Why Americans Are Snubbing McDonald’s and Starbucks

Tahiti's Waves Are a Matter of 'life and Death' for Olympic Surfers. How Witchcraft Became the Latest Controversial Wellness Fad.

August 1, 2024 Arms Dealers, WitchTok, and the Best Icebox Cake Ten picks for today, curated by our editors. Plus, lazy parenting strategies. 1   Disinformation Trolls Used Her Face to Make Fake Porn. There Was Nothing She Could Do. Sabrina Javellana was a rising star in local politics — until deepfakes derailed her life. The New York Times Coralie Kraft, Tanya Pérez, Zak Mouton, Emma Kehlbeck Save 2   Olympics 2024 Tahiti's Waves Are a Matter of 'Life and Death' for Olympic Surfers This is the second Olympics to feature surfing, but it's the first time competitors are riding waves that are a matter of "life or death," according to professional big wave surfer Garrett McNamara. NPR Jordan-Marie Smith Save 3   Explainer A Political 'Colonoscopy' - How VP Contenders Are Vetted As Kamala Harris vets potential running mates, spare a thought for the contenders as every corner of their lives is investigated. BBC Jude Sheerin Save 4   Business Why Americans Are Snubbing McDonald's and Starbucks Flagging sales are Americans' way of telling restaurant chains: You need to innovate if you want my business. CNN Allison Morrow Save 5   Retrospective How the Internet Changed News, According to The Onion Freethink spoke to Onion staffers about parodying news from the print era into the digital age. Freethink Tim Brinkhof, Stephen Johnson Save 6   Conversation Starter What Is America's Gender War Actually About? The political parties are more divided by their views on gender than they are divided by gender itself. The Atlantic Derek Thompson Save 7   Wild Ride When a Mild-Mannered Hobbyist Becomes an International Arms Dealer As the UK is flooded with untraceable antique guns and ammunition, police are baffled. Truly*Adventurous Kenneth R. Rosen Save 8   Rabbit Hole WitchTok: How Witchcraft Became the Latest Controversial Wellness Fad From 'spiritual mentors' charging £1,500 for a tarot reading to gurus who claim to dabble in the occult, witches have gone mainstream in the Goop-sphere. The Independent Olivia Petter Save 9   Modern Parenting The Couples Who Run Their Families Like a Corporation Are Slack and a shared Google calendar the secret to managing the mental load of parenting? Romper Sarah Wheeler Save 10   Just Because I Just Found the Icebox Cake of My Dreams (There's a Reason It Has Hundreds of 5-Star Reviews) Everyone will go back for more! The Kitchn Kayla Hoang Save Further Reading   Collection of the Day Less Is More: The 'Laziest' Ways to Be a Great Parent Not only can kids survive without meticulously packed lunches and screentime guidelines—they can thrive. Pocket Collections Amy Maoz Save   Yesterday's Most Read Story Why Are Conservatives Happier Than Progressives? It has now been nearly two decades since a majority of Americans have told pollsters at NBC that they're satisfied with the way things are going. This hope drought has no precedent in modern polling. The Ringer Derek Thompson Save Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please share it with a friend. Was this email forwarded to you? Subscribe now to get Pocket in your inbox every day. Take Pocket everywhere You're receiving this email because you subscribed to Pocket. Unsubscribe • Manage Preferences • Privacy Policy • Help Center • Advertise © 2024 Mozilla Corporation, 149 New Montgomery St, 4th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105