today in tabs: shopping when you love things but fear capitalism

Each of the current ratings is in line with the prior ones, but there has been a significant erosion in approval since February for Trump’s handling of immigration (-9 points), the situation in the Middle East (-7 points) and the economy (-6 points). Since March, Trump’s ratings have declined by double digits on the federal budget (-12 points) and the situation in Ukraine (-10 points). (Gallup, 11/28)

Watergate has often been invoked in comparison to Trump’s scandals, in both his first and current term. Many people — from historians to former Nixon officials — argue that were Watergate to happen in today’s media landscape, with the influence of conservative outlets and in particular Fox News, Nixon most likely would have survived it. (NBC News, 11/29)

In short, Harris did make such a proposal. She proposed the idea during an interview on “The Diary of a CEO” podcast in an episode released on Oct. 30, 2025… In doing so, the former vice president joined a growing number of world leaders who have advocated for allowing younger teenagers to vote. (Snopes, 11/28)

First Lady Melania Trump said Friday that she has launched a production company, Muse Films, news that comes ahead of the release of an Amazon MGM Studios feature documentary about her. The doc, titled Melania, is being directed by Brett Ratner and will hit theaters January 30 in the U.S. and select international territories. (Deadline, 11/28)

If you are looking to hear from some of tech’s most powerful people, you will increasingly find them on a constellation of shows and podcasts like Sourcery that provide a safe space for an industry that is wary, if not openly hostile, towards critical media outlets. Some of the new media outlets are created by the companies themselves. (The Guardian, 11/29)

A huge amount of the viral content about American politics and American news on social media is from sock puppet and bot accounts monetized by people in other countries. The rise of easy to use, free AI generative tools have supercharged this effort, and social media monetization programs have incentivized this effort and are almost entirely to blame. (404 Media, 11/24)

Our language experts shortlisted three contenders—rage bait, aura farming, and biohack—that reflect our conversations and preoccupations over the past year. After three days of voting in which more than 30,000 people had their say, our experts chose rage bait after considering votes, the sentiment of public commentary, and their analysis of our lexical data. (Oxford University Press, 12/1)

To tempt picky Americans, they are offering sales on products like perfume, body wash and sweatshirts. It’s seemingly paying off: The most crowded stores Friday in cities across the US belonged to brands including Edikted, Kendra Scott, and Bath & Body Works. Other mall retailers saw thin crowds and disappointed shoppers, who were expecting bigger discounts at higher-end brands like Ralph Lauren and Coach. (Bloomberg, 11/28 – free version)

The Bearista cup is just the latest entry on a list of seemingly random but extremely hard-to-get merchandise that’s gone viral this year, from Labubus to Owala water bottles to Trader Joe’s micro tote bags. That certain low-cost novelty items can attract huge lines isn’t exactly new. (Cabbage Patch Kids and Beanie Babies are canonical examples.) What’s new is the extent to which these relatively cheap trinkets have become status symbols and an innovative way to distinguish oneself. (Vox, 11/28 – free version)

This time, Martha Stewart is the one decked out in denim. The 84-year-old is the face of the brand’s new holiday campaign, which features her in a variety of denim looks (I am partial to her denim Manolo Blahnik heels). Perhaps it’s too soon to forgive and forget after all that Sydney Sweeney discourse, but at the very least, it seems the brand is asking, “Can Martha offer you some denim pie?” (The Cut, 11/25 – free version)

For some celebrities, it’s worth admitting they had help in order for their book to be taken more seriously—like influencer and podcaster Tinx talking about partnering with novelist Gabrielle Korn on her sapphic beach read Hotter in the Hamptons, or Grammy winner Mark Ronson openly acknowledging that he got help from an unspecified New Yorker editor to polish the final draft of his recent memoir, Night People. (Elle, 11/26 – free version)