Five-ring Circus

The 2008 Olympics

A roundup of Slate’s coverage of China and the Beijing Games.

The Games

Dunks, Mom, and Apple Pie: The marketing genius of USA Basketball’s ‘Redeem Team,’ ” by Tommy Craggs. Posted Friday, Aug. 22, 2008.

The Olympics Sap-o-Meter,” by Josh Levin, Derek Thompson, and Chris Wilson.
Posted Friday, Aug. 22, 2008.

The Advertising Olympics: The best and worst commercials from the Summer Games,” by Josh Levin. Posted Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008.

Sapped Out: Slate’s Sap-o-Meter team takes readers’ questions about NBC’s schmaltzy Olympics coverage.” Posted Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008.

The Olympics Sap-o-Meter: Usain Bolt might be the world’s fastest man, but mom runs away with the night yet again,” by Josh Levin, Derek Thompson, and Chris Wilson. Posted Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008.

Olympic-Sized Racism: Remembering the 1904 Games, where Indians, Pygmies, and other ‘savages’ faced off in the interest of science,” by Nate DiMeo. Posted Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008.

Beach Volleyball in Iran?: How do conservative countries handle scantily clad Olympic athletes?” by Kara Hadge. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008.

Dispatches from Beijing: The Science of DJing an Olympic Beach Volleyball Match,” by Jacob Leibenluft. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008.

Remember When Decathletes Were Cool?: Why the world stopped caring about track and field’s most grueling event,” by Robert Weintraub. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008.

The Olympics Sap-o-Meter: NBC reaches yet another milestone on its magically sappy Olympic journey,” by Josh Levin, Derek Thompson, and Chris Wilson. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2008.

“Dispatches From Beijing: Liverpudlian Scalpers, Scam Web Sites, and Other Highlights of an Olympic-Sized Ticketing Fiasco,” by Tom Scocca. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2008.

The Olympics Sap-o-Meter: ‘We saw people all around this stadium, as we were leaving, in tears, sobbing uncontrollably,’ ” by Josh Levin, Derek Thompson, and Chris Wilson. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2008.

Jamaican Me Speedy: Why are Jamaicans so good at sprinting?” by Nina Shen Rastogi. Posted Monday, Aug. 18, 2008.

The XX Factor: Six Cheers for Natalie Coughlin,” by Rachael Larimore. Posted Monday, Aug. 18, 2008.

Like Regular Ping-Pong, With Concussions: In praise of doubles table tennis,” by Robert Weintraub. Posted Monday, Aug. 18, 2008.

The Olympics Sap-o-Meter: More tears, more moms, more dreams, and three new Sap-o-Meter records,” by Josh Levin, Derek Thompson, and Chris Wilson. Posted Monday, Aug. 18, 2008.

Dispatches from Beijing: I Saw Michael Phelps Win His Eighth Gold Medal,” by Jacob Leibenluft. Posted Monday, Aug. 18, 2008.

Taking Sprinting to New Heights: The 6-foot-5 Usain Bolt set a world record in the 100-meter dash. Short sprinters, beware,” by Edward McClelland. Posted Sunday, Aug. 17, 2008

Beach Bums: Why are beach-volleyball players always patting each other on the butt?” by Troy Patterson. Posted Friday, Aug. 15, 2008.

The Ballerina vs. the Energizer Bunny: Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson battle for the women’s gymnastics all-around title,” by Meghan O’Rourke. Posted Friday, Aug. 15, 2008.

The Olympics Sap-o-Meter: A new rivalry in the sport of schmaltz: dream vs. mom,” by Josh Levin, Derek Thompson, and Chris Wilson. Posted Friday, Aug. 15, 2008.

Today’s Cartoons: Gold Medal Cartoons.” Posted Friday, Aug. 15, 2008.

The Olympics Sap-o-Meter: On a night of dreams, NBC saves its syrup for Michael Phelps,” by Josh Levin, Derek Thompson, and Chris Wilson. Posted Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008.

Dispatches From Beijing: You think NBC is bad? You haven’t seen CCTV,” by June Shih. Posted Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008.

Poor Kobe’s Olympic Dream: A daily video from Slate V.” Posted Thursday, Aug. 14. 2008.

Magnum Photos: Young Gymnasts.” Posted Thursday, Aug. 14, 2008.

The Silver Lining: The U.S. women’s gymnastics team overturned cultural cliches in the team event,” by Meghan O’Rourke. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2008.

The Olympics Sap-o-Meter: Just like Michael Phelps: another day, another record,” by Josh Levin, Derek Thompson, and Chris Wilson. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2008.

Human Nature: Olympic Inflation,” by William Saletan. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2008.

Explainer’s Olympics Roundup: Your questions about the Games, with answers from our archives,” by Derek Thompson. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2008.

Why Do Fencers Shriek?: And other questions about the 2008 Olympics,” by Juliet Lapidos. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008.

” ’Why Not Just Use Beavers?’: NBC’s visit to the Three Gorges Dam, and other Olympics coverage highlights,” by Troy Patterson. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008.

Down With the Perfect 10!: A mathematician explains the genius of the new gymnastics scoring system,” by Jordan Ellenberg. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008.

The Sap-o-Meter Widget: Embed our Olympics schmaltz tracker on your blog, iGoogle, or Facebook page.” Posted Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008.

The Olympics Sap-o-Meter: The sap reaches a record high. Blame mom,” by Josh Levin, Derek Thompson, and Chris Wilson. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008.

” ’There’s a New China Syndrome, and It’s Called China Gold’: The latest from the SlateOlympics Twitter feed.” Posted Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008.

Dispatches from Beijing: An American Tourist Is Murdered, and Conspiracy Theories Abound,” by Tim Wu. Posted Monday, Aug. 11, 2008.

Introducing the SlateOlympics Twitter Feed: How to follow the Beijing Games 24/7,” by Josh Levin. Posted Friday, Aug. 8, 2008.

Will Respirators Help Our Olympic Athletes?: Only if they put them on correctly,” by Jacob Leibenluft. Posted Aug. 7, 2008.

China Goes for (All of) the Gold: Economists predict whether the host country will rule the Beijing Olympics,” by Daniel Gross. Posted Aug. 7, 2008.

Summer Olympics Disaster Guide: Opening Ceremony Edition: The Olympics are all set to kick off. What could possibly go wrong?” by Lucy Morrow Caldwell, Kara Hadge, Nayeli Rodriguez, and Derek Thompson. Posted Thursday, Aug. 7, 2008.

Slate V: Poor Kobe’s Olympic Dream

Full Speedo Ahead: Can Michael Phelps’ cutting-edge swimsuit make me a better swimmer?” by Sara Dickerman. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2008.

Olympic Marathon: The best books, Web sites, and video to prepare you for the Beijing Games,” by Rachael Larimore. Posted Saturday, Aug. 2, 2008.

Swifter, Higher, Cuddlier: Stop picking on Beijing’s Olympic mascots,” by Seth Stevenson. Posted Thursday, July 24, 2008.

Dara Torres, Demystified: Do the swimmer’s ‘secrets to success’ hold up?” by Amanda Schaffer. Posted Wednesday, July 16, 2008.

Summer Olympics Disaster Guide: What could go wrong in Beijing? Everything,” by Lucy Morrow Caldwell, Kara Hadge, Nayeli Rodriguez, and Derek Thompson. Posted Wednesday, July 2, 2008.

Passing on the Torch: Why are world leaders boycotting the Beijing opening ceremony?” by Jacob Leibenluft. Posted Friday, April 11, 2008.

The Carbon Olympics: Keeping track of the Olympic torch’s carbon footprint—one leg at a time,” by Chadwick Matlin. Posted Tuesday, April 11, 2008.

Boycott Beijing: The Olympics are the perfect place for a protest,” by Anne Applebaum. Posted Monday, March 24, 2008.

Spielberg Bails on the Beijing Olympics: Will Darfur spoil everything for China?” by Kim Masters. Posted Thursday, Feb. 5, 2008.

The Olympics Take Beijing: The new city comes to my back yard,” by Tom Scocca. Posted Monday, Dec. 3, 2007.

The Culture

Is Red China Ever Green?: Are all products “made in China” equally bad for the environment?” by Jacob Leibenluft. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2008.

Dispatches From Beijing: Are the media being too mean to China?” by Tim Wu. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008.

Wineglasses Rising: China’s newfound obsession with wine,” by Mike Steinberger. Posted Friday, Aug. 8, 2008.

Magnum Photos: Olympic Sights.” Posted Friday, Aug. 8, 2008.

The Beijing Olympics: a Visitors’ Guide: What should I eat? How much should I tip? Is that kid peeing in the street?” by Tom Scocca. Posted Thursday, Aug. 7, 2008.

The Vanishing City: The life and death of Beijing’s alleys,” by Rob Gifford. Posted Thursday, Aug. 7, 2008

Let the God Games Begin: How missionaries’ attempts to evangelize at the Olympics were foiled,” by Adam Minter. Posted Thursday, Aug. 7, 2008.

Magnum Photos: China’s secret plot to look good in photographs.” Posted Thursday, Aug. 7, 2008.

Ready, Get Self, Go!: China’s younger generation discovers the identity crisis,” by Ann Hulbert. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2008.

Beyond Wontons: A new cookbook showcases recipes from China’s ethnic minorities,” by Nicholas Day. Posted Wednesday, Aug. 6, 2008

“>What’s Up With Chinese Menus?: The stories behind ‘chicken without sexual life’ and ‘bean curd made by a pockmarked woman,’ ” by Brian Palmer. Posted Monday, June 23, 2008.

China’s SAT: If the SAT lasted two days, covered everything you’d ever studied, and decided your future,” by Manuela Zoninsein. Posted Wednesday, June 4, 2008.

Seven Mysteries of China: Is porcelain addictive?” by Christopher Benfey. Posted Wednesday, April 2, 2008.

A Flipbook on China: A Magnum photo essay.” Posted Friday, March 7, 2008.

How the Grinch Stole Chinese New Year: The government has banned many of the traditions associated with Chinese New Year—but the holiday may be staging a comeback,” by April Rabkin. Posted Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2008.

A Political Scientist in China: How China is like a bicycle,” by Ian Bremmer. Posted Friday, Oct. 5, 2007.

The Politics

How Educational Is Re-Education?: What you learn, or don’t learn, at a Chinese labor camp,” by Jacob Leibenluft. Posted Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008.

The Dissident Within: What a book about China’s great famine says about the country’s transformation,” by Anne Applebaum. Posted Monday, Aug. 11, 2008.

Bush Owes to China: The Olympics ad this administration doesn’t want you to see,” by Bruce Reed. Posted Monday, Aug. 11, 2008.

The Party vs. the People: What might the new populist protest in China portend?” by Minxin Pei. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2008.

China’s Tell-Nothing Ethos: What the man on Mao’s right doesn’t say,” by Andrew J. Nathan. Posted Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2008.

The Chinese Earthquake Roundup: Can grieving parents have another child? And other questions about the tragedy,” by Jacob Leibenluft. Posted Thursday, May 15, 2008.

Olympic Flame Out: China learns the price of a few weeks of global attention,” by Anne Applebaum. Posted Monday, April 14, 2008.

China’s Great Migration: Why would hundreds of thousands of people risk their lives to move to America and live as illegal aliens?” by Patrick Radden Keefe. Posted Wednesday, April 9, 2008.

The Last Days of Cheap Chinese: Why American consumers are about to start paying more for clothes, electronics, toys, and just about everything else,” by Alexandra Harney. Posted Tuesday, April 8, 2008.

Why Does China Care About Tibet?: Plus, when are monks allowed to get violent?” by Nina Shen Rastogi. Posted Friday, March 28, 2008.

Live From Lhasa: Shaky cell-phone videos from Tibet foretell doom for the Chinese empire,” by Anne Applebaum. Posted Monday, March 17, 2008.

Trade-Offs: Is China the key to Africa’s development?” by Eliza Barclay. Posted Thursday, March 6, 2008.