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I Read the News Today, Oh Boy: The Utah Jazz

There are a lot of pro sports teams where, due to relocation, the team name makes no sense. There are no grizzlies in Memphis, except maybe at the Memphis Zoo. There are no trolleys to dodge in Los Angeles (and the Dodgers also failed to dodge a sweep at the hands of the Milwaukee Brewers last night). There is no particular reason to associate wizards with Washington, DC (even if there is one current resident who has quite a bit in common with Lord Voldemort). But the worst has to be the Utah Jazz. The team's original home city of New Orleans made that a great fit, but now? Salt Lake City has no jazz and, by the standards of NBA cities, an unusually small population of the demographic group responsible for creating the majority of jazz music.

We had two clues for last week's theme: (1) "the theme should strike a chord with readers" and (2) "[W]e had to hold an item headlined 'The Senate, Part II: Texas Race Has Turned into a Real Soap Opera.'"

Here is the solution, courtesy of reader M.H. in Ottawa, ON, Canada:

The theme this week: genres of music!

TrumpWatch 2026: This Is What Happens When a Country Has a Corrupt Leader
The Senate: Candidates Try to Pop Each Other's Bubbles
Legal Bytes: Hearn Beats the Rap
I Read the News Today, Oh Boy: Happy Birthday, John Rock
This Week in Schadenfreude: Artist Captures the Soul of Donald Trump
This Week in Freudenfreude: Some Folk in Canada Aren't Taking This Lying Down
And as for the hint, the chord struck would of course be a musical one.

Yes! If we had not held the Texas item, "Opera" would have been on the list, too. And this item's headline adds "Jazz," of course.

Here are the first 60 readers to get it right:

N.H. in London, England, UK
H.M. in Paris, France
B.D. in Portland, OR
T.K. in Half Moon Bay, St. Kitts
W.A. in Red Lion, PA
B.R. in Arlington, MA
D.V. in Plymouth, MA
M.W. in Frederick, MD
J.S. in Chevy Chase, MD
P.L. in Skövde, Sweden
M.T. in Wheat Ridge, CO
M.W. in Altea, Spain
R.B. in Richmond, VA
R.H.O. in Portland, ME
D.W. in Gurnee, IL
M.B. in San Antonio, TX
M.M. in Dunellen, NJ
N.S. in Los Angeles, CA
S.K. in Ardmore, PA
M.W. in Chicago, IL
M.K. in Long Branch, NJ
J.M. in Eagle Mills, NY
P.A. in Redwood City, CA
D.K. in Chicago, IL
B.A. in Sioux Falls, SD
G.W. in Avon, CT
C.B. in Lakeville, MN
K.S. in Harrisburg, PA
R.S. in Landing, NJ
J.T. in Philadelphia, PA

A.F. in Minneapolis, MN
C.L. in Boulder, CO
A.D. in Gaithersburg, MD
P.H. in Bozeman, MT
B.C. in Manhattan Beach, CA
K.H. in New Haven, CT
M.T. in Simpsonville, SC
M.B. in Menlo Park, CA
G.S. in Basingstoke, England, UK
J.W. in Ellicott City, MD
T.A. in Apex, NC
L.B. in Bozeman, MT
J.M. in Arvada, CO
T.J.M. in New York City, NY
J.N. in Zionsville, IN
D.E. in High Springs, FL
P.R. in Havertown, PA
E.E.M. in Richmond, VT
M.K. in Bothell, WA
S.J.V. in New York City, NY
S.K. in Greensboro, NC
E.S. in Providence, RI
C.W. in Cologne, Germany
R.F.W. in Atlanta, GA
K.F. in Berea, KY
R.P.E.H. in London, England, UK
T.V. in Dinwiddie, VA
A.H. in Espoo, Finland
D.M.F. in Standish, ME
D.S. in Fort Collins, CO

The 60th correct response was received at 7:19 a.m. PT on Friday.

For this week's theme, it relies on one word per headline, and it's in the category History. For a hint, we'll tell you that anyone who solves it should take a bow. Although perhaps a stern one.

If you have a guess, send it to comments@electoral-vote.com with subject line October 16 Headlines. (Z)

This item appeared on www.electoral-vote.com. Read it Monday through Friday for political and election news, Saturday for answers to reader's questions, and Sunday for letters from readers.

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