Great Listens: The Age of Fentanyl, Arundhati Roy, Summer Fun

September 5, 2025

This week: One mother’s fight for justice in the age of fentanyl, the author Arundhati Roy on how to survive in a “culture of fear” and artificial intelligence in schools.

Plus, does anyone really still care about the V.M.A.s?

Great Listens

Martina Tuaty for The New York Times

‘I REALLY DIDN’T WANT TO GOLF’

A 40-Year-Old Guy With FOMO Signed Up for a Golf Boot Camp

Here’s what happened to our reporter Joseph Bernstein.

Nishanth Radhakrishnan and Zishaan A Latif for The New York Times

THE INTERVIEW

Arundhati Roy on How to Survive in a ‘Culture of Fear’

The acclaimed writer has a new memoir, and a warning.

Photo illustration by Alex Merto

‘POSSIBLY THE SMARTEST PERSONAL-FINANCE DECISION’?

The Gold Digger Was an Archvillain. Now She’s an Aspiration.

What do men and women really want in our fraught new mating economy?

A view from above of people on the sand and in the waves of a beach

Stephane Mahe/Reuters

‘NOTHING BEATS A JET2HOLIDAY’

This Summer in Culture

Gilbert Cruz, Jon Caramanica and Madison Malone Kircher recap Taylor Swift, Jet2holidays and more.

News and Ideas

Mark Schiefelbein/Associated Press

Revising history at the Smithsonian. “The Daily” on the fight over who gets to tell the American story, and how.
A.I. school is in session. Kevin Roose and Casey Newton explore two takes on the future of education.
The Supreme Court is backing President Trump’s power grab. Ezra Klein takes stock.
One mother’s fight for justice in the age of fentanyl.
What the bloom after Los Angeles’s wildfires reveals about our ecological future.
Tom Friedman’s A.I. nightmare and what the U.S. can do to avoid it. The Opinion columnist’s thesis after traveling around China.
Trump is alive. The internet was convinced otherwise.
Does the future belong to China? Ross Douthat and the author Dan Wang debate the true strength of the U.S.’s biggest adversary.

Unwind

A circular photograph of E. Jean Carroll against a striped background.

Photo Illustration by The New York Times; Background: Brian Rea; Inset photo: Sarah Blesener for The New York Times

MODERN LOVE

E. Jean Carroll’s Vibrant Sex Life Ended 30 Years Ago. She Wants It Back.

When the writer and advice columnist came forward to accuse President Trump of sexual assault, it meant acknowledging that she was a changed woman when she walked out of Bergdorf’s all those years ago.

Photo Illustration by The New York Times; Photo: Angela Weiss/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

CANNONBALL WITH WESLEY MORRIS

The V.M.A.s Are This Weekend. Does Anybody Care?

It’s a weird moment for the music video.

Watch the episode here.

Two toothbrushes in a cup with a tube of toothpaste next to it. The cup and toothpaste are in a bubble against a blue background.

NYT Wirecutter; source photo by iStock/Olivier Verriest

ORAL CARE IS SELF-CARE

Should You Switch to an Electric Toothbrush?

Wirecutter’s guide to taking care of your pearly whites.

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