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Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Wednesday, October 6, 2021:
FACEBOOK UNDER FIRE
Mark Zuckerberg is hitting back at claims made by the Facebook whistleblower that the social-media giant prioritizes profits over the health of its billions of users and regularly promotes hateful content intended to keep those users hooked. Frances Haugen testified in front of Congress and laid the blame for what she called “choices that go against the common good” directly at the feet of Zuckerberg. He responded in a letter to employees, saying Haugen’s claims “just aren’t true” and “don’t make any sense.” THE VERGE
COVID RAPID TESTS
Rapid at-home Covid tests should become much easier to find soon, now that the FDA has authorized a new antigen testing kit that it says will double U.S. capacity in the coming weeks. The test from ACON Labs is a nasal swab that gives results in 15 minutes. It’s not as sensitive as the PCR tests, but it’s cheaper and easier to do. Meanwhile, one of the current at-home testing kits made by the Australian company Ellume is being recalled over concerns it’s throwing off too many false positives. NY TIMES
TRILLION DOLLAR COIN
Could the U.S. Treasury mint a $1 trillion coin to avoid a federal debt default if Congress doesn’t raise the debt ceiling in time? The idea has been gaining traction in some policy circles as a way to get around the possibility of a catastrophic default. In theory, the U.S. Mint could strike a single platinum coin, give it a $1 trillion value, and immediately deposit it into the Fed. The government would then have enough money to pay its bills without needing Congress. The White House has ruled out the idea and the Treasury secretary has called it a “gimmick,” but the fact that they’ve even weighed in shows that the #MintTheCoin movement has entered the mainstream: HOW IT WOULD WORK
TAIWAN FLYBYS
China’s air force has been flying a record number of jets over Taiwan in the last several days ahead of the island’s national day celebrations this weekend. Beijing’s increasingly aggressive posture toward Taiwan, which considers itself a sovereign nation, is raising geopolitical concerns that China could be preparing a military confrontation. The White House has warned China over its provocations, and Taiwan’s president says there would be “catastrophic” consequences if China were to invade. FOREIGN AFFAIRS
NO VAX, CAN'T TRAVEL
JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the U.S., is banning business travel and in-person meetings for unvaccinated corporate employees effective immediately. Starting next year, unvaccinated employees will also have to pay for the Covid tests they will be required to regularly take, in the form of payroll deductions. BLOOMBERG
KELLOGG'S STRIKE
Workers at all of Kellogg’s U.S. cereal plants have gone on strike, halting production of Frosted Flakes, Rice Krispies and other brands indefinitely. The union is at an impasse with the company over pay and benefits and says its members have had to put in 12-hour days, 7 days a week during the pandemic. Workers at Frito-Lay and Nabisco also recently went on strike over similar issues, as well as protesting plans to move some production to Mexico. NPR
WIN OR GO HOME
The Red Sox put an end to the Yankees’ season in a 6-2 thumping at Fenway to take the American League Wild Card game. Boston, which has now eliminated New York in each of their last three postseason meets, will go on to play red-hot Tampa Bay in the division series. The Dodgers and Cardinals play tonight for the National League Wild Card. ESPN
ADELE IS BACK
Adele is releasing her first single in six years next week. A brief snippet of the song, titled Easy on Me, features some signature piano chords over a black-and-white video of the singer driving. Adele also recently updated her website and social accounts to match mysterious billboards spotted in cities around the world last weekend promoting the number ‘30.’ Fans suspect that’ll be the title of her highly anticipated forthcoming album, though its existence and release date have not been confirmed: WATCH THE TEASER
SPOTTED...PREQUELS & REVIVALS...
…the first teaser for the Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon, currently in production and set for release sometime next year: WATCH
...Sarah Jessica Parker, announcing that the Sex and the City revival series, And Just Like That, will premiere on HBO Max in December: WATCH
LEFTOVERS: MOB MENTALITY
Senior mob bosses are reportedly frustrated with younger mobsters, saying their incompetence is creating organizational problems and putting high-level mafioso at risk. That was put on display last month when Andrew Russo, an 87-year-old alleged boss of New York’s Colombo crime family, was arrested for extortion. A longtime FBI mob investigator says Russo got pinched because he didn’t feel comfortable delegating day-to-day management to the millennials in the family business. According to court records, older mobsters complain the younger wise guys are “softer, dumber and not as loyal as mobsters of the past. Plus they’re always texting.” WSJ
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