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...
Current in Culture
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....
Turns out a lot of us care about ballet and opera
Timothée Chalamet’s dismissal of ballet and opera raises a lot of questions around the survival of the arts. Has Hollywood’s golden boy tarnished his crown? Timothée Chalemet was a shoo-in to win the coveted Best Actor trophy at this year’s Oscars. It’s his third nomination in the category, and despite...
Authors protest AI at London Book Fair with ‘empty’ book
Over 10,000 writers have contributed to ‘Don’t Steal This Book,’ an empty publication that only contains a list of their names. Organised by Ed Newton-Rex, the book will be given out for free at the London Book Fair in protest of AI tools stealing the intellectual property of creatives. Thousands...
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...
The Jim Carrey conspiracies prove AI has already won
The actor’s recent appearance caused an internet spiral that suggests reality is slipping from our grasp. Are we entering a new age of authenticity? Back in the 90s, Jim Carrey was a household name. You’d be hard pressed to find someone who hadn’t heard of the actor or his bevy...
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 media? Viral hilarity, of course! We are, of course, talking about McDonald’s CEO Chris Zempczinski, who became the latest target of...
Broadcasters failed everyone at the BAFTAs
The BBC’s handling of a racial slur was damaging for all involved. It’s proof that inclusivity amounts to more than just a seat at the table. Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo endured a living nightmare when they took to the BAFTAs stage last week. It should have been a night of glorious celebration. Their film, Sinners, was up for a bevy of awards (it’s also bagged a record-breaking 16 Oscars nominations) and co-star...
Opinion – Biathlete Sturla Holm Laegreid’s speech was a hot mess
The Olympian’s admission of infidelity came at the wrong time in the wrong place. By framing it as a romantic gesture, Laegreid embodies everything wrong with patriarchal, ego-driven ideas of love. Sturla Holm Laegreid’s speech was not the grand romantic gesture he thought it was. Before the 20km individual biathlon took place at the Winter Olympics in Italy last week, you’d probably never heard of Laegreid. He’s a successful Norwegian...
Wuthering Heights yearning feels out of step with Gen Z dating
The vast criticism for Emerald Fennel’s 'adaptation' of Emily Brontë’s classic novel Wuthering Heights began before the feature film had even darkened screens in full. From the white-washed or otherwise clumsily racially-stereotyped casting choices, to the soy-boyification of Heathcliffe - the Byronic hero(?) - the one thing the trailer promised us was an almost complete departure from what the middle Bronte sister originally intended. On this point at least, audiences...
