One of my realizations of not paying as close attention to trending news is that I don’t really know what’s gone viral or not as I feel more like I’m just keeping track of the news again. But whatever situational awareness I’ve lost feels a lot healthier than fruitlessly trying to keep up with every meme ever. Here are five interesting stories that I discovered without an algorithm.
[Sign up here if you’d like to receive these by email.]
- “Russia pushes more ‘deep state’ hashtags” (Politico) – This fascinating report by Jason Schwartz shows how Russian botnets are used to market test anti-“deep state” hashtags like #ReleaseTheMemo that later hit it big with Trump supporters. Up next: #qanon which refers to a conspiracy theory that first cropped up on 4chan.
- “2018 election is no problem for Putin – but what about 2024?” (The Guardian) – Vladimir Putin is certain to be re-elected Russian president on March 18. But the real question for Russian politics is what happens at the end of the six-year term when he is barred by the Russian constitution from serving another term as president.
- “#MeToo Hits Movie Deals: Studios Race to Add ‘Morality Clauses’ to Contracts” (The Hollywood Reporter) – Entertainment lawyers, some of the most fascinatingly amoral legal creatures, are trying to figure out how to handle the risk of a movie star or studio executive suddenly turning radioactive in the wake of reports of sexual misconduct.
- “This man made over half a million dollars threatening elderly magazine subscribers” (Washington Post) – Here’s one way to make money in the magazine business.
- “Suicides spiked 10 percent in months after death of Robin Williams” (Boston Globe) – Nothing makes trending news algorithms go wild like a celebrity suicide. A study by Columbia researchers suggests the saturation coverage could be causing others to take their own lives, too.