“Storytelling has always been a dance between the creators and the audience. Plots turn and twist, steering expectations and swaying emotions. But as filmed entertainment has grown on a near-exponential scale, encompassing interconnected franchises and expanding onto more platforms than ever before, audiences have begun to more actively engage with what they watch. They analyze, turning ambiguity into clarity, forging connections with fellow fans. As a result, storytellers have to do more than spin a satisfying yarn; they must contend with fans who are so involved, they’re practically racing them to the finish line. For TV shows in particular, the most passionate viewers have become a part of the writers’ room—not physically, of course, but as a looming presence, at least in the minds of those shaping seasons’ worth of plot.”
“The money that Democrats like to invest in clean power is largely spent in Republican districts.”
“In the late 1910s, a strange disease took the world by storm. Its cause remains a mystery to this day.” This is the real-life illness that the plot of Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman is based on.
“Everyone from NASA scientists to elementary school teachers knows that Uranus is the most giggle-inducing planet in our solar system.”
“The FBI is investigating an “unprecedented” number of threats against bureau personnel and property in the wake of the search of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, including some against agents listed in court records as being involved in the recent search”.
RIP, Paul Burka, longtime Texas Monthly editor and Texas political journalist, creator of the iconic “Ten Best/Ten Worst Legislators” lists. I got to talk to him a couple of times back in the day. Good guy, very warm and welcoming, and he had a ton of good stories. His former colleague Mimi Swartz has a long reminiscence about him.
“We are asking for a commitment from the community of media outlets reporting on abortion to keep in mind the true danger that you present when interviewing anti-abortion extremists. You are giving the opportunity for dangerous lies to spread. You are, by way of asking them questions, legitimizing their answers. You are allowing hateful, dangerous harassers to build a base that encourages protesting at clinics, stalking and harming clinic staff and abortion providers, and online and in-person abuse of people who have abortions and those who support them in getting that care.”
“The first time Sacheen Littlefeather encountered the Academy, in 1973, she was booed onstage at the Oscars, heckled with mock ululations and so-called “tomahawk chops” offstage, and threatened with arrest and physical assault. Nearly half a century later, she will return to the Academy as an invited guest of honor for an evening of reflection at the Academy Museum, featuring something she never dared to imagine: a formal apology from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.”
“Also, I’m buying Manchester United ur welcome”, tweets Very Serious Person Elon Musk. Sure, Jan.
“It’s not just that Joe Biden has succeeded while Donald Trump failed, it’s also that Biden succeeded where Trump failed.”
“The United States has made a small but significant move toward creating a public system to allow millions of Americans to file their taxes for free.”
“But there’s also a grating flip side to the bleating of Blackburn and the so-called thought leaders of the modern conservative movement. There’s no need to “imagine” what an oppressive police and carceral state can do to everyday American citizens. Just pick up a newspaper or surf the web and read the horror stories.”
RIP, Henry Engel, the 6-year-old son of NBC News chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel. Henry had a rare genetic condition called Rett syndrome, for which he had been treated at Texas Children’s Hospital. Researchers there hope to use Henry’s case to better treat others affected by Rett syndrome moving forward. You can support their research if you are so moved.
“Almost 100 years after its extinction, the Tasmanian tiger may live once again. Scientists want to resurrect the striped carnivorous marsupial, officially known as a thylacine, which used to roam the Australian bush. The ambitious project will harness advances in genetics, ancient DNA retrieval and artificial reproduction to bring back the animal.”
