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American Chronicles

The Devastating New History of the January 6th Insurrection

The House report describes both a catastrophe and a way forward.

The Terrifying Car Crash That Inspired a Masterpiece

Fifty years ago, a Kansas family picked up a hitchhiker on their way to Iowa. What happened on that drive became part of literary history.

The Election Official Who Tried to Prove “Stop the Steal”

How a group of conspiracy theorists enlisted a county clerk in Colorado to find evidence that the 2020 vote was rigged.

Donald Trump and the Sweepstakes Scammers

In the eighties, an eclectic group of con artists dominated the market for promotional games, and rigged them—till it all came crashing down.

The Long Afterlife of a Terrible Crime

Decades after her mother was killed, Regina Alexander reached out to the son of the people who did it.

The Book Club That Helped Spark the Gay-Rights Movement

In the nineteen-fifties, the Cory Book Service quietly connected a community. Then it was forgotten.

The Secret Source Who Helped Fuel Trump’s Big Lie

A Dallas information-technology consultant, code-named Spider, believes that the New World Order stole the 2020 election.

Britney Spears’s Conservatorship Nightmare

How the pop star’s father and a team of lawyers seized control of her life—and have held on to it for thirteen years.

The Deceit and Conflict Behind the Leak of the Pentagon Papers

Fifty years on, Daniel Ellsberg praises the Times journalist who misled him.