Issue #025: Net Neutrality + TikTok Ban + Meta FlipFlop = Weird Times.
PLUS news summaries re: Dave Portnoy, Rednote AKA the new TikTok, Taylor Swift ticket mob, Costco apartments.
EDITOR’S NOTE <3
Hi all, I started working on this last week before the fires in LA… a lot of the news I have been consuming surrounds that. It’s heartbreaking to watch. That said, while I am not focusing on those headlines this week, and have put together a brief “feature” about what could happen next, I don’t think it’s quite time to talk about that topic yet. Next week I will share a feature article about the legal side of “life after the fires.” Enjoy this “headline-only” issue in the meantime and please continue to support the many victims, even if it’s not monetarily. xox
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Welcome back <3 Thanks to everyone who voted in the last poll for the ScrollSavvy co-working calls. It looks like Friday is the winner! This means that the first call will take place next Friday the 24th at 12pm EST via this GoogleMeet link. The goal is to spend a few minutes at the start introducing ourselves & the rest of the time together working (I’ll be working on content for the next issue of ScrollSavvy). I’m not sure how long it will be, probably ~2 hours. Feel free to hop on at any point! Looking forward to the first ScrollSavvy community event next Friday, January 24th. <3
PS If you are new, you can learn more about my business story by clicking here.
👀 WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM THIS WEEKLY NEWSLETTER »
Extra, extra, read all about it! The ScrollSavvy Newsletter features the latest in business, law & the creator economy… pulling back the curtains showing BTS of my business… sharing savvy tips to help you not get screwed… & creating community thru common personal interests.
HEADLINES »
Just the tip… (of the iceberg, get your head out of the gutter)
💸 IN BUSINESS & PARTNERSHIPS »
Beis x [solidcore] collab is taking over studios (Beis)
Beis is creating a line of blue suitcases & launching their new “sporting” collection in collaboration with [solidcore] this week. Also, they hosted complimentary classes at select [solidcore] locations to celebrate (don’t @ me, I posted about them on Substack Notes & Threads to give you time to sign up).
Delta x YouTube collab takes your favorite creators in-flight (Variety)
“Delta has set a deal with YouTube to make the ad-free YouTube Premium and YouTube Music services available free on flights for members of its SkyMiles loyalty program. The deal includes a selection of curated content from key YouTube creators.” (Id.)
Costco is building affordable apartment units above its stores (Yahoo!)
Not gonna lie, these seem pretty nice. They’re starting in LA.
Embody Space launches private cycle tracking app (TikTok)
It’s no secret that lots of apps make most of their money through selling our data. Natural Cycles, Flo & other period-tracking apps are no different. With the new President being sworn-in next week & with states like Texas criminalizing abortions, people are scared of who will get their hands on this type of data. That’s why Embody Space was created - the data is stored locally on your phone, & the company can never sell your data (bc it never has access to it). It’s free on the App store.
Anthropic (Claude parent company) is valued at $60 BILLION (TechCrunch)
This makes it the 5th most valuable startup in the U.S.
Trump announces $20B plan to build data centers in US (TechCrunch)
Not surprisingly, Sam Altman from OpenAI is behind this mission.
Alex Cooper acquires existing podcast for Unwell Network (The Hollywood Reporter)
Unwell acquired its first 2 pre-existing podcasts: 1) a true crime podcast & 2) Avery Wood’s podcast.
📜 IN LAW & POLITICS »
TikTok ban oral arguments in Supreme Court (TikTok)
I shared a 1 min summary of the oral arguments here.
Speaking of the TikTok ban… (TikTok)
Here’s a tutorial to download all your videos (& videos you “favorited”) without watermarks.
Taylor Swift fans sue Ticketmaster for price gouging (Wired)
They’re using RICO laws (originally intended for racketeering & organized crime mobs) to accuse Ticketmaster for conspiring with third-parties to inflate the prices of the Eras Tour tickets. This is in addition to a previously-filed lawsuit against Ticketmaster & Live Nation for breach of contract, fraud, & other claims, which is still on-going.
DOJ tells Google it needs to sell Chrome browser to end its monopoly (BBC)
Sad news for Chrome users. I feel like this will make the web-browser product worse (one of the best things about Chrome was its integration with all my other Google-related apps), & this just gives another company the right to all our data to use against us in another way. It’s not like Chrome costs the consumer anything, so this is purely motivated by the interests of other corporations, & not the consumers (who monopoly laws are meant to protect).
On the bright side, let’s keep an eye out for a better search engine - cuz one will likely emerge now (Google search has not been “that girl” for a while).
Love or hate George Santos, you gotta admit he’s a diva (AP News)
Former Long Island Congressman George Santos, who was arrested for fraud, asked judge to delay his sentencing so he could make more podcast episodes for his new show “Pants On Fire” (& more money). I’m sorry if this is tone deaf but he’s so funny.
JFK > Paris stowaway caught trying to sneak into Canada this time (Daily Mail, BBC)
Seriously when is the Netflix documentary coming out?
OK, I know I promised no LA fire related headlines BUT I needed to share this one… (CBS)
The local government in California has been hit with a lot of backlash after the fires. Now, people are retroactively scrutinizing the Governor, LAPD fire chief, LA Mayor, & the water department chief… who apparently earns $750k / year. Some people feel the backlash is unfair to the Mayor & Governor (saying things like “what were they supposed to do???”). Governor Newsom is pointing the finger at the LA Department of Water & Power, bc there was a lot they could have done (especially in light of the news that the fire hydrants ran dry & LA ran out of water, exacerbating the damage). The worst part? The chief of the water dept. allegedly “knew” prior to the fires that the water reservoir needed to supply firefighters was empty. Please read the CBS article linked above, bc it documents a pattern of scandals related to fires.
Speaking of water in California… (TikTok)
Did you know that ~60% of California’s water is owned by 1 billionaire couple? Well, that’s what TikTok is saying. But when I tried to fact-check this for the newsletter, I found this article from Fortune, saying those claims are false. Here’s the link to the Fortune article on Yahoo! to beat the paywall.
Net Neutrality is over (Scientific American)
If you’re old enough to remember the early days of the Internet, you probably remember a time before net neutrality (AKA, the Obama-era policy that prohibited Internet providers from slowing down your service based on content, website, etc.) Well, a federal court just struck down the ~10 year policy, putting the power over equal internet access back with the legislative branch, Congress (rather than the FCC, an executive branch arm). Keep your eyes peeled for new laws introduced to hopefully bring back net neutrality.
This video with all the former presidents made me chuckle (TikTok)
The caption: “I feel like this is the closest Washington will ever get to a Real Housewives reunion.”
🤳🏽 IN SOCIAL MEDIA & THE CREATOR ECONOMY »
Selling Sunset office privacy barricade “crushes” innocent pedestrian (TMZ)
TMZ is so unserious. The headline says the privacy barricade (which the office installed in 2024 to prevent passer-by’s from peeking into the office to see the stars & distracting actual agents were trying to work) “crushed” a woman walking by when it fell on her. But then, it says “we're told no one was transported to the hospital by ambulance ... indicating there was no major injury following the barrier's fall.” (Id.) Like, let the woman sue!!! Don’t call her out like that. It’s ridiculous that they even took up half the sidewalk (helloooo zoning laws???) with the monstrosity in the first place.
Barstool’s Dave Portnoy won’t leave Grace O’Malley alone (TikTok)
If you’ve been following the Bri x Grace drama, you know Grace left Barstool after Dave & Bri did a “tell-all” on their podcast, speaking negatively about Grace (Bri’s childhood BFF & podcast partner). Alex Cooper (another former Barstool employee who had a dramatic break-up with her BFF & podcast co-host, Sofia Franklyn) immediately hired Grace to host her own show on the Unwell Network (a female version of Barstool). Not that Grace needed this attention to succeed (she was building a career as a comedian, opening with a stand-up act for Whitney Cummings), but this news has brought a lot of new eyes to Grace. Theo Von hosted Grace on his podcast & Grace mentioned she was being paid a “decent” salary at Barstool, but nowhere near what her friend was making. Dave took to his social media to set the record straight - she was making $175k base salary, with opportunity to earn commissions off merch & other Barstool sales, bringing her 2024 earnings to $250k.
I get why he spoke up - that IS decent for a content creator / employee in NY at her age, but I also get where Grace is coming from. She wasn’t paid for touring with Bri last year for their “That’s My Best Friend” live shows, & we don’t know what Grace was making in 2022 & 2023 (her prior 2 years working at Barstool). You can feel you were paid “decently” & still acknowledge that you could be paid more, due to picking up a lot of slack (Bri ghosted on the podcast for a while, following her musician ex Zach Bryan around on his tour bus).
Can you tell I’ve read the r/Briannachickenfrysnark Reddit page?
Speaking of Dave Portnoy… (TikTok)
Did you realize he is always standing on tippy toes in pictures?
TikTok “refugees” are fleeing to China’s version of TikTok, Rednote (TikTok)
The best part? The “locals” are teaching random Mandarin phrases to new users.
Mark Zuckerberg appeared on the Joe Rogan podcast & caused controversy (Entrepreneur)
As always. He disclosed that the Biden administration allegedly verbally abused Meta employees over censorship of Covid-related posts. This guy talks out of both sides of his mouth. I don’t believe a word he says TBH.
Speaking of Meta… (TikTok)
Do you think their goal with AI creators is to get their share of the brand deal / influencer piggy bank?
Good news: Neiman Marcus gives free 45 min facials?! (TikTok)
If you live near one, go. And let me know how it is.
FEATURE »
On hiatus - stay tuned next week for our feature about the legal side of the LA fires.
GOSSIP COLUMN <3
… AKA personal updates. Sit down with your favorite morning cup cuz I’ve got some tea ☕️
On hiatus - stay tuned next week for updates. Mark your calendars for January 24 at 12pm EST, our first ScrollSavvy Co-Working event.
OBITUARY »
We are no longer tolerating:
Conspiracy theories piquing curiosities of people that disrespect real victims.
Netflix. We need better content.
Public servants that don’t serve the best-interests of the public.
CLASSIFIEDS »
I’m looking to hire someone to help me with legal research. If you are a law student or recent law grad, please email nina@thecontractguru.com with your resume (& subject line “SCROLLSAVVY SECRET MESSAGE”).
PS… Got an opportunity you want to share? An event coming up? Looking to hire someone? Send a description & if it’s a fit for my audience, I will post it here in the classifieds section.
BRAIN FOREPLAY »
🍳 WEEKLY WORD SCRAMBLE »
EETTNNRI
LUEIATTNRY
ETNCCMMIUOA
CALIOS
Last week’s answers: Building, Agent, Selling, Downtown… Theme = Selling The City
THAT’S IT FOR THIS WEEK <3 THANK YOU FOR READING!
See you next week!
xx Nina