Monday, May 24th, 2021
Antisemitic Attacks, Gas Prices Up Again & History-Making Athletes
All the news you need 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 review the latest happenings...
NJ House Party Mass Shooting
A deadly mass shooting happened Saturday night in Fairfield Township, New Jersey, just about an hour outside of Philadelphia. 14 people were shot and killed at a family birthday party, and at least two of them died. As of early this morning, no one has been arrested. Police haven’t identified any information about a suspect or the victims. Fairfield Township’s mayor says New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy offered his support and help.
Read More: Jersey Journal, AP, NY Times, Fox News
Downtown Minneapolis Mass Shooting
Also on Saturday, there was a mass shooting near a nightclub in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. Police say two people in a crowd got into a fight and started shooting each other. Ten people ended up being shot, and two died. One of the victims killed was a college senior who was supposed to graduate later that day. One of the suspected shooters died while the other was taken into custody.
Read More: USA Today, ABC News, Newsweek, Minneapolis PD
Ohio Deadly Bar Shooting
Another deadly shooting happened outside of a bar in Youngstown, Ohio. Three people were killed and at least three others were hurt. So far no one has been arrested, but authorities say they were talking to several people about what happened. It’s not clear what motivated the shooters in this case or the others. Officials also haven’t released information about the victims. More details are expected to come out today.
Read More: AP, CNN, WKBN
Rise in Antisemitic Attacks
The Anti-Defamation League, a prominent Jewish civil rights group, says it’s seen an increase in antisemitism in the U.S. during the latest round of Israel and Hamas fighting. In just one week this month, the group found more than 17,000 tweets that used the phrase “Hitler was right.” In the same week, the group received nearly 200 reports of antisemitic incidents here in the U.S. For example, a synagogue near Chicago was vandalized, and a Jewish man in New York was attacked in Times Square. A national Muslim American advocacy group put out a statement saying that attacks against both Jews and Muslims, and their houses of worship, are ‘despicable.’
Read More: NBC News, WaPo, CNN, USA Today, WSJ
COVID-19 Cases, Deaths Tumble
Data from Johns Hopkins University shows the seven-day average of new infections is about 29,000. The last time the average was that low was June of 2020. Hospitalizations and deaths are down too. All of this is happening at the same time we’re seeing signs of pre-pandemic life returning to cities around the country. More than 61% of American adults have gotten at least one COVID-19 shot, and nearly 50% are fully vaccinated.
Read More: USA Today, AP, CNBC, NY Times
Eastern U.S. Heat Wave
The official start of summer is still about a month away, but a lot of Americans are getting an early dose of hot summer weather this week. More than 30% of Americans are experiencing temperatures of 90 degrees or higher, especially in the eastern half of the country. Overall, temperatures are expected to be about 10-15 degrees warmer than normal for this time of year. The National Weather Service says several parts of the country may set new heat records. The heatwave began over the weekend and is expected to last through this Thursday.
Read More: CNN, AccuWeather, Weather Channel, NWS
Gas Prices Rising
Gas prices are hitting levels not seen since 2014. The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline is about $3.10, while AAA reports that the average price at this time last year was less than $2. Analysts say there are a few reasons why gas prices are going up. For one, the Colonial Pipeline shut down earlier this month prompted some drivers to panic-buy at the pump. Another reason is rising corn prices since corn is a key ingredient in ethanol. Lastly, there is more demand for fuel, with Gas Buddy reporting that 57% of Americans are planning at least one summer road trip this year.
Read More: AP, AAA, GasBuddy
Virgin Galactic’s Space Flight
Virgin Galactic completed its third successful launch into outer space over the weekend. The spacecraft launched from New Mexico, making it the 3rd state in the U.S. to launch humans into space. Two astronauts were on board who performed some tests before eventually coming back down to Earth and landing safely. This marked a big milestone for Virgin Galactic, which is hoping to launch paying customers into space soon.
Read More: The Verge, CBS News, WaPo, Virgin Galactic
History-Making PGA Championship Winner
Phil Mickelson won the PGA Championship at 50 years old, making him the oldest golfer to win a major tournament. Mickelson shot a six-under-par to beat his rivals by two strokes. This was a big comeback for him, as his last major win was at the British Open in 2013. With this new title to his name, Mickelson will next set his sights on this year’s U.S. Open, which is coming up next month. It’s the only major title he has yet to win.
Read More: ESPN, CBS Sports, NY Times, U.S. Open
Simone Biles Lands Hardest Vault in History
Simone Biles pulled off what is considered the hardest vault in the history of women’s gymnastics. It’s called the Yurchenko double pike vault and has historically only ever been done by men. It’s a roundoff, followed by a back handspring onto the vaulting table, and ends with a piked double backflip into the air. Sticking this landing helped her win the U.S. Classic in Indianapolis, which was Biles’ first competition in 19 months. Next month, she’ll compete in the U.S. Olympic trials, where she’ll almost certainly be named to Team USA once again.
Read More: SI, WSJ, CNN, NBC Olympics
Billboard Music Awards
The biggest names in music were honored at last night’s Billboard Music Awards. The Billboard Awards are objective, meaning there is no separate entity voting behind the scenes. It all comes down to numbers. Billboard says winners are chosen based on “album and digital song sales, streaming numbers, radio airplay, and social media engagement from fans.” The Weeknd was the night’s most decorated winner, taking home 14 trophies, including the coveted top artist award. He also won the top male artist award, while Taylor Swift won the top female artist award. K-pop music boy band BTS won for best duo or group.
Read More: Billboard, CNN, Variety, Hollywood Reporter
Money Monday: Lipstick Sales Up
As mask mandates ease up, lipstick is making a comeback. Lipstick sales have jumped 80% compared to the same time last year. Walmart says lipstick has been the best-selling product in the makeup department recently. The retailer says customers have been especially interested in lipsticks that last for several hours and ones that won’t come off or get smudged inside a mask. Now that more Americans can ditch the masks, they’re also thinking about their smiles. Sales of teeth-whitening products are also reportedly on the rise.
Read More: Bloomberg, CNN, Business Insider