Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Thursday, July 16, 2020:
COVID-19: LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: With caseloads continuing to rise, more school districts say they can’t safely bring students back in person, and will begin the school year online. Houston and San Francisco are the latest cities to say they’ll start virtually. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt has tested positive, the first governor known to contract the virus. Meanwhile, Dr. Fauci is pushing back after White House officials have moved to undermine him, urging them to “stop this nonsense” and get on the same page about fighting the virus. THE ATLANTIC
POLL-A-PALOOZA: President Trump’s approval numbers keep getting worse, according to the latest batch of national polling. Joe Biden now leads Trump by 15 points, 52-37, in the new Quinnipiac poll -- his largest national lead yet. For the first time in that poll, the president is now underwater on the question of his handling of the economy. The new NBC/WSJ poll has Biden up 11. Other battleground state polls show Biden leading in must-win states like Wisconsin and Florida; Biden and Trump are even neck-and-neck in Texas, with 110 days to go. THE HILL
TWITTER HACK: The Twitter accounts of Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Kanye West, Joe Biden, Barack Obama and other high-profile figures were taken over in a major coordinated hack that threw the service into chaos for hours. Twitter says it believes the accounts were compromised from within, meaning that a hacker or group of hackers got into the accounts of Twitter employees who had access to the platform’s internal admin systems, rather than hacking the individual accounts. That would be one of the biggest security failures in social media history. THE VERGE
We got hacked too. Our follower is very upset.
REPARATIONS: A city in North Carolina has approved reparations for its Black residents. Asheville, N.C. has formally apologized for its participation in slavery, and to make amends it will fund social programs to increase homeownership and business opportunities for Black people, who make up about 10 percent of the city’s population. It will not provide direct cash payments, which is considered the hallmark of a reparations program. CITIZEN-TIMES
PLUMMETING FERTILITY RATE: Researchers are raising alarm about the drop in the global fertility rate. The number of babies being born is approaching 2.1 per woman, the level at which experts say the size of the population starts declining. These trends predate the pandemic and reflect more women around the world having access to contraception, education and work. BBC
Anyone who still thinks there’s gonna be a “covid baby bump” doesn’t already have kids.
NO MASK, NO SERVICE: Walmart, the world’s largest brick-and-mortar retailer, as well as Sam’s Club, will begin requiring masks at all stores nationwide as of Monday. Kroger will follow, instituting a mask mandate next Wednesday. Starbucks and Best Buy have also made face coverings mandatory in stores, and Costco’s had the rule in place since May. CNN
That means you, Karen.
ZOOM IN A BOX: Zoom has announced its first piece of hardware: a 27-inch touchscreen device that comes preinstalled with Zoom’s video conferencing software, high-end microphones and three wide-angle cameras. Cost: $600. The company has been on fire since the pandemic began; this is an effort to make an “out-of-the-box” product for people who use the service a lot but don’t want to fuss with it. TECHCRUNCH
That’s some Apple pricing right there.
NBA BUBBLE UPDATE: The NBA “bubble” in Florida is going about as well can be expected. Several players have been forced to re-quarantine after they got caught for infractions like leaving to pick up food; several others, including Russell Westbrook, have tested positive and been forced to leave entirely. There’s now an anonymous tip line for players and team personnel to report violations -- so far it’s been used by someone to complain about Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler dribbling in his room. ESPN
One thing's for sure, no one will be snitching on any Knicks players, because they aren't there...because they suck.
NICK CANNON FIRING: Nick Cannon is hitting back at ViacomCBS after the media conglomerate fired him over anti-Semitic remarks he made on a podcast. Cannon apologized on Facebook to “my Jewish Brothers and Sisters” but accused Viacom of underpaying Black talent for years, and said he demanded ownership of the show Wild ‘N Out, which he helped create. NPR
Those Mariah Carey alimony checks about to come in handy.
LEFTOVERS: UP IN THE SKY: There’s a pretty good chance to see a rare comet flyby this week if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere. Comet Neowise is trucking through the solar system and will come within about 60 million miles of Earth in a week. These next few days will be the best chance to spot her: About an hour after sunset, keep your gaze on the northeast horizon; the further away from bright lights, the better. If you miss it, Neowise will be visible again in a mere 6,800 years. SPACE.COM
Even though Disney and 21st Century Fox reached an agreement for a sale of many of Fox's assets, Rupert Murdoch is looking elsewhere. Rich Greenfield, media and tech analyst for BTIG, says Murdoch is open to other offers, including one from Comcast. Fox shareholders are set to vote on the $52.4 billion merger next month.
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett and JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon want to change the way companies report earnings. They say the common practice of issuing guidance in a quarterly earnings report forces companies to focus on short-term goals rather than long-term ones.
Honolulu leaders approved a measure on Wednesday that would limit how much ride-sharing companies such as Uber and Lyft can charge customers during peak times. Uber pushed back, saying it would impose "outdated taxi-style requirements" on the industry. Honolulu lawyers will review the measure before it goes to the mayor, who then has 10 days to decide what to do.
The Rosé Mansion is an interactive experience, which just popped up in New York for the summer. It brings together a museum and "a really cool wine bar," says co-founder Tyler Balliet.
The movie adaptation of the international bestseller "Crazy Rich Asians" will likely appeal to people who see themselves in the characters, and those who don't, says the author Kevin Kwan.
Facebook is facing more backlash after a New York Times report revealed the social media company shared user data with at least 60 device makers. It turns out Facebook shared information with four Chinese firms, including Huawei. The Chinese company Huawei is the third largest smartphone maker in the world and has also faced intense scrutiny from U.S. government officials.
Tesla shareholders voted to keep Elon Musk on as chairman of the electric carmaker. At the annual shareholder meeting, Musk said the company is on track to deliver 5,000 Model 3 vehicles per week by the end of this month. Tesla will also open a new gigafactory in Shanghai, its first outside of the U.S.
And we talk to WNBA legend and Olympic gold medalist Lisa Leslie. She stars in the new film 'Uncle Drew' alongside Kyrie Irving, Chris Webber, Shaq, and other comedy and basketball greats. Leslie also weighs in on the NFL kneeling controversy.
Some tips from the CEO and founder of the wellness company Thrive Global: blink more, take a walking meeting outside, and get up every 20 minutes.
The Wu-Tang Clan, celebrating the 25th anniversary of its debut album, examines the state of hip hop and the way streaming has changed the music business with Cheddar's Hope King.
The beauty pageant announced on Tuesday that it will get rid of the controversial swimsuit competition, as it seeks to find its footing in the era of the #MeToo movement. "As society has evolved, so has Miss America," says reigning winner Cara Mund. The organization's new chairwoman Gretchen Carlson said on ABC that the competition will focus on women's talent and intelligence.
Apple is introducing new tools to fight tech addiction. At the company's annual developer conference, Apple unveiled a new feature called 'Digital Health' that allows users to track how much time they spend on their phones and on certain apps. Tim Cook and other Apple executives also took some not-so-subtle jabs at Facebook during the keynote address, calling out the social media company for its data practices.
Starbucks founder and executive chairman Howard Schultz is leaving the company after nearly 40 years. He helped grow Starbucks into an international brand with around 28,000 locations worldwide. Many speculate that Schultz is considering a presidential run in the coming years.
And Hope King sits down with stand-up comedian Nikki Glaser at Comedy Central's Clusterfest. Glaser talks the challenges of being a woman in comedy and how President Trump has changed the industry.
Actress and activist Alyssa Milano joined forces Monday with Rep. Carolyn Maloney, a Democrat from New York, to push the Equal Rights Amendment. The Constitutional guarantee of women's rights was passed by Congress in 1972, but still needs to be ratified by states to become the law of the land.
Facebook is under fire again for its privacy practices after reports that it gave device makers like Apple, Amazon, and Samsung access to user data. The New York Times claims that over the past 10 years, the social media site struck deals with at least 60 companies for user information. This latest report is just another setback for Facebook as it tries to repair its reputation following the Cambridge Analytica data scandal.
Apple's developer conference, or WWDC, kicks off today in San Jose, California. This year, the tech giant is focusing on software developments rather than new hardware. Cheddar's Hope King reports live from the conference about what we can expect ahead of the keynote speech.
The 2018 World Cup is just days away. We're joined by Tab Ramos, soccer legend, head coach for the U.S. Men's National U-20 team, and World Cup analyst for Telemundo Deportes, to talk about the big event.
