Many people have heard of Dungeons and Dragons, but most have never played it. It’s not a typical “board game”, but instead the seminal entry in a category referred to as tabletop role playing games (TTRPGs). D&D doesn’t require any special boards, pre-boxed cards, terrain, or figures. All of these things can add color, interest, or excitement, but when the game was first developed in the 70’s, it was simply a rule system, paper sheets for keeping track of a character’s stats, and some special dice.

Online influencers, through their postings on Instagram, Threads, TikTok and elsewhere, have created an exuberant universe of news and commentary that often outruns mainstream media in reach and even impact. They work the same waterfront as journalism and public relations, but their relationship with those mainstay practices built around fact and advocacy is an uneasy one.

The Agriculture Department will reopen about 2,100 county offices all across the country Thursday despite the ongoing government shutdown to help farmers and ranchers get access to $3 billion of aid from existing programs.