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Last week, a private jet arrived in Zambia from Egypt. Sounds normal enough. But the cargo was far from normal: ~$5.7m in cash, 602 fake (!) gold bars, five pistols, and 126 rounds of ammo. Zambian authorities have arrested 12 people as they investigate what the heck was going on there. We look forward to watching this movie someday.
In today’s email:
- No good news: Why does social media keep screwing up news?
- Watch: The economics behind the pickleball phenomenon.
- “Girl dinner”: From 1.4B+ TikTok views to Popeyes’ menu.
- Around the Web: Your cat’s fave YouTube channels, the appeal of flavorless candy, tips to keep produce fresh, and more.
👇 Listen: The state of the news business sucks. Social media is a big reason why.
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| The big idea |
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Meta vs. Canada is a long pattern of dismantling news
Meta’s ban on Canadian news is part of a larger pattern of upending and preventing access to information.
2023-08-24T00:00:00Z
Juliet Bennett Ryla
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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused Meta of “putting corporate profits ahead of people’s safety” this week, after it blocked news from its platforms amid the nation’s wildfire emergency.
Canada’s new Online News Act requires tech companies to pay publishers for linking to or repurposing their content. Meta called the legislation “unworkable,” blocking news access for its Canadian users in response.
- Google also threatened to remove news links, but intends to wait until the law takes effect.
- Australia passed similar legislation in 2021, but tech companies were ultimately able to negotiate with Australian publishers.
Social media…
… has played a pivotal role in news, connecting outlets with audiences and offering real-time coverage from journalists and citizen reporters — even in countries with strict media censorship.
It has made itself a mainstay in news consumption, with more than half of Americans getting at least some news via social media. Canadians have been relying on social media less but 25% still consider it their primary source. Meanwhile:
- A quarter of US adults under 30 prefer TikTok for news.
- Younger audiences are more frequently turning to influencers and celebrities over journalists and traditional media.
But remember when…
… Facebook told everyone it got high engagement from videos, so newsrooms decided to lay off writers to “pivot to video,” but then it was… all a big lie that ended with Facebook agreeing to a $40m settlement with advertisers in 2019?
Those kinds of things seem to keep happening, diminishing our access to high-quality news while misinformation spreads.
- X is planning to remove headlines on news links for “aesthetics.”
- AI-generated content has only just begun to replace articles by humans — and it’s often full of errors.
Meta said…
… Canadians would still have access to government and emergency accounts.
But many Canadian organizations trying to spread wildfire resources felt hamstrung by the blocks, with some reporting confusion and mistrust among volunteers without the ability to share news, per The New York Times.
More broadly, many US governments are banning TikTok, while the ever-in-flux X had to restore free API access to such agencies for public utility purposes.
There’s still, uh… the radio?
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| TRENDING |
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Streaming platforms Netflix, Disney+, Paramount+, Max, and Peacock are pushing users toward their cheaper, ad-supported tiers, per The Hollywood Reporter, as the margins are proving more lucrative. The future of TV looks like… old TV.
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| SNIPPETS |
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Peloton’s crisis team is getting a workout this quarter — down $37m in YoY sales, with 20k paused subscriptions, 750k requests for seat replacements, and a bigger-than-expected loss of $242m.
Happy Pumpkin Spice Latte Day to all who celebrate. Starbucks’ signature fall drink is back today, a boost for cozy autumnal feelings and for the chain’s bottom line — sales for the PSL juggernaut were up 17% last year.
Apollo, a 160-pound, 5’8” humanoid robot, may be coming to a warehouse near you. Robotics firm Apptronik is piloting Apollo, capable of lifting boxes up to 55 pounds, for a commercial release in late 2024.
US national parks have become a safe haven for the most precious animal: the cash cow. In 2022, tourists spent a record $24B in the gateway communities surrounding the National Park Service’s 424 sites.
India’s Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander successfully touched down on the moon. India’s $75m investment in the spacecraft paid off, as it joins the US, China, and the former Soviet Union as the only nations to make a soft moon landing.
Calling out of work today? We won’t be surprised if that’s a yes. PTO-tracking app Flamingo found that Aug. 24 is the most common call-in-sick day for US workers. But don’t ask why — nobody knows.
New tech news: Journalists from Vice’s tech vertical, Motherboard, launched their own publication, 404 Media. Vice filed for bankruptcy in May, but still paid execs bonuses of up to $900k.
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| FROM THE BLOG |
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Of the 90% of startups that fail, 82% go under due to running out of money. Securing series funding can keep a business afloat. Here’s how it works.
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| Video |
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Watch: The economics of pickleball, America’s fastest-growing sport
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It’s about time we add “Being asked if you play pickleball” to the list of life’s inevitabilities alongside death and taxes.
Once a niche sport for retirees, pickleball has exploded over the last decade.
- In 2022, 8.9m Americans played the quirky amalgam of badminton, pingpong, and tennis regularly, while another ~27m played at least once.
- That means more people picked up a paddle than dribbled a basketball or swung a golf club last year. The sport is now nearly as popular as running.
Today, there are 10k+ known places to play pickleball in America, and that’s apparently still not enough — per Axios, there’s “a critical shortage of pickleball courts.”
Developers across the country are becoming increasingly aware of this, and the staggering economic potential of pickleball.
- In Florida alone, investors have poured ~$200m into 15 private, indoor pickleball clubs.
But courts across the country are facing noise complaints that could threaten the sport’s prosperity and its cult following.
- The game’s pwock sound is almost as loud as a vacuum cleaner (Why? That’s a whole other story.)
In the latest “Hustlenomics” video, we look at how much it costs to quiet the game, and the role it’ll play in the growing pickleball economy.
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| Watch the full video → |
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| Free Resource |
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Steal these 25 classic sales letters
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Stop writing every damn email from scratch. That’s essentially the opposite of self-care, and we can’t bear to see you suffer.
Here’s a pack of proven sales letters for first-touch, follow-up, and break-up communications — including a “last call” email that attained a 33% response rate, and a drip campaign that closed $100k in a month.
Use what already exists before you hit another inbox.
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| 25 classic sales emails → |
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| Faster food |
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When TikTok says ‘jump,’ restaurants fling themselves right off a cliff
Social trends like TikTok’s “girl dinner” are changing the way the restaurant business works.
2023-08-24T00:00:00Z
Ben Berkley
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Admittedly, I’m all too familiar with “girl dinners.” Sometimes (often) after a long day, the last thing you want to do is cook an elaborate meal — and that’s where girl dinners come in.
The term took off on TikTok this summer after creator Olivia Maher used it in a video. The New York Times describes it as a meal “akin to an aesthetically pleasing Lunchable: an artfully arranged pile of snacks that, when consumed in high enough volume, constitutes a meal.”
The trend, which has racked up 1.4B+ views, is already old news on social media, but its impact continues to reverberate in the restaurant business.
Enter Popeyes…
The fast-food chain was quick to hop on board, launching a limited-edition “Girl Dinner” menu in July.
- The menu combined all of the chain’s side dishes, like coleslaw, biscuits, and mashed potatoes, into a makeshift meal.
Opportunities like this are a marketer’s field day — and major brands with resources to quickly implement viral trends can take advantage.
Case in point…
- Earlier this year, Chipotle added fajita quesadillas to its official menu after the TikTok hack blew up.
- McDonald’s boosted sales last year by adding social-favorite menu hacks to its menu.
- Upscale LA grocery chain Erewhon has partnered with celebrities to launch custom ($17+) smoothies.
Come November, Popeyes’ quarterly sales figures will reveal how its “Girl Dinner” stunt performed, but if history is an indicator, expect to be wowed: social media stunts have been core to the chain’s success.
Popeyes was famously behind the 2019 “tweet [that] changed the restaurant industry,” per Restaurant Business, igniting a chicken sandwich war — and its sales.
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| AROUND THE WEB |
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🪐 On this day: In 2006, the International Astronomical Union voted to remove Pluto’s status as a planet.
🐱 That’s cool: The best YouTube channels for your cat, which, yes, contain a lot of birds and fish.
🥕 How to: Keep produce fresh, which sometimes means keeping certain items away from each other.
🍬 That’s interesting: Why people like Japanese candy that tastes like nothing.
✋ Aww: And now, teamwork.
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| MEME |
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Turns out the uncool “Doing it for the ’gram’” has a deeply uncool cousin. (Link)
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Hey. Don’t keep us a secret.
Refer just 3 people and we’ll send Hustle essentials as a thank you.
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Look at that! You’re on your way to the top of the food chain.
You seem like the kind of person who knows how to work a network. And now you’ve landed an opportunity to snag some business class aromatherapy.
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Look at that! You’re on your way to the top of the food chain.
You seem like the kind of person who knows how to work a network. And now you’ve landed an opportunity to take your morning coffee to the next level.
Get 10 more referrals and you’ve got yourself a Hustle mug. Keep your cup warm and your workspace clean.
You’re just 10 referrals away. The mug awaits.
Here’s that special link one more time:
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Look at that! You’re on your way to the top of the food chain.
You seem like the kind of person who knows how to work a network. And now you’ve landed an opportunity to snag the desk plant you never knew you needed.
Get 15 more referrals and you’ve got yourself a Hustle branded clover grow kit. If you want something to grow, you must water. Practice your nurturing abilities with this custom Hustle clover grow kit and grow your referrals at the same time.
You’re just 15 referrals away. Desk plant nirvana awaits.
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Your referral count: 0
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Look at that! You’re on your way to the top of the food chain.
You seem like the kind of person who knows how to work a network. And now you’ve landed an opportunity to snag the desk organizer of all desk organizers.
Get more referrals and you’ve got yourself a Hustle-branded organizer, to hold your gadgets and give your desk space a breath of fresh air.
You’re just referrals away. The desk organizer awaits.
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Your referral count: 0
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Look at that! You’re on your way to the top of the food chain.
You seem like the kind of person who knows how to work a network. And now you’ve landed an opportunity to organize all those stray cords floating around your desk.
Get more referrals and The Hustle tech organizer is yours. It’s clean, compact, and all you need to make sure your technology life support is closeby.
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Look at that! You’re on your way to the top of the food chain.
You seem like the kind of person who knows how to work a network. And now you’ve landed an opportunity to snag the prestigious Hustle backpack.
Get more referrals and it’s yours. Carry your laptop, gym clothes, Coca Cola’s secret recipe, or whatever you feel like. Walk around with the crew on your back!
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Look at that! You’re on your way to the top of the food chain.
You seem like the kind of person who knows how to work a network. And now you’ve landed an opportunity to snag some new tech.
Get more referrals and you’ve got yourself a Zoom Glow-up kit. This kit will include a Blue Yeti mic, Logitech camera, and a Lume Cube light. This is the perfect set-up to make every video recording and Zoom meeting feel like an Oscar-quality production. Keep climbing.
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Well, well. Look who climbed the ladder. We’re so proud.
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Today’s email was brought to you by Juliet Bennett Rylah and Sara Friedman.
Editing by: Ben “A pwock in the park” Berkley.
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