Tuesday, May 11th, 2021
Vax for Teens, Middle East Tension & Golden Globes Canceled?
All the news in about 10 min:
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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...
FDA Authorizes Pfizer Vax for Adolescents
For the first time, American health regulators have authorized a COVID-19 vaccine for adolescents. The FDA says the Pfizer shots can start going out to everyone 12 and older this week. Before now, it was 16 and up. However, a study found the vaccine was safe and effective in the younger age group too. The FDA says it did a rigorous review of the data and confirmed Pfizer’s findings. Next, the CDC also needs to endorse the vaccine and it’s expected to do that tomorrow. Then, health officials say adolescents could start getting the shots as early as Thursday.
Read More: WSJ, NY Times, AP, Reuters
Transgender Healthcare Protections
The Biden administration reversed a rule that has to do with transgender healthcare. The Trump administration redefined a section in the Affordable Care Act that has to do with discrimination. It says doctors, hospitals, insurers, and other healthcare organizations that get federal funding can’t discriminate against people because of things like race, sex, age, or disability. The Trump administration didn’t think LGBTQ people should be included, but the Biden administration disagrees. Now, the government will again start investigating discrimination complaints, even when they have to do with sexual orientation and gender identity.
Read More: NY Times, Axios, WSJ, CNN, Fox News
Israel/Palestinian Violence
Tensions have been soaring in the middle east in recent days. Early this morning, Palestinian militants from the Hamas group launched dozens of rockets into Israel and Israel unleashed new airstrikes against them in response. This latest conflict intensified when Palestinians started protesting. They’re upset over Israel planning to evict Palestinians to make way for Jewish settlers. Israeli police responded to protests by firing rubber-tipped bullets and stun grenades at Palestinians who were throwing stones back. Now, we’re seeing rocket fire.
Read More: Al Jazeera, AP, CBS News, Fox News
Pipeline Cyber Attack Follow
The FBI now says a professional hacking group was behind the cyberattack that shut down a major American fuel pipeline. The group is called DarkSide and is thought to operate out of Eastern Europe. The Colonial Pipeline runs from Texas to New York. It was hit with a ransomware attack recently, but White House officials have been investigating DarkSide for several months now. They say the group usually steals from corporations and gives a cut to charity. It’s not clear exactly what the motivation was this time.
Read More: Axios, NY Times, CBS News, Reuters, FBI
CA Emergency Drought Declaration Expanded
More than 12 million people in California are now being asked to conserve water. Gov. Gavin Newsom expanded the emergency drought declaration to cover 41 of California’s 58 counties, mainly in the northern and central areas of the state. The governor didn’t order any mandatory water conservation measures. Instead, communities are being asked to cut back by doing things like taking shorter showers, fixing leaky pipes, and watering their lawns less often. The western U.S. is facing its most severe drought in modern history.
Read More: Sacramento Bee, AP, Gov. Newsom
AG Group: No Instagram for Kids
Attorneys general from 44 states and territories want to stop Facebook from creating an Instagram app for kids. The group sent Facebook a letter, citing concerns about how social media can be damaging to a child’s mental health. The officials also say they’re worried about cyberbullying and that the app could attract child predators. The new version of the app would be for kids younger than 13. However, Facebook has said parents would be able to control what their children see on the app and the company says it will work with regulators to make sure the app is safe.
Read More: NAAG, CNBC, Bloomberg, WSJ
Playstation 5 Will Stay in Short Supply
Sony says the Playstation 5 may be in short supply through at least next year. Bloomberg says Sony can’t produce the consoles fast enough because of two main reasons: shortages of certain parts and continued high demand. Sony isn’t the only one. Microsoft’s newest Xbox consoles are also in short supply even though both the Xbox and Playstation came out just six months ago. Plus, a global shortage of semiconductors has impacted a variety of other industries from cars to computers and beyond.
Read More: Bloomberg, Penn Live, Engadget
NBC Cuts Ties with Golden Globes
It looks like one of Hollywood’s oldest and most-watched awards shows won’t happen in 2022. That’s because NBC is not happy with the organization that puts on the ceremony each year, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. NBC says it hasn’t done enough to increase diversity in its ranks. As the LA Times revealed in February, the group has about 90 voting members, but not one of its members is Black. The group promised to make adding people of color a priority, but critics have said that’s not enough.
Read More: USA Today, AP, Variety, HFPA, LA Times
Tiger on the Loose in Houston
New videos circulating online show a tiger roaming around a Houston, Texas neighborhood. As of this morning, that tiger is still on the loose. This all started earlier in the week. Neighbors called 911 and also started recording videos. Some of that footage shows the big cat wearing a collar, walking around, and relaxing on people’s front lawns. Then, it shows a man coming outside of a house and telling neighbors the tiger was his. He eventually loaded it into an SUV and took off. Then, there was a short chase with the police, but the officers lost him. Yesterday, that man was booked into custody, but it’s not clear what happened to the tiger.
Read More: Houston Chronicle, KHOU, USA Today, Houston PD
Trivia Tuesday
Q: How many languages are written from right to left?
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: Which country produces the most coffee in the world?
A: Brazil
Read More: Investopedia, Statista, National Coffee Association, USDA, ArcGIS