Lily Rothman

Lily Rothman is a senior editor at TIME, overseeing the magazine's weekly The Brief section, TIME.com's History vertical and the TIME Vault.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt during one of his fireside chats broadcasted on NBC Radio

What Can History Teach Today's Leaders? Doris Kearns Goodwin Shares Presidential Lessons for the Coronavirus Pandemic

"The overwhelming majority have never seen a situation that so severely dis...

"The overwhelming majority have never seen a situation that so severely disrupts our daily routines. Maybe that’s where history can provide perspective and solace"

Greta Thunberg Is the Youngest TIME Person of the Year Ever. Here’s How She Made History

The climate activist is the first teenager to receive the recognition

'We're All Growing Up Together': As Sesame Street Turns 50, Big Bird Is Still Making Friends Everywhere He Goes

There are perks to being an 8-ft.-tall canary. Everyone recognizes you and ...

There are perks to being an 8-ft.-tall canary. Everyone recognizes you and wants to be your friend. On the other hand, our world is not built for 8-ft.-tall canaries. Inside a television studio, for example,...

Robert Mugabe Ruled Zimbabwe for Decades. Here's How He First Came to Power

What Mugabe did with his power, however, was less easy to explain

“We’ve been led to believe that racist is a fixed category, that it’s a tattoo, it’s a label,” says author Ibram X. Kendi.

How to Be an Antiracist Author Ibram X. Kendi on What We Get Wrong About Racism

The National Book Award winner on "the R word," the end of capitalism and h...

The National Book Award winner on "the R word," the end of capitalism and his new book, How to Be an Antiracist

We want to help people wrestle with the shades of gray, says Lonnie G. Bunch III, the 14th secretary of the Smithsonian.

The New Head of the Smithsonian Thinks Americans Can Find a Middle Ground in Museums

The 14th secretary of the Smithsonian, Lonnie G. Bunch III, on his new job,...

The 14th secretary of the Smithsonian, Lonnie G. Bunch III, on his new job, the value of pandas and how to make the past personal You've said you can tell a lot about a place...

Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin, speaking during the signing of the nuclear nonproliferation treaty in the White House, in 1968.

President Trump Said He Would Take Foreign Campaign Help. Here's What Past Candidates Did in That Situation

What two candidates did in parallel situations in 1968 is an instructive le...

What two candidates did in parallel situations in 1968 is an instructive lesson for today, argues presidential scholar Ken Hughes