đ Weâre so happy youâre here â especially if youâre under 30, considering nearly 40% of young adults get their news from social media influencers, according to new Pew Research Center data. While they might one-up us on the viral dances, 84% of TikTokâs news influencers havenât worked in journalism but three-quarters try to make money off their analysis.
đ§ On the pod:The startup trying to revolutionize Americaâs bone marrow transplant system.
NEWS FLASH
ââď¸ In bad spirits: Spirit Airlines filed for bankruptcy protection yesterday amid growing losses, but will continue to operate during the restructuring. Spirit has had a hard go of it: Its merger with JetBlue Airways was blocked on antitrust grounds, an engine recall grounded dozens of its planes, and the pandemic drove up costs of the notoriously budget-friendly airline. The company hasnât posted a profit since 2019, lost $335m+ in the first half of the year, and is the first major US airline to file for bankruptcy in 13 years. While that all sounds grim, Spirit has already secured $300m in bondholder financing and says it expects to exit bankruptcy by Q1 of 2025.
âď¸ Paul Mescal must be tired this morning, because Paramount Pictures really put him to work last night. In anticipation of the Gladiator II debut, Paramount released a 60-second film trailer across 4k+ TV networks, digital platforms, local channels, radio stations, and Spanish-language outlets simultaneously â a marketing tactic known as a âroadblock.â The trailer is estimated to have reached ~300m potential customers based on average audience totals, and cost ~$2m to air â a fraction of the ~$100m Paramount has spent to market the movie.
đ Orange juice consumers are surprisingly discerning: Tropicanaâs new bottle design, which replaced its carafe with a more traditional bottle, is a miss with customers who are calling it an example of shrinkflation. The smaller bottles are supposed to be cheaper, but not every store is complying; as of October, sales were down 19% YoY. Whatâs perhaps most interesting is this nuggets of info, perCNN: Tropicana redesigned its logo in 2009 and customers hated it so much, sales dropped 20%. Perhaps the lesson is that when it comes to OJ, if it ainât brokeâŚ
MORE NEWS TO KNOW
Roblox is rolling out new child-safety protections, like banning messages outside of games for players under age 13, age-gating certain experiences, and enhancing parental controls.
BeyoncĂŠ will perform a live halftime show on Dec. 25 when the Houston Texans play the Baltimore Ravens. Viewers will have to catch it on Netflix, which recently scored a three-year NFL deal.
Organic carrots produced by Californiaâs Grimmway Farms have been linked to an E. coli outbreak that has sickened at least 38 people across 18 states â though the CDC says the number is likely higher, as many people recover without seeking treatment.
TOOLBOX
Still have New Yearâs resolutions left unchecked on your list? We have some content to help you finish out the year on a high note:
Whatâs the secret to making engaging videos? Itâs all about psychology. Here are six hacks to help you capture an audience.
Take notes: Hereâs everything you need to do if youâre building your first AI company from scratch.
Listen up: Can one marketing principle help you go viral on YouTube? Find out.
THE BIG IDEA
Booksellers are nowhere near the last page
Booksâ popularity surged after covid lockdowns, as people rediscovered the joy of doing literally anything that didnât involve a screen.
Now, more than four years out, itâs clear that it was no fluke.
Barnes & NobleâŚ
⌠once the boogeyman of independent bookshops before it was nearly obliterated by Amazon, has ridden this new wave of appreciation for the printed word by expanding its stores nationwide.
More than 60 new locations are opening this year.
One of those locations is a multistory complex in DC that CNN suggests is more âsymbolicâ than anything â B&N used to operate out of the same building over a decade ago.
Foot traffic at B&N stores is up 7% since 2019, per Placer.ai data.
Itâs no fluke, but itâs no coincidence either: B&N CEO James Daunt attributes the success to taking a page out of the indie bookstore model.
The company lets each store run itself so it can best serve its book-buying community.
That means trusting employees rather than sponsored promotions from publishers.
B&N has also embraced #BookTok, using the TikTok hashtag to curate titles and fan events.
Itâs not just that people are reading more, itâs that B&N purposefully positioned itself for a resurgence that it claims to have seen coming.
For physical bookstoresâŚ
⌠the battle against the internet has been hard fought.
In 2001, B&N competitor Borders made a Faustian bargain with an up-and-coming online retailer called Amazon to offload its entire digital presence.
Borders bet big on physical stores and filled them with CDs and DVDs.
If you canât guess how that worked out, the last Borders closed in 2011 and Amazon is now worth $2T.
So B&N should be in a good place now, provided it doesnât start actively courting its own destruction.
Teach yourself to code: Buddy up with chatbots. Here are a Google data scientistâs top tips for turning ChatGPT into your personal tutor.
Some things havenât aged well â like the first food pyramid, 90% of comedies from the â80s, and these six outdated sales tactics experts say you need to ditch.
DATA POINT
Homes on-demand: Manufactured homes â those made in a factory rather than on site â are surging in popularity as America grapples with its housing crisis, perCNN.
Today, ~6% of the US housing stock is manufactured homes, AKA mobile homes, and 77k+ new manufactured homes were shipped this year through September, up 16% over the same period a year ago, per US Census Bureau data.
On Amazon, customers can order a foldable home for under $25k or a multilevel house constructed of recycled shipping containers for $29k.
While the upfront prices are low, homeowners should anticipate the added expenses that come with meeting zoning requirements and building codes â like building a permanent foundation, making âmobileâ home a bit of a misnomer.
AROUND THE WEB
â˝ On this day: In 1969, Brazilian soccer great PelĂŠ achieved his 1,000th professional goal during a game in Rio de Janeiro.
đď¸ Newsletter:JoinFuture Toolsâ 160k+ subscribers for the biggest stories and most interesting tools in AI.
đŽ Thatâs interesting: A Scottish childrenâs hospital hired a gamer in residence who plays video games with patients.
đ Haha: Have you ever wondered what would happen if everyone pointed a laser at the moon?
