Wednesday, March 3rd, 2021
States Reopen, Dr. Seuss Books Dropped & Mixed Reality Meetings
All the news you need in about 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by Noom.com/newsworthy and BLUblox.com/newsworthy
Story Summaries
All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want reading about the latest happenings…
Vaccine Makers Collaborate
President Biden now says the U.S. will have enough COVID-19 vaccines for all American adults to get shots by the end of May. That’s a couple of months faster than originally expected. Biden credits, in part, some business rivals coming together. The latest partnership includes pharmaceutical giant Merck who will help make the new Johnson & Johnson vaccine. It’s not the first deal of its kind though. Recently, companies Sanofi and Novartis both agreed to help make the vaccine from Pfizer.
Read More: WaPo, NPR, WSJ, Reuters, FOX News
Texas, Mississippi Lift Restrictions
Two southern states, Texas and Mississippi, are now lifting mask mandates and letting all businesses reopen at 100% capacity. In Mississippi, the changes go into effect today. In Texas, it starts next week. The Texas governor said it’s clear Texans have learned how to protect themselves. Still, he acknowledged the new coronavirus has not disappeared and he stressed it’s still important for people to take personal responsibility to protect themselves and their neighbors. The message from the governor of Mississippi was similar.
Read More: Politico, AP, CNBC, Gov. Abbott, Gov. Reeves
FBI Director Testimony
For the first time, FBI Director Christopher Wray publicly testified about the Capitol riot earlier this year. He said the attack was criminal and the FBI views it as domestic terrorism. He confirmed the FBI is going through hundreds of thousands of tips and agents have arrested more than 300 people so far. They’re facing charges ranging from trespassing to conspiracy and assault. Wray also says the riot was part of a larger trend and that domestic terrorism was “metastasizing across the country,”
Read More: NY Times, WSJ, AP, NPR, Axios
U.S. Sanctions Russia
The Biden administration issued its first sanctions against Russia because of what happened to the Russian president’s main rival. Alexei Navalny was severely poisoned last year. Both he and the U.S. say there’s evidence the Russian government was behind it. The White House is now punishing some senior Russian officials, a government research institute, and about a dozen businesses, using economic sanctions. Of course, Russia isn’t happy. It called the U.S. sanctions a “hostile, anti-Russian attack” and they won’t put up with it.
Read More: ABC News, WaPo, AP, Blinken Statement
Another Billionaire Charters SpaceX Rocket
Another billionaire is looking for regular people to come along on a trip to space. This time, it’s Japanese businessman Yusaku Maezawa chartering a SpaceX rocket. His mission is called dearMoon and it’s set to fly around the moon in 2023. He’s going on the mission himself and he’s paying for the whole thing. However, there are eight empty seats, so he’s letting other people apply for a shot at the free trip too. It’s not clear exactly how the winners will be chosen since the application only requires basic information.
Read More: The Verge, CNBC, TechCrunch, dearMoon
Volvo Going All-Electric
Volvo is the latest automaker to phase out gas-burning cars. It says by 2030, it will be fully electric. The nearly 100-year-old company says it wants to be part of the solution when it comes to climate change. However, electric cars will be sold exclusively from its website. Volvo’s CEO says dealerships will still be around so people can test drive the cars. Salespeople will be there to help customers put in their online orders.
Read More: AP, CNBC, Reuters, Volvo
Vernon Jordan Dies
Vernon Jordan passed away at 85 years old. However, he leaves behind an impressive legacy. He first made his mark in the 70s when he led several civil rights organizations. Eventually, he transitioned into business and politics. He was a key campaign adviser to President Bill Clinton during his first presidential campaign and he worked unofficially with Clinton during his time in the White House. Later on, Jordan worked for a New York investment firm but kept counseling politicians and business leaders around the country.
Read More: AP, WSJ, Axios, WaPo, Biden Statement
Six Dr. Seuss Books Dropped
Half a dozen Dr. Seuss books including “And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street” and “If I Ran the Zoo” will no longer be published because of images now considered racist or insensitive. The business that oversees the children’s author’s estate announced it won’t print or license them anymore. Dr. Seuss Enterprises says it spoke with experts and educators before making the decision and they found some of the books perpetuate racial stereotypes about Asian and Black people.
Read More: AP, NY Times, WSJ, Dr. Seuss
Golden Globes Ratings Down
Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards were some of the lowest-rated ever. The final numbers from Neilsen show just 6.9 million people tuned in. That’s a 64% drop from the year before. This could be another sign TV audiences are changing. These days, a lot more people are streaming everything they watch and the Neilsen ratings don’t take the streaming numbers into account. Also, the pandemic with the unusual format may have had something to do with the dip in viewership.
Read More: Axios, Deadline, AP
Work Wednesday: Mixed Reality ‘Microsoft Mesh’ Unveiled
Microsoft says it’s developing a new, futuristic way to hold meetings. It debuted what it calls Microsoft Mesh at a developers conference this week. It’s a mixed reality platform that works with either virtual reality or augmented reality headsets. The idea is it’s supposed to let you interact with your co-workers in a more personal way than video calls. Other people will get to see you or your avatar as if you’re in the room with them, but you can be remote. It’s all controlled by certain eye and hand movements.
Read More: The Verge, CNET, Mashable, Microsoft