[SIC] 387: Sancerre Peleton
Vol. 8, No. 27. HIP REPLACEMENT w/ Dayna Castillo of "Silence Brand," AI bearishness, open submissions, reflections and ruminations and all the liiiiiinks.
[SIC] Weekly is a digest of developments in trends, tech, media, marketing, fashion, food, places and events, compiled for information obsessives and published free on Wednesdays. Read like an outline for a sense of the week’s gestalt. Nobody clicks every link, except me.
I’m Ben Dietz, advisor-for-hire to brands, publishers and agencies, interviewer, moderator and occasionally event/exhibition producer. Give a shout: @dietznutz on socials.
New original art and animation each issue is made by Gordon Hull. Special thanks this week for ideas: Geoff Renaud, Casey Lewis, Piers Fawkes, Iolanda Carvalho, and Celeste Blewitt . Comments, questions and contributions are invited from everyone.
This digest was sent free on 3/4/26 to 8308 subscribers. Original source is cited. Corollary sources are listed at the end of each digest.
[SIC] is made possible by its paid subscribers, who also get 20 “[SIC] Day” links on Mo/Tu/Th/Fr, and the weekly [SIC] Sundays mini-digest of 30 freeform links.
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Hi all,
Fastidious readers of [SIC] may have noticed upon clicking through to source material that I frequently clipp the “How” and “Why” from the beginning of headlines in my links. It’s a style thing for me; I dislike the over-reliance in digital publishing (read: all media publishing these days) to open stories with these filler words when headlines work better without them.
The tyranny of “How” comes from the SEO-driven days when content providing answers was ranked higher by Google et al when replying to search queries. Higher rankings meant more traffic, meaning more ad space, meaning more revenue for publishers, in theory.
But that game’s been over a while now. I was reminded of it today reading [SIC] Talks alum Jacob Donnelly’s A Media Operator newsletter, in which he wrote of Conde Nast’s recently reported revenue gains,
“It’s pretty impressive considering how the business of publishing has changed so fundamentally over the last four years. Back then, it was predominantly a scale game where brands, perhaps, didn’t matter as much as the ability to get traffic. Today? That’s not so much the case.”
Not so much at all. Search-driven traffic is gone and not coming back. Subscriptions, services, sponsorships and content integrations, IP licensing, physical products and events are what drives the business now.
So, my media industry readers, writers and editors out there, can we please give “how” and “why” a break and stop writing like we’re talking to dummies (or worse, bots)? It’d make me so happy. And it’ll make you come across better too.
HIP REPLACEMENT Ep. 47 Dayna Castillo (of Silence, Brand!)
Apropos of the ‘why?!’… my chat with Dayna ⚡ Castillo (and of course Kyle Raymond Fitzpatrick) was so fun we did it twice; the recording of the first one corrupted. Silence, Brand!’s crab army is Substack legend and she’s herself an inveterate Linkedin shitposter, so it was nothing if not critical. We blamed the lunar eclipse, talked Chris K’s Big Arch fail, Burger King’s response, “Staples Baddie” and the camera-ready requisites of contemporary workplace culture, Horseshoe Theory and “why AI sucks”. Have a listen:
On of the reasons the first recording corrupted was that I was on-site presenting at another [SIC] Talks alum, Ed Cotton’s “Camp Thrive,” a daylong conference of marketing strategy types, which Ed captured in this Reflecting on What I heard at Camp Thrive post on Provoke.
More alums, more reflections: Sam Valenti IV i invited me to make a cameo in Herb Sundays 178: Patrick Holland, talking about the skateboard video soundtracks of my youth. Captain, there are doubts.
And: Chat, is “youth culture” real? is i-D EIC Thom Bettridge in convo with Casey Lewis , recorded earlier today on Substack Live and it’s now on Thom’s Content.Substack. I make a cameo in the Q&A part, asking about the effect of AI on writers.
I’m a longterm AI bear, in that regard; I think storytellers will be fine, though the current moment is certainly fraught. Fortunately there are still new opportunities arriving regularly, IE:
The Dirt x Prism contest offering a $1,000 prize for the best narrative-driven cultural criticism about wealth / Dirt
Submit your Pitches for the Next Are.na Annual, Themed “Score” / Are.na
The Artlab Editorial Fellowship for 2026, a platform for critical art writing underwritten by the carmaker. Note: It’s the last week to reply / Artlab.Hyundai
Speaking of “fellowship”: anyone wanna bring me along to Printed Matter’s 50th Anniversary Dinner with Ed Ruscha on April 21st? I clean up nice.
Also apropos of Ruscha, a handful his artists books are included in this big sale on rare (mostly art) books / Harpers
And, last thing before the links: I’ll sadly be OOT but the New Art Dealers of America’s NADA Ceramics will be held Friday, March 6 through Sunday, March 8 at The Locker Room, located at 253 Church Street in Tribeca. Opening Reception is Friday 4-8p. Go get your hands on some pots.
ok now the links…..
Ben
[SIC] 387: Sancerre Peleton
The Current Moment
Journalists Are Reporting From Iran With No Internet / Wired
From Celeste: The Speed Of A Trade Got Down To Nearly The Speed Of Light‘ / Odd Lots Pod
More gaming the market: The collapse of China’s property market bubble has allowed some young people to snap up cheap accommodation and retire early / Semafor
Bolivia Races to Destroy $62 Million in Cash That Fell From Sky / Bloomberg
Brazil is underrated / Marginal Revolution
Speaking of being on the bubble: A24 just dropped made-in-Japan Marty Supreme ping pong sneakers (just in time to wear to the Oscars) / A24
Borrowing from that playbook: The whole world is collabing with Scream (the movie Franchise) / Hypebeast
From Iolanda: “Collabs all around - “We don’t just watch stories anymore, we shop them” ;) [Are brand collaborations reaching a saturation point? What ‘Wuthering Heights’ reveals] / Creative Boom
Corollary: How Selling Out Made Me a Better Artist. I thought my art had to be protected from the real world, but that ended up being unrealistic / T Mag
The Desalination Edition. The real risk in the Gulf States isn’t energy exports. It’s water / WITI
Seawater corollary, from Celeste: “The era of the mermaid holiday” [People Are Mermaiding All Over The World] BBC
Closer to home: New York, I can’t get over you. And I’m not the only one / Audience Intelligence
Meanwhile, can’t get over this: toilet bowl cameras can use AI to analyze your stool/ GQ
Speaking of shitty: ‘Leverage.’ ‘Reach Out.’ ‘Circle Back.’ The Corporate Jargon We Hate the Most’ / WSJ
Related: A New Lost Generation: Why Gen Z is Unprepared for the Workplace. Only 56% of Gen Z adults reach adulthood having had a romantic relationship; a problem because early relationships are where people learn core workplace skills like expressing emotions, cooperating, and managing conflict / WSJ
From Piers: Why Gen Z isnt’ Dating / NYT
But… Don’t Let the Gooners Get You Down / Many Such Cases
Because?! Sephora Tots are Coming. ‘Millennials created the wellness economy. Is it any wonder their kids are interested too?’ / The Atlantic
Futures
China is beating the U.S. in developing its humanoid robot industry / TechCrunch
It’s bots vs. reporters at the AP / Semafor
Philadelphia Inquirer says new AI-assisted newsletters are proving to be “a massive subscription driver” / WSJ
To that end: the rise of A.I. has sparked fears of mass unemployment. But what if the technology could be used to create more jobs than it kills? / The New Yorker
Cause, like, My intern’s AI agent texted me to hang out / Ramp Economics
Launches
The ‘European’ Jolla Phone Is an Anti-Big-Tech Smartphone / Wired
More phone-y: Bland AI bought the rights to Soulja Boy’s voice so that anyone could call him (in his telephone car) / IG
Corollary, from Geoff: Ingestible Electronics! / Spectrum
Platforms
Apple’s move to video could endanger podcasting’s greatest power / Anil Dash
Social media is turning into TV, but TV is turning into radio. Podcast” meant nothing and everything at On Air Fest / Nieman Lab
Piracy is in rude health in 2026 - and it is all powered by DSPs / Network Notes
‘Health’ Corollary: How Is Kalshi Not Gambling? / Wired
More ‘predictions’: Instagram and TikTok are testing tools that automatically offer recommendations for products similar to those shown in your photos or videos / The Verge
From Iolanda: “ChatGPT’ing: the rise of ChatGPT”[Ranked: The 20 Most Visited Websites in the World in 2026] / Visual Capitalist
Artistics & Stylistics
Demna’s Still Giving Us the Clothes Our Culture Deserves / The New Garde
From Celeste: Can Gucci Make Luxury AI? /CNN
How to Watch a Fashion Show / Show Notes
Watches for Horse Girls / Dimepiece
Girlies corollary: Alexis Page, the genius behind some of the best beauty brands in the world, launched a [newsletter] / Self Involved
Emo as hell: A complimentary profile of pro skater turned actor turned fine-art photographer Jason Lee that was “surprisingly difficult to publish” / Defector
Also difficult: When buying clothes, can you beat the market? / FT
The Hermès Game Is Harder Than Ever / Back Row
A different kind of gnarly:The Gory Details Behind GORE-TEX / Heddels
Also obscure: The little-known gallery that brought Modern art to America / Artnet
So then… How Do I Get Into the Whitney Biennial? Conventional wisdom says there isn’t much you can do, but Paddy Johnson knows that’s not the whole story/ Hyperallergic
Well… this could be one way: Tino Sehgal Turned a Street in Mexico Into a Living Artwork / Artnet
You don’t have to become a “loafer guy”. And more V.I.P. recommendations from comedian [and [SIC] Talks alum] Kareem Rahma / Blackbird Spyplane
While fellow [SIC] talks alum Sami Reiss points out that furniture designers don’t matter as much as you think in an ERA-SPECIFIC understanding of vintage furniture / Snake
A 50-year goldmine of design: AIGA New York unveils its poster archive to the public / Its Nice That
How Tariffs Reshaped the Global Fashion Map / Vogue Business
Entertainments
How Wong Kar-Wai Created the Future. Thirty years ago, the director engineered an era-defining futurist aesthetic and foresaw the anxieties of 2026 / The Chow
How Shelter, a legendary NYC dance party, has kept going for 35 years / Gothamist
The Plastic People Edition On real-world testing, depressurized rooms, and London nightclubs / WITI
Let’s turn the trading floor into a dance floor. How “Industry” Curated the best Soundtrack on TV / GQ
The Sickening Fairy Tale of Yasmin Hanani / The Atlantic
Also “sick”: Bungee Reads’s Lure of the Weirdness / Bungee Space
The Real Story Behind ‘Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance’ / The Honest Broker
David Foster Wallace’s First Big Story, from Playboy 1988 / Playboy
Katherine Dunn’s Caesura: The Permanent Pause in the Life of a Writer. She had everything writers dream of… so why did Katherine Dunn walk away from fiction at the height of her powers? / Apology Review
When Harry (Styles) met Haruki (Murakami) / Runner’s World
The business of Lily Allen / Vogue Business
In True’s Orbit : True Whittaker is a lot, baby/ The FACE
Maybe not ‘true?’ Paramount said it has no plans to offload any of its cable networks / Deadline
Corollary: These Gorillaz x Spotify ads are hiding something / Creative Bloq
From Iolanda: The world’s most famous virtual band is back! [Gorillaz and Spotify Gamify ‘The Mountain’ with 4 Murals Blending Digital and Real] / LBB
Gorillaz’s Strange Hybrid Formula Is Still Where Damon Albarn Feels At Home’ / New Statesman
More home territory: A 2-hour mix of music compiled by Thom Yorke that plays before Radiohead’s European shows / Kottke
And more ‘deep cuts’: An online archive of Walkmans and all the other pocket tape players / Walkmanland
Apropos of that, from Celeste: The iPods Slow Shuffle Back To Relevance / FT
Media & Marketing
There are apparently 6x more publicists than Journalists / Substack
Yet! 40 years and 10,000 broadcasts in, Rick Ardon and Susannah Carr are still live on air. The pair helm the nightly hourlong TV news for 7News Perth / NYT
Related: As Broadcast Slowly Dies, Niche-casting is on the rise / Hollywood Reporter
Case in point: Francis celebrates his 100th Creator Spotlight ep with the gang from Caper , a new food media start up/ YT
Apropos of creator spotlights, from Piers: In Los Angeles, a growing number of companies are building bright little corners for content creators to try products and shoot short videos / LA Times
From Iolanda: The Rise of Creators as Production Partners. Key Quote: “Modern creators often operate with capabilities that rival small production teams: filming, editing, motion graphics, sound design, trend fluency and real-time iteration informed by performance data. Many can concept, shoot and deliver platform-ready assets in days, sometimes hours.” / Muse By Clios
Creator talent agencies are evolving into multi-platform operators / Digiday
Line item or opportunity: Agencies grapple with economics of a new marketing currency: the AI token / Digiday
“AI isn’t killing creativity”: hierarchy is hurting the industry. Why job roles are the real threat to creative agencies. / The Drum
Is On’s muted guidance the sign of a ‘dwindling’ brand? / Retail Dive
Kith and On have announced a multi-year running partnership / Hypebeast
The On Founders On What’s Next for On / Dot Dot Dot
Mike Cherman of Market on the mechanics behind [speed to culture] and what it costs / Unorthodox Blend
Alum Delia Cai in an instagram campaign for Banana Republic / IG
From Piers: Why a beauty brand is giving Gen Alpha equity / Glossy
How Coach cocreated a campaign with Gen Z communities around the world / Retail Dive
From Piers: “ Consumers in 2026 are seeking environments that feel intentional rather than exclusive, experiential rather than transactional. ” [How Hybrid Spaces Like Maison Welles Are Rewriting the Rules of Retail and Hospitality] Loop Mag
Heineken wants to make pubs essential spaces / ADWEEK
And why not?! I mean… Aesop turned intellectual rigour into a $2.5 billion brand / The Brandsider
Less intellectual: Formula 1 Is About To Get a Lot More American / Reason
Also the home turf: The Newest Front in America’s Supermarket War Is…Kentucky? / WSJ
More New: Vanity Fair launched a gang of new newsletters/ Vanity Fair
Foods and Drinks
American Snacking Habits Are Transforming the Restaurant Industry. Chains are rolling out smaller and cheaper options for customers who just want a little treat / The Atlantic
How Gym Bro Favorite Creatine Became the New It-Girl Supplement / Vogue Business
So… are we at Peak Protein? Dan Frommer’s new report says… no / The New Consumer
But we’re past the ‘peek’: New York city’s last Hooters has closed and the Post has headlines for days/ NY Post
The Natural World
Dogs get the winter blues, too / North Jersey
True blue: Understanding Natural Indigo Dye. An in-depth guide on natural Indigo, with an explanation of the hand-dying process / Heddels
Also hands on: A 25,000-year history lesson on body mods / Dazed
Corollary?! Seven lessons from a year of erotic touch. I gave happy-ending massages to women—for a year/ Shaun Galagos
Related: The Sexologist Who Unlocked the Female Orgasm/ The New Yorker
[SIC] 387: Sancerre Peleton
Corollary Sources this week: Following Up / Aontas Intelligence / Retail Dive / Public Announcement / Politico Future Daily / The Future Party / Feed Me / Jimmy / Line Sheet / After School / As Seen On / Ben-Evans
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thank you for being there, ben!
also, i feel the need to mention: it just so happens that i'm reading this newsletter while drinking a sancerre.