Pop psyop?

Plus, the Black maternal mortality crisis and Elon Musk's pay problem [View this email in your browser]( [The Week Evening Review]( Black mothers at risk, the Swift-Kelce conspiracy, and Musk's pay predicament   Good evening, It's nice that in this day and age of uncertainty and chaos, you can always count on the internet to bring you a reliable stream of entertaining conspiracy theories to discuss at the dinner table. This time, we have a Taylor-Swift-Biden-psyop claim, which you can read about in addition to our much more important coverage of Black maternal mortality in the U.S. Maybe interweb busybodies can pivot to talk about that? Summer Meza The Week Digital     TODAY'S BIG QUESTION [Why is the right obsessed with Taylor Swift?]( The future of democracy is at stake in the 2024 election. It might be — again — the most important election of our lifetime. This week, though, we're talking about Taylor Swift. "Conservative media personalities are raging" over Swift, Axios reported. Right-wing figures have speculated that Swift's relationship with football star Travis Kelce is a "deep state psyop orchestrated by the NFL and Democrats to work in President Biden's favor." Really. What did the commentators say? "The online world's capacity for wild, untamed nonsense is endless," Jeffrey Blehar lamented at National Review. Conspiracy-mongering about Swift and Kelce reflects "thinly veiled bleats of fear about Trump's standing with women." But if women abandon Donald Trump, it's more likely because of things like E. Jean Carroll's lawsuit. "It won't be because of anything Taylor Swift said or did." Hostility toward the singer has grown since she endorsed Democratic candidates in 2018 and 2020, Ross Douthat noted in The New York Times. But her relationship with Kelce "has transformed a merely unfavorable impression into outright paranoia." "Maybe Republicans should wonder why all the attractive, likable people hate them?" Brian Beutler asked in his Off Message newsletter. There's no conspiracy here: "At the highest echelons of the cultural elite, attractive people like Swift and Kelce meet and fall in love" all the time. The Republican Party should focus on "trying to be decent and likable" if it wants to appeal to women voters. What next? Turning against America's most-beloved pop star is "the dumbest thing the MAGA cult and its media enablers have done," E.J. Montini argued at The Arizona Republic. Why? Because a Swift endorsement really "could alter the election's outcome." Her jaw-dropping reach would make any campaign envious. Plus, all the hostility "may be guaranteeing" that Swift endorses Biden. Biden might be counting on Swift to save him, "but voters are looking at these sky-high inflation rates and saying, 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,'" Jason Miller, a Trump adviser, wrote to Rolling Stone. Never mind all that election nonsense, though. Swift has a concert in Tokyo the night before Kelce plays the Super Bowl. Can she make it back in time? Bizarrely enough, the fate of the presidential election might ride on it.   Advertisement by Betterment [Betterment is the automated investing app that puts your money to work](   QUOTE OF THE DAY "Elmo is just checking in! How is everybody doing?" The innocent question beloved Sesame Street character Elmo asked on X that lead to a deluge of existential angst on the timeline     In Depth [Black mothers at risk: inside the maternal mortality crisis]( When it comes to childbirth, the United States stands out for having the highest rate of maternal mortality (the number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births) of any high-income country. One group within that crisis has borne the brunt of the worsening maternal mortality rate: Black women. In 2021, Black women were nearly three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than white women, according to data from the National Vital Statistics System. The maternal mortality rate for Black women was 69.9 deaths per 100,000 live births, which is 2.6 times the rate for their white counterparts. The root of the problem Last year, the United Nations published an analysis of Black women's experiences in the Americas that concluded that "systemic racism and sexism in medical systems" were the main reasons they were more likely to face severe complications or death in childbirth, not "genetics or lifestyle choices" as some have assumed, the New York Times explained. The findings suggest that the "well-documented Black-white gap in infant and maternal health" can not solely be pinned on "differences in economic circumstances," said Maya Rossin-Slater, an economist studying health policy at Stanford and an author of the study, told the outlet. "It suggests it's much more structural." Trying to find solutions In 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives' Black Maternal Health Caucus presented an ambitious package effort, called The Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act, to confront the crisis at the federal level. So far, only one part of the Momnibus has been signed into law, the Protecting Moms Who Served Act. "At the heart of these investments is the principle that in America, every family has the right to thrive, a principle that begins with a safe and healthy pregnancy and birth," said Illinois Representative Lauren Underwood, a lead sponsor of the Momnibus.     Advertisement by Betterment [Betterment is the automated investing app that puts your money to work](     Statistic of the day 7: The number of women competing for three of the five major categories at the upcoming Grammy Awards: Record of the Year, Album of the Year and Song of the Year. Beyoncé and Taylor Swift lead the pack. Of the eight nominees in each of these categories, Jon Batiste is the lone male. The Harvard Gazette     Talking Point [Musk's blocked $50B is about more than corporate pay]( Elon Musk may be one of the wealthiest people in history, but in a relatable move this week, he learned he would not be getting a corporate compensation package worth $50 billion from Tesla. Less relatably, however, he was very much expecting that payout. Those expectations came to a screeching halt after Delaware Chancery Court Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick ruled against the Tesla CEO, writing that Musk's compensation package was "deeply flawed." With massive stock options at risk should Musk fail at his expected appeal, there is more than just money on the line. 'Excessive compensation' Musk's at-risk stock options represented some of the tech titan's "most valuable assets" and now place his historic fortune "in limbo," Bloomberg reported. Losing the $50 billion in shares would drop his net worth to just over $150 billion, reducing him to the "third-richest person in the world." Negating Musk's compensation packet will directly benefit shareholders, an attorney on the case told The New York Times. In the short term, however, Tesla stock has taken a precipitous downturn. The ruling could have "wide implications for the rest of corporate America," wrote Barron's. The ruling was "incredibly important" because it establishes "such a thing as excessive compensation," Institute for Policy Studies' Sarah Anderson agreed to the Times. It has also drawn attention to Delaware's reputation as a corporate haven, with Musk urging his followers on X to "never incorporate your company" there. Losing Musk's interest? As McCormick noted, Tesla's defendants justified the astronomically large compensation package by claiming that "Musk needed additional incentives to stay on at Tesla or he would spend more time at SpaceX." The challenge for Tesla's board is to "come up with a new package and soon," Vanderbilt University's Joshua Tyler White told Business Insider. Otherwise, "they're going to lose Musk's interest in the company." Earlier this month Musk stated on X that he is "uncomfortable growing Tesla … without having 25% voting control." Without it, he explained, "I would prefer to build products outside of Tesla." Any new compensation program will still be under harsh scrutiny, Harvard Law School's Jesse Fried told Reuters. "Musk has already generated value" for those with Tesla stock. If the board simply paid him a lump sum, "what exactly do the shareholders get from that?"     Poll watch Nearly four in 10 Israelis support the reestablishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza, according to a television poll cited by The Times of Israel. The poll found 38% of respondents favored reestablishing settlements in Gaza, while 51% were opposed. Around 8,000 Israelis lived in Gaza before Israel withdrew from the region in 2005.     INSTANT OPINION Today's best commentary 'It's time for the Fed to cut interest rates'Heather Long in The Washington PostEconomists predicted Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell would spark a recession with aggressive interest rate hikes, says Heather Long in The Washington Post. Instead, "he's presiding over an economic boom," with strong hiring and economic growth. Consumers are still on a "spending spree." Inflation has dropped near the Fed's 2% target. What Powell needs to do now is "cut interest rates." Leaving them near 5.5% would be like "slamming the brakes on the economy."   'The border crisis is real. That's why Trump is blocking solutions.'LZ Granderson in the Los Angeles TimesFormer President Donald Trump promised to "drain the swamp," but now he's enlisting the help of "an unauthorized network of individuals embedded in and around government" to "kill a border deal," says LZ Granderson in the Los Angeles Times. "Its passage would hurt his campaign claim that President Joe Biden is neglecting the border." To defeat it, Trump and his cohorts have become the "deep state" he warned about, "redirecting power for their own purposes." 'Will Congress finally act to protect kids from the harms of social media?'Kristin Bride and Maurine Molak in the Chicago TribuneTech CEOs face questions Wednesday from the Senate Judiciary Committee "about how their addictive products have failed to keep minors safe," say Kristin Bride and Maurine Molak in the Chicago Tribune. "As moms who have lost children" to "online harms that these CEOs failed to prevent," we want action, not "sound bites." Social media platforms, fueled by ads aimed at teenaged users, "turbocharge addictive features that wreak havoc on impressionable brains." Congress must pass real "safeguards."     Picture of the day [Inferno in Nairobi]( Firefighters extinguish a blaze near the City Stadium in Kenya's capital, Nairobi. Properties were destroyed but no casualties were reported. Luis Tato / Getty Images     Good day 🏆 … for Sir Elton John and Bernie Taupin. The legendary pair of songwriters will share this year's Gershwin Prize for Popular Song from the Library of Congress, one of the most prestigious music honors in the U.S. Taupin called the award "humbling," and Elton John said it was an "incredible honor for two British guys to be recognized like this."     Bad day ⚖️ … for Russian billionaire and art collector Dmitry Rybolovlev. He lost a legal battle against Sotheby's when a New York jury decided against him on Tuesday. The court rejected the oligarch's claim that the auction house helped a Swiss art dealer defraud him out of more than $160 million in high-end art deals.     Puzzles [Daily crossword]( Test your general knowledge with The Week's daily crossword, part of our puzzles section, which also includes [sudoku]( and [codewords](. [Play here](     The Week recommends [2024 Best Picture nominees back when they were books]( Reverse-engineer some of 2024's Oscars Best Picture nominees and you wind up with a few eminently readable English-language books. Ready to get flipping? 'American Fiction': 'Erasure,' Percival Everett Percival Everett, in the world of writers' writers, is a kingpin. With "Erasure," Everett skewered Black representation in the American publishing machine by embedding two narratives in the text. In Cord Jefferson's film adaptation, "American Fiction," inevitable adjustments were made to Everett's original book. Some, like playwright Michael R. Jackson, bemoaned the film's stripping the book of its teeth. Others, like critic and writer Lavelle Porter, admired "American Fiction," with Porter writing, "We've been trying to tell y'all about how dope this man's writing is. Now maybe more people will listen and read." 'The Zone of Interest': 'The Zone of Interest,' Martin Amis Their titles are identical, but make no mistake: There are oodles of differences between Martin Amis' 2014 novel and Jonathan Glazer's 2023 film adaptation. For the book, Amis fictionalized Nazi commandant Rudolf Hoss as Paul Doll, who is stationed at Auschwitz and is one of three narrators. Glazer's movie undoes the fictionalization of Hoss and instead focuses entirely on the relationship between Hoss and his wife, Hedwig, and what their life is like living adjacent to the Auschwitz concentration camp. Glazer's movie has been polarizing. Some critics have been moved by its inhumane artfulness; others, like Manohla Dargis in The New York Times, dubbed it "a hollow, self-aggrandizing art-film exercise." [Read more](     WORD OF THE DAY cumbersome Universal Music Group commented on TikTok's "monumentally cumbersome and inefficient" process for removing troubling content, equating it to the "digital equivalent of 'Whack-A-Mole.'"     In the morning Tomorrow, you can read about the United States' growing groundwater crisis, peruse the day's top newspaper headlines, and more. Thanks for reading, Summer     Evening Review was written and edited by Theara Coleman, Nadia Croes, Catherine Garcia, Harold Maass, Scott Hocker, Justin Klawans, Kelsee Majette, Joel Mathis, Summer Meza, Devika Rao, Rafi Schwartz, Anahi Valenzuela and Peter Weber, with illustrations by Stephen Kelly and Julia Wytrazek. Image credits, from top: Illustration by Stephen Kelly / Getty Images; Illustration by Julia Wytrazek / Getty Images; Antonio Masiello / Getty Images; Catherine Falls Commercial / Getty Images   © Future US, Inc • [theweek.com]( [Unsubscribe from this newsletter]( [Privacy Policy]( The Week is published by Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY, 10036.