Reporting in Minneapolis with Alex Wagner and Jacob Soboroff

Parting the Waters chronicles the struggle for racial equality in America from the twilight of the Eisenhower years through King’s fiery political baptism, the ascension of John F. Kennedy, and the dawning of the New South. The book covers significant events such as the Montgomery bus boycott, the Freedom Rides, the Birmingham campaign, and the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. It provides a vivid, panoramic portrait of America during this transformative period, highlighting the roles of key figures including Martin Luther King Jr., the Kennedy brothers, and J. Edgar Hoover.

In 'The Anxious Generation', Jonathan Haidt examines the sudden decline in the mental health of adolescents starting in the early 2010s. He attributes this decline to the shift from a 'play-based childhood' to a 'phone-based childhood', highlighting mechanisms such as sleep deprivation, attention fragmentation, addiction, loneliness, social contagion, and perfectionism that interfere with children’s social and neurological development. Haidt proposes four simple rules to address this issue: no smartphones before high school, no social media before age 16, phone-free schools, and more opportunities for independence, free play, and responsibility. The book offers a clear call to action for parents, teachers, schools, tech companies, and governments to restore a more humane childhood and end the epidemic of mental illness among youth.

In The Sirens' Call, Chris Hayes delves into the impact of the attention economy on our lives, politics, and society. He argues that the constant assault from attention-seeking technologies and media has fundamentally altered our ability to focus and has significant implications for our mental health, social structures, and political landscape. Hayes draws on a wide range of sources, including philosophers, media theorists, and psychologists, to provide a holistic framework for understanding and reclaiming control over our attention in a world dominated by 'attentional warlordism'.