Greetings!
Here are the latest trending internet culture stories today:
An AI likeness of Stan Lee people paid $20/ticket for at a Comic Con to see is causing an uproar online, Donald Trump is being called out for reposting conspiracy-tinged AI slop, and a high school teacher shared how students are getting around phone bans, which is a bit of a 2000s-era throwback.
See you tomorrow!
— W.J.
⚡️ Today in Internet Culture
“Feels less like honoring his legacy and more like monetizing his ghost”: Backlash grows toward AI Stan Lee hologram at LA Comic Con
LA Comic Con took place over the weekend, and the event featured everything from epic cosplays to panels with big-name stars. While fans were enjoying most of the event, one attraction left con-goers uneasy.
People had the opportunity to interact with the late, great Marvel Comics legend Stan Lee in holographic form. Using AI to raise the dead is a questionable practice at best, and Lee’s presence at the con has caused some backlash.
“Unfathomable level of boomerism”: Trump shares AI clip promoting “Med Bed” conspiracy before quietly deleting it
President Donald Trump promoted “medbeds” on Truth Social this weekend, sharing an AI-generated video before deleting it 12 hours later. Since its posting, folks on social media have called out Trump for posting about the far-right conspiracy theory.
“Reinvented the AOL chat room”: Teacher says kids are getting around phone bans in schools with shared Google docs
A teacher went viral on TikTok after showing how some school-aged kids are finding ways around classroom phone bans. “School kids are creating a Google Doc with their friends that they all have real-time access to, and they just type into it during class,” she explained.
🕸️ Crawling the Web
☕ Starbucks rolled out a new line of protein drinks, and customers are sharing their honest—and oftentimes hilarious—reactions to the new items.
🎥 Jamie Lee Curtis went on a mini-rant about how all podcasts are now videos, too…while on a podcast, of course.
🏙️ New Yorkers have had a lot of fun vandalizing subway ads for an AI service called “Friend,” calling it dystopian, among other insults.
🏁 Redditors are dishing on the red flags they initially ignored in relationships and came to regret, and the responses couldn’t be more relatable.
🩺 A woman on TikTok shared an emotional story about receiving a misdiagnosis due to a misreading of EKG data from an AI.
🏏 Employees at rage rooms share their wildest encounters with customers, and I’m now convinced it’s a hazard to work at one.
🔥 Hot on the Dot
This was the most-read story on the Daily Dot yesterday:
➤ “We’re in a true car market crash”: Expert claims dealerships are desperate—here’s the reality