07/2026
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, no exit in Iran
bit.ly
The endgame in Iran
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, no exit in Iran
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
“Each generation remakes ‘The Odyssey’ in its own image: you get the version you deserve.” (Side note: It doesn’t get much better than O Brother Where Art Thou? does it?) economist.com/culture/2026...
economist.com
A very silly adaptation of “The Odyssey”
Sir Christopher Nolan’s film is emblematic of its time
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
"A woman looking for REI-branded pants ahead of a trip to Idaho was out of luck. 'We’re heading to Jones Beach for the Dave Matthews Band concert and thought they would have a rain jacket,' one woman tells me." www.curbed.com/article/rei-...
curbed.com
The Final Days of the Soho REI
Shoppers mourned the loss of a place to buy last-minute ice cleats. And the lack of deals.
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 18/07/2026
“The ordinary day-to-day workings of this department have changed.” Charlotte Howard assesses the state of the DoJ under Donald Trump, on “Checks and Balance”
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The degradation of the Department of Justice
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, Donald Trump reinvents an institution
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Open call! Haringey has been named Borough of Culture for 2027 and one cultural​ initiative involves audio storytelling​ celebrating Haringey "rebels" who have made a difference, challenged expectations, or shown resilience. Read more and nominate here: www.haringeycollective.com/news-and-pro...
haringeycollective.com
Nominations for Haringey's “Rebel” Storytellers are now open | Haringey London Borough of Culture 2027
Do you know someone in the Borough of Haringey with an incredible story to share? Nominations close at Friday on 31st July 2026, and selected Storytellers will be notified by mid-August 2026.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
"But, strangely, when he and a co-author further analyzed the results, they found that participants had spoken an estimated twelve thousand seven hundred words a day—twenty per cent less than in the earlier study. 'We thought we must have made a mistake'" www.newyorker.com/culture/anna...
newyorker.com
What Scientists Learned by Eavesdropping on Thousands of People
After researchers found that we’re speaking less and less each year, Shayla Love spent a week collecting audio recordings from her own life.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Hello “slop ceiling”: "Audiences appear to have a limit on how much AI-generated work they are willing to consume." www.fastcompany.com/91568818/our...
fastcompany.com
Our interest in AI slop is hitting a ceiling
A new analysis of the creative economy, published in the online repository arXiv and part of a new book, suggests AI-generated content may now account for 44% of uploads on some platforms, while drawi...
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
"Although We Are Not Machines looks to the future, many of the threats AI poses to workers’ dignity and safety look a lot like reconfigurations of old battles" -- For @theguardian.com, I reviewed @sarahoconnorft.ft.com's timely new book about our robot overlords: www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...
theguardian.com
We Are Not Machines by Sarah O’Connor review – can dignity at work survive the tech revolution?
A Financial Times journalist ponders the future of labour in world increasingly dominated by AI and automation
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 04/07/2026
The founders wanted an energetic executive to steer the country, but presidential historian Lindsay Chervinsky tells our podcast they would be surprised at how that’s turned out. Listen to “Checks and Balance” to find out why
econ.st
250 years of America
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, a health-check on the American system of government
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 05/07/2026
New episode! Hear my @intelligence2.bsky.social conversation with barrister @drproudman.bsky.social about her new book “He Said, She Said: Truth, Trauma and the Struggle for Justice in Family Court”: open.spotify.com/episode/2Zrf...
open.spotify.com
Is Our Justice System Failing Women? With Barrister Charlotte Proudman
Intelligence Squared · Episode
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
Resharing this one to add to your 🇺🇸 July 4th weekend listening queue ...
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
Joshua Benton @joshuabenton.com · 01/07/2026
New by me —> Now we're getting AI fake news complaining about how AI fake news is the death of real news! How a fake news site splits its energy between (a) the imagined closure of real US newspapers and (b) Chinese-friendly takes on Taiwan www.niemanlab.org/2026/07/now-...
niemanlab.org
Now we’re getting AI fake news complaining about how AI fake news is the death of real news
Did 47 Alabama newspapers die on a single day and no one noticed? (Hint: No, they didn't.)
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
New episode! I spoke with the legendary Rebecca Solnit for @intelligence2.bsky.social. Her way of looking at the world is stubbornly, persistently hopeful-- and she brings an arsenal of examples of back up her thinking. Hear our conversation here: open.spotify.com/episode/3eqX...
open.spotify.com
Reasons for Hope in Turbulent Times, with Rebecca Solnit
Intelligence Squared · Episode
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Reposted by Mythili Rao
The Economist @economist.com · 26/06/2026
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, the vice-president’s conversion and what it means for the American right
econ.st
J.D. Vance’s Catholicism
Our weekly podcast on America. This week, the vice-president’s conversion and what it means for the American right
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
“There’s something joyful about these campaigns” — on Checks and Balance, a dive into some of the spiciest New York Democratic primaries (with reporting from @thecity.nyc’s peerless @katiehonan.bsky.social: open.spotify.com/episode/7b3t...
open.spotify.com
The battle for blue America
Economist Podcasts · Episode
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
This "piercing documentary" about "what you might call an act of noble catfishingow" is now playing in London! at Bertha DocHouse at @curzon.com Bloombsbury: www.theguardian.com/film/2026/ju...
theguardian.com
Killing Anna review – the amazing catfishing operation that flushed out Syria massacre perpetrator
Haunting documentary tells how Syrian academic Annsar Shahoud created an online persona to contact the suspected perpetrator of the Tadamon massacre
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
It's worth reading A.G. Sulzberger's remarks about AI and the future of journalism in their entirety: www.nytco.com/press/a-i-jo...
nytco.com
A.I., Journalism and the Uncertain Future of the Public Square
New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger warns A.I. companies are violating settled law and urges news organizations to stand up for their rights to ensure a sustainable future for reporting.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
“If you choose to do this with joy, it doesn’t hurt your fingers as much when your fingers get caught in the gears.” www.vulture.com/article/step...
vulture.com
Stephen Colbert Thanks His Audience for a ‘Reciprocal Emotional Relationship’
“If you choose to do this with joy, it doesn’t hurt your fingers as much when your fingers get caught in the gears.”
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Fighting flooding with furry friends: www.npr.org/2026/05/21/n...
npr.org
As floods get worse, Britain tries a new solution: beavers
About 400 years ago, beavers were hunted to extinction across Britain. Now they're being reintroduced as little climate warriors, as communities harness their dam-building skills to mitigate flooding.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
“The ether is a public medium, and its use must be for the public benefit”: www.niemanlab.org/2026/05/as-g...
niemanlab.org
As goes CBS Radio News, so goes the idea that news media should serve the public interest
That the airwaves should be defined by more than a quest for profit was once a bipartisan view.
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Google Search used to be such a valuable research tool. I realize it’s quaint to care about sources and attribution (and that people using AI are largely unbothered by its inaccuracies) but this is objectively so terrible. techcrunch.com/2026/05/19/g...
techcrunch.com
Google Search as you know it is over | TechCrunch
Google is transforming Search from a list of links into an AI-powered experience filled with conversational answers, autonomous agents, and interactive interfaces — a shift that could further reduce t...
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Mythili Rao @mythili.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
New ep! Hear my @intelligence2.bsky.social conversation with the wise Siri Hustvedt about 80s literary New York, her 43-year love affair with husband Paul Auster, marriage, and grief. Ghost Stories is a surprisingly romantic book; speaking with Siri was a delight: open.spotify.com/episode/77RN...
open.spotify.com
Love, Loss and Mourning Paul Auster, with Siri Hustvedt
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