Ding ding ding. That's the sound of the opening bell for the Zuck vs. Musk social media prizefight. Yesterday afternoon, Mark Zuckerberg launched his new "Twitter Killer" app called Threads. We decided to test the waters and opened a Roca account, which has already gained 38k followers — love you, Roca nation. Round 1 to Zuck, but don’t expect a “Yo, Adrian” from Musk anytime soon.

In today's edition:

• Exhibit H on why we built a RocaNews app

• TikToking New Jersey judge under heat

• July 4’s new beer

 🔑 Key Stories

Why We Built an App

As many of you know, we’ve spent much of the last year and a half building a better way to do news. To understand why we built an app, look no further than today’s news stories, which we also post daily to Instagram, our biggest platform by audience size:

• Story 1: Social companies found to be manipulating the information people consume

• Story 2: There’s a lot more to that story than we can fit in a single set of bullets!
  Stories 3 and 4: Sex and drugs are sure to get us a shadowban…

We built an app because relying on Instagram (or email) limits what and how much information we can provide, and forces us to do it in a way that isn’t fun. Our app fixes those problems – we release it on Monday 🌊

Government Censorship?

A judge ruled the Biden administration likely violated the 1st Amendment by pressuring social companies to limit speech

• During the pandemic, the Biden administration repeatedly asked social media companies to restrict or take down content about vaccines, Covid policies, and more

• Last year, 2 states sued the federal government, arguing the Biden admin violated the law by doing so. The government said its positions did not result in any censorship

• On Tuesday, a judge sided with the states. He said the government pressured social media companies and ordered limits on communications between the government and the companies. That order is temporary until a final ruling is reached

Dig Deeper

• The judge ordered sections of the government – including the FBI; the Departments of State and Health and Human Services; the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; and various top officials – not to take numerous actions regarding social media companies

• The order prohibits actions that could broadly be perceived as pressuring companies to police speech, with exceptions for notifying companies about threats and criminal activity

Bolsonaro Barred from Office

A Brazilian court barred former president Jair Bolsonaro from running for office until 2030

• Bolsonaro served as Brazil’s president from 2019 through 2022. In office, he repeatedly claimed elections were rigged against him

• While running for re-election last year, he presented those claims to a group of foreign diplomats

• On Friday, a Brazilian court that oversees elections barred Bolsonaro from holding office until 2030 – after the next election. A judge called it punishment for Bolsonaro spreading “disgraceful disinformation.” Bolsonaro called the ruling corrupt and pledged to appeal it

Dig Deeper

• Brazil’s current president, Lula, was himself disqualified from running for office in 2018 over corruption charges for which he spent 580 days in prison

Maine Decriminalizes Selling Sex

Maine decriminalized the sale of sex, making it the first US state to do so

• Legalization permits actions; decriminalization means the government won’t punish people for breaking a law. Nevada is the only state to have legalized sex work, which it allows in licensed brothels in counties that approve it

• On Monday, Maine passed a law decriminalizing the sale of sex while retaining punishments for those who buy or facilitate it

• The law is designed to shelter sex workers while punishing those who perpetuate it

Dig Deeper

• Some critics of Maine’s law argued that legalization – state-approved sex work – is better than decriminalization because it allows the government to regulate it; others said the law unfairly punishes clients while letting sex workers off the hook, or that all aspects of the business should remain illegal

• Maine’s Democratic governor had formerly opposed decriminalizing the sale of sex, however she said she changed her mind after speaking with prominent feminist Gloria Steinem

Aussie Psychedelics

Australia legalized the use of psychedelics to treat certain mental health conditions

• Recent studies have shown MDMA (Ecstasy) and psilocybin (magic mushrooms) may be effective at treating PTSD, depression, and other conditions

• In February, Australia’s top drug regulator reclassified MDMA and psilocybin as therapies and called them “relatively safe” in a “medically-controlled” setting

• As of July 1, Australian doctors can prescribe MDMA for PTSD and psilocybin for depression. Both have to be taken under supervised conditions alongside therapy and cost up to $6.6k per treatment – 100+ times the drugs’ street prices

Dig Deeper

• The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) designated psilocybin as a “breakthrough” therapy in 2018 and may approve MDMA for PTSD treatment within a year, yet both substances remain federally illegal

• Colorado and Oregon have both passed state laws legalizing the use of psychedelic mushrooms at supervised centers

Breathe Easy with Beekeeper's Naturals

Together with Beekeeper’s Naturals

Summer is here again and you know what that means: Seasonal symptoms are in full swing. But with Beekeeper's Naturals, you can breathe easy and stay healthy all season long

• Their Propolis Throat Spray supports the immune system and soothes a scratchy throat, while their Nasal Spray and Sinus Support Capsules help clear nasal congestion and relieve sinus pressure

• So, no matter what seasonal symptoms you're experiencing, Beekeeper's Naturals has you covered

• With their clean ingredients that are free of artificial colors, preservatives, fillers, alcohol, gluten, GMOs, pesticides, and refined sugars, you can feel confident that their products are both safe and effective

Dig Deeper

• Even better, as a RocaNews reader, you can save 20% on your first order when you use code ROCA20 at checkout

🍿 Popcorn

ICYMI

• Game, set, activists: Police arrested 3 environmental activists at Wimbledon for interrupting tennis matches by scattering orange confetti and puzzle pieces on the courts

• It’s not the heat…: July 3rd broke the record as the hottest day ever recorded on Earth, per US government data. The average global temperature reached 62.62°F

• United State of Futból: The LA Galaxy’s July 4th match against crosstown rival LAFC at the Rose Bowl broke the all-time MLS single-game attendance record with a crowd of 82,110

Wildcard

• Most normal Wisconsin ride: A malfunctioning roller coaster in Wisconsin trapped 8 passengers upside down for hours. It took ~3.5 hours to safely rescue all the riders

• “Our subs don’t implode”: A Subway in Georgia faced criticism for displaying a slogan outside the restaurant that mocked the Titan submersible, reading, “Our subs don’t implode”

• Plead griddy or not griddy? A New Jersey judge is under investigation for posting TikTok videos in which he lip-synced to popular songs. He allegedly filmed videos in his bed and judicial chambers

👇 What do you think?

Today’s Question:

Should governments have a say in social media companies’ moderation policies?

Reply to this email with your answers!

See Monday’s results below the Wrap! 

🌯 Roca Wrap

For the first time in American history, the US’ most-purchased beer on July 4 wasn’t American.

In the 1870s, a pair of American brewers traveled to Bohemia, in the modern-day Czech Republic. One of them was Adolphus Busch; the other was his father-in-law, Eberhard Anheuser.

The duo visited a town called Budweis and liked the local beer. Upon returning to St. Louis, they launched their version of it – Budweiser – in 1876.

A year prior, Busch had applied a new preservation process – pasteurization – to beer for the first time. Then in 1876, the duo’s company, Anheuser-Busch (AB), debuted the artificially refrigerated railroad car. The combination of developments let them distribute Budweiser nationally and make it the US’ first national beer brand.

Budweiser remained the country’s top beer for over a century.

A shift began in the 1960s, though, when a biochemist and brewer developed a low-calorie, “diet” beer. That man worked for a brewery that was acquired by AB’s Milwaukee-based rival, Miller. In 1975, Miller used his findings to debut Miller Lite.

Other light beers had failed to take off, but Miller used athletes, comedians, and other popular male figures to market Miller Lite to men. The strategy worked, and within 2 years, Miller Lite was the US’ second-bestselling beer.

AB responded in 1982 with Budweiser Light, which it renamed Bud Light in 1984. By 1994, it had overtaken Miller Lite as the US’ bestselling light beer. In 2001, it surpassed Budweiser as the country’s bestselling beer of any kind – a title it has held since.

Budweiser continued to struggle as Americans moved toward either craft beers or light beers, and in 2012, Coors Light surpassed it to become the US’ second-bestselling beer.

At that point, Modelo wasn’t even a top-10 beer in the US.

In 2013, AB-InBev – AB had by then merged with drink company InBev – wanted to buy Grupo Modelo, a Mexican brewer that produced Corona, Modelo, and Pacífico. To get the deal past regulators, in made a deal to give a rival company, Constellation, the rights to the Corona and Modelo brands in the US.

Modelo quickly grew in the following years, particularly with Hispanic Americans.

By 2016, it had surpassed Corona Extra to become the US’ 6th-bestselling beer. A subsequent ad campaign that showed people working hard – grandmothers cooking, bands practicing, boxers fighting – proved wildly successful.

Modelo then expanded its reach beyond Hispanics, who accounted for 70% of its customers in 2019, and tapped into its slightly more premium image. By the start of this year, just 55% of Modelo customers were Hispanic and Modelo had become the US’ #2 bestselling beer, with 7.5% of the market to Bud Light’s 10.3%.

Then in April, Bud Light partnered with Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender influencer who has gained millions of followers by documenting her transition. To celebrate “1 year of womanhood,” Bud Light provided her with a sponsored can, which she then released a video about.

Between the ends of March and April, Bud Light’s market share fell from 10% to 8.7%, then fell further to 7.6% in May. Modelo’s market share rose each month, reaching 8.6% in May and making it the US’ bestselling beer.

Constellation’s CEO recently said that Modelo’s rise has “gone a little quicker than we had anticipated.”

As for Bud Light, AB-Inbev posted a message to its website last month.

“To all our valued consumers, we hear you,” it said. “You can look forward to Bud Light reinforcing what you’ve always loved about our brand—that it’s easy to drink and easy to enjoy”

But can AB-Inbev turn it around?

If you have thoughts, let us know at [email protected]!

 🌊 Roca Clubhouse

Yesterday’s Poll:

Did you buy fireworks this year? 
Yes: 10%
No: 90%

Yesterday’s Question:

Should people be fined for crimes in proportion to their income?

Jason from Texas: "My fear would be that wealthier citizens would have a target painted on their backs simply because a municipality would get more money from then. So if a ‘23 Ferrari is going 5 miles over the speed limit and a ‘96 Honda is going 15 over, the cop might choose the car he is likely going to make the most money on.”

Jessica from California: “Yes, because a rich person won't learn from their mistakes if there's no real consequence. A $400 speeding ticket is pennies to a rich person but can be devastating to a poor person.”

Christina from Randolph, New Jersey: “Fines are meant to be a deterrence, and as such, should be set high enough so nobody wants to pay. And if someone can’t afford to pay, then translate the fine to community service.”

Sheri: “No, people should not be fined according to their income, they should be fined in proportion to their crime!”

🧠 Final Thoughts

We hope you all have better Thursdays than Bud Light's marketing team. If you have any thoughts or questions about our app, please don't hesitate to let us know. We love hearing from you all!

See you tomorrow.

—Max and Max