COVER

Hyperdemocracy (Cover Stories)

Washington isn't dangerously disconnected from the people; the trouble may be it's too plugged in

Look Who's TALKING (Cover Stories)

The explosion of radio call-in shows has created a new form of electronic populism and demagoguery

NATION

A Thing Called Hope (The Presidency)

As the Clinton campaign starts gearing up for 1996, the First Lady re-emerges as a powerful influence

Hard Going for the Easy Part (Congress)

The popular balanced-budget bill was to be a sure winner, but attacks from all over may bog it down

In the Name of the Father (Investigation)

Did Malcolm X's daughter plot to assassinate Louis Farrakhan? Or was she entrapped by the FBI?

WORLD

Letter From Officer X (Russia)

A professional soldier argues that economic turmoil, political intrigues, incompetent leaders and tactical blunders have crippled a once mighty military

Looking for the Next Step (Russia)

Yeltsin will have to decide what lessons to learn in the war in Chechnya. So will the Clinton Administration

Twilight of A Titan (China)

With Deng Xiaoping's health failing fast, Beijing frets over his successor

HEALTH & MEDICINE

New Age Therapy (Health)

Can the fantasy of Cocoon be fulfilled by a drug that fights the ravages of growing old?

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

BUSINESS

LAW

Scenes From A Bad Marriage (Justice)

The O.J. Simpson trial confronts the crucial legal issue whether past abuse can be a prologue to murder

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

CINEMA: By The Dots (The Arts & Media / CINEMA)

John Singleton directs an earnest, rote campus drama

Hacker Homecoming (The Arts & Media / TECHNOLOGY)

Having paid the price for his computer trespasses, a digital Robin Hood called Phiber Optik is out of jail and back online

TELEVISION: Mom, Apple Pie and PBS (The Arts & Media / TELEVISION)

As Republicans attack public television, its defenders talk about its programming for kids and farmers -- not opera

BOOKS: One Of Each (The Arts & Media / BOOKS)

A clever novel explores the monomania of collecting

BOOKS: Worlds Apart (The Arts & Media / BOOKS)

In nine short stories, Salman Rushdie treats East and West

SPECIAL SECTION

And Now This (Disasters)

Each year brings a new variation on catastrophe in California. This time the rain came tumbling down

ESSAY