ADULT SWIM & BLUE ORIGIN

If you’ve been on TikTok this past week, you have most likely encountered at least one take on the new (and also old) Adult Swim trend. The platform’s newest movement is a tribute to Adult Swim’s bumps that often play between TV shows and commercials. What makes these videos so special is the fact that each video shows off the unique personality of its creator. The one thread that ties each video together is the Adult Swim logo that’s revealed at the end of each video, to tremendous nostalgic effect For me, it brings up a feeling of a past era, when I spent my nights watching whatever was on one of my three favorite TV channels at the moment, with commercials, without a phone or laptop to distract me from the TV screen. Check out my favorite versions of the trend here! 

In more futuristic news, Jeff Bezos’ aerospace company, Blue Origin, is launching its first crewed flight next month. And, the soon-to-be-former Amazon CEO will be on it. As CNN put it, he will be “the first of the billionaire space tycoons to experience a ride aboard the rocket technology that he's poured millions into developing”. Bezos is taking his brother with him, along with the lucky (and wealthy) winner of an auction that’s currently going on, which is currently set at $2.8 million. The whole flight will take just 11 minutes, going up to 68 miles above the Earth. 

And finally, I have an educational TikTok for you all today! Sean Szolek-Van Valkenburgh, who prides himself on reading all terms and conditions he comes across, breaks down TikTok’s new privacy policy. One of the more alarming takeaways is the fact that the company is most likely collecting faceprint and voiceprint data from its users. And on a lighter note, if you’re still down to use the app, creator Jasmine Deyanna explains a unique bird ritual that she discovered from a nature documentary, in the most hilarious way. 

—Darlene Kenney, Digital Strategist