Aesthetic Nostalgia and Algorithmic Hijacking

see you in an hour?

Kaia Gerber launched a collaboration with Vuori; Tommy Dorfman is developing Torrey Peters’ bestseller Detransition, Baby for film; Kiernan Shipka joined the “raucous” road trip comedy The Shitheads; and if I were Hot Topic, I’d be on the phone with North West’s manager about a partnership.

At noon today, I’m going live on Substack with

Laurel Pantin

, who writes the very good fashion newsletter Earl Earl (and is my former Teen Vogue colleague from way back when!). We’ll be talking about navigating trends without accidentally cosplaying as a teenager. Join us here!

---

WHY GEN Z IS RESURRECTING THE 1990S, nyt

Clay Routledge

, who describes himself as an “existential psychologist” and “nostalgia futurist,” argues that Gen Z is embracing “historical nostalgia” — a longing for eras they never lived through — as a way to counterbalance digital overload. His team’s research found that 68 percent of Gen Z feel nostalgic for predigital eras, with 73 percent drawn to retro media, hobbies, or styles. (Notably, 78 percent want modern tech to incorporate “ideas and design elements” from these periods, which makes me wonder how much of this is driven by aesthetics.) I liked this bit:

Nostalgia gets a bad rap. It is often characterized as an unproductive fixation on an idealized past, one that prevents people from living in the present and planning for the future. In reality, though, nostalgia helps people thrive in the present and build a better future. I and many other scholars have come to this conclusion after conducting a wide range of studies, including laboratory experiments and quantitative and qualitative surveys involving a large variety of people from all around the world.

WHY GEN Z CONSERVATIVES LOVE THE ‘REAGAN BUSH ’84’ TEE, washingtonpost
A retro “Reagan Bush ’84” T-shirt has become an unlikely status symbol for young conservatives, even though the campaign predates their birth by decades. “It’s really iconic,” says Mario Nicoletto, the 24-year-old campaigns chairman for the New York Young Republican Club. “It’s like the MAGA hat of the 1980s.” The Reagan Foundation sells one for $24.95; other fans track down authentic vintage versions on eBay. “Reagan is still a vibe,” says Caroline Downey, the editor in chief of conservative lifestyle publication the Conservateur. She attributes the interest to nostalgia for “an era where things maybe were simpler, or maybe weren’t as contentious.”

HIJACKING THE KENNEDYS, nymag
For me, the most interesting part of

Reeves Wiedeman

’s Kennedy dynasty cover story is Jack Schlossberg, JFK’s grandson who has embraced a “gonzo” posting style on social media. “It’s not me,” Schlossberg said of his online persona. “It’s a character based on an algorithm controlled by giant companies. I can talk all I want about something super-serious, and I’ll show you the numbers — it doesn’t work.” The strategy is resonating with younger audiences, says Schlossberg: “People are coming up and cheering me on, telling me they love me, thanking me for what I’m doing — saying that it takes real courage.”

INSIDE THE RISE OF ONLYFANS ON CAMPUS, townandcountry
With college costs soaring, students are turning to OnlyFans as a way to pay tuition and living expenses. One advertising student at Boston University told T&C that she’s made over $1 million on the site, funding her education entirely. For a generation already immersed in social media monetization, the platform feels like a logical (if controversial) extension of digital entrepreneurship, though social acceptability varies by campus — students at Berkeley or ASU might shrug, while a Vanderbilt student said, “I think if a girl did this at Vanderbilt, everyone would talk about it and think it’s weird.”

A STORE WITH 124 FREE MICROWAVES AND A PAIR OF LOUBOUTINS, curbed
I really enjoyed both Curbed and

Shop Rat by Emilia Petrarca

’s coverage of NYU’s Swap Shop, a free store where students can “shop” donated dorm goods like microwaves, yoga mats, and even Louboutins (though I selfishly wish they would have taken more photos of the students’ outfits — a missed street style opportunity!). The project is aimed at cutting down on the massive amount of trash generated when out-of-state and international students move in and out each year. “We just want to help students stop items from entering the waste cycle,” says Kate Koblegarde, an environmental econ major who proposed the idea in student government, then worked throughout the summer to get it off the ground. “We’re trying to make secondhand items more convenient than new items.”

One last thought:

@4delinerose#addisonrae #luckybrand #notsponsored #sponsorme

Tiktok failed to load.

Enable 3rd party cookies or use another browser