The Upside Roundup – 5 Things I Like This Week, August 28
Seinfeld Defends NYC, Mamba Week, and the Surge of QR Codes
When the NBA returned to action a month ago, a stoppage in play didn’t seem far-fetched. It was a risky attempt to try and get its season complete under the circumstances of a pandemic. This was especially true in Florida, which was one of the hardest hit areas at the time of resumption. But, COVID-19 has done absolutely nothing to disrupt the basketball. Civil rights were the thing that actually ended up rocking the boat. The murder of Jacob Blake last Sunday prompted a three-day shutdown of the NBA Playoffs, one of the more extreme movements that has been premeditated by a sports organization. It was the Milwaukee Bucks, who refused to take the court on Wednesday afternoon, that spurred the movement. For a time, it appeared that the season was in jeopardy of being canceled straight away, but eventually, the Players Association and owners came to an agreement to get the playoffs going again tomorrow. Other sports, including the MLB, MLS, and WNBA, elected to join the party to varying degrees. These acts of non-violent protest are unlikely to be the source of significant change, but at least it has brought added consciousness around the conversation regarding civil rights.
· Two weeks ago, James Altucher listed out why he thought New York City was dead, and he brought up a legitimate case backing up his premise. He made a compelling case why he thought the city was done, and the response his post drew demonstrates that it was well thought out and intelligently written. NYC is clearly in the midst of an unprecedented downturn, but that doesn’t mean it’s dead. The city has been through many bouts of adversity, and time and time again, it’s emerged stronger than its previous state. It’s refreshing to see Jerry Seinfeld react in such a stubbornly resistant way to what Altucher said. No one is more quintessentially New York than Jerry, and it’s great to see the comedian resort to a rugged toughness that defines what the city is all about. Seinfeld moved to New York in 1976, and describes how the so-called “faults” of the city are key to making it so great. The spirit of the people in New York are built to bounce back from things like this pandemic, and Seinfeld roasts Altucher for doubting the resolve of his city in the New York Times article.
2. Facebook Removes Kenosha Shooter's Profile
· 17-year old Kyle Rittenhouse’s profile has been removed from the Facebook social media platform. The move was in response to users complaining that their newsfeed had been bombarded with posts that were praising him. Rittenhouse was arrested on Tuesday in Illinois after allegedly opening fire at a Black Lives Matter protest that took place last weekend. Two people were killed during the demonstration in response to the police shooting of Jacob Blake. In videos that he posted on Facebook, Rittenhouse could be seen expressing a pro-police sentiment that has received positive attention from experts who viewed his actions as heroic against belligerent protestors. Tucker Carlson praised Rittenhouse’s actions on his TV show, and Ann Coulter expressed that she wanted him as president. Facebook is being forced into looking into its censorship and anti-violence policies in real-time, and civil rights and racial justice groups are not satisfied with their actions to this point.
· Initially characterized as a “marketing gimmick,” quick response (QR) codes are becoming increasingly prevalent in a society that demands contactless interactions. Nearly everywhere you look, hospitality organizations are scrapping conventional food and drink menus to allow their customers to digitally access their offerings. In the early days of the pandemic, QR codes were essentially useless because everyone was locked down, but as cities have opened back up, they have exploded in popularity. It’s not only bars and restaurants that are using QR codes, either. Contact tracing provides another important potential use case for the technology, with the National Health Service Test and Trace app allowing users to scan a QR code that logs where they’ve been. In addition, offices will be able to dramatically reduce the liability associated with workers returning by using QR codes, pushing relevant information regarding policies and procedures instead of having to distribute print materials.
4. TikTok’s Founder Caught in the US-China Face-Off
· When ByteDance CEO Zhang Yiming created TikTok in 2017, the video app perfectly positioned to dominate people’s attention during quarantine, he never could have imagined that his app would be at the center of escalating tensions between the two biggest economies in the world. Yiming’s world has been crumbling around him over the past couple months, beginning in July when President Donald Trump began making moves to attack its place in US culture. Since then, Yiming has been faced with accusations that his creation poses a threat to national security in the United States, and he must either sell the company or face an outright ban in the country. Meanwhile, Chinese nationalists are criticizing Yiming for not fighting the White House appropriately and the CEO he hired to help spread the app across the globe suddenly quit earlier this week.
5. Nike's Kobe Bryant Commercial
· It’s been a big week for anyone who’s a fan of Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. His death in January could be looked at as a bad omen for the rest of this year. 2020 has been a disaster, and his helicopter accident may have been a foreshadowing event for how this year would play out. But, this week has been much better. Last Sunday, the 23rd, would have been the Mamba’s 42nd birthday. Then on Monday, it actually was Kobe Bryant Day, with the date 8/24 commemorating the two numbers he wore with the Lakers for over 20 years. The team elected to wear their Mamba jerseys for Game 4 of their first round series against the upstart Portland Trail Blazers, and they proceeded to annihilate them, scoring 80 points in the first half of a 20-point win that gave them control of the series at 3-1. There was a time when the Lakers appeared vulnerable in that series, but that time is ancient history. Nike took advantage of the occasion, and paid tribute to Kobe with a commercial that was sensational, just like every Nike commercial. Kendrick Lamar narrates, and explains how we could all live our lives just a little bit better to honor the Mamba.