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John McWhorter

Latest articles by John McWhorter

The Big Idea
The great media “shithole” controversy showed how our ideas about profanity are shiftingThe great media “shithole” controversy showed how our ideas about profanity are shifting
The Big Idea

Language norms are changing, but not all media outlets are up to date.

By John McWhorter
The Big Idea
Why the war on poverty failed — and what to do nowWhy the war on poverty failed — and what to do now
The Big Idea

Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant was ground zero for Great Society anti-poverty programs. You’d hardly guess it today.

By John McWhorter
The Big Idea
Trump is a disaster, but talk of a “whitelash” is misguided — and counterproductiveTrump is a disaster, but talk of a “whitelash” is misguided — and counterproductive
The Big Idea
When linguistic analysis goes horribly wrong: no, Donald Trump doesn’t “talk like a woman”When linguistic analysis goes horribly wrong: no, Donald Trump doesn’t “talk like a woman”
The Big Idea

The traits one linguist identified can be explained a different way.

By John McWhorter
The Big Idea
The bonfire of Noam Chomsky: journalist Tom Wolfe targets the acclaimed linguistThe bonfire of Noam Chomsky: journalist Tom Wolfe targets the acclaimed linguist
The Big Idea

In a rollicking but flawed book, Wolfe argues that Chomsky’s theories about language and the brain fall apart under scrutiny.

By John McWhorter

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