The New York Times - Advertising - Magazine Columns & Departments

Home > Magazines > Content > The New York Times Magazine > Columns & Departments

Columns & Departments

Each Sunday, The New York Times Magazine sets the tone for the country's conversation in the week to come. It reaches over 6 million highly educated readers across the nation in print and online with content that resonates with up-to-the-minute immediacy.

The Ethicist

Nothing provokes conversation like Randy Cohen's weekly column. He tackles readers' ethical dilemmas, answering questions on everything from whether or not it's okay to access the Internet using a stray Wi-Fi connection to the ethics of parents editing the papers of their college-age children. The Ethicist will continue the conversation online with a new blog that is sure to intrigue our online audience.

Diagnosis

Medical cases are presented as mysteries in this fascinating exploration of illness and modern medicine. The narrative starts with the patient's symptoms, winds through the process of facing puzzled doctors and false conclusions, and culminates with the actual diagnosis.

On Language

From the nuances of hyphenating nouns and adjectives to the new gentility of cursing, language scholar William Safire playfully expounds on grammar, usage and etymology in this esteemed column. Lighthearted and enlightening, On Language has inspired a number of books on its wordy topic.

Consumed

Anthropology meets business analysis in this insightful and informative column. Author Rob Walker, regarded as one of the most influential thinkers on consumption trends in the United States, takes a closer look at the social and marketing forces behind product success stories.

The Funny Pages

An offbeat take on traditional Sunday funny pages, this weekly section has become a showcase for genre fiction, narrative comics and the work of graphic novelists. "The Sunday Serial" features commissioned work from best-selling writers — Patricia Cornwell, Scott Turow, Michael Connolly and Michael Chabon. "The Strip" is a self-contained story by a renowned graphic novelist.

Freakonomics

In this engaging column, award-winning economist Steven D. Levitt and New York Times journalist Stephen J. Dubner use case studies and a great deal of wit and wisdom to show how economic theories can be applied to current events and everyday situations. Whatever the topic, it always inspires lively discussion on the popular Freakonomics Blog at NYTimes.com, where readers comment and interact with the authors and each other, and have access to archives, videos, the Freakonomics e-newsletters, and "Freak-est links" to select news stories.

Crossword

It may be challenging and exasperating, but this nine-letter word is an addiction for many people — and Sunday's Crossword is the most popular. The column is edited by puzzlemaster Will Shortz, the world's first "enigmatologist" and the subject of the award-winning documentary "Wordplay."

The Medium

A weekly adventure in digital culture by Virginia Heffernan, this new weekly Magazine column plunges into the new media that are changing the way we watch, play and communicate. The exploration of high-tech society continues online on the Medium Blog, where readers express their opinions, debate and interact with the author.