"No Kings" Protests, Israel vs. Iran, Your Search History Going Public, & AI Ghosts (+ How To Avoid Them)
June 13, 2025
The Good News
Supreme Court win for girl with epilepsy expected to make disability lawsuits against schools easier (AP)
Smithsonian board to keep institution 'free from political or partisan influence' (NPR)
The Big News
U.S.
Starting tomorrow, millions of people across the country plan to show up for “No Kings” protests, a series of demonstrations speaking out against the Trump administration. A website for the protest cites Trump’s defiance of the courts, his policies of mass deportations, his attacks on civil rights, and cost cutting as reasons for protesting. Interest in the events, however, has grown significantly since the National Guard and Marines were sent to Los Angeles to address the protests against ICE.
The protests will take place the day before a parade honoring the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army (which also just so happens to coincide with the president’s birthday, but, surely, that’s not intentional). According to a poll from the Associated Press, six in 10 adults say that the parade is not a good use of government funds – it’s expected to cost anywhere between $25 million to $45 million.
World
Israel launched a wave of strikes across Iran this morning/last night (depending on your time zone) that targeted Tehran’s nuclear program and military sites, killing at least three top military officers. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strikes hit Iran’s main enrichment site, the Natanz atomic facility, killing leading nuclear scientists, and targeted Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal.
Iran launched over 100 drones toward Israel soon after, though Israel’s military said it shot down most of them. It closed Israeli airspace and said it was calling up tens of thousands of soldiers to protect the country’s borders. U.S. President Donald Trump had previously warned that Israel or America could launch airstrikes if negotiators failed to reach a nuclear deal, but Secretary of State Marco Rubio clarified that the U.S. was not involved in Israel's strikes while warning that “Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel.”
More Reads
Hegseth says the Pentagon has contingency plans to invade Greenland if necessary (ABC)
Trump pulls US from plan to recover salmon population, calling it ‘radical’ (Guardian)
House clears $9.4B in funding clawbacks requested by White House (Politico)
'I just walked out': The sole survivor of the Air India crash shares his story (NPR)
North Korea claims warship launch successful on second try (BBC)
Democrats seize on Padilla video as a unifying immigration message (Politico)
The Small News
Tech
Meta’s standalone AI app is playing a little bit of a prank on its users. When you ask the AI a question, you can hit a share button to publish your query. However, some users don’t seem to know that they are sharing these text conversations, audio clips, and images publicly with the world. Imagine if your Google search history were published for everyone to see…that’s basically what’s happening. Honestly, I’d rather my Google search history get published than my calculator app history, but that guy who asked “why do my farts smell so bad” probably feels differently.
Economy
The University of Michigan released the results of its consumer sentiments survey today and found that people are feeling a bit more optimistic as President Trump’s tariffs seem to be less of a concern. It was the first improvement in six months. The index of consumer sentiment rose 16% this month to 60.5, but inflation expectations are still much higher than they were at the end of last year.
Sports
The Florida Panthers lost Game 4 of the Stanley Cup final against the Edmonton Oilers, which means the series is now tied up. Oilers star Leon Draisaitl scored 11:18 into OT to give Edmonton a 5-4 victory last night. The most important part of this story, though, is that Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce were spotted in the stands.
Hollywood
Kanye West (also known as Ye) showed up to the New York sex trafficking trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs this morning to show his support. He didn’t get into the main courtroom and instead observed testimony on a closed-circuit monitor in an overflow room. If I were on trial, I think the last person I’d want to show up to support me would be Ye, but, hey, to each their own.
More Reads
Best moments from the second round of the 2025 U.S. Open (ESPN)
Google is shutting down Android Instant Apps over ‘low’ usage (The Verge)
Brewers trade RHP Aaron Civale to the White Sox for 1B Andrew Vaughn (NBC)
‘The Traitors’ Season 4 Cast Includes Donna Kelce, Dorinda Medley, Lisa Rinna and More (Hollywood Reporter)
Tuna, beans, Spam: Trump’s tariffs threaten the canned foods millions rely on to survive (Guardian)
Where’s the Inflation From Tariffs? Just Wait, Economists Say. (NYT, $)
The Weird News
Thanks to artificial intelligence, it’s possible to make a digital replica of your lost loved ones so you can hear them “speak” to you long after they’re gone. Setting aside the concerns about how this changes the grieving process, it’s also sometimes done without the consent of the deceased. That’s opened up an entirely new problem for estate planners – how to write a will that prevents someone from becoming an AI ghost. In fact, very few estate planners have even thought about it. It might be worth a conversation with your family to make your wishes clear, lest you become a haunting hologram (unless that’s what you’re into!).
Side note: Remember when Ye made a hologram of Kim Kardashian’s dead dad for her? We should have known things were going south for him then, I think.
More Reads
How scientists confirmed the existence of 200-million-year-old species thought to be extinct (ABC)
Ancient T. rex ancestor discovered: Khankhuuluu, ‘prince of dragons’ (WaPo, $)
Things I’m Loving Today
Dakota Johnson describing her dream where Matty Healy turns into asparagus.
Hacks (I know, I’m late to the game here)
Willem Dafoe playing Scrooge
Weighted blankets! What a revelation!
Paris Hilton saying she’s never had plastic surgery
Matching my pets to which Taylor Swift album they are.