It’s that point of 12 months. As Future Good has previously, we’re rounding up our most learn tales of the 12 months. This little journey down reminiscence lane may give us a way of the breadth and depth of Future Good’s protection — and a way of what tales and topics you, the viewers, are most excited by.
This 12 months’s high 10 record options most of our basic topics, like animal welfare and manufacturing unit farming, represented by Marina Bolotnikova’s piece on why Thanksgiving is precisely the best day to lose the turkey and go vegan. Our love of trying to foretell the long run, as evidenced by our at all times well-liked forecast for the brand new 12 months. And AI security, as proven by Sigal Samuel and Kelsey Piper’s newsbreaking exposés into OpenAI.
However there have been surprises on the record as properly, like exterior writers Gil Barndollar and Matthew C. Mai’s prescient warning that America’s army is operating in need of its most essential part: troopers. Or Dylan Matthews’s fascinating deep dive into the little recognized State Division intelligence bureau that has a greater monitor report than the CIA on the subject of predicting world occasions.
This time of 12 months, I’m at all times grateful each for our wonderful employees and slate of out of doors contributors, and for the eye of our viewers — particularly these of you who subscribe to this text (and the others we’ve launched this 12 months: Marina and Kenny Torrella’s Processing Meat and Sigal’s moral recommendation column Your Mileage Could Differ, which comes twice a month through this feed). Right here’s to an even bigger and higher 2025.
1) “Touring this summer season? Perhaps don’t let the airline scan your face” by Sigal Samuel
I’ll reveal a bit secret of the journalism biz: Timing issues. We revealed Sigal’s takedown of airport facial screening in the course of the summer season’s record-setting air journey season, as Individuals took to the skies once more now that Covid was kind of within the rearview mirror. Tens of millions of these fliers in all probability allowed airways to scan their faces with out considering, however as Sigal wrote, that is one thing you may choose out of — and given privateness considerations, one thing you in all probability ought to choose out of. Hold that in thoughts this vacation season.
2) “You’re in all probability consuming method an excessive amount of protein” by Kenny Torrella
So I realized two issues when this piece got here out in January. One, only a few of us truly must hyperload on protein, except you’re an energetic bodybuilder. The truth is, as Kenny wrote, even with out making an attempt the typical American is already consuming considerably extra protein than dietary tips name for, due to our meat-heavy diets. And two, our readers have actually, actually sturdy opinions about dietary science. I’m undecided some other single piece this 12 months generated a lot suggestions.
Right here’s one other journalism lesson: In case you occur to have a deeply reported story a few considerably obscure well being difficulty — on this case, the rise of sure cancers amongst younger individuals — undoubtedly be sure to push it out when one of the vital well-known figures on the planet turns into a part of that story. Dylan Scott, who was an awesome addition to Future Good this 12 months as an editor and author, introduced a deep properly of experience in well being reporting to this story on the rise of colorectal most cancers in sufferers underneath 50. That it coincided partly with the completely satisfied information that the Princess of Wales was now most cancers free helped it attain a a lot bigger viewers.
4) “24 issues we expect will occur in 2024” by the Future Good employees
You individuals simply love to examine what we expect will occur within the 12 months forward. (A separate prediction piece that we did for Vox’s tenth anniversary, on 10 issues we expect will occur over the following 10 years, was additionally well-liked.) Why is that? I’d prefer to assume it’s because our viewers has deep belief in our capacity to investigate the tendencies that assist make up the long run, however possibly it’s simply since you stay up for seeing all of the fallacious predictions we make. Effectively, excellent news! In case you come again on December 30, you may see simply how properly (or badly) we did.
5) “Is oat milk unhealthy? That’s the fallacious query.” by Benji Jones
Benj, who can normally be discovered trekking to colourful areas all over the world to doc the plight of biodiversity for Vox’s local weather part, popped over to Future Good in February to dismantle the case in opposition to oat milk. As Benji defined, meals shouldn’t be categorized by means of a easy dichotomy of excellent/unhealthy. And we undoubtedly shouldn’t ignore the impression a meals has on the setting or the animals we share it with — and nondairy oat milk is a winner on each counts.
6) “America isn’t prepared for one more conflict — as a result of it doesn’t have the troops” by Gil Barndollar and Matthew C. Mai
One in all my targets in 2024 was to make the way forward for conflict an even bigger a part of Future Good’s protection. Whether or not we prefer it or not — and I don’t — battle is on the rise, and the know-how we use in conflict is altering quickly. That’s why I used to be so completely satisfied to see this exterior piece from Catholic College senior analysis fellow Gil Barndollar and Protection Priorities contributing fellow Matthew C. Mai earn such a large readership. It connects two main tendencies — demographic change and the rise of world battle — and exhibits how they’re intersecting in a method that’s harmful for the US.
7) “8 million turkeys will probably be thrown within the trash this Thanksgiving” by Marina Bolotnikova
Journalism lesson No. 3: By no means let a serious vacation go by with out capitalizing on viewers curiosity. Manufacturing unit farming tales over Thanksgiving have turn into one thing of a custom for us, however Marina’s piece was an actual tour de power. She started with an unobjectionable premise — Individuals don’t truly like turkey that a lot — and developed it right into a name to motion for many who care about animal welfare to take again Thanksgiving. Sidesgiving, anybody?
8) “Warren Buffett’s breakup with the Gates Basis will damage the world” by Kelsey Piper
At Future Good, we do our celeb breakup information a bit otherwise. There may be certainly scrumptious gossip behind multibillionaire philanthropist Warren Buffett’s resolution to not give away his fortune after his dying to the Gates Basis, as had been lengthy deliberate. However Kelsey was way more involved about what can be misplaced when Buffet’s $137 billion fortune goes to his three grownup youngsters, relatively than to one of the vital efficient world well being charities ever developed. As she put it: “‘Three eccentrics need to agree on tips on how to spend $135 billion’ sounds extra just like the premise for a sitcom than a course of that may accomplish actual good with that a lot cash.”
9) “The obscure federal intelligence bureau that obtained Vietnam, Iraq, and Ukraine proper” by Dylan Matthews
Dylan Matthews is at present higher generally known as the man who began an countless spherical of discourse about whether or not it’s moral to provide cash to rebuild Notre Dame as an alternative of saving the lives of youngsters. (It isn’t.) However I do know that there’s nothing Dylan likes higher than to dig deep into an obscure a part of the federal authorities and interview DC elders about what issues have been like within the outdated days. That facet of Dylan got here up with one in every of my favourite tales of 2024: a profile of the State Division’s Bureau of Intelligence and Analysis, which has put far greater and higher funded intelligence businesses to disgrace with its oracular predictive powers.
10) “‘I misplaced belief’: Why the OpenAI staff in command of safeguarding humanity imploded” by Sigal Samuel and “Leaked OpenAI paperwork reveal aggressive ways towards former staff” by Kelsey Piper
I’m dishonest barely by together with two tales in a single slot, however hey, I’m the editor. The truth is these two tales are deeply related, a part of a collection of investigative experiences into ChatGPT-maker OpenAI that we put out in Could. Within the first, Sigal Samuel obtained former OpenAI staff to provide her the within story of how the AI startup’s superalignment staff — the individuals charged with conserving future superintelligence protected — went kaput. Within the second, Kelsey Piper obtained firm paperwork exhibiting that CEO Sam Altman wasn’t being truthful about the way in which OpenAI was utilizing the specter of blocking fairness gross sales to maintain former staff in line. These tales broke information and created actual change in maybe an important AI firm on the market. There’s no higher instance of Future Good’s impression on the world in 2024.
A model of this story initially appeared within the Future Good publication. Join right here!
