The Transom

Russell Simmons.

Hip-Hop Array: A Night at Russell Simmons’s House

Last Monday, 250 people joined the Transom in Russell Simmons’s penthouse apartment in the Financial District, shaking snow and sleet off their fur coats and craning their necks to see over a wall of cameras. Mr. Simmons, the chairman of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, was hosting a ceremony to celebrate FFEU’s young leaders, and Read More

obscenity

M.I.A. Flips Off Super Bowl Camera, Probably Launches Another Boring Debate Over Obscenity

M.I.A. briefly shot the camera a middle finger during her guest spot on the Super Bowl halftime show last night–because nothing is so much fun for everyone as a multimillionaire flipping off 100 million plebeians at once. Anyone who remembers the somehow more-innocent and crasser time of 2004 will remember the months-long “controversy” over Janet Read More

sports

M.I.A.: is that a middle finger or are you just glad to sing for us?

New York Giants Win Super Bowl XLVI

It turns out the New York Giants were prescient when they briefly put their website on a championship footing Saturday: in spite of a strong effort by the Patriots in the 4th quarter including a failed Tom Brady Hail Mary pass, the Giants won their Super Bowl match-up against the New England Patriots, 21-17.  The Giants profited as much off Patriot foul-ups as they did from quarterback Eli Manning‘s efficient move into high gear in the fourth quarter, when Mr. Manning led what would ultimately be the game-winning drive, culminating in a touchdown by Ahmad Bradshaw with less than a minute left in the game. The AP reports as many as 100 million viewers may have tuned into the game on NBC. Read More

pop music

13 Slideshows A Writer Considers Writing On Occasion of Madonna’s Single ‘Give Me All Your Luvin’

“Madonna Lead-Off Singles, Ordered By Their Degree of Establishing a New Identity”

“Luvin’ the Time of Choler: The Most Annoying Misspellings in Pop”

“Years During Which It Was Cool to Like Madonna, Disincluding 2012″

“Stars With the Most Forgiving Fan Bases”

“Top 5 References to Better, Older Music Video”

“Top 10 Misuses of the Read More

Program

Program: What We Love This Week (July 21-July 26)

Readings

With the summer just about at the halfway point, the future is nearer and scarier than ever. Guiding us through dystopia will be Ray Bradbury, appearing via Skype at McNally Jackson bookstore. The science fiction writer, almost 90 years old, will speak with his recent biographer, Sam Weller, who will read from Listen Read More