Is the Therian trend actually about rejecting modern life?
From TikTok Howls to dark academia, the Therian trend might look like just another online craze. But what if it’s really about rejecting the pressures of modern life and capitalism itself. As an English person living in Colombia, it can sometimes feel like certain trends - or at least, niche...
Current in Offbeat
Why are Gen Z suddenly so nostalgic for 2016?
2016 was the year of Pokemon Go, The Chainsmokers, Snapchat dog filters and skinny jeans. Gen Z are currently on a nostalgia binge, with searches for ‘2016’ having increased 71% in the last year over 2024. What’s going on? We’re not even two weeks into the year, and everything already...
What’s up with all the dramatic AI fruit slop?
TikTok mini-dramas featuring anthropomorphic fruits have taken the internet by storm. Should we be concerned? AI has birthed some seriously strange phenomena. Whether it’s Victoria Beckham break dancing at her son’s wedding, or a video of the Gaza strip showered in gold casinos thanks to Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s...
How pistachios became a pawn in the US battle with Iran
Noticed pistachios everywhere recently? It’s no coincidence. Their rise is part of a years-long rivalry between the US and Iran that holds new weight in the face of war. You’ll have heard of Dubai chocolate. The viral dessert has had TikTok under its kadayif covered thumb for over a year....
Gen Z are yelling in public and pretending to auramax
The latest ‘auramaxxing’ TikTok and Instagram trend has Gen Z yelling in public before taking a misleading picture. It is hilarious and has unsurprisingly gone viral. In need of a confidence boost? Looking to maximise your social aura? Forget the gym, have you tried yelling embarrassing nonsense in public to...
McDonald’s CEO mocked for weirdly ‘eating’ new burger
Chris Zempczinski described the new McDonald’s Big Arch burger as a ‘product’ in a new promotional video, before taking the smallest possible bite. The bizarre, awkward post has been mocked heavily online. What happens when an awkward CEO takes a fake bite of a new ‘product’ they’re promoting for social...
Why are people thirst trapping on LinkedIn?
LinkedIn has become an unusual breeding ground for thirst trap content. Is this peak cringe, or merely a symptom of life online in 2025? I was just looking for inspirational quotes, I swear. The social media flex is inevitable. Whether you’re looking to temporarily numb your brain on TikTok, have a quick peruse through Instagram, or look for job listings on LinkedIn, you’re all but guaranteed to stumble on people ‘thirst...
Why has the Winter Olympic village run out of condoms?
Athletes in Italy have reportedly run out of condoms, which are offered out for free at the Olympic Village every year. More are ‘on the way’ say organisers, though athletes say the initial supply was unusually low. There’s a crisis happening at the Winter Olympic village in Italy, and no, we’re not talking about the athlete who confessed to having an affair on live television. Reports from anonymous athletes...
2025 was the year of yearning
We couldn’t stop longing for what it didn’t have After a decade defined by hustle and optimisation, 2025 turned toward something softer and unresolved. The year of yearning. From breakout show ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ to Charli XCX’s viral hit ‘party 4 u’, the past 12 months of romance have been all about reaching out and never touching. But why has this childhood sense of longing had such a...
Beeple’s ‘Regular Animals’ turns billionaires into terrifying robot dogs
A late entry for the most disturbing art installation of 2025, Beeple’s ‘Regular Animals’ features a pen of robotic dogs bearing the likeness of tech billionaires and revered artists. They canter around, snap photos, and take NFT dumps. ‘You may live to see man-made horrors beyond your comprehension,’ declared Nikola Tesla in 1898. I’d say we’re probably at that point. Onlookers at Art Basel Miami Beach are transfixed in a state...
