QUOTE OF THE DAY

'2032 is just around the corner, and we are not ready.'

Matt Goldwein, the senior policy director at the Committee for a Responsible Budget, in an interview with The New York Times, on how Social Security faces an uphill financing battle and how Trump's megabill will decrease monthly benefits for retirees by 23% by 2032 if the shortages are not fixed

THE EXPLAINER

The unsteady pace of Formula 1's American popularity

Despite being a cultural touchstone for millions across Europe, Formula 1 has historically struggled to gain significant traction in the U.S. But this has been flipped upside down in recent years, as the open-wheel racing organization has been gaining steam in the U.S., where NASCAR has long dominated the auto-racing market. But while Formula 1 has undoubtedly gained ground, some industry experts say there may be nowhere left for it to go.

How popular is it in the US?
Formula 1 fandom in the U.S. has been growing rapidly. There are about "52 million F1 fans in America, an increase of more than 10% from 2024," said Motorsport.com. On ESPN, which broadcasts races in the U.S., the network's "live race audience has doubled since 2018."

Why has it grown so quickly?
The Netflix series "Formula 1: Drive to Survive" has certainly played a role and been "credited with everything from helping F1 crack the U.S. to rejuvenating the sport itself," said CNBC. But the "Netflix effect" is only part of the story.

Formula 1 has made American inroads in part due to the "expansion" of U.S. races "growing from two events in 2017 to three by 2023," said USA Today. These circuits "played a pivotal role in enhancing the sport's appeal." In 2024, the Miami Grand Prix "attracted the largest live U.S. television audience on record for F1 as an average of 3.1 million viewers watched," said ESPN.

Has this popularity plateaued?
Despite Formula 1's U.S. growth, there are concerns that its popularity may have reached its peak. While attendance at live events "stayed relatively strong in 2023, American TV ratings tumbled a bit," said The Athletic. There may be a simple explanation: a lack of competition on the course.

Max Verstappen, the 27-year-old Dutch-Belgian phenom, has become the face of Formula 1. Throughout 2023 and 2024, there was "consternation" that his "stranglehold on the competition could jeopardize F1's hard-fought expansion of its U.S. fan base," said Front Office Sports. He drove to victory so regularly that the "only exciting races have been the ones that Max is not in," said McLaren driver Lando Norris.

But Verstappen's 2025 has been far less successful. And as Formula 1 gets more competitive again, viewership could once again rise.

Statistic of the day

900: The number of earthquakes that struck the remote Tokara Islands in Japan over just two weeks, said the Japan Meteorological Agency. Seismic activity was first seen on June 21. While no major damage has been reported, residents have been told to prepare to evacuate if necessary.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Netflix and the second-screen phenomenon

If you have ever half-watched a show on Netflix while scrolling on your phone, it "may surprise you" to learn that the streaming giant knows you "engage in this obscene behavior" and "actually wants you to carry on," said The Guardian. The practice of using two devices at the same time has been dubbed second screening, and Netflix has a history of telling showrunners that scenes aren't "second-screen enough." The reasoning: If a viewer's "primary screen" is their phone, they "shouldn't be so challenged" by the TV that they "switch the show off."

'Overly expository dialogue'
Some shows are "intentionally scripted" for "distracted viewers," said Daphne Rena Idiz, an arts, culture and media postdoctoral fellow at the University of Toronto, at The Conversation. Netflix "explicitly labels certain series 'second-screen shows' and develops them as such," according to one insider. This means having "overly expository dialogue," repetitive plots, and voiceovers or characters narrating the action so that distracted viewers can "follow along."

One tag among Netflix's 36,000 microgenres "offers a suitable name for this kind of dreck: casual viewing," said N+1. This is "usually reserved for breezy network sitcoms, reality television and nature documentaries," as well as many Netflix movies that "go down best when you are not paying attention."

'Stifling creativity'
Of course, not all shows are geared toward second screening. It's mainly the ones that are "interesting enough to warrant being left on in the background" but "formulaic and simplistic enough" to allow viewers to remain focused on their smartphones, said Verdict.

Yet there's a "growing concern" that this will "lead to a decline" in the overall quality of TV content, added Verdict. Catering to second screening might "stifle creativity, as streamers decide to produce background noise rather than compelling storytelling." And if the shows become more simplistic, viewers might spend more time on their phones, "further perpetuating this cycle."

Good day 📜

… for historical discoveries. A volunteer in Groton, Massachusetts, has found a handwritten anti-slavery scroll that dates back to the 19th century. Titled "A Resolution and Protest Against Slavery," the scroll was signed by 116 American Baptist ministers in 1847 and is considered the Holy Grail of historical Baptist documents.

Bad day ⛔

… for conspiracy theories. The FBI and Justice Department have published a memo stating that deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein did not have a client list of high-profile associates. Many right-wing conspiracy theorists have claimed that Epstein was murdered in prison because of his alleged association with these clients, but the memo confirmed Epstein died by suicide.

Puzzles

Daily crossword

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

Play here

The Week recommends

Cool down with this month's best new TV

Want to beat the heat of July? Crank the AC, curl up under the covers, and binge-watch one of the latest television releases. New and returning series include two shows about eccentric young women being honest about their feelings in England and an adaptation of a bestselling novel about a man's escape from slavery and subsequent adventures.

'Such Brave Girls'
Created for the BBC and coproduced by A24, this dark British comedy about a dysfunctional single-parent family stars creator Kat Sadler alongside her real-life sister, Lizzie Davidson. The show's second season again features "traumatized women making terrible choices" amid "some of the most savage writing on TV," said Rhik Samadder at The Guardian. (today, Hulu)

'Too Much'
Lena Dunham crafted the most searing and incisive portrait of privileged New York twentysomethings ever put to screen with HBO's "Girls." And now in her series "Too Much," Jessica, played by the hilarious Megan Stalter (pictured above, at left, with Dunham), deals with the dissolution of her long-term relationship by moving across the pond, where she meets and falls in love with British indie rocker Felix (Will Sharpe). (Thursday, Netflix)

'Washington Black'
This adaptation of Canadian author Esi Edugyan's 2018 novel about the life of George Washington Black — not to be confused with America's first president — was created by Selwyn Seyfu Hinds ("The Twilight Zone") and stars Sterling K. Brown and Ernest Kingsley Jr. The story follows Wash as he flees a sugar plantation in Barbados at age 11. (July 23, Hulu)

Poll watch

Nearly four-fifths of Republicans (78%) think it's acceptable for the government to monitor the online activity of international students, according to a YouGov survey. The poll of 1,131 adults also found that most Republicans think it's acceptable for the government to monitor the online activities of politicians (74%), government workers (72%) and journalists (56%).

INSTANT OPINION

Today's best commentary

'Barack Obama is not your emotional support president'
Karen Attiah at The Washington Post
"America, no one is coming to save you, especially not Barack Obama," says Karen Attiah. Humans are "hardwired to yearn for authority figures to tell them everything will be OK. And for many, the emotional support figure par excellence will always be the 44th president." But after a "white majority elected Trump for the second time," it's Obama, the "first Black president, who has an obligation to comfort the nation"? Obama "already told Americans the truth."

'State-sponsored Islamophobia in France encourages violence'
Farid Hafez at Al Jazeera
Islamophobia in France has "not stopped at vandalism," says Farid Hafez. There has been a "significant spike in Islamophobic acts in France — something the French authorities remain reluctant to publicly comment on." There are "various factors that have contributed to this, but central among them is the French state's own Islamophobic rhetoric." It's "hard to believe that the obsession of the French state and government with what they call Islamist separatism is not, in fact, inciting violence."

'So many what-ifs haunt Guadalupe River flood'
The Dallas Morning News editorial board
In Texas, questions "must be answered about how much warning people in harm's way received and how quickly local officials reacted to those warnings," says The Dallas Morning News editorial board. Texas river flooding is "unlike most natural disasters not only in its speed and ferocity but in its unpredictability." Texans "need to understand whether improved staffing or technology at either the National Weather Service or the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration could give more accurate advance warning."

WORD OF THE DAY

CAR-T

A type of cancer therapy that genetically modifies a patient's T cells (to express a chimeric antigen receptor, or CAR) to fight the disease. It has been successful in fighting certain leukemias and lymphomas, as well as noncancerous diseases like lupus.

Will Europe pivot to Asia on trade?