Tuesday, July 21st, 2020
Florida Teachers Sue, Trader Joe's Rebranding & No Preseason Football
All the news in less than 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by www.MagicSpoon.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 to read the latest happenings...
Oxford Vaccine Promising Results
Researchers are optimistic about another coronavirus vaccine. It was developed in the UK by the University of Oxford and drugmaker AstraZeneca. Researchers say it appears to be safe, and so far, it seems to be working as it’s meant to. Everyone in the last trial developed antibodies to block the infection. The shot also helped people develop t-cells to fight the virus. It’s moving onto the next phase of trials now. If all goes well, it could be cleared for use as early as October.
Read More: BBC, AP, Axios, Reuters, The Lancet
FL Education Association Lawsuit
Florida’s largest teachers’ union is suing the governor in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit. It’s over a recent order that requires all schools to open for in-person classes five days a week. Gov. Desantis says schools need to reopen so parents can return to work. However, the teachers’ union argues in-person learning is too dangerous right now. For now, plans are still on to reopen schools next month. Ultimately, this may be decided in court.
Read More: Politico, CNN, Executive Order, Harvard Guidance
DHS Could go to More Cities
President Trump is thinking about sending federal officers to more cities around the country. There will reportedly be at least 150 agents from the Department of Homeland Security going to Chicago as soon as this week. However, the specific plan isn’t clear yet. Federal agents are already in Portland, Oregon, where they have reportedly arrested people protesting in the streets. Protests against racial injustice have been going on for nearly two months there. Much like they did in Portland, some protests in Chicago have escalated and people have gotten hurt.
Read More: Chicago Tribune, Reuters, USA Today, Axios
Election Interference Concerns
Top Democrats are sounding the alarm about more potential foreign interference in the 2020 presidential election. The Democratic lawmakers from the House and Senate intelligence committees wrote a letter to the FBI director about their concerns. They say a foreign disinformation campaign has been targeting Congress, trying to influence lawmakers’ actions and public debate. At this point, they haven’t shared any specific examples, but they did request a classified briefing.
Read More: Reuters, AP, USA Today,
Kanye West Candidacy Updates
Superstar Kanye West is moving ahead with his presidential campaign. His campaign submitted signatures to be on the ballot in Illinois. They’re being counted now. However, he missed the deadline in other states, like South Carolina, where he held a weekend rally. There, he spoke about a few political issues. He said everyone who has a baby should get a million dollars, that marijuana should be legal and free, and that prescription pain medication should be better regulated.
Read More: Axios, ABC News, Fox News
FDA Cracks Down on Some E-Cigs
The FDA is still cracking down on e-cigarettes. It’s telling several brands to pull their fruit-flavored, disposable vapes off the shelves. The FDA banned flavored e-cigarettes earlier this year, saying they appeal to underage users. However, the ban didn’t apply to disposable vaping products. Still, e-cigarettes are supposed to get FDA approval, and these brands didn’t get it. They have 15 days to respond to the agency’s request
Read More: AP, WSJ, FOX News, FDA
Trader Joe's Rebranding
Trader Joe’s is changing the names of its international foods. The national grocery chain made the announcement as a petition has been circulating online. The petition demanded Trader Joe’s stop using “racist packaging.” For example, Chinese Foods are called “Trader Ming’s” and Italian foods are “Trader Giotto’s.” The petition claims by doing this, the company is perpetuating harmful stereotypes. The popular grocer says it’s now phasing out old packaging. It’s replacing all ethnic foods with the standard “Trader Joe’s” branding.
Read More: NY Times, Business Insider, USA Today, NBC News
Demand for Air Travel Shrinks Again
For the first time since April, the demand for air travel declined. TSA screened about 4.7 million people last week, down from 4.8 million the week before. Now, some airlines, like Delta, are reportedly planning to cut flights from their August schedule. Other airlines are preparing to furlough thousands of workers in October to offset losses.
Read More: CNN, CNBC, MarketWatch
Report: No Preseason Football
We might not see professional football until September this year, at the earliest. That’s because the NFL preseason is probably scrapped. The league offered to cancel all pre-season games at the players’ request. There are usually four preseason games per team. A few weeks back, it was dropped to two, and now zero.
Read More: CBS Sports, NBC Sports, NFL
NFL Players to get COVID Tests Daily
The NFL mapped out a plan for COVID-19 testing. It says players will be tested every day for at least the first two weeks of training camp, happening now. If there aren’t too many positive results, testing will reportedly drop to every other day instead. Otherwise, it will keep getting enough tests for daily testing.
Read More: AP, ESPN, LA Times
Fauci to Throw Out First Pitch
Dr. Anthony Fauci will be throwing out the first pitch at the Washington Nationals’ game this Thursday, which is also Opening Day. Dr. Fauci is the nation’s leading infectious disease expert which has made him a household name during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Nationals say he’s a “true champion for our country,” so they want to honor him.
Read More: Twitter, Axios, Bleacher Report
Trivia Tuesday
Q: The hashtag symbol you often see on social media is technically called __________.
Play along with our new trivia game by commenting on our Instagram post later this morning. We’ll have the answer right here next week.
