The News Not Noise Letter: News That Doesn’t Suck (and Some That Does)
One year after the Dobbs ruling, what's happened to abortion in America? Plus: why did that sub tragedy get so much coverage, and how many Dollys is too many Dollys?
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We’ve gotten so many new readers these past two weeks. To everyone who just signed up, welcome to the News Not Noise letter. On Fridays we try to focus on News that Doesn’t Suck (NTDS). We define this as stories that inspire awe, curiosity, and laughter — to remind you of the good in life. Today, we start with the big news stories and end with NTDS. As always, we leave you with a few social posts that will make you smile.
To our new readers from Canada, Meta hasn’t pulled the plug on your news yet! When it happens, we’d love to hear how that changes your experience on social media. We welcome your comments on this newsletter and to our inbox at community@newsnotnoise.com. That goes for all our readers. We love hearing from you.
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Here are the headlines:
One Year Since Dobbs: Saturday marks one year since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Here’s the state of abortion access now.
Restricted Access:
25 million women reside in states with no access or severely restricted access to abortion.
13 states ban abortion at any stage in a pregnancy
12 others have restrictions banning abortion at various points ranging from 6 to 22 weeks. Further restrictions are currently held up in state courts.
Some states are attempting to prevent doctors from prescribing medication abortions and to punish those who travel out-of-state (or assist someone else in traveling out-of-state) for an abortion.
Expanded Access:
20 states plus the District of Columbia have instituted some form of protection for abortion access since the Dobbs decision, whether through new laws, executive orders, or judicial rulings.
25 states currently allow unrestricted abortion to the point of viability (around 24 weeks) or later.
A number of states have passed “shield laws” that ensure legal protection for people who cross into the state to receive an abortion and the providers who care for them. New York state this week passed a shield law that will also offer legal protection to providers who prescribe abortion pills to people in states with abortion restrictions.
Medication abortion is widely available in 22 states, where it can be prescribed by a clinician. It is available but restricted in 15 states, where it can only be prescribed by a physician. To learn more, visit USAFacts here. USAFacts is a non-partisan, not-for-profit organization that communicates government data clearly and comprehensively. They are a News Not Noise content partner.
Trump’s Legal Woes: Judge Aileen Cannon set the tentative trial date for the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case for August 14th, nine days before the first GOP primary debate of the 2024 presidential race. She also moved the trial out of Miami. The prosecution in the case provided Trump’s attorneys the first batch of evidence against him. Also, CNN reports that in the investigation into January 6, the special counsel made limited immunity deals with two “fake electors” to get their testimony. That suggests this investigation will glean more information than past inquiries into the planning around Jan 6th and could lead to charges.
Modi Visits: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the US this week, meeting with President Biden and addressing a joint session of Congress. This visit helps strengthen the US/India relationship, but critics have raised concerns about India’s human rights abuses, its backsliding democracy, and its neutrality on the Russia-Ukraine war. The Biden administration says the US/India relationship is strategic to counter Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific region. The two nations announced breakthroughs on major trade and manufacturing deals that will benefit businesses in both countries. Modi also met with Elon Musk and the CEOs of Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet.
Flooding the Zone: You’d have to be living on a submarine without comms to have missed this story. The submersible Titan experienced a “catastrophic implosion” this week killing all five passengers aboard the excursion to the wreckage of the Titanic. While tragic, the sub’s disappearance received significantly more media coverage (and recovery resources) than other sea tragedies affecting far more people. Notably, a ship containing over 700 refugees from Pakistan, Syria, and Egypt capsized off the coast of Greece last week, and the Greek Coast Guard did stunningly little to help save them, despite widespread awareness the boat was in trouble. Why the disparity in media coverage? Some of you speculated that boats with refugees frequently sink in the Med so it’s not novel. And there is always less media interest in the lives of low-income people and refugees than the exploits of the wealthy. Also, the Titan was uniquely cinematic and riveting — multiple billionaires riding a trendy new wave of adventure tourism to the site of an iconic shipwreck that was doomed by hubris (the parallels!). Add in the ticking clock – with just hours of air left for any survivors – and the submersible company’s flouting of rules and pooh-poohing regulations made it all TV and digital catnip. I think the outsized coverage was way too much and I’ll be intrigued to learn who ends up footing the bill for the costly rescue operations. The drama, the personalities all felt like a parable about the excesses of our times. And also, an excuse for some brutal memes! If REALLY dark humor isn’t your thing, skip these links: Iron lung, Peppa Pig, The Simpsons.
No News Is Bad News: Welcome to our Canadian readers! I’m so sorry Meta is going to punish you for your efforts to get journalists paid for their work. If you aren’t yet aware: Canada just passed a law requiring social media platforms to compensate news publishers. In response (retaliation?) Meta announced it will end access to news content on Facebook and Instagram in Canada. Google’s parent company Alphabet also expressed opposition to this new law, though it has not yet said how it will alter news on Google. In the past, Meta removed news temporarily while negotiating terms to pay publishers; we’ll see if this happens again. Canadians, be aware and spread the word – invite your friends to sign up for the News Not Noise letter to get information without a panic attack to your inbox Mondays, Fridays and in-between when major news breaks. (To everyone, don’t hesitate to share this newsletter).
Noise Alert: There’s been a lot of noise in politics this week. It’s worth covering to make you aware of the ways some of our elected representatives are spending their time and resources. If you’d rather skip the noise, keep scrolling for News That Doesn’t Suck. Note: On Instagram we solicited your suggestions for the best way to frame these noisy stories to put them in the proper light. Some winning entries include #Idiocracy, #NotAGoodLook, #NoiseButNews:
On Wednesday, the GOP-controlled House of Representatives voted to censure Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) for his role in the Russia investigation and leading the impeachment of former President Donald Trump. Censure is the highest form of public disapproval Congress can level against one of its members and a rare occurrence.
After Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) introduced a resolution to impeach President Biden this week – Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene confronted her. She reportedly declared: “you copied my articles of impeachment after I asked you to cosponsor them,” and then called her a “a little bitch.” All of this was seemingly captured on CSPAN on the House floor. Maybe the book on etiquette and professionalism has been banned from the Library of Congress?
This item gets its own hashtag: #BlackMirrorIRL: Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg agreed to face off in a cage match. I’m shocked to report that the internet seems to favor Zuckerberg because he is recently a student of jiu-jitsu.
Now for some news that doesn’t suck:
Tastes Like (Lab-Grown) Chicken: The USDA gave two brands, Upside Food and Good Meat, the go-ahead to sell cell-cultivated chicken commercially. We know this might give you pause but stay with us – there are a few reasons we consider this NTDS. The meat is grown in a lab from animal cells, and its production does not require animal slaughter. Chicken cells are collected and encouraged to multiply and grow in specialized tanks with all the biological molecules they need to do so. The end result reportedly looks, tastes, smells, and cooks like traditional chicken. Before you turn up your nose, consider: animal agriculture currently accounts for a sizable amount of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions, contributes to deforestation, and uses massive amounts of land and water. That’s not to mention the cruelty of conventional mass-scale “factory farming” practices. Though cell-cultivated meat is currently a small and expensive operation, as the technology and business models begin to scale we may see more lab-grown meat on our menus and in our stores. Would you try cell-cultivated chicken?
Good News for California Reservoirs: California’s two largest reservoirs are nearly full after hitting alarming lows last year. Lake Shasta is 96% full (up from 25% last year) and Lake Oroville is 100% full (up from 30% last year). An unusually wet winter restored these lakes to levels not seen in years, though scientists note that groundwater levels still remain low after decades of drought. NASA released striking satellite images of Lake Shasta’s remarkable before-and-after.
How Many Dollys Is Too Many Dollys? On Saturday, the small Irish town of Listowel might just find out. Listowel is attempting to break the world record for most Dolly Parton impersonators in one place. Listowel, which has a population under 5,000, has sold over 1,200 tickets to its Dolly Parton impersonation event — meaning that for a day, the town could be ⅙ Dolly Parton. Officials from Guinness World Records will be onsite to tally up the Dollys — though it will take weeks to painstakingly comb through the footage to make sure they get the right count. While the real Dolly will unfortunately not be in attendance, she signed off on the event, and the proceeds from Listowel’s Dolly Day will go to Kerry Hospice and Comfort for Chemo. Tickets for entry have sold out, but at the time of sending, Dolly Day is still accepting donations to its charities of choice.
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