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☆ 10 Years, 100 Stories: The Work That Defines the Upshot
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-27 | by ( The Upshot Staff | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +20 min

Ten years ago this week, The New York Times introduced the Upshot, a section devoted to explaining “politics, policy and everyday life.” That’s a wide scope, by design. As a result, more than 5,000 articles later, the Upshot has been many things to many readers. To mark our 10th birthday, we’ve collected 100 stories that embody the Upshot. WordleBot Eden Weingart/The New York Times When Wordle first became popular, several people on the internet claimed, plausibly, that they had come up with the “best” opening word. Force of Ship Impact Was on the Scale of a Rocket Launch Erin Schaff/The New York Times We think of the Upshot as a place where back-of-the-envelope calculations can be both helpful and welcome.

Persons: ”, Nate Cohn’s, we’ve, Kevin Quealy, John Branch, John, Patrick Thomas, tut, Trump, pollsters, Obamacare, Leif Parsons, We’re, Jason Henry, Tony Luong, Jordan, ‘, Ruth Fremson, Laurel, ’ Rodrigo Corral, Alex Welsh, Paul Romer, Tim Enthoven, Barack Obama, epidemiologists, It’s, you’re, WordleBot Eden, Wordle, Lila Barth, McCabe, Tom Brady, ChatGPT, —, Erin Schaff Organizations: New York Times, Facebook, Yankees, Red, State Newspaper, ESPN, The Athletic, The Times, You’re, Voters, Trump, Mr, Times, Siena College, Walmart, The New York Times, Jordan Siemens, Health, New, Nike, Democratic, Twitter, America, Iowa, Iowa Democratic, Cancer, Hit, Biden, Insurance, Roe America, Disorders, Republican, Republican Party of, U.S, Budget, NASA, National, Traffic, Administration, Yorkers, Force Locations: It’s, Red Sox, State, America, Dakota, Ireland, Chipotle, Japan, U.S, United States, Siena, New Pennsylvania, District, Iowa, Covid, York City, New York, Pennsylvania, Roe, Tonga, Arizona, York, Holland

☆ N.F.L. Draft Is Like Super Bowl for City of Detroit
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Ken Belson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

took its college draft on the road a decade ago, its first stops were Chicago, Philadelphia and Dallas, three of the league’s biggest markets. Unlike the N.F.L.’s marquee event, the Super Bowl, the draft does not require extensive public subsidies, hotels and security. in recent years to award the draft to Cleveland, Kansas City, Mo., and other cities that have never, and may never, host a Super Bowl. Detroit hosted the Super Bowl in 2006, as a reward to the Lions for moving into a new stadium. They also hope the three days of exposure on television showcases the city to fans who might not otherwise visit.

Organizations: Detroit, Lions Locations: Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas, Manhattan, Cleveland , Kansas City, Mo, Detroit

☆ How the N.F.L. Draft Became a Trading Floor
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Ben Blatt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The Bears’ pick — expected to be U.S.C. quarterback Caleb Williams — was acquired last year as part of a blockbuster deal in which Chicago also got receiver D.J. Moore and three other draft picks. That trade is part of an increasing draft-night trend in the pursuit of “draft capital.” As teams become much more sophisticated in their understanding of how much a draft pick is worth, particularly in later rounds, draft picks have become increasingly common as deal-sweeteners, or to round out intricate trade packages.

Persons: Caleb Williams —, Moore Organizations: Bears, Chicago Locations: ”

☆ Paychecks, Drafts and Firings: The Possible Future of College Sports
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Billy Witz | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

As Elijah Higgins sat on a witness stand this week, he detailed the similarities between his experience last season as a rookie tight end for the Arizona Cardinals and the four years he had spent playing football at Stanford University. Five or six days a week at each level of play, he was immersed in football activities: lifting weights, practice, film study, physical therapy and playing games. There are some differences, Higgins allowed. The only other distinction is that, in contrast to Stanford, he now earns a paycheck. last season was $750,000.

Persons: Elijah Higgins, Higgins Organizations: Arizona Cardinals, Stanford University ., National Football League, Stanford

☆ Aaron Rodgers Has More on His Mind Than Football. A Lot More.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-19 | by ( Katherine Rosman | Ken Belson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Aaron Rodgers, perhaps the most gifted N.F.L. quarterback of his generation, spent a week last month in Costa Rica with a handful of fellow pro football players in search of transformation. First, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the independent candidate for president, said that he was considering making Mr. Rodgers his running mate, a partnership that did not ultimately materialize. The next day, CNN reported that Mr. Rodgers had suggested in 2013 that the massacre of 20 children at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., was a hoax or an inside government job. Mr. Rodgers responded on social media, saying that he had “never been of the opinion that the events did not take place.”

Persons: Aaron Rodgers, N.F.L, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Rodgers, ” Organizations: CNN, Sandy Hook Elementary Locations: Costa Rica, Newtown, Conn

☆ Caitlin Clark and the Best-Dressed at the W.N.B.A. Draft
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-16 | by ( Vanessa Friedman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Their tunnel walks have been painstakingly documented; their fits have dominated the draft day conversations for the N.B.A. ; their love of Vuitton and Hermès has been parlayed into brands of their own. draft, following the most-watched women’s college basketball game in history and the most-watched basketball game at any level since 2019, that all changed. Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and Cameron Brink, among others, saw that style marker and raised it one. Stylists and brands are waking up and reaching out.

Persons: Vuitton, Hermès, Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Cameron Brink, ”, Rickea Jackson Organizations: Los Angeles Sparks

Even in the past few weeks, it had evolved as Mr. Kennedy and his advisers spoke with more than half a dozen prospective candidates. A spokeswoman for Mr. Kennedy’s campaign declined to comment. Mr. Kennedy and Ms. Shanahan did not respond to requests for comment on Monday evening. quarterback, and Jesse Ventura, the former Minnesota governor and onetime professional wrestler, were at the top of Mr. Kennedy’s list. But she gave to Mr. Kennedy’s presidential campaign in May 2023, when he was running as a Democrat.

Persons: Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Nicole Shanahan, Kennedy, Kennedy’s, Ms, Shanahan, Aaron Rodgers, Jesse Ventura, Scott Brown, Tricia Lindsay, Tulsi Gabbard, Mike Rowe, Jobs, Rowe, Amaryllis Fox Kennedy, Rodgers, Mediaite, Sergey Brin, Biden’s, Mr, Biden, ” Mr, Kennedy —, Donald J, Trump’s, “ Organizations: New York Times, Republican, Democratic Party, Google, Democratic, Times, Super, Fox News, Trump, The Times Locations: Oakland, Calif, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Hawaii

☆ Aaron Rodgers and Jesse Ventura Top R.F.K. Jr.’s List for Running Mate
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-12 | by ( Rebecca Davis O Brien | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the former Minnesota governor and professional wrestler Jesse Ventura about serving as his running mate on an independent presidential ticket, and both have welcomed the overtures, two people familiar with the discussions said. Mr. Kennedy confirmed on Tuesday that the two men were at the top of his list. Mr. Kennedy said that he had been speaking with Mr. Rodgers “pretty continuously” for the past month, and that he had been in touch with Mr. Ventura since the former governor introduced him at a campaign event last month in Arizona. A representative for Mr. Rodgers did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Mr. Ventura could not immediately be reached for comment.

Persons: Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Aaron Rodgers, Jesse Ventura, Kennedy, Rodgers, Ventura Locations: Minnesota, Arizona

☆ Colin Allred Wins Democratic Contest to Take On Senator Ted Cruz in Texas
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( J. David Goodman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Representative Colin Allred, a Dallas-area Democrat who defeated an incumbent Republican in 2018 to gain his congressional seat, won the Democratic primary race for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, emerging on top of a crowded field seeking to challenge Senator Ted Cruz. “I can’t tell you how much it means to me to be your nominee to be the next senator from the great state of Texas,” Mr. Allred, a civil rights lawyer and former N.F.L. linebacker, told his supporters Tuesday night. Mr. Allred, 40, presented himself during the campaign as an across-the-aisle politician with a working-class upbringing who could appeal to a wide range of voters. But he faces steep odds in the general election: No Democrat has won a statewide office in Texas since the 1990s.

Persons: Colin Allred, Ted Cruz, “, ” Mr, Allred, Roland Gutierrez, Mr Organizations: Democrat, Republican, Democratic, U.S . Senate, Associated Press Locations: Dallas, Texas, Uvalde

☆ For Carla Hall, It’s Been a Bumpy Climb to a ‘Top Chef’ Life
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Kim Severson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Astrology, numerology, psychics, the Chinese zodiac — she’s open to all manner of metaphysical messaging. Then I went to wait in her airy kitchen, which happens to have the most expertly arranged, hand-labeled spice drawer I have ever encountered. All stars point to ‘this is your year.’ ’’Indeed, Ms. Hall seems to be everywhere. She’s selling $88 carrot cakes and nesting bowls decorated with okra flowers from her Sweet Heritage line on QVC. (She’s a Taurus.)

Persons: Carla Hall’s, ”, ’, Hall Organizations: Washington , D.C, QVC Locations: Takoma, Washington ,, Doritos

scores bigIn many ways, the N.F.L. couldn’t have asked for a better outcome for the Super Bowl. The game was a place to see and be seen. Yes, Swift arrived in time from Japan to cheer on her boyfriend, the Chiefs star Travis Kelce. And A-list celebrities like Jay-Z, Beyoncé and LeBron James were spotted at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Persons: couldn’t, Usher, Taylor Swift, Swift, Travis Kelce, Jay, LeBron James, Elon Musk —, Tim Cook, Jack Dorsey Organizations: Super, Kansas City Chiefs, Chiefs, Elon, Apple, Twitter Locations: Japan, Las Vegas

☆ Super Bowl Viewership Rose to 123.4 Million, a Record High
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-12 | by ( John Koblin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sunday night’s overtime Super Bowl shattered ratings records. An audience of 123.4 million watched the Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers, according to preliminary figures from Nielsen and CBS, which broadcast the game. That figure easily eclipsed last year’s record high of 115.1 million, when Kansas City defeated the Philadelphia Eagles. Final Nielsen ratings for the Super Bowl will be issued on Tuesday. At a moment when traditional television ratings have been in free fall, the N.F.L., particularly the Super Bowl, has stood immune to massive viewership changes affecting the rest of the media world.

Persons: Nielsen, Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Taylor Swift Organizations: Bowl, Kansas City Chiefs, San Francisco 49ers, Nielsen, CBS, Kansas City, Philadelphia Eagles, Super, Paramount, Univision, Nickelodeon Locations: Spanish, Travis Kelce , Kansas, Las Vegas

☆ At the Puppy Bowl, Extra Points for Being a Very Good Boy
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Callie Holtermann | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

But at least they don’t urinate on them. The same cannot be said for the competitors in the Puppy Bowl, Animal Planet’s canine football game that takes place in October but does not air until the afternoon of Super Bowl Sunday. The event’s referee, Dan Schachner, stays ready for all eventualities by keeping five identical uniforms in his dressing room so he can change when accidents occur. Mr. Schachner, 49, admitted he had gotten lax about handing out penalties for “premature watering of the lawn” since he began calling the game in 2011. “We have a game to play.”This year’s Puppy Bowl, which will be televised at 2 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday, is the 20th edition of the event, a milestone for a program that began as a tongue-in-cheek feed of puppy playtime before evolving into a counterprogramming juggernaut.

Persons: Dan Schachner, Schachner, “ Organizations: Super, Sunday

☆ Will Taylor Swift Be at the Super Bowl? Stay Tuned.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Benjamin Hoffman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

On Sunday, the Kansas City Chiefs will be making the team’s fourth Super Bowl appearance in the last five seasons. players go their entire career without playing for a championship, one of Kansas City’s newcomers had their ticket punched after only 12 games. As Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic said on X, shortly after the Chiefs’ championship win: “Taylor Swift makes the Super Bowl in her first year in the league. Swift, who has been dating Travis Kelce, Kansas City’s star tight end, has changed the N.F.L. conversation all season, attracting a new audience for the league and inspiring strong emotions (both positive and negative) among fans.

Persons: Nicole Auerbach, “ Taylor Swift, Ms, Swift, Travis Kelce Organizations: Kansas City Chiefs, The Athletic, Chiefs Locations: Kansas, Travis Kelce , Kansas

☆ Ad Nods to Taylor Swift and Football, Drawing Cheers and Criticism
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Santul Nerkar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In the commercial, a father unsuccessfully tries to interest his teenage daughter, who’s distracted by something on her phone, in a football game. She then walks downstairs to see her father watching a football game while wearing a white jersey bearing the No. 13 jersey for her and jokingly applies cream to his face before imploring her to come and watch the game. 89 jerseys were implicit references to Ms. Swift’s “lucky number,” 13, and her (and Mr. Kelce’s) birth year, 1989. And the father in the ad wore friendship bracelets, as do many of Ms. Swift’s fans.

Persons: Taylor Swift, who’s, Travis Kelce, N.F.L, Swift’s, Kelce’s Locations: Kansas City

☆ What MAGA World Gets Wrong About the N.F.L. and Taylor - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Jane Coaston | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The National Football League is an American cultural behemoth: Ninety-three of 2023’s 100 most-watched television broadcasts were N.F.L. Among those who will be watching the game is National Review senior editor Charles C.W. A native of England, Cooke has become an avid football fan (specifically, of the Jacksonville Jaguars) and has written about his growing understanding of America’s one true national sport. He has also written about some on the Right’s aversion to the N.F.L., particularly as some concoct convoluted conspiracy theories involving singer Taylor Swift and her boyfriend, the Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, while others denounce professional sports as a whole. As Cooke wrote in National Review, “Online, one can say that Taylor Swift is a ‘Deep State psyop’ and prompt a million Lost Boys to clap their hands in glee.

Persons: —, Charles C.W, Cooke, Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce, ’, ” Organizations: Kansas City Chiefs, San Francisco 49ers, National Football League, National Review, Jacksonville Jaguars, Chiefs, National, Boys, 49ers Locations: American, England

The biggest upcoming football event for many of the N.F.L. owners and business executives who will populate luxury boxes at the Super Bowl this weekend is not, perhaps surprisingly, the game. It actually won’t take place until six weeks later, in Orlando, Fla., when football executives gather for the National Football League’s annual meeting — an event that has particular significance this year. Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League have already relaxed their ownership rules. But the N.F.L.

Persons: Arthur Blank, Greg Penner Organizations: National Football, Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, Atlanta Falcons, Home Depot, Walmart, Denver Broncos Locations: Orlando, Fla, Florida

☆ Is Taylor Swift Actually Increasing N.F.L. Ratings?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Ben Blatt | Francesca Paris | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Ever since Taylor Swift started dating the Kansas City Chiefs’ Travis Kelce, she has elevated him into a new tier of celebrity. The league said that regular-season viewership was up 7 percent from last season, according to Nielsen data. Two of the four highest-rated “Sunday Night Football” games this season were attended by Swift. Just because we could, we did a little digging (OK, maybe too much digging) into just how real the “Swift effect” is. We found that the answer, like dating as a celebrity, is complicated.

Persons: Taylor Swift, Kansas City Chiefs ’ Travis Kelce, Swift Organizations: Kansas City Chiefs, Nielsen, Football

☆ Why Taylor Swift Is Being Blamed for Everything - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Jennifer Weiner | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ask the people in your life to name a woman who’s got it good, with wealth and beauty and talent and true love, and I’d bet at least a few of them would name Taylor Swift. Swift, the 34-year-old pop icon, who made history last Sunday as the only musician to win four best-album Grammy Awards, checks many of the important boxes. message boards or watching TikToks, you will notice that factions that do not agree about anything share an absolute certainty that Taylor Swift is trouble. She’s doing too much, except when she’s not doing enough, and she’s always doing it wrong. — the pretty blonde endorses Democrats.

Persons: who’s, Taylor Swift, Swift, She’s, Hashtag, she’s, I’m, Travis Kelce, Bud Light Organizations: Super Locations: Japan

☆ The Big Pregame (Vegas’s Version)
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Emmanuel Morgan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Music blared as the Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. had a conversation across a barricade. Close by were Machine Gun Kelly, the platinum-blond musician, and his partner, the actor Megan Fox. Outside the 45,000-square-foot, strobe-light-filled tent near the Las Vegas Strip, a man climbed a life-size statue of an elephant. Super Bowl week is important for business: When the N.F.L. crowns a champion, it also feeds television networks and gives a valuable platform to advertisers and performing artists.

Persons: blared, Odell Beckham Jr, Kelly, Megan Fox, partyers, ”, Brian Toll Organizations: Baltimore Ravens, h.wood

☆ Opinion | How the N.F.L. Became a Juggernaut of Entertainment
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Peter Coy | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The National Football League, founded in 1920, was an unpopular pipsqueak 90 or so years ago. The college player who went first in the 1936 draft, a Heisman Trophy winner, decided to become a foam rubber salesman instead of turning pro. began to change the rules of the game in a way that encouraged passing, made scoring easier and elevated the role of strategy. Sunday’s Super Bowl is pretty much certain to be the most-watched televised event of 2024; N.F.L. With that kind of viewership, it’s no surprise that the N.F.L.

Organizations: National Football League, Nielsen, Forbes, IBM, Nike, Pfizer

☆ Whatever Happens at the Super Bowl, She’s Already Won
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Vanessa Friedman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Whichever team takes home the Vince Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl LVIII, the San Francisco 49ers or the Kansas City Chiefs, there is already one indubitable winner. Not Taylor Swift, whose interest in football has attracted almost as many conspiracy theorists as fans, or even the N.F.L. itself, which is trying to figure out how to hang onto its sudden influx of Taylor-related female fans, but rather another player’s significant other: Kristin Juszczyk. On Sunday, as her husband takes the field, Ms. Juszczyk, 29, will be in the stands, modeling one of her creations to an estimated 200 million viewers. And Ms. Juszczyk didn’t even have to buy a $7 million 30-second ad spot to get it.

Persons: Vince Lombardi, Taylor Swift, Taylor, Kristin Juszczyk, Juszczyk, Kyle Juszczyk, Juszczyk’s, Olivia Culpo, Christian McCaffrey, Brittany Mahomes, Patrick Mahomes, Swift Organizations: San Francisco 49ers, Kansas City Chiefs, 49ers, Footwear, Vogue Locations: catwalks

☆ Super Bowl Broadcast Is a Crossroads for CBS Sports
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( John Koblin | Kevin Draper | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On the one hand, Sunday will be a joyous occasion for CBS Sports. The sports division will broadcast its 22nd Super Bowl, the most of any network. The storied CBS Sports division, the broadcasting home of marquee events like the Masters and March Madness, is confronting a wave of change. It all leaves CBS Sports facing a number of challenges — which company leaders say they can handle by sticking to what they know. “No matter what happens in the future to the company, sports will increasingly be more important each and every year,” Mr. McManus said.

Persons: Sean McManus, —, ” Mr, McManus Organizations: CBS Sports, CBS, Paramount, Southeastern Conference, Netflix

☆ Kansas City Stars, With Help From Taylor Swift, Are Advertising Champs
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Santul Nerkar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Kansas City Chiefs enter Sunday’s Super Bowl having already won — when it comes to commercials. Over the past year, the star players Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, along with Coach Andy Reid, have been inescapable to TV viewers. The estimated amount spent to air the ads on television was $178 million for Mr. Mahomes, $120 million for Mr. Kelce and $69 million for Mr. Reid, according to iSpot.tv, an ad measurement company. Because there were several commercials in which at least two of the three appeared, the dollar totals have some overlap. Basically, the more spend an ad has, the more viewers are seeing it.

Persons: Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Andy Reid, Kelce baring, Mahomes, Reid, Kelce, ”, Cassandra Arora, Deion Sanders, Nick Saban, Christian McCaffrey, Brock Purdy Organizations: Kansas City Chiefs, Sunday’s, Pfizer, National Football League, “ Brands, Chiefs, University of Colorado’s, University of Alabama, 49ers, Toyota Locations: San Francisco

☆ The Super Bowl and the Taylor Swift ‘Girlfriend Effect’
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-08 | by ( Benjamin Mullin | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The girlfriend effect is the improvement a person (or, in this case, a brand) gets by associating with a magnetic partner. The term, which has been applied to Kelce, gained popularity on TikTok last year, said Linda Ong, chief executive of Cultique, a cultural analysis firm. has faced crises in recent years that hurt its reputation among younger viewers, particularly women, Ong said. Domestic violence by players, the lack of diversity among head coaches, and players’ chronic health problems from concussions have tainted the league’s brand.

Persons: Linda Ong, Ong

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