The Week Evening Review
The Democratic Party's future, the upsides of declining birth rates, and Colleen Hoover's controversies

 
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION

What did the DNC signal about the future of the party?

Events like the Democratic National Convention are overwhelmingly focused on the march toward Election Day, but they are also statements about the party's future. From speaker selection to prime-time scheduling, every second of the convention is as much a forecast of what's next as a reflection of the current zeitgeist. 

If this election decides the future of the country, as both parties insist, then what can last week's DNC tell us about what (and who) the Democrats want us to focus on after November?

What did the commentators say?
Despite the undeniable gravitational pull of "high-profile figures" like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Hillary Clinton, many convention attendees were "just as excited to see the pipeline of up-and-comers," USA Today said. To the extent that there was a coherent theme in the "din of contending voices at the DNC," it was that the "future of the Democratic Party," embodied by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Raphael Warnock (Ga.), is "emerging before our eyes," said The Nation. Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, who helped gavel in the convention, has similarly been "in the spotlight," said The New York Times, since Gov. Tim Walz's candidacy "instantly raised the profile of Flanagan."

Perhaps paradoxically, Ocasio-Cortez "got the crowd fired up in a speech that was, for the most part, pretty uncontroversial," Brookings said. That uncontroversial-ness is important given she had been "largely dismissed as a future leader because of her association with the far left of the party." The speech was the moment Ocasio-Cortez "completed her journey from left-wing Squad provocateur" to "bona fide Democratic establishment star," said The Washington Post.

This "newer generation of Democratic leaders" like Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer have pursued former President Barack Obama's "same goals of broadening the party's appeal and recentering its focus on the working class and key economic issues," said Politico. 

What next?
"If there's one state delegation that appears to be getting the most attention from the presidential wannabes, it's South Carolina," said Chuck Todd at NBC. "It seems pretty clear that South Carolina will be a future early-state power player." While the "2028 wannabes aren't getting the attention they would have gotten had this been Biden's convention," Todd said, they are "certainly following an old scouting motto: 'Be prepared.'"

 
 
QUOTE OF THE DAY

'I am ashamed, and I ask the Venezuelan people for forgiveness.'

Juan Carlos Delpino, a member of Venezuela's National Electoral Council, apologizing to the country for declaring President Nicolás Maduro the winner of last month's election, in an interview with The New York Times. Delpino "had not received any evidence" that he won a majority of the vote. The "entire plan that was woven — to hold elections accepted by all — was not achieved," he said. 

 
 
talking points

Birth rates are declining. Should we be worried?

The global population has been growing at a much slower pace than before, and some countries' populations have even decreased. In 2023, the U.S. birth rate dropped to a record low of approximately 1.7 births per woman, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And the required replacement rate for a population to be maintained is 2.1 children per woman. 

"What we are experiencing now" is something that "we have not seen before in human history, which is a large-scale, cross-national, cross-cultural shift toward preferring and having smaller families," demographer Jennifer D. Sciubba said to CNN. And while some experts believe falling populations could be a positive development, others worry about the future of an aging society. 

The future is feeble
A declining population could spell trouble for older generations. People are "living longer, so populations as a whole have fewer people of working age who can provide for older people and others who are economically inactive," said New Scientist. 

This problem has become even more significant in recent years. "Since the pandemic, labor shortages have become endemic throughout developed countries," said The Wall Street Journal. "That will only worsen in coming years as the postcrisis fall in birthrates yields an ever-shrinking inflow of young workers, placing more strain on health care and retirement systems." U.S. systems like Medicare and Social Security, which rely on the contributions of younger generations, will be particularly affected. 

No worries here
There are also benefits to an aging population. This is the result of people "living healthier and longer lives," and it will result in "reduced needs for infrastructure and lower ecological impacts," said conservation biologist Kirsten Stade at Newsweek. A growing population is, after all, more taxing on the environment. 

People concerned about population declines may also fail to consider whether having more children is the best thing for society. "Have studies shown that women and couples are happier if they have more children?" said Monica Hesse in The Washington Post. "Not to my knowledge." And having children is a large responsibility that places a disproportionate burden on women.

 
 

Statistic of the day

1,172: The number of drug deaths in Scotland in 2023. This was 121 more people than those who died from drugs in the country in 2022, representing a 12% increase. Scotland continues to battle an epidemic of drug addiction, and the U.K. constituent currently has the most drug deaths in Europe. However, these figures are the second-lowest number of drug deaths since 2017. 
BBC

 
 
In the Spotlight

Why author Colleen Hoover is controversial 

Earlier this month, last year's highest-selling book, Colleen Hoover's "It Ends with Us," received a big-screen adaptation. And the blockbuster starring Blake Lively has attracted controversy, much of it having little to do with Hoover herself. The author, however, is plenty controversial in her own right, especially for a writer who primarily pens romance and young adult novels.

Who is Colleen Hoover?
The former social worker from Texas began as a self-published writer and rose to fame and eventual ubiquity. "Her fans were like Swifties," said Chels Upton at Slate. "Loyal defenders who would absolutely flood your comment section with their displeasure if a [Hoover book] review were to lean negative." 

Hoover's novels are generally considered romantic melodramas, and she has enjoyed a near-permanent spot on the New York Times bestsellers list. Hoover usually publishes at least one book per year and often two or more, though she has suffered from writer's block lately. "I'm absolutely in that moment of panic now that I know how many people are going to read it," Hoover said to Texas Monthly in April. 

Why is she controversial?
Some readers "complain that Hoover's books normalize abuse" and could even be dangerous if absorbed by impressionable fans, said CNN. Of course, not everyone agrees there's cause for concern. "The backlash against her work seems vastly overblown given the substance of the target," said Rachelle Hampton at Defector. Young fans of Hoover's books "deserve a lot more credit than they are getting," said Slate.

Why is she in the news right now?
The promotion around the film version of "It Ends with Us" has been accused of being tone-deaf. The focus on fashion and star Blake Lively's flippant cross-promotion of her hair-and-drink product were so prominent a viewer might not know "It Ends with Us" is a story about domestic violence. 

"Why the heck are Lively and Hoover giddily promoting this film as if it's any other blockbuster?" said IndieWire, describing the marketing campaign as "built on hearts and flowers." Perhaps this "cognitive dissonance" simply "mirrors Hoover's own promotion of her novel."

 
 

Good day 🐾

… for Vermont. A man recently spotted a Canada lynx walking along a rural road. The video of the large cat was the first confirmed sighting of the endangered animal since 2018 and was "especially exciting because the cat was spotted in Rutland County, far south of most confirmed lynx reports in Vermont,” wildlife biologist Brehan Furfey said to the Associated Press.

 
 

Bad day 👩‍🚀

… for NASA. Two astronauts stuck at the International Space Station since the beginning of June will have to wait until February 2025 to return to Earth after NASA decided it's too risky for them to return on Boeing's Starliner capsule. The pair will have to hitch a ride with competitor SpaceX, turning what was supposed to be a weeklong test flight into an eight-month ordeal.

 
 
Picture of the day

Sheltering in place

People take cover in the Teatralna metro station in Kyiv, Ukraine, during a Russian air attack today. Russian drones and missiles targeted 15 regions across Ukraine in an overnight barrage aimed mainly at energy infrastructure. 
Roman Pilipey / AFP via Getty Images

 
 
Puzzles

Test your general knowledge with The Week's daily crossword, part of our puzzles section, which also includes sudoku and codewords

 
 
The Week recommends

Before politics, vice-presidential candidate Sen. J.D. Vance's claim to fame was his polarizing book, "Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis." But Vance's vision of the area is far from the only example of literature that captures Appalachian culture. Such a diverse region warrants a diverse literary portrait.

'Affrilachia' by Frank X Walker (2000)
Professor and former Kentucky poet laureate Frank X Walker coined the term Affrilachia in the '90s to encapsulate the cultural contributions of Black Americans living in Appalachia. His childhood in Kentucky inspired some poems, while others look at his present and are "always returning to the question of what it means to be Black in Appalachia," Kendra Winchester said at Book Riot.

'What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia' by Elizabeth Catte (2018)
If you are looking for a book that's a direct response to some of the more problematic aspects of "Hillbilly Elegy," historian Elizabeth Catte's "What You're Getting Wrong About Appalachia" is a solid answer. The East Tennessean's debut nonfiction book examines "what the media (and stereotypes bred from it) get wrong about Appalachia," said People magazine. 

'Writing Appalachia: An Anthology' edited by Katherine Ledford and Theresa Lloyd (2020)
Appalachian literature has a long, rich history, and this anthology brings together some of that work in a collection that represents the many facets of Appalachian culture. The hefty anthology "serves up the region's iconic talents" in "appetizer-size portions to tempt a reader to go find their longer works," author Barbara Kingsolver said at The New York Times.

 
 

Poll watch

Overall, 17% of Americans report experiencing a form of transportation insecurity in accessing health care, according to a new Ipsos poll. The highest individual demographics that have trouble getting to health care resources include 30% of Americans who make less than $50,000 per year, 24% of Americans ages 18 to 34, and 24% of Hispanic Americans. 

 
 
INSTANT OPINION

Today's best commentary

'Mexico's rule of law is in danger. The US is right to weigh in.'
The Washington Post editorial board
Mexico and the U.S. have "mutual interests in issues spanning commerce, migration, organized crime and national security," so the U.S. had "every right to weigh in" on Mexico's judicial reform, said The Washington Post editorial board. The Mexican president's plan "includes a scary expansion of the list of crimes for which the government can impose mandatory pretrial imprisonment," and he's "likely to get his way." Mexico's judiciary is "dysfunctional and corrupt. But judges are the wrong target."

'Housing is the sleeper issue of the 2024 campaign'
Michael Solon at The Wall Street Journal
The Harris campaign has "proposed a housing agenda of more government cash and greater command-and-control. The economic harm will far exceed any benefit," says Michael Solon. The Federal Reserve "could cut interest rates or home construction could rise," but "housing markets can't recover if the Justice Department's radical trustbusters interfere with the recent Realtors' settlement." Harris "would fix the damage of too much government by gouging homeowners with even more government."

'With TV drug ads, don't believe your eyes'
Elisabeth Rosenthal at Bloomberg
In the early 2000s, few "thought drug advertising would take hold," says Elisabeth Rosenthal, but the FDA "underestimated the wiliness of the pharmaceutical industry, which created a new art form: finding ways to make their wares seem like joyous must-have treatments while often minimizing lackluster efficacy and risks." The "common sense and the sort of truth-in-advertising standard we apply in other sectors could be a suitable first step" for medical advertisements because it's an "issue of public health."

 
 
WORD OF THE DAY

desertification

The process of fertile land becoming so arid the soil and vegetation degrade and the land becomes desert. China is "using the sun to fight the sand" in its ongoing battle against desertification, Semafor said, with an "audacious" project in Ordos, Inner Mongolia. The plan is to build 100 gigawatts of solar panels, more than three times as much capacity as the U.S. is currently building, along a stretch of land 250 miles long and three miles wide. 

 
 

Evening Review was written and edited by Theara Coleman, Nadia Croes, Catherine Garcia, Scott Hocker, Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, Justin Klawans, Harold Maass, Joel Mathis, Summer Meza, Devika Rao, Rafi Schwartz, Anahi Valenzuela and Peter Weber, with illustrations by Stephen Kelly and Julia Wytrazek.

Image credits, from top: Illustration by Stephen Kelly / Getty Images; Aslan Alphan / Getty Images; John Nacion / Variety / Getty Images; Belt Publishing / University Press of Kentucky / Distributed Titles