I wouldn't fire your graphic designer if I were you

AI can't replace good taste. [Bloomberg]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a mind-numbing flood of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - On graphic design, [trust the pros](. - Florida’s [abortion ban]( really blows. - How to [reserve a table](? Nobody knows. - Peloton’s [progress]( basically froze. Art Donaldson Is No Artist On the release day of Challengers, 48.6 million people viewed [this]( offensive (not to mention [ugly]() movie poster shared by a blue-check X account called Films to Films. I don’t blame you if you’d rather not click through — all you need to know is that there’s a line break in the movie title that invokes a racist slur. The outrage online was palpable: What PR team thought this poster was appropriate? How many people must have approved it before it went public? “Tell me you have no Black people or graphic designers on staff without telling me you have no Black people or designers on staff,” TV producer Franklin Leonard [tweeted](. But a few hours later, the internet learned that the poster was not, in fact, [official marketing]( from the film. Instead, it was made by some rage-baiting random with a Canva account. The Challengers social media team handled it in the best way possible, by tweeting [this]( amusing clap-back: The whole fiasco says a lot about the current state of graphic design. Brands no longer need art directors who learned how to use Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign in college. Anyone with a computer can create advertisements — real and fake — on Midjourney in the span of minutes, if not seconds. But something important is lost in that process: [taste](. “Skipping over real humans who can push back on corporate clients will lead to a mind-numbing flood of second-rate marketing,” Parmy Olson [argues](. As a result of that AI-induced degradation, the graphic design profession itself is rotting. Yael Biran, a veteran [animator]( of 25 years, says her usual workflow of about a dozen annual projects dwindled to three in the past year. She suspects a lot of her former clients are now using cheap [AI tools]( instead of her services. One of her peers just retrained to be a gardener, and Biran is mulling new paths as well. But Parmy says she has a stark warning for what clients are about to lose: “the people who challenge your terrible ideas.” “What we give to clients is the ability to say ‘no’ to their ideas,” says Biran. “They’re not visual people, and they know what they think they want. And then a lot times it really needs tweaking. Sometimes in a major way.” In other words: AI can’t reject your [no good, very bad]( ideas. “Critics of the tech say that will lead to a flood of boring, derivative work in film and TV since AI tends to spew a pastiche of pre-existing art,” Parmy writes. Allison Schrager, who just attended this year’s [AI-themed]( Whitney Biennial, [has to agree](. “I liked some of it, but I was not alone in my disappointment. Some critics also complained that much of it was predictable and risk-averse.” Speaking of being predictable … I’ll leave you with this meme which, yes, I made on Canva: Bonus Better-Without-AI Reading: If Elon Musk plans to turn Tesla into an AI company, the rest of us can carry on [building an EV charger network]( just fine. — Mark Gongloff Two Years Later They say that time flies when you’re having fun, but I have to say it seems to fly when you’re *not* having fun, too: On May 2, 2022, Politico released [a leaked first draft]( of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade. [Without abortion access,]( “horror stories abound,” Mary Ellen Klas [writes](. The Sunshine State’s “mandatory 24-hour waiting period, combined with the ban, effectively ended 50 years of reproductive freedom in Florida, where more than 84,000 abortions were performed last year.” Now that two of the most populous states in the nation — Florida and Texas — have near-absolute bans, thousands of women need to travel hundreds of miles for care, risking their physical and financial health in the process. “If Republicans really cared about protecting life, their response to the overturning of Roe would have been to expand the social safety net to make parenting easier, lower the economic barriers to raising healthy children, and diminish the economic and medical need for abortions,” Mary Ellen argues. But the opposite has happened: Florida has ejected more than [22,500 children]( from its health insurance program, while at the same time refusing to expand Medicaid, a service that covered [nearly 50%]( of new mothers in 2022. And when these kids grow up, government support doesn’t get any better, if this Kathryn Anne Edwards [column on child labor]( is any indication. But will any of this [impact]( the election come November? Francis Wilkinson [isn’t so sure](. “Abortion was widely considered a potent vote driver for Democrats in the 2022 midterms, and Trump’s convoluted [message]( on the issue since is a signal that it remains a hazard for him,” he writes. “But it’s unclear if Democrats can energize enough voters in the right states in a presidential electorate that will swell with tens of millions of voters who didn’t bother to vote in 2022.” A Table for Two? How About Never. “Being good at making dinner reservations” isn’t something I’ve ever considered putting on my resume, but [maybe I should](? My Google Maps — full of restaurants I love and ones I have yet to visit — is so populated that it should make you question my sanity: Last week, The New Yorker released a piece on the [cutthroat secondary market]( for bookings in Manhattan’s hottest restaurants. Alex Eisler, a sophomore at Brown University, made $70,000 last year reselling reservations, which Matt Levine’s readers rightly [pointed out]( sounds a bit like options trading. But Howard Chua-Eoan [says]( it could always be worse. In Japan, some high-end restaurants practice ichigensan okotowari or, no first-time customers. “These are probably the best restaurants you’ve never (or will never) hear of because they only let in regulars and their guests,” he writes. The closest thing we have in New York are [members-only clubs]( like Casa Cipriani or ZZ’s or the newest entrant, [Chez Margaux](. The rest of us are stuck with the tried-and-true method of setting your alarm for midnight to secure a table at whatever place is on the come up. For those who can’t snag a res, there’s always the Golden Arches! Or, maybe not ... [Do the Math]( The new marker of inequality isn’t private jets or concierge doctors – it’s burgers. McDonald’s has [given up on Americans]( who make less than $45,000 a year, raising prices to levels they can’t afford. According to the latest Census Bureau numbers, that accounts for about 100 million Americans, or nearly a third of the US population. Jacking up prices hasn’t hurt McDonald’s – revenues, profits and the number of locations and customers are all way up. But it’s another indication that what separates the haves and have nots is creeping into places that were once universally affordable. — Nir Kaissar Telltale Charts While you were (probably) busy attending your daily sweat sesh at Orange Theory or CorePower, Peloton [announced]( that CEO Barry McCarthy is stepping down after just over two years. Andrea Felsted [says]( shares for the spin bike company are down 98% from their peak in December 2020, and more than 90% since McCarthy’s arrival. “I’ve long wondered why Peloton doesn’t forge more heavily into the luxury gym sector. Out-of-home fitness is booming, so why not take more advantage?” Andrea asks. Elsewhere in at-home blunders: Paramount’s [messy sale]( is so messy that I can’t possibly summarize it in a newsletter. Chris Hughes says “the Hollywood studio has been on the block for months, during which time ordinary investors have endured sleepless nights over the prospect they may not receive a customary takeover premium.” This is even worse than Elon Musk’s on-off bid for Twitter: Further Reading Free read: In Jamie Dimon’s America, [the stock market]( has already voted. — Matthew A. Winkler Free read: On Gaza protests, [college leaders flunk]( crisis management. — Beth Kowitt Your index funds shouldn't be [mixed up]( in political controversies. — Bloomberg’s editorial board How could betting on [a stranger’s death]( make you any money? — Matt Levine It’s a good thing that stabilized NYC rents [are rising]( with inflation. — Justin Fox China has over 350 warships. The US has 290. That's [a problem](. — James Stavridis With Saudi Arabia, Biden could both [restrain Israel]( and isolate Iran. — Andreas Kluth Tech-driven demand for [Singapore offices]( is wearing off after eight years. — Andy Mukherjee ICYMI Intel is attempting a [chipmaking comeback](. The cholera [vaccine shortage]( is threatening lives. Tiger Woods got a [special exemption](for the US Open. Paris is [cleaning the Seine]( for Olympic swimming. Sean Hannity [is leaving]( Long Island for good. Kickers The [song of the summer]( has [arrived](, and it’s not [this](. The [Arby’s-Beyonce collab]( you didn’t see coming. NYC [three-bedrooms]( are on the verge of extinction. Are [two-day weddings]( the new thing now? Belugas gossip through [a blob of forehead fat](. Notes: Please send Chardonneigh’s Horsey Sauce and feedback to Jessica Karl at jkarl9@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Threads](, [TikTok](, [Twitter](, [Instagram]( and [Facebook](. Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? 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