Today the "New York Times" said that the Luminate/"Billboard" chart was manipulated:

"Swift made 'Tortured Poets' available in four variants across physical formats, each with an extra track; these were also sold in special editions from Swift’s website with autographs and collectibles like magnets and engraved bookmarks. Eilish, who has complained about artists’ excessive marketing of physical media — saying in a recent Billboard interview that it was 'wasteful' to release '40 different vinyl packages that have a different unique thing just to get you to keep buying more' — put 'Hit Me' out in eight colored vinyl variants, as well as other formats like a CD decorated with paint 'splattered by Billie.' (Eilish defended her release plans by promoting an “eco-friendly” approach to manufacturing, saying her releases would use recycled materials.)

Even worse is the following:

"on the day that (Eilish's) 'Hit Me' was released, Swift put out three digital-only editions of her album that included 'first-draft phone memo' tracks — while Eilish released a digital edition of her album that added isolated vocal tracks for each song."

t.ly/nCKlp

So why isn't there change, why isn't there a correction, so we get a true, accurate chart, which would focus primarily on and give the most weight to streaming, where nearly all of the consumption takes place.

Because the labels don't want this. The labels want to be able to manipulate the chart, for bragging rights, for future hype, talking about all the broken records. And Luminate/"Billboard" is beholden to the labels, so they're afraid to impose any change.

But this is in the "New York Times," isn't sunlight the best disinfectant?

How many people do you think read the "New York Times," never mind this article, never mind caring about this subject. Almost none.

And most of the public doesn't even care who is number one, because they're not listening to this music, if they're listening to new music at all.

And all of the acts on the chart are trumped by Morgan Wallen, whose 2023 album "One Thing at a Time" is number three and whose 2021 album "Dangerous" is parked at number five, sans the shenanigans.

Yes, Morgan Wallen is bigger than Taylor Swift. But he's a redneck pariah, so he doesn't get the ink either Swift or Eilish do.

But this is a horse race almost no one is paying attention to. And that's the big story here. One that is not covered not only by the "New York Times," but in the Luminate/"Billboard" charts.

Let's start with the "Times" itself. It is not comprehensive. The papers don't even print sports scores, because they're readily accessible elsewhere. If you're getting all your news from the newspaper, you've got a very myopic view of society.

I went to lunch yesterday with an RFK, Jr. supporter. This guy was agitated about obesity, child health care issues. He supported RFK, Jr. because RFK, Jr. had a plan for this. Do you hear either Biden or Trump talking about childhood obesity, never mind Big Food and Big Pharma?

Well, conventional wisdom is they're in the pocket of both, they can't say anything negative. But whether that is true or false, many people believe the two major candidates are not speaking to the issues that are important to them.

But in the mainstream press it's all binary. Trump or Biden, pick a side.

And they wonder why so much of the general public is alienated.

They keep telling us to care about that which we do not. Keep telling us it's important. It's like the media has detached from the public. Do they actually know anybody outside their bubble?

I'm not supporting RFK, Jr. for a whole host of reasons. But the person talking to me didn't even care about vaccines, he cared about our food, children. What do you care about?

Chances are you live in a small bubble of people who care about what you do and feel isolated because no one else is concerned with what you are.

And then there's the micro, the everyday living, i.e. paying the rent and putting food on the table. I don't want to trot out economic numbers, I'll just say when you keep reading about how much CEOs are making you become deflated. Are they really that much better, so skilled, or are they just in a club that keeps paying its cronies more and more?

And then you play the music of the hitmakers and it doesn't resonate at all. You wonder if it's you or them. Many people just disengage.

And then there are people who are passionate about music and insult you because you don't feel the same way they do.

But you might be watching cornhole or pickle ball contests on YouTube. Activities that you can participate in, relate to. Cheaper and less time-consuming than golf. There are so many alternatives today, many of which didn't even exist before. Or, if they did, you couldn't bring all the acolytes together, which is easy to do online.

It's hard not to disconnect. It's not only Taylor Swift, but Joe Biden. You can't say he's old. It's taboo. The Democrats will become draconian in their pushback. But that's what your eyes say, can't we have a discussion?

And why should I care about Taylor Swift and the records she's breaking if I'm not listening to Taylor Swift. This is not the Beatles, never mind "The Godfather,' a cultural tsunami that we all have to pay attention to, that affects us all.

But this analysis is nowhere. You keep being dunned with a mainstream you don't care about.

We were inundated with news about movie grosses. But shooting for the fences with high concept films the studios excluded traditional moviegoers and then the superhero fans moved on and there was nothing left. Movie grosses are abysmal, and never coming back. And if you want soul fulfillment you get it at home, via your streaming service, which doesn't hype a year in advance films that you don't care about. Or books. They keep telling us what's coming down the pike, telling us to get excited, not knowing that we wait for the wisdom of the crowd, we know if a movie is worth seeing the day it comes out, why should we get hyped in advance?

The presidential election isn't until November, you want me to wring my hands over every nuance today? Give up my life because someone says democracy is on the line? I'll vote in November, but stop bugging me.

And the MAGGOTS have lost the plot. It's about Trump and nothing else. Would you hire an employee without looking at their CV? Would you just have blind faith?

And the liberals just say to be afraid of Trump. To get behind the nearly dead man who most of America can't relate to. Got to give Trump credit for living in the modern world, he's on social media, he understands the internet, it seems like Wi-Fi is blocked in Washington, D.C, how can you relate to these people?

And today everybody lies in court, and Marjorie Taylor Greene makes fun of people's appearances. Everything that used to be taboo is now fair game. There's no center.

So you retreat to your vertical, your interests, and ultimately tune out the mainstream story. The film studios are living the mainstream story to their detriment, as are the record labels. They've cut off huge swaths of the public yet believe the majority are still with them, when they're not.

You might be a fan of Taylor Swift, or Billie Eilish, or live for Trump or Biden, kudos, live it up. Just don't expect the rest of us to care. We are just as passionate about something else, but you won't give it any attention, never mind respect.

We live in a Tower of Babel society and they keep telling us it's otherwise.

They're wrong.

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