These are the top maybe-not headlines from the past 84-hours presented by The Conversation Project from raw engagement data from our social media to the headlines posted over the past weekend.
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The 8 topics that our followers ranked as the most conversational are:
BACHELOR COLTON UNDERWOOD AND CASSIE RANDOLPH SPLIT
Colton Underwood and Cassie Randolph have split. The Bachelor couple announced the news Friday on Instagram, two months after Randolph, 25, helped nurse Underwood, 28, back to health after he contracted the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Both showed some love for the other’s post, commenting with heart emojis. The pair met on Underwood’s season of The Bachelor, which premiered last year — though their journey was anything but smooth. At first, it looked like the two weren’t going to end up together when Randolph left the show after refusing to commit to a proposal from Underwood. But Underwood fought hard to win her back, even sending home the final two women. Ultimately, they left the show as a couple — but not an engaged one — after reuniting in Portugal. Four months after the show ended, Randolph opened up about her change of heart to PEOPLE.
COMMENTARY: Someone made the comment this weekend about how bad the news is when stories like this is leading the news. And there is a point to that with the week we had. But if this is the ‘news’ people want more of, it is what it is. That does not mean you cannot produce more meaty news stories. People who want those meaty news stores have to actively push back on the fluff.
[ SOURCE: people.com ]
POLICE ARREST NEARLY 200 IN HOUSTON PROTEST
Nearly 200 people have been arrested in Houston, Texas, after protests Friday night. Most will be charged with obstructing a roadway, according to a tweet from the Houston Police Department. The department also said four of its officers sustained minor injuries and eight police vehicles were damaged. Houston Police Officer’s Union President Joe Gamaldi earlier said officers had been hospitalized but did not say how many.
COMMENTARY: Most of the updates to the stories on protests and rioting over the death of George Floyd are quick blurbs like this. With so many developments happening so quickly, it is hard to go in depth. It is a continuations story that just happens to continue faster and with more detail than can be actively processed.
[ SOURCE: edition.cnn.com ]
NASCAR: BRAD KESELOWSKI WINS AT BRISTOL AFTER CHASE ELLIOTT AND JOEY LOGANO WRECK WHILE RACING FOR THE LEAD
Brad Keselowski simply stole a win at Bristol on Sunday. Keselowski took advantage of two crashes as drivers were racing for the lead ahead of him to win for the second time in three races. The second crash happened between Chase Elliott and Joey Logano with less than three laps to go. Elliott got to the inside of Logano but his car snapped loose in the corner. Elliott slid into Logano and the two went into the wall as Keselowski drove on past. Elliott and Logano’s crash was preceded by a restart for a caution caused by Denny Hamlin’s spin while racing for the lead. Hamlin spun after he was racing with Elliott and Logano for the lead. Keselowski was fifth when Hamlin spun after working his way into the top five on fresher tires than the cars ahead of him. But he wasn’t going to be in a position to get the win without some help. And boy, did he get some help. Clint Bowyer finished second. Keselowski got the win thanks to a, uh, patient call by NASCAR race control. After throwing quick cautions earlier in the race for mild wall hits by Austin Dillon and Kevin Harvick, NASCAR chose to let the race finish under green after Elliott and Logano hit the wall.
COMMENTARY: Live sports is live sports so we’ll take it. NASCAR is doing all it can to get caught up for a full season, and the world is watching.
[ SOURCE: sports.yahoo.com ]
LOUISVILLE TV REPORTER SHOT BY POLICE DURING LIVE BROADCAST
A reporter for an NBC affiliate station in Louisville, KY was fired upon by police Friday night during a live broadcast covering street protests in that city. Kaitlin Rust, a journalist at WAVE 3, was live on the air when a man wearing a mask and vest that said “police” began firing at her and a colleague. The Louisville community was already angered by an earlier police shooting in a drug raid at the home of Breonna Taylor, an innocent victim of a wrong address mixup. The situation was further inflamed this week by the death of George Floyd, a Minneapolis man who died in police custody in that city. The reporter’s shooting was posted to Twitter by a viewer and exceeded 1.5 million views within an hour. In the video, Rust is heard screaming, “I’m getting shot!” Rust and photographer James Dobson were struck and suffered minor injuries. Both were standing behind the police line and were not interfering with law enforcement, a WAVE 3 statement said. WAVE 3 said the Louisville police acknowledged that one of their officers appeared to have fired and would investigate.
COMMENTARY: This is one of two stories in this newsletter that involve members of the media becoming part of the story of the protests and riots. And not because the reporter overstepped boundaries to push a agenda. This is not how it is supposed to work.
[ SOURCE: deadline.com ]
COLLEGE FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME DAMAGED DURING ATLANTA PROTESTS
The College Football Hall of Fame was damaged late Friday night in Atlanta after peaceful protests gave way to violent outbursts, which included smashing the glass windows of the building. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported instances of looting at the scene before police arrived to maintain order. After some individuals threw “garbage cans and other objects” to break the glass and gain access to the building, according to the AJC, others went inside “to grab anything they could.” A Chick-fil-A restaurant next door to the museum was also damaged, per the AJC. The Hall of Fame — a $68 million facility — opened in 2014 after relocating from South Bend, Indiana. Demonstrations took place Friday across several U.S. cities to protest racial injustice and police brutality, sparked by the death of George Floyd on Monday in Minnesota. Early Saturday, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp declared a state of emergency for Fulton County and activated as many as 500 Georgia National Guard troops “to protect people and property in Atlanta.”
COMMENTARY: The landmarks that people care about will get the bulk of the coverage during the protests, whether they are damaged or not. It brings attention to the what and where of the situation, but sometimes forgets the place that aren’t so clean and shiny.
[ SOURCE: usatoday.com ]
MINNESOTA POLICE ARREST A CNN TEAM REPORTING ON PROTESTS THAT RAGED THROUGH THE NIGHT OVER THE KILLING OF GEORGE FLOYD IN MINNEAPOLIS
CNN journalist Omar Jimenez has been taken into police custody during a live broadcast at the site of the protests in Minneapolis, after clearly identifying himself to officers. Jimenez’s crew, including a producer and a camera operator, were also placed in handcuffs. The CNN camera was also taken into custody and continued to record as the crew was handcuffed, with police seemingly unaware that the camera was still on.
COMMENTARY: I watched this happen live while I worked on the data for the Weekly Wrap-Up podcast, and I was completely shook and useless for most of the day. Luckily, I was able to see the crew released before I had to leave for the morning and hear in Jimenez’s words about the ordeal. And then a few hours later, hear the confusion of the street action in real time on a Friday morning.
[ SOURCE: cnn.com ]
STRANGERS CLEAN UP CNN CENTER ATLANTA FOLLOWING NIGHT OF OUT OF CONTROL RIOTS
CNN Center Atlanta has seen the worst and best of this city in a span of less than 20 hours. People began to gather Friday afternoon in Downtown Atlanta protesting a number of police officer shootings including the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. Things were peaceful for many hours. They eventually got out of control. Someone set a police car on fire. Others smashed the windows of CNN Center and McCormick and Schmick’s restaurant. Others with spray paint defaced the giant CNN landmark that has stood outside the building for decades. I watched from my home in Midtown Atlanta feeling sick to my stomach. It’s not about comparing what was happening to this building where I worked for 12 years to the tragedy of people like George Floyd and Breonna Taylor losing their lives. It’s an “AND.” A giant AND. What is happening across this country is terrible. AND CNN is an amazing place and all this beating up of “The Media” is exhausting. AND Atlanta is better than this.
COMMENTARY: This is a blog post from former CNN reporter Daryn Kagan that she posted on her website/blog that offers uplifting and positive news. Read the rest of the post and see just how amazing the story that unfolded at CNN Headquarters turned to.
[ SOURCE: darynkagan.com ]
JOHN CUSACK ATTACKED BY POLICE AND ‘HIT BY PEPPER SPRAY’ WHILE FILMING CHICAGO PROTESTS
John Cusack has been attacked by Chicago police after filming protests and riots in the city. The Say Anything actor has been using social media to document the protests that have arisen in the city in the wake of the death of George Floyd. The 46-year-old was killed after a white police officer knelt on his neck for several minutes, while Floyd pleaded for his life. Peaceful and non-peaceful protests, riots and looting have occurred across the USA in recent days. Cusack wrote on Twitter: “Cops didn’t like me filming the burning car so they came at me with batons. Hitting my bike.” In the video of the incident, also posted by Cusack, a police officer can be heard shouting at Cusack to move, alongside sounds of metal hitting metal. “Alright, alright,” Cusack is heard replying. In a separate tweet, Cusack said he had also been “hit by pepper spray” during the protests.
COMMENTARY: These are serious time and people are responding. And more people with platforms and clout are stepping up to get involved and speak out for the cause. John Cusack may not be the perfect vessel for promoting the cause, but he is out in the street promoting the cause.
[ SOURCE: independent.co.uk ]
Eight Things To Talk About uses the raw engagement data from the social media engagement from The Conversation Project to generate the top-ranking headlines over the course of a weekend.
A full weeks’ data (from Friday to Friday) is compiled, weighed, and sorted to produce the content for the Wrap-Up Show with J Cleveland Payne, published every Saturday as a podcast available at ThisIsTheConversation.com or wherever your favorite podcasts are found.
To ‘participate’ in the rankings of the headlines for this newsletter or the podcast, follow the Conversation Project on social media and engage with the posts to give them more ‘votes.’ The Conversation Project can be found on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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