Video: Rahman Khandker describes being a fruit vendor as part of The New Yorker’s “Making Money” series, which documents the different ways people throughout New York City make a living: http://nyr.kr/19FhSCk

(Source: newyorker.com)

The loss of the Fung Wah bus service between Boston and New York inspired this parody: http://nyr.kr/XGaaWx

Lyrics and performance by Marc Philippe Eskenazi, with apologies to Bob Dylan.

Directed by Myles Kane.

(Source: newyorker.com)

How will American foreign policy evolve during Obama’s second term? Tonight, David Remnick is hosting a conversation about international relations with the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan E. Rice, and New Yorker staff writer Philip Gourevitch.

Watch a live video of the discussion above, and click-through for more: http://nyr.kr/W1GSSv

Here, see full videos of the previous installments of The Big Story.

In September, 2012, Apple was the most valuable company on earth. Since then, the company’s stock has plummeted thirty-five per cent. What’s wrong with the tech giant? James Surowiecki recently explored this question in the magazine, and in this video he takes a closer look, examining the company’s recent performance and explaining why all the paranoia over Apple might be overstated. 

Richard Brody discusses his DVD-of-the-Week, Allan Dwan’s 1957 far-West film noir “The River’s Edge”: http://nyr.kr/YA9gq9

(Source: newyorker.com)

Marc Phillipe Eskenazi on judging our Caption Contest Song Contest:

When Bob approached me a few months ago, asking me to help him judge the “ Caption Contest Song… song… contest,” I told him, “Absolutely—and I’ll use the extra money to buy a new guitar.” Then Bob said there would be no extra money. When I started to object he gave me the Look, and I apologized.

Since then, I have learned that the talent of all you Caption Contest contestants goes beyond your ability to write captions. You are true songsmiths. I’d like to point out some of my favorite verses, and then celebrate the winning song with my own rendition of it.

I dedicate this performance to my collaborator, Myles Kane, who directed, choreographed, and edited the video. If the video seems strange at first, that’s because it most certainly is. And it will only become stranger. The reason that it is so strange is that Myles and I got in trouble for playing music in the office, and were only allowed to record one take of the song. We then spent the rest of our afternoon messing around with special effects.

And, click-through to see the contest runner-up and honorable mentions: http://nyr.kr/XlPFOc

(Source: newyorker.com)

How much proof do we need about the harmfulness of something before we act?

At a recent public lecture at the University of Pennsylvania, Malcolm Gladwell discussed the strange history of how long it took for society to grasp the seriousness of black-lung disease, and looked at the black-lung diseases of today. Watch the video, and click-through for more: http://nyr.kr/15vcIcN

Joseph Mitchell was on the staff of The New Yorker from 1938 until his death, in 1996. Through his chronicles of New York City, he became a part of it, getting to know every side street and quirk and character. Tonight, David Remnick will discuss Mitchell’s New York with the staff writers Ian Frazier and Mark Singer, and with Thomas Kunkel, the author of a forthcoming biography of Mitchell. Watch a live video of the discussion, beginning now: http://nyr.kr/XHksD1

To ring in the Chinese New Year, the photographer and filmmaker Gabriele Stabile recently spent a day with Danny Bowien, the chef and co-founder of Mission Chinese Food, on the Lower East Side. Stabile shadowed Bowien for a day—from an early-morning hunt for ingredients to a karaoke nightcap. Here’s a peek at life behind the scenes at the popular restaurant: http://nyr.kr/Y55h4u

(Source: newyorker.com)

Earlier this month, Daniel Mendelsohn wrote a piece in the magazine about his life-changing correspondence with the novelist Mary Renault, who became his literary mentor.

In this video, shot at his apartment in Chelsea, Mendelsohn discusses why he became so attached to the Renault books, and reflects on the other influences—both literary and personal—that shaped him as a young writer. “I never resented people with authority and erudition, ” he said. “My natural posture was, ‘I’m an empty vessel, and they can fill me.’ The minute at which you stop being able to learn is the end, I think.” His learning and his widely varied interests are on display in his recently published essay collection, “Waiting for the Barbarians,” which has just been nominated for National Book Critics Circle Award in criticism: http://nyr.kr/WNa9fR