Greetings!
Here are the latest trending internet culture stories today:
A Claire’s accessories store blamed “the radical left” for a local store’s closing, the climbing community mourns a death that was accidentally livestreamed, and many Swifties wondered why they spent $20 to watch a bunch of Taylor Swift’s YouTube videos in a movie theater.
Til next time!
— W.J.
⚡️ Today in Internet Culture
“This has to be fake”: Note left on shuttered Claire’s store blames “radical left agitators” for its closure
A mall-goer noticed a strange sign on a closed Claire’s store and got a closer look. Naturally, they posted the message, which blames the “radical left” for the closure, on Reddit soon after.
A screenshot shows the letter up close, which blames “radical left agitators” for trying to “destabilize” the company. They claim boycotters engage in “Domestic Economic Terrorism.” However, commenters question these claims, as they hadn’t heard of a boycott against Claire’s.
“I couldn’t believe it”: Livestream captures climber Balin Miller’s fatal fall while rappelling Yosemite’s El Capitan
A climber has fallen to his death while rappelling the Sea of Dreams route on El Capitan, Yosemite. Balin Miller, 23, died on October 1, 2025, after attempting to pull a bag up and falling off the end of his rope.
The incident was captured on livestream by a streamer who provided further information to TikTok amid claims of misreporting in the media.
“We just realized how stupid this is”: Taylor Swift fans react to her movie theater takeover for “The Life of a Showgirl”
As part of the promotion for Swift’s newest album, AMC theaters showed an 89-minute listening party that compiles new music videos and some behind-the-scenes footage, according to Variety. Some songs simply play while kaleidoscopic images of the singer display on screen.
However, some fans say they weren’t thrilled with the production. And die-hard fans’ critiques gained traction on social media after some suggested the album was one of Swift’s worst.
🕸️ Crawling the Web
👓 A woman is urging others to be more thoughtful about their usage of Meta glasses after she realized how uncomfortable she was making others while wearing them.
💤 Dreams often feel random, but some folks on the internet are saying they keep returning to the same strange place: Mall World.
🥚 A fan ejected from JoJo Siwa’s concert in Glasgow is apologizing after unknowingly triggering the pop star with a viral “egg” meme.
🌯 Chipotle released its new Red Chimichurri sauce in an attempt to cater to Gen Z, and based on reviews, it seems to have worked.
🎃 What are boo baskets—besides another item you might have to pony up some cash for this Halloween season?
📌 Here’s how to turn off the “Find Similar” function that TikTok has forced its users into dealing with.
🔥 Hot on the Dot
This was the most-read story on the Daily Dot yesterday: