Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Wednesday, August 5, 2020:

BEIRUT BLAST

THE LATEST: Two massive explosions in quick succession rocked Beirut, killing at least 100 and wounding thousands in a country already dealing with a coronavirus outbreak, a collapsing economy and political crisis. Officials say the blasts happened at a warehouse holding 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate, a highly explosive material used in fertilizer and bombs, which had been seized from a cargo ship in 2014 and had been stored at the port ever since. BBC

THE VIDEOS: Videos posted to social media showed a large fireball, followed by a much larger explosion and shock wave that ripped through the city, blowing out windows and overturning cars for miles. Videos taken in the aftermath showed the economically critical Port of Beirut, where the blast took place, essentially leveled and the popular downtown waterfront neighborhood all but destroyed. WATCH

ISAIAS' AFTERMATH: More than 3.5 million people in the U.S. are without power this morning after Tropical Storm Isaias left a wide swath of damage across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. One million of those outages are in New Jersey, where a 109 mph wind gust was recorded off the coast of Long Beach Island. At least six people were killed across several states. The storm is now a post-tropical cyclone spinning out over Canada. OUTAGE MAP

COVID-19: LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Some possible progress in the negotiations over a new economic rescue package: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he would consider extending the $600 weekly unemployment benefits if it helped seal a deal by the end of the week. In NYC, the top health official resigned, citing the mayor’s handling of the pandemic, and the Radio City Christmas Spectacular has been cancelled. The global death toll is approaching 700,000. NY TIMES

PRIMARY RESULTS: The votes are still being counted in primaries held in Kansas, Missouri, Washington, Michigan and Arizona. A couple early takeaways: Republicans are breathing a sigh of relief after Kris Kobach lost his Senate bid to Rep. Roger Marshall, an establishment member of the GOP. Had Kobach won, the thinking was that Democrats could have flipped the seat. In Missouri, a nurse and BLM activist named Cori Bush beat the incumbent William Lacy Clay, the latest progressive candidate to oust a centrist Democrat in the House. USA TODAY

MAIL-IN VOTING: President Trump reversed his opposition to mail-in voting, at least for his home state of Florida. The president encouraged Floridians to vote by mail, but did not extend the support to other states that are considering or implementing vote-by-mail procedures for the election. The USPS, meanwhile, is under pressure from both Democrats and Republicans, with Democrats accusing the White House of sabotaging the Post Office ahead of November and Republicans noting issues with mail-in votes being disqualified in New York’s recent primary. THE HILL

TICK TOCK FOR TIKTOK: Apple says it has no interest in pursuing TikTok after a report suggested the iPhone maker was in talks to acquire the social media platform from China’s ByteDance. President Trump has given Microsoft until Sept. 15 to close a deal for TikTok’s U.S. assets, but is saying any sale would have to include a “substantial amount of money” coming into the U.S. Treasury. The government typically doesn’t demand so-called “key money” as part of a deal between two private companies because doing so would be illegal. THE VERGE

SPORTS TV RATINGS: TV ratings for baseball and basketball, which started out huge when the leagues returned, have come back down to Earth. NBA ratings last weekend were “pretty ordinary,” according to one analyst. MLB’s Opening Day game was seen by four million viewers, but more recent games are averaging well below one million on ESPN. SI

MULAN ON TV: Disney is throwing in the towel on its tentpole movie event of the summer. Mulan, which has been delayed numerous times, will now premiere on Disney+ on Sept. 4 for $30 (that’s on top of the cost of a Disney+ subscription). The decision to pull the plug on a theatrical release is yet another blow to movie theaters’ hopes they’d be reopening soon. Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, the only other major summer release that hasn’t been cancelled, is still supposed to hit select U.S. theaters Labor Day weekend. VARIETY

VMA'S ARE A GO: The MTV Video Music Awards will go forward as scheduled on Aug. 30 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, though it’s unclear how much of the show will actually be there. BTS, Doja Cat and J Balvin will perform. Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga lead the nominations with nine a piece. BILLBOARD

LEFTOVERS: SENDING OUT AN S.O.S.: Three men were rescued from a tiny island in Micronesia after a U.S.-Australian search team in a helicopter spotted a giant ‘S.O.S.’ they had written in the sand. The marooned men had been on the Pacific island for three days when they were found and are said to be in good condition. SEE IT

Listen to the N2K Podcast! Looking for more context and analysis on the big stories of the day? Check out our podcast! Hosts Jill and Carlo break down the headlines, every weekday morning Listen on Apple or Spotify, or watch on YouTube, and send us your feedback!

Share:
More In Culture
A New Plant-Based Way to Quit Smoking
John Bencich, CEO of Achieve Life Sciences, joins Cheddar Innovates to discuss a new plant-based compound that's being used to fight nicotine addiction.
Plant-Based Way to Quit Smoking; Innovation in Stroke Therapy
On this episode of Cheddar Innovates: CEO of Achieve Life Sciences discusses a new plant-based compound that's being used to fight nicotine addiction; President & CEO OF DiaMedica Therapeutics explains a new ischemic stroke treatment option that expands the window for effective therapy for stroke patients; Cheddar gets a look at Curiosity Stream's 'Asteroid Rush.'
Pressure to Settle $1 Billion Claim From Nassar Survivors Against FBI
Survivors of Larry Nassar, including Olympian Simone Biles, are seeking $1 billion in damages from the FBI due to its failure to investigate the former gymnastics team doctor convicted of committing years of serial sexual abuse of minors. Jack Queen, a senior reporter at Law360, joined Cheddar News to break down the legal grounds of this case. "This is one of the biggest black eyes that the Bureau has faced in generations, quite frankly, and the FBI has taken full responsibility and admitted that it completely botched this investigation," he said. "So, there's a lot of pressure to settle."
Elevate Prize Foundation Wants to Create 'Fanbase for Good' With $10K Awards
The Elevate Prize Foundation is donating $10,000 to different grassroots organizations based on a theme every month to help scale their work, focusing on a different theme each time. Upcoming prizes will help uplift an organization supporting the LGBTQ community and one mobilizing to help end gun violence. The foundation's CEO Carolina Garcia Jayaram joined Cheddar to discuss the initiative and why it's important to uplift these grassroots organizations. "We are identifying social entrepreneurs around the world to help them scale their work. but the ultimate purpose of that is to create the first-ever fanbase for good," she said. "We're trying to make good famous and by inspiring people to think about the role they can play in doing good in the world."
Stephanie Shojaee on Paving the Way for Women in Real Estate
With real estate being a largely male-dominated industry, Stephanie Shojaee, vice president and chief marketing officer at development company Shoma Group, joined Cheddar News to discuss how she took on the gender gap for women to achieve leadership roles, starting at her own company. “It's been very important to teach all the women that work here, especially the younger ones, that they shouldn't change themselves," she said. "You need to be happy with who you are and just keep breaking barriers."
Hot summer could lead to rolling blackouts
We are already starting to feel the effects of summer. Heat waves in Texas and California are already sending temperatures soaring. That could spell trouble for the nation's power supply. there are new concerns about outages in many areas of the country. Cheddar's Shannon Lanier explains the two main causes of blackouts, and what states are doing to keep the lights on and the air conditioning running.
U.S. traffic deaths hit 16 year high
If you have been on the road this past year, you've probably seen more accidents on the road than you ever have. You're not wrong. Traffic fatalities are not only increasing they are hitting historic highs. Almost 43,000 people died in motor vehicle accidents in 2021. Cheddar's Shannon Lanier investigates - and finds out why.
U.S. Stocks Closed at Session Highs Tuesday
U.S. stocks close Tuesday at session highs after a subpar start to the trading day. Tim Chubb, Chief Investment Officer at the wealth advisory firm, Girard, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss. 'We're starting to see the moderation of three core things -- we've seen the moderation of prices, we've seen the moderation of wage growth we've seen in the labor market, and we've also seen a moderation of job openings,' he says.
Gymnasts Seek $1 Billion From FBI Over Larry Nassar Case
The victims from the USA gymnastics sexual abuse scandal continue to seek justice. Survivors of Larry Nassar are seeking more than one-billion dollars from the FBI for failing to stop the convicted sports doctor when the agency first received allegations. According to a report released by the Justice Department's Inspector General, FBI agents knew in July of 2015 that Nassar was accused of abusing gymnasts; however, Nassar wasn't arrested until December of 2016. The group that filed the claim includes Olympic medalist Simone Biles and around 90 other women. Louise Radnofsky, sports reporter at The Wall Street Journal, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Load More