The Daily Valet. - 6/22/21, Tuesday

✔️ A Big Victory

June 22, 2021

Tuesday, June 22nd Edition

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor in Chief of Valet.

What’s for lunch? I hope it’s not Subway tuna.

Cory Ohlendorf, Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf

Today’s edition is presented by

Today’s Big Story

A Win for College Athletes

The Supreme Court’s decision could lead to salaries for student-athletes

In a unanimous decision on Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a ruling that the NCAA can’t enforce caps on education-related benefits like computers and paid internships that colleges can offer to student-athletes as part of their scholarships.

While the decision does not decide whether students can be paid salaries, it does now allow for schools to offer everything from musical instruments and postgraduate scholarships, to tutoring and study abroad programs.

The case is important in the short term for students who may see schools competing for talent by sweetening their offers with a variety of education-related benefits. It’s also important in the long term because it sets the stage for the possibility of schools paying student-athletes to play at some point in the future.

In its opinion, the high court undercut most of the NCAA’s broader amateurism defense, cracking the door for more challenges toward the association’s crumbling bedrock of amateurism rules.

So what will happen now? A former NCAA official told NPR that this is a win for student athletes. College football and basketball, especially, are in a world of trouble these days, with athletes viewed as exploited at the same time schools pay millions of dollars to coaches and spend hundreds of millions on palatial training centers, arenas and stadiums.

According to the Associated Press, the players associations of the NFL, NBA and WNBA had previously all urged the justices to side with the ex-athletes who brought the suit against the NCAA, as did the Biden administration.

↦ Dig Deeper: NCAA amateurism is effectively dead, says CBS Sports writer Dennis Dodd, and the association itself may not be far behind.

Raiders’ Carl Nassib Comes Out as Gay

The Las Vegas defensive lineman says it’s about time

On Monday, Raiders defensive lineman Carl Nassib became the first active NFL player to publicly declare that he is gay. (Other football players have come out as gay after retiring, but none have done so while actively playing.)

Nassib, a five-year pro football veteran who previously played with the Cleveland Browns and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, said he was finally “comfortable getting it off my chest,” in an Instagram post.

The 28-year-old player said that since coming out he has been greeted with the utmost respect and acceptance. “The NFL family is proud of you, Carl,” the league said Monday evening in a tweet, with the NFL logo in a rainbow for LGBTQ+ pride month.

In addition to the historic coming out, Nassib announced a $100,000 donation to the Trevor Project, a LGBTQ youth suicide prevention organization.

↦ FYI: Six elite French athletes, including three current Olympians, come out for Pride month.

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Facebook Launches Podcasts

The social media giant rolled out its Clubhouse competitor as well

As podcasts continue to reign supreme, Facebook is now getting into the game while introducing a suite of other audio programs this week.

According to Variety, select podcasts will be available on the platform. In addition, Facebook's Live Audio Rooms feature—a copycat of Clubhouse—will be available to public figures and select groups in the United States (initially on iOS), coming after CEO Mark Zuckerberg last week staged the first test of Live Audio Rooms in the U.S.

Of course, this comes a bit late. Spotify just debuted its own live audio app, Greenroom; so did Discord. And it's been four months since Reddit Talk launched; roughly seven months after Twitter launched Spaces; and about 15 months after, the OG, Clubhouse initially launched.

They'll all become more broadly available in the weeks and months ahead, as more people, podcasts and Groups are brought on board. But 100% of Facebook users in the U.S. will be able to listen to Live Audio Rooms and podcasts as of this week. But do you really plan to use Facebook for this?

↦ Meanwhile: Mark Zuckerberg’s decline in popularity has important lessons for business leaders.

Subway’s Tuna Is Still Suspect

According to lab results: “We cannot identify the species.”

Personally, I'm not much of a Subway fan. But I know a lot of people love the subs, so I take no joy in saying that the sandwich chain has been having a tough time lately.

But it gets worse. There was a lawsuit filed earlier this year regarding Subway's tuna. It alleged that what Subway served wasn't actually tuna, but rather a mixture of various fish—which the chain denied of course.

Now, the New York Times has completed an investigation of multiple samples of Subway's tuna. The verdict? A fish-testing lab says it's hard to say. But there are multiple reasons why.

Sure, it could be another kind of fish, but according to the Takeout, the other is that once tuna has been cooked, as it is before it's shipped to restaurants, its protein becomes denatured, which means identifiable characteristics have likely been erased from the meat, making it nearly impossible to identify.

↦ FYI: With 40,953 locations worldwide, Subway beats out McDonald's and Starbucks as the largest global chain.

In Other News

↦ Biden, Congress Divided on How to Pay for Infrastructure

↦ Tokyo Olympics to Allow Local Fans—But With Strict Limits

↦ People Keep Finding Late Loved Ones on Google Maps

Other Things We’re Talking About Today

A brief history of ramen

The Evian (re)enew

The Picasso principle

Partner

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There's a reason why protein bars are so popular. They're convenient and satisfying and (hopefully) offer you plenty of nutrition in an efficient, easy-to-carry package. But too many bars these days are masquerading as health food when really they’re more like candy bars—full of sugar or artificial sweeteners and lacking in nutrients. Which is why we skip those in favor of IQBAR.

You've probably read about them on Valet. before and that's because these are the bars the team eats the most. Why? Because they have whatever you’re looking for: They're high in protein, but low in sugar. They're keto and paleo-friendly. And they not only feed your muscles, but increase your focus and concentration with brain-boosting nutrients. They're one of the few snacks that actually help you hit your goals while taking the edge off your afternoon hunger pangs.

Of course, other staffers simply grab them because they taste good. With flavors like Wild Blueberry, Almond Butter Chip and Banana Nut, they're packed with actual fruit, nuts and high quality dark chocolate. Really, what's not to like?

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The Stylish Man’s Prime Day Deals

Ode brew grinder,$299 / $232 by Fellow

Prime Day is in full swing, and with so many deals flying around, it can be hard to discern what's worth breaking the credit card out for—even if it is on sale. Luckily, the editors at Valet. are here to help. While we've already found some of the best deals, these items are some of the most stylish finds on Amazon for your closet, your home, your fitness routine and more. With classic brands like Levi's participating in the massive two-day sale, there are bound to be some stellar deals, but make sure to check out the hidden gems that we've scouted, as well.