Journalism that unpacks the global authoritarian toolkit
Current
Authoritarian Tech
In this current, stories on how technology has captured every aspect of our lives from intimacy to politics.
Captured: how Silicon Valley is building a future we never chose
AI’s prophets speak of the technology with religious fervor. And they expect us all to become believers.
When I’m 125?
What it means to live an optimized life and why Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint just doesn’t get it
The Big Idea
The Playbook
History doesn’t repeat, but it sure does rhyme. In this special series, we expose the tactics that powerful leaders use to change societies—tactics that follow surprisingly similar patterns wherever they appear
Current
Oligarchy
Tracking how the super rich are changing the world for the rest of us.
Current
Disinformation
Truth is under attack as our information system splinters. Ever more platforms and voices means ever more noise and alternative facts. This current looks at the winners and the losers in the war for people’s minds.
A philosophy professor proposes an Institute for Ascertaining Scientific Consensus
A consensus-finding institution could help determine what constitutes an established truth, a boon to society. But can it really curb the spread of misinformation?
The demolition of dissent in India
Bulldozers, symbols of unchecked state power, are being celebrated in Indian popular culture. And the ‘Bulldozer Baba’ in Uttar Pradesh is becoming India’s favorite Hindu nationalist politician
Current
Polarization
Who you are and what you believe have been weaponized in new ways in the power struggles of the 21st century. We track what price individuals and societies pay for these identity battles.
Missouri teenagers are on the front lines of the war on books
Hundreds of books have been taken off library shelves in Missouri under a new law threatening educators with jail time. Students are fighting back
When autocrats buy zebras
It’s not just a whim, it’s not just eccentricity. It’s a show of power and control
Special project
Generation Gulag: how Russia rewrites its Soviet history
Today the Russian government is rewriting some of the darkest chapters of its Soviet past. The eyewitnesses of Soviet authoritarianism have a different story for us and a message for our era.
BY CODA STAFF
Current
Rewriting History
In this current, stories on how those in power shape our future by weaponized the past and manipulating our memories
The myth and the hero: the writing and rewriting of Vietnam’s history
The creation of heroes lies front and center of the identity and legitimacy of Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party. How has that shaped the nation’s identity today?
To control the future, rewrite the past
Why Elon and Alice want Germany to get over its “cult of shame”
