MEDIA

Making Sense of the Social Media Hooplah

Not since the “relationship status” button was added to Facebook has there been this much intense focus on social media sites. Yesterday, Twitter kept the issue of curtailing misinformation top of mind by taking down a tweet from Scott Atlas, one of President Trump’s top coronavirus task force members.

• Atlas's tweet questioned the efficacy of wearing a mask, reading “Masks work? NO." 

Get caught up 

Social media companies have danced, tip-toed, and flip-flopped on the contentious issue of content moderation in the past week. Here were the biggest developments:

• Wednesday: Twitter locked the NY Post’s account and blocked users from sharing an article the Post wrote about Joe Biden’s son, Hunter. The company said the article contained hacked materials; Facebook also took steps to limit the distribution of the article because it could potentially contain misinformation. 
• Thursday: Twitter doubled down and temporarily locked the official Trump campaign account for trying to share the Post article. YouTube also announced new policies designed to limit the sharing of “conspiracy theory content used to justify real-world violence”—primarily aimed at the QAnon conspiracy theory. 
• Friday: In its best Tony Hawk impression, Twitter pulled a 180 on the NY Post article, allowing users to share it and changing the policies it used to block the article. 

The rule at the center of it all 

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. The controversial law that grants social media platforms sweeping protection from user-generated content is in the spotlight again after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas said last week that the court should look for the right case to begin scaling it back. 

While there's bipartisan support for reform, the differing motives behind each party’s distaste for Section 230—Republicans claim the law allows these platforms to exhibit anti-conservative bias, while Democrats say it doesn’t do enough to limit hate-speech—make it unlikely any legislation will be passed before the election.  

Bottom line: With Election Day just over two weeks away, the role of social media in America’s democratic process has become one of the defining issues of the campaign. 

QUOTES

Weekend Soundbites

“I can’t believe how fast the second wave has hit...another recession is absolutely possible.”—Katharina Utermöhl, a senior economist at Allianz, warned the FT of further economic pain as Covid-19 cases continue to rise across Europe.

“Additional differences...must be addressed in a comprehensive manner in the next 48 hours.”—A top aide to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced a two-day deadline for any stimulus agreement before the election (the deadline is today). 

“Maybe I’ll have to leave the country.”—President Trump pondered his future plans if he lost to Joe Biden during a campaign rally in Georgia.

"Elections aren't always great at bringing people together."—New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern stated the obvious after her Labour Party dominated the country’s general election. Arden has earned international praise for her handling of the coronavirus.

“Have you seen Nurse Ratched?”—Your coworker trying to make small talk this morning. Netflix tweeted that 48 million people have watched the show in the first 28 days of its release, making it Netflix’s most popular original Season 1 of the year.

SPORTS

Ski Season Plows Ahead—But in Pizza Position

As ski mountain resorts gear up to reopen for the winter, we’re learning more about their plans to allow safe gnar shredding during a pandemic. 

In many ways, skiing is Covid-friendly. Masked-up skiers were defogging glasses before it was cool, and the sport already takes place outside with lots of protections against the elements. 

But resorts are still taking major precautions. Expect social distancing requirements while waiting in lines, fewer opportunities to make a new friend on a chair lift, and a toned-down après-ski scene after you get off the mountain. 

• Plus, less availability. With rules limiting capacity, industry giant Vail is giving first-priority to pass holders at its 34 North American locations.

On that note, good luck finding a place to stay. The real estate market in ski towns was crazy busy this summer as city dwellers looked for homes closer to nature.

Zoom out: The start of the ski season shows just how long we’ve been living with the pandemic. Mountains were forced to shut down when the virus first began to spread widely in March.

SPONSORED BY SLACK

The Brew’s Glue

There are a lot of people who work hard to craft this here newsletter and get it to your inbox every morning. 

We like to think it’s because we’re newsletter wizards, but to tell you the truth, we owe much of this sorcery to Slack.

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You must understand, we’re a super serious media company and there’s a lot at stake, so we rely heavily on Slack to keep us connected and ensure the lights at the newsletter factory stay on.

See how Slack can help your team collaborate today.

HISTORY

Let's Try to Avoid This Today

Today marks the anniversary of one of the most infamous days in Wall Street history. On October 19, 1987, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 22.6%, the biggest single-session drop in history. It’s called...drumroll please...Black Monday. 

What happened? The Brew’s Alex Hickey walks us through the timeline: 

• The Dow gained 44% in seven months by late August, stoking fears of a bubble.
• Then, a “perfect storm” of conditions, including a falling dollar and the recent introduction of computerized trading, accelerated a global selloff. 
• On Black Monday, risk arbitrage traders, individual investors, and portfolio insurance holders sold stocks like Girl Scout cookies.

Unlike other financial crises, Black Monday didn’t trigger a recession or a banking collapse. The Dow clawed back 57% of Black Monday losses in two sessions. And by September 1989, stocks were at pre-Black Monday levels. 

The legacy of Black Monday: Among other market reforms, the U.S. installed circuit breakers that pause trading if stocks fall too much too quickly. If you remember this past March, those circuit breakers were triggered three times in just over a week when the market plummeted at the onset of the pandemic.

CALENDAR

The Week Ahead

Way back in July, we picked the Tampa Bay Rays to win the World Series. They’re about to prove us right. 

Monday: IBM earnings 

Tuesday: The new electric Hummer is revealed; Game 1 of the World Series; earnings (P&G, Netflix, Snap)

Wednesday: The Fed’s beige book economic survey; earnings (Tesla, Chipotle, Verizon) 

Thursday: Final presidential debate; earnings (AT&T, Coca-Cola, Intel, Southwest, American Airlines) 

Friday: New Bruce Springsteen album; American Express earnings

GIVEAWAY

Sweatpants Are the New Work Pants

Whether you plan to rock them at Sunday brunch or for your Zoom meetings, these outrageously comfy Morning Brew joggers need to be in your closet ASAP. 

And it couldn't be easier. All you need to do is refer five people to the Brew this week using your unique link. That's it. 

• Quick note: It doesn’t matter how many referrals you currently have—you need to refer five additional people this week. 
• And remember, U.S. only.

Don't put this off. Win your joggers today.

Or copy & paste your referral link to others:
morningbrew.com/daily/r/?kid=303a04a9

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• American Airlines revealed plans to return Boeing’s 737 Max to service before the end of the year. 
• Israel has started to ease its second lockdown as Covid-19 cases decline (same with Australia). But restrictions are growing across Europe.
• More companies are delaying their return to the office until summer 2021 at the earliest.
• Robert Smith, the billionaire private equity exec who became famous for paying off the student debt of Morehead College seniors last year, admitted to 15 years of tax fraud.

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Looking to move? Check out this list of the 150 best places to live in the U.S. We strongly endorse Fort Collins, CO. 

In the WFH trenches: For all the pajama-wearing employees out there, here’s some actionable advice from 11 veteran WFHers. 

Recipe of the week: Vegan Nutella.

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FROM THE CREW

Start Talking

Every Monday, we curate a handful of balanced resources about a hot-button business issue and encourage you to discuss with friends, family, or coworkers.

This week’s topic: Diversity training. Late last month, President Trump issued an executive order laying new ground rules for diversity and inclusion training at companies with federal contracts or grants. It’s been...controversial. 

• First, catch up on what’s been going on and what both sides are arguing about. (USA Today)
• Find basic information about Trump’s order, including why it prohibits unconscious bias training. (Department of Labor)
• Read the letter from a coalition of 150+ business groups that say the order is already having a “broadly chilling effect.”
• What is critical race theory, the prominent framework for examining racism that’s under fire by the Trump administration? (Time)
• Corporate America’s diversity training programs have never been perfect. (Axios)

GAMES

Brew Crossword

Today's Brew Crossword, created by Ashlee Vieregger, is super clever and takes its theme from something mentioned in this newsletter.

Play the crossword to find out what it is.

Remember, you can submit your own Brew Crossword to be featured in this section. Check out the guidelines.