Do You Poo In Public Toilets? 🚽
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No fucking waaaaaaay is it July rn?????? I'm actually a bit shook about that!! But I have some exciting news, Rubes and I are heading to Sydney for two weeks this morning (yay!!) so you'll be getting the newsy a few hours later than usual (Rubes told me that I am under no circumstances getting up at 3am to make sure you still get it at the same time as every other day sooooo.)
I hope that's okay with you all and if you've got any Sydney recs for Rubes and I while we're there, please let me know!!!
Love u lots and see you on Monday angels xxxxx
I’m an Influencer, and I Think Social Media Is Toxic
New Episode of The Shit Show
R Kelly sentenced to 30 years in jail
BongBong has been sworn in
How to say no
All the ways people laugh around the world
Do you poo in public toilets?
I’m an Influencer, and I Think Social Media Is Toxic
After my rant the other day about the death of the personal brand, I read this piece in Slate, by Lydia Keating, an Instagram and TikTok influencer with over 1m followers. It’s super interesting for a few reasons...
One, because she’s actually transparent about what she gets paid to do this:
“For each item, I get a package in the mail full of product and a campaign brief in my email inbox. I am compensated usually $2,000 to $8,000 for executing the brief. (One time I was paid $18,000 for a single TikTok, but that was a shocking anomaly.) The amount changes depending on the platform.
Two, because she’s hugely self aware about the paradox between authenticity and having to follow a brand’s requests:
“They tell me to be natural and not to stray too far from my authentic self. I edit and splice the video so that there are no pauses in my speech. I have zest and zeal that teeters on mania. My mouth is clenched into a smile for the entirety of the clip, jaw flexed and bulging. People enjoy this. A smiling girl effusing about her love for exercise on the internet is not only palatable but highly lucrative, I’ve learned.”
And the paradox of using social media and… being real, I guess:
“I decide to be vulnerable—often celebrated as “real” on the internet—and make a video about my struggles with clinical depression. I post it and watch its upload progress, jumping from 17 to 83 percent in a matter of seconds. One hundred percent. It’s live. Within five minutes, someone comments that they don’t like the video because it makes them sad; I delete it immediately. What was I thinking? That’s not my brand. The next day I post a tutorial on how to make my favorite kale smoothie. People demand the name of the pea protein powder I used. Someone else comments that they love me so much.”
Lydia goes on to discuss some of the bigger issues around social media and ✨big tech ✨all while being self-aware that she operates within these platforms (sound familiar???) Anyway, I reckon you should go and read the full piece!
New Episode of The Shit Show
The Fucked Up State Of America — open.spotify.com
The right to abortion has been overturned and Trump threw a plate at the wall. Everything you need to know about the state of America right now (or at least as much as we could handle talking about) in this week's episode of the aptly titled Shit Show!
R Kelly sentenced to 30 years in jail
Content warning: Sexual assault.
After his 2021 trial, where R. Kelly was convicted of sex crimes and racketeering, he has now been sentenced to 30 years in jail.
A light refresher on that trial, via the BBC:
“The court heard how Kelly - known for hit songs like I Believe I Can Fly and Ignition - used his influence to lure women and children into sexual abuse over two decades.
Jurors at his six-week trial in Brooklyn heard how he trafficked women between different US states, assisted by managers, security guards and other members of his entourage.
The court also heard how Kelly had illegally obtained paperwork to marry singer Aaliyah when she was 15 in 1994, seven years before the singer died in a plane crash.
The certificate, leaked at the time, listed Aaliyah's age as 18. The marriage was annulled months later.”
But this 30 years isn’t the end of the sentencing. According to Vulture:
“While the sentencing closes the book on Kelly’s New York trial, it doesn’t mark the end of his saga of sex-crimes charges. On August 1, the singer is set to begin trial in his hometown of Chicago over charges of producing child pornography and obstruction of justice — the latter related to a 2008 trial in which he was acquitted.”
Liv and I are going to do a Culture Vulture episode on this whole story next week, so stay tuned to learn more!
BongBong has been sworn in
Don’t let the cute name fool you - Ferdinand Marcos Jr (nicknamed BongBong) has taken over as president of the Philippines, from Rodrigo Duterte. I’ve spoken about him a few times in the newsy, but here’s a refresher on why we don’t like this dude (from a previous newsy):
“Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr ran with the slogan “Together we shall rise again” a call back to his father’s brutal authoritarian regime. Under his father, thousands of political opponents were ‘tortured, arrested and disappeared,’ and when he was finally ousted, the family fled into exile.
To get Bongbong into power there was a social media campaign to rebrand the old Marcos era, “not as the period of martial law with its terrible human rights abuses, corruption and near-economic collapse, but as a golden age of crime-free prosperity.”
It’s really a huge deal that this ruling family - who were driven out of power 36 years ago - are coming back to the presidential palace. The Marcos family have never apologised for the abuse they waged, and they haven’t returned most of the treasure that they’re accused of stealing.”
I also mentioned the other day that his vice president is none other than Rodrigo Duterte’s daughter, Sara Duterte, so that’s just… great.
📚Shit You Should Read About📚
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How to say no
Saying no is one of my favourite things to do these days. Whether it’s to a social thing I don’t want to go to, a company who’s reached out to work with us but just ✨isn’t the right fit,✨ and I’m TRYING to get better at saying no to other general work things (tho I love doing work stuff, so…) Anyway, I know it’s NOT EASY, but I found this little website which has a bunch of templates about how to say no. It’s aptly called ‘How To Say No’ and I wanted to share it with you all xxxxx
ALL THE WAYS PEOPLE LAUGH AROUND THE WORLD
This is the most wholesome thing ever - it’s literally the multiple ways people say ‘haha’ around the world, and I think it’s cool as fuck. Here you go!
Do you poo in public toilets?
66% of you do
34% of you don't
I am of the firm belief that if you gotta go, you gotta go & I have no shame about it!!
Help to feed a Kiwi kid for a week, for only $15! (Our partnership with KidsCan)
Cameron Diaz to 'un-retire' from acting with Jamie Foxx film (BBC)
The Fucked Up State Of America (The Shit Show)
Our Love Island Debrief (Culture Vulture)
The New First Date (The Atlantic)
Celebrities react to Roe V Wade Being Overturned (Culture Vulture)
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Our HUGE SYSCA reading list! (✨Supporters only✨)