New York Times Magazine, July 9

The cover story profiles Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas. Widely respected for his writings as well as for his buildings, Koolhaas rejects the cult of personality that surrounds flashy colleagues like Frank Gehry (Guggenheim Bilbao, Experience Music Project) in favor of constant experimentation. No one built any of his intellectually adventurous designs for the first 10 years of his career, but now he has plenty of work, including three new Prada retail stores and the Dutch Embassy in Berlin. … An article explains how the Democrats choose their veeps by analyzing the 1992 selection of Vice President Al Gore. Gore will have a hard time selecting a veep because there are no obvious rising stars in the party. … A piece examines the culture of mistrust between baseball batters and pitchers. Even batters and pitchers on the same team often resent one another and rarely fraternize off the field.

Economist, July 8

The cover story likens the election of new Mexican President Vicente Fox to the fall of the Berlin Wall, but then stresses how difficult his reformist mission is. The formerly ruling PRI and the left-wing PRD are in utter disarray and will be hard to work with, and even leaders of Fox's right-wing PAN suspect he's not a true believer. Fox won because Mexico wanted change, but he'll have to work with the mess that is Mexican government to achieve anything. … A piece says Indonesians are running out of patience with President Abdurrahman Wahid's new democratic government: The economy is still a disaster, and corruption is still rampant. Wahid must reorganize his Cabinet, which was largely imposed on him by his coalition partners, and start prosecuting some of the worst lawbreakers from the Suharto regime in order to show the people he means business. … An article urges estate tax reform instead of abolition. Inheritance taxes are too complicated and probably change the way people behave economically during their lifetimes (such distortion is bad), but they also provide a ton of revenue and are extremely progressive and fair.

Time, July 10

The slow news week brings a squishy special issue: "Life on the Mississippi." The dozen-odd articles—the result of a two-week river cruise by Time staffers—find the "spirit of a nation of pioneers and pilgrims … rooted by a sense of community." One piece praises the small-town authenticity of Fort Madison, Iowa; another describes the Mormon takeover of Nauvoo, Ill.; another profiles a 25-year-old who has devoted his life to removing garbage from the river. … A superb article describes how the Pentagon is fixing an important missile-defense test scheduled for July 7. In the "Potemkin" test, the missile will travel at an artificially low speed, will have only one lame decoy, and will travel on a preset path that the defense team already knows. The test's success will almost certainly ensure that the United States will build and deploy a missile defense.

Newsweek, July 10

The cover story on the Supreme Court argues that Roe vs. Wade won't be overturned even if George W. Bush is elected president. Still, the two to four justices appointed by the next president could tip the court balance on affirmative action, school vouchers, and states' rights. … An article says flying seems more unpleasant these days because it is: Delays are up 50 percent in five years, and cancellations are up 68 percent. Passengers are more and more skeptical of airlines' excuses. … The magazine lands an exclusive interview with J.K. Rowling, whose fourth Harry Potter book comes out this week. She reveals little about the book, except that it is very long and "pivotal" to the series plot.

U.S. News & World Report, July 10

The cover story marvels over newly discovered lost cities. An ancient Turkish city filled with Roman mosaics is being drowned by a dam reservoir. Archeologists in Egypt are diving at Herakleion, a city that sank into the Mediterranean 1,300 years ago, while scientists in Peru think they have found the Pre-Incan city that was the inspiration for the El Dorado legend. … A piece on high-tech immigrants notes that 30 percent of Silicon Valley startups are run by people of Indian or Chinese ancestry. … An article notes the amazing advances in data storage and transmission. You can store 100 times more on a computer now than you could three years ago and can now send an entire CD coast-to-coast in six seconds.