A new week, a new living-in-unprecedented-times achievement unlocked. Yesterday, President Biden announced that he would no longer seek re-election, facing mounting pressure to drop out. Instead, he threw his support behind VP Kamala Harris to become the Democratic Party's nominee (although the decision goes to an open convention next month). Technically, this situation isn't totally unprecedented — in 1968, President Lyndon B. Johnson dropped his bid for re-election after his approval rating nosedived.

In other news… CrowdStrike's software update brings down global systems, Sundance drops the short-list of future hosts, and a new Anthony Hopkins movie has its footage hacked.

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.TECHNOLOGY.

CrowdStrike's software glitch exposes our fragile tech infrastructure

The Future. On Friday, an overnight update from top cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike caused a global network outage that affected Microsoft Windows users in the transportation, finance, government, and healthcare industries. While the issue has already been identified, and the update retracted, some organizations may consider switching over wholesale to Apple's iOS.

Crash course
What's being considered the largest IT outage in history could have ramifications that last for weeks, or even months.

But here's what happened just over the weekend.

Once the issue is fixed, that'll likely just be the start of an avalanche of Congressional hearings, security reviews, and financial fallout that could remake the cybersecurity landscape.

It's possible that this incident was simply a canary in a coal mine — today, it was a buggy update; tomorrow, it could be an actual hack from a malicious actor.

54.4% of you voted Yes in Friday's poll: Do you listen to country music?

"I listen to country 'rock' and folk, and I love the blending of Dolly Parton's, Emmy Lou Harris', and Linda Ronstadt's voices."

"Growing up, I did, as I lived in a rural area. I still listen, but not all the time, and I'm not a fan of bro country."

"Always been a fan of country music, but Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter inspired me to seek out more country artists from marginalized groups. As a Black queer person, I'm a huge fan of country music from artists who share my experiences."

.A WORD FROM OUR FRIENDS AT UPWORK.

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.ENTERTAINMENT.

Sundance unveils new festival-home nominees

The Future. The Sundance Film Festival has officially announced the six finalists to host the annual festival after its contract with Park City ends in 2026. While the cities represent a diverse set of regions, it's possible that insiders, filmmakers, and sponsors will push for the winner to be another mountainous, snow-swept locale to maintain the event's historic vibe.

Host campaign
Top execs from the Sundance Film Festival are about to go on a road trip to determine which destination will be the best to host the most important independent film festival in the US.

Each city is offering a cash infusion worth millions of dollars and robust state tax breaks in exchange for the massive amount of economic activity, tourism, and tax revenue that the fest brings in annually.

Last year, the festival generated $96 million in spending from visitors and $12.3 million in tax revenue… which were smaller numbers than in pre-pandemic years. So, the upside is huge for any city that lands it.

.A WORD FROM OUR FRIENDS AT COZY EARTH.

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We hope you weren't flying this weekend.

LATEST PODCAST EPISODE

Today, on an extra special bonus episode of Future Forecast, our hosts Boye and Chris sit down with Andrew Kenward, the President and COO of Almost Friday Media. Andrew was an agent at WME in the digital media department at WME before being brought into the Almost Friday universe in 2021. We chat with him about his career, his goals for the brand moving forward, and what it's like working in media today.