Jerry Jones and his storied football franchise, the Dallas Cowboys, are giving to the needy through the Salvation Army over the holidays, and hoping the team gets going in its traditional Thanksgiving Day game.
"Well it's called a 'W,' we want to win the football game," Jones said to Cheddar about the holiday contest with a laugh. "We're sitting in the end zone here at AT&T Stadium, and those red kettles really are going to be just a few feet away. And we've been practicing on it, and when we score, we want those guys over in that kettle."
The iconic red kettles, smaller than the ones that will be featured in Thursday's game, are utilized by the Salvation Army, the Christian church and charitable organization, to collect donations. They can often be seen accompanied by bell-ringing volunteers in public spaces from early November through Christmas Eve.
"I think of the most efficient way to take a dollar and have it immediately go to shoes for somebody that has none, go to food when they don't have anything to eat," Jones said. "The Salvation Army is how to do that through the red kettle, right there without any in-between. It is the efficiency which is really something you look at with football as well."
The red kettle received a windfall gift from what was, at first, a negative incident for the NFL team, when superstar running back Ezekiel Elliott held out for a bigger contract. Owner Jerry Jones dismissed the player with the remark "Zeke Who?" at the time during the acrimonious dispute.
"In 2016 we watched Zeke jump into the kettle and just a few months when we re-signed Zeke ... and we held up 'Zeke Who?' t-shirts, we sold all of those and the $150,000 that was raised, all of it went to the Salvation Army," said Charlotte Jones Anderson, executive vice president and chief brand officer for the Dallas Cowboys. "We hope to see what he does tomorrow."
The 8-3 Buffalo Bills will be taking on the 6-5 Cowboys at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday.
The EU relaxed its Covid travel restrictions for vaccinated individuals among the union's 27 member states, doing away with testing or quarantine requirements for travelers. This comes soon after the World Health Organization said the omicron variant could help make the pandemic more manageable. The new rules take effect February 1st. Bryce Conway, Founder, 10xTravel joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss.
If you're in China you may have noticed that the 1999 film "Fight Club" which features Brad Pitt has somehow got itself a new ending. In the new ending on the streaming service Tencent, the narrator is killed and the explosions are replaced with a black screen saying "the police arrested criminals".It's unclear as to exactly why the changes were made. However, it is the latest example of China playing by its own rules when it comes to entertainment and attempting to control everything its citizens watch. Media Reporter at Axios, Sarah Fisher, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Some of Tiktok's biggest stars have a message for the platform: It is time to pay up! As the platform has skyrocketed in popularity, many content creators have been given the opportunity to garner millions of fans and even sometimes billions of views. In 2020, the company launched a creator fund in order to incentivize the platform's users. However, while the group of creators has grown larger, the pool of money has remained the same, and creators are fed up, they claim as Tiktok becomes more successful. Senior Editor at Engadget, Karissa Bell, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
In 2021, QAnon, the community which traffics in conspiracy theories saw a rapid growth in its numbers. As a result of vaccine rollouts, a number of conspiracies surrounding them also began to circulate which then led to the rise of "Anti-Vaxxers". As a result, the QAnon and anti-vax communities have become increasingly intertwined and the results could be costing lives. Senior Researcher at Media Matters Alex Kaplan, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Neil Young gave the streaming service Spotify an ultimatum demanding that his music be removed if the Joe Rogan experience remained on the platform. Joe Rogan's platform has been questioned a number of times as a result of some of his takes on covid treatment strategies and at times downright misinformation. Ultimately, Spotify decided to stick with Joe Rogan's podcast. The Director for the Business and Entertainment Program at American University, John Simson, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Nutritional supplement beverage company Athletic Greens has achieved unicorn status. The company announced a new $115 million funding round, bringing its valuation to $1.2 billion. The company's flagship product AG1 combines 75 different vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients into one daily serving. Athletic Greens says it is poised to reach the millions of consumers who are currently driving the health and wellness market's exponential growth. Athletic Greens founder and CEO Chris Ashenden joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Michael Mitchell, senior director of brand at Mailchimp, joins Cheddar News to discuss the launch of Bloom Season and what every BIPOC entrepreneur needs to know to succeed.
Janet Jackson shared that she had a conversation with Justin Timberlake who had asked her if he should make a statement during the scandal over her Super Bowl XXXVIII wardrobe malfunction, in her new self-titled Lifetime documentary. The musical icon said that she viewed the incident as an accident and remains "good friends" with Justin Timberlake.
