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THE ATLANTIC DAILY

America Is Losing the Facts That Hold It Together

The Trump administration is erasing the country’s shared understanding.

By David A. Graham

books in shelves black and white

Smith Collection / Gado/ Getty

FEBRUARY 5, 2026, 5:23 PM ET

The CIA World Factbook occupies a special place in the memories of elder Millennials like me. It was an enormous compendium of essential facts about every country around the world, carefully collected from across the federal government. This felt especially precious when the World Factbook went online in 1997 (it had previously been a classified internal publication printed on paper, then a declassified print resource), a time when the internet still felt new and unsettled. Unlike many other pages on the World Wide Web, it was reliable enough that you could even get away with citing it in schoolwork. And there was a special thrill in the idea that the CIA, a famously secretive organization, was the one providing it to you.

Memories are now the only place the World Factbook resides. In a post online yesterday, the agency noted that the site “has sunset,” though it provided no explanation for why. (The agency did not immediately reply to my inquiry about why, nor has it replied to other outlets.) The Associated Press noted that the move “follows a vow from Director John Ratcliffe to end programs that don’t advance the agency’s core missions.”

The demise of the World Factbook is part of a broad war on information being waged by the Trump administration. This is different from the administration’s assault on truth, in which the president and the White House lie prolifically or deny reality. This is something more fundamental: It’s a series of steps that by design or in effect block access to data, and in doing so erode the concept of a shared frame for all Americans. “Though the World Factbook is gone, in the spirit of its global reach and legacy, we hope you will stay curious about the world and find ways to explore it … in person or virtually,” the CIA wrote in the valedictory post. Left unsaid: You’re on your own to figure it out now

 With this week’s announcement of massive cuts at The Washington Post, the paper’s Book World supplement earned a dismal distinction: It may be the only newspaper book-review section to have been killed twice. The first time was in 2009, when papers across the country were slashing books coverage in an attempt to stave off budgetary apocalypse. So when the Post relaunched Book World in 2022, readers and writers reacted with the same mixture of amazement and trepidation inspired by the dinosaurs at Jurassic Park. The rebirth of a dead species was wonderful to see, but how would it end?

Now we know. The new Book World was just as good as the old Book World; the editors and critics who lost their jobs this week, including John Williams, Ron Charles, and Becca Rothfeld, followed in the tradition of Jonathan Yardley and Michael Dirda, the Post’s Pulitzer Prize–winning stalwarts. But quality had nothing to do with the decision to cut book reviews, just as it had nothing to do with cuts in the paper’s sports and international coverage. Rather, the Post was making the same business decision that most other publications have made. People don’t want to read book reviews—at least, not enough people to make publishing them worthwhile. It’s a vicious circle. As people feel less of a need to keep up with new books, they stop reading reviews; publications respond by cutting books coverage, so readers don’t hear about new books; as a result, they buy fewer books, which makes publications think they’re not worth covering.

As someone who has been writing book reviews for decades, including as a staff critic for several publications, this is a bitter pill to swallow. It’s tempting to react by blaming the decline of literature, of literacy, of society itself. And there’s plenty of evidence that those things are in fact declining.

Ashley Parker: The murder of The Washington Post

But the disappearance of the book review does not mean the end of criticism or of critics. There are still many places to read smart, insightful writing about books—starting with The Atlantic, of course. There are venerable magazines such as The New Yorker, The New York Review of Books, and Harper’s, and newer ones such as The Metropolitan Review and The Point (where the Post’s Rothfeld published a review-essay just this week). The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal still have excellent weekly book sections. And there’s an embarrassment of riches on Substack, though you have to know where to look. If you tried to keep up with all of the good criticism out there, you’d have no time left for reading actual books.

-Adam Kirsch in The Atlantic

Fascism Central

 Calling the trump administration fascist has become a cliché, but some federal departments seem keen on the comparison. Consider the administration’s messaging on social media.

The Department of Homeland Security’s Facebook account recently posted a recruiting notice for ICE under the banner “WE’LL HAVE OUR HOME AGAIN”—the title of a white-nationalist anthem by the Pine Tree Riots (“By blood or sweat, we’ll get there yet”). The Department of Labor recently posted a video montage referencing American battle scenes under the tagline “One Homeland. One People. One Heritage. Remember who you are, American”—a slogan close to the Nazi-era Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Führer.

Many of these posts borrow overtly from Christianity. In December, the DHS and White House accounts shared Christmas-themed posts celebrating mass deportations and encouraging self-deportation. One featured videos of armed agents performing night raids, with a caption quoting Matthew 5:9 in black-letter type: “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

Read: The Trump administration is publishing a stream of Nazi propaganda

Macho displays and transgressive memes mark a significant shift in how the federal government sees and promotes its mission—and sanctions state violence. It may be tempting to see this change as an organic or bottom-up phenomenon, as if federal agencies are appealing to Proud Boys to lure more ICE recruits. But the reality is that this transformation is the culmination of years of work by niche groups of conservative intellectuals who have long rejected America’s liberal traditions—and now dominate the halls of power.

-Lauren K. Field in The Atlantic

 

Bocephus said a country boy can survive. I’ve never run a trout line or made much of a impression on country girls so I’m beginning to wonder if he’s right. But I still say yes’sir & yes’mam and stand when a lady enters the room.

 It's a good thing I don't watch television. So I don't have to fake having the slightest interest in watching the Slopper Bowl on Sunday.

 We seem to be in a parallel universe. Unfortunately, it's the same one that started in January of 2017.

 We need a good Salvation Army Band outside the Peham Starbucks this morning. Add some class to this joint. Make General Booth proud. Booth marched boldly with his Big Brass Band. Are you washed in the Blood of the Lamb?