Happy Tuesday, October 6!
FYSA, 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 an eye on.
And finally, if you enjoy this newsletter and want to share it with your network (and/or your chronically online friends), or buy me a matcha, that would be so appreciated 🙏
This one is simple but effective! Do me a favor: go into your camera roll and find your favorite/most scenic/most visually interesting picture that you’ve taken in the last month. Then, do a quick on-screen text caption reminding people that we are exactly 4 weeks away (!!!) from Election Day 2026 and throw a link on there to Vote.org (a 100% free and non-partisan org that provides all the info people need to vote).
Example!
Some flags: if you don’t like any of your pics, that’s OK! It’s why we have Pinterest! Also, if you’re not an IG user, this can be replicated across TikTok, Facebook, etc. – or, if you’re an analog girlie, you can also fulfill this mission by texting, calling, or talking to a friend or loved one <3
(Also, if you do post, please tag me at (at)group.chat.correspondent on IG, so I can share/amplify!!!)
506 U.S. Citizens Detained
During the enforcement surge in Chicago last fall, known as Operation Midway Blitz, there were “no administrative arrests of U.S. citizens,” according to the Department of Homeland Security. “ICE has significant protections in place to ensure U.S. citizens are not arrested, detained, or mistakenly removed.” But we found that federal agents detained more than 120 citizens in Illinois during the height of the surge. (ProPublica, 10/6)
State Officials Are Trying to Get Ahead of Federal Agents at the Polls
Attorneys generals are working with election officials to get ahead of any attempts by the administration to send federal agents to the polls. Several sources who spoke with The Sun emphasized that this scenario could be illegal because federal laws state voters cannot be intimidated at the polls and armed federal agents cannot be present there. (The Washington Sun, 10/5)
Democrats Project a Party Milestone in Congress: 100 Women in the House
With female candidates competing in many key districts that will determine the House majority, and polls showing the party gaining ground in those contests, Democrats are projecting they could have as many as 113 women in their ranks next year. (NYT gift link, 10/5)
Mayors Are Filming Videos, Mamdani-Style, With Varying Degrees of Cringe
The videos can also help push an obscure candidate into the spotlight. In Seattle, Katie Wilson was running for mayor last year as a nearly unknown community organizer and socialist when she released a video of herself standing on a sidewalk holding an $8 slice of pizza and explaining how the cost was connected to the city’s housing crisis. Her campaign took off, and months later she was elected, unseating the incumbent, who had led Seattle since 2022. (NYT gift link, 10/5)
Lucy’s note: as a digital strategist, I will say I do think for every candidate, there is a digital style that works for them (and there might be some cringe moments while you figure that out and that’s OK!)
Muse Creates Detailed Profiles of All Your Friends and Family
One of Muse’s instructions appears to be the ability for it to create “a page for every person in the user’s life.” This hourly process involves compiling data on family, partners, friends, colleagues, “collaborators,” and people you “follow,” the instructions say. The general idea is that Muse can use its “memory” (aka structured text files) to collect information about your relationships and the important people in your life. (WIRED, 10/3 – free version)
Colorado influencers cash in on campaign season
Backers of the Colorado Connector passenger rail project, namely RTD, used taxpayer money for an August publicity blitz that included paid Instagram and TikTok influencers, Denverite reports. It’s unclear how much of the $1.3 million media-buying budget went directly to creators. The campaign came just before the district put a sales tax measure on November’s ballot to help fund the project. (Axios Denver, 10/5)
Life Ratings of Young Adults Down 20 Points Since 2010
The percentage of U.S. adults aged 18 to 29 who evaluate their lives well enough to be considered “thriving” in Gallup’s Life Evaluation Index is 44% thus far in 2026, which is on pace through the first three quarters of the year to be 20 percentage points lower than the high of 64% measured in 2010. Most of the erosion has occurred since 2019. (Gallup, 10/4)
Lucy’s note: shot…
Most Gen Z investors are redirecting savings into sports betting, surveys find
According to CNBC, Betterment, an investment advisory platform, published an August survey of retail investors showing that 66% of Gen Z investors engage in sports betting. Among those Gen Z participants, 52% reported shifting funds they had earmarked for investing over to sports betting, while 26% regarded wagering as an element of their long-term financial planning. (Quartz, 10/5)
Lucy’s note: …chaser
‘It felt like the Hunger Games had started’: Employees are ‘loud working’ in an effort to secure their jobs
And for the employees who now feel more stuck in place, some are now “loud working” — trying to ensure their work is visible and gets noticed. They hope that showing off to their bosses and colleagues will help them get promotions and avoid layoffs. Other people are “loud working” by focusing on building their personal brands online — showcasing their work rather than letting it speak for itself. (Business Insider, 10/4 – free version)
How Midcentury Modern Design Went From Cool to Cringey
Between January and June, purchases of vintage mid-20th century furniture on the décor-resale website 1stdibs were down 4% compared with last year, said Veronica Renton, a vintage and antique furniture specialist for the company. At the Newburgh Vintage Emporium stores in upstate New York, midcentury dressers and bric-a-brac used to fly out the door, said co-owner Anthony Vesnaver, 45, a millennial. But these days, he has noticed customers have started to move on from the look and that midcentury items linger unsold for longer. (WSJ gift link, 10/3)
Jefferson’s link to Sally Hemings’s children may have been settled by a hair
Most historians already accept that the author of the Declaration of Independence fathered children with Hemings, but the DNA testing done over the years to settle the case did not involve samples from Jefferson himself. There was enough wiggle room that some skeptics continue to believe it could have been another male relative, such as one of Jefferson’s nephews, who fathered the children. (WaPo, 10/6 – free version)
Extra Credit 🤓
Substacks That Really Substacked This Week 🤌
Adam Hamilton Can Win Kansas from Dan Pfeiffer of The Message Box
A Splintering MAGA Leans (Again) into its Bread and Butter: Attacking Women from Young Men Research Project
Sneaky Links
TL;DR I’ve inexplicably started receiving codes to stuff… here are the things I actually like :)
My BNTO code for October is 3FBFAF for $20 off (if you know me IRL, you know my rant about the Nuulification of the 20-something city dweller)
That’s all for now – I’ll see you on Friday!