The Daily Valet. - 4/13/23, Thursday
✔️ The Sounds of America
Thursday, April 13th Edition
By Cory Ohlendorf, Valet. Editor
What song would you nominate to be preserved as part of our cultural sound?
Today’s Big Story
America’s Song Book
the National Recording Registry Selections for 2023 include some notable firsts
This is why I love doing a newsletter. Because I learn something everyday. Like I had no idea that we, as a country, have a National Recording Registry. Perhaps you didn't either. Then again, it's still fairly new. The Registry was established in 2000 to serve as a repository of music and sound recordings that “are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States.”“The Registry preserves our history and reflects our nation's diverse culture,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden told the Hollywood Reporter. “The national library is proud to help ensure these recordings are preserved for generations to come, and we welcome the public's input on what songs, speeches, podcasts or recorded sounds we should preserve next. We received more than 1,100 public nominations this year for recordings to add to the registry.”Each year, 25 albums, singles or sound artifacts are included and 2023 is a year of firsts for the list of recordings picked for preservation. The additions, which were announced Wednesday, include Queen Latifah's “All Hail the Queen” album from 1989, making her the first female rapper to join the ranks.Likewise, the 1985 “Super Mario Bros.” theme became the first video game soundtrack to make the collection. The tune has appeared in countless Mario-related incarnations, including in the new blockbuster, Super Mario Bros. Movie. Fun fact: Composer Koji Kondo got the job as a college senior in Osaka, Japan, after responding to an ad on a university bulletin board.This year, the library also highlighted female artists, including Mariah Carey for her 1994 holiday hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You” and Madonna's legendary 1984 album “Like a Virgin”. Those are joined by a pair of 1980s standards: “Flashdance...What a Feeling” by Irene Cara and “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” by Eurythmics.According to Associated Press, the inductees include two non-musical entries, astronomer Carl Sagan's recording of his book about humanity's place in the universe, “Pale Blue Dot,” and NBC radio reporter Dorothy Thompson's commentaries and analysis from Europe during the runup to World War II in 1939.
FYI:
Some of the iconic singles that will be added to the registry this year include John Lennon's “Imagine”, Led Zeppelin's “Stairway to Heaven” and John Denver's “Take Me Home, Country Roads”.
The U.S. Is Headed Into a Recession
The Federal Reserve staff projects "mild recession" after banking sector turmoil
Federal Reserve officials anticipated that the recent fallout from the failures of two midsize banks was likely to weigh on inflation and the broader economy, with central bank staff forecasting a “mild recession” later this year, according to minutes of their last policy meeting in late March released on Wednesday.According to Axios, the minutes offer the most detailed accounting yet of deliberations to push ahead with another rate hike in the wake of bank failures that spooked the financial system—and the risks they viewed for the economy. That crisis had caused some speculation that the Fed might hold the line on rates, but officials stressed that more needed to be done to tame inflation.Over the past year, the Fed has raised rates at its fastest pace since the early 1980s to combat inflation that jumped to a 40-year high last year, reports the Wall Street Journal. Until recently, officials had signaled that they were likely to keep raising rates until they saw more conclusive evidence that economic activity and price increases were slowing.
FYI:
Congressional lawmakers have called for legislating additional rules such as raising the FDIC insurance limit for deposits.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit said the FDA’s approval of mifepristone in 2000 could stand because too much time had passed for the plaintiffs (a consortium of groups and doctors opposed to abortion) to challenge that decision.”
- Court Says Abortion Pill Can Remain Available
Meet the Climate Nomads
The Old #VanLife Is Out, But a New Nomadic Trend Is Taking Its Place
Remember #vanlife? The hashtag popped up on social media over a decade ago by people looking for adventure and traveling the country in vans, extolling the virtues of a rootless life. It eventually grew into “an aesthetic and a mentality and ... a 'movement,'” as The New Yorker's Rachel Monroe explained in 2017.Of course, as InsideHook points out, vanlife isn't always easy. It comes with a handful of drawbacks that most influencers won't share. But if that version of nomadic living was more about clout-chasing, a new more sustainable version is emerging aimed more at combatting climate change.Bloomberg reports on a growing group of idealistic Americans who are deciding to eschew the comforts of apartments, suburban homes and other traditional living arrangements in favor of vans, motorhomes and converted school buses, not because they like the aesthetic, but because they're dedicated to using less energy and lowering their waste and carbon footprints.
Meanwhile:
One of the cheapest countries in the world has officially launched its digital nomad visa.
HBO Axe’d
Warner Bros. Discovery unveils new flagship streaming service, ‘Max’
The wait is over .. the streaming service set to replace HBO Max will be called —drumroll, please!—Max. (Did you hear the sad cymbal crash soundeffect?) On Wednesday, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav officially unveiled the name of the company's new flagship platform, which will combine content from Discovery+ with the programming on HBO Max.According Variety, the rebuilt Max is set to launch first in the U.S. on May 23, featuring what the company promises will be an average of more than 40 new titles and TV show seasons every month. Vulture reports that the DC universe of superhero characters and the Wizarding World of Harry Potter will remain, along with HBO series, films and the Max Originals (some of which were certainly below HBO's prestige quality). In the Max era, the company plans an infusion of true-crime, reality, food and comedy programming from the likes of HGTV, Food Network, Discovery Channel, TLC and ID.It sounds a little muddy, right? Despite the app name change, Warner Bros. tried to stress how the HBO brand isn't on the outs. However, the new app has a new focus on algorithmically generated recommendations, both on the home page and after users are done watching content. Or as Gizmodo put it: this new streamer is “where prestige and braindead TV collide.”
FYI:
Pricing will remain the same as current HBO Max plans; $9.99 a month with commercials and $15.99 ad-free. A new $19.99 tier will allow for 4K resolution and 100 offline downloads.
In Other News
Justin Pearson and Justin Jones were both reinstated.
NPR Officially Leaves Twitter. We May Look at the Organization As a Pioneer at Some Point Down the Line.
Have you heard about ...
The Long Read
Tom Turcich on his seven-year search for the meaning of life
Turcich walked 21-24 miles a day for roughly half of the seven years he was away. In total, he walked 28,000 miles (25,000 of those with his dog Savannah), travelled through 38 countries. He is the 10th person to have walked the world, and he assumes Savannah is the first dog to have done so.”
- By Simon Hattenstone
Read It:
//
Shopping
What We’re Buying
A Travel Suit
This is the ideal travel suit and it's perfect for summer's swampy conditions. The breathable cotton/wool blend is simple to care for and the unstructured jacket could easily be worn separately.
Get It:
Grey Hampton cotton/wool knit suit,$1,048 / $734 by Jack Victor
Morning Motto
Discipline is key.
▾
Follow:
Share today’s motto:
