Why I Quit the Tenure Track
The insufferable hypocrisy of elite academia
September 2026
In This Issue
Quitting the tenure track, the return of monarch butterflies, cities that said yes to drugs, the great romance slump, and a 9/11 firefighter's story. Plus the art of conducting, Pete Hegseth's pull-ups, Widow's Bay, J. D. Vance's book, al-Qaeda, blue books, Freud, Richard Russo, David Hockney, and more.
Cover Story
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The Man Who Refused to Sit on the Sidelines
Kevin Dowdell, a lieutenant in an elite FDNY rescue unit, taught his sons to take action. When he disappeared on 9/11, they went to Ground Zero to search for him.
What Happened to al-Qaeda?
Twenty-five years after 9/11, analysts can’t decide if the terrorist organization is all but defunct or more threatening than ever.
The Return of the Monarch
After years of decline, butterfly populations are rising—for now.
The Cities That Said Yes to Drugs
Policies that gave addicts clean needles and places to use drugs were intended to reduce harm. They created a “zombie apocalypse.”
The Great Romance Slump
Why are so few young people finding love?
The Mysterious Art of Conducting
An inside look at music’s widely misunderstood profession
Dispatches
Illustration by Ben Hickey Bring Back the Blue-Book Exam
The humble booklet is more than just a last redoubt against cheating. Staring down its empty pages, students discover what they’re capable of as writers and thinkers.
Illustration by The Atlantic. Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Pete Hegseth, You Call That a Pull-Up?
Military fitness experts say the secretary of defense fails on form.
Culture & Critics
Illustration by Liz Hart. Sources: Apple; Stephen Saks Photography. Why Widow’s Bay Is the Show of the Summer
Its blend of horror and comedy channels the spirit of the times.
Illustration by Eleni Kalorkoti What if Freud Was Right?
A neuroscientist dares to argue that old-fashioned psychoanalysis holds the key to curing mental illness.
Illustration by Paul Spella* Hard-Luck Men in Hardscrabble Towns
In Richard Russo’s novels, the American dream feels like a cruel joke.
Illustration by Jared Nangle J. D. Vance’s New Book Wasn’t Meant to Be Read
Why does Communion exist?
Illustration by Roche Marlon James Returns to Realism, and to Jamaica
In his new novel, gay men struggle to escape violence in Kingston.
Departments
The Atlantic The Commons: The Key to Understanding the Traditionalists
Readers respond to our May 2026 issue.
© Estate of David Hockney. Edition of 75. Photograph by Richard Schmidt. Look Closer: David Hockney’s Rules of Beauty
What the artist found in a corner of the Louvre
Poetry
Illustration by Liz Hart / The Atlantic. Source: Getty. Stance
A poem
