Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Thursday, March 25, 2021:
COVID-19: LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
AstraZeneca released updated results from its vaccine trials, showing the shot to be slightly less effective at preventing symptomatic cases -- 76 percent versus the earlier 79 percent -- but actually more effective than previously known in people over 65. Astra maintains that the vaccine is 100 percent effective against hospitalization or death. In Europe, EU heads of state are meeting today to try to figure out how to increase vaccine supply on a continent that is falling seriously behind in inoculations. German Chancellor Angela Merkel reversed plans for an Easter weekend lockdown after growing anger over her approach to the pandemic. YAHOO
NEW CUOMO BOMBSHELL
In the early days of the pandemic, N.Y. Gov. Andrew Cuomo reportedly arranged for his family members to get special access to COVID testing -- back when those tests were scarce -- including sending doctors to test his family and then rush the tests back to a state lab for immediate processing. Cuomo’s brother Chris, of CNN, was said to be among those given priority to state testing resources last March when he was living in the Hamptons. New York law prohibits officials from using their positions to obtain “privileges or exemptions” for themselves or others. WASH POST
VP TO RUN POINT ON BORDER
President Biden has appointed Vice President Harris to lead the administration’s efforts to stem the tide of migrants at the southern border. This is Harris’ first major policy assignment and will involve her working with countries in Central America to address the root cause of the region’s migration problems. The president holds his first solo press conference today, where he is expected to face questions about immigration, among other things. GUARDIAN
VA REPEALS DEATH PENALTY
Virginia has abolished the death penalty, the 23rd state and first Southern state to ban capital punishment. Gov. Ralph Northam signed the bill into law after the Democrat-controlled state legislature passed it last month. Virginia is second only to Texas in how many executions have been carried out since the Supreme Court allowed the death penalty to resume in 1976. TIMES DISPATCH
MARITIME PILE-UP
The Suez Canal remains blocked, more than 24 hours after a gigantic container ship managed to get itself wedged across the entire width of the canal, causing a maritime traffic jam of epic proportions. Half a dozen tugboats and at least one backhoe are trying to refloat the Ever Given, but the ship has not yet budged. There are more than 150 other ships backed up on either side of the canal, and the jam may start to affect everything from oil and gas prices to “basically anything you see in stores,” according to one shipping expert. LIVE UPDATES
TECH LIABILITY
The CEOs of Facebook, Twitter and Google will testify in front of Congress once again today. This time, the topic is misinformation and the roles each platform plays in its spread. The controversial tech liability shield known as Section 230 is expected to be the centerpiece of the hearing. Lawmakers are in general agreement that 230 needs an overhaul, but they differ on why. Dems say it lets internet companies off the hook when dangerous info spreads; Republicans say it acts as cover for blocking conservative viewpoints. CHEDDAR
CURSED OLYMPICS
The Tokyo Olympics are less than four months away and things are not off to a promising start. One of the first runners in the torch relay that kicked off today dropped out at the last minute due to “health reasons,” while Japan’s prime minister didn’t even attend, citing “scheduling conflicts.” Last week, the organizing committee barred international spectators from the games; before that, its president resigned after saying that women talk too much. And there are questions about whether to hold these Olympics at all. One reason they’re going forward: the host city is already $3 billion in the hole just from the changes it had to make after delaying the events a full year. NBC NEWS
LENO APOLOGY
Jay Leno has apologized for making jokes about Asians over his decades-long career as a late-night TV host. Leno says he thought the jokes were “harmless” at the time but also “in my heart I knew it was wrong.” Leno’s apology comes after a years-long campaign by the Media Action Network for Asian Americans activist group, which has accepted it. VARIETY
SPOTTED...
…a batch of 60 SpaceX Starlink internet satellites, successfully launched into orbit on the 15-year anniversary of SpaceX’s first rocket launch: WATCH
...hundreds of Boulder, Colo. residents, lining the streets to salute the hearse carrying the body of fallen Officer Eric Talley, who was killed responding to the supermarket shooting: SEE PICS
...Prince Harry, in a motivational Instagram post urging people to cope with “whatever life throws at them.” It’s his first statement since he was appointed “chief impact officer” at the mental health startup BetterUp: SEE IT
LEFTOVERS: PAY IT FORWARD
An elderly Chinese woman who was sucker punched by a white man -- and then immediately hit him back with a wooden board -- is not keeping the nearly $1,000,000 that was donated to her on GoFundMe to cover her medical expenses. Xiao Zhen Xie was attacked in San Francisco last week in an incident that went viral. Her assailant also assaulted a Vietnamese man and was apprehended by a security guard after Xie smacked him in the face. Her family says she insists that the money go to the Asian-American community to fight racism. PEOPLE
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