CNN

In a world where "best of" lists drive clicks and sell publications, the natural urge to follow the arbiters of taste — plenty of whom "don't know anything," chef David Chang says — is getting in the way of discovery. https://cnn.it/3SRF6b2

German Chancellor Merz's party is set for dire night in state elections, exit polls show, piling pressure on his leadership as far-right party surges. https://cnn.it/4yNArWP

Italy is preparing to ban face coverings in schools and cap the number of foreign students per class, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said as she played up her right-wing credentials at a youth event organized by her party. https://cnn.it/3Tcu4NE

CNN's Don Riddell asks: What can a good laugh do for you? Well, a lot more than you think. https://cnn.it/4rs11T2

As the Smithsonian Institution prepares to launch a nationwide search for a new leader, an unexpected question mark hangs over the position that's long been considered a plum one in the worlds of art, science and history. https://cnn.it/4hAWvOq

Israeli President Isaac Herzog pardoned a soldier who shot and killed an incapacitated Palestinian attacker in the occupied West Bank in 2016, despite opposition from the military's chief of staff. https://cnn.it/4jbop4P

"Even in heavily blue-collar states and House districts that were long believed to be the most receptive to a protectionist agenda, Democrats almost uniformly have been comfortable this year running against the Trump tariffs, while Republicans have struggled to defend them," writes CNN's Ronald Brownstein | Analysis https://cnn.it/4xyMnuk

Trump says his proposed 250-foot triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery will double as a military complex. https://cnn.it/46DUTxh