👥 Is LinkedIn cool?

Happy Wednesday! It’s August 23 — people are talking about Biden’s visit to Maui, the resurgence of LinkedIn, and more.

As always, we’ve summarized and organized the different shades of perspective, so you can see the big picture quickly.

✈️ In the news: Biden’s visit to Maui

Maui’s devastating wildfires have killed 111 people this month, with hundreds more missing. Biden visited the island’s affected communities on Monday.

✈️ Biden took a trip to Maui to meet with officials and survivors. CNN called it an opportunity for the president to improve his messaging on the tragedy.

✈️ So how'd he do? Hot Air says he fell flat: Biden made the fires about him — he told a lame story about a housefire, and embellished the details to make it sound worse than it really was.

✈️ But the Lincoln Project defends Biden's trip. It called his visit “real governance”, and contrasted him with Trump.

✈️ The Honolulu Star-Advertiser asked their readers for thoughts on Biden's visit. People were pretty evenly split between “grateful” and “not impressed”.

✈️ The NYT points out that local officials seem to appreciate Biden's efforts. The mayor of Maui County thanked Biden for how responsive he's been.

👥 Cultural trend: Is LinkedIn cool?

LinkedIn seems to be thriving while other social media platforms are faltering. What’s causing this resurgence?

👥 Bloomberg explains that while other social media platforms are tanking, LinkedIn seems to be cool again. It just keeps growing: LinkedIn users are sharing 41% more content than they did in 2021.

👥 But TechCrunch points out that a lot of people hate it. LinkedIn isn’t useful — it's a spam factory of people trying to sell you stuff, not hire you.

👥 Chadwin Deysel says it used to suck, but it’s gotten better, and you’re probably using the platform wrong. Use it like Twitter for tech, and you're all set.

👥 This Reddit thread says it can go both ways. LinkedIn is cringe and everyone is fake there — but you can still get a job if you use it correctly.

Quick hits

🚀 India's Chandrayaan-3 moon landing was a success, making India the first country to land on the moon's southern polar region. (NYT)

📦 The Teamsters Union, which represents UPS workers, ratified a tentative contract agreement that was crafted in July. (AP News)

🏀 A'ja Wilson scored 53 points in the Aces' victory over the Dream, tying the WNBA’s single-game scoring record. (Bleacher Report)

📣 8 candidates are confirmed for the first Republican presidential debate — Trump is notably not one of them. (NYT)

That’s it for today. Reply at [email protected] to let me know what you think of our newsletter, or to suggest a topic for next time.

Here at Shades we’re trying something new – quick summaries from different points of view. We think it’s a better way to stay informed and see the big picture. Please reach out if you’re curious to learn more!

- Jeff (co-founder of Shades)