Latest news with #Quicksilver
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Opinion - David Hogg's Democratic Party shake-up should model Ocasio-Cortez, not Trump
In 'Avengers: Age of Ultron,' Quicksilver, who moves at the speed of light, protects the powerless Hawkeye from a spray of bullets, quipping, 'You didn't see that coming,' before collapsing onto the floor. 'Democrats, you didn't see that coming,' was my initial response when I read that newly elected Democratic National Committee Vice Chair David Hogg would raise the dough to support progressives challenging failing Democrats in the primaries. Hogg, 26, was selected by members of the Democratic Party to represent young people's voices. Those who elected Hogg believe the only way out of Donald Trump's reign, currently wreaking havoc on our democracy and government systems to benefit the few, is to fill the room with young people. They are not wrong. But… While Hogg viewed his rise in the DNC ranks as an opportunity to challenge those in power, remember that he also bore witness to a school shooting that left friends murdered, his community scared and lasting trauma that I'm certain he relives daily. It's not shocking then that he may view his role as the person to sacrifice himself for a larger calling — to ensure that young people who are losing faith regain it. Hogg argues through his actions that the party needs someone to bring those young people back, someone from within to course-correct, and history supports him. Former Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton furiously wrote our founding documents in his late 20s. In that regard, Hogg's boldness is right on time, yet old guard strategists recoil at his youthful exuberance for change. James Carville, the architect of former President Clinton's campaign and someone who is handed a microphone every time a producer can't find Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) or Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), called Hogg a 'twerp' and then said, 'His strategy is the most insane thing I've heard.' Honestly, Carville, you're proving Hogg's point. What he chose to ignore when going public with his media-catching dismay at Hogg's decision to influence Democratic primaries is that Hogg is rejecting the Carvilles of the world, who remain steadfast in being gatekeepers, deciding who gets in and who stays out of the Democratic Party. Bottom line: You don't elect fresh faces to sideline their youthful energy and ideas. Even someone like me, who has been involved in politics for 20 years and now possesses relationships across all sectors of government, sees Hogg's abandonment of DNC norms to remain neutral in primary elections for what it is: action. Hogg isn't wrong in his assertion that young people are being ignored. Footage from the Association of State Democratic Chairs 2024 winter meeting — one month after Trump was reelected — captured a conversation between the organization's leaders, who asserted that understanding the chartered and unspoken rules of party politics takes time. We latch onto this belief in systems, processes and experience, relegating fresh ideas to the wings instead of center stage because, you know, dues have to be paid. I'm 43, and it's comforting to go into a DNC meeting and see the same people, who elicit my favorite political memories, but that doesn't mean I'm growing. Growth is critical, but it's about more than young people maturing into political systems. It's about the old guard being willing to let go of what they know and inviting new ideas into the mix. Real leaders embrace a young person's growth because then everyone else will thrive. Stunt it, and you get the same. Hogg also has something to learn from this. He orchestrated a media rollout in The New York Times for his big reveal that he would challenge the DNC practice to stay out of congressional primaries. He ran it by a few Democrats, for sure, who probably warned him against it. Instead of seeing their advice as counsel, he probably viewed the moment as something he had to do. But the DNC members who elected Hogg weren't asking him to blow up the institution: They were asking him to fix it. His move feels Trumpian to me: promising one thing, but going in another direction. It shows a lack of strategic acumen and paints him as someone more eager to grab a mic than to develop the meaningful relationships needed to convince party chairs, elected officials, party leaders and local organizers that his ideas are worth investing in and advocating for. You know how I would know? I've had my moments where I put myself first, especially when a reporter called me, looking for an idea to 'shake things up.' Been there, bruh. My self-absorption taught me, though, that it's a lot harder to organize 57 states and territories. It takes patience to believe your work will translate into systemic changes. Hogg is showing publicly that he is more willing to spend his time with the press, creators and donors than on the ground with those worried about paying their bills, staying in their homes or caring for their families. Hogg experienced great tragedy, but if that moment is fueling his strategic decision-making, if he believes a national splash is better than working with others, then he needs to take a look around. Unlike Carville, who cares only about the media attention he receives, Hogg has a community of people who believe in his move to challenge primary Democrats. But from the outside, it looks like a media move to bolster his profile. It would behoove Hogg to look at someone like Ocasio-Cortez, a willing student who is turning her progressivism into bridge-building and working with others instead of going solo, all while landing right hooks in Republican arguments. And she's organizing. Ocasio-Cortez is learning and leading, not blowing things up in the name of shock and awe. She's not behaving like Trump, and neither should Hogg. Michael Ceraso is a Democratic strategist who served on four presidential campaigns, including those of President Barack Obama, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Pete Buttigieg. He is the founder of the communications firm Winning Margins, as well as Community Groundwork, a nonprofit supporting two-year students interested in civic careers. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
24-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Hogg's Democratic Party shakeup should model Ocasio-Cortez, not Trump
In ' Avengers: Age of Ultron,' Quicksilver, who moves at the speed of light, protects the powerless Hawkeye from a spray of bullets, quipping, 'You didn't see that coming,' before collapsing onto the floor. 'Democrats, you didn't see that coming,' was my initial response when I read that newly elected Democratic National Committee Vice Chair David Hogg would raise the dough to support progressives challenging failing Democrats in the primaries. Hogg, 26, was selected by members of the Democratic Party to represent young people's voices. Those who elected Hogg believe the only way out of Donald Trump's reign, currently wreaking havoc on our democracy and government systems to benefit the few, is to fill the room with young people. They are not wrong. But… While Hogg viewed his rise in the DNC ranks as an opportunity to challenge those in power, remember that he also bore witness to a school shooting that left friends murdered, his community scared and lasting trauma that I'm certain he relives daily. It's not shocking then that he may view his role as the person to sacrifice himself for a larger calling — to ensure that young people who are losing faith regain it. Hogg argues through his actions that the party needs someone to bring those young people back, someone from within to course-correct, and history supports him. Former Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton furiously wrote our founding documents in his late 20s. In that regard, Hogg's boldness is right on time, yet old guard strategists recoil at his youthful exuberance for change. James Carville, the architect of former President Bill Clinton's campaign and someone who is handed a microphone every time a producer can't find Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) or Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), called Hogg a ' twerp ' and then said, 'His strategy is the most insane thing I've heard.' Honestly, Carville, you're proving Hogg's point. What he chose to ignore when going public with his media-catching dismay at Hogg's decision to influence Democratic primaries is that Hogg is rejecting the Carvilles of the world, who remain steadfast in being gatekeepers, deciding who gets in and who stays out of the Democratic Party. Bottom line: You don't elect fresh faces to sideline their youthful energy and ideas. Even someone like me, who has been involved in politics for 20 years and now possesses relationships across all sectors of government, sees Hogg's abandonment of DNC norms to remain neutral in primary elections for what it is: action. Hogg isn't wrong in his assertion that young people are being ignored. Footage from the Association of State Democratic Chairs 2024 winter meeting — one month after Trump was reelected — captured a conversation between the organization's leaders, who asserted that understanding the chartered and unspoken rules of party politics takes time. We latch onto this belief in systems, processes and experience, relegating fresh ideas to the wings instead of center stage because, you know, dues have to be paid. I'm 43, and it's comforting to go into a DNC meeting and see the same people, who elicit my favorite political memories, but that doesn't mean I'm growing. Growth is critical, but it's about more than young people maturing into political systems. It's about the old guard being willing to let go of what they know and inviting new ideas into the mix. Real leaders embrace a young person's growth because then everyone else will thrive. Stunt it, and you get the same. Hogg also has something to learn from this. He orchestrated a media rollout in The New York Times for his big reveal that he would challenge the DNC practice to stay out of congressional primaries. He ran it by a few Democrats, for sure, who probably warned him against it. Instead of seeing their advice as counsel, he probably viewed the moment as something he had to do. But the DNC members who elected Hogg weren't asking him to blow up the institution: They were asking him to fix it. His move feels Trumpian to me: promising one thing, but going in another direction. It shows a lack of strategic acumen and paints him as someone more eager to grab a mic than to develop the meaningful relationships needed to convince party chairs, elected officials, party leaders and local organizers that his ideas are worth investing in and advocating for. You know how I would know? I've had my moments where I put myself first, especially when a reporter called me, looking for an idea to 'shake things up.' Been there, bruh. My self-absorption taught me, though, that it's a lot harder to organize 57 states and territories. It takes patience to believe your work will translate into systemic changes. Hogg is showing publicly that he is more willing to spend his time with the press, creators and donors than on the ground with those worried about paying their bills, staying in their homes or caring for their families. Hogg experienced great tragedy, but if that moment is fueling his strategic decision-making, if he believes a national splash is better than working with others, then he needs to take a look around. Unlike Carville, who cares only about the media attention he receives, Hogg has a community of people who believe in his move to challenge primary Democrats. But from the outside, it looks like a media move to bolster his profile. It would behoove Hogg to look at someone like Ocasio-Cortez, a willing student who is turning her progressivism into bridge-building and working with others instead of going solo, all while landing right hooks in Republican arguments. And she's organizing. Ocasio-Cortez is learning and leading, not blowing things up in the name of shock and awe. She's not behaving like Trump, and neither should Hogg. Michael Ceraso is a Democratic strategist who served on four presidential campaigns, including those of President Barack Obama, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Pete Buttigieg. He is the founder of the communications firm Winning Margins, as well as Community Groundwork, a nonprofit supporting two-year students interested in civic careers.
Axios
07-03-2025
- Business
- Axios
Flame & Fable is Cleveland's first "romantasy" bookstore
When Flame & Fable opened last month in Lakewood, there was a two-hour line out the door. Why it matters: It's the first bookstore in the Cleveland area dedicated to romance and fantasy titles, and its instant popularity testifies to the pent-up demand for these genres. Zoom out: Flame & Fable joins a growing roster of stores and pop-ups dedicated to selling romance novels that have debuted in cities like Chicago, Minneapolis and Indianapolis in the last year. 💭 Sam's thought bubble: My wife is a certified #romantasy addict, and she joined me as an expert witness when I went to check it out this week. My first thought was that the selection seemed somewhat limited, but she assured me the titles had been curated by someone deeply familiar with the genres in question. She bought "Quicksilver" by Callie Hart, which evidently is "big on Goodreads." What they're saying: Owner Nickie Lui, who worked at Overdrive for eight years before setting out on her own, told Cleveland Scene that she saw Flame & Fable as a community space as much as a bookshop. "There's a movement among women in the millennial age group in particular, where we're kind of like reclaiming romance for ourselves," she said. Stop by: 13439 Detroit Ave., right across from St. Ed's. Go deeper: Romance books are having a moment
Los Angeles Times
22-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
What's ‘romantasy'? What's a cool girl? The internet's favorite book genres
Calling all bookworms! Welcome to the L.A. Times Book Club newsletter. I'm Meg. I write shut up and read, a book newsletter. I also am known to wade into the waters of BookTok — TikTok parlance for accounts all about the world of literature — and I have also written about the many scandals that plague the subcommunity. A lie I love to tell myself is that time spent scrolling is not wasted. BookTokers such as Zoe Jackson, Alexandria Juarez, @smallcasualbooktok and Lauren Louise enable that lie thanks to their trustworthy recommendations, reviews and rankings of books old and new. But BookTok is big. Unfortunately for me, but fortunately for you, I am deep in its trenches and can offer a primer on how to navigate the unwieldy world of books. Romantasy runs the show: You can't write about BookTok without writing about 'Romantasy' (a portmanteau of the genres romance and fantasy). You probably can't even write about the publishing industry today without referencing the genre that saved bricks-and-mortar bookstores. Rulers of the romantasy space — authors like Rebecca Yarros and Sarah J. Maas — owe their meteoric rises, in large part, to the untold number of readers on BookTok. Yarros' latest installment in her Empyrean series, 'Onyx Storm,' was released a mere month ago, and the book's hashtag has already been featured on more than 221,000 videos on TikTok. And Callie Hart's originally self-published 'Quicksilver' — which Hodderscape, an imprint of Hachette, won the rights to — is already gaining steam, and a Netflix adaptation, despite only being released in December 2024. Let's not forget about the romance purists: BookTok gave romance a big boost. In 2020, there were only two romance-specific bookstores in the United States. There are now more than 20. You can't walk down the romance aisle without running into Ali Hazelwood, Casey McQuiston, Ana Huang, Emily Henry, Jasmine Guillory, Hannah Grace or Tessa Bailey, and you can't scroll through RomanceTok without encountering #SpicyTok, a rating system that determines how steamy a romance read gets. Thought daughter: 'Hot girls' reign supreme on BookTok. They also go by 'cool girls' or 'sad girls,' depending on their mood. Sometimes they're even hot and sad. Or just messy. Hot girls are nothing more than marketing. They're status symbols for the literary — but they're also usually conventionally good-looking (read: thin). The hot girls' syllabus includes books by the patron saint of sad girls, Sally Rooney, and is bolstered by the works of Ottessa Moshfegh, Melissa Broder, Emma Cline and Elif Batuman. The hot girls club's umbrella is even big enough to cover the works of Eve Babitz and Joan Didion, though surely against their will. To be clear, Babitz and Didion are literary icons — and snobs that would definitely reject being part of a category so commercialized and contrived, despite arguments that their work fits the bill. And for inexplicable reasons, content creators usually include Elena Ferrante's Neapolitan novels when doing roundups of hot girl reads. (Please note: The Times may earn a commission through links to whose fees support independent bookstores.) The country's biggest book fest is back, baby! The 30th Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is going to be bigger and better than ever with over 600 authors and cultural icons, 300 exhibitors, activities for all ages and more — over a whole weekend this spring. Speaking of, Andrew Garfield, Percival Everett and Attica Locke are among the 61 Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalists. The awards ceremony will take place April 25 at USC's Bovard Auditorium ahead of the festival. Bad Bunny's sixth solo studio album, 'Debí Tirar Más Fotos,' was dubbed his 'most Puerto Rican album ever.' The record was released with 17 informative visualizers, written by professor Jorell Meléndez-Badillo, that outlined key moments in Puerto Rican history. Here are 5 essential Puerto Rican reads for those looking to engage more deeply with the island's history. From the late two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and former Los Angeles Times journalist Kim Christensen, 'On My Honor' unpacks the tarnished legacy of the Boy Scouts of America. His reporting documented hundreds of cases in which the organization failed to report accusations to authorities, hid allegations from parents and the public, or urged admitted abusers to quietly resign. Times columnist Michael Hiltzik provides a comprehensive history of California's storied past in 'Golden State: The Making of California.' Though hard to fathom wrapping one's arms around such a massive undertaking, in one volume no less, Hiltzik proceeds methodically but vigorously, and with a healthy dose of skepticism. This week, we speak to Reparations Club owner Jazzi McGilbert. When the South Central native opened her bookstore in 2019, she envisioned it becoming a space for conversation and community. 'I wanted the space to be accessible to my younger self,' she says. 'I wanted a space for us to gather and have conversations, and books were the most natural conduit for that.' What are the most popular titles at your store lately? 'Parable of the Sower' by Octavia Butler. I think that's probably the most popular in all of Los Angeles, if not all bookstores at the moment. That's a constant. 'All About Love' by bell hooks is also a constant. 'James' by Percival Everett has been a big one in the last year. 'Mutual Aid' and 'Love in a F*cked Up World' by Dean Spade. What are some of the upcoming releases that you're excited about as a reader? A Toni Morrison moment is coming. There's a re-release of 'Fish Tales' by Nettie Jones, which Toni Morrison edited. There's 'Toni at Random,' which is about Toni Morrison's run as an editor at Penguin Random House, which is quite storied. What is your favorite reading spot? I love reading in my car, which might be very L.A. of me. Not while I'm driving, obviously, although I will listen to an audiobook while I drive. I like to pull over on the side of the road at a park, at the beach, pop the trunk and read in my car. That's something I've done as long as I can remember. I like confined spaces, but I also like nature, so that's my way of being confined but also outside. See you in the stacks — or on Goodreads!
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
UTA Agent Chloe Popescu Named Oscar de la Renta Chief Marketing Officer
UTA agent Chloe Popescu has been named chief marketing officer at Oscar de la Renta. In her newly created role, Popescu will split her time between New York and Los Angeles and focus on brand management, content strategy, partnerships and new category development. During her 10-year run at UTA, Popescu led the brand consulting practice where she worked with clients like Byredo, Toteme, Baccarat, Monse, The Private Suite and de la Renta, among other popular brands. Marketing, talent acquisition and strategic brand partnerships were her purview, helping embed companies into important cultural moments in media. More from Variety WME's Caitlin Mahony, Agent Behind SenLinYu's 'Alchemised' and Callie Hart's 'Quicksilver,' Talks Rise of Romantasy Amid Promotion to Partner (EXCLUSIVE) UTA Promotes 114 Employees Across Company UTA Names Cassandra Bujarski Chief Communications Officer 'Over the last several years, we have focused on telling our brand story, our way, directly to our customers,' Oscar de la Renta CEO Alex Bolen said. 'Chloe has brought tremendous creativity and clear-thinking to the development of our strategies. We are thrilled that she has joined us to now execute them.' Before her time at UTA, Popescu was an agent at WME. In a statement, Popescu said she was 'looking forward to working with Alex Bolen and the incredible team at Oscar de la Renta. The expansion of the brand's connection to culture and content is uniquely exciting, not solely for me in this new role, but most importantly for the ODLR customer.' Oscar de la Renta is a leading luxury goods firm based in New York that focuses on full lines of women's accessories, bridal and fragrance. Since the company was established in 1965, they have focused on making 'women look and feel extraordinary.' Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week Grammy Predictions, From Beyoncé to Kendrick Lamar: Who Will Win? Who Should Win? What's Coming to Netflix in February 2025 Sign in to access your portfolio
