Kristen Scholer, Hive editor Jon Kelly, and the VF Hive panel discuss the top five stories of the week in technology, politics in business. Nick Bilton reports on his story about Donald Trump's threats to devalue the social media platforms that gave him his rise.
Nick also weighs in on early Facebook executive Chamath Palihapitiya's assertion that social media is tearing society apart. Scholer, Kelly and Bilton discuss whether that's true, and whether Facebook and Twitter will reach an inflection point.
Hive panelist Bess Levin talks about the latest trouble in Trumpland, with commerce secretary Wilbur Ross being accused of insider trading. Abigail Tracy reports on her story about Nikki Haley's potential political ambitions in 2020.
T.A. Frank winds up the Hive 5 with his analysis of the recent Senate Special Election in Alabama. Frank and the panel discuss Roy Moore's defeat and unlikely victory for Democrat Doug Jones. They cover the potential for future Democratic victories in Alabama, as well as Charles Barkley's message to the state prior to the election.
David Levine, elections integrity fellow with Alliance for Securing Democracy, joins Cheddar News to discuss Politico's bombshell finding revealing the RNC's plan to contest the elections.
A survey by the BMO Real Financial Progress Index found that 25 percent of Americans are pulling back on retirement contributions to offset the cost of inflation. This comes as market volatility reduced retirement savings with the S&P 500 shedding more than 12 percent this year alone.
As abortion rights take center stage in courts around the country, so do discussions about reproductive health. Signs and social media posts say things like "protect women's rights" and "her body, her choice," leaving others who need and receive abortions completely out of the picture. The potential end to Roe v. Wade would impact far more people and facilities than you may think. Cheddar News' Baker Machado breaks it all down.
Arkansas is planning to reshape itself by putting a strong emphasis on technology through computer science in the classroom. Governor Asa Hutchinson joined Cheddar News Buffa to discuss the state's efforts to promote itself as a future tech hub. “It gives young people such a huge opportunity for success," he noted. The term-limited governor also touched on the issue of gun ownership, offering up the idea of possibly raising the age limit to obtain rifles like the AR-15 to 21 instead of 18 as it currently stands.
The dating app Bumble has sponsored bills and pushed lawmakers to criminalize the online practice of sending unsolicited nudes or “cyberflashing." Payton Iheme, Bumble's head of public policy for the Americas, joined Cheddar News to discuss why the app was going after the harassing behavior beyond its own platform. "Now, while we went to work internally in the company, and we created something called private detector to automatically blur those images so the user can decide if they want to see them, there's nothing for the rest of the internet," she said. "And so that's why we went to work with these laws."
Constituent service platform Indigov recently raised $25 million in a Series B funding round. Indigov bills itself as a constituent relationship management tool that helps elected officials improve the way they organize, respond to, and engage those they serve. The startup's services are being used by federal, state, and local governments across the country, including the U.S. House of Representatives. Alex Kouts, founder & CEO of Indigov, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
