Columns and Commentary

Honors departments and features that exemplify the editorial mission of the publication

David Remnick, Editor Three articles by Doreen St. Félix

“The National Geographic Twins and the Falsehood of Our Post-Racial Future,” March 14 at newyorker.com, “The Profound Presence of Doria Ragland,” May 21 at newyorker.com, and “The Ford-Kavanaugh Hearing Will Be Remembered as a Grotesque Display of Patriarchal Resentment,” September 27 at newyorker.com

In these online columns, Doreen St. Felix delivered sharp commentary with historical context. Her sophisticated understanding of the mechanisms of American racism and sexism shed new light on major events, from the wedding of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry to the Brett Kavanaugh hearings. The work of the 26-year-old St. Felix is at once measured, sensitive and sharp, proving that the future of cultural commentary is bright. This is The New Yorker’s third National Magazine Award in this category. Jeffrey Goldberg, Editor in Chief Three articles by Caitlin Flanagan

“The First Porn President,” May 3 at theatlantic.com, “I Believe Her,” September 17 at theatlantic.com, and “The Abandoned World of 1982,” September 25 at theatlantic.com

The winner of the National Magazine Award for Reviews and Criticism in 2008, Caitlin Flanagan thoughtfully explored the intersection of gender and politics in these columns. Especially affecting was Flanagan’s use of her own high-school sexual assault to examine Christine Blasey Ford’s testimony before the Senate. Bill Keller, Editor in Chief, The Marshall Project Three “Life Inside” columns

“Death Row’s First Ever Talent Show,” by George T. Wilkerson, March 22, “Getting Out of Prison Meant Leaving Dear Friends Behind,” by Robert Wright, May 31, and “What It’s Like to Be a Cutter in Prison,” by Deidre McDonald, August 16, at themarshallproject.org

Through personal essays written by incarcerated people and others with direct experience of the U.S. criminal justice system, The Marshall Project’s “Life Inside” column delivers powerful, poignant accounts of crime and punishment in America. Tom McGrath, Editor Three “Crankcase” columns by Sandy Hingston

“Alexa. That Bitch,” March, “The White Stuff,” August, and “Hair Piece,” October

Sandy Hingston’s columns take familiar bits of daily life—Amazon’s Alexa or mayonnaise, men’s haircuts—and turn them into clues in witty, delightful investigations of modern existence.