About
We can all imagine the feeling of reading something about the world that helps us feel more capable, not more anxious. That helps us develop our perspective intentionally, not reactively. That helps us understand what’s happening in current-affairs developments—and how it relates to our lives—authentically. The experience is rare. But we can imagine it. And we need it.
The experience is rare because most current-affairs coverage goes entirely the other way: It treats us as though everything is about to come apart—or will, unless someone frightens us into caring. As though nothing will make sense unless someone tells us stories that make sense for us. As though we need everything “explained.”
Well, we think the world is way more interesting than that. And we know you are.
Welcome to The Signal.
What if keeping informed felt like getting stronger?
The Signal covers civic and creative life—democracy, economics, technology, and culture—not by pushing opinion narratives you can lean on, but by supporting your capacity to orient yourself in what’s happening in the world—and to think about it for yourself meaningfully.
After all, it’s a complex, shifting world—and a complex, shifting world will reward people who can hold complexity without losing their judgment. Who can track national and global events without becoming addicted to outrage. Who can understand that the most important developments going on aren’t in the headlines; they’re in the trend lines beneath them.
And for that, we all need help—cultivating our ability to connect, to think, to expand our associative intelligence. That’s always been true. But it’s especially true in a digital ecosystem built for distraction and addiction.
How we mind your time
For everybody: Our compact, complementary newsletter tracks and links important developments in the world—helping you stay oriented, escape information overload, and build pattern recognition.
For our members: We bring in-depth, question-driven conversations, featuring hundreds of specialists from our network with access to the context you need to understand major trend lines and the connections among them; our weekly member’s despatch reviews the week, connecting its events to the forces shaping the future; and our cultural-intelligence briefing helps you restore—because nothing’s more relaxing than leisure time well-spent. Plus, early access to everything new, including print extras.
What we believe
We believe understanding the world should make you more effective in engaging with it. We believe people can think for themselves when they have the right questions and context. We believe the future will be written by people who can navigate complexity without losing their principles.
Who we are
Conducted by our editor John Jamesen Gould and our publisher Hywel Mills, we’re a network of reporters, researchers, analysts, and artists from across America and around the world, committed to civic traditions, creative potential, and human life.
Ready?
- Sign up for our complimentary newsletter—delivered Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
- Become a member to access everything.