Newsletter: Trump’s memeable ear ‘pillow’

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Hello fellow web crawlers! Andrew here. Welcome to today’s edition of web_crawlr. 

Our top stories today are about: How the “pillow” looking ear bandage Trump wore to the Republican National Convention following his attempted assassination became a meme, why an Amazon worker threatened to quit after she was told to fill up her truck with gas out of her own pocket, an Air Canada passenger going viral for sharing thatshe was “forcibly removed” from a flight, and why memes about the Supreme Court look different in 2024. 

After that, our Assistant Editor Kira has a “Decoding Fandom” column for you. 

See ya tomorrow! 

— A.W. 

⚡ Today in Internet Culture

👂 VIRAL POLITICS
‘My Pillow Minis’: Trump’s ear bandage from assassination attempt is already a meme

Former President Donald Trump appeared at the Republican National Convention with a gauze bandage covering his ear after it was hit during an attempted assassination on Saturday. Trump’s bandaged ear was quick to draw memes from users mocking the gauze’s pillow-like appearance.

➤ READ MORE

⛽ LABOR
‘I’m broke…what makes you think I got $55 for some gas?’: Amazon worker threatens to quit after she runs out of gas and is told to fill up out-of-pocket

This Amazon worker is fed up. Delivering packages in this heat is bad enough. But it gets worse. 

➤ READ MORE

✈️ WTF
Passenger says Air Canada ‘forcibly removed’ her from their flight. She can’t believe the reason why

A content creator called out Air Canada after claiming that the airline initially refused her seat on her flight back home. The airline, she said, also didn’t immediately offer to compensate her after “forcibly [removing]” her from the plane.

➤ READ MORE

⚖️ MEMES
SCOTUS memes look a bit different in 2024

Memes about the U.S. Supreme Court are proliferating on social media following a parade of unpopular decisions from the conservative court.

➤ READ MORE

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⭐ Decoding Fandom

By Kira Deshler
Assistant Newsletter Editor

The Katy Perry fandom can’t save her from flopping

In each edition of web_crawlr we have exclusive original content every day. On Wednesdays our Assistant Newsletter Editor Kira Deshler dives deep into the world of fan culture in her “Decoding Fandom” column. If you want to read columns like this before everyone else, subscribe to web_crawlr to get your daily scoop of internet culture delivered straight to your inbox.

🕸️ Crawling the Web

Here is what else is happening across the ‘net.

🐣 Chipotle is out here allegedly serving raw chicken again, and people are fed up.

🍉 Do you know how to pick the best watermelon at the store? Well this video sharing five tips on how to do so might help. 

🚗 Renting a car seems like it should be simple. However, anyone who has rented a car knows that this isn’t always the case. 

🍴 A TikToker and former food service worker delineated “the craziest 2 days” of her and her co-workers’ lives in a viral TikTok that’s accrued over 300,000 views.

👗 An Abercrombie shopper accused the brand of withholding her refund money despite the fact that she successfully processed a return with the clothing company. She’s not the only one. 

👶 From the Daily Dot archive: The many lives of the Dancing Baby, cyberspace’s first cringe meme.

📝 Question of the Day

Everyone’s got opinions, and we want to know yours. Just click a button below to answer the question, and tomorrow we will let you know how fellow web crawlers like you answered. 

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN ON A CRUISE? 

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🤳 Today’s Viral Video

Comedians John Mulaney and Nick Kroll fumbled an easy question about Succession on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. 

🎶 Now Playing: “Joyride” by Kesha 🎶