Tuesday, March 16th, 2021
AstraZeneca on Hold, New Riot Charges & Tinder Background Checks
All the news in about 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by EveryBottleBack.org & Fitbod.me/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 to read the latest happenings...
Countries Pause AstraZeneca Vaccine
Some new safety concerns are surrounding a COVID-19 vaccine overseas. Germany, France, Spain, and Italy are the latest countries to pull the AstraZeneca shots. Denmark, Norway, Ireland, and a few others already pressed pause. The countries want to look into the shot’s safety since a few dozen people who got one ended up getting dangerous blood clots afterward. That said, the vaccine maker and international regulators say there’s no evidence the vaccine caused the clots. They say the blood clots were likely a coincidence.
Read More: NY Times, AP, Reuters, USA Today
All Mississippi Adults are Vaccine-Eligible
Starting today, all adults who live in Mississippi can sign up for a COVID-19 vaccine. It’s the second state to open up the vaccine appointments to everyone 16 and older who lives there. Last week, Alaska became the first. It looks like Connecticut maybe the third. The governor there says the state is hoping to give all adults the chance to get vaccinated starting April 5th. Elsewhere, states are expanding eligibility bit by bit. President Biden has called on all states to get everyone on the list by the start of May.
Read More: Axios, NY Times, MS Health Department
COVID-19 Vaccine Ad Blitz
The White House is preparing to launch a national public relations campaign meant to encourage Americans who aren’t sure about vaccines to go ahead and get their shots. A Biden administration official told Stat News they’re focused on those people who are most likely to be skeptical like young people, people of color, and conservatives. The ads will start showing up in the next few weeks on TV, radio, and digital platforms. The White House and Congress set aside more than $1.5 billion for the effort.
Read More: Stat News, CNN, Axios
Facebook Launches Vaccine Finder
Facebook is now working to clear up any confusion about where and how to get vaccinated. The tech giant launched a tool in its COVID Information Center that shows users a map of places nearby that offer a vaccine. It also gives them a link to book an appointment. Facebook teamed up with Boston Children’s Hospital to build the feature. For now, it’s only in the U.S. It’s also using its platform WhatsApp to get people booked for vaccines.
Read More: USA Today, Cnet, Facebook
Rioters Charged with Assaulting Officer
This week, two men were arrested and charged with assaulting the police officer who died the day of the Capitol riot. The FBI says people were able to identify the men from surveillance video and police body camera footage. In those videos, it appears they used a chemical bear spray on Capitol Police officers, including Ofc. Brian Sicknick. He later collapsed and died at the hospital. Investigators haven’t said if the bear spray caused his death, so no murder charges have been filed. Still, if the two men are found guilty, they could face up to 20 years in prison.
Read More: Politico, WaPo, FOX News, DOJ
FBI Report on Christmas Day Bomber
The FBI has wrapped up an investigation into last year’s Christmas Day bombing in Nashville. Investigators decided it was not an act of terrorism. Instead, they say the bomber, Anthony Warner, just wanted to end his own life and he was motivated by paranoia and eccentric conspiracy theories, not social or political ideology. Investigators also say he acted alone. On Christmas, he detonated a bomb inside an RV. He was the only person killed, but three other people were hurt and dozens of buildings were damaged.
Read More: Nashville Tennessean, AP, WSJ, CBS News, FBI
Fewer Americans Try to Quit Smoking
New data shows fewer people are trying to quit smoking these days. Last year, there was a nearly 30% drop in calls to hotlines that help people quit. At the same time, cigarette sales went up in the U.S. for the first time in five years. Officials blame the pandemic. They believe stress, anxiety, depression, and isolation have people reaching for anything that might help them cope. However, health experts worry about this since smoking can make symptoms of COVID-19 worse.
Read More: WaPo, USA Today, NA Quitline Consortium
Tinder Will Run Background Checks
Tinder will soon let you run a background check on a potential date. Match Group, which owns the dating app, invested in the nonprofit background check platform Garbo for this. Garbo only needs a first name and phone number or a first name and last name. Then, it’s able to pull up things like arrest records, convictions, restraining orders, and more. The feature won’t be free. No word yet on how much it will cost, but Match Group says it wants to make it affordable to most users. It will reportedly be widely available later this year.
Read More: The Verge, Fox Business, Tinder, Garbo
Vatican Gay Marriage Judgement
Catholic churches around the world are getting new clarification about how to handle LGBTQ members of their faith. The Vatican officially told churches they could welcome and endorse gay people, but not their relationships. It says gay people must be treated with dignity and respect, but the position is still that marriage is intended to create life. Some LGBTQ advocates are calling the new document “hate speech” that can turn into discrimination around the world. Others think some churches will ignore the Vatican’s position.
Read More: NPR, BBC, AP, Vatican
Oscar Nominees Announced
The Academy Awards are making history already. The Oscar contenders were just announced and it turns out nine of the 20 acting nominations went to people of color, making it the most diverse field in Oscars history. Also, for the first time, two women were nominated for best director. Overall, the film Mank is leading the field with the most nods. It has ten, including one for the coveted best picture prize. The other best picture nominees are The Father, Judas and the Black Messiah, Minari, Nomadland, Sound of Metal, The Trial of the Chicago 7, and Promising Young Woman. The Oscars will happen on April 25th.
Read More: Variety, USA Today, NY Times
Drake Dominates Billboard Charts
Hip hop artist Drake is shaking up the pop music charts. He’s now the first artist to debut three new songs at the very top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart all at the same time. His songs “What’s Next,” “Wants and Needs,” and “Lemon Pepper Freestyle” are numbers one, two, and three on the chart right now. Until this week, Olivia Rodrigo’s song “Drivers License” has dominated for the last eight weeks. Now, Drake has bumped that song to number four.
Read More: Billboard, NY Times, Forbes
Trivia Tuesday
Q: What was the first state in the U.S.?
Play along on today’s Instagram Stories Quiz. We’ll also have the answer right here next week.
Last Week’s Trivia Tuesday Answer
Q: What is the painting ‘La Gioconda’ more commonly known as?
A: Mona Lisa
Read More: Britannica, Louvre, The Conversation