The Best Things We Published In 2018

A lot of things happened in 2018, but most importantly, Current Affairs published a lot of new articles and essays. However, with 10 news events happening every 10 seconds these days, things tend to slip away. So I wanted to collect some of the bits of Current Affairs that the editors are most proud of.

We published six gorgeous print issues this year, from which many of these came. You can order the available back issues in our store or subscribe so that you’ll get:

This is just a highlight reel. We published many, many more wonderful articles this year, and I recommend having a dig through our archives. The print editions had lots of stuff that isn’t available online, including activities and games plus letters from the editor. If you haven’t already subscribed, you must!

In addition to all of this, there was the Current Affairs podcast! Starting in May, we managed to put out dozens of wonderful episodes thanks to the skills of Podmaster Pete Davis and his crack team of editors. Every other week, we produced a “main” episode featuring a panel discussion, then we also did a whole slew of bonus episodes for Patreon donors. Check out the latest episode, a delightful interview with Glenn Greenwald about animal welfare. Support us on Patreon to get instant access to bonuses about subjects as varied as: Christmas movies, Greek mythology, Russian literature, pet peeves, prison abolition, football, Elon Musk, reality shows, rich people, and sooooooo much more.

We also published three Current Affairs books this year. First, Interesting Times, a giant collection of my work from the last couple of years, of which I am very proud. Then, The Current Affairs Rules for Life, which collects our “takedowns” of awful right-wing pundits and defends the idea of social justice. Finally, and most importantly, The Current Affairs Big Book of Amusements, an overstuffed collection of weird and wonderful tidbits from the magazine including games, puzzles, comics, flowcharts, diagrams, fake ads, and soooooo much more. I did most of the graphic design for this myself and worked harder on it than I have on any other book. I am so proud of it, and I think it’s like nothing else you’ve ever seen. Please consider purchasing a copy. You won’t regret it.

I want to thank our amazing Current Affairs team for making this year possible. Brianna Rennix, Briahna Joy Gray, Cate Root, Eli Massey, Lyta Gold, Nick Slater, Oren Nimni, Pete Davis, Sparky Abraham, and Vanessa A. Bee have all worked their asses off to make this magazine succeed. God bless them all. Lyta was an absolute machine for producing endless hilarious sketches for the podcast and amusements for the magazine and book. Nick has created one of the most entertaining and thoughtful newsletters I’ve ever seen, and you really need to see it (all subscribers and Patreon donors should receive it). Vanessa has made our Twitter account brilliant and witty. Pete has put together a must-listen podcast. Cate, our Administrative Maven, has pulled off the impossible: not just herding cats by trying to keep the editors on track, but sometimes literally herding cats to create ads like this.

And yet: All of the others have full-time jobs outside Current Affairs, so this is something they do in their spare time. I’m still the only full-time paid staff member of Current Affairs. Someday we want to actually hire them, so that they can be compensated properly for the work they do. Please help us by subscribing or donating today.

Most importantly, though, I want to thank YOU. You, the Current Affairs reader, the person who keeps this operation afloat. Your support has allowed us to build up a successful independent print magazine at a time when supposedly this is impossible. We have no outside advertising, and rely entirely on subscriptions and donations. Page views actually cost us money, so if you’ve enjoyed our material this year, please consider helping us out so that we can continue to provide you with high-quality work. We have many exciting plans for 2019, including new books, new videos, live shows, and some exciting podcast guests. But with one full-time staff person and no outside funding, it’s really hard to produce as much material as we’d like as quickly as we’d like. So we need you!

THANK YOU and I wish you all the most wonderful possible 2019.