“Netflix and its copycats forgot why network TV, even with declined ratings, reigns supreme. Sometimes, all we want is 26 episodes of something, with a weekly release and a guaranteed new season the next year.”
“Men found ‘Love Island.’ Then they started betting on it.”
“What we no longer believe is that we will always be able to look at an AI story and know. Bona Books accidentally bought an AI story. Indeed, we very nearly bought two, with a further three longlisted. And this is a problem bigger than just us.”
“But the alternative is bleak. If Google refuses to strike licensing agreements, more premium publishers could follow suit in denying its crawlers access. Doing so would degrade the quality of search results, making it harder for consumers to find accurate news. Just as social media has become a cesspool of misinformation, the open web could be overcome with untrustworthy content too.”
“Even in our true-crime-saturated culture, the story of the bombing of LaGuardia Airport remains little-known. There’s nothing about it in New York City’s municipal archives or the stacks of the Queens Historical Society. Near as I can tell, the bombing has not been the subject of a book or documentary. It says something about the degree to which it’s been forgotten that when I began contacting people connected to the event in the lead-up to the 50th anniversary, they all were surprised to hear from a reporter.”
“A new study suggests that there could be a way to mitigate some of the impacts of future El Niños and global warming: dimming the sun.”
RIP, Sam Neill, New Zealand actor best known for his leading role in Jurassic Park.
“I don’t think he is a grifter, though. I think he’s something much rarer these days — a quixotic, mostly harmless, bona fide all-American crackpot.”
“A coalition of Democratic state attorneys general announced Monday that they filed a lawsuit in an attempt to stop the looming merger between Paramount Skydance and Warner Discovery.”
Lock her up again. Please.
“Lindsey Graham died a coward. His three-decade career in national politics should be remembered for more than his shameless, pusillanimous capitulations — but not, unfortunately, for some noble pursuit or purpose he used his chameleon-like political skills to secure. He should instead be remembered for using his power to bow and scrape, to change his political colors, largely if not solely in service to himself.”
RIP, Pat Oliphant, Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist.
RIP, Janice McNair, co-founder and former principle owner of the Houston Texans.
An oral history of Muppet Treasure Island, on its 30th anniversary.
“There is no fast food item as beloved as the Costco hot dog.”
“This was the data science — yes, data science — behind the eye-popping, heartburn-inducing, ridiculously-delicious food scene that’s exploded in ballparks over the last 20 years. Just a part of the process, and the place, where all the gastronomic ingenuity happens.”
In re: the never-ending debate about Daylight Saving Time, I fully agree with Chad Orzel. And I did not know that we tried a two-year trial of year-round Daylight Saving Time in the 1970s, and repealed it because people hated it.
“Billionaire Elon Musk likely broke Wisconsin law when he handed out $1 million checks to voters in the 2025 state Supreme Court election, a bipartisan panel has found.”
RIP, Dave Kendall, journalist and MTV VJ who created and hosted that network’s 120 Minutes music video program that highlighted alternative artists.
“Traditionally, presidents are not honored with namesake landmarks or memorials until after their deaths, and no sitting president has ever appeared on U.S. currency, which many equate with the European monarchies that the United States was formed to reject.”
RIP, Hal Williams, actor best known for Sanford and Son and 227.
“What would it take to end child marriage? There’s a new federal push to limit it.”
“President Donald Trump’s longtime teleprompter operator is believed to have made tens of thousands of dollars by placing bets on more than a dozen of Trump’s speeches on the prediction market Kalshi”.
“Environmental groups sue government to stop a big change to the Endangered Species Act”.
In case you missed the remarkable story of Lionel Messi’s meeting with a baby Lamine Yamal.