Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Tuesday, November 17, 2020:
COVID-19: A NEW HOPE
A second coronavirus vaccine is showing extremely positive results in trials. Moderna, which is part of the White House’s Operation Warp Speed, reported that its experimental mRNA vaccine is 94.5 percent effective in stopping COVID-19. Importantly, the results noted that the vaccine is showing to be effective in elderly and minority patients, the groups at highest risk. That follows the news last week that Pfizer’s vaccine, which uses similar technology, is over 90 percent effective. The big difference between the two is that Moderna’s drug doesn’t need to be stored at ultra-low temperatures, so the logistics of distributing it will be less challenging. STAT
PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION
President Trump was reportedly talked out of launching a military strike on Iran last week in response to reports that the country had increased its stockpile of uranium. The vice president, secretary of state, and others all advised the president against an attack that could have escalated into a broader conflict in the last weeks of his term. Meanwhile, President-elect Biden took on a sharper tone, warning that the continued delays in the transition process risk harming the government’s pandemic response. Georgia Sec. of State Brad Raffensperger says he has been pressured by fellow Republicans, including Sen. Lindsey Graham, to find ways to exclude legally cast ballots in that state’s recount. WASH POST
MONSTER HURRICANE
Hurricane Iota made landfall along the coast of Nicaragua overnight, just shy of Cat. 5 status. Iota is pummeling an area still recovering from Eta’s landfall two weeks ago. Forecasters are warning that parts of Central America could see the worst flooding in 1,000 years and the possibility of a catastrophic humanitarian disaster. Iota is the second most-intense Atlantic hurricane on record in the month of November, and the first of 2020 to have reached Category 5 intensity. ACCUWEATHER
DOW 30,000?
Powered by the positive vaccine news from Moderna, stocks rocketed to new highs to start the last full trading week before the holiday season. The Dow is now just 50 points from hitting the 30,000 milestone. The stocks that have been fueling this most recent rally are mostly companies that have been pummeled by the pandemic: Carnival Cruise, Hilton Hotels and United Airlines, among them. CHEDDAR
AIRBNB IPO
Airbnb has filed to go public by the end of the year in a $1 billion IPO. The slimmed-down company managed to turn a profit last quarter after cutting costs, despite the headwinds that the hospitality industry has been facing all year -- and despite Airbnb's business model being all but written off in the early days of the pandemic. Airbnb plans to list on the Nasdaq sometime next month under the ticker ABNB. AXIOS
ZOOM THANKSGIVING
If you’re not able to make it home for Thanksgiving this year, Zoom is making it easier to have a virtual turkey dinner with your family or friends. The video-conferencing service will lift its 40-minute cap on free calls from midnight ET next Thursday until 6 am Friday. All video calls for those 30 hours will be free, no matter how long they go. CNET
MARCH MADNESS BUBBLE
There will be March Madness next year, come hell or high water. The NCAA has announced that the Division 1 college basketball tournament may be played entirely in Indianapolis next March, ideally at a single site. The status of the women’s tournament is still TBD. The college basketball regular season starts Nov. 25. INDY STAR
TAYLOR SWIFT MASTERS
The rights to Taylor Swift’s first six albums have been sold by her former manager, Scooter Braun, to a private equity firm for a reported $300 million. Swift, who remains in a long-running feud with Braun over the recordings, wrote on social media that this is the second time her music catalogue has been sold without her knowledge. She is free to re-record songs from her first five albums as of this month and has said she plans to do so in order to decrease the value of the original masters. VARIETY
SPOTTED...
...Baby Yoda, floating around the Crew Dragon capsule as it rocketed toward the ISS. The astronauts used the plush toy as their “zero G indicator” -- a low-tech way of telling when they’ve left Earth’s orbit: SEE IT
...one big rock on the finger of Gwen Stefani during her appearance at the People’s Choice Awards. Fiancé Blake Shelton popped the question last month: SEE IT
LEFTOVERS: OUTDOOR DINING RENAISSANCE
One of the biggest success stories of the pandemic has been the explosion of outdoor dining options in cities and towns across the U.S. Some restaurants have gone above and beyond, turning their patios/curbsides/parking lots into full-blown, open-air paradises. Here’s some of the best-designed al fresco dining experiences in America: ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST
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