"Team Bumble" is about to become Fortnite's first all-female pro team.
Gen.G is teaming up with Bumble, the women-first social and dating app, to bring the team together. The initial roster of "Gen.G Empowered by Bumble" (the team's official name) will include current members of the esport organization's Fortnite roster, including Kristen "KittyPlays" Valnicek, Madison "maddiesuun" Mann, Tina "TINARAES" Perez, Carlee "Carlee" Gress, and Hannah "Hannah" Reyes.
Bumble has also announced an individual partnership with Valnicek, who was hired as Gen.G's head of new gaming initiatives in October. Valnicek boasts a community of over 600,000 subscribers on YouTube and organizes her own network of women gamers and streamers, #TeamKitty.
This announcement came just weeks after the conclusion of the first-ever Fortnite World Cup. While the World Cup featured women in its Creative Cup and Pro-Am competition, not a single woman qualified for the 200 available spots in Solos and Duos competition, sparking a conversation about the question of gender equality in esports.
Gen.G CEO Chris Park said that they intend for their new partnership with Bumble to "strengthen platforms for women" and create "more inclusive, supportive environments in which all passionate esports athletes can compete and connect."
In addition to their partnership with Gen.G, Bumble has further ventured into the gaming sphere by adding a "gaming" badge for subscribers on the app's premium service, Bumble BFF. Users will be able to add the badge to their profiles and use it to filter matches. Gen.G and Bumble will also be co-developing merchandise for both Team Bumble and other Gen.G teams.
Gen.G currently fields rosters in "Apex Legends", "PUBG", "League of Legends", "Clash Royale", "Call of Duty: Black Ops 4", and Blizzard's Overwatch League, where the team competes as the Seoul Dynasty.
Bitcoin has officially entered bear market territory. The cryptocurrency is down 20% from an all-time high of nearly $69,000 dollars, which it hit earlier this month. Experts mark the new potentially vaccine-resistant coronavirus variant as the reason for the dip. Patrick McConlogue, CEO of Overlin, joins Cheddar News to discuss.
Carlo and Baker cover the latest developments with the Omicron variant, and break down what we know and what we still don't. Plus, a relatively tame Black Friday, and more.
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For the first time in the National Dog Show's 20-year-history on NBC, a canine was crowned Best in Show for the second year in a row. Claire, a Scottish deerhound, was the repeat winner, and David Frei, expert analyst and host of the National Dog Show Presented by Purina, joined Cheddar to discuss the historic victory. "It's never happened in the 20 years that we've done this show," he said. "She looks great right now. She's at the top of her game, she's the number three show dog in the country, and has become the top winning Scottish deerhound of all time, breaking her grandmother's record."
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From supply chain shortages to high food costs, food banks are scrambling to serve their communities this Thanksgiving. According to Feeding America, while demand from the beginning of the pandemic has gone down, one in eight people in the U.S. may experience food insecurity this year. Anna McGovern, chief supply chain officer with Food Bank for New York City, joins Cheddar News to discuss the impact of inflation and supply chain issues.
The biggest shopping day of the year is approaching - Black Friday - and the following week is known as Cyber Week, the biggest time of the year for online shopping. But for many companies and consumers, the holiday shopping season is already underway. Retailers have been getting creative in their attempts to lure customers amid ongoing supply chain issues, inflation, and the pandemic that could impact sales. Lionesque Group CEO and founder Melissa Gonzalez joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
