📺 Why does Gen Z loves subtitles?

It’s Friday, November 3 — people are talking about the one-year anniversary of Elon Musk at the helm of Twitter/X, GenZ’s love of subtitles, and more.

As always, we’ve summarized and organized the different shades of perspective, so you can see the big picture quickly. Here at Shades we believe that seeing multiple points of view is the best way to stay informed.

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- Jeff (co-founder of Shades)

🐦 In the news: One year of Elon

October 27 marked the one-year anniversary of Elon Musk finalizing his purchase of Twitter (now X). How's he been doing at the helm?

🐦 Intercept had serious schadenfreude: Estimates say that Elon has vaporized anywhere from $4b to $20b of Twitter's value.

🐦 Slate said Elon's changes have forced Twitter lovers off the site. Blame inadequate moderation, the paid blue check-marks, and the rise of trolls.

🐦 Hot Air was partially disappointed in Elon: He hasn’t done enough to stop content suppression, but at least he has exposed the government’s and big tech's “big brother” dynamic.

🐦 The Washington Examiner agreed: Elon should be applauded for his commitment to free speech online, but he still needs to fix the site's revenue problems.

🐦 The Atlantic thinks X has flopped so hard because Elon is making the site into something completely new, and people just aren't interested.

📺 Cultural trend: Gen Z loves subtitles

Gen Z — even those without hearing loss — loves subtitles on movies, TV shows, and videos. What’s behind this trend?

📺 Insider says Gen Z and Millennials use subtitles more than any other generation. A YouGov poll found that 18-29 year olds use subtitles 63% of the time — more than any other age group polled.

📺 Her Campus thinks the appeal is obvious: Gen Z finds subtitles essential because they help viewers catch every detail.

📺 But The Atlantic isn’t a fan of the trend: Subtitles are taking over, but they're really intrusive at times. They can distract from the visual experience of a show or movie.

📺 And a Redditor on r/TrueFilm says film fans should keep subtitles off. They ruin immersion — hearing a line delivered by an actor is so much better than reading it off the screen.

Quick hits

🏀 Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama scored 38 points a 132-121 road win over Kevin Durant and the Suns. (Yahoo Sports)

🌫 The air quality index in Delhi is around 500, which is 100x worse than what the World Health Organization considers healthy. (The Guardian)

💰 Sam Bankman-Fried was found guilty on all seven charges of fraud and conspiracy. He’ll be sentenced in March. (Axios)

🏛️ Eric Trump testified in a NY court that he wasn't involved with financial statements that prosecutors allege are fraudulent. (AP News)