Hello!
A few days ago, I watched this video from State of Kait talking about how outrage bait and controversy have become mainstream and normal ways to grow an audience and influence online. I'm not sure how overstated this is. "There's no such thing as bad publicity" is a saying that definitely pre-dates the internet!
Some of the things Kait shows off in the video, to me, read like very short-term plays that are making the world a little worse, but aren't going to be a good way to actually build a long-term audience for the creators in question. If you're obviously lying to your audience, video after video, that's a short-term strategy. There are also some things that read like pretty good ways to get attention that aren't really harmful, like a pop artist courting controversy with an album cover (tale as old as album covers).
Those examples are people making fake outrage bait or courting a little controversy, and, for the most part, I think that's normal. What feels different to me is accidentally (??) turning your AI chatbot into a nazi and then tweeting, "Never a dull day on /my/ website!"
There was a time when doing something obviously terrible had consequences for people. Those consequences were one of the (many) things we called "cancelling" and now, perhaps because we over-cancelled or because people just got convinced we did, we have overcorrected into rewarding vice not just with forgiveness, but by turning it into a kind of virtue.
That's the thing in Kait's video that most worried me. We moved from "I caused harm and thus my career is damaged or over" to "I caused harm, and thus my career is enhanced and thriving." My very, very strong hope here is that over the next decade, we will continue the cycle, and this behavior of being proud when we do damage won't swing back to moral grandstanding, but instead that behavior will just be deeply embarrassing. Already, I cringe when people do something destructive just for the attention they know it will deliver to them. Hopefully, I'm a trendsetter.
Hank
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This Week in Stuff
The Denver Zoo asked the public to vote on a name for their baby African pancake tortoise, and the results are in! (Today.com)
A man watering flowers gave over 20 million TikTok users summertime childhood nostalgia. (TikTok)
Bradford the dog loves listening to the piano. (Instagram)
There’s a road that plays Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony as you drive on it. (TikTok)
MinuteEarth told us the story of dogs. (YouTube)
Please send us stuff you think we should feature to [email protected]
Child mortality in Malawi has fallen by more than 80% since 1990
Hannah Ritchie
In 1990, one in four newborns in Malawi died before their fifth birthday.
At that time, the average number of births per woman was almost seven. This meant that many families experienced the tragedy of losing a child.
But in recent decades, Malawi has made incredible progress. As you can see in the chart, the child mortality rate has dropped to 1 in 25 children — an 84% reduction.
Many factors have contributed to this decline. The expansion of antenatal care and the attendance of skilled health professionals at birth have been crucial in saving newborns in the earliest days of life. Increasing vaccination rates, distributing insecticide-treated bed nets and antimalarials, and programs to stop the transmission of HIV have all reduced the risks of dying in infancy.
Our World in Data is a UK-based non-profit organization that publishes research and data to make progress against the world’s largest problems. You can find more of their data insights here.
This Week at Complexly
We've been thinking a lot about extinction and our role in it. We're interested in making a new show all about it. If you'd be down to support that (we hope you would!)—please go click "Notify Me On Launch" on this Kickstarter page!
Naked mole-rats are not keeping their weirdness on the inside. And all their superficial strangeness—the distinctive look, the complex underground society, even the strategic poop-eating—is just the tip of the weird iceberg.
Some Games to Play!
SpellCheck.xyc (by Answer in Progress)
This Gubbins postcard was made by Eden. Send yours to [email protected]
June 27th 4×3 answer key:
Keyword: Orange
Orange, Verde, Blanco (Capes)
Orange, Lemon, Grapefruit (Citrus)
Orange, Burgundy, Olive (Colors)
Orange, Apple, Green ( ___ juice)
If you post your results on social media, we’d love it if you post a link for folks to subscribe to “We’re Here” (https://werehere.beehiiv.com/subscribe)
Pizzamas in July
DFTBA is preparing for Pizzamas 2025 in September and found a few items from previous Pizzamas years! Nobody wants leftovers in their fridge, so we're celebrating Pizzamas in July! For a limited time, you can get mystery shirts, blankets, and a bundle of random Pizzamas items for a huge discount! But grab them quickly because things have already started to sell out...
What we’ve learned so far
In the last newsletter, we asked what you’ve learned so far in 2025. Thank you to everyone who emailed us!
The main thing I've learned is to trust myself and have confidence in what I can do. Also Ctrl+shift+t reopens the last tab closed, life saver!!!
In February I started uploading my bird photographs to instagram, just photos I’ve taken through my binoculars. Since then I’ve gotten a new camera and learned so much about composition and editing. I love this new hobby and the community is so nice and helpful. I have a feeling this one’s gonna stick.
I learned how to do medieval swordfighting. I got invited to a swordfighting training and i really enjoyed it and stuck around. All the people there are lovely and this group has taught me that there are nice people in the world, and we've really formed a safe community where being different is totally okay
This year, I'm cooking my way through a cookbook, and passively picking up multiple new techniques along the way; the most impressive of which, imo, is how to use steam to make a proper curd.
Earlier this year, I cold-called some old friends from our "high school" homeschool group and invited them to a Ten Year Homeschool Reunion to play a game of D&D. We had our one shot over Zoom last night, it was my first time as a DM, and it was so much fun! The lesson is a) reconnecting as a group was such a valuable feeling, b) it's nice to make things for people (e.g. write them a game with a bunch of inside jokes), and c) it was my goal to start DMing in 2025 and I loved it!
I started taking pottery lessons and have learned how to throw mugs 'n stuff! My goals are to make mugs with as many handles as possible (currently up to 4) and to attach handles to non-handled items (haven't quite figured out how to handle a plate). Cheers!
Back in January I went back to school so I could learn medical billing and coding. I've been a pharmacy technician for 11~ years, and decided it might be a good to learn some additional skills for healthcare. It has been a lot of work, because it's an accelerated program, but someone I've been getting through it. I'll be finishing up the program in September!!
Something I have learned this year is how to love the parts of me that are hard to love!
I made my own wedding dress this year and got married earlier this month.
While it wasn't my first time sewing, I learned a lot about hand sewing, working with fine fabrics such as silk organza and silk crepe, and I got much better at achieving a quality fit for a bodice.
It was definitely one of the most time consuming and challenging projects I have ever done, and I'm very proud of myself for persevering and finishing the dress.
Summer drinks just got better
Good Store just launched the perfect summertime accessory. We all have an old mason jar lying around. Why not use it to make delicious cold-brew coffee or iced tea? Fill up this Mason Jar Strainer with your favorite loose leaf tea or ground coffee, let it steep, and enjoy! There’s a limited number available, so try it out today. Also available in an Iced Tea or Cold Brew bundle!
That’s all, folks!
Create an acrostic poem using your name. Try to mention some things you love!
Send your acrostic to [email protected].
