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Hello fellow web crawlers! Andrew here. Welcome to today’s edition of web_crawlr.
Happy Saturday! I hope you’ve got some fun weekend plans.
Our top stories today are about: Why right-wingers are big mad over a video showing a woman helping her grandma to vote, the backlash to Elon Musk making a change to the block feature on X, an explainer on the “dark academia” TikTok subculture, and a viral video of a McDonald’s worker offering free food after the entire night shift walked out.
After that, we’ve got a spooky version of “Meme History” for you.
Speaking of spooky: Did you take our weekly news quiz in yesterday’s newsletter? If not, go do it! If you answer the question correctly, you might win a “Click or Treat” sweatshirt just in time for Halloween.
See you next week!
— A.W.
⚡ Today in Internet Culture
🤬 VIRAL POLITICS
A TikTok grandma went viral for voting for Harris—now X users want her arrested
A heartwarming video of a woman helping her grandma vote in the 2024 presidential election has transformed into a massive voter fraud conspiracy theory among right-wingers online.
💬 TECH
Did Elon Musk change X’s block function just to see his ex-wife’s tweets?
A forthcoming change to the block feature on X is sparking furious backlash—and speculation that the change was rolled out solely so Elon Musk can see his ex-wife’s posts.
🧣 TRENDS
What is dark academia? Everything you need to know about this moody TikTok aesthetic
Anchored in nostalgia for classic collegiate and prep school culture, dark academia is a TikTok subculture that embraces scholarly pursuits with a gothic, somber flair.
🍔 LABOR
‘You strong because I would’ve left right along with them’: McDonald’s worker offers food for free after entire night shift walks out
In the fast-paced world of fast food, one wouldn’t expect a whole team to walk out mid-shift.
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By Kyle Calise
Video Producer
Meme History: Halloween Memes
Meme History is a weekly column that dives deep into internet lore to uncover the history of famous memes. It runs on Saturdays in the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter. If you want to get this column a day before we publish it, subscribe to web_crawlr, where you’ll get the daily scoop of internet culture delivered straight to your inbox.
🕸️ Crawling the Web
Here is what else is happening across the ‘net.
🎮 Video game prices have increased exponentially over the last couple of years, making it an expensive hobby. So this viral video showing how to get games at Best Buy for $10 is getting a ton of attention online.
👕 A former Skechers employee went viral on TikTok for exposing their workplace. The lifestyle and athletic brand, they said, apparently asked associates to wear risqué new work uniforms.
⛽ This driver is warning others to avoid what she describes as “bad gasoline” that can impact performance.
🍞 Is the Great Value white bread loaf from Walmart even a good deal?
📹 From the Daily Dot archive: Here’s how local governments are surveilling their workers.
🤳 Today’s Viral Video
Here’s Obama on who really built the economy Trump inherited.
