[SIC] 190: Soda Top

Volume 4, Number 34

Apr 28, 2022

But you CAN pay, if you want to. Go right ahead. I’m into it. Monthly or yearly, or founding support (which includes a dinner at my house in May, if you’re in / can get to NYC). Other benefits that’d persuade you? Suggest ‘em. I’m open.

Feel free to share, too

Hi all.

This week Substack enabled ‘sletterers like yours truly to recommend the other Substack newsletters we like. Which made me think of Kyle Raymond Fitzpatrick’s “The Trend Report” a favorite Sunday read (the new edition “Broify” is a good one to start with, btw); it’s similar to [SIC]: one person’s magpie-like curation of the stories of the week.

As I was going through “Broify,” discovering stories in Kyle’s links like I always do, it occurred to me just how entrenched our segmentations have become. How, as a paying NYTimes subscriber and an entertainment obsessive of a certain age, have I never been surfaced the four week-old Kim’s Video is Back story Kyle linked to? And where did Kyle, who’s by all indications young and in LA, find it? It’s weird, IMO. What’s obviously happening: despite our similarities, algo-vision sees our differences more brightly, even to the detriment of basic logic.

Which is worrying. We’re now so far down the algorabbithole that even like minds are being unknowingly separated, in spite of their personal efforts, by engagement optimization engines. Even the best-intentioned media consumers can’t keep find what suits them best.

It’s the ironic triumph / end state of automating filter bubbles meant to enrich us - which end up just making us pauvre (washed Anna Delvey voice). Yeeeeeesh. Hence all the TwittElon stories this week (mostly avoided herein), and the collective, well-warranted lather around them.

Anyway, I’ll keep on trying to act in contrast to the algos. Thanks to David, Iolanda, James, Isaac, Ruba and Celeste for the help this week. No [SIC] Talks or “5 Questions For” this week… you know the drill. Back again soon.

Meantime, the links…

Ben

idk, just some recent images in dialogue.

======[SIC] 190: Soda Top======

The World

Cruftscore / 032C. And the Shitposting Edition. / WITI
Related: What drives people to extremist YouTube videos? TLDR: Influencers, but not the kinds we’re used to. The algo rewards engagement of ALL actors, so when the bad apples double down, we all end up seeing what they’re into / Marginal Revolution
From David Bloom: “This has so many implications for the workplace of the future …” 71% of workers aged 18 to 24 would consider getting a new job if made to come back to the office full time / Insider
Hence, meet the TikTokers shedding light on all the biggest workplace issues/ Protocol
Meanwhile, the real Crypto gold rush might be .. at law schools “Crypto Industry Can’t Hire Enough Lawyers” / WSJ)
People in Beijing can now book a taxi with no one at the wheel / CNN
Africa’s creatives are promoting sustainability to combat climate change /Quartz
While, for the curious corporate exec, Nat Geo and WSJ are selling $100k ‘world tours’ of “The Future of Everything” by private jet / National Geographic

Trends

Welcome to the TWAT workweek / The Times
Related: the new term for VCs’ herd-following behavior. It’s SHITS: Show High Interest Then Stall / Twitter via Protocol
And why not? Swiss researchers are modeling and predicting future markets and what startups will be funded / TechCrunch
Everyone on TikTok is entering their villain era / R29via After School
While Johnny Depp stans are turning the trial into Fanfiction / Mel Magazine
Gen Z has discovered the concept of budgeting, and they’re calling it #cashstuffing / via After School
Netflix isn’t in trouble, Wall Street is. / Ritzholtz
Related: Rishad Tobaccowala on snatching defeat from the jaws of victory / The Future Does Not Fit in the Containers of the Past
Netflix's Subscriber Loss Has Destroyed Employee Morale / Bloomberg
At least we can laugh about it? Netflix is an event company now with "Netflix Is a Joke," 11-day, 250-show festival, with installments planned for over 30 venues running through May 8 / Inside
Which begs the questions: Can Netflix Compete With the Real World? / Bloomberg
As an aside: Commercials are Coming to Netflix. What That Means for Marketers, Tech and Creatives / Adweek
Corollary: The non-oral history of ‘White Hot’ mall icon Abercrombie & Fitch / Netflix via Elevator
But has Abercrombie & Fitch really changed? / Retail Dive
Per Noah Brier: “This is a good reason on corporate identity” [DALL·E 2 and The Origin of Vibe Shifts] /Divinations via WITI
From Iolanda Carvalho: “A bit biased, but also my opinion 😉” For digital nomads, there’s nowhere more accommodating than Lisbon / Bloomberg

Style

In the land of clout, capsules, and collaborations, streetwear is more conscious of its image than its impact on the environment / Highsnobiety
I’m here for the contradiction. Union LA boss and SIC homie Chris Gibbs stars in ‘my life in sneakers’ while wearing Birkenstocks / GQ
Nike and RtfkT introduce cryptokicks / YT
The Vogue Business fashion NFT review: What’s working? / Vogue Business

The Arts

He’s a documentarian and memoirist ne plus ultra but Werner Herzog Has Never Liked Introspection, apparently / The New Yorker
Happy to be introspective, in contrast: fave artist / photographer / skater Ed Templeton on the always-excellent Apology Magazine podcast / Instagram
While The Art Newspaper gets snarky: Venice Biennale 2022: the worst art on show in the city / The Art Newspaper

Entertainment + IP

#1 with a cricket bat: The Game-Changing Managers Who Shaped the Modern Music Industry billboard via Public Announcement
Related: Should Today’s Artist Managers Get More Than 20%? /Billboard via Music Redef
TikTok and Covid made drum’n’bass hot again / The Guardian via Music Redef
Also hot again: W. David Marx remembers the ‘90s by reflecting on Chuck Klosterman remembering the ‘90s / Culture: An Owner’s Manual
Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda has joined Warner Music as leader of Web3 initiatives / via The Drop
From James Friedman: “Really enjoying the P4K-endorsed new releases from Swedish cool guy Axel Boman. Worth a listen”/ Bandcamp
Related, from Isaac Dietz - “Cool album” - Mollyhouse Volume 2 / Bandcamp

Platforms & Influencers

Twitter’s making a vibe check feature (TLDR: the vibes are not great RN)/ The Verge via Future Party
While Reddit is spending $1 million to fund its users' best ideas and competitions, which is borderline terrifying/ The Verge
As Musk Wins Twitter, a New Adversary Looms: Advertisers / The Information
Tumblr saw a 19% bump in new user registration after Elon’s purchase / Twitter via Garbage day

Marketing & Advertising

From Ruba Abu-Nimah: “Now [everybody] can have a Tiffany trophy.” / Highsnobiety
Corollary: the next frontier in branding? Logos you can see from space (to save the planet)/ Fast Company
From Iolanda Carvalho: I wonder what's next...? 😉 Unilever wants to create lasting change with inclusive marathon in the metavers
While companies Try to Sell Videogaming as the Next Big Advertising Channel / WSJ
Hence, Why American Eagle's Next Influencers Will be Twitch Streamers /Ad Age
And Twitch streamer Blizzb3ar quit his job to become a full-time creator.
Related, from Iolanda Carvalho: A report on gaming, by a gaming company... (use with caution?) [Activistion’s “How Gaming has transformed Entertainment” ]
And How Bricks Might Save Clicks The future of e-commerce could be coming to a local mall near you / WSJ
While TheMall, debuting next year in the metaverse, will have 100 floors and 100 million square feet of space. / Venture Beat via After School
Hence, Disney moves into "aspirational furniture"/ Dezeen
Pete Davidson is the new face of H&M, while also playing a ‘Heightened' Version of Himself in “Curb-Esque” series / Daily Mail, TVLine
Which obviously begs the question: When Does a Celebrity Hit the Oversaturation Threshold for Advertising? / Adweek

Media Business

The demise of CNN+ is bad news for cable / Protocol
Also ended: Bitch Media and the paradox of mission-oriented media / Poynter via Nieman Lab
We may be witnessing an industry-wide slowdown in subscription growth / Simon Owens
Tho, Spotify still added subscribers despite cutting off all Russian users / Music Industry Blog via Motive Unknown
One year after embracing the blockchain, Time has earned more than $10M in profit / Digiday

Metaverse & Web3

Consumers Haven't A Clue About The Metaverse, Study Shows / Mediapost
Tho 52% of Gen Z gamers feel more like themselves in the metaverse than in real life./ Yahoo Finance via After School
Ice Cube’s BIG3 basketball league announced that it will fractionalize ownership of its 12 teams via NFTs. / Big 3 Via Zima Red

Food & Drink

I blame The Drunken Canal. How Martinis Came Roaring Back in 2022 / Grub Street via PSFK
And also: the Delightfully Refreshing Astroturf Campaign That Gave Us the Aperol Spritz/ Mel
The Bored Ape NFT restaurant makes better burgers than In-n-Out apparently. / The Information
Corollary: Carl Icahn slammed McDonald's over animal welfare practices / CNN
Tho conversely McDonald's Plant Burger Gets PETA Boost / Ad Age
WITI’s Colin Nagy “went back this week and read the excellent 2007 piece on the Tsukiji fish market and the global sushi trade” / Vanity Fair via WITI
But Can Sushi Survive? / Bon Appetit
Gen Z is ‘Ashamed to order dairy in public / Gizmodo via After School
A study has found that eating insects and lab-grown meat could lead to big benefits for water and emissions / BBC
Cell-cultured cuisine is being elevated for fine dining / Wunderman Thompson
From Celeste Blewitt: 'So interesting in the context of the effect of war, with regards to the production of wine, exports, imports and the loss of tourism’ Eastern European Wineries In Turmoil As War Rages In Ukraine' / WaPo

Miscellany

The race to build wooden skyscrapers Axios via Public Announcement
Why skyscrapers are so short. / Works in Progress via Marginal Revolution
See what your neighborhood looked like millions of years ago with Ancient Earth, a new online tool. / Hyperallergic
Then, imagine seeing it on all these types of psychedelic mushrooms. / Mel

Things to Do

An outdoor exhibition returns to Joshua Tree, the California desert’s art boomtown / The Art Newspaper
Fave artist Hilary Pecis’ book signing at Rachel Uffner Gallery on May 6th / Instagram