[SIC] 197: Interior Moments

Volume 4, Number 41

Jun 16, 2022

Paid subscribers now get an additional [SIC] Sundays newsletter. And founding supporters get invited to a series of dinners at my house in NYC.

Feel free to share, too

Mea culpa, all.

I accidentally sent the whole list my [SIC] Sunday edition on Sunday night, so apologies for the relative deluge of communication from me. Apparently the data always tells you to send more email (per The Rebooting), but I’ve heard in the past that parsing through *one* edition of [SIC] can be a real commitment, and don’t ever want to inundate you. I’ll be more careful in the future (and of course if you *do* want to get the Sunday send as well, feel free to upgrade to a paid subscription and it’ll be there for you).

The data also says clearly: late night sends = =reduced readers numbers. So no more of that. Gonna aim for 1p (ish) ET every week, but do let me know if there’s another time Thursday you’d prefer to receive; I can’t customize for everyone but I am interested in best serving your ideal consumption windows.

[SIC] homie and The Academy New York designer/major domo Swaim Hutson replied to last Thursday’s edition praising Juergen Teller’s photobook Go-Sees, which I used as my cover image. Swaim also suggested a [SIC] Book of the Week selection, which I hadn’t ever thought of. Since I’m about to head to out of town for a couple weeks and have a stack of books queued up, I’ll give it a shot. LMK what you think of the idea, and suggestions would be welcome. The new feature closes the newsletter. Thanks for the idea, Swaim!

And of course thanks to Celeste, Piers, Ben and Iolanda for the contributions this week, to. They really are always welcome. Special shout to Karis Hustad from Courier too, for sending me a bunch of links for last Thurs that I waylaid and therefore forgot to include. Keep them coming, everybody!

OK….

Read This Edition in Browser

I often take pictures of pictures in newspapers. This one is from the WSJ Weekend review section last week.

======[SIC] 197: Interior Moments======

The World

This is a great service: The Today in Tabs Gang Learns About Digital Security for Activists / Today In Tabs
Maybe moving to an existing city is ill advised, because there are going to be new cities popping up? / The Future Party
In the meantim, Austin is now the Gen Z capital of America / Fortune via Morning Consult
Also hot with Gen Z, and in general: As the Great Salt Lake dries up, Utah faces an ‘environmental nuclear bomb’ / NYT via Future Perfect
Gas prices are so high they’re making governments suspicious / Quartz
So, offset your marginal costs. One enterprising Arizona man has used the heat to cook various dinners inside his parked car / YouTube via 1440
All the maps, charts and graphics in oft-cited geopolitics analyst Peter Zeihan’s book The End of the World will be available online in a larger format on his website/ Ziehan.com
The C.E.O. of Nomura, Kentaro Okuda, predicts the weak yen will lead to a wave of mergers and acquisitions from foreign bidders. / FT via Dealbook
It’s looking like we’re in an age of real wealth destruction /FT
Hence per the Global Wealth and Lifestyle Report 2022 high-net-worth individuals around the world are re-thinking their spending habits and priorities / Julius Baer via Morning Consult
So .. Farewell to the servant economy ‘On-demand’ services might have made people feel wealthy, but now the model is in jeopardy /FT
From Piers Fawkes: Furniture Flippers Will Take That Dresser You’re Done With, Thank You / NYT
Elsewhere in ends and beginnings: on the midlife crisis gender flip / The Drift
Millennials and Gen Zers do want to buy homes—they just can’t afford it,”/ CNBC via After School
But how unhappy should we be about the current economy? / Marginal Revolution
Especially since Successful People are also Happy and Well-Adjusted / Marginal Revolution
Corollary: Younger generations are expressing a need for deeper engagement and more authentic social interaction, but can they find it online? / Wunderman Thompson
As traditional news use declines, online news isn’t making up the gap. “many people are becoming increasingly disconnected from news.” Nieman Lab
We Do Not Consent examines increased police powers over lockdown through 27 protests / It’s Nice That

Trends

Welcome to the summer of robots / Axios
Why you may have a thinking digital twin within a decade / BBC News via Morning Consult
Or sooner? Five Things Google's AI Bot Wrote That Convinced Engineer It Was Sentient/ Bloomberg via Morning Consult
A DALL-E mini version here to create your own masterpieces / Protocol
Corollary: Spotify's latest acquisition? A voice-generating AI that can make anyone say anything / Tubefilter
The World Has Too Much Stuff. Retailers bamboozled by the pandemic now find themselves staring at mountains of unwanted stock / Wired via Morning Consult
So Here's Where They're Slashing Prices /WSJ via Morning Consult
Sonos has been accidentally shipping extra speakers to customers, and charging them for it… now the company wants them back / The Verge via Daily Upside
And small electric cars are taking Pakistan by storm. / Dawn via Micromobility Report
What was Dimes Square? / Vanity Fair
Paging Patrick Bateman: Men are increasingly taking beauty routine cues from women … and women are in turn taking theirs from men / Zine
Related, from Celeste Blewitt: Youtube Digs Deeper Into Beauty / BoF
We’re having less sex, so why are clothes getting sexier? / The FACE
Also not sexy: Web3 is over because Jack Dorsey is launching Web5, which I think is meant to be web 2.0 + Web3? RIP to Web4, I guess. What is Web5? Well, here’s the deck. / Google Docs via Garbage Day
An interesting read on the shifting nature of “social networks.” The Rise of Community-Curated Knowledge Networks. Key Quote: “the architecture of digital platforms has made us obsessive documenters and consumers of the present, yet largely indifferent to the archives we create.” / Sari Azout via Strat Scraps
The Numbing Rise of I.P. TV / The New Yorker via Morning Consult
To that end, Seth Godin has some questions / Seth Godin
Per Noah Brier: This thread from Sam Bankman-Fried on hiring is definitely worth the read. FTX only has 25 engineers / Twitter via WITI
“Forget remote work, Hamptonites are partying into the wee hours of Monday” / NY Post
Which both bring us in a weird way to the Behavioral economics guide 2022 / Behavioral Economics via Marginal Revolution

Style

Can streetwear media brands sell clothes? Hot on the heels of Zalando’s acquisition of Highsnobiety, rival Hypebeast is opening its first US store / Vogue Business
Not a question: this really thorough breakdown of what women are buying this season / WWD via After School
Corollary: Fashion for rent: the new style of ethical dressing. Sharing apps allow consumers to turn away from disposable fast fashion / FT
And from recycled sushi fish skin to discarded laundry and parachutes, these Milan brands are disrupting a menswear market that’s lagged when it comes to sustainable sourcing and upcycling. / Vogue Business
Elsewhere: These teens and twentysomethings created a whole school around on how to resell a pair of Jordans for a hefty profit — / Mel Magazine
Speaking of creating a whole school: 15 Years on the Street: Catching Up With Street Style Legends Tommy Ton and ([SIC Homie]) Phil Oh / Vogue via Public Announcement
How Nike Won the Cultural Marathon / NYT via Retail Dive
Meanwhile Nike CEO John Donahoe says he’s chasing Generation Alpha / Vogue Business
“Hermès in the Making” puts the French luxury house’s artisans front and center while also engaging with Detroit’s maker community and students. / The Slowdown
Jing Daily Meets Jeff Staple, China's Favorite Streetwear Collaborator / Jing Daily
Which begs the question: Are Chinese Middle-Aged Men Luxury's Next Big Spenders? / Jing Daily

The Arts

[SIC] homie Andre Razo talked to Monster Children for the 10th anniversary of Full Bleed, the NYC skateboarding photo book / Monster Children
S/o to [SIC] Talks alum Ruba Abu-Nimah: KRINK x Tiffany is 🔥. Sold in Tiffany & Co.'s "Vision & Virtuosity" exhibition gift shop, the custom K-60 Box set contains three K-60 paint markers in Tiffany's signature colors of white, silver and blue / Krink via Jing Culture
On the eve of a new book chronicling his career, fave painter Steve Keene talks about his friend David Berman, his inspiration from punk, and why his paintings are like pizzas. / Pitchfork via Music Redef
LACMA Unveils Digital Art Acquisition Fund Backed By Paris Hilton/ Jing Culture and Crypto
NFTs And The Digital Democratization of Museums / Rightclicksave via Jing Culture and Crypto
While IRL How artists are leading the charge to combat the climate crisis, by building with rubbish and fighting fish farming: / The Art Newspaper

Entertainment + IP

Hollywood talent agency UTA agrees to buy UK’s Curtis Brown. Deal will allow US group access to literary material spanning Margaret Atwood and Winston Churchill / FT
Is it stop motion or 19th-century zoetrope animation? Inside the Pharrell, Tyler the Creator and 21 Savage music video. My bodyguard looks like a horse, too / It’s Nice That
Speaking of tunes: The Unskippables picks 2022’s best of the best (so far) / Spotify
Left off the list? Per DnB OG Goldie: ‘You’ve got to leave your ego at the door’ /Soho House
Kenny Loggins’ ‘I’m Alright’ Was the Start of the Summer-Movie-Soundtrack Bonanza / Mel
From Piers Fawkes: To infinity – actually, let’s go back: why can film franchises no longer look to the future? / The Guardian
Because… Everything Old Is New Again, And Everything New Is Out Of Luck / Stereogum via The Unskippables
And why not, when Spotify report shows 68% of Zs said they like listening to and watching media from earlier decades, because it reminds them of when things were less complicated.” / Adweek via After School
#CryptoCrash: what it means & doesn't mean for music / Music X via Motive Unknown
Corollary from Ben Pruess: “power - let’s get the band back together” [BTS’s pivot to solo work caused a $1.7b stock wipeout] / Business Standard

Platforms & Influencers

Inside the great TikTok feet pics psyop / CNBC via Garbage Day
John Oliver made a case for breaking up tech giants / Yahoo via Protocol
While Apple will exclusively stream every MLS match for 10 years starting in 2023 / Front Office Sports
The Fight to Hold Pornhub Accountable / The New Yorker via Morning Consult
Related: the guys who get paid to hack Pornhub / Mel
Where does Gen Z want to work? Spotify, it turns out / Fast Company via Morning Consult
How Andrew Callaghan mastered gonzo journalism for the YouTube era / The FACE
And Andrew Callaghan releases merch / YouTube via The Publish Press
Ergo: The New Yorker revisits Kevin Kelly's "1,000 true fans" theory and examines whether the "creator middle class" that Kelly envisioned is materializing / New Yorker via Simon Owens
Jerrod Carmichael and A$AP Rocky on Masculinity, Fatherhood, and Fear / Interview via Music Redef
While Rick Astley tells Questlove Supreme about rekindling an appreciation for his biggest hit, "Never Gonna Give You Up." / Iheart via Music Redef
Meanwhile, there’s a new Rick: TikTok's latest obsession? Tricking unsuspecting targets into watching a video of Kris Jenner dancing to "Lady Marmalade." It's called "Krissing” / Highsnobiety
Culture Next by Spotify Ad Studio An exploration of how Gen Z and millennials are shaping audio streaming and culture at large. / Spotify via Beats & Bytes
Also: Facebook Rug Pulls Media Companies... Again / A Media Operator

Marketing & Advertising

The TikToker making DIY ads for major brands from inside a convent /The Drum
Also: The Most Trusted Brands 2022 / Morning Consult
Less transparent: the 5 tech giants own over half the global ad market / Axios via Morning Consult
Hence (vis a vis Amazon): The Marketer's Guide to Twitch /TwoFiveSix
Cannes Lions is back . But marketers say society's turbulence will make for a somber environment. / Digiday
So Digiday asked Cannes veterans — those who have been on the front lines and seen it all — for advice to help make the return to Cannes Lions as stress-free as possible. 'Of course, all of this will go out of the window' / Digiday
Another take: Cannes Lions still matters. How to make the most of it / The Drum
Unless you’re a YouTuber, b/c VidCon will draw many influencers to California, rather than the Croisette /AdAge
Back to Lions: Writes Rob Walker: “My new bookmark of inspiration - Hack the empire.” LoveTheWorkMore compiles (and constantly updates) all Cannes-winning advertising works from this year forward, dated all the way backwards to 1954 / Love the Work More
Related: The World's Best Ads of All Time, apparently / The Drum
Still laughing? Advertising might just be amusing itself to Liquid Death / Fast Company via Morning Consult
Corollary: The Savannah Bananas and the business of making baseball fun / The Hustle via 1440
Elsewhere in sports: S/o [SIC] Talks alum Ricky Engelberg for Vista’s partnership with The Boston Celtics, which touts small businesses in its advertising / Digiday
From Piers Fawkes: IKEA is launching a new turntable (designed with Swedish House Mafia, apparently) / The Vinyl Factory

Media Business

From Iolanda Carvalho: “The new Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2022 and the huge challenges for the media industry and players...” Key Quote: "we find declining interest in the news, lower trust – after a positive bump last year – as well as a growth in active news avoidance amongst some groups. Large numbers of people see the media as subject to undue political influence, and only a small minority believe most news organisations put what’s best for society ahead of their own commercial interest."
Nonetheless, Journalists love the work they do, despite industry challenges. Over 70% said they were proud of their work and would pursue a journalism career again / Nieman Lab
Which begs the question: What Are the Odds These News Media Brands Survive? / Gawker via Ben Duhl
On topic: Troy Young visualizes the media future / People vs Algorithms
And Bill Simmons talks about building a podcasting business and trying to figure out video. / Recode
Corollary: The rough patch hit by Food52, a prime example of publishers pivoting to product, shows how difficult it is to manage both publishing and products / Digiday via The Rebooting
Related: WSJ debuted a new commerce site called Buy Side / Axios via Nieman Lab
And Axios' editor-in-chief is creating a playbook to consolidate its coverage into more "high frequency products" in order to streamline audiences / Digiday
Corollary: Is it unethical for Nicholas Kristof to do an ad for his cider as a Substack post about the ethics of his cider? / Mother Jones via Nieman Lab
Alternately, our friends at Creem are getting new by going old: 10 Classic Pieces Written by Cameron Crowe, Patti Smith, Lester Bangs and Others for the Irreverent Rock Mag / Variety
Media agencies are taking a test-and-learn approach to Web3/ Digiday
Case in point: Publicis' Chief Metaverse Officer is a Lion Named Leon / Adweek via Morning Consult
The third iteration of the Complexland event gave advertisers a space to play in the metaverse/ Digiday
Elsewhere in the style zone: S/o [SIC] Talks alum Jeff Carvalho. Fashion retailer Zalando buys Highsnobiety / BoF

Metaverse & Web3

Amex launches its first crypto rewards credit card / Future Party
As Crypto Markets Tank, Metaverse Tokens Buck the Trend / Blockworks via The Web3 Newsletter
a16z’s Sriram Krishnan thinks Web3 will help the creator economy / Protocol
Hence, Always Sunny' Actor Rob McElhenney Launches Web3 Writers Room With Ethereum NFTs / Decrypt via this week in Web3
And the dude who paints graffiti portraits of Bored Apes in Williamsburg / The Future Party
Ergo: 7 ways people are making Metaverse money 🖥️ / GQ
From Iolanda Carvalho: This metaverse myth buster, from McKinsey "In fact, we debunked six myths about the metaverse and now see that consumers across age cohorts will shape its purpose and prosperity." / McKinsey
Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin on when blockchains make sense (or not) / Vitalik
Paradigm’s “DAO Entity Matrix,” an extremely useful tool to help DAOs decide on a legal entity based on their desired org chart, member permissions, and much more / Paradigm via Forefront
Inside the dark heart of the Gary Vee convention / The Verge via Garbage Day
This NFT Project Is Helping a Species Go "Unextinct" / NFTNow
Also back from the dead: RadioShack has been resurrected on Twitter as a snarky web3 brand / Twitter via NFTNow

Food & Drink

Cannabis dining moves from niche to mainstream. / Wunderman Thompson
And everybody’s on mushrooms / Soho House
This viral TikTok water is now worth $1B / Bloomberg via After School
Related: Why everything’s a spritz now. / PunchDrink via Elevator
And from Celeste Blewitt: '…Reads like an artform.’ Very Fancy Butter Is On The Rise At Restaurants Around The Country / Bon Appetit
A list of the world's cheapest Michelin-starred restaurants / Matador Network via 1440
Which is useful b/c McDonald’s doesn’t have time to make salads and parfaits anymore / Quartz
Chipotle’s mission to become the 'fastest path to the middle class’ / Fortune
“Foodie” has absorbed a populist meaning, so of course some groups are seeking to co-opt it. As Police Use ‘Foodie’ to Recruit, What Does the Word Mean? / Eater via Public Announcement
From Celeste Blewitt: “Highlighting what sporting codes could do in terms of grass roots charity [The Liverpool and Everton Fans Fighting To Close Down Food Banks] / The Guardian
The case of the missing cafeteria tray/ Reasons to be Cheerful

Miscellany

“Oldestsearch.com reverse-orders all Google search results so that you see the oldest webpages first.” / Oldestsearch via The Art of Noticing
A cool study about randomness / The Pudding
Unrelated: This man’s skull was used in a strange ritual 8000 years ago. /IG
The Scooby-Doo Mystery Machine van is now listed on Airbnb / Travel & Leisure via Morning Brew
A new survey of 28 countries shows that bikes would be more popular than cars if cycling were safer / Momentum Mag via Micromobility Report
Anyone can receive a postcard from Timbuktu — and support a post-tourism economy in the process /Reasons to be Cheerful

Things to Do

Fave artist Stephen “ESPO” Powers is doing another live printing event on Saturday / IG
21 Art Shows to See in New York This Summer/ Hyperallergic
Film at Lincoln Center’s series Beware of Dario Argento will be screening 20 of the Italian giallo master’s works and bringing the man himself to town / Hyperallergic
Deep Water Literary Fest is this weekend in Narrowsburg NY and the program looks great / DWLF
Grab a copy of 032c’s new “MSCHF” issue, which includes a free BALENCIAGA iron-on kit, so you can create your own apparel at home. It's part of a donation campaign benefitting the World Food Programme’s emergency aid for Ukraine / 032c

Lastly: [SIC] Book of the Week

Is Bobby Gillespie’s Tenement Kid, which I picked it up by impulse at the *mindblowing* Arcana Books in Culver City / LA. I would highly recommend a visit to if you’re convenient to that area, and you care about art or books. Their website is clunky but the store itself is sublime.

Anyway, Gillespie drummed for Jesus and Mary Chain, sings for Primal Scream and has generally been a loudmouth forever, so hopefully the book reflects that, tho which [SIC] homie Andy Capper informed me it “is meant to be the worst book ever,” per The Guardian’s review, which calls it “Piquantly Preposterous.” Related, also in The Guardian: this freewheeling conversation between Gillespie and Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh which bobs and weaves wildly, much like the book does, according to the review. Excited to crack into it. Will report back.