A number of businesses are cutting ties with the National Rifle Association in the days following the Parkland school shooting. The First National Bank of Omaha announced that it will no longer offer an NRA-branded Visa card to customers. After customer feedback, the bank decided to cut ties. In another blow to the NRA, Enterprises Holdings, the parent company of Enterprise, Alamo, and National car rental brands, said it will no longer work with the organization. That change is expected to take place at the end of next month.
Cheddar speaks with David Hogg, a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, about the tragic shooting in Parkland and the #NeverAgain movement. Hogg says he is disappointed with President Trump's reaction to the shooting and does not believe in arming teachers. Hogg believes in the second amendment but says it needs to be limited. In the aftermath of the shooting, a number of conspiracy theorists called students, including Hogg, "crisis actors." Since he was attacked online, Hogg says his Twitter following has quadrupled and it's only helped him push the #NeverAgain movement forward.
In other news, General Mills is buying natural pet food maker Blue Buffalo for $8 billion in cash. Shares of Blue Buffalo surged more than 15% on the news. This marks the first time General Mills has broken into the pet food industry. The deal is expected to be finalized at the end of this year.
And Chris Tung, Chief Marketing Officer at Alibaba, discusses the company's first official partnership with the International Olympic Committee. This year, Alibaba is the exclusive worldwide partner of the Olympic Games for cloud computing and e-commerce. Tung says it's been a "fantastic" first experience for Alibaba at the Olympics. The Chinese tech giant has been able to showcase its cloud computing power at the games.
Former Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers learned all about technology’s volatile highs and lows as a veteran of the internet’s early boom days during the late 1990s and the ensuing meltdown that followed the mania. And now he is seeing potential signs of the cycle repeating with another transformative technology in artificial intelligence. Chambers is trying take some of the lessons he learned while riding a wave that turned Cisco into the world's most valuable company in 2000 before a crash hammered its stock price and apply them as an investor in AI startups. He recently discussed AI's promise and perils during an interview with The Associated Press.
Grove Collaborative’s CEO shares how the company is reinventing everyday goods with sustainability at the core and working toward a plastic-free future.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens shares plans for affordable housing, community-led growth, and why private and public grocery stores could be key to food equity.
Tesla reported a surprise increase in sales in the third quarter as the electric car maker likely benefited from a rush by consumers to take advantage of a $7,500 credit before it expired on Sept. 30. The company reported Thursday that sales in the three months through September rose 7% compared to the same period a year ago. The gain follows two quarters of steep declines as people turned off by CEO Elon Musk’s foray into right-wing politics avoided buying his company’s cars and even protested at some dealerships. Sales rose to 497,099 vehicles, compared with 462,890 in the same period last year.
