President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice secretly obtained phone records of multiple Washington Post reporters, the newspaper reported on Friday. According to The Washington Post, the three reporters, who were looking into Russia’s role in the 2016 election, each received a letter from DOJ dated May 3. The letters informed them that they were “hereby…
Business News
Supply chain interrupted: Here’s everything you can’t get now
Chicken, lumber, microchips, gas, steel, metals, chlorine and ketchup packets: What do they all have in common? They’re all (nearly) impossible to find. Shortages are popping up across the supply chain as the pandemic messes with shipping, demand, supply and all the other levers of the global economy. Here’s what’s hard to get, why and…
Elon Musk is an odd choice for SNL host. Here’s why he was picked
“Saturday Night Live” has made some odd host picks over its history. The long-running NBC variety show’s Studio 8H stage has been graced by the likes of Ralph Nader, Steve Forbes, Rudy Giuliani, George Steinbrenner and, famously, Donald Trump. That off-kilter tradition continues Saturday when Elon Musk, the eccentric tech billionaire, will host the show.…
Fight for $15 minimum wage heats up after Biden’s endorsement
After two decades working for Walmart, Cynthia Murray says she only recently saw her pay go above $15 an hour. “They gave me a 30 cents raise,” she said. “That’s how you feel about me after 20 years?” But Murray, a 64-year-old founding member of the United for Respect labor rights group, says she and…
She was tired of seeing Black stereotypes on TV. So she started her own streaming service
When DeShuna Spencer sat in front of her TV to scroll through her options, she noticed a glaring problem: Nobody looked like or was representative of the people she knew. Specifically, there were no Black characters or directors with whom she felt a connection. “I didn’t see my father, my brothers, my husband represented,” Spencer…
Private equity is targeting sports. Now fans and players are pushing back
In New Zealand, rugby isn’t just a sport. It’s a national obsession, a major cultural force and a huge source of pride. So news that Silver Lake, a private equity firm based in California, is looking to buy 12.5% of the revenue generated by the All Blacks, the fearsome national team that’s dominated the global…
Rising wood prices are making your toilet paper more expensive
Just when you thought you were in the clear to stock up on toilet paper again, wood pulp, the primary raw material used to make it, is getting more expensive. “We’ve never seen monthly price increases like this in the history of the business,” said Brian McClay, a pulp industry analyst. “It’s unheard of.” Prices…
Peloton initially refused to recall its treadmills. Here’s why it can do that
You would think that federal safety regulators would have broad powers to order the recall of products they find dangerous or even deadly. You would be wrong. Agencies such as the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration typically can only request — not demand — that companies order a recall…
Elon Musk could make fireworks on ‘SNL.’ Investors are betting on it
Live from New York, it’s … a market-moving corporate liability. This weekend, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is hosting “Saturday Night Live,” which, in case the name wasn’t clear enough, is broadcast live. That means NBC relying on Musk to filter his thoughts in real time, despite little evidence, historically, of him holding back on just…
Washingtonian staffers protest CEO’s ‘public threat’ to return to in-person work
Staffers at the Washingtonian, a monthly DC-based magazine, are protesting Friday in response to their CEO’s opposition of remote work. On Thursday, The Washington Post published an opinion piece by Washingtonian Media CEO Cathy Merrill with the headline, “As a CEO, I want my employees to understand the risks of not returning to work in…
Nasdaq’s computer system literally can’t handle Berkshire Hathaway’s sky-high stock price
The world’s most famous electronic stock market can’t compete with the stubbornness of a 90-year-old billionaire. For decades, Warren Buffett has refused to split Berkshire Hathaway’s sky-high Class A shares, which traded hands Friday at a staggering $436,312. Buffett’s persistence finally caused a Y2K-like problem this week at Nasdaq. Here’s the issue: Nasdaq’s 32-bit computer…
Why investors are paying attention to elections in Scotland
Investors are waiting for the final results of parliamentary elections in Scotland that could spark radical changes to the political and economic landscape of the United Kingdom. A decisive victory from Nicola Sturgeon’s Scottish National Party, which wants to break away from the United Kingdom, could force a standoff with Prime Minister Boris Johnson. His…
US stocks rise to new records despite weak jobs report
Bad economic news was once again greeted with cheers on Wall Street as two top indexes closed out the week in record territory. Investors brushed off Friday’s surprisingly weak jobs report, which showed far fewer jobs were added last month than expected. The Dow gained about 230 points Friday. It and the S&P 500 both…
IHOP turned away Adam Sandler. Now it’s trying to make it up to him
IHOP is hoping to make amends with Adam Sandler next week after an unwitting hostess turned away the comedian at a Long Island location. The IHOP employee, not realizing she was talking to Adam Sandler, told the actor that the restaurant was busy, and it’d be a long wait to be seated. Sandler politely left…
Vanishing workers are the latest economic worry
The US economy is roaring back to life after a long period of hibernation, sending companies scrambling to find workers that can help them meet a surge of demand. In many cases, they’re coming up short. What’s happening: A growing number of sectors are reporting problems with worker shortages. Uber and Lyft are offering incentives…
Major disappointment: America added way fewer jobs than expected in April
The US economy added only 266,000 jobs in April at the anniversary of the worst job loss for any month on record. This was far less than forecasts of economists, who had predicted America would add 1 million jobs last month. The unemployment rate rose to 6.1% in April, up from 6% a month earlier.…
This will be one of the most important summers for Hollywood ever
In a parallel universe, audiences around the world are heading to the cineplexes Friday to see Marvel’s “Black Widow” as it kicks off Hollywood’s lucrative summer movie season. Alas, not in this universe. Audiences will have to wait until July 9 to see Scarlett Johansson reprise her role as the avenging super-spy, and even then,…
Chinese cinemas are showing old propaganda movies. Is Hollywood going to lose out?
Beijing has ordered China’s cinemas to use the box office this year to spread propaganda celebrating the Communist Party. The country’s movie fans aren’t having it — and worry the new mandate is crowding out some of the Hollywood films they are clamoring for. Chinese moviegoers revolted last month after major ticketing sites around the…
Sean Hannity used to rule Fox. But in the post-Trump era, Tucker Carlson is king
Sean Hannity finds himself in familiar territory as of late: second place. For most of his career, the right-wing Fox propagandist has been in the shadows of someone else. When Bill O’Reilly was still at Fox News, Hannity could never quite catch him in the ratings race. But shortly after the 2016 election, Hannity’s close…
Peloton recall to cost company $165 million in lost sales
Peloton is estimating its treadmill recall will cost the company about $165 million in lost revenue during the the current quarter, and result in a $16 million hit to its profits. After weeks of fighting a call by federal safety regulators to recall its Tread and Tread+ treadmills tied to one infant death and reports…
Biden’s Wall Street cop is putting Robinhood on notice
Gary Gensler, the newly installed chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, put Robinhood and Citadel Securities on notice Thursday about a potential crackdown in the Biden era. Gensler, whose nomination was endorsed by Senator Elizabeth Warren, repeatedly expressed concern about the “inherent” conflicts of interest that exist in the payment-for-order flow business model used…
Major Tesla investor dumps a big chunk of shares
A major shareholder in Tesla has become bearish about the company. Scottish fund manager Baillie Gifford & Co. sold 11.1 million shares of Tesla during the first quarter, the firm disclosed in a filing Thursday. That sell off reduced the fund’s holdings by 40% since December 31. The shares sold constitute 1.2% of Telsa’s total…
Steel prices have tripled. Now Bank of America is sounding the alarm
A bubble could be brewing in steel stocks. The pandemic brought the American steel industry to its knees last spring, forcing manufacturers to shut down production as they struggled to survive the imploding economy. But as the recovery got underway, mills were slow to resume production, and that created a massive steel shortage. Now, the…
Jamie Dimon calls Biden’s tax hike plan ‘a little crazy’
Several top business leaders have backed President Joe Biden’s plan to raise taxes on large corporations and the wealthy and spend more on infrastructure. But JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon wants to see more details. “I’m concerned about how the money’s going to be spent,” Dimon said in a recorded interview for the Investment Company…
A look at Bill and Melinda Gates’ enormous lakefront home
News of the Bill and Melinda Gates’ divorce ricocheted around the world this week, raising a number of questions: What, why? What about the foundation? Is it too soon to ask Melinda to star in a reality TV series with Mackenzie Scott? And, of course, what happens to that ginormous house? (Answers: We don’t know;…
What is bitcoin cash?
A cryptocurrency that looks and sounds a lot like bitcoin has creeped up into the top 10 biggest digital currencies list: bitcoin cash. Bitcoin cash shares most of its code with bitcoin. But it is significantly faster at processing transactions. The cryptocurrency is having a moment: It surged more than 11% Thursday, and more than…
Applebee’s shorter menu is here to stay. Here’s what got cut
Last year, when Applebee’s sales took a hit in the pandemic, the chain slimmed down its menu. Now its sales are recovering, but Applebee’s is sticking with the change. “We’re going to keep [the menu] lean,” Applebee’s president John Cywinski told CNN Business. During the pandemic, Applebee’s cut down its menu from about 160 items…
The head of Yale’s massive endowment fund has died
David Swensen, the long-time chief investment officer at Yale University and a legend in the world of college endowments, died Wednesday at the age of 67. Yale president Peter Salovey wrote about Swensen’s death in a statement Thursday, saying that Swensen died following “a long and courageous battle with cancer.” Swensen graduated from Yale with…
Nearly 1 in 3 new stores opening in the US is a Dollar General
Three dollar store chains will make up almost half of all the new stores opening up in the United States this year, a reflection of the dollar store sector’s outsized growth in the retail industry as other chains close shops or stop building new ones. About 45% of the 3,597 store openings that large retail…
One of the world’s top restaurants is ditching meat. Here’s what could go wrong
Earlier this week, Eleven Madison Park’s chef and owner Daniel Humm made an unexpected announcement: When the famed New York City restaurant reopens its doors next month, meat will be off the menu. It might seem like the perfect time to get people on board with an all-vegan menu. Plant-based proteins are as popular as…
Jen Psaki says she talked with the Biden transition team about a roughly one-year term
A version of this article first appeared in the “Reliable Sources” newsletter. You can sign up for free right here. In a pair of new interviews, White House press secretary Jen Psaki is sharing a lot about her approach to the job; the frantic news cycle; media fragmentation, and the role of Twitter. In a…
Rio Tinto shareholders rebel over destruction of sacred Indigenous caves
Rio Tinto shareholders have rebelled over payouts to former CEO Jean-Sébastien Jacques and other executives who quit last year after the company destroyed a 46,000-year-old sacred Indigenous site in Australia. More than 60% of the votes cast at the mining company’s annual general meetings in London and Sydney were against its remuneration report, according to…
Tucker Carlson’s Fox News colleagues call out his dangerous anti-vaccination rhetoric
Some of Tucker Carlson’s colleagues at Fox News are objecting to his reckless anti-vaccination rhetoric. They are speaking out in small ways on Twitter — but they are not being given the prime time platform that Carlson enjoys, and the millions of people who watch Carlson are not being given accurate information about the Covid…
Uber is losing less money. But it still faces one big risk
The pandemic has been a tough time to be in the business of shuttling people from Point A to Point B. For months, government rules and fears about catching Covid-19 meant everyone stayed put. Finally, though, there are signs of change — and Uber, for one, is thrilled. “Uber has already begun to fire on…
One year after the worst jobs loss on record, millions of Americans remain out of work
The US labor market collapsed a year ago when more than 20 million jobs vanished in a single month. Now the economy is healing, but millions of Americans remain out of work. And despite months of record jobs growth last summer, and with the pace of improvement picking up again this spring, the nation is…
This crypto claims to solve bitcoin’s biggest problem
Bitcoin may be the king of cryptocurrencies, but it’s facing an environmental backlash over the energy-intensive technology underpinning it. A new crypto called chia says it’s the eco-friendly alternative. Like most digital currencies, chia runs on a decentralized ledger system known as blockchain. But unlike bitcoin, chia, which was founded by the inventor of BitTorrent,…
New York Daily News makes a plea for local ownership as hedge fund takeover looms
The latest plea for a break-up of Tribune Publishing’s newspapers is coming from inside the pages of a Tribune publication. In Wednesday’s edition of the New York Daily News, reporter Larry McShane practically begs someone local to “step up and save New York’s Hometown Paper.” McShane and many of his colleagues fear that Tribune’s current…
Republicans and right-wing media use Facebook Oversight Board’s Trump decision to claim bias
Prominent Republicans and right-wing media organizations on Wednesday cited a decision to affirm Facebook’s suspension of former President Donald Trump in their long-running campaign to portray large technology companies as biased against conservatives. The decision was made by the Oversight Board, a court-like panel funded by Facebook that is charged with providing an independent review…
ETFs are the latest market mania Wall Street can’t avoid
With stocks enjoying a strong start to 2021, investors are continuing to plow more money into exchange-traded funds — especially ones that are tied to the top broader market indexes. In other words, many investors are still happy to place their bets on the top techs that dominate the S&P 500 — even though an…
Gary Vaynerchuk: NFT is the next big thing
Serial entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk is selling a new use case for NFT: “Smart event” tokens that have real value rather than digital art. Vaynerchuk’s VeeFriends NFT collection will give buyers three-year access to his VeeCon business and marketing convention. Customers can buy the tokens with etherium cryptocurrency. But he sees a broader future for NFTs…
As subscriber growth slows, The New York Times reveals 100 million registered users
The New York Times has a new statistic about its reach: The site has more than 100 million registered users. The number of users implies that at least that many people are considering but do not yet pay for The Times. Times CEO Meredith Kopit Levien shared the number Wednesday as part of the company’s…
Peloton recalls all treadmills after a child’s death and 70 injuries
Peloton recalled its Tread+ and Tread treadmills Wednesday, and the company admitted it was wrong to fight the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s request that it do so. About 125,000 treadmills are included in the recall. The CPSC said that there has been one child death and 70 other injuries tied to the treadmills. But when…
Aldi and other big grocers threaten to boycott Brazil over deforestation in the Amazon
Some of Europe’s biggest supermarkets and food companies have threatened to stop buying agricultural products from Brazil if a bill they say would encourage deforestation in the Amazon becomes law. In an open letter published on Wednesday, 40 grocers, food suppliers and investment firms urged Brazilian lawmakers to reconsider a legislative proposal that would legalize…
GM earnings jump even as sales sink during the global chip shortage
General Motors posted strong first-quarter earnings and said it’s on track to hit the high end of its full-year profit target despite the computer chip shortage dogging the industry. GM posted net income of $3 billion, about 10 times what it posted in the same quarter a year ago, when it was hit by the…
Janet Yellen just proved markets can’t handle the truth
When Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks, investors listen. And on Tuesday, they didn’t like what they heard. The details: At an event hosted by The Atlantic, Yellen, an economist who previously led the Federal Reserve, indicated that the central bank may need to hike interest rates to prevent prices from rising too quickly. “It may…
These bracelets help restaurant workers show they got their Covid-19 vaccine
A Philadelphia restaurant is trying to make customers feel more comfortable by making clear its employees are vaccinated. Most of the staff members at El Merkury sport a blue silicone bracelet with a QR code linking to proof of Covid-19 vaccination, according to CNN affiliate WPVI. The owner of El Merkury, Sofia Deleon, told WPVI…
New homes cost $36,000 more because of an epic shortage of lumber
As the pandemic crushed the US economy last spring, sawmills shut down lumber production to brace for a housing slump. The slump never arrived and now there isn’t enough lumber to feed the red-hot housing market. The shortage is delaying construction of badly needed new homes, complicating renovations of existing ones and causing sticker shock…
A shortage of these metals could make the climate crisis worse
The world won’t be able to tackle the climate crisis unless there is a sharp increase in the supply of metals required to produce electric cars, solar panels, wind turbines and other clean energy technologies, according to the International Energy Agency. As countries switch to green energy, demand for copper, lithium, nickel, cobalt and rare…
Krispy Kreme files IPO paperwork
Krispy Kreme is preparing to go public. The doughnut company said on Tuesday that it has confidentially filed paperwork related to a public offering of its stock with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The number of shares that will be offered and their price range has not been determined, the company said, adding that the…
A timeline of Bill and Melinda Gates’ relationship
Bill and Melinda Gates announced the end of their 27-year relationship Monday, shocking the business and philanthropic worlds. “After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage,” the couple, well-known for their wealth and commitment to philanthropy, said in a statement.…
Conan O’Brien ends his long run in late night next month
An era in late night television is coming to an end next month. “Conan,” Conan O’Brien’s show on TBS, will end its run on June 24, TBS announced Monday. The conclusion of the show will end the host’s nearly 30-year run in late night. TBS said that the final weeks of the show will have…
Why Amazon and Alphabet may need to split their high-priced stocks
Amazon and Google owner Alphabet are two of the most valuable companies on the planet. They dominate their industries, generate tons of cash and are obscenely profitable. Yet neither of the companies are in the prestigious Dow Jones Industrial Average — and for a good reason. Both Amazon and Alphabet have stock prices in the…
Broadway sticks to fall reopening despite New York lifting restrictions
Theater fans eager for Broadway’s reopening will have to wait a few more months. New York’s theater owners on Tuesday said they are still planning to reopen in the fall even after the state government said it would lift restrictions on the venues later this month — much faster than many in the arts community…
Attorneys in Gates divorce also worked on Bezos split
You can’t make this stuff up. Two of the attorneys on opposite sides of the Bill and Melinda Gates divorce case also represented the opposing sides in the 2019 divorce of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his ex-wife MacKenzie Scott. Ted Billbe, one of the lead lawyers for Bill Gates in this case, represented Scott…
Walmart’s online store isn’t profitable. Now it’s borrowing from Amazon’s playbook
Let’s say you’re shopping for something on Walmart.com — maybe t-shirts. Under the category on the site, you’ll see a number of options shipped and sold by Walmart itself. Then, there are others. You can get a Ford Mustang tee from a third-party seller named Wild Bobby, or one boasting Disney’s Stitch character from the…
Goldman Sachs wants its US workers back in the office next month
It looks like most Goldman Sachs workers will be back in Lower Manhattan by mid-June, marking another milestone in the reopening of New York City and the broader economy from the Covid-19 pandemic. Goldman Sachs is asking US employees who have not already returned to the office to be prepared to do so by June…
Disney unveils a real-life lightsaber
Ever since “Star Wars” premiered in 1977, kids and adults alike wanted to get their hands on a lightsaber. The “elegant weapon for a more civilized age” is one of the most famous props in movie history and pop culture — and now Disney has apparently created a “real” one. Disney Parks released a very…
Want to invest in crypto? Here’s what you need to know
Cryptocurrency is having a moment. Between the meteoric rise of dogecoin, Tesla accepting bitcoin as payment for its vehicles and PayPal allowing users to buy crypto on Venmo — all of which happened in just over a month — there is growing attention on and interest in the digital asset space. Mainstream adoption of crypto…
Ethereum is leaving bitcoin in the crypto dust
Hunter S. Thompson once wrote, “There is nothing in the world more helpless and irresponsible and depraved than a man in the depths of an ether binge.” He was referring to the intoxicating drug, not the cryptocurrency. But ethereum investors may have reasons for fear and loathing, too. The world’s second-most valuable cryptocurrency has soared…
Ethereum’s 27-year-old creator is now a billionaire
Vitalik Buterin, a 27-year-old Russian-Canadian programmer, created ethereum in 2013 when he was 19. The cryptocurrency launched in 2015, and now Buterin holds about 333,500 ether in his public wallet. Multiply that by the $3,500 record high ether stood at on Tuesday, and you get more than $1.1 billion. Not bad. Buterin co-founded Bitcoin Magazine,…
Companies scramble to protect their workers from India’s Covid surge
Big banks and accounting firms do most of their business in New York, London, Hong Kong and Tokyo. But they wouldn’t be able to function without their back offices, many of which are located in Covid-stricken India. Financial services firms have outsourced a huge number of information technology and operations jobs to India in recent…
Twitter’s new subscription product could include ad-free journalism
Twitter, known for instant and short-form expression, is investing more in the media business and long-form journalism. The company announced Tuesday it’s acquiring Scroll, a startup that offers ad-free viewing of news sites for a monthly fee. Scroll launched last January and essentially offers online readers an ad blocker that publishers agree to and benefit…
When a market bubble isn’t the end of the story
From the price of stocks to ethereum, it’s no secret that markets continue to look extremely frothy. What’s happening: The S&P 500 remains just below its all-time high, while the cryptocurrency ethereum notched a new record on Tuesday, jumping above $3,400. That may seem like good reason for investors to consider taking money off the…
American factories are desperate for workers. It’s a $1 trillion problem
Demand for goods is skyrocketing as the US economy reopens from the pandemic. But there’s a big problem: American factories can’t find enough people to do the work. Even though US manufacturing activity surged to a 37-year high in March, the industry has more than half a million job openings. Factories are struggling to find…
The world’s largest jewelry brand is ditching mined diamonds
Pandora produces more jewelry than any other company in the world. And on Tuesday, it announced a major change: It won’t use any more mined diamonds in its products. The Copenhagen-based company said it’s instead shifting toward the use of diamonds created in labs, which it emphasized have the same “optical, chemical, thermal and physical…
Gun background checks soared in April
Editor’s note: This story and headline have been corrected. An earlier version overstated the number of gun sales that have been recorded in Illinois. Concerns about looming gun control legislation and rising crime continued to fuel gun sales in America throughout the month of April, according to industry observers. The FBI conducted more than 3.5…
Why journalists have to make decisions about how to cover the January 6 riot aftermath
A version of this article first appeared in the “Reliable Sources” newsletter. You can sign up for free right here. “Yesterday wasn’t the end. Yesterday was the first battle of the war.” That’s what John Douglas Wright told his local newspaper on January 7. Wright, 54, who operates a shuttle bus company in Ohio, vowed…
One of the world’s best restaurants is going vegan
One of Eleven Madison Park’s most iconic dishes has been whole roasted duck with daikon and plum — it’s a classic of the restaurant, and one its most long-standing offerings. But when the restaurant reopens next month after more than a year, that dish, and many others it has become known for, will no longer…
Los Angeles Times names ESPN’s Kevin Merida as its new top editor
The Los Angeles Times has its new top editor: Kevin Merida of ESPN will start as executive editor in June, the paper announced Monday. Merida brings more than 40 years of experience in media into the role. He most recently worked at ESPN as a senior vice president and as editor in chief of The…
Robinhood fires back after Warren Buffett slams free-trading app
Warren Buffett and Berkshire Hathaway vice chairman Charlie Munger are not big fans of short-term trading and the popular Robinhood app. But it appears that Robinhood has no time for Buffett or Munger either. Buffett said in Saturday’s annual Berkshire Hathaway shareholder meeting that the rise of Robinhood is “a very significant part of the…
Parents were hit hard in the pandemic. But vaccines and Biden’s spending plans could change that
America’s parents — mothers in particular — have been hit hard by the pandemic. Supervising distance learning and keeping their children safe from a health crisis forced some to quit their jobs. But the vaccine rollout and Washington’s promises to spend big on child care could help moms get back to work. “Making schools and…
Verizon offloads Yahoo and AOL in $5 billion deal
Verizon is exiting the media business, announcing Monday that it’s selling the unit for $5 billion to private equity firm Apollo Global Management. The sale includes AOL and Yahoo, which Verizon bought for a combined $9 billion in recent years. Verizon will retain a 10% stake in the spin off and the Verizon Media Group…
Can Warren Buffett, the Oracle of Omaha, still see the future?
Warren Buffett’s ability to pick investments that pay off over the long term has transformed him into a billionaire and made him the world’s most famous investor. But as the planet heats up, his positions on the climate look increasingly short-sighted. What’s happening: At Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting over the weekend, Buffett defended the company’s…
Warren Buffett names his successor
Warren Buffett said Monday that Greg Abel, the head of Berkshire Hathaway’s non-insurance business, will be his successor — although Buffett gave no indication that he will give up the top job at the conglomerate anytime soon. Abel has long been considered one of the two men likely to follow Buffett, along with Ajit Jain,…
This startup grows kelp then sinks it to pull carbon from the air
Carbon emissions are a huge contributor to climate change, so companies are getting creative about finding ways to suck the heat-trapping element out of the atmosphere and slow global warming. One Maine-based startup, Running Tide Technologies, is experimenting with farming kelp, a type of seaweed, in an effort to pull carbon from the air and…
They are hunted and in hiding but Myanmar’s journalists continue to report the truth
Journalist Ye Wint Thu was already on the run when his name and photo appeared on a wanted list broadcast by Myanmar’s military junta. For weeks, he had been documenting protests in Yangon against the military coup. But in early March, after a colleague was violently arrested in the south of the country, and the…
The Biden administration is taking fact checks to heart, at least some of the time
A version of this article first appeared in the “Reliable Sources” newsletter. You can sign up for free right here. CNN reporter and resident fact-checker Daniel Dale has noticed something very interesting about President Biden’s relationship with fact checks. When proven wrong, Biden actually course-corrects. At least in some cases, the Biden White House has…
Biden’s climate push promises ‘jobs, jobs, jobs.’ Here’s what that might look like
In his first address to a joint session of Congress last week, President Joe Biden framed his climate change agenda as a once-in-a-generation economic opportunity, speaking directly to blue-collar workers. He promised that his focus on the environment would result in “jobs, jobs, jobs.” But what will those “jobs, jobs, jobs” look like? Although the…
News outlets adjust coverage as CDC shifts mask guidance
Media outlets have covered Covid-19 safety protocols for more than a year now. But with new CDC mask guidelines in place, newsrooms are shifting tones when it comes to reporting on the pandemic. With a wide range of Covid-related topics to cover, there’s a lot of angles for media outlets to juggle, including deaths, hospitalizations,…
Elon Musk asks Twitter for help coming up with SNL sketch ideas
Elon Musk is calling on Twitter to help him prepare to host Saturday Night Live. The Tesla CEO tweeted, “Throwing out some skit ideas for SNL. What should I do?” The billionaire suggested “Baby Shark & Shark Tank merge to form Baby Shark Tank,” “Woke James Bond,” and “Irony Man — defeats villains using the…
Disneyland reopens after being closed for more than a year
Disneyland reopened Friday after being closed for more than a year, but many health safety protocols will continue to be enforced. The theme park in Anaheim, California closed on March 14, 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic and announced its plan to reopen in March 2021. The park’s capacity will be significantly limited to comply…
Has Wall Street missed the boat on cryptocurrencies?
Big banks have changed their attitude toward cryptocurrencies in recent years, going from dismissive to cautiously interested. But Wall Street still isn’t fully embracing digital currencies. Cryptos are no longer condemned as a bizarre alternative investment, and even central banks around the world are considering issuing digital currencies. Bitcoin is trading at more than $50,000…
Hilton launches a dog menu for pets who helped their owners through the pandemic
Many people forced into isolation during the Covid-19 pandemic credit their pets for keeping them sane through the lockdown. Hilton wants to reward those furry friends with some fine dining. Starting May 17, 32 of Hilton’s pet-friendly hotels in the United Kingdom and Ireland will offer the hotel chain’s new dog menu, Bone Appétit, according…
Washington Post, New York Times, and NBC News retract reports on Giuliani
The Washington Post, The New York Times, and NBC News on Saturday issued significant corrections, retracting earlier reporting that said Rudy Giuliani had been directly warned by the FBI that he was the target of a Russian disinformation campaign. The stories came out after Giuliani’s office and residence were raided by the FBI on Thursday.…
Buffett’s Berkshire pressured to be more environmentally and socially responsible
Warren Buffett defended the decision by Berkshire Hathaway to not put out reports from its many subsidiaries about how the company is addressing the risks of climate change. Buffett claimed at the company’s annual shareholder meeting in Los Angeles Saturday that Berkshire Hathaway already has a good track record for investing in renewable energy through…
Mambacita apparel line honoring Kobe Bryant’s late daughter sells out in less than a day
Kobe Bryant’s late daughter Gianna’s new Mambacita apparel line went on sale Saturday on what would have been the teen basketball star’s 15th birthday. The clothing sold out by early afternoon, according to a representative of Kobe Bryant’s estate team. Vanessa Bryant, his widow, gave her Instagram followers a sneak peak of the new tie…
Move over, bitcoin. Ethereum is at an all-time high
Bitcoin prices continued their rebound Monday, rising about 4% to nearly $59,000. But the world’s largest cryptocurrency has been overshadowed lately by its younger sibling, Ethereum. Ethereum, or ether for short, hit a new record high Monday of about $3,200. Ether prices have more than quadrupled in 2021, soaring 325%. Bitcoin has had a great…
The Fortune 500 now has two Black women CEOs. That’s actually an improvement
Thasunda Brown Duckett officially took the helm as the new CEO of TIAA on Saturday, becoming the fourth Black woman ever to head a Fortune 500 company. Her new position is noteworthy for a number of reasons. Duckett and Walgreens’ new CEO Rosalind Brewer, who left Starbucks in March, are the only two Black women…
Chlorine shortage may be bad news for pools this summer
Summer is around the corner, but anyone who is looking forward to a refreshing dip in the pool to cool off may be in for a big “shock.” A chlorine shortage may make it more difficult for pool owners to buy the sanitizing tabs. Chlorine supplies are running low due to a fire at a…
Everyone is worried the economy is ‘overheating’. But what does that actually mean?
The economy is on the path to recovery but it’s still far from repaired. Yet investors and economists are already worried it might be growing too fast. Here’s what experts actually mean when they talk about the “overheating” economy. Just over a year ago, the US economy faced its worst downturn on record as businesses…
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway rebounds from pandemic with $11.7 billion profit
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway returned to profitability in the first quarter of this year after reporting a nearly $50 billion loss during the first quarter of 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Berkshire Hathaway, a sprawling conglomerate that owns companies ranging from the Geico insurance giant and Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad to well-known consumer…
Eli Broad, LA philanthropist for the arts and education, dies at 87
Eli Broad, an entrepreneur and businessman known for creating two billion-dollar businesses and establishing the iconic Broad Museum in Los Angeles, has died at the age of 87, the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation said Friday. “As a businessman, Eli saw around corners, as a philanthropist he saw the problems in the world and tried…
India doesn’t want to shut down its economy again. It may get crushed anyway
India’s government locked down the country last year to avoid an out-of-control Covid-19 outbreak that so many of the world’s countries had endured. The plan was largely successful, but it crippled India’s economy in the process. Now India is facing its own devastating Covid-19 crisis, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is reluctant to put his…
Dining out is back, as America gets vaccinated
Across the country, Americans are getting vaccinated. States and cities are loosening pandemic-related restrictions. And people are heading back to restaurants. According to OpenTable, which has been keeping tabs on the industry using data from the restaurants that employ its reservations platform, the percentage of seated customers at US restaurants open for reservations is hovering…
Peloton is rolling out fans’ most-requested features
Peloton has found its polish slightly fading this year after a prosperous 2020 that catapulted the fitness company into a new stratosphere of popularity. This weekend, it’s engaging in some self-care to reinvigorate itself. It’s bringing its fervent fans together — virtually, of course -— for Homecoming, a free three-day event that can best be…
Walmart sets up vaccine clinics for Flipkart workers as India grapples with Covid crisis
Walmart is setting up vaccination clinics for more than 200,000 of its workers and their families in India, as the country grapples with a devastating second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The world’s biggest retailer is also leveraging its global supply chain to procure urgently needed oxygen equipment. Although Walmart does not operate any stores…
Americans’ incomes zoomed higher at record speed in March
The economic recovery is underway and while there’s still plenty of work to be done, new data on Americans’ incomes shows the government’s spending efforts are bearing fruit. American wallets got a big cash injection in March as personal incomes rose 21.1%, or $4.2 trillion, marking the largest monthly increase on record, the Bureau of…
Europe’s recession deepened in the first quarter but the recovery is underway
Europe fell deeper into recession in the first three months of the year, but the region’s economy is already turning a corner and looks set to bounce back as coronavirus restrictions ease. EU GDP contracted by 0.4% between January and March, compared with the previous quarter, statistics agency Eurostat said in a statement on Friday.…
People are ready to have sex again: Condom sales are surging
Condom sales have been in a slump during the pandemic as people sheltered at home and put their sex life on hold. But now, as more Americans are getting vaccinated and Covid-19 safety restrictions are loosening, condom makers are no longer having trouble getting their sales up. Male condom sales in the United States increased…
These TikTok stars built a VC firm backed by Anthony Scaramucci and the Winklevoss twins
Social media influencers have enormous power to set trends, create overnight sensations and broadly define what’s cool. Josh Richards, a 19-year-old determined to be the world’s first influencer billionaire, isn’t shy about flexing that clout. Unsatisfied with simply promoting brands on social media, Richards is now focused on buying stakes in startups — and then…
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