Dez Reads. Caesar salad fraud, Nike design controversies, Gen-Z turning to TikTok, the strong greenback, and wife blaming in the court of law

Welcome to Dez Reads, where we examine interesting trends in business, law, human interest, and more – giving you an insight into what Dez staff is reading, discussing, and debating.

This week, we're digging into gastronomical shenanigans in a shocking twist, the world of leafy greens has been rocked by Caesar salad fraud, Nike’s Olympic couture drama; Gen-Z's preference of TikTok vs. Google; plunging world currencies against the dollar and Senator Menendez's new legal strategy: blame the missus! 

Each read provides a unique perspective on the challenges and transformations shaping public opinion and our daily media news cycles. Let's dive into this week's stories.

Here we go.

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Culture.

The Atlantic. Something Weird Is Happening With Caesar Salads 

Sometimes, I just appreciate good prose; I’m just pulling a few choice quotes from this story by Ellen Cushing, with my recommendation that you subscribe to The Atlantic.  

Molly Baz is a chef, a cookbook author, and a bit of a Caesar obsessive—she owns a pair of sneakers with cae on one tongue and sal on the other—and she put it succinctly when she told me, “There’s been a lot of liberties taken, for better or for worse.” 

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To some degree, the reason for all of this experimentation is obvious: Caesar salads—even bastardized ones—rock, and people want to buy them. “Isn’t it perhaps kind of the case that the Caesar salad might be close to the perfect dish?” Sessoms said. “It hits all of your dopamine receptors that are palate related, with umami, fat, and tons of salt.” 

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Ancient philosophers were bedeviled by the question of whether the ship of Theseus retained its fundamental essence after each of its component parts was replaced one by one over the course of centuries. I’ve been thinking about salads for a few weeks now and feel pretty sure that a true Caesar requires, at minimum, garlic, acid, umami, cold leaves, hard cheese, and a crunchy, croutonlike product. Beyond that, you can get away with one or maybe two wacky additions before you start straining the limits of credibility. It’s about principle, not pedantry. 

– Josh Culling

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Sports + Business.

CNBC. Nike shouldn’t mess with England flag, UK PM says after new soccer kit design 

CNN. Nike’s US women’s Olympic team outfits criticized for being ‘born of patriarchal forces’ 

Nike is making headlines for its controversial designs, and they are stirring debate around the globe. First, in England, Nike altered the flag on England’s soccer team’s new shirt ahead of the Euro 2024 tournament, which got many knickers in a twist on social media as well as raising the ire of U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. 

Ahead of the Paris Olympics, Nike unveiled Team USA’s designs. One design raised the outrage of professional athletes with a ridiculously high bikini line, with one athlete stating that they “should be able to compete without dedicating brain space to constant pube vigilance or the mental gymnastics of having every vulnerable piece of your body on display.”   

Change for change's sake never works. You need a sound strategy or an operational need. Just look at what’s happened to the Caesar salad! 

– Jennifer Hirshon

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Tech.

Axios. Google who? Gen Z is searching on TikTok, YouTube instead 

If I’m looking for restaurants, things to do when I’m traveling, or the best place to take a client in NYC… really anything “experiential,” I’m starting with TikTok. When Hamas attacked Israel and I wanted to hear more from both sides, I still went to TikTok. Not Google, not X, not a news site. And apparently, I’m not alone in this.  

Gen Z is increasingly turning to social media platforms for search, which could be a billion, with a capital B, dollar problem for Google. Combine that with the number of people across generations who are asking AI bots questions, so they don’t have to sort through search results for reputable information, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Google’s leadership has put the pressure on their teams to try to create the next best thing. Something that could save search ad dollars, which are still a major driver of revenue for the tech giant. 

But until Google gets better at not ranking link farms and spam… you’ll find me hanging out with ChatGPT and TikTok.  

– Annie Moore

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Finance.

Reuters. Dollar's rally supercharged by diverging US rate outlook  

With all our political drama at home and competitors catching up to us around the world, we are tempted to think that America is no longer the dominant global force. But the continued influence of the US dollar on the rest of the world tells a different story.  

As of April 15^th, the greenback has been at its highest since early November last year – up 4.6%, due to the Fed maintaining high-interest rates and geopolitical uncertainties that caused investors to flock to the safety of the dollar. Major currencies like the Japanese yen and the Turkish lira recently hit all-time lows, and central banks around the globe are intervening hastily to prevent the further depreciation of their currencies and their economies. In some cases, the growth of entire countries risks being stymied by the trend of a singular currency, the US dollar.  

The recent impact of the greenback is a reminder that no matter what skeptics may think, American hegemony is here to stay.  

– William Kim

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Legal.

WaPo. Menendez’s legal strategy may include blaming his wife, unsealed document says 

Dez has collaborated with many of the top lawyers and firms in the country on some of the most high-profile cases. The lawyers, of course, drive legal strategy while we manage the “atmospherics” and advise on communications strategies. In my 24 years of doing this, I’ve finally seen a new legal strategy, one that genuinely changes the narrative: “blame the wife”. The Post reports that Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) is going to claim that he didn’t know all the gold and cash that was being stashed in his closet was from foreign agents because his “wife withheld information.”  

If this appears to smack of desperation, it’s because reality is setting in for Menendez. You can’t bluster your way out of legal trouble, not when you must explain the acquisition of gold and cash that prosecutors say are bribes. As ridiculous as the “blame the wife” strategy seems, I’m happy to remain objective until it plays out.

– Steven Schlein