Wednesday, September 30th, 2020
Chaotic First Debate, NFL Outbreak & New Instagram Record
All the news you need in 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 reading about the latest happenings…
First Presidential Debate Recap
After months of attacking one another on the campaign trail, President Trump and his Democratic challenger Joe Biden took their attacks to the debate stage. The candidates talked over each other for nearly the entire 90 minutes, mostly with insults. For example, on the economy, Trump cast himself as the champion for reopening businesses after coronavirus shutdowns and knocked Biden’s more cautious approach. The president declared, “people want their places open,” to which Biden countered, “people want to be safe.” Biden also called for more funding to allow for improved protocols.
Read More: Politico, USA Today, CNN, Reuters
Biden Releases More Taxes
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his wife Jill Biden released more tax returns yesterday. According to those documents, the couple reported about $945,000 in taxable income last year, and they paid nearly $300,000 in federal income taxes. This comes just two days after the New York Times published a report with some of President Trump’s tax information. It said Trump paid just $750 in both 2016 and 2017 and in 10 of the last 15 years, he paid no federal income tax at all.
Read More: WSJ, WaPo, NBC News, Axios
COVID-19 Cases Rise Among U.S. Children
New research shows the number of COVID-19 cases among children has been rising. The American Academy of Pediatrics and Children’s Hospital Association put out a new study this week. It said back in April kids accounted for about 2.2% of all reported cases in the U.S. As of last week, the figure is up to 10%. Researchers agree that a child’s age factors into how likely they are to test positive. The CDC says older children, ages 12-17, are twice as likely to test positive than younger children, ages 5-11.
Read More: AP, NPR, ABC News, AAP, CDC
Moderna Vaccine Study in Older People
A small study found the Moderna vaccine, given in two doses, produced immunity in adults ages 56-70. The two shots reportedly produced virus-fighting antibodies in the same way they did with younger adults. The side effects were mostly on-par with high-dose flu shots: some headache, fatigue, and body aches, but those symptoms were mostly described as “mild to moderate.” Moderna’s vaccine is now in the final stage of testing. We could know by the end of the month how well it protects people from the virus.
Read More: Reuters, Boston Globe, USA Today
NFL First Covid-19 Outbreak
Two NFL teams are having to shut down activities as the league faces its first coronavirus outbreak of the season. It’s affecting the Tennessee Titans the most. Eight players and personnel have tested positive for COVID-19. They’re now in isolation and are being monitored. Also, the team canceled all in-person activities. Since they played the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, the team also had to cancel in-person activities, even though none of their players or staff have tested positive. So far, no games have been impacted, but that could still change.
Read More: WaPo, WSJ, NBC News, AP
Disney Lays Off Thousands of Workers
Disney is laying off 28,000 theme park workers from Disneyland in California and Disneyworld in Florida. The Orlando parks are still limiting visitors, which is affecting the company’s bottom line. The laid-off workers have been on furlough since April, the company said, collecting health benefits but not pay. About two-thirds of them are part-time employees. Disney said it would soon enter discussions with unions about “next steps” for their members.
Read More: WaPo, WSJ, Reuters
Hand Scanners Launch at Amazon Go Stores
Amazon is testing new technology that scans the palm of your hand as payment. It rolled out at two of its Amazon Go stores in Seattle. Customers can now sync their palm scans to their credit cards. That way, anytime they come back, they can just flash their hands over a scanner to get into the store and buy goods. Amazon says the scanner is secure and customers can choose to have their data deleted at any time.
Read More: USA Today, TechCrunch, AP, Amazon, CNN Business
David Attenborough Breaks Instagram Record
Sir David Attenborough reached a million Instagram followers in record time. The 94-year-old broadcaster and natural historian met the milestone in only four hours and 44 minutes. Sir David Attenborough has spent his life exploring the planet and documenting it. You may have heard his voice in documentaries like BBC’s Planet Earth. He also holds the Guinness World Record for the longest career as a TV presenter and television naturalist.
Read More: The Verge, NPR, WaPo, Guinness
Work Wednesday: Young People Volunteer as Poll Workers
Younger people are stepping up to work at the polls on Election Day. Usually, poll workers are made up of retirees, but many of them have stepped back this year, since COVID-19 is particularly harmful to senior citizens. So some high schoolers and college students are stepping up. Many told USA Today they signed up to be poll workers because it’s a good way to help democracy. Still, more workers are needed.
Read More: NPR, USA Today, Forbes, Facebook