Newsstand Archives - The John Adams Institute

Mark Rutte visits President Biden

January 18, 2023

On January 17th, the Dutch prime minister met in Washington D.C. with President Biden. Mark Rutte discussed the situation in Ukraine, and how to strenghten global alliances....

Rachelle Meyer in the Austin Chronicle

December 30, 2022

Cartoonist and Texpat Rachelle Meyer keeps the Southern tradition alive in Amsterdam with this illustrated history of a black-eyed pea party published in The Austin Chronicle. In 2019, she created a blog series for the John Adams based on her Faces on the...

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De Correspondent on Invisible Child

December 22, 2022

De Correspondent published an extensive article (in Dutch) about Invisible Child, the book by New York Times journalist Andrea Elliott about a homeless family in New York City. Elliott, who won a Pulitzer Prize for her work, joined the John Adams last October. Click ...
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Joseph Stiglitz on inflation

December 19, 2022

The pandemic and war, not government spending, caused inflation, according to Nobel Prize Winner Joseph Stiglitz. A new paper by Stiglitz (and Ira Regmi) for The Intercept has huge implications for everything about who holds power in American life. Stiglitz spoke at the John Adams several times. Visit our library or ...
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EYE discovers 1898 film of Mardi Grass

December 15, 2022

After decades of searching, a 1898 film of New Orleans Mardi Gras was discovered in the archives of the Eye Filmmuseum in Amsterdam. Believed to be the oldest film of New Orleans, the roughly two-minute movie shows both long-held traditions of the parade and rituals that have been changed or forgotten....
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Roe v. Wade podcast wins Apple Award

November 30, 2022

Slate’s podcast series Slow Burn about Roe v. Wade won the 2022 Apple Podcasts Award. The four-episode season explores the events leading up to the landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision. Host Susan Matthews will join the John Adams for a free livestream about the podcast on December 15th. ...
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Film Adaption of ‘She Said’

November 17, 2022

She Said, an American drama film based on the book of the same name by New York Times journalists Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey will hit the screen. this month. Their book exposed Harvey Weinstein's history of abuse and sexual misconduct against women. Megan Twohey visited the John Adams in 2019....
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New visitor center Margraten

November 3, 2022

The American Battle Monuments Commission (AMBC) Netherlands American Cemetery will soon unveil a new visitor center in Margraten, Netherlands, highlighting the 77-year-old site’s rich history and unique relationship with the local Dutch community....
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Jill Lepore on the US Constitution

October 27, 2022

The inability to change the US Constitution, America’s most important document, is deforming our politics and government, argues ...
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Historical marker for John Quincy Adams

October 20, 2022

On Oct 19th, the city of Leiden placed a historical marker on the house where John Quincy Adams lived. He was the son of John Adams, and became the sixth president of the United States. When John Adams arrived in the Dutch Republic as the American envoy, he was accompanied by his two sons who both studied at Leiden University....
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New US ambassador to the Netherlands

September 15, 2022

Ambassador-Designate Shefali Razdan Duggal will present her credentials to HM King Willem-Alexander on October 19. Razdan Duggal was born in India and moved with her family to the US at the age of two. She is an experienced political activist, women’s rights advocate, and human rights campaigner....
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Barbara Ehrenreich dies at 81

September 5, 2022

Barbara Ehrenreich, an author and essayist who picked apart the myths of the American Dream died Sept. 1. She was 81. In 2005 she visited the John Adams to discuss her book Nickel and Dimed - On (not) getting by in America. Click here for the video....
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Dr. Fauci to step down from government

August 23, 2022

Dr. Anthony Fauci, who played a critical role in steering humanity through the two pandemics of our time, AIDS and COVID-19, announced he is stepping down from his role in the federal government. The nation's top infectious disease expert joined the John Adams online in 2021. Click here for the video....
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Karen Joy Fowler on longlist Booker Prize

July 27, 2022

Karen Joy Fowler has been nominated for the Booker Prize 2022. The jury announced that her book Booth made it too the longlist. The winner will be chosen in October. Fowler will visit the John Adams on 15 September to discuss her epic tale about the Booth family. Click here for more info and tickets....
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Lessons from Dr. Anthony Fauci

June 30, 2022

The pandemic is waning, but Dr. Anthony Fauci has a few more lessons to share. In ...
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Paintings depicting Dutch descendants recovered

June 23, 2022

A curator and a librarian in New Paltz, N.Y., helped the F.B.I. to track down 200-year-old paintings that were stolen in 1972. ...
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Jill Lepore on the history of bikes

June 14, 2022

Bicycles have evolved over time. From the velocipede to the ten-speed, these innovations brought riders freedom. But in a world built for cars, life behind handlebars is both charmed and dangerous, writes historian Jill Lepore in the New Yorker. In 2019, Lepore visited the John Adams to discuss her book These Truths....
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Dutch town fights of Meta data center

June 2, 2022

In December, over the objections of many locals, the Dutch farming community of Zeewolde approved an enormous data center for Meta, ...
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Margaret Atwood on the right to abortion

May 11, 2022

The US supreme court draft ruling on abortion is an assault on fundamental individual freedoms, says Margaret Atwood. In this article for the Guardian, The Handmaid’s Tale author reflects on the issues at stake in case Roe vs. Wade gets overturned by the court as expected. Atwood visited the John Adams twice, in ...
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Essay on Ukraine by Timothy Snyder

May 6, 2022

The war in Ukraine Is a colonial war, argues American historian and author Timothy Snyder in a recent essay for the New Yorker. For centuries, the country has lived in the shadow of empire. But its past also provides the key to its present. Snyder visited the John Adams in 2018 to discuss his book The Road to Unfreedom....
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Bill Browder: For Putin, It’s All About the Money

April 21, 2022

When it comes to the war in Ukraine, we are all trying to understand Putin’s motivations. According to Bill Browder, who has been following the dark money flowing out of Russia for years, it’s simply about money and enriching senior officials, he writes in Time. Browder will join the John Adams for a talk on May 13th....
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Kim Wehle on Supreme Court Justice Thomas

April 6, 2022

In this interview for MSNBC, law professor Kim Wehle discusses whether Supreme Court Justice Thomas should recuse himself, resign, or face impeachment because of his wife's involvement in trying to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election. Wehle visited the John Adams in 2020 to talk about her book about the constitution....
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Anne Applebaum on the threat to democracy

April 3, 2022

A stern warning from Central and Eastern Europe-expert Anne Applebaum in The Altantic: democracies have to work harder to defend themselves. If they don't, the forces of autocracy will destroy them. Applebaum visited the John Adams in 2012 to discuss her book Iron Curtain....
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Patrick Radden Keefe on Putin’s Oligarchs

March 29, 2022

In this article for the New Yorker, Patrick Radden Keefe describes how Putin's oligarchs basically bought London. He shows how the British establishment has long been at their service, discretion guaranteed. Last year, Keefe ...
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Remembering Madeleine Albright

March 25, 2022

On March 23rd, Madeleine Albright died aged 84. She was the first female secretary of state in US history, a champion of democracy and one of the best and the brightest of American thinking. She visited the John Adams six times, and features in episode one our podcast Bright Minds....
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Biden’s misunderstanding of history

March 23, 2022

What kind of history is informing today’s decisions in Washington as the war in Ukraine drags on? According to historian Niall Ferguson, President Biden is making a colossal mistake in thinking he can bleed Russia dry and topple Putin. Ferguson joined the John Adams online last year to discuss his book Doom: The Politics of Catastrophe....
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America needs a better plan to fight autocracy

March 17, 2022

America needs a better plan to fight autocracy, writes Anne Applebaum in The Atlantic. By enabling Putin and other global kleptocrats, the West undermined democracy. It’s time to change tactics. In 2012, journalist, historian and Eastern Europe-expert visited the John Adams to talk about her book Iron Curtain....
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Rachelle Meyer in the New Yorker

March 15, 2022

The lastest issue of The New Yorker is showing the work of Amsterdam-based American artist Rachelle Meyer. In 2019, she created a wonderful blog series for the John Adams called 'Faces on the Ferry'...
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Ukraine: Was the West was too complacent?

March 10, 2022

American-born Roberta Haar is Professor of Foreign Policy Analysis and Transatlantic Relation. In Elsevier Weekblad she argues that Western complacency might have gotten us where we are today in Ukraine. In the article, she refers to the John Adams...
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Sackler family reaches deal in opioid lawsuits

March 5, 2022

The Sacklers reached a new deal over the family's involvement in the opioid epidemic. According to the latest agreement, they will contribute up to $6 billion to resolve any claims. Last September, Patrick Radden Keefe...
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Could The Dutch Polder System Work in the U.S?

February 22, 2022

The Netherlands' five centuries of experience living below sea level, could be needed by the U.S. as water levels continue to rise and coastal communities are threatened. In this article, a Dutch engineer outlines pilot projects for three American cities that will be particularly vulnerable: Boston, Miami and San Francisco....
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New book by Kim Wehle

February 17, 2022

In her new book How to Think Like a Lawyer - and Why, law professor and author Kim Wehle teaches non-attorneys how to think like a lawyer to gain advantage in their lives, whether buying a house, negotiating a salary, or choosing the right healthcare. Wehle joined the John Adams in 2020 to discuss her book on...
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Why Toni Morrison’s books are target of book bans

February 8, 2022

Morrison’s works are a regular fixture on the American Library Association annual list of the top 10 most challenged books, writes Time. Scholars say Morrison’s books are controversial because they address the dark moments in American...
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NRC: Dutch roots of the African-American flag

February 5, 2022

The red, black and green African-American Flag is the symbol of the Black Pride Movement in the US. It was created in Friesland and was first raised in the heart of Amsterdam, more than 30 years ago, initiated by Dutch art collector Jan Christiaan Braun and American artist David Hammons. Read the story in NRC here (in Dutch)....
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Elizabeth Kolbert on crossover voting

January 27, 2022

The tactic of crossover voting, when voters cast ballots for a party with which they are not traditionally affiliated, is mostly applied to undermine the opposition. It has a bad reputation, but what if it's used to save the Republic, wonders ...
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Maya Angelou first woman on US quarter

January 26, 2022

The US Treasury has minted coins featuring poet Maya Angelou, the first black woman ever featured on the US 25-cent coin known as a quarter. Coins are planned for other pioneering women, including an astronaut, a tribal chief and an actress, as part of the American Women Quarters program....
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New book by futurist Amy Webb

January 19, 2022

In her new book The Genesis Machine, co-written with pioneering geneticist Andrew Hessel, futurist Amy Webb presents some bold ideas about procreation and the possibilities and pitfalls of synthetic biology. Webb visited the John Adams in 2017 to discuss her book The Signals Are Talking....
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New books Toni Morrison and Hanya Yanagihara

January 11, 2022

Two new books by two great authors and former guest speakers of the John Adams: Recitatif, a rare short story by the late Toni Morrison will be published as a book, while Hanya Yanagihara is about to publish her third novel, To...
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New York Times: Fukuyma on Capitol insurrection

January 6, 2022

The dramatic events on Jan. 6, 2020 continue to reverberate in American politics, but its impact is not just domestic, argues Francis Fukuyama in the NYT. It also had a large impact internationally and signals a significant decline in American global power. Fukuyama sproke at the John Adams in 1995, ...
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Documentary ‘Four Hours at the Capitol’

January 4, 2022

A year after the insurrection at the US Capitol, the VPRO broadcasts the documentary Four Hours at the Capitol. It shows protesters, police officers, members of the US Congress and the Senate sharing their experiences, often for the first time. The result is both a grim and intimate reminder of...
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Elizabeth Kolbert on polarization

December 29, 2021

In this article for the New Yorker, Elizabeth Kolbert wonders how politics got so polarized and if anything can bring 'us'and 'them' together if in an era of hyperpartisan identities? Kolbert joined us last June for a talk about her book Under a White Sky, which explores geo-engineering and climate change....
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The floating homes of Amsterdam

December 20, 2021

In Amsterdam, a community of floating homes shows the world how to live alongside nature. The Washington Post reports on a movement for urban dwellers grappling with rising sea levels and the accelerating impacts of climate change. Click ...
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Artists help to remove the Sackler name

December 13, 2021

More than ...
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Tourist-weary Amsterdam takes new measures

December 10, 2021

Tourist-weary Amsterdam announced this week that it will take ongoing plans to reduce the impact of tourism one step further. The city’s latest bold initiative is offering up cash to help local community groups oust touristy businesses, writes Bloomburg CityLab....
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Elizabeth Kolbert on the control of nature

December 8, 2021

In this article for the New Yorker, writer and journalist Elizabeth Kolbert wonders if tinkering with photosynthesis could prevent a global food crisis and set off a Green Revolution. In June of this year, Kolbert joined us online for a talk about the pros and cons of geo-enigineering as a means to fight the climate crisis....
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Joseph Stiglitz on COVID and capitalism

December 6, 2021

Two economic experts agree that the pandemic has altered the world’s economy and brought capitalism and its power into question. One of them, Joseph Stiglitz, argues that the private sector has proven incapable of responding alone and that government has a big role to play. Stiglitz visited the John Adams in 2016 and ...
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NYT 100 Notable Books of 2021

December 1, 2021

No less than seven former John Adams speakers made it onto the most notable book list 2021 of the New York Times: Richard Powers, Anthony Doerr, Jonathan Franzen, Colson Whitehead, Gary Shteyngart, Patrick Radden Keefe and George Packer. Visit our library page to look back on their talks at our institute....
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Patrick Radden Keefe wins Baillie Gifford prize

November 17, 2021

The Baillie Gifford prize 2021, the annual British book prize for the best non-fiction writing in the English language, has been awarded to Patrick Radden Keefe, for his book Empire of Pain, which explores the role of the Sackler family in the opioid crisis. Keefe visited the John Adams recently to discuss...
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New photo book on America in crisis

November 15, 2021

American photographer Philip Montgomery has been chronicling the country’s struggles with an intimacy that can be achieved only by getting uncomfortably close. Patrick Radden Keefe, who wrote a book about the opioid crisis and visited the John Adams recently, discusses Montgomery's new work in the New Yorker....
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‘An Ugly Truth’ wins Best in Business Book Awards

November 10, 2021

The Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing announced An Ugly Truth: Inside Facebook's Battle for Domination by Cecilia Kang and Sheera Frenkel the winner of their annual Best in Business Book Awards. Kang recently visited the John Adams to discuss the dark side of Facebook. Click ...
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Dutch company focuses on cellular agriculture

November 8, 2021

Cellular agriculture is out to change everything about meat production — without changing anything about meat consumption. A Dutch company is working towards a future in which one cow can feed a large country. Click here to read the full article in Time....
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‘Place’: First novel by Hannah Huber

November 6, 2021

Dutch-American Hannah Huber, founder of Amsterdam Academy, a learning platform for the international community of the Netherlands, published her first novel. Place is a story about what it’s like to be a dual citizen, to which anyone with two passports and two homes and has spent significant time away from their country of origin can relate....
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Mieke Kirkels wins AAHGS Book Award

October 25, 2021

The Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society in Washington DC has awarded Mieke Kirkels, research fellow at Maastricht University, an Internatonial AAHGS Book Award for her book Dutch Children of African American Liberators. (Picture above by Brian Elstak)....
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Zuckerberg to be added to Facebook privacy suit

October 20, 2021

The District of Columbia case, which grew out of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, could expose the chief executive of Facebook to financial and other penalties, writes Cecilia Kang in the New York Times. On October 27th, she will join the John Adams to talk about her research on Facebook's dark side....
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Nobel Economics Prize for Guido Imbens

October 11, 2021

Dutch-American economist Guido Imbens has won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. Imbens is the applied econometrics professor and professor of economics at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a senior fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research....
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New novel by Anthony Doerr

October 5, 2021

In Anthony Doerr's new novel Cloud Cuckoo Land, the world may be falling apart but the five protagonists find resourcefulness and hope in the midst of peril. Doerr, considered one of America’s best storytellers, visited the John Adams in 2015 to discuss his Pullizer Prize winning book All the Light we Cannot See....
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New novel by Jonathan Franzen

September 30, 2021

In Jonathan Franzen's new novel Crossroads, bad decisions and bad faith weigh down the characters - and propel the novel to startling heights, according to The New...
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Five star review: Empire of Pain

September 27, 2021

Patrick Radden Keefe's new book Empire of Pain, which focuses on the dark side of the American pharmaceutical industry, just received 5 stars in the NRC (article is in Dutch). On September 29th, Keefe will join us to discuss his new book at 8pm at the OBA in Amsterdam. Click here for more info and tickets....
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New book by Richard Powers

September 19, 2021

Bewilderment, the latest novel by Pulitzer-Prize winning author Richard Powers, tells the story of an astrobiologist who uses his knowledge of building simulated worlds to soothe his troubled son with inner voyages to fantastical worlds. Richard Powers visited the John Adams twice, in 1992 and in ...
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NYT on co-housing in the Netherlands

September 13, 2021

This article in the New York Times explores how socioeconomic developments have contributed to a rising interest in communal living in the Netherlands and Belgium. Co-housing is helping people cope with rising costs, keep loneliness at bay and live more sustainably....
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New novel by Colson Whitehead

September 10, 2021

After winning back-to-back Pulitzers, the author of The Underground Railroad and The Nickel Boys took another detour with his new crime novel, Harlem Shuffle. Whitehead, who is considered to be one of the most important voices in America today, visited the John Adams in 2017....
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Government debt shouldn’t stop investments in US infrastructure

September 8, 2021

The coming public debt scare should not spook US policy policymakers from investing in psysical and social infrastructure, writes economics professor Barry Eichengreen in an article based on his new book In Defense of Public Debt. visited the John Adams in 2019 to...
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Lessons from the Dutch for climate change in the US

September 4, 2021

On fire and under water, one thing is clear: The U.S. is not ready for climate change. If only they’d listened to scientists like the Netherlands did whose government created a program called 'Room for the River', writes the New York Times. Click here to read the article....
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Purchase of installation art Patricia Kaersenhout

August 25, 2021

Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and three other Dutch museums, purchased a work by the activist artist Patricia Kaersenhout. The installation Guess Who's Coming To Dinner Too? tells the stories of 60 heroines of resistance. Kaersenhout joined our event 'Art & Activism' in 2020, along with...
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The hidden human costs of incarceration

August 20, 2021

Law professor Andrea Armstrong ...
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Microsoft opens AI Lab in Amsterdam

August 15, 2021

Microsoft Research will open an artificial intelligence lab in Amsterdam, led by the renowned Dutch scientist Max Welling. The US-based tech company’s new research lab will...
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U.N. climate report on geo-engineering

August 11, 2021

The U.N. climate report released Monday presents a major leap forward in predicting how geo-engineering to limit global warming might affect the planet, although the greatest hurdle remains deciding whether to use the controversial methods, reports Reuters. Elizabeth Kolbert wrote a book about this topic, and recently joined us for an ...
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Soaring house prices in the Netherlands

August 9, 2021

The Netherlands grapples with the social consequences of the soaring house prices. The Financial Times explores whether these increases are sustainable. Click here to read the article....
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Jill Lepore on Facebook’s broken vows

August 2, 2021

Facebook's pledge to to bring the world together wound up pulling us apart. In this article for the New Yorker, historian and writer Jill Lepore explores how the company's mission statements invoke the power of connection but not its perils. Lepore visited the John Adams in 2019....
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Possible gubernatorial bid Michael Steele

July 26, 2021

Michael Steele formed an exploratory committee for a possible 2022 Maryland gubernatorial bid. The former chairman of the Republican National Committee and member of The Lincoln Project, joined the John Adams last January for an interview about the...
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Jane’a Johnson new Artistic Director Foam

July 22, 2021

Jane’a Johnson will be the new Artistic Director at Foam Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam. A native of Sacramento, (CA), Johnson currently is Assistant Professor of Theory of Art & Design and a research fellow at the Center for Social Equity and Inclusion at Rhode Island School of Design....
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When will the Netherlands disappear?

July 19, 2021

With unprecedented sea level rise forecast as a result of climate change, the Dutch government is racing against the clock to figure out how to keep one of the world’s richest countries save, writes Politico....
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The Daily: A City’s Step Toward Reparations

July 14, 2021

In this episode of the New York Times podcast The Daily, journalist Megan Twohey tells the story of the city of Evanston, Illinois, the first city to approve a program of reparations for its Black residents. Twohey visited the John Adams in 2019, to discuss her book She Said about Harvey Weinstein which helped spark the #MeToo...
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The Dutch and the global tech war

July 11, 2021

A $150 million chip-making tool from a Dutch company has become a lever in the U.S.-Chinese struggle. It also shows how entrenched the global supply chain is, writes the New York Times. Click here for the article....
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New book by Michael Pollan

July 8, 2021

New York Times bestselling author Michael Pollan wrote This is Your Mind on Plants, a radical challenge to how we think about drugs, and an exploration into the powerful human attraction to psychoactive plants, and the equally powerful taboos. Pollan visited the John Adams three times....
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George Packer on a fractured America

June 30, 2021

People in the United States no longer agree on the nation’s purpose, values, history, or meaning. In this article for The Atlantic, American journalist and author George Packer...
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Applebaum on the creation of a one-party states

June 26, 2021

In this article for The Atlantic, American journalist and historian Anne Applebaum points to the disturbing new hybrid of democracy and autocracy: rulers and the oligarchs who help them have figured out how to create a one-party state without the hassle of staging a coup....
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Elizabeth Kolbert on the risks of deep-sea mining

June 23, 2021

In this article for The New Yorker, Elizabeth Kolbert points to the hazards of seabed mining: we might be destroying the deep see before we even know what’s in it. Kolbert recently joined us to discuss the pros and cons of geo-engineering....
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Jonathan Safran Foer on the danger of factory farms

June 16, 2021

Factory farms are breeding grounds for pandemics, writes Jonathan Safran Foer for Farm Forward. Although the link between factory farming and pandemics is well established scientifically, the political will to act has been largely absent. Foer visited the...
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Visitor Center for Netherlands American Cemetery

June 14, 2021

The American Battle Monuments Commission will soon start the construction of the Netherlands American Cemetery Visitor Center, located in Margraten. The modern cubic building (KAAN Architecten) will be built into the existing landscape with panoramic windows connecting visitors to the cemetery outside....
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Film adaption of ‘She Said’

June 12, 2021

Nearly four years after New York Times reporters Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor broke the bombshell Harvey Weinstein sex scandal report, Universal Pictures is prepping She Said, a drama based on their best-selling book. Megan Twohey visited the John Adams to talk about the investigation...
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New book Russell Shorto in NRC

June 9, 2021

NRC reviewed Russell Shorto's latest book Smalltime, a family history about his grandfather and namesake who was a small-town mob boss in Pennsylvania (in Dutch). In September, Shorto, who is also the former director of the John Adams, is scheduled to visit the institute for an event about this book....
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Wolters Kluwer on event with Dr. Fauci

June 7, 2021

On May 25th, the John Adams and main sponsor Wolters Kluwer hosted Dr. Fauci and an expert panel on pandemics and the future of COVID-19. In this article, Wolters Kluwer looks back on the highlights from the conversation....
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Martha Nussbaum on #MeToo

June 4, 2021

In an interview with the New Yorker, the American philosopher discusses anger, pride, and justice after sexual assault. Her latest book, Citadels of Pride: Sexual Abuse, Accountability, and Reconciliation, focusses on gender relations and the role of anger in human behavior. Nussbaum visited the John Adams twice, in 2012 and ...
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Translation rights Boekenweekgeschenk sold to US

June 2, 2021

The translation rights of this year's Boekenweekgeschenk ('Book Week Gift') written by Hanna Bervoets were sold to America and six other countries. It's the first time that a book week gift written especially for the Dutch Book Week will be published in that many different countries....
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The New Yorker Radio Hour interviews Spike Lee

May 31, 2021

In a recent interview with the New Yorker Radio Hour, Spike Lee talks about basketball, and looks back at a year of protest and activism. Click ...
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Atwood and Whitehead discuss TV adaptions

May 22, 2021

In a conversation for Time, renowned authors Colson Whitehead and Margaret Atwood discuss what it means when books make their way onto the screen. The TV adaption of Whitehead's novel The Underground Railroad recently premiered, while Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale started its 4th season. Both authors are former guest speakers of the John Adams....
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FT on the allure of Amsterdam

May 16, 2021

The Financial Times writes how Amsterdam's great work-life balance and growing role in financial services attract foreign homebuyers, with global employers such as Netflix and Tommy Hilfiger acting as major magnets for many young professionals....
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What comes next for Liz Cheney?

May 13, 2021

Rep. Liz Cheney lost her House leadership position, but she aims to become an even more influential political figure capable of weakening former president Trump’s hold on their party, ...
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Samantha Power wants to restore US prestige

May 12, 2021

Samantha Power, the recently appointed administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, wants to restore U.S. prestige by getting American-made vaccines ‘into arms’ around the world, as she states in the Washington Post. Power joined the John Adams in 2020...
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What We Lose if the Amsterdam Hermitage Closes

May 4, 2021

Due to the pandemic, the museum may be on the verge of shutting its doors just when Europe needs it more than ever. Besides the museum’s cultural importance, it also serves a political purpose as an ambassador to Russia, a country which is losing foreign allies and therefore is becoming increasingly inaccessible to the outside world. Click here to read the article....
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US Senate confirms Samanta Power

May 1, 2021

The Senate has confirmed Samantha Power as the 19th Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development. Last June, the former ambassador to the UN, Pulitzer Prize winner, and human rights advocate spoke at the John Adams to discuss her book The Education of an Idealist: A Memoir....
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New story by Margaret Atwood

April 24, 2021

The New Yorker published Old Babes in the Wood, a new story by Margaret Atwood, about two elderly sisters who look back at their lives while spending time at a family cottage by a lake. Click here for the story and here for the interview with the author. Atwood visited the John Adams in ...
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John Kerry on fighting climate change

April 22, 2021

Ahead of the two-day climate summit hosted by the United States (22-23 April), U.S. special presidential envoy for climate John Kerry spoke to Washington Post journalist Jonathan Capehart. They discussed the importance of setting goals to cut global greenhouse gas emissions, and how the U.S. plans to lead by example....
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Anne Applebaum on the US vaccination rollout

April 13, 2021

The U.S. stumbled early in the pandemic, but the vaccine rollout could reboot the country’s image, writes American journalist and historian Anne Applebaum in The Atlantic. In 2012, she ...
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New collection of essays by Rachel Kushner

April 11, 2021

In The Hard Crowd, Rachel Kushner gathers a selection of her writing from over the course of the last twenty years that addresses the most pressing political, artistic, and cultural issues of our times. Click here for review in the New York Times. In 2014, Kushner visited the John Adams to discuss her novel The Flamethrowers....
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Dutch design advice for US infrastructure plan

April 6, 2021

President Biden's massive infrastructure plan will need designs that can endure the changing climate. The new administration should look to the Dutch whose use of adaptive designs prepares for the future and keep costs under control, writes Jeremy Bicker for Fast Company....
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Russell Shorto writes ‘Rembrandt in the Blood’

April 4, 2021

The New York Times published an intriguing story about an obsessive Dutch aristocrat, a rediscovered Rembrandt painting, and the art-world feud that followed. Written and introduced by former John Adams director Russell Shorto. Click here to read...
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Profile of Alice Walker

March 29, 2021

De Groene Amsterdammer published a powerful profile (in Dutch) of author Alice Walker, best known for her Pulitzer-Prize winning novel The Color Purple. Walker visited the John Adams twice, in 1990 to talk about civil rights, and 1992 to discuss her book Possessing the Secret of Joy....
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Jill Lepore writes about early constitutions

March 28, 2021

Starting in the eighteenth century, citizens were promised their rights in print. These early constitutions could be instruments of tyranny or platforms for populism, writes Harvard historian Jill Lepore in the New Yorker. Lepore visited the John Adams in 2019 to discuss her book These Truths – A History of the United States....
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A strong case for a strong welfare state

March 26, 2021

A stronger welfare state is the key to saving democracy from extremism, writes Katy Hull in the Washington Post. This idea for a social safety net to address societal problems to make fascism less attractive, dates back to President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. Click here to read the article. Hull is a lecturer in American Studies at the University of Amsterdam....
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NYT: The pandemic and the meaning of home

March 23, 2021

After so many months confined to our homes, The New York Times asked those who think about place - architects, urban policy experts, novelists - how our relationships with our homes have changed. One of the contributors is Princeton sociologist Matthew Desmond who ...
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New Yorker interviews T.C. Boyle

March 16, 2021

The New Yorker recently published T.C. Boyle's new story, titled The Shape of a Teardrop, about an adult man who refuses to move out of his parents’ house. In ...
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American photographer wins Foam Paul Huf Award

March 14, 2021

American photographer John Edmonds is the winner of the 2021 Foam Paul Huf Award. His work questions issues of identity and power from an African-American perspective. The award is an internationally acclaimed prize to support upcoming talents, initiated by Foam, the photography museum in Amsterdam....
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How to Put Out Democracy’s Dumpster Fire

March 13, 2021

Our democratic habits have been killed off by an internet kleptocracy that profits from disinformation and polarization, writes Anne Applebaum in The Atlantic, together with Peter Pomerantsev. But is there a way to fix it? In 2012, the American journalist and historian visited the John Adams to talk about her book 'Iron...
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The New Yorker interviews Spike Lee

March 10, 2021

In this...
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Article on Mark Rutte’s legacy in Foreign Policy

March 8, 2021

Although Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte's third term ended in political failure, his party is most likely to win the upcoming general elections, writes Dutch journalist Caroline de Gruyter for Foreign Policy. De Gruyter recently made a podcast (in Dutch) about her new book Beter...
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New book by Naomi Klein

March 5, 2021

Naomi Klein’s 8th book, How to Change Everything: A Young Human’s Guide to Protecting the Planet and Each Other is her 1st book written for young readers. Along with Rebecca Steffof, she adapts over 20 years of reporting and research on climate change and the movements that are trying to stop it. Klein visited the John Adams in 2014....
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Amanda Gorman’s Dutch translator quits

March 2, 2021

Dutch Marieke Lucas Rijneveld has pulled out of translating Amanda Gorman’s poetry into Dutch, after their publisher was criticised for picking a writer who was not also Black. "I am shocked by the uproar surrounding my involvement in the spread of Amanda Gorman’s message and I understand the people who feel hurt by Meulenhoff’s choice to ask me," Rijneveld stated....
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Claim on painting Kandinsky at Stedelijk Museum

February 23, 2021

The mayor of Amsterdam has decided to revisit the question of whether the city’s Stedelijk Museum should hold onto a 1909 painting by Wassily Kandinsky that had been part of a Jewish collection before it was obtained by the museum during World War II. The heirs have argued that the work Painting With Houses was sold under duress by its Jewish owners after the Nazi...
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‘MLK/FBI’ on Oscars shortlist

February 20, 2021

The documentary Martin Luther King vs. The FBI, a thrilling look into the extent of the FBI’s surveillance of Martin Luther King Jr., is among the documentary films that are advancing to the next round of Oscar voting. Last month, the John Adams and De Balie screened the film and hosted ...
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Madeleine Albright on ‘Us vs. Them’ Thinking

February 8, 2021

In light of the recent insurrection at the US Capitol, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright reflects on the two most dangerous words in the human vocabulary: 'us' vs. 'them', and why this way of thinking is tearing America apart. Click here for the article. Madeleine Albright visited the John Adams several times, most recently in 2020....
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Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

February 1, 2021

In this article for De Morgen (in Dutch), author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie talks about the history and current state of her native country Nigeria and the US, the country she lives...
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Podcast with Russell Shorto on his new book

January 30, 2021

Writer and former director of the John Adams Russell Shorto always knew his grandfather was involved with the Italian mafia, but he never quite got around to digging up the whole tale until now. Listen to this podcast about his new book Smalltime: A Story of My Family and the Mob. Shorto will join the John Adams some time this spring to discuss the...
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New York Times: Books that matter

January 28, 2021

To celebrate the Book Review’s 125th anniversary, The New York Times is dipping into the archives to revisit their most thrilling, memorable and thought-provoking coverage. Among them, Toni Morrison, Margaret Atwood and ...
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Kerry on US policy at Climate Adaptation Summit

January 26, 2021

The United States will make good on financial commitments to developing countries struggling with climate change, top U.S. climate envoy John Kerry told world leaders on 25 Jan, at the Climate Adaptation Summit, hosted by the Netherlands....
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Time: Amsterdam embraced ‘doughnut economics’

January 24, 2021

In April 2020, during the first wave of COVID-19, Amsterdam’s city government announced it would recover from the crisis, and avoid future ones, by embracing the theory of 'doughnut economics', a framework for sustainable development - shaped like a doughnut - combining the concept of planetary boundaries with the complementary concept of social boundaries....
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Kim Wehle interviews Anthony Scaramucci

January 20, 2021

For this episode of #SimplePolitics, constitutional expert Kim Wehle interviews Former White House Director of Communications Anthony Scaramucci who gives viewers a recap of his time in the White House, the next steps for the president’s impeachment, religion and his next political moves. Wehle visited the John Adams in March...
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Margaret Atwood on the US Capitol attack

January 16, 2021

In this video for the series Time100 Talks, renowned author Margaret Atwood, most famously known for her dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale, shares her thoughts on the attack on the US Capitol. Atwood visited the John Adams twice, in 2013 and in 1994....
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Jill Lepore: “What Should We Call the Sixth of January?”

January 12, 2021

If it began as a protest and a rally and a march, it ended as something altogether different. But what? Sedition, treason, a failed revolution, an attempted coup? And what will it be called, looking back? In this article for The New Yorker, Harvard historian Jill Lepore tries to shed light on how to interpret the attack on the US Capitol. Lepore ...
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‘The American Abyss’ by Timothy Snyder

January 10, 2021

American author and historian Timothy Snyder writes in The New York Times Magazine about the storming of the Capitol and ponders the question what comes next. In 2018, Snyder visited the John Adams to discuss his book The Road to Unfreedom, in which he examines how Western societies left themselves open to anti-democratic forces...
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Jill Lepore on ‘Wonder Woman 1984’

January 1, 2021

In 2014, Harvard historian Jill Lepore wrote a book about the history of Wonder Woman and her creator. After the movie Wonder Woman 1984 recently premiered, she wrote an article in The New Yorker stating that the film about the...
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Ian Buruma on Obama and Trump

December 28, 2020

In this article for NRC (in Dutch) Ian Buruma describes Donald Trump and his actions as the anti-Obama president. Recently, Buruma visited the John Adams to discuss his book The Churchill Complex and America's place in the world. Click ...
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Social Europe Article by Branko Milanovic

December 13, 2020

While some talk of ‘deglobalisation’, Branko Milanovic argues that the pandemic will push forward the globalisation of labour. Click here to read his article for Social Europe, the leading European digital media publisher for opinion and analysis content on issues in politics, economy and employment and labour. In 2017, Milanovic visted the...
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George Packer assesses the legacy of Donald Trump’s presidency

December 10, 2020

Author and staff writer of the Atlantic wrote what he calls 'A political obituary for Donald Trump' in which he assesses the lingering effecs of the president's reign. Packer is the author of Our Man: Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century and The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America. He visited the John Adams to discuss both of these books. He also joined us for our election event ...
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Book: Dutch Children of African American Liberators

December 3, 2020

Mieke Kirkels and Chris Dickon's book about the Dutch children of African American liberators was recently published in English. It illustrates how the complex racial relations in the US entered another dimension when African American soldieres were deployed overseas for the liberation of Western Europe, and tells the stories of the descendants of...
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Joost Zwagerman lecture by Benjamin Moser

November 29, 2020

American writer Benjamin Moser gave this year's Joost Zwagerman lecture (article in Dutch). He spoke about Dutch painter Frans Hals and expressed his appreciation for the late work of the artist in particular. Earlier this year, the John Adams hosted a private event...
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New podcast by Amsterdam Academy

November 27, 2020

Hannah Huber, the Dutch-American Founder of Amsterdam Academy, created a podcast for global citizens. The first episode is about (North)Americans who call the Netherlands their home: during the pandemic, where are they going for comfort since they cannot visit their roots for such a long stretch?...
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New books by Atwood and Sedaris

November 24, 2020

Amongst the 10 books to read in November according to the New York Times, are two new titles by Margaret Atwood (Dearly) and David Sedaris (The Best of Me). Both authors visited the John Adams, Atwood in 1994 and 2013,...
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Nieuwsuur interviews Barack Obama

November 17, 2020

On 17 November, Nieuwsuur broadcasted its interview with Barack Obama about the release of the first part of his memoirs. Author and columnist Tommy Wieringa speaks with the former president in Washington about authorship, current affairs and the state in which America finds itself. Click here to watch....
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Madeleine Albright: Democracy both ‘fragile and resilient’

November 11, 2020

Christiane Amanpour asked Former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to weigh in on the turbulent aftermath of the US Presidential Elections. Click here for the video. Both Amanpour and Albright are former guest speakers of the John Adams. Videos of their visits can be found in our libary, on our ...
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David Frum: The American System Is Broken

November 5, 2020

Despite the outcome of the US Presidential Elections, journalist and author David Frum is not optimistic about the American political system, as he writes in this article for The Atlantic. Frum recently joined the John Adams online to discuss the then upcoming elections and his book Trumpocalypse. Click here for...
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Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal reports from the US in Nieuwsuur

October 22, 2020

Journalist and John Adams board member Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal traveled from corona hotspot Florida to Washington D.C. for Nieuwsuur. Click here to watch all six reports....
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New book by historian Jill Lepore

October 18, 2020

Harvard Professor of History Jill Lepore's latest book If Then explores the story of the Simulmatics Corporation – the Cambridge Analytica of the 1960s – which used emerging computer technology to try to predict human behaviour and win elections. Lepore visited the John Adams in 2019 to discuss her book...
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RIAS is looking for new board member

October 12, 2020

The RIAS is a graduate school, library, research and conference center for the study of US history and transatlantic relations in the modern era. The institute is currently looking for a new board member. Click here for more information (in Dutch)....
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NRC: What is your opinion on the 2020 elections?

October 7, 2020

How do you feel the American presidential election is viewed in the Netherlands and by the Dutch media? NRC is asking readers living in the U.S. or who visit the country regularly, to send in their opinion (max. 200 words, in Dutch) for possible publication in a special election supplement and their newsletter. Deadline Oct 11th, to be send to: news@campagne.nrcmedia.nl....
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Book release: We don’t do blues here

October 2, 2020

In Floris Schreuder's book We don't do blues here, the author takes his readers on an exploration of the United States. By avoiding the tourist destinations and focussing on the everyday life and issues of common Americans, the book (in Dutch) offers a unique and diverse insight into today's America....
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BNR hosts podcast about the presidential elections

September 23, 2020

Journalist Laila Frank visited the swing states of the US and turned her stories into a podcast for BNR. (in Dutch). In 2018 she wrote the blog series California Dreamin' for the John Adams, in which she shared her experiences traveling the West Coast. ...
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Eichengreen on the economic fallout of COVID-19

September 22, 2020

Economist Barry Eichengreen warns in The Guardian that the most dangerous phase of the Covid-19 crisis may be yet to come, as there will be less policy support than before if the economy again goes south. Eichengreen visited the John Adams in 2019 to talk about his book ...
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FD interviews board member Carien van der Laan

September 18, 2020

The Financieele Dagblad published a extensive interview with John Adams board member Carien van der Laan about her career, women at the top and how to get there (in Dutch). Click here to read. (Text © Maartje Lageveer/pictures © Anne Timmer)....
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Megan Twohey hosts The Daily podcast

September 15, 2020

American journalist Megan Twohey wil host the 15th September episode of The Daily podcast of The New York Times. She is the co-author of She Said, the explosive report about the wide-ranging investigation into Harvey Weinstein’s sexual predation. Twohey dicussed the book at the John Adams in 2019. ...
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George Packer on fundamental issues facing the U.S.

September 10, 2020

In a new article for the Atlantic, writer and journalist George Packer holds out hope that, although the country is currently at a low point, the U.S. may be on the cusp of an era of radical reform that repairs a broken democracy. Packer visited the John Adams twice, the last time in 2019 to discuss his comprehensive biography of...
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Timothy Snyder on geopolitics and corona

September 3, 2020

American historian and author Timothy Snyder talked to the Groene Amsterdammer (interview in Dutch) about the current geopolitical situation and corona. It is also the subject of his new book Our Malady: Lessons in Liberty from a Hospital Diary. Snyder visited the...
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Marieke Lucas Rijneveld wins Booker Prize

August 26, 2020

The 29-year-old Dutch author is the youngest and the first Dutch winner of the prestigious international prize. The debut novel The Discomfort of Evening was translated by Michele Hutchison, who visited the John Adams in 2017 to discuss her book The Happiest Kids in the World....
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What Can America Learn from Europe About Regulating Big Tech?

August 19, 2020

The New Yorker interviewed Marietje Schaake, a former Dutch member of the European Parliament and the incoming international policy director at the Cyber Policy Center of Stanford University. She talked about the regulation of Big Tech and its future. Click here for the article....
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The traditional story of the Pilgrims revised

August 6, 2020

The traditional story of the Pilgrims Fathers and the Mayflower is under scrutiny, writes Trouw (in Dutch); their history has been greatly romanticized over the years, with far too little attention for the fate of the Native Americans. The John Adams recently published a three-part ...
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Essay by Susan Neiman

August 2, 2020

In this essay American philosopher, cultural commentator and writer Susan Neiman warns Europeans for a lack of historical awareness and to cherish the shared values that bind them together. Neiman will visit the John Adams on October 20 to discuss her book Learning From the Germans: Race and the Memory of Evil....
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Location of Van Gogh’s last painting uncovered

July 30, 2020

A researcher says he has uncovered the precise location where Vincent van Gogh painted 'Tree Roots', thought to be the last piece he worked on the day he suffered a fatal gunshot wound. Click here to read about the discovery in the New York Times....
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Artists reveal truth about U.S. prison system

July 17, 2020

Six groundbreaking artists are giving glimpses into the hard thruth about incarceration in the United States. Their work shows that, although incarceration impacts only 0.7 percent of the nation's population, in reality, the prison system affects us all. The John Adams hosted two events related to this topic, The Innocence Files and ...
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Roosevelt’s New Deal and reforming the cultural sector

July 13, 2020

How do we reform the cultural sector in order to survive the corona crisis? This article in De Groene Amsterdammer points to the culture policy from President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal for guidance (in Dutch)....
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Joseph Stiglitz on the priorities for the COVID-19 economy

July 2, 2020

With hopes of a sharp rebound from the pandemic-induced recession quickly fading, policymakers should pause and take stock of what it will take to achieve a sustained recovery, argues Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz in this article for Project Syndicate. Stiglitz visited the John Adams thrice. Last...
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Volkskrant interviews Madeleine Albright

June 28, 2020

In this interview former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright expresses her concern about the way the US is shattering its international position (in Dutch). Madeleine Albright took the John Adams stage several times. Find video's of her previous visits in our ...
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Jonathan Safran Foer: The End of Meat Is Here

June 13, 2020

If you care about the working poor, about racial justice, and about climate change, you have to stop eating animals, writes Jonathan Safran Foer in the New York Times. Foer wrote several books about this subject, Eating Animals and We Are the Weather. He visited the John Adams to discuss this topic in 2010 and ...
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How succesful is the Dutch approach to the pandemic?

June 7, 2020

According to Bloomberg Businessweek, the Dutch cooperation made an ‘intelligent lockdown’ a success, claiming that despite a largely laissez-faire attitude, the Netherlands has fared better than most....
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How Big Tech Profits from Pandemic

June 5, 2020

In the midst of the corona crisis, tech monopolists are trying to further expand their position of power, risking eroding democracy, writes Naomi Klein. In 2014, the John Adams hosted an event with Klein in cooperation with IDFA about her book and the documentary This Changes Everything....
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How Do You Write the ‘Great Corona Novel’?

June 1, 2020

In this article in NRC (in Dutch), eight writers reflect on how COVID-19 will effect literature and what a novel about the virus and the pandemic might look like. One of them is Jennifer Egan, who spoke at the John Adams in 2018 about her book Manhattan Beach. Click here to watch the video of the event....
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NYT: Avalanche of Evictions because of Covid-19

May 29, 2020

The New York Times writes how the the economic downturn is devastating for renters, who are more likely to be lower-income and work jobs cut during the pandemic. The result could be an avalanche of evictions. In 2018 Matthew Desmond visited the John Adams to discuss his book Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City....
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Dutch Translation of ‘Rights of Man’

May 24, 2020

Uitgeverij Wereldbibliotheek published the first complete Dutch translation (by Jabik Veenbaas) of Thomas Paine's Rights of Man. The English-born American philosopher and political activist authored the two most influential pamphlets that inspired the patriots in 1776 to declare independence from Great Britain....
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Launch of Center for Netherlandish Art

May 20, 2020

The Netherlands-America Foundation and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston are launching the Center for Netherlandish Art, an innovative research and learning platform dedicated to sharing Dutch and Flemish art. The project was made possible by a donation of two extraordinary collections of Dutch and Flemish art to the museum....
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Rem Koolhaas advocates redesigning public spaces

May 15, 2020

In an article in Time, Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas advocates the redesigning of public spaces, claiming they need to be rethought, reorganized and redesigned in the era of pandemics. Even before the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, Koolhaas was calling for architects to take on their design....
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Rutger Bregman in Time Magazine

May 10, 2020

Dutch historian and staff writer of the Correspondent Rutger Bregman wrote a powerpul piece for Time in which he ponders the question how the coronavirus will change the world, and if these changes will be for the better or worse....
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Planning for social distancing at live performances

May 8, 2020

The Washington Post is exploring the various scenarios venues are coming up with to organize live performances while maintaining social distancing. Click here to read the article....
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Colson Whitehead Wins Second Pulitzer Prize for Fiction

May 5, 2020

After winning a Pulitzer Prize for his novel The Underground Railroad in 2017, author Colson Whitehead won a second one on Monday for his book The Nickel Boys becoming the fourth novelist to ever win two Pulitzers for fiction. Whitehead visited the John Adams in 2017....
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Amsterdam embraces ‘doughnut’ model for post-coronavirus economy

May 3, 2020

Amsterdam is looking at the so-called 'doughnut model' to help the economy recover from the consequences of the coronavirus. The model, which strives to meet the core needs of all but within the means of the planet, uses the different layers of a doughnut to illustrate how it works....
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Artist sketches a changed Los Angeles

April 29, 2020

LA-based artist Geoff McFetridge kept a quarantine sketchbook diary which was recently published in the New York Times. It shows how the pandemic turned Los Angeles into a walking city....
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Dutch author Marieke Lucas in the New York Times

April 27, 2020

The New York Times published an in-depth interview with Dutch author and International Booker Prize nominee Marieke Lucas Rijneveld. Rijneveld's debut novel The Discomfort of Evening is a bestseller in the Netherlands and is also enjoying success abroad....
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Stiglitz on the US response to the pandemic

April 25, 2020

In an interview with The Guardian Professor Joseph Stiglitz said that the US is likely to head into a second Great Depression. According to him, the US response to the Coronavirus left the US "looking like a third world country". In 2019 , he visited the...
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George Packer: Living in a Failed State

April 21, 2020

George Packer does not hold back in this editorial in the Atlantic: "The coronavirus didn’t break America. It revealed what was already broken." He shows how the U.S. reacted ineptly to the threat of the pandemic. Packer ...
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New York Times: Albright Opts For Resilience

April 15, 2020

Although these are hard times, we have seen worse, writes Madeleine Albright. Courage, staying calm and counting on one another can get us through. The former U.S. Secretary of State visited the John Adams several times. For videos of her lectures, visit our archive....
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Zadie Smith: ‘The American Exception’

April 13, 2020

Author Zadie Smith wrote a powerpful piece for The New Yorker in which she writes that death comes to all - but how in America it has long been considered reasonable to offer the best chance of delay to the highest bidder. Smith visited the John Adams in 2016 to discuss her novel Swing Time....
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Barry Eichengreen About the Human-Capital Costs of the Crisis

April 11, 2020

In an article for Project Syndicate Professor of Economics at UC Berkeley Barry Eichengreen wonders if President Trump is right in claiming that once COVID-19 is contained and it is safe to go back to work, the economy will be “great again.” Eichengreen spoke at the John Adams in 2019 about his book '...
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New Magazine New Netherland Institute

April 4, 2020

The New Netherland Institute in Albany, New York presents their new biannual magazine ‘New Netherland Matters’, a full-color publication that brings pithy, entertaining articles on the history, legacy, and memory of the seventeenth-century Dutch colony. Click here to read the first edition....
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Non-profits in Survival Mode

April 1, 2020

The New York Times describes how non-profit organizations in the U.S. have a new mission during the outbreak: trying to survive. Besides seeking help from donors, this unfortunately also means laying off workers....
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George Packer in The Atlantic

March 30, 2020

In The Atlantic, George Packer reveals how President Trump is winning his war on American institutions and how a second term will irrevocably harm what remains. In 2019 the John Adams hosted George Packer to discuss his book Our Man: Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century....
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Joseph Stiglitz: Why Markets Fail During a Crisis

March 28, 2020

In this article, Joseph Stiglitz tries to answer the question why our affluent society is facing shortages in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Professor Stiglitz visited the John Adams thrice, the last time in 2019 to discuss his book 'People, Power, and Profits'....
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Detroit’s Small-Business Survival Plan

March 25, 2020

In order to save small businesses, a Detroit real estate CEO intiated a survival plan for restaurants, retailers, salons and other tenants in the city: his company won't collect rent or fees until July. Click here to read the full article in The Wall Street Journal....
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Kim Wehle on Quarantine and the Constitution

March 21, 2020

In this article for The Atlantic, constitutional expert Kim Wehle ponders: as the coronavirus crisis continues, what powers do the federal and state governments have to impose quarantine and isolation? Kim Wehle was our guest recently to discuss her book How to Read the Constitution - and Why....
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Stiglitz on COVID-19, globalization and politics

March 12, 2020

In this article, Joseph Stiglitz describes how undermining global cooperation and the role of government by the current US administration, is complicating the battle against the coronavirus. Click here to to watch Stiglitz' visit to the John Adams in 2019....
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Rem Koolhaas on the Countryside of the Future

March 3, 2020

The New York Times talked to Rem Koolhaas about his new exhibition Countryside, The Future at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City. The Dutch architect intentionally draws attention away from cities, to focus instead on the 98% of the earth's surface that has not yet been urbanized....
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A Revamped West Side Story – With a Dutch Touch

February 24, 2020

Peter Marks, of the Washington Post, reviews the new West Side Story on Broadway—directed by Ivo van Hove, the director of the International Theater Amsterdam. This modern, slimmed-down version is 'gutsy', 'astonishing, breathless' and even controversial. "In streamlining the script and...
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Kim Wehle on Trump unfettered

February 20, 2020

"Since his acquittal on two articles of impeachment by a Republican-controlled Senate, President Donald Trump has plainly realized that there are no meaningful checks on his actions anymore." writes Kim Wehle, constitutional expert, on The Bulwark. Seeing that Trump has started to pardon a whole crowd of people, she explains how he has normalized the use of...
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Pilgrims to America 1620 – 2020

February 13, 2020

In 2020 the city of Leiden celebrates the 400th anniversary of the Pilgrim Fathers' departure for America. To celebrate this occasion, Museum De Lakenhal will host the official opening of the Leiden400 commemorative year on Friday, March 27th. The museum presents the exhibition Pilgrims to America - and the limits of freedom....
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NYT: Amsterdam Considers Apology for Slavery in Former Colony

February 10, 2020

The New York Times reflects on a movement that has grown in recent months to press the city of Amsterdam to reckon with this chapter of its history. Click here to read the article....
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Stella McCartney launches collection inspired by Jonathan Safran Foer

February 3, 2020

This article in The Guardian tells the story of how Stella McCartney was inspired to start a new collection after reading Jonathan Safran Foer's book We Are the Weather. The book is all about reducing our meat-intake, a message that resonated with lifelong vegetarian and pioneer of sustainable...
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NRC: What it’s like to be an artist in the Trump era

February 1, 2020

Robbert Roos, director of Kunsthal Kade in Amersfoort, travelled to the United States to investigate the artistic climate under Donald Trump. How do artists and museums react to polarization in politics? (article in Dutch)...
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Jill Lepore on ‘The Last Time Democracy Almost Died’

January 28, 2020

Last year, Jill Lepore joined us for her new book 'These Truths—A History of the United States'. She returns to American history in The New Yorker, with an absolutely fascinating read on 'the last time democracy almost died'. She writes about...
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How Shell is responding to Climate Change

January 27, 2020

This article in Time describes how the Dutch oil company Shell is trying to adapt in a world that is turning away from fossil fuels. Its strategy is to continue profiting from oil and gas, while simultaneously branching out into electrical power. In addition, it is reducing its CO2 emissions, aiming for net-zero by 2050....
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Dutch Investigators Pressured by Boeing to Bury Its Responsibility

January 21, 2020

A New York Times investigation showed that the report on the Turkish Airlines crash near Schiphol in 2009 had left out or mischaracterized criticism of Boeing. A report by aviation safety expert Sydney Dekker, commisioned by the Dutch Safety Board to analyze the crash, was never published. ...
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Marketing the Netherlands

January 14, 2020

The Dutch government is actively rebranding the country as 'the Netherlands', rather than 'Holland', writes Mariel Padilla in The New York Times. The move is aimed at enhancing the country's image abroad and at redirecting tourism away from the provinces Noord- and Zuid-Holland to other parts of the country....
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Dexter Filkins on the Death of Qassem Suleimani

January 7, 2020

In his book The Forever War, Dexter Filkins describes his observations while on assignment in Afghanistan and Iraq during the war. In an ...
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Harvard experts ponder impeachment

December 19, 2019

In this article for The Harvard Gazette, several experts ponder some of the toughest questions in play for the presidency, Congress and the public. Amongst them, Daniel Ziblatt who will visit the John Adams on Jan, 16th to discuss his important and highly praised book How Democracies Die. Click ...
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Het Parool interviews John Grisham

December 12, 2019

Best-selling thriller author John Grisham talks about the art of writing, the death penalty and reveals the subject of his new book (in Dutch). Grisham recently visited The Netherlands for the first time. In collaboration with A.W. Bruna Publishing, the John Adams hosted the celebrated writer at a packed...
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Volkskrant interviews Branko Milanovic

December 2, 2019

The Volkskrant published an interview with Branko Milanovic, one of the world’s leading economists of inequality to discuss the state of capitalism (in Dutch). Milanovic visited the John Adams in 2017, to present his new book 'Global Inequality: A New Approach for the Age of Globalization'. Click here to...
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IDFA documentary features Joseph Stiglitz

November 26, 2019

The documentary Push addressses gentrification, a fatal phenomenon affecting many cities, transforming low-class neighborhoods into highly desirable districts, gradually driving house prices up and the original inhabitants out. Professor Joseph Stiglitz, who recently took the John Adams stage to discuss his book People, Power, and Profits, features in the film as one of the main characters. Click ...
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John Adams Director Tracy Metz visits Broadcast Amsterdam

November 18, 2019

Tracy Metz, Director of the John Adams Institute joined Broadcast Amsterdam for a special edition of their lunchtime show, Mokum to the Max. Tracy talked about the mission of the John Adams and revealed the big names that are coming to Amsterdam over the next few months. Click here to listen....
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The 10 Best Fiction Books of the 2010s

November 14, 2019

Time magazine recently published the The 10 Best Fiction Books of the 2010s. Their list features four authors who visited the John Adams: Paul Beatty, Colson Whitehead, Jennifer Egan and Chimamanda...
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Philip Glass in the New York Times

November 10, 2019

Philip Glass, the 82-year-old master of musical Minimalism explains to the New York Times why is he isn't worried about his legacy. Glass visited the John Adams in 2016 to talk about his memoir Words Without Music. He performed with harpist Lavinia Meijer and pianist Feico Deutekom. Click here to look back on the event....
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Updated visuals revealed for Chicago’s Obama Center

November 6, 2019

On Tuesday, October 29, the nonprofit Obama Foundation released the third round of renderings for the Obama Presidential Center, the 20-acre complex coming to the historic Jackson Park in Chicago’s South Side. It hopes to be approved for construction next year. Click here to read the full article in The Architect's Newspaper....
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In memoriam: Henry Urbach

November 4, 2019

Glass House director Henry Urbach passed away at 56 at his home in Tel Aviv, Israel. The Glass House (New Canaan, Connecticut), is one of the 20th century’s most significant residential structures and an object lesson in the confluence of architecture and nature. In 2014, Urbach visited the John Adams to discuss this icon of American Modernism. Click ...
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New book by Charles Groenhuijsen

October 23, 2019

In his new book Alles gaat voorbij. Zelfs Donald Trump, Charles Groenhuijsen comes to a surprising conclusion: the United States has become increasingly younger, more colorful and more sustainable, despite Donald Trump's conservative policies. Click here for more info and to order....
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Documentary: The World of Thinking

October 16, 2019

In The World of Thinking, five of the most brilliant scientists of our time take us on a quest for a revolutionary breakthrough. They gather at the famous Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, once the academic home of Albert Einstein, now led by Robbert Dijkgraaf. In 2018, he and his wife Pia de Jong spoke at...
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Photography Project in Vrij Nederland: What Rasicms looks like from above

October 10, 2019

American photographer Travis Fox recorded traces of racism in the United States from a special perspective: his aerial photography shows that it permeates America's houses, neighborhoods and infrastructure. Click here to read how his project Scars of Racism came about and to view his work (in Dutch)....
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Interview NRC with Jed Emerson

October 7, 2019

Leading activist and author on impact investing Jed Emerson who visited the John Adams on October 1st, spoke to NRC about his passion for impact investment and his book The Purpose of Capital. Click here to read the article (in Dutch)....
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Dina Nayeri nominated for Kirkus Prize 2019

September 25, 2019

Dina Nayeri is one of the finalists for the Kirkus Prize 2019, one of the richest literary awards in the world. Nayeri is nominated in the category non-fiction for her book The Ungrateful Refugee, which she will discuss during her visit to the John Adams on November 4. Click here for more information and tickets....
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On the aftermath of President Lincoln’s assassination

September 18, 2019

The website USA365.nl posts articles about about America covering a wide range of topics. Mieke Bleeker, Event Coordinator of the John Adams, recently added an article about the remarkable aftermath of the assassination of President Lincoln (in Dutch)....
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Roberta Haar writes for Elsevier Magazine

September 3, 2019

In this article for Elsevier Magazine, Roberta Haar wonders if it matters that the U.S. Congress cannot stop Trump going to war against Iran. Haar, Professor of Foreign Policy Analysis and Transatlantic Relations, was moderator of our event with Hendrik Meijer about Senator Arthur...
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America expert Laila Frank guest columnist at BNR

August 22, 2019

BNR Nieuwsradio asked Laila Frank, who wrote the blog series California Dreamin’ for the John Adams, as a guest columnist during the summer months. Laila is a freelance journalist specialized in America, campaigns and politics. Click here to listen (in Dutch)....
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J.D. Salinger joins the digital revolution

August 13, 2019

As publishers and consumers adopted e-books and digital audio, J.D. Salinger’s books remained defiantly offline, a consequence of the writer’s distaste for computers and technology. But this is about to change, making Salinger perhaps the last 20th-century literary icon to surrender to the digital revolution. Click here to read more in the New York Times....
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New York Times: Russell Shorto explores Dutch history in the Hudson Valley

June 18, 2019

Former John Adams director Russell Shorto took a drive back in time to explore the remnants of Dutch history in New York State. Click here to read the article he wrote for the New York Times about his findings....
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US Newsletter by Blendle

June 11, 2019

Blendle, the online platform of journalism launched Blendle US Daily, a newsletter offering the very best stories from their English-language publishers, such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The New Yorker and Vanity Fair. Click here...
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New novel by Colson Whitehead on the must-read list of the Washington Post

May 29, 2019

Colson Whitehead visited the John Adams in 2017 to talk about his Pulitzer Prize-winning novel 'The Underground Railroad'. With his new novel 'Nickel Boys', Whitehead again revisits the ghosts of America’s racist past. The book is on the '20 books to read this summer' list of the Washington Post....
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Alexander Wynaendts receives the Holland on the Hill Heineken Award

May 20, 2019

Alexander R. Wynaendts, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board and Management Board of Aegon N.V., one of the main sponsors of the John Adams Institute, will receive the sixth annual Holland on the Hill Heineken Award at the Library of Congress on May 22. The Heineken Award is presented to business leaders who strengthen the economic relationship between the Netherlands and the...
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Interview: Nixon Biographer John A. Farrell on What Democrats Can Learn from Watergate

April 29, 2019

John A. Farrell, who visited the John Adams in 2017 to discuss his his defining biography Richard Nixon: The Life, shares his insights in The New Yorker about the parallels between the Nixon years and today, why Nancy Pelosi may consciously be following Democrats’ Watergate strategy, and whether Trump’s advisers...
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Interview with John Adams Director Tracy Metz

April 25, 2019

Amsterdam magazine Het Hart van de Stad published an interview with John Adams Director Tracy Metz. She talkes - amongst other things - about her work for the John Adams Institute and the differences between city life in Amsterdam and the US. Click here to read the full interview (in Dutch)....
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Richard Powers Wins the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction

April 23, 2019

Richard Powers won the prestigious award for his eco-novel The Overstory. In November of last year, Powers visited the John Adams to discuss his sweeping novel. Click here to listen to an audio recording of the event. Tommy Orange, who visited the John Adams in February, was also nominated as one of the finalists for his debut novel There There....
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Disputed Painting Is a Real van Gogh

March 26, 2019

A painting at a Connecticut museum that has long been thought to be by Vincent van Gogh has been authenticated. ‘Vase With Poppies,’ a still life oil painting, has been verified by researchers at the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam as having been made by the Dutch artist in 1886, just after he moved to …...
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Extra step for Americans to travel to some European countries

March 12, 2019

Starting in 2021, Americans will have to take an extra step when visiting more than two dozen countries in Europe. The European Union announced last year that before travel, visitors from all visa-free countries, including the United States, will need to complete an online application and pay a small fee using ETIAS, the European Travel Information and Authorization System. Click ...
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How the popular vote could decide the 2020 presidential election

March 5, 2019

Colorado is set to become the latest member of a group of states banding together to bypass the electoral college system. The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact — which already has 11 states and the District of Columbia on board — would hand the 2020 presidential election to whoever wins the popular vote. But it would only take effect if states representing at least 270 electoral college votes pass the law. Click...
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Space Race ignites again

February 28, 2019

According to an article in the Washington Post, the moon is again the center of a reinvigorated space race that, like any good Hollywood reboot, features a new cast of characters and novel story lines. NASA wants to...
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Spike Lee wins an Oscar

February 25, 2019

At Sunday night’s Oscar ceremony, director and producer Spike Lee won an Oscar for best adapted screenplay for his film BlacKkKlansman. His acceptance speech touched deeply on black history and exhorted the crowd to get involved in the 2020 presidential election. In 2010, the John Adams Institute hosted an event with Spike Lee, ‘Doing the Right Thing’. To watch the video, click ...
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Meet the major candidates running for president in 2020

February 20, 2019

With the 2020 election still a ways away, an unusually large number of Democratic candidates have announced they are running or hinted strongly that they will. Watch this video by Time to get to know the protagonists so far....
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State of the Union

February 6, 2019

President Trump delivered his second formal State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday. His mixed messages resulted in mixed reactions, clearly reflected by these reactions from the press: click here for a response from Fox News, and ...
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Interview with Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal

February 4, 2019

The Volkskrant published an extensive interview with journalist Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal, board member and moderator of the John Adams Institute. Click here for the article (in Dutch)....
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Art centre West Den Haag moves into former U.S. Embassy

January 22, 2019

Art centre West Den Haag will open its new program in the former U.S. Embassy, a Bauhaus building by Marcel Breuer. The program starts with three solo exhibitions by Assemble, Candice Breitz and Tehching Hsieh. West Den Haag focuses on...
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Foreign Affairs names ‘The Road to Unfreedom’ one of the best books of 2018

December 23, 2018

Of all the the books that seek to explain the current crisis of Western liberal democracy, none is more eloquent or more frightening than Timothy Snyder’s The Road to Unfreedom according to Foreign Affairs Magazine. Snyder visited the John Adams recently to discuss his work. Click here to...
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Richard Powers on The Overstory

December 12, 2018

The American author Richard Powers reached a large audience with his novel The Overstory. In it, trees talk. This book has been his most successful to date, although its message isn't very hopeful, as Powers explains in this article in NRC: "People who read this novel feel that hope is excluded. And why would you want to offer hope? We live in a sick country."...
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Trevor Noah & Jay Rosen talk about The Correspondent

December 10, 2018

Media critic Jay Rosen visited the Daily Show with Trevor Noah to discuss the Dutch news platform The Correspondent, his work to bring it to English-speaking audiences and the benefits of member-funded journalism. To watch the clip, click here....
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The 10 Best Books of 2018

December 6, 2018

The editors of The New York Times Book Review chose the best fiction and nonfiction titles this year. Amongst them is How to change your mind by Michael Pollan. Pollan will join the John Adams to discuss his book on December 11. Another title that made the list is There There. Author Tommy Orange will visit the John Adams in February....
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The 10 Best Fiction Books of 2018

November 19, 2018

According to Time, these are the 10 best fiction books of the year. Amonst them, The Overstory by Richard Powers, who visited the John Adams recently, and Gun Love by Jennifer Clement. Clement will be joining the John Adams at the beginning of 2019 to talk...
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Michael Pollan’s ‘How to Change your Mind’ nominated for Goodreads Choice Award

November 14, 2018

Michael Pollan’s book ‘How to Change your Mind’, is nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award 2018 in the category ‘Best Science & Technology’. Pollan will visit the John Adams on December 11 to discuss this book about the world of psychedelics and their medical use with renowned psychiatrist Damiaan Denys. Click here for more information about …...
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Jonathan Capehart’s plea to his country

November 7, 2018

Washington Post journalist and contributor to MSNBC Jonathan Capehart wrote a passionate plea to his country the day before the Midterm Elections. Caphehart spoke at our event ' The U.S. Midterm Elections: What's at Stake' on October 18, to which he refers twice in his article. Click ...
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Millenials are taking their get-out-the-vote efforts to dating apps

November 6, 2018

In the run-up to the midterms, some Tinder users have been logging on to the app specifically for voter outreach rather than flirting with strangers. The trend comes amid related cultural shifts, as campaigning has become more digital and daters increasingly are looking for matches who share their views....
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Cellphone-size novels could transform American publishing

November 1, 2018

This month, Dutton books, part of Penguin Random House, began releasing it's first batch of mini books. The president of Dutton got the idea several years ago while living in The Netherlands where the mini books (called 'dwarsliggers') have been in stores since 2009....
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To Kill A Mockingbird Voted America’s Best-Loved Novel

October 25, 2018

The 1960 book by Harper Lee emerged as No. 1 in PBS’ “The Great American Read” survey, whose results were announced Tuesday. The other top-five finishers in order of votes were Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series about a time-spanning love, J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter boy wizard tales, Jane Austen’s romance Pride and Prejudice and J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings fantasy saga....
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Lawsuit to end affirmative action goes to trial

October 17, 2018

Edward Blum, the activist behind a suit alleging that Harvard discriminated against Asian-American applicants, is out to end affirmative action—and all considerations of race—in all circumstances. The lawsuit goes to trial in Boston this week....
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The Man Booker Prize announces 2018 shortlist

September 20, 2018

The shortlist for the Man Booker Prize was announced today. American novelist Richard Powers is one of the six authors shortlisted. Powers will visit the John Adams in November, to talk about his nominated book The Overstory. ...
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Freddie Oversteegen, Dutch resistance fighter who killed Nazis through seduction, dies at 92

September 18, 2018

The Dutch resistance was widely believed to be a man’s effort in a man’s war. If women were involved, the thinking went, they were likely doing little more than handing out anti-German pamphlets or newspapers. Yet Freddie Oversteegen and her sister Truus, two years her senior, were rare exceptions — a pair of teenage women who took up arms against Nazi occupiers and Dutch “traitors” on the outskirts of Amsterdam. With Hannie Schaft, a onetime law student with fiery red hair, they...
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Young Dutch inventor launches ocean cleanup mission from San Francisco Bay

September 11, 2018

A multimillion-dollar floating boom designed to corral plastic debris littering the Pacific Ocean was deployed from San Francisco Bay on Saturday as part of a larger high-stakes and ambitious undertaking. The 2,000-foot-long unmanned structure was the product of about $20 million in funding from the Ocean Cleanup, a nonprofit that aims to trap up to 150,000 pounds of plastic...
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Author Colson Whitehead named New York State Author

August 27, 2018

Colson Whitehead, the author of acclaimed novels Sag Harbor and The Underground Railroad, has been named New York’s 11th State Author. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that Mr. Whitehead will receive the New York State Edith Wharton Citation of Merit for Fiction Writers and hold the title of New York State Author from 2018 to 2020. Click here...
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Movie: Spike Lee’s ‘BlacKkKlansman’ Journeys Into White America’s Heart of Darkness

August 20, 2018

'BlackKkKlansman', Spike Lee's latest movie, tells the true story of the African-American officer Ron Stallworth who succesfully infiltrated the KKK in Colorado in order to prevent the Klan to gain control over the city. In 2010, the John Adams Institute hosted an event with Spike Lee, 'Doing the Right Thing'. To watch the video, click here....
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Podcast: book critics discuss ‘Club Mars’ by Rachel Kushner

August 16, 2018

Poet and book critic Ellen Dickwitz, writer and book critic Joost de Vries and podcast creater Peter Buurman offer reading suggestions. In this podcast, they discuss ' Club Mars', the latest book by American writer Rachel Kushner, about a 29-year old woman convicted to life imprisonment in a maximum security prison in California. Click here to listen....
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Podcast: 1 year after Charlottesville

August 14, 2018

One year after white nationalists and counterprotesters clashed in Charlottesville, Va., the violence has long ended and the rest of the country has largely moved on. But the broken city is still struggling to contend with its past. Guest: Farah Stockman, who has been reporting for The New York Times on events in Charlottesville since the clashes. Click here to start the podcast....
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The New Yorker: Ottessa Moshfegh’s Painful, Funny Novel of a Young Woman’s Chemical Hibernation

July 16, 2018

For some years, Ottessa Moshfegh has been touted as a “crucial” new voice in American literature. Moshfegh will come to the John Adams on September 17. Click here to read the outstanding The New Yorker review of her new novel My Year of Rest and Relaxation....
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New Yorker: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Comes to Terms with Global Fame

May 30, 2018

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who is now regarded as one of the most vital and original novelists of her generation, was living in a poky apartment in Baltimore, writing the last sections of her second book. She was twenty-six. “Purple Hibiscus,” published the previous fall, had established her reputation as an up-and-coming writer, but she was …...
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Can He Do That? Presidential Podcast by The Washington Post

May 28, 2018

Donald Trump’s historic presidency is unlike any other that’s come before it. This podcast features Washington Post reporters and experts to illuminate the ways Donald Trump can reshape the presidency. And what that means for the United States and the rest of the world. Podcast:Can He Do That?...
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New York Times: Philip Roth Remembered on Twitter

May 25, 2018

The writer Philip Roth died Tuesday night at the age of 85. It’s a particularly modern measure of his legacy that he was almost immediately a trending topic on Twitter. Here are some of the New York Times’ favorite reflections, remembrances, appreciations and contrarian takes....
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Vrij Nederland: interview Andrew Keen (in Dutch)

May 24, 2018

Andrew Keen will speak at Pakhuis de Zwijger May 24th at 8pm. In his new book, How to Fix the Future, Keen showcases global solutions for our digital predicament. After the huge changes of the Industrial Revolution, civilized societies remade nineteenth-century capitalism into a more humane version of itself. Keen shows how we can do the …...
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Tom Wolfe, pioneering ‘New Journalist,’ dead at 88

May 16, 2018

Tom Wolfe, the white-suited wizard of “New Journalism” who exuberantly chronicled American culture from the Merry Pranksters through the space race before turning his satiric wit to such novels as “The Bonfire of the Vanities” and “A Man in Full,” has died. He was 88. Wolfe’s literary agent, Lynn Nesbit, told The Associated Press that …...
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NRC on Andrew Keens ‘How To Fix The Future’

May 1, 2018

Often dubbed as ‘the antichrist of Silicon Valley’, Andrew Keen, our speaker on May 24th in Pakhuis de Zwijger, was among the earliest to write about the dangers of the Internet to our culture and society. His new book ‘How To Fix The Future‘ has been called “the most significant work so far in an …...
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Journalists distance themselves from Correspondents’ Dinner after Wolf routine

April 30, 2018

Comedian Michelle Wolf’s biting routine at Saturday’s 2018 White House Correspondents’ Association dinner has triggered one of Washington’s most recurring conversations: Is one night of pomp and politics worth the headaches that usually follow?...
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The New Yorker and the New York Times Win the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service

April 19, 2018

The New Yorker has won, with the New York Times, the Pulitzer Prize gold medal for public service. The institutions were jointly honored for their work in 2017 that contributed to a “worldwide reckoning” regarding sexual harassment and assault and the dynamics of gender and power....
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What Does a Workspace Built for Women Look Like?

April 13, 2018

There are more women than ever working in office buildings, but only a quarter of architects are female. Enter Alda Ly from The Wing. True gender equality requires a good deal of new construction. Materials were selected to optimize female comfort, furniture would be suitably proportioned; there would be spaces to socialize and others in …...
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A Tough Task for Facebook: European-Type Privacy for All

April 9, 2018

New York Times: “Facebook just promised to offer its users around the world the same privacy controls required under a new European data protection law. What does that mean? And can the company deliver?“...
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New York Times: Martin Luther King Jr.’s New York Times Obituary 50 Years Ago

April 3, 2018

The original obituary, which was published on April 5, 1968, celebrated the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a prophet of a crusade for racial equality and a voice of anguish for millions of people....
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Washington Post: “Congress wants to drag Google and Twitter into Facebook’s privacy crisis”

March 27, 2018

A panel of Senate lawmakers aims to grill the top executives of Facebook, Google and Twitter next month, the latest indication that the controversy surrounding Facebook’s data privacy practices now threatens to envelop the whole of Silicon Valley. The Senate Judiciary Committee’s chairman, Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley (Iowa), on Monday scheduled an April 10 hearing …...
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John Quincy Adams: “The Founder of American Expansionism”

March 22, 2018

As the son of John Adams, John Quincy knew most of the other Founders, including George Washington, and he had an abiding belief in the virtue of their handiwork. Declaring the blessing of American exceptionalism, he announced that the American founding proclaimed “to mankind the indistinguishable rights of human nature, and the only lawful foundation …...
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The New Yorker: Manhattan Portraits

March 19, 2018

What’s the best part of living in New York? Visitors may think of Broadway shows, restaurants, or museums, but New Yorkers know that the answer is other New Yorkers. It’s exciting to live among so many strangers—to speculate about their stories and hidden talents. New Yorkers love wondering about the fascinating lives unfolding next to …...
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Ernst-Jan Pfauth recommends Russell Shorto’s ‘The Island at the Center of the World’

March 12, 2018

Ernst-Jan Pfauth, cofounder and CEO of The Correspondent, has chosen former John Adams director Russell Shorto’s book ‘The Island at the Center of the World’ (‘Nieuw Amsterdam’, Ambo Anthos) as one of his personal book recommendations in the month of March. In november 2017, Pfauth moved from Amsterdam to New York with his family, to …...
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International Women’s Day: skyline

March 8, 2018

Morgan Stanley, John Hancock, Ernst & Young, and Proctor & Gamble were among 34 companies that illuminated buildings with giant symbols of the female on the eve of International Women’s Day as part of a global campaign to push for equality in the workplace. In all, 30 buildings carried the symbol, changing the skyline in …...
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New York Times: 15 remarkable books by women that are shaping the way we read and write

March 6, 2018

In 2016, the feminist press Emily Books held a panel in Brooklyn titled, a bit cheekily, “What Is Women’s Writing?” There was no consensus, much laughter and a warm, rowdy vibe. Eileen Myles read from a memoir in progress and Ariana Reines read a poem, wearing a dress with a pattern of a city on …...
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The New Yorker: Dutch photographer Robin de Puy in America

February 21, 2018

It was toward the end of an eight-thousand-mile road trip across America, in 2015, that the Dutch photographer Robin de Puy, riding her Harley-Davidson through the dry expanses of Ely, Nevada, discovered the subject destined to define her adventure: a skinny youth of fifteen, who flashed by, in the night, on a child’s bicycle. De …...
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The New Yorker: Assigning Blame for Russia’s Election Meddling

February 20, 2018

Last Friday’s indictment of thirteen Russian nationals by Robert Mueller, the special counsel in the investigation into Russian tampering with the 2016 U.S. Presidential election, showed that, while Obama’s advisers were wrestling with the pros and cons of launching a covert campaign against Moscow, the Russians had already embarked on an ambitious influence operation of …...
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FD: Jonathan Taplin interview

February 13, 2018

Jonathan Taplin is the author of Move Fast and Break Things, a bracing account of how the internet has been captured by the big tech companies. Taplin, himself with thirty years’ experience in the music and film industry, tells the story of how a number of libertarian entrepreneurs, with roots in the writings of Ayn …...
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NRC: Jonathan Taplin interview

February 8, 2018

Jonathan Taplin is the author of Move Fast and Break Things, a bracing account of how the internet has been captured by the big tech companies. Taplin, himself with thirty years’ experience in the music and film industry, tells the story of how a number of libertarian entrepreneurs, with roots in the writings of Ayn …...
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De Telegraaf: ‘Revolution Song’ – Russell Shorto at the John Adams

February 6, 2018

De Telegraaf was present at our event with Russell Shorto and published the following article in the Stan Huygens Journaal. Shorto spoke about his new book ‘Revolution Song’, which topic is the American War of Independence, seen through the lives of six individuals. Through these lives we understand that the revolution was fought over the …...
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The New Yorker: ‘The Recipe for Life’ by Michael Chabon

February 5, 2018

Our former guest Michael Chabon wrote a piece for the New Yorker: “Fifty years on, though my father has long since retired from regular practice both as a doctor and as a father, I’m still chasing after that recipe for life and still, four times a father myself, doing part-time work as a son. At …...
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NYT: “When Animals Are at Risk, Special Netherlands Police Force Defends Them”

February 1, 2018

Like a Humane Society with guns, handcuffs and badges, members of the animal force are regular officers with extra training and special equipment. A 911 type emergency line for animals – dial 144 from any phone in the Netherlands – dispatches the officers and supplies the vast majority of their leads....
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Washington Post: ‘Winners and losers from Trump’s State of the Union address’

January 31, 2018

President Trump delivered his second address to Congress and his first official State of the Union address Tuesday night. And a year after that address earned plenty of praise, Trump did his best to re-create its aspirational, highflying tone. At least for most of the speech....
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Foreign Policy Magazine: “Enemy of the State”

January 29, 2018

On June 6, 2016, Bill Browder, a London-based billionaire, sent an email to Kyle Parker, a congressional staffer, with the subject line “Veselnitskaya house.” The email, which contained no text, included only a picture of the side of a house, framed with pink flowers. The house was believed to belong to Natalia Veselnitskaya, a Russian …...
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Russell Shorto in Het Parool: ‘the American Revolution still isn’t over’

January 24, 2018

For historian and writer Russell Shorto the American Revolution never came to life, until he wrote his famous book on New Amsterdam. Shorto speaks about his new book ‘Revolution Song’, the American Revolution and on life in Amsterdam in Het Parool: read the full interview here. ...
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Washington Post: “Winners and losers of the government shutdown”

January 23, 2018

“While no one really truly ‘wins’ when the government shuts down — especially in the real world, where people’s lives are tangibly affected — this two-day shutdown, which is on its way to ending after senators reached a deal, did have some clear political winners and losers.”...
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Met het Oog op Morgen: Revolutionary year 1968

January 3, 2018

On January 2nd our director Tracy Metz was a guest at radio show Met het Oog op Morgen to discuss the impact of revolutionary year 1968 in the United States. She grew up in the United States and attended high school in California in the 60s. “It felt like a euphoric period. Young people were …...
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The Guardian on Russia-backed Facebook posts during US election

January 2, 2018

The Russian Facebook scandal damages liberals as much as the right. The Republicans might have been tarnished by the St Petersburg troll factory, but Democratic fantasies about social media were rubbished in the process....
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Time Magazine Top 10 Novels 2017

December 21, 2017

Jennifer Egan’s Manhattan Beach and Mohsin Hamid’s Exit West are among Time Magazine’s Top 10 Novels of 2017. Hamid visited the John Adams Institute on September 12th 2017, Egan will be our guest on February 21st 2018....
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Presidential Podcast

December 21, 2017

This Presidential podcast explores the character and legacy of each of the American presidents, from Washington to Trump. Hosted by Lillian Cunningham, Presidential features Pulitzer Prize-winning historians like David McCullough and journalists like Bob Woodward. Also featured: a podcast on John Adams....
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Russell Shorto’s Revolution Song in podcast

December 13, 2017

‘There is properly no history, only biography’, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote. Russell Shorto in his new book Revolution Song seems to be of similar mind. Listen to him discuss his book in the following podcast. Russell Shorto returns to the John Adams Institute to talk about Revolution Song on January 23rd, 2018. Join us at …...
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Amsterdam Stories

December 7, 2017

Have the Netherlands left a mark on the US? Come find out on December 11th, when the Belgian filmmakers Rob Rombout and Rogier van Eck show a compilation of their road movie in which they take you all across the continent to visit all the American places named Amsterdam. Tickets available here. ...
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Interview with Colson Whitehead

December 5, 2017

Colson Whitehead was six months into writing a novel about the digital economy when he was seized by the ghost of an old idea. He ended up writing The Underground Railroad, and talks about it in this interview. ...
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When New York City Was a (Literal) Battlefield

November 16, 2017

For the research of his new book, Revolution Song, Russell Shorto explored the five boroughs of New York. With old maps in one hand and Google Maps in the other, the author roamed across the city’s boroughs, searching for remnants of the American Revolution....
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Pete Hoekstra appointed as U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands

November 13, 2017

On Thursday, November 9th, the U.S. Senate confirmed that the Dutch-born politician Pete Hoekstra has been appointed as ambassador to the Netherlands. Gary Stevens & Mary Ellen Murphy chatted with the former Holland Congressman (R-Holland) about his appointment as US Ambassador to the Netherlands during a Nov. 10, 2017 interview on WHTC Morning News. Listen to …...
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Dan Brown opens Embassy of the Free Spirit (Dutch)

November 2, 2017

On October 21st, Dan Brown opened ‘De Ambassade van de Vrije Geest’ (The Embassy of the Free Spirit) in Amsterdam. The Embassy wants to stimulate ‘free thinking’ through culture, art, science and spirituality. With that they do “all mankind a favor”, according to Dan Brown. Paul Steenhuis (NRC) interviewed Dan Brown about his connection to the …...
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Who is Bill Browder, Vladimir Putin’s Enemy Number One?

October 30, 2017

Bill Browder may seem like a mild-mannered financier, but he is, perhaps, nemesis number one for Russian President Vladimir Putin. The 53-year-old is the CEO of Hermitage Capital Management, once the largest foreign investor in Russia. But in 2006, the authorities kicked him out of the country, calling him a threat to national security. The …...
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Interview (in Dutch) with Holly Krieger in NRC

October 23, 2017

Ellen de Bruin of NRC Handelsblad interviewed Holly Krieger about her way of teaching mathematics. Krieger is one of the contributors to the popular video channel about math, Numberphile. "People who love math, love Holly Krieger,"...
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George Saunders wins the Man Booker Prize

October 19, 2017

American author George Saunders won the Man Booker Prize 2017 for his first novel Lincoln in the Bardo, which is about the death of Abraham Lincoln's son William Wallace Lincoln and deals with the president's grief at his loss....
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The Nobel in economics awarded to Richard Thaler

October 2, 2017

An American behavioural Economist – Richard Thaler – has won the 2017 Nobel Prize in economics. His research combined economics with insight from psychology to show how heavily economic decision making is influenced by cognitive biases thereby undermining the assumption of humans as rational actors who maximise their utility. Read more about Richard Thaler his work …...
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The N.F.L. Protests and the Future of the Anti-Trump Movement

September 26, 2017

In the course of forty-eight hours, Trump managed to declare a kind of war against an institution and culture with which he was broadly aligned. He declared that athletes who persisted in kneeling during the anthem should not be allowed to play, and imagined himself as a team owner: “Get that son of a bitch …...
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Is it time you went Dutch?

September 13, 2017

According to UNICEF, Dutch kids are ahead of their peers in childhood well-being when compared with 29 of the world’s richest industrialized countries. What are the things that set Dutch children apart from those in the UK and the US? On September 18 we'll discuss these topics and more with "The Happiest Kids in the World" authors Rina Mae Acosta and Michele Hutchison. ...
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Interview (in Dutch) with Mohsin Hamid

August 21, 2017

Friend of the institute Joost de Vries interviewed Mohsin Hamid for De Groene Amsterdammer, talking about nostalgia, immigration and his new novel Exit West. Mohsin Hamid is coming to the John Adams on September 12 to discuss Exit West with moderator Naema Tahir....
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America’s Favorite Books Unveiled on TV

August 13, 2017

The Great American Read, an ambitious eight-episode documentary series that PBS has just announced, will explore the place...
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Crushed By the Trucking Revolution

August 7, 2017

Gas station owners in smalltown America face bankruptcy due to the construction of bypass highways and a coming revolution in the trucking and automotive industry, that promises vehicles that can drive themselves long distances....
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Bernie Sanders’s Campaign Isn’t Over

July 31, 2017

Since the election Bernie Sanders has staged events in multiple states, the New Yorker writes. At every one, he speaks about the suffering of small-town Americans, and his belief that the Democrats can help them. Hillary Clinton’s loss gave his efforts a new urgency....
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Flood Topples Statue at Iconic Fallingwater House

July 24, 2017

An overflowing stream following heavy rain toppled a large bronze statue at architect Frank Lloyd Wright's iconic Fallingwater house in Pennsylvania....
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How to Plant a Tree in the Desert

July 11, 2017

Former JAI director Russell Shorto wrote an article for The New Yorker on Dutch engineer Jurriaan Ruys, who developed a cheap and easy way to restore vegetation to barren landscapes....
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Michelle Obama: A Life

July 7, 2017

This week, the Dutch translation of Peter Slevin's Michelle Obama: A Life was published at het Spectrum. In 2015, Amy Chozick reviewed the book for the New York Times: "She also comes across in this thoughtful biography as constantly searching...
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White House Issues New Visa Rules

June 29, 2017

With these new rules, the White House is targeting Muslim immigrants, refugees, and green card holders, writes Slate: "Perhaps the most heartbreaking aspect of the new rules will be their impact on green card lottery winners"....
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Jaap Verheul on John Lothrop Motley

June 19, 2017

Last week historian Jaap Verheul published his book De Atlantische pelgrim. In this radio interview (in Dutch), Verheul talks about Motley and how he saw the Netherlands as an example for fighting Spain...
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The Dutch Have Solutions to Rising Seas

June 18, 2017

Read this New York Times article on the Dutch, their rising seas and climate change: "In the waterlogged Netherlands, climate change is considered neither a hypothetical nor a drag on the economy. Instead, it’s an opportunity."...
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Naomi Klein on Her New Book and Trump

June 14, 2017

In this Guardian interview, past JAI speaker Naomi Klein talks about her new book No Is Not Enough: Defeating the New Shock Politics: “It is not like Trump is taking advantage of an external shock, he is the shock. And every 10 minutes he creates a new one. It...
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Trump is Mirroring Nixon’s Final Days

June 12, 2017

In this Washington Post article, historian David Greenberg explains how president Trump's firing of FBI Director James B. Comey, in its gravity, can be likened to the Watergate scandal and Richard Nixon's serial abuses of executive power....
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Russell Shorto on Climate Change

June 6, 2017

Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad interviewed former John Adams Institute director Russell Shorto on climate change. According to Shorto, the Netherlands are an example for the way they deal with climate change. Read the full interview (in Dutch) ...
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Martin Ford on Robots and Artificial Intelligence

May 30, 2017

Upcoming speaker Martin Ford, author of Rise of the Robots, discusses in this Bloomberg interview the impact of artificial intelligence and robotics on the future....
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John A. Farrell on Nixon and Trump

May 24, 2017

Upcoming speaker John A. Farrell, author of Richard Nixon: The Life, talks in this CNN video about fair and unfair comparisons between Nixon and Trump....
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Why Hillary Clinton Lost the Elections

May 17, 2017

Listen Liberal, the 2016 book by past speaker Thomas Frank is an attack on the leadership of the American Democratic Party and a mandatory read for social democrats in Europe, according to De Groene Amsterdammer....
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Martin Ford at TED2017

May 15, 2017

TEDBlog writes about Martin Ford's TED Talk at TED2017 in Vancouver, Canada: We’ve been concerned about technology displacing humans for a long time, says futurist Martin Ford. And that’s had a strange effect on us....
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Lauren Greenfield Interview

May 8, 2017

W Magazine interviews upcoming speaker Lauren Greenfield on her new book Generation Wealth: ''When I go back through and really think about the work, I see that he’s not this new surprising chapter, but really the natural evolution of the values in the culture."...
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Modern Life in Leiden

April 3, 2017

American anthropologist Mark Neupert is making an ethnographic documentary on modern life in an old city, ' Cobblestone Stories, A Year of Modern Living in Leiden'....
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Michael Chabon on Nostalgia

March 29, 2017

Upcoming speaker Michael Chabon discusses his personal attachment to nostalgia and how it affects his writing, most notably in his novel Moonglow....
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Amy Webb on What to Do About the Date We Create

March 20, 2017

Former speaker Amy Webb reviews two contrasting books and contributes to the ongoing debate regarding the data humans are creating in The New York Times....
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The Geert Wilders Effect

March 16, 2017

'The Islam-hating provocateur isn't going to be the next prime minister of the Netherlands' writes James Traub for Foreign Policy. 'But he's already won.'...
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From ‘America First’ to a More Conventional View of U.S. Diplomacy

March 1, 2017

''My job is not to represent the world,'' President Trump declared. ''My job is to represent the United States of America. But we know that America is better off when there is less conflict, not more.''...
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The Best-Picture Mixup: it was ‘La La Land’, until it was ‘Moonlight’

February 27, 2017

Due to a mistake the Academy Award for Best Picture was mistakenly given to the musical 'La La Land', until the low-budget film 'Moonlight' was given the award instead....
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Paul Beatty on Rendering Dissonance From Mind to Page

February 22, 2017

'In a lot of ways, The Sellout – the novel for which Paul Beatty was awarded the 2016 Man Booker Prize – is about dissonance'. Read the interview that Paul Beatty had with The Wire....
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Russell Shorto on Trump

February 13, 2017

Our current director Tracy Metz interviews her predecessor and author Russell Shorto: ”Trump is a fundamental threat to the values of the United States.”...
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The Netherlands welcomes Trump

January 30, 2017

Dutch satirical program Zondag met Lubach welcomes Donald Trump in his own words....
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Obama says he’ll speak up post-White House if he sees ‘core values’ at risk

January 19, 2017

The Washington Post reports on President Obama's final press conference, in which he defended free press and the last acts of his Presidency....
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How a Sensational, Unvarified Dossier Became a Crisis for Donald Trump

January 12, 2017

The New York Times reports how the unverified stories on Donald J. Trump emerged. A look at the hidden side of campaigns, and their sleuths-for-hire....
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Jonathan Safran Foer: technology is diminishing us

January 4, 2017

Friend of the Institute Jonathan Safran Foer argues that technology makes us less susceptible to the miracles of life: ''It’s not an either/or situation – being “anti-technology” is perhaps the only thing more foolish than being unquestioningly “pro-technology” – but a question of balance that our lives hang upon.''...
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Obama Bans Drilling in Parts of the Atlantic and the Arctic

December 21, 2016

President Barack Obama has banned drilling in wide areas of the Atlantic and Arctic, a move he said could not be reversed by a successor, writes the New York Times....
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The Perfect Weapon: How Russian Cyberpower Invaded the U.S.

December 15, 2016

'For Russia, with an enfeebled economy and a nuclear arsenal it cannot use short of all-out war, cyberpower proved the perfect weapon: cheap, hard to see coming, hard to trace'....
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A Dutch Architect Offshores the Future of Housing

November 30, 2016

John Adams director Tracy Metz is quoted in the New York Times on Dutch architect Koen Olthuis of Waterstudio.nl: ''He was really one of the first architects who saw that building on water could develop a whole new design language.''...
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Zadie Smith X John Adams Institute X Amsterdam

November 17, 2016

On Medium, Sidney Vollmer writes about Zadie Smith's visit to the John Adams Institute. 'The analogue, the actual human, the offline get-togethers like that one last Friday in De Rode Hoed, seem to be becoming more powerful.'...
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An American Tragedy

November 11, 2016

Former John Adams guest David Remnick analyses the presidential victory of Donald Trump: ''The electorate has, in its plurality, decided to live in Trump’s world.'' Read his article in the New Yorker here....
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The Presidential Podcast

November 9, 2016

Friday November 11, the last of the Presidential Podcasts, made by NRC-correspondent Guus Valk and VPRO presenter Chris Kijne, will be broadcast. They will discuss the spectacular result of this year's election....
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The Pieces of Zadie Smith

October 31, 2016

Jeffrey Eugenides interviews Zadie Smith for the New York Times. They talk about writing in the first person, being female, race and of course her new novel: 'Swing Time'. Zadie Smith will be visiting us on November 11. ...
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Michael Moore in Trumpland

October 26, 2016

Michael Moore has released a surprise documentary - a registration of his one-man show in Ohio, where he tries to convince a Republican audience not to vote for Trump. On Dutch television, the VPRO will broadcast the documentary on October 30, at 10:25 p.m., on NPO 3. ...
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Fulbright-NNCR Student Scholar Research Grant

October 24, 2016

The New Netherland Research Center (NNRC) offers a joint Student Scholar Research Grant with the Fulbright Center of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Deadline to apply: November 1, 2016. ...
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NYT reviews Jonathan Safran Foer’s ‘Here I Am’

October 12, 2016

The New York Times calls Jonathan Safran Foer's first novel in 11 years a 'tale of a fracturing family'. ...
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NRC interviews Joseph Stiglitz

October 3, 2016

Joseph Stiglitz (in Dutch): 'De euro is het probleem van Europa'. ...
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Hanya Yanagihara’s ‘A little life’ book of the month

September 22, 2016

Hanya Yanagihara's book A little life was chosen to be the 'book of the month' at De Wereld Draait Door....
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Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal interviews George Packer

September 19, 2016

Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal interviews our former guest George Packer in De Volkskrant: ''More liberty ánd more inequality.''...
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Two American authors nominated for Man Booker Prize

September 19, 2016

The American authors Ottessa Moshfegh and Paul Beatty are among the six finalists for the Man Booker Prize. The winner will be announced on 25 October....
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The Washington Post reviews ‘Bright, Precious Days’

September 9, 2016

The Washington Post reviews ‘Bright, Precious Days’ by upcoming speaker Jay McInerney: “You can’t say he didn’t warn us. Jay McInerney’s new novel is bright and precious”....
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“Amsterdam, Revisited” – by Russell Shorto

August 31, 2016

Former John Adams Institute director Russell Shorto writes in the New York Times about how tourism and global hipsterism have transformed the city where he once lived. But not entirely — the canals endure....
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The Wall Street Journal reviews ‘A Little Life’

August 15, 2016

The WSJ reviews 'A Little Life' by upcoming guest Hanya Yanagihara: "Here is an epic study of trauma and friendship written with such intelligence and depth of perception that it will be one of the benchmarks against which all other novels that broach those subjects (and they are legion) will be measured."...
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Republican Evan McMullin to launch presidential run against Trump

August 9, 2016

Evan McMullin, a onetime chief policy director for House Republicans and a former CIA officer, is launching an independent presidential campaign with the help of political group Better for America....
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Jon Stewart returning to TV before Election

August 2, 2016

Jon Stewart could return to television before this year’s presidential election, HBO programming chief Casey Bloys revealed this weekend at the Television Critics Association summer press tour. Bloys told reporters that Stewarts new show will be an “animated parody of a cable news network”....
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FiveThirtyEight 2016 Election Forecast

July 27, 2016

Political website FiveThirtyEight’s current projection of the 2016 presidential election gives Donald Trump a 55.0 percent chance of winning the White House if the election were held today....
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Interview Jim Yong Kim in NRC

July 18, 2016

NRC editor Maarten Schinkel interviews World Bank President Jim Yong Kim: “Veel van de proteststemmen die je nu ziet in Europa en de VS zijn van mensen die doorhebben dat ze niet voorbereid zijn op de onzekere toekomst”. ...
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“Seeing the Real Dallas”

July 11, 2016

In the Aftermath of the Dallas shooting, The Atlantic explores Dallas: “The City is not a hot bed of racial tension. It is a culturally relevant urban center with innovative policing—and other cities should learn from it.” ...
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‘Amsterdam to succeed London in Brexit’

July 2, 2016

Amsterdam is tipped to be "the new London" by James Stewart, author and business columnist at the New York Times, because of its beautiful architecture, excellent schools and good night life....
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De Correspondent reviews ‘A Little Life’

June 27, 2016

De Correspondent reviews Hanya Yanagihara's latest novel 'A Little Life': "Yanagihare bezorgt je kippenvel, rillingen, luidruchtige huilbuien, een gebroken, geheeld, en nog harder gebroken hart"....
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The Guardian reviews ‘Their Promised Land’

June 23, 2016

The Guardian reviews Ian Buruma's new book 'Their Promised Land': "From his grandparents’ jigsaw-puzzle past, Buruma has assembled a fascinating chronicle of love, assimilation and immigration in modern Britain"....
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“Obama’s Unexpected Legacy”

June 20, 2016

Upcoming guest Mark Landler on Obama's unexpected legacy: "President Obama came into office pledging to end the wars of his predecessor. Now he has been at war longer than Mr. Bush, or any other American president."...
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Hamilton Musical wins 11 Tony Awards

June 14, 2016

The hit show about the life of one of America’s founding fathers has led the Tony Awards in New York, winning 11 including best musical and lead actor....
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Clinton Claims Nomination Victory

June 8, 2016

Hillary Clinton celebrated her status as the first woman to win a major party’s presidential nomination on Tuesday evening in Brooklyn....
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“Dutch Firm Trains Eagles to Take Down Drones”

May 29, 2016

According to the NY Times, "hunting birds are being trained to harness their instincts to help combat the security threats stemming from the proliferation of drones. The initiative is timely, given the number of drone incidents in Europe''....
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“How Donald Trump is winning over the white working class”

May 26, 2016

Former guest George Packer writes on Donald Trump’s appeal to the economic anxieties and social resentments of white Americans....
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Martin Scorsese linked with Washington biopic

May 20, 2016

Martin Scorsese is reportedly circling a new biopic of George Washington. The General tells the "gritty" story of General George Washington's struggle to fend off a band of mercenaries with his dying army during the Revolutionary War....
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DoubleDutch American Elections Podcast

May 11, 2016

DoubleDutch is a weekly Dutch podcast about the American elections. This week: Trump is the Republican presidential candidate. Can he really win?...
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NRC on Trump’s ‘Team of Rivals’

May 6, 2016

According to NRC, Donald Trump is a candidate without an ideology. Trump is advised by people who want to make him presidential, but they feed him with ideas which are often contradictory....
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The New Yorker: ‘Sanders’s Forty-Year-Old Idea’

April 18, 2016

According to former JAI director Russell Shorto, Bernie Sanders is Europe's last Social Democrat....
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Marilynne Robinson wins Library of Congress Prize

March 31, 2016

Friend of the Institute Marilynne Robinson is this year's winner of the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction, a lifetime achievement honor....
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NY Times reviews ‘Requiem for the American Dream’

March 7, 2016

'Requiem for the American Dream' is honored with a NY Times Critics pick. The Noam Chomsky documentary is coming to the John Adams Institute on April 6....
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Interview Michael Pollan in NRC

February 24, 2016

Former guest of the Institute Michael Pollan discusses his Netflix docu-series with foodwriter Dorien Knockaert: "We intimideren onszelf met onze idealen over eten.'' ...
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Walter Russell Mead on Buitenhof

February 23, 2016

Walter Russell Mead, one of America’s leading experts on foreign policy, discusses the rising tensions in Syria and Turkey on Buitenhof....
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The Washington Post reviews ‘The Residence’

February 15, 2016

Krissah Thompson reviews Kate Andersen Brower's new book ‘The Residence': "These kinds of stories have rarely been told.''...
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Washington post on the NH Primary Election Results

February 10, 2016

The Washington Post offers a look at votes cast in New Hampshire....
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NY Times on next week’s primary in New Hampshire

February 3, 2016

According to The New York Times, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders intensify efforts in New Hampshire after Iowa standoff. "The absence of a clear political triumph in Iowa put both Democratic candidates in unexpected positions coming into New Hampshire''....
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DoubleDutch American Elections Podcast

January 25, 2016

DoubleDutch is a weekly Dutch podcast about the American elections by US correspondent Freke Vuijst and BNR correspondent Reinout van Wagtendonk....
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The American ambassador to the Netherlands is returning to the US

January 20, 2016

We are very sorry to hear that the American ambassador Timothy Broas is returning to the US next month (Source: DutchNews)....
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US Embassy in The Hague May Become Museum

January 18, 2016

The American embassy in The Hague may be turned into a hotel and a museum for artist MC Escher. The embassy’s new location in Wassenaar will open in 2017 and the current building will become vacant (Source: DutchNews.nl)....
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‘Presidential’ by the Washington Post

January 13, 2016

The Washington Post explores the character and legacy of each of the American presidents, in 44 episodes leading up to Election Day 2016....
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John Irving Interview

January 6, 2016

In the interview, Irving gives us a glimpse into the creative process that propels his bestselling narratives including his latest book "Avenue of Mysteries."...
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Interview Dave Eggers

January 4, 2016

American author Dave Eggers discusses his latest novel 'The Circle' with correspondent Roel Verrycken. In the interview, Eggers explains how technology and privacy inspired 'The Circle'....
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Print Books Are On The Rise Again In The US

December 22, 2015

In the US, sales of physical books have experienced a renewed surge of interest. ...
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The Top Books of 2015 according to the NY Times

December 15, 2015

The New York Times on the year's best books, as chosen by their three daily book critics. Upcoming JAI guest Garth Risk Hallberg's 'City On Fire' and former guest T. C. Boyle's 'The Harder They Come' made the list....
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Tracy Metz – What Design Can Do

December 12, 2015

JAI director Tracy Metz’s lecture for ‘What Design Can Do’ in São Paulo, Brazil can be read on design and architecture blog Dezeen. ”Architects and urban designers are finally responding to the threat of rising sea levels by welcoming water into cities”....
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Robert Putnam interview in FD

November 28, 2015

FD Editor in Chief Cees van Lotringen interviews former guest of the Institute Robert Putnam. According to Putnam, the American belief in progress is threatened due to social, economic, and technological developments....
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Casper Thomas interviews Robert Putnam

November 13, 2015

Former JAI guest Robert Putnam talks about his new book 'Our Kids' with Casper Thomas. Thomas was also the moderator for our event with Robert Putnam....
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Bret Easton Ellis interviews Quentin Tarantino

November 12, 2015

JAI friend Bret Easton Ellis meets filmmaker Quentin Tarantino to talk about their shared love of cinema....
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Robert Putnam Interview

November 2, 2015

NRC correspondent Guus Valk interviews social critic Robert Putnam. According to Putnam, the American Dream does not exist anymore....
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The Wall Street Journal reviews ‘The Givenness of Things’

October 31, 2015

Barton Swaim reviews Marilynne Robinson's new book of essays, 'The Givenness of Things', in the Wall Street Journal....
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President Obama interviews writer Marilynne Robinson

October 14, 2015

President Obama and his favorite author Marilynne Robinson discuss faith, politics, and communities. Marilynne Robinson will speak at the John Adams Institute on November 15....
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The New York Times reviews ‘Steve Jobs’

October 10, 2015

Anthony Scott, film critic for the New York Times, reviews the movie 'Steve Jobs'. The credited source of the film is the biography of Jobs written by former JAI guest Walter Isaacson. ...
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Financial Times reviews ‘Neverhome’

September 25, 2015

Alexander Gilmour reviews 'Neverhome' by Laird Hunt. According to Gilmour, 'Neverhome' is an exceptional novel that “might also have been dropped off God’s clouds. It is a remarkable achievement''....
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NRC reviews ‘Purity’

September 19, 2015

Pieter Steinz reviews ‘Purity’ by Jonathan Franzen. Read the review (in Dutch) here. In his review, Steinz highlights the controversy surrounding the writer who has been accused of being arrogant and grumpy. ...
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NRC reviews ‘The Art of Forgery’

September 12, 2015

Pieter van Os reviews ‘The Art of Forgery’ by Noah Charney. Read the review (in Dutch) here. Van Os was also the moderator for our event with Noah Charney on September 24....
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Noah Charney: How to achieve more in less time

August 31, 2015

American writer Noah Charney gives four tips on how to achieve more in less time. Read the article (Dutch) in 360 Magazine here....
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NRC reviews ‘The Harder They Come’

August 24, 2015

Pieter Steinz, literary critic and editor for NRC, reviews T. C. Boyle’s new novel, ‘The Harder They Come’....
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The Washington Post review of ‘The Art of Forgery’

August 20, 2015

Adrian Higgins reviews 'The Art of Forgery’ by Noah Charney. According to Higgins, the book offers “a fascinating account of avarice and hubris.''...
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NY Times reviews ‘The Harder They Come’

August 6, 2015

According to Michiko Kakutani, literary critic for The New York Times, “´The Harder They Come´ is a masterly — and arresting — piece of storytelling, arguably Mr. Boyle’s most powerful, kinetic novel yet''....
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NY Times reviews ‘Go Set a Watchman’

July 12, 2015

Michiko Kakutani reviews Harper Lee’s (photo) highly anticipated second novel 'Go Set a Watchman'. ...
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God and Marriage Equality

June 28, 2015

After the Supreme Court's landmark ruling on gay marriage, the New Yorker reflects on the role of religious arguments in Obergefell v. Hodges and its 1960's analog Loving v. Virginia: "God may reign, but He (or She) doesn’t legislate."...
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The Bizarre Struggle for a Place in the Ivy League

June 8, 2015

Following our event with Jerome Karabel and Alexander Rinnooy Kan on May 28th, Ronald van de Krol of the FD wrote an article (in Dutch) on the admissions process at Ivy League universities: "It's become almost impossible to be accepted to a top university in the US. The strict and subjective selections lead to a race between 18-year-olds, in which brawn beats brains."...
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Surviving College Admissions Madness

May 27, 2015

The New York Times takes a critical look at college admissions mania which, “sends a message that college is a sanctum to be breached—a border to be crossed—rather than a land to be inhabited and tilled for all that it’s worth.”...
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Harvard accused of discrimination

May 18, 2015

This week, more than 60 Asian American organizations filed a complaint with the federal government alleging that Harvard University discriminates against Asian Americans in their admissions process....
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Would Thomas Jefferson Work At GoogleX?

May 15, 2015

With less than a week to go before our event with Google's Laszlo Bock, we share this Daily Beast article on how the tech world stole America’s biggest thinkers. "For many of our best and brightest, government these days feels obsolete."...
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Laszlo Bock Featured in 360 Magazine

May 11, 2015

In an interview (in Dutch) in 360 Magazine, upcoming JAI guest Laszlo Bock explains Google's hiring strategies, and why his managers aren't allowed to decide who is hired and who is not....
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T.C. Boyle wins Robert Kirsch Award

May 7, 2015

At the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, upcoming JAI guest T.C. Boyle won the Robert Kirsch Award for lifetime achievement. Boyle won the award for his entire oeuvre, which includes fourteen novels and over a hundred short stories....
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Over 200 writers object to Charlie Hebo Award

May 4, 2015

Former JAI director Russell Shorto and friend of the institute Michael Cunningham are among the 204 writers who object to the PEN Freedom of Expression award for Charlie Hebdo....
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“Guantánamo Diary” and the American Slave Narrative

April 20, 2015

To complement this year's Quincy Club’s theme of slavery through the ages, we share an article in The New Yorker comparing Mohamedou Ould Slahi’s recent “Guantánamo Diary” with the traditional American Slave Narrative....
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Hillary is Ready

April 13, 2015

After Hillary Clinton's long-awaited announcement of her presidential candidacy this weekend, The New Yorker looks ahead at her campaign. "Who is Hillary? She has a team, a smile, a grandchild, and a campaign office in Brooklyn, and she is ready."...
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Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie on “Apollo”

April 7, 2015

This week, The New Yorker published a new short story, "Apollo", by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who visited our institute last year. In an interview with the magazine, Adichie explains about her inspiration, Bruce Lee, and the story behind the title....
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Letter from Amsterdam

March 29, 2015

Friend of the institute dr. George Blaustein offers his view of the revolution currently taking place at the University of Amsterdam. "Is all this just a tempest in a Dutch teapot? Or are our grievances and our actions significant abroad? I think they are significant, otherwise I would not be writing this."...
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David Byrne: “An Amsterdam Discussion”

March 9, 2015

David Byrne wrote a wonderful article as a follow-up to his event with the John Adams last October. In his expanded lecture, Byrne takes a gloomy view on artist revenues in the age of Pirate Bay, Spotify, and Youtube....
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The New Yorker reviews “House of Cards”

March 4, 2015

The new season of "House of Cards" feels like an extended epilogue, which is perhaps exactly what we - along with Frank Underwood - deserve. The New Yorker reviews the third season of "House of Cards."...
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Assasination of Boris Nemtsov

March 2, 2015

The assassination of Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov on Friday has added a chilling sense of actuality to our event with Bill Browder on Thursday. "I find it hard to think Putin would actually order Nemtsov killed, not because Putin is a pacifist but because I see no real advantage."...
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NRC review of ‘Red Notice’

February 23, 2015

NRC Handelsblad gives Bill Browder's 'Red Notice' four out of five stars. "One of the first Western investors in Russia reveals how the police, the Justice Department and public officials looted his company. His narrative reads like a John le Carré thriller."...
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Interview Bill Browder in FD

February 12, 2015

An interview (in Dutch) with our upcoming speaker Bill Browder (February 26) in FD. "The West has a completely false picture of Russia (...) we think that they think and act like us. But they do just the opposite."...
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Harper Lee’s second novel

February 4, 2015

Fifty years after her famed only novel, Harper Lee is set to release her second book, written before "To Kill a Mockingbird" but never published. "Go Set a Watchman" a sequel of sorts to "Mockingbird", centers around the adult Scout, and is to be published this summer....
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Russell Shorto: “On Slavery’s Doorstep in Ghana”

January 31, 2015

Former JAI director Russell Shorto wrote a travel story about Ghana and slavery in this weekend's edition of the New York Times....
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The State of the Union 2015

January 21, 2015

President Barack Obama laid out an aggressive agenda for his final two years in office during his State of the Union address Tuesday, assuring Americans that the “shadow of crisis has passed” and that, with the economy improving, it was time to “turn the page.” Politico looks back at last night’s State of the Union. …...
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Teju Cole: “Unmournable Bodies”

January 12, 2015

“We mourn with France. We ought to. But it is also true that violence from ‘our’ side continues unabated. By this time next month, in all likelihood, many more ‘young men of military age’ and many others, neither young nor male, will have been killed by U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan and elsewhere.” Read the …...
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Twelve Lessons for 2015

January 5, 2015

Click here to read what The New Yorker columnist John Cassidy has to say about 2014, and what that means for 2015....
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David Oyelowo and Lupita Nyong’o in ‘Americanah’

December 17, 2014

‘Interstellar’ actor David Oyelowo will appear alongside Lupita Nyong’o in the film adaptation of ‘Americanah’. Based on the Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie novel—the same novel that brought Adichie to the JAI earlier this year—the story follows a pair of young Nigerian immigrants who face a lifetime of struggle while their relationship endures. Brad Pitt has been announced …...
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Washington Post praises the Dutch drug policy

December 4, 2014

Washington Post journalist Christopher Ingraham praises the current drug warnings in Amsterdam and the notable lack of moral judgment in the language used. Read the article here....
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What the PvdA can learn from nemesis Ayn Rand

November 27, 2014

The PvdA published a report that suggests they are losing contact with their supporters – not a first for the party. Jurriën Hamer explains why the party should seek advice from its archenemy, philosopher and author Ayn Rand. Read the article here (in Dutch). ...
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A New Holiday Tradition for the Dutch: Arguing About Blackface

November 17, 2014

Hundreds of Dutch citizens gathered this weekend to watch the parades in honor of St. Nicholas, who according to local lore is accompanied by a dark-skinned helper know as Zwarte Piet, or Black Pete. This tradition has sparked controversy and The New York Times looks at both sides of the debate. Read the article here....
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David Byrne’s history lesson at the Rijksmuseum

October 29, 2014

David Byrne spent the morning before his JAI discussion on October 18, 2014 exploring the Rijksmuseum. He has now written a piece about the collection, but also about Dutch colonial history. “How do these immigrant folks who visit the museum react to seeing room after room of the triumphant Dutch dominating their former homelands…and the Dutch wealth …...
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Gary Shteyngart’s “Little Failure” book tour

October 17, 2014

Gary Shteyngart wrote a hilarious piece in The New Yorker about his “Little Failure” book tour. This tour has also passed through the John Adams Institute on November 17, 2014. Read his piece here....
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The Guardian review of “How Music Works”

October 3, 2014

David Byrne’s reflections in his new book How Music Works intrigue The Guardian’s Michel Faber, who sees the book as “disarmingly frank, a fresh perspective from a down-to-earth mind”. Read the review and discover Byrne’s secret to sell here. ...
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Francis Fukuyama: America in Decay

September 18, 2014

Francis Fukuyama writes for Foreign Affairs about the “steady deterioration in the overall quality of American government” that has been documented by public administration specialists for more than a generation. “Federal employees appear to be more motivated by compensation than mission, ensnared in careers that cannot compete with business and nonprofits, troubled by the lack …...
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The Source of New York’s Greatness

September 8, 2014

Former John Adams Institute director Russell Shorto writes for the New York Times on the eve of New York’s 350th “birthday”, reminding us that the Dutch economic system and agreement to work together for the common good played an important role in the rise of New York. Read more here....
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Teju Cole rereads James Baldwin

September 7, 2014

In an essay for The New Yorker, Teju Cole, a friend of the institute who visited in 2012, rereads James Baldwin’s “Stranger in the Village” with the tragedies of Ferguson in mind. This essay was also published in Dutch in the De Groene Amsterdammer on September 4. A revised version of Teju Cole’s Every Day is …...
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Amy Tan interview

September 1, 2014

In this video George Stroumboulopoulos interviews former JAI guest Amy Tan, who speaks about her work, the Valley of Amazement. ...
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Amsterdam’s Weird Culture War

August 5, 2014

The Atlantic’s Citylab explores some of the debate sparked by Rijksmuseum director Wim Pijbes’ open letter published last weekend in the NRC. In his letter, Pijbes stated that Amsterdam is “dirty, filthy and too full” and that “the charm and spirit of Amsterdam has long since faded”. Read CityLab’s take on the debate here....
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Malaysia Flight 17: The Unique Way the Dutch Mourn

July 29, 2014

Former JAI director Russell Shorto in Time Magazine on how the Dutch, with their innate distrust of ideology, are strikingly different from Americans in their gut reactions. Read the article here....
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B.J. Novak’s “The Book With No Pictures”

July 7, 2014

B.J. Novak, former guest of the John Adams Institute, has also written a children’s book, “The Book With No Pictures”, which will appear in September. “I wanted to write a book,” he said, “that would introduce the youngest of kids to the idea that words can be their allies — that the right words can …...
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Russell Shorto: Watermanagement in the US

June 25, 2014

Former John Adams Institute director Russell Shorto was interviewed by the Financieele Dagblad for a piece on watermanagement, Socialism and how the US could benefit from Dutch expertise. Read the article here....
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Al Gore’s new hope for the climate

June 23, 2014

“In the struggle to solve the climate crisis, a powerful, largely unnoticed shift is taking place. The forward journey for human civilization will be difficult and dangerous, but it is now clear that we will ultimately prevail.” Writing for the Rolling Stone, friend of the Institute and former US Vice President Al Gore shares a …...
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Clive Thompson teaser

June 18, 2014

Yvonne Zonderop, former moderator for our event with Clive Thompson, actually interviewed Thompson earlier this year in January. Read more here (in Dutch)....
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Elizabeth Warren: America’s heroine

June 14, 2014

Former John Adams Institute Board Member Chris Kijne hails Elizabeth Warren – a US Senator from Massachusetts who has been making headlines due to her efforts in combatting student debt and taking on Wall Street – as America’s new heroine. Read more here (in Dutch)....
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Bookstores of New York

June 12, 2014

The New Yorker asked the cartoonist Bob Eckstein to walk around New York City and draw his favorite bookstores. This is what he sent them....
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The Diary: Teju Cole

June 9, 2014

The US novelist, whom the John Adams Institute hosted in 2012, traveled from Amman to Ramallah to attend the Palestine Festival of Literature and wrote about his experience for ‘The Diary’ in the Financial Times. Read here....
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‘MaddAddam’ Book Trilogy Adapted As HBO Series

June 5, 2014

HBO has started the development of the drama series ‘MaddAddam’, based on the trilogy of friend of the institute Margaret Atwood. Produced by Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan, Noah). Read more here....
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Robert Reich: Freedom Summer II

June 4, 2014

Friend of the institute Robert Reich says that the movement of low-wage workers for decent pay and working conditions in the U.S. is the civil rights struggle of our time. Read his post on his website here....
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The Rise of the Global Capital

June 3, 2014

Simon Kuper in the Financial Times on why Amsterdam is slipping into the global second division. Read here....
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Another prize for Andrew Solomon

May 30, 2014

“Figuring out how to love someone who seems unlovable is very familiar to me,” says Andrew Solomon, author of Far From the Tree. Solomon visited the John Adams Institute in February and meanwhile he has won yet another prize, the Wellcome book prize which is awarded for excellent works of non-fiction or fiction that are centered …...
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