A new era of Zander's Facts
Zander's Weekend Facts #133: Sunday, August 25, 2024
The summer of 2024 will be remembered for many noteworthy events. The withdrawal of a president from reelection. The United States asserting dominance once again on the Olympic stage. And the evolution of Zander’s Facts.
Today begins a new era for Zander’s Facts, as the brand sets our sights at conquering the next social medium, YouTube.
When I launched Zander’s Facts in January of 2021, the Zander’s Facts Podcast was a small idea simply meant to pass the time while we were all stuck at home at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Over three years, 139 podcast episodes, and 133 newsletter editions later, the Facts are still going strong. I’ve broken down some of the biggest political events to have taken place over the last four years. Three out of the last four NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament champions have been correctly predicted on the podcast. And I even ranked the best television streaming services.
Now, it’s time to branch out. To evolve. To make sure Zander’s Facts can continue spreading the facts in the most effective way possible in today’s ever-evolving landscape.
This new era starts with today’s brand new Zander’s Facts episode, Episode 140: The Best of the DNC.
For the first time, this episode was constructed with a visual component at the forefront. And that will be the standard for most Zander’s Facts episodes going forward.
You’ll still be able to listen to the Facts through your favorite podcast platform, whether that’s Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or right here on Substack. But in order to get the full, unfiltered Zander’s Facts experience, our YouTube channel will now be the place to go.
And instead of sticking to a strict, release a new episode Wednesday timeline, we’ll now be releasing Zander’s Facts episodes more periodically, when the moment demands the facts. That will provide more flexibility for getting the facts out, and more insurance that they’ll be perfectly polished for your viewing, or listening, enjoyment. But you’ll almost always get an advanced notice of when a new episode is coming out if you follow our social media channels, so make sure to check in every once in a while.
But not everything is changing. The Zander’s Weekend Facts newsletter will continue venturing into your inbox every Sunday morning, featuring the most important headlines from the past week that you’ll want to read about. If you haven’t yet subscribed to receive the newsletter in your email, you can do so at the button below. You’ll also receive any new Zander’s Facts episode immediately when it publishes.
In order to ensure the survival of Zander’s Facts, this was the way forward. And I’m super excited about what’s to come. Join us as we continue to spread the facts in ways that only Zander’s Facts can.
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In our first episode of the new era of Zander’s Facts, I break down the best moments from last week’s Democratic National Convention. From Joe Biden’s political farewell and Barack Obama’s not-so-subtle hand gesture, to the Walz family stealing the show and Kamala Harris giving the speech of her life when the lights were at their brightest. (And no, episodes of Zander’s Facts in this new era will not be this long. This one is special. 🥰)
What Zander’s been reading
Starbucks has been busy recently. While the company just announced the hiring of a new CEO, they’ve also been implementing a totally overhauled system meant to increase efficiency and reinvigorate the coffee mega-chain.
Check out this week’s featured article in Business Insider - Starbucks vs. the grind
Rapid-fire Facts
These are top news headlines from the past week in rapid-fire fashion:
Democratic National Convention: The Democratic National Convention was held last week, giving Vice President Kamala Harris the national stage one month into her presidential campaign. While the Democrats formally nominated Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz earlier this month, the convention allowed Harris and Walz to formally accept the nominations and give their acceptance speeches. President Joe Biden, who dropped out of the race last month, also spoke at the convention, which also featured former presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. The next major date for this year’s presidential election is September 10, when Harris and former President Donald Trump will debate in Philadelphia.
Interest Rates: Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell indicated on Friday that the Fed will soon cut interest rates. Between March 2022 and July 2023, the Fed raised interest rates 11 times in an effort to tame inflation, which has since dropped below 3.0% in the United States, according to the latest government data. While Powell gave no timeline for future rate cuts, the next meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee is scheduled for September 17 and 18.
Robert Kennedy Jr.: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced on Friday that he is suspending his presidential campaign and endorsed former President Donald Trump. Kennedy became known during his campaign for spreading anti-vaccine conspiracy theories. Kennedy’s poll numbers had declined in recent weeks after President Joe Biden withdrew from the presidential election. Kennedy stated that while he had discussed a potential role in a Trump administration, attempts to reach out to the Kamala Harris campaign were denied.
Noncompetes: A federal judge in Texas struck down a ban on noncompete agreements last week that had been implemented by the Biden administration. District Judge Ada Brown, who was appointed to the bench in 2019 by former President Donald Trump, ruled that the Federal Trade Commission does not have the authority to ban the practice. Noncompete agreements typically bar workers from joining competing or rival businesses. While the Chamber of Commerce celebrated the decision, the FTC is expected to appeal the ruling.
Stuck in Space: Two astronauts who have been stuck on the International Space Station since June will not return to earth until 2025, NASA said last week. astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have been unable to return home after their Boeing Starliner spacecraft ran into problems mid-flight. The flight in June was the last major test before Boeing could be certified to ferry astronauts to and from the ISS. NASA announced on Saturday that Wilmore and Williams will return to earth in February after hitching a ride on a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.
Zander’s Facts Sporting Club
Here are the latest headlines from the sports world in the Sporting Club:
College Football: The college football season officially got underway yesterday in Week 0. In the day’s most notable matchup, #10 Florida State fell to Georgia Tech 24-21 in Dublin, Ireland. Most teams begin play this coming week in Week 1, including several top 25 matchups. On Saturday at 12:00 pm ET on ABC, #14 Clemson faces #1 Georgia in Atlanta, #7 Notre Dame takes on #20 Texas A&M at 7:30 pm ET on ABC, and #23 USC plays #12 LSU in Las Vegas on Sunday at 7:30 pm ET on ABC. For the remaining top teams, #2 Ohio State hosts Akron at 3:30 pm ET on Saturday on CBS, Idaho takes on #3 Oregon at 7:30 pm ET on the Big Ten Network, #4 Texas plays Colorado State at 3:30 pm ET on ESPN, and Western Kentucky visits #5 Alabama at 7:00 pm ET on ESPN.
NFL Preseason: The NFL preseason will wrap up later today as teams begin their preparations for the regular season. Four teams ended the preseason undefeated, with the Chicago Bears, Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Jets, and Minnesota Vikings having won all their games. The Denver Broncos and Tennessee Titans could finish the preseason undefeated if they win their respective games today. On Tuesday, all teams must submit their final 53-man roster to the league before the regular season kicks off on Thursday, September 5.
US Open: The US Open, the final tennis major of the year, begins tomorrow in Flushing Meadows, New York. On the men’s side, defending champion Novak Djokovic will seek to defend his title after winning gold in the Paris Olympics earlier this month. Djokovic has won four US Open singles titles. Jannik Sinner comes into the competition ranked #1 in the world, with Djokovic second and Carlos Alcaraz third. On the women’s side, Coco Gauff returns as the defending champion, her only major singles title. Gauff comes into the US Open ranked third in the world, behind #2 Aryna Sabalenka and top-ranked Iga Swiatek.
NBA Media Deals: The National Basketball Association recently signed new media rights deals with ESPN, NBC Sports, and Amazon Prime Video, but is currently embroiled in a lawsuit with a separate partner. Warner Bros. Discover, the parent company of TNT Sports, is sung the league, arguing that it should have been able to successfully match Amazon’s deal with the league. TNT is entering the final year of its contract with the league to broadcast games. On Friday, the NBA moved to dismiss the lawsuit, saying that Warner Bros. Discovery was rewriting the terms of its current deal in order to continue broadcasting games beyond the upcoming season.
Leagues Cup Final: The final of the Leagues Cup competition, a tournament featuring Major League Soccer and Liga MX soccer clubs, will take place later tonight with two MLS clubs. The Columbus Crew will host LAFC in a rematch of the MLS Cup Final that took place last December. Columbus beat LAFC 2-1 in that match. Columbus also reached the final of the Concacaf Champions Cup in June, falling to CF Pachuca. After Inter Miami beat Nashville SC in last year’s final, this will be the second straight year that the Leagues Cup final features only MLS clubs. The final will kick off tonight at 7:15 pm ET and air on MLS Season Pass and on Univision.
Wrapping up the Facts
That’s a wrap on this week’s edition of Zander’s Weekend Facts. The facts in print return next Sunday, September 1, 2024.