From The New Yorker, Nicholas Lemann reviews The Uncrowned King: The Sensational Rise of William Randolph Hearst by Kenneth Whyte; Restless Genius: Barney Kilgore, The Wall Street Journal, and the Invention of Modern Journalism by Richard J. Tofel; and The Man Who Owns the News: Inside the Secret World of Rupert Murdoch by Michael Wolff; guy walks into a bar car: David Sedaris on lost loves and lost years; and Barack Obama has inherited a less visible crisis, which may, in time, trump the others: the deterioration of the global nuclear-nonproliferation regime (and more). "Spinal Tap" made mockumentaries the art form of our time; it also made life hell for every struggling hair-metal band — just ask Anvil. A review of The Philosophy of Literature by Peter Lamarque. Why is it that writers who can’t recall their Social Security numbers can recite a rival’s advance to the penny? How the Internet got its rules: Forty years ago, Requests for Comments were born; the humble documents shaped the Internet’s inner workings and played a significant role in its success. Propaganda.com: Many governments have stepped up their attacks on the Internet, harassing bloggers and making it harder to express dissenting opinions online. Missionaries from African churches are evangelizing around the globe — can a Nigerian Pentecostal movement take root in American soil?
