Investigative journalist Peter Laufer is back with his third book in a trilogy that explores the way we humans interact with animals. The attack of a trainer at Sea World by a killer whale in February 2010 is the catalyst for this examination of the controversial role animals have played in the human arenas of entertainment and sports. From the Romans throwing Christians to lions to cock-fighting in present-day California, from abusive Mexican circuses to the thrills of a Hungarian counterpart, from dog training to shooting strays in the Baghdad streets, Laufer looks at the ways people have...

These days everyone has something to say (or declaim ) about the U.S.-Mexico border. Whether it's immigration, resource management, educational policy, or drugs, the borderlands are either the epicenter or the emblem of a current crisis facing the nation. At a time when the region has been co-opted for every possible rhetorical use, what endures is a resilient and vibrant local culture that resists easy characterization. For an honest picture of life on the border, what remains is to listen to voices that are too often drowned out: the people who actually live and work there, who make their...

With this provocative and concise book, journalist Peter Laufer launches a Slow News movement, inviting us to question the value of the perpetual empty-calorie news that accompanies our daily lives.
"Slow News: A Manifesto for the Critical News Consumer" examines the nature of news in the context of the increasingly frenetic pace of modern life in the twenty-first century. Taking a cue from the slow food movement, Laufer suggests that we step back from the constant barrage of instant news to consider news thoughtfully and thoroughly. He argues that it is valuable for both the journalist...