Dear Matzav Inbox,
The release of the new Mendy Wald medley by Joey Newcomb, produced by Doni Gross, has struck a deep chord with me—and clearly with many others as well.
On the surface, it’s a nostalgic, well-arranged throwback to the golden years of 1990s Jewish music. But beneath the upbeat melodies and familiar tunes lies a sobering truth, one that’s hard to ignore: the meteoric popularity of a medley made up of songs that are over three decades old is, in reality, an unflinching indictment of today’s Jewish music scene.

BUSRA AL-HARIR, Syria (AP) — Israel’

FALL RIVER, Mass.

NEW YORK – Bitcoin soared past $121,000 on Monday, marking a fresh all-time high as traders and institutions ramped up positions ahead of what’s being dubbed “Crypto Week” on Capitol Hill.

President Joe Biden offered an explanation for why he employed an autopen to sign off on clemency orders, addressing the issue during an interview with the New York Times amid growing scrutiny over the move.
The discussion revolved around the final clemency decisions of Biden’s presidency, when he used an autopen to affix his signature to official documents rather than signing each one by hand.
In the last stretch of his term, Biden granted clemency to over 1,500 people—a move the White House at the time called the most sweeping single-day act of its kind by any U.S. president.
During the Thursday interview with the Times, Biden insisted, “I made every decision” personally.

Elmo, the famously cheerful red puppet from Sesame Street, was at the center of a disturbing online incident Sunday when his official social media account was taken over by an unknown hacker. The breach led to a wave of vile and antisemitic messages, far removed from the character’s usual family-friendly image.
The now-deleted posts shocked users as Elmo’s account, typically associated with educational and positive messaging, suddenly began spewing hate speech and wild conspiracy theories. Among the offensive content was a post that read: “Elmo says ALL JEWS SHOULD DIE. [profanity] JEWS. DONALD TRUMP IS NETANYAHU’S PUPPET BECAUSE HE IS IN EPSTEIN FILES. JEWS CONTROL THE WORLD AND NEED TO BE EXTERMINATED.”