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Newley's Notes

NN291: Buoyant Boxers

Sent as an email newsletter Aug. 22, 2022. Want to join my email list? Sign up here.

👋 Hi friends,

Welcome to the latest edition of Newley’s Notes, a weekly newsletter containing my recent Wall Street Journal stories, must-read links on tech and life, and funny dog videos.

I had two stories out last week.

💬 The first, on Tuesday: Hong Kong’s Crackdown on Dissent Hits Facebook Pages. It began:

HONG KONG—-A national-security crackdown in Hong Kong has extended to Facebook pages on which many workers and residents traded gossip.

Several prominent Facebook pages that were used to share anonymous comments about government and educational institutions in Hong Kong have shut down in recent days, following the arrest last week of two men by national-security police on suspicion of sedition. The men were administrators of a social-media group and suspected of publishing posts that “promote feelings of ill-will,” police said.

💻 And the second, an exclusive with a colleague on Friday: Roblox Poaches Seasoned Meta Executive as It Chases Growth in Asia

It began:

HONG KONG—-Roblox Corp. has poached a Meta Platforms Inc. executive for the newly created role of Asia-Pacific head of public policy, as the videogame company chases growth in the region.

Steve Park, the longtime government relations head for South Korea and Japan at Facebook’s parent company, will join Roblox next week, a spokeswoman for the San Mateo, Calif.-based company said.

Mr. Park has been at Meta for more than eight years and in a previous position worked on the company’s Oculus virtual-reality business, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Here are 10 items worth your time this week:

1) 🗞 A Washington Post longread: “Road to war: U.S. struggled to convince allies, and Zelensky, of risk of invasion.”

2) ⚽ A very cool sporting milestone yesterday: 21-year-old New Jersey native Brenden Aaronson became the first American to score for an American manager in the Premier League, helping underdog Leeds beat perennial power Chelsea. Watch the goal here. It was all about dogged running, a defining Aaronson quality.

3) 📺 For the first time ever, more people in the U.S. watched streaming services than broadcast TV or cable in the same month (July).

4) 👂 Some hearing aids will now be available for purchase over the counter in the U.S.

5) 😲 “Max Headroom” is being rebooted as a dramatic series.

6) 🏝️ A massive piece of environmental artwork by Michael Heizer, in the Nevada desert, is about to open after a half century. It’s remarkable.

7) ☕ Starbucks is leaving Russia. The eerily similar Stars Coffee is now popping up around the country.

8) 💇‍♂️ Three words: USA Mullet Championship. (Via Chris D.)

9) 📸 Wonderful: portraits of American sightseers at national parks in the 1970s, by Roger Minick. (Via Benjamin L.)

10) 🎧 An excellent episode of “Cool Tools,” one of my favorite podcasts: Larry Keely, Innovation Scientist.

•••

🦴 Dog-related video of the week:

“my dog was supposed to run over to me and sit”

•••

💡 Quote of the week:

“Above all, do not lie to yourself.” — Fyodor Dostoevsky

👊 Fist bump from Hong Kong,

Newley

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