The Daily Valet. - 2/9/21, Tuesday

✔️ The Podcast Boom Evolves

February 09, 2021

Tuesday, February 9th Edition

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor in Chief of Valet.

At this point in the pandemic, I miss everything about shopping inside a mall.

Cory Ohlendorf , Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf

Today’s Big Story

The Podcast Boom Evolves

People are listening more than ever. And now, they can contribute as well.

Maybe it’s because so many of us are starved for connection and conversation during the pandemic that has put a serious dent in our social lives. Because we're listening to chats—in a myriad of forms—like never before.

According to Variety, Spotify packed in a strong end to the year roiled by self-isolation, topping forecasts for Premium subscribers (up 24%) in the fourth quarter of 2020 and growing total users by 27%, to a record-setting 345 million subscribers.

Clubhouse taps into the podcast boom perfectly. The buzzy social media app has identified people’s fatigue over constantly having to read and watch their content. Tuning into the live-audio app is akin to listening to a podcast-lite, 24×7 community radio channel, and banter with strangers, all rolled into one.

For the politically active, Clubhouse is a safe space to have lengthy discussions because the conversations are not recorded and can “disappear.” This might explain China’s the affinity for the app in China, where invites are currently being sold like merchandise on platforms like Alibaba.

And now, business guru and famed investor Mark Cuban is getting in on the audio and podcasting hype. AHe’s planning to launch Fireside, a “next-gen podcast platform” that facilitates live conversation, according to an email sent to possible creator partners seen by The Verge. The app idea is similar to Clubhouse, except with the ability to natively record conversations. A source close to Fireside says the app plans to launch publicly this year.

↦ Fireside Chats: President Biden is reviving the practice of directly talking to the public in a weekly address.

Trump Impeachment Trial Begins Today

Here’s everything you need to know

Former President Donald Trump returns to the news as his historic second impeachment trial begins today at 1 pm ET. According to the Associated Press, the Senate must decide whether to convict him of incitement of insurrection after a violent mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol.

Trump is the first president to be impeached twice by the House of Representatives, and he'll be the first former president to be put on trial in the Senate. Opening arguments are expected to begin Wednesday, and the trial is expected to last at least a week.

What can we expect? Democrats will vividly illustrate Trump's monthslong false claims of election fraud and attempts to strong-arm state officials into changing the results of the election, as well as his call for a rally ahead of the Electoral College vote count.

Trump's main legal defense, is one that's already proven popular with Republicans—that he shouldn't be tried at all because he's no longer in office. Democrats disagree, pointing to opinions of many legal scholars and the impeachment of a former secretary of war, who was tried after he resigned in a scandal. While an acquittal is expected, if Trump were convicted, the Senate would take a second vote to bar him from holding office again. According to NBC News, Democrats feel that would be an appropriate punishment.

↦ FYI: No witnesses are scheduled to testify, but senators could vote to allow them after the trial begins.

Malls Are Not Dead

But they’ve got some growing pains to get past

Since the beginning of the last decade, investors have been repeatedly warned about an impending retail apocalypse, which refers to the accelerating closures of brick and mortar retail shops, especially those of larger chains due to the rise of e-commerce.

And they've had reason to be concerned: From 2010 to 2016, there was an average of 4,000 store closures per year. However, this number began to accelerate in 2017 with 8,000 closures, 5,700 in 2018, 9,879 in 2019 and a whopping 15,542 in 2020, reports Seeking Alpha.

However, not all is gloom and doom for malls. High-quality malls will be able to survive this economic downturn and reposition themselves into shopping destinations of the future. Others are savvily embracing the boost in food delivery and setting up ghost kitchens inside to help locals get their food faster.

What doesn't seem to be working though is investments in large attractions like waterslides and indoor ski slopes. According to the Wall Street Journal, that's exactly what several malls had done in years prior and they have now found that strategy to be less of a lifeline and more like a burden.

↦ FYI: The United States has, by far, the largest amount of retail space per capita. There is an average of 23.5 square feet of retail space for every person in America compared to 17 for Canada and 11 for Australia.

About That Minimum Wage Hike ...

$15 an hour would spur job losses but lessen poverty, a new congressional report finds

Raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour—a proposal supported by President Biden—would result in the loss of 1.4 million jobs, but would also move many Americans out of poverty over the next four years, according to a government study released on Monday.

Along with the reduction in employment, the federal budget deficit would increase by $54 billion over the next 10 years, a fairly negligible level considering that the fiscal 2020 shortfall totaled more than $3 trillion.

The phase-in of a $15 minimum wage would also lift nearly a million people out of poverty, according to the nonpartisan CBO. This higher federal minimum could also raise wages for an additional 10 million workers who would otherwise make sightly above that wage rate, the study found.

Supporters of the minimum wage increase have hoped the report could bolster the case for including the measure in the next COVID-19 relief package. But Biden has acknowledged that the plan to phase in the new federal wage floor likely won't make it through the $1.9 trillion spending plan he is pushing through Congress, though he remains committed to the cause. So does Amazon, who endorsed the increase on Monday as well.

↦ FYI: The CBO says the wage hike would lead to higher prices for goods and services, which would contribute to an increase in federal spending.

In Other News

Other Things We’re Talking About Today

Fear’s unique effect on our libidos

Affordable jeans

An all-electric Jeep?

COVID Canceled Mardi Gras Parades

So New Orleans turned their houses into floats

It started off as a joke on Twitter, but now has become a movement spreading throughout neighborhoods in New Orleans.

Thousands of houses all over town are being decorated as floats because the coronavirus outbreak canceled the elaborate parades mobbed by crowds during the Carnival season leading to Fat Tuesday.

There's a home with a sign that beckons, "Welcome to Wakanda." Another features a Night Tripper theme in homage to funkman Dr. John. One house honors a health care worker alongside giant ivory beads. On a balcony, a cutout of the late chef Leah Chase stands, spoon in hand, at an enormous pot. Just off the St. Charles Avenue streetcar line, a giant model dinosaur in a top hat grazes. Elsewhere, a set-up pays tribute to Alex Trebek with a "Jeopardy!" board, playable using a posted QR code.

Doug MacCash, who's chronicled the house float movement for the Times-Picayune said it's yet another example of this city's resilience: "It has such a spirit of triumph, such a spirit of defiance. It's like, Sorry, 'rona. We're not just giving up."

What We’re Buying

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