Print magazines put out double issues when they need a week’s vacation, online magazines recycle. Collected below is a list of Slate’s favorite pieces of 2001 for you to read while we’re busy with the holidays. Readers, please post your favorites in “The Fray.”
The story of the year was the war (more on that later), but Slate ran many pieces on less important topics (bestiality, anyone?) that were a touch more … diverting. Take, for example, Michael Schaffer’s defense of 1970s sports stadiums or Dahlia Lithwick’s “Faces of NPR” quiz, which invited readers to match faces to the NPR names they know so well. Below is a list of some of some of Slate’s best stories, war-related and otherwise.
On Campus
Adventures in Cheating: A guide to buying term papers online.
By Seth Stevenson
The One Thing You Can’t Get in High School
By Timothy Noah
Higher Education, Lower Ratings: Why are there so few TV shows about college?
By David Plotz
On the Field
Drinking and Driving: A call for more liquor on the links.
By Robert Mackey
Olbermann Über Alles! The death spiral of Keith Olbermann’s TV career.
By Bryan Curtis
Cal Ripken’s Disease: A look back at the Iron Man’s worst moments.
By Bryan Curtis
Suicide Squeeze: Baseball needs a dose of reality TV.
By Michael Schaffer
On Screen
In the Bedroom
By David Edelstein
Mulholland Drive
By David Edelstein
Ghost World
By David Edelstein
Bridget Jones’s Diary
By David Edelstein
Microsoft à la Hollywood: A new movie argues that software should be free. Try getting in without buying a ticket.
By Michael Kinsley
On Television
Uneasy Company: Band of Brothers is Private Ryan for grown-ups.
By Paul Fussell
Baywatch: The final jiggle.
By Seth Stevenson
Classic Concentration: On game shows, female hosts usually lose big.
By Chris Suellentrop
On the Page
The Book Club: Richard Reeves’ President Nixon: Alone in the White House
By Ted Widmer and Christopher Caldwell
The Book Club: Andrew Solomon’s Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression
By James Fallows and Christopher Caldwell
The Book Club: Fast Food Nation
By Katha Pollitt and Marjorie Williams
The Book Club: Rick Moody’s Demonology and Raymond Carver’s Call Me If You Need Me
By A.O. Scott and Christopher Caldwell
Woody Allen and Philip Roth: Separated at Birth?
By Alex Abramovitch
Anne Frank, Version 20.01: How is this Anne different from all other Annes?
By Jodi Kantor
Queer as Volk? A new book claims Hitler was a closet case.
By Ron Rosenbaum
Dave Eggers vs. David Kirkpatrick: Who’s right, the wounded memoirist or the exposed journalist?
By Eliza Truitt
On Finance
Ad Report Card: Diet Coke’s Underwear Strategy
By Rob Walker
Affluent Americans: Adopt a Splurge Proxy
By Rob Walker
Proposed: Making the Brand
By Rob Walker
Meet the New Boss
By Rob Walker
Diaries
Peter Baker: Behind the counter at Wendy’s
Mimi Swartz: Mother of TAAS test-taker
Reproduction
The Seed Series, by David Plotz
The Genius Babies and How They Grew
The Nobel Sperm Bank Celebrity
No Nobels, One “Failure,” A Few Regrets
Politics
Bill Clinton, Chump: Why did Bill Clinton pardon Marc Rich?
By Jacob Weisberg
A Defense of the ‘90s
By Jacob Weisberg
The Mormon Stem-Cell Choir: Why are Mormons pro-stem cell research?
By Drew Clark
The Logic of Assassination: Why Israeli murders and Palestinian suicide bombings make sense.
By David Plotz
Clinton, Gore, and Darwin: Did Gore blow the election by running away from Clinton’s record?
By William Saletan
Ex-Con Nation: We locked ‘em up. They’re getting out. What do we do now?
By David Plotz
Truth and Condit Frenzies: The newspapers that never retracted false Condit stories.
By William Saletan
Puzzles
2001: A Crossword Odyssey
By Matt Gaffney
Three in a Row
By Matt Gaffney
Merrie Olde Systeme of Chusing a Leader
By Matt Gaffney
(As They Would Say on Jeopardy) Potpourri
Is Disappearing: What TV news doing to our precious verbs.
By Michael Kinsley
The Decline of Fashion Photography
By Karen Lehrman
Extroverted Like Me: How a month and a half on Paxil taught me to love being shy.
By Seth Stevenson
No Thanks for the Mammaries: Mardi Gras, defined down.
By Chris Suellentrop
How To Be “Morally Serious”
By Timothy Noah
Merchant Semen: How to find the right sperm donor.
By David Plotz
The Gong Show: Falun Gong promises supernatural powers and eternal youth. Can it deliver?
By Emily Yoffe
Our Dogs, Our Selves: An introduction to dog psychology.
By David Plotz
Lani Guinier’s Oscar Fever
By Timothy Noah
Jackie’s Closet: The first lady hid herself in silken armor.
By Emily Eakin
On the War
Sept. 11 Dispatch From Tribeca
By Jacob Weisberg
Sept. 12 Dispatch From Tribeca
By Jacob Weisberg
Why Do Terrorists Hate Us?
By William Saletan
Why Is It Legal To Own Anthrax?
By Timothy Noah
How Can I Help? A role for writers and artists in the new war.
By David Denby
What’s Osama Talking About on the Videotape?
By Chris Suellentrop
How Do You Spell Osama?
By Chris Suellentrop
Life’s Odds and Sept. 11: No one I know personally was on the list. Why?
By David Plotz
W.H. Auden on Bin Laden
By Eric McHenry
A Theory of Everything
By Robert Wright
How Missile Defense Helps Terrorists
By Robert Wright
Defining Terrorism: It’s essential. It’s also impossible.
By Michael Kinsley
On Islam
Muslims and Modernity
By Robert Wright
Mideast Titles Glossary
By Chris Suellentrop
Islam: A Glossary
By Chris Suellentrop