today in tabs: hot priest influencers

ALSO: Illinois is requiring student mental health screenings, men love Pinterest now, 'the people want fro-yo', and more

Aug 05, 2025

Happy Tuesday, August 5th.

Just a reminder: every Tuesday and Friday, I’ll be in your inbox with the latest in politics, tech & social media, culture, and other relevant topics – and I’ll share some notes and tips on what I’m keeping my eye on.

Want to do a super fun, super cool rapid interview for this newsletter like this or this??? Reply to this email or hit the button below. Tips, thoughts, concerns, good jokes, bad jokes, tea, etc?

And finally, if you enjoy this newsletter and want to share it with your network (and/or your chronically online friends), that would be so appreciated 🙏

New filings reveal how top Dems are preparing possible 2028 runs

Together, they have already raised and spent millions of dollars this year, according to disclosures filed Thursday with the Federal Election Commission. The bulk of the money was spent on fundraising activities, including acquiring donor lists and running digital ads, that would facilitate a presidential run. (Politico, 8/2)

Lucy’s note: TL;DR, we’re looking at Buttigieg, Beshear, Whitmer, and Newsom (which is a lot, but not all, of the potential 2028 field).

Illinois becomes 1st state to require student mental health screenings

For students in Illinois, mental health screenings will soon be required alongside annual vision and hearing exams. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill into law Thursday that will require public school students in grades 3 through 12 in the state to undergo a mental health screening each year. (ABC News, 8/1)

As Trump Guts Climate Justice Work, Coastal Cities Are Pushing Back

Despite a hostile federal landscape, cities are forging ahead. They’re creating local funding streams, investing in community-led planning, and embedding justice into their governments and operational DNA. (Rolling Stone, 8/3 – free version)

Smithsonian to restore Trump to impeachment exhibit ‘in the coming weeks’

The Smithsonian said on Saturday that it would restore information about President Donald Trump’s two impeachments to an exhibit in the National Museum of American History within weeks. (WaPo, 8/2)

Lucy’s note: An update on this whole clusterf*ck we covered here.

Influencer Missionaries

The Catholic Church is trying to get influencers — women with fashion accounts and “hot priests” — to serve as its digital missionaries. In a first, the Vatican gathered more than 1,000 content creators last week in an auditorium near St. Peter’s Basilica. (NYT gift link, 8/3)

Clankers, Grokkers and bot-lickers: AI slurs are here to stay

On social platforms like X, users have even come together to consciously brainstorm new slurs for people who over-rely on AI. “Grokkers”, “Groklins” and “Grocksuckers” are just a few of the names that critics might call users of the xAI chatbot (which, lest we forget, was openly praising Hitler just a few weeks ago). More general insults include “bots” and “prompstitutes”. (DAZED, 8/1)

Blue-collar revenge: The things AI can't do are making a comeback

The 40 most-vulnerable jobs (translators, historians, sales reps, etc.), basically all of them office work, employ about 11 million people. The 40 least-vulnerable jobs (dredge operators, roofers, etc.), just about all of them manual labor, employ around 5.5 million. (Axios, 8/2)

A New Reality Dating Series Will Take Place Entirely at the US Open

The series, Game, Set, Matchmaker, will follow a woman (Ilana Sedaka, aka “The Champion”) and a cast of potential partners that include influencers, tennis superfans, and social personalities, as she seeks an, ahem, match amid the milieu of one of the biggest events in tennis. (The Hollywood Reporter, 7/31)

Everyone is listening to secular praise music. Yes, even you.

Secular praise music takes that feeling and emotion, harnesses those elements and markets it to both religious and nonreligious audiences. It’s a trend now, but it’s been around forever. (Yahoo News, 8/1)

Lucy’s note: another heater banger from
kelsey weekman
!

Pinterest's growing demographic: Men

Their most frequent searches on the platform — dressing for Pilates, upping their skincare game and being better parents — contrasts with coverage of their online habits and hyper-masculine stereotypes. (Axios, 8/3)

Lucy’s note: It’s so funny to me that men now love Pinterest and Uggs… they really missed out on being a tweenage girl in 2013 💅

TikTok Says Almond-Shaped Nails Are A Milennial Indicator

If you search for “Millennial vs. Gen Z” nails on TikTok, though, you’ll see that plenty of the former love wearing short nails the same way tons of Gen Z are out there rocking long tips. The drama more so lies in how quickly trends change, and how the older generation is officially over it and unwilling to keep up. (Bustle, 7/31)

Lucy’s note: I fear the phrase ‘milennial indicator’ is just so good.

The Man Who Would Save Fro-Yo

He says that 16 Handles, which operates with a franchise model, is profitable, and that he hopes to expand with more than 200 new stores across the country in the next few years. The people want fro-yo, he maintains. He is prepared to give it to them. (NYT gift link, 8/4)

Lucy’s note: THE PEOPLE WANT FRO-YO.

The New York Post to launch The California Post newspaper in LA

New York Post Media Group, a subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., will launch a new, daily Los Angeles-based newspaper called "The California Post" in early 2026, the New York Post's editor-in-chief Keith Poole told Axios. (Axios, 8/4)

Doritos thinks this flavor is its next ‘Cool Ranch’

Nearly 40 years later, the PepsiCo-owned tortilla chips maker thinks it’s found the next big flavor with “Golden Sriracha” — a newly released permanent addition that the brand hopes emulates the popularity of Cool Ranch and Nacho Cheese. (CNN, 8/2)