52 Comments

new subscriber here -- just wanna say, LOVE your newsletter. THIS is what I want my group chats to read like: M&A squabbles in luxury fashion; niche brands and their even niche-r PR and marketing strategies; pop culture news; what everything means, analyzed from a sociological lens. bravo!

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we clearly need to make an as seen on gc. until then, I'm glad you're enjoying it!!!

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I would gladly have a group chat with other as seen on readers or even a meetup!

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it'll happen!!!! 💙

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Hi - Love your newsletter!

I don't know where I read this, so need to double check if it is factual, but what I read was that, the reason X is removing the block function is because Elon Musk had a tweet about some big events (may be superbowl ), and at the same time president Biden also had a similar tweet. Despite of having far more followers, Elon Musk's tweet was getting way less exposure and engagement than President Biden's. And he was not happy about that, even left the event early and called in engineers at Sunday night to see why his tweet was "under performing". And the engineers had to change the algorithm for his tweet to appear at people's feed regardless if they follow him or not...and that leads to showing content to people who you have previous blocked.

Again I don't remember exactly where I read this but I do remember being shocked and disgusted by this. And someone made a comment on this saying "no wonder he and Trump get along".

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Hi Zhen! Glad you like the newsletter :) this is adults like of ridiculous and if I heard that any other founder did this, I couldn’t believe. But it’s Elon so!

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Honestly I just wander where all this ends. Like where is the Elon situation headed ?

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Oh my god I came here ready to comment that nothing Elon does makes sense to me but this actually is perfectly on brand for him. He's basically a toddler with too much power.

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Re monogamy - One of the reasons Gen X and millenials went down the poly/open relationship route is because they felt forced into loveless marriages and now they have kids and a mortgage. Uprooting your family when you're this far in... is hard. Many were queer and closeted, being poly is a compromise that (somewhat?) works for these couples.

Re sustainable products - I'm torn on this. I'm a millenial, I love Gen Z, y'all my hope for this planet. But I also work in marketing and can tell you Gen Z is most prone to impulse buys, fast fashion and being influenced to buy. There's a massive intention gap between beliefs and behaviors. I'm confident this will improve in time, but currently it's not as rosy as self reported studies will have you believe.

Re guns - Americans are insane. We have to be living in parallel universes, there's no other explanation.

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monogamy- makes total sense. I think also becasue gen z isnt necessarily forced into monogamy those who are choosing it are actually CHOOSING it you know?

sustainable products- "There's a massive intention gap between beliefs and behaviors." so true. I dont think many brands realise this though or know how to effectively use this when it comes to brand positioning. also yes, gen z LOVES fast fashion!!

guns lol- ever since I moved to germany the whole thing became even more ridiculous

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Damn. This was a GREAT newsletter. Your takes on these little news updates are super thoughtful and witty, and make me want to dig into them more. Excited to be a subscriber!

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excited to have you as a subscriber. I try my BEST! 😄

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Tea, but Vice has lived on thanks to a partnership with Savage Ventures, run by a dude named Sam Savage. I used to work for him in my digital media days and uh he's a horrible person and notoriously underpaid everyone so it wouldn't surprise me if they WERE able to keep those costs low 👀

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wait I haven't heard about this! I'm going to send you a message I want this tea

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yes, feel free whenever!

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Your friends had such good/diverse responses!!! I would also add that monogamy is rising because people are TIRED! Dealing with more than one partner requires a lot of labor (mentally/emotionally) and monogamy just seems … easier? I personally don’t think it’s about going against the status quo because social norms vary based on cultural/ethnic backgrounds. All in all, I think folks are tired and really don’t have the energy for much beyond existing, so having the capacity for even one person is a win 😭

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This is one of my takes too! It’s a stress relief in a world of stress addiction. Relationships are only as hard as the individuals growth and the fewer individuals the better 😅 Besides, true partnership is the most rewarding resource

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agreed!

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head my friend wrote a whole essay about that in repose lol but I couldnt add it all. she literally used the words: people are TIRED!

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FAVE NEWSLETTER DAY!

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whoop whoop 🎉

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Some news outlets are already using Telegram to send links and articles! Or at least one or two I see here in Singapore 😅 I think it works on telegram because by default everything is muted on mine so I can check them when I'm interested...also on the topic of aging in the west, someone said online years ago that the West doesn't treat old people with any respect while in the East old people are meant to be wise and respected, and while that's obviously a very broad statement, I do think it's accurate to a point!

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I was going to make that point about how different cultures treat elderly people. I'm nigerian and generally it's the same in Africa cultures. older people are a treasure and treated with respect and reverence. is telegram popular in Singapore? I've been on and off it every few years but now with all the news I am v curious

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I believe that telegram became really popular here during the pandemic because a lot of misinformation travelled using it, unfortunately! But in general it seems to work for disparate groups of ppl with a single common interest, like neighbourhood communities, buy/sell/give groups, brand sales, etc

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Totally makes sense!

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Here to concur with other comments — adore your newsletters! Lol, yes: "It’s like when the CEO sits with the interns at lunch because they want to be fun and approachable". 😅 I feel like we are seeing so many 'CEOs' sit down at the intern table with a packed brown paper bag lunch atm.

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thank you Daria so glad you're enjoying IT!!!!

and yeah its very outrageous behaviour. I need them to stay in their corner offices!

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The Beckham hot sauce packaging is giving LoveShackFancy vibes.

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wait why is this so true lmaoo. what do you think about the brand? also saw a post of yours linked in Sophia Amoruso newsletter

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The angels, ribbing and wooden top make it very femme, which is disruptive in the hotsauce space (can't believe I said that). But will it be good enough to win over male audiences?

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Wait this is really smart. Didn’t think of this!

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Good point. And lol to your disruptive comment. I feel this will appeal more to women, for sure. But maybe that’s a good thing, since they often control the purse strings.

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Yes! I saw the mention in Sophia’s newsletter too - woo hoo! As for Beckham, I feel like the packaging (while pretty) doesn’t really communicate “hot sauce” and might be confusing to the consumer as to what it is. But who knows? People will probably buy it just because it’s from Beckham, but to keep buying it, the product itself has to be good.

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I really like the packaging but yeah I see what you mean. I’ve heard it tasted good too!

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Here for anyone who wants to riff on Snax as status signaling any day

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doesn’t Vice still owe a bunch of freelancers money?

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great question. also heard they were trying to block a documentary about their demiseee

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The UK Intermezzo cover is gorgeous omg 😭 I paid international shipping for it

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lol not me changing my mind literally a day after I wrote that and buying it yesterday! you’re right lol. I’ve seen the light

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Constantly excited when I see your newsletter pop up! Never change.

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thank you Jo! I don't plan to ;)

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This is one of my favorite newsletters!!! Such coverage and insight 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽

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BETTER BE YOUR ABSOLUTE FAVEEEEE

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Here for the positive monogamy peeping, gen z! I’ve been wanting to write on this study and glad you got to it!! It was such a delight to read. And it took the nonmonog dating app to say it 😭

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yeah I find it so interesting that its FEELD that wrote about it lol

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