Sam Knight

What It’s Like to Be Trump’s Closest Ally Right Now Britain still relies on the U.S. for so much. How long can it hold on?

"We must get ready to treat America like a foreign country."
www.newyorker.com/news/letter-...

How WhatsApp Took Over the Global Conversation The platform has become a core technology around the world, relied on by governments and extended families alike. What are we all doing there?

I wrote about the WhatsApp takeover and where it might be going... www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

if one more email asks me how my fucking delivery was

The Mess at the BBC Will Never End The public broadcaster desperately needs the public to believe in it. Between its own stumbles and ceaseless right-wing hostility, it is in danger of losing its way.

I wrote about the BBC, wondering when it is going to realise what it is up against. www.newyorker.com/news/letter-...

Egypt Pardons Most Prominent Political Prisoner

This at least is good news www.nytimes.com/2025/09/22/w...

Britain Is Manifesting Nigel Farage as Its Next Prime Minister Donald Trump’s state visit only added to the seeming inevitability of the right-wing Reform Party.

I wrote about Britain’s political autumn www.newyorker.com/news/letter-...

How a Billionaire Owner Brought Turmoil and Trouble to Sotheby’s Patrick Drahi made a fortune through debt-fuelled telecommunications companies. Now he’s bringing his methods to the art market.

www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

Here's why I turned off AI Overviews and why you should consider it too After being disappointed by Google's AI Overviews, I decided to figure out how to turn the feature off altogether.

This is v useful and easy for turning off Google AI overview:
www.androidauthority.com/how-to-turn-...

Why I Left the Washington Post Owner Jeff Bezos wants to transform the Opinions section of the paper, where I worked for forty years. After the publisher killed my column disagreeing with that move—it appears here in full—I decided...

Worth your time www.newyorker.com/news/essay/w...

London Is a Local-News Desert. What Comes Next? After the Evening Standard, the city’s last daily paper, went weekly, a hodgepodge of small news sources sprang up.

I wrote about London's new newsletter scene www.newyorker.com/magazine/let...

An Ark for Vanished Wildlife Derek Gow’s maverick efforts to breed and reintroduce rare animals to Britain’s countryside.

Respect always to Derek Gow.
www.newyorker.com/news/letter-...

Beaver releases into wild to be allowed in England for first time in centuries Exclusive: Government to grant nature groups a licence for release of rodent species after earlier setbacks

Beavers! www.theguardian.com/environment/...

I ride my dad’s Peugeot bike, from circa 1985. Nothing wrong with it.

Britain’s Foreign Secretary Braces for the Second Trump Age David Lammy used to be an arch-critic of Donald Trump. Can he deal with the new Administration and reset the U.K.’s relationship with the E.U. at the same time?

“The history books are far from being written. We’re in the midst of it all. Let us reckon with that second Trump term.”

www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

Ps — this article is going down somewhat different on X.

Elon Musk’s Latest Terrifying Foray Into British Politics The world’s richest man has become fixated on child sexual exploitation in deindustrialized English towns—much of which took place more than a decade ago.

I wrote about the Musk onslaught www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...

Why Is It So Hard to Build a Holocaust Memorial in London? Plans for a striking national monument next to the Palace of Westminster have been mired in disagreement for years.

“The motives of memory are never pure.” www.newyorker.com/news/letter-...

Total pleasure. Thank you for reading. Sam

True story, I lost my airpods. They were in my ears. Happy holidays.

Top-Gun Navy Pilots Fly at the Extremes. Their Brains May Suffer. A confidential Navy program is studying whether intense fighter jet operations can cause devastating brain injuries in flight crews.

This is beautifully reported. www.nytimes.com/2024/12/08/u...

“It fucks,” is, I believe, the phrase going around. I can go along with that.

I succumbed to this monster today.

My Life As a Homeless Man in America An extraordinary firsthand account.

This is excellent www.esquire.com/news-politic...

The Shipwreck Detective Nigel Pickford has spent a lifetime searching for sunken treasure—without leaving dry land.

Are you a shipwreck exploration nerd? I've got a good longread for you!

yeah! bring back the old days

BBC Radio 4 - A Good Read, Jenny Kleeman and Sam Knight Two journalists bring their favourite books to chat about with Harriett Gilbert.

This was fun, too. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

The Shipwreck Detective Nigel Pickford has spent a lifetime searching for sunken treasure—without leaving dry land.

In the spirit of the old days / new days of social media, I wrote a *completely-non-political-escapist-mainly-rooted-in-the-17th-century* story for the New Yorker last week. Enjoy! www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

Hi!