1. Congress is in recess for August, and the president is taking a break from Washington. We in the newsroom are experiencing a rare return to the “slow news cycle” — something that used to be the rule for August.

It’s clear that many readers are welcoming the break, as some of our most popular stories today focus on entertainment. For instance: our musical mapping of the country, using the 50 most-watched artists on YouTube. Above, Future, the single most-watched.