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Opinion

The long history of slop in music

Top of the Slops — The term might be everywhere now, but the act of copying and enshittifying has been around for decades, explains Ian McQuaid.

  • Music
  • Ian McQuaid

The rise of the outdoor’s punks

Future is unwritten — As demand for the outdoors has grown, so has the codification of its rules and styles. Phil Young searches for those adventuring against the mainstream and asks if the industry is about to get its own record label moment?

  • Sport
  • Phil Young

The Pope has declared holy war on AI

The New Butlerian Jihad — In his first encyclical letter, Pope Leo XIV addressed the increasing pervasiveness of artificial intelligence as a threat to the already fragile structures of society. Newsletter columnist Emma Garland makes sense of it all.

  • Activism
  • Emma Garland

Why is the Met Police using EsDeeKid for ‘copaganda’?

Slop Enforcement — Among the AI slop and ragebait of late-stage social media, newsletter columnist Emma Garland has noticed a jarring trend – London’s police force appropriating criminalised subcultures for engagement purposes.

  • Culture
  • Emma Garland

Louis Theroux’s ‘Manosphere’ shows men aren’t the problem, platforms are

No Ws for Good Men — The journalist’s new documentary sees him dive headfirst into the toxicities and machinations of the male influencer economy. But when young creators are monetarily incentivised to make more and more outrageous content, who really is to blame?

  • Culture
  • Emma Garland

Clavicular isn’t interesting, really

Dreaming Small — The ‘looksmaxxer’ of the moment has garnered widespread furore over recent controversies. But newsletter columnist Emma Garland asks whether the 20-year-old influencer is actually doing anything that new, and what his rise says about modern turbo-nostalgia’s internet dominance.

  • Culture
  • Emma Garland
Bold red text reading "SKATE PUNKS" in graffiti-style lettering on weathered black surface with brown rust patches and scratches.

How skateboarding and punk combined to create a radical, rebellious movement

Don’t forget the streets — The sport’s intersectional romance with subcultures and their music can be a complicated maze. The deeper into the labyrinth, the more inextricable the two forces appear to be.

  • Huck 82: The Music Issue
  • Cullen Poythress
High-contrast black and white illustration of figure with flowing hair holding microphone. Yellow text reads "Slop Era" and "huck".

With The Life of a Showgirl, Taylor Swift has entered her slop era

Huck’s monthly dispatch — The pop giant’s latest album landed with big fanfare but little impact. Against the toll of superstardom and years of consistent output, as well as accusations of AI usage, newsletter columnist Emma Garland asks: has Taylor Swift lost her touch?

  • Music
  • Emma Garland
Black and white high-contrast image with yellow text reading "Endless Bummer" and small white sign stating "Live Facial Recognition In Operation".

Surreal celeb turns and creeping surveillance: Goodbye 2025’s endless bummer

Huck’s August dispatch — Justin Bieber’s stock up, Lana Del Rey’s down? The Sydney Sweeney jeans fiasco? Newsletter columnist Emma Garland rounds up a strange, psychedelic summer in culture.

  • Culture
  • Emma Garland
Illustration with grey brick wall, white "NO ENTRY" tape, yellow text reading "BEHIND THE WALL OF SLEEP", black and white figures below with VPN and age rating symbols.

Will internet age verification actually work?

VPN Summer — With the Online Safety Act coming into force over the weekend, the UK woke up to find pornography, but also any content deemed “harmful” hidden behind an ID wall. But young people are far too tech savvy to be deterred, explains newsletter columnist Emma Garland, who also warns of the dangers of mass data harvesting.

  • Culture
  • Emma Garland

The everyday voices silenced in our coverage of the Middle East

Until women and young people are heard, we won’t break this cycle of destruction and dehumanisation, argues director Maysoon Pachachi.

  • Opinion
  • Maysoon Pachachi

Suella Braverman has declared a war on rights that we must win

The Home Secretary's latest attack on the rule of law must be resisted writes lawyer Raj Chada.

  • Activism
  • Raj Chada

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