Thursday, December 2nd, 2021
First U.S. Omicron Case, MLB Lockout & People of the Year
All the news you need in about 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by Ritual.com/newsworthy and RadPowerBikes.com
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 peruse the latest happenings...
First Omicron Case Detected in the U.S.
The new Omicron variant of Covid-19 has now been confirmed here in the U.S. The first case was found in a person from San Francisco, California who recently came back home from South Africa. This person is fully vaccinated against Covid-19 with two Moderna shots. Health officials say they are a healthy adult, younger than 49 years old. Now, they’re in self-isolation dealing with mild Covid-19 symptoms. The U.S. is just the latest of more than 20 countries that have confirmed Omicron cases so far. Health officials are watching to see if Omicron becomes the dominant variant around the world soon.
Read More: LA Times, Reuters, CNBC, WaPo, White House
New HIV/AIDS Strategy
President Biden says he’ll ramp up efforts to end the AIDS epidemic by the end of this decade. The White House directed $2.2 billion to HIV primary medical care, medication, and essential support services. President Biden also brought back the White House Office of National AIDS Policy and promised the U.S. would release a new five-year “emergency plan” next year. Biden says that strategy will address inequities since LGBTQ and Black Americans have faced the brunt of the epidemic.
Read More: WaPo, The Hill, Axios, AP, White House
Alec Baldwin Talks About ‘Rust’ Shooting
For the first time since a deadly shooting on the set of his movie “Rust,” Alec Baldwin sat down for a formal interview about what happened. He told ABC News he didn’t pull the trigger, even though he was holding the gun, but the sheriff’s department that’s leading the investigation says Baldwin “fired” the gun. So, it’s not clear what happened. What's for sure is somehow, the gun did go off, shooting and killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. So far, no one has been charged with a crime for the shooting. Baldwin’s comments were shown in a preview for the full interview that’s airing on ABC tonight.
Read More: ABC News, CNN, Fox News, NY Times, Deadline
WTA Stops China Tournaments
The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) is suspending all tournaments in China over concerns for a player. Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai said she was sexually assaulted by a high-ranking Chinese government official. Since then, media coverage about Peng has been censored in China, and she hasn’t been seen in public in weeks, except with government officials. Now, the WTA’s president is demanding a full and transparent investigation. As of this morning, the Chinese government hasn’t responded to the boycott. Women’s tennis stands to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in the coming years by pulling out of China.
Read More: NPR, NY Times, WaPo, WSJ, WTA
MLB Lockout
Major League Baseball players are officially locked out. This is MLB’s version of a strike. It's the first lockout since 1994. For now, it means new player signings are on hold, next week’s annual winter meetings were canceled, and players have been banished from team workout facilities and weight rooms. It could also impact ticket sales for next season. The players’ union and the owners had until midnight this morning to reach a deal on a collective bargaining agreement, but since they couldn’t come to terms, the lockout started. Most of the issues are about money. If no deal is reached in 11 weeks, it could impact the next baseball season.
Read More: CBS Sports, ESPN, AP, LA Times, MLB, MLBPA
Stacey Abrams Running for Governor Again
Democrat Stacey Abrams garnered national attention back in 2018 when she ran for governor of Georgia and just barely lost to Republican Gov. Brian Kemp. Now, Abrams is running for Georgia's top job again, saying, “opportunity in our state shouldn’t be determined by zip code, background, or access to power.” But, the Republican Governors Association is strongly supporting the current Gov. Kemp, saying he’s shown courageous leadership while Abrams toured the country seeking fame and fortune. Kemp is already facing at least one other challenger first in the Republican primaries.
Read More: AJC, Politico, Fox News, Axios, Stacey Abrams
Planned Parenthood Data Breach
Planned Parenthood in Los Angeles has been hacked. Planned Parenthood is a reproductive healthcare provider, and the organization is now notifying 400,000 patients that their personal data, like names, addresses, insurance information, and clinical data may have been compromised. The hacker reportedly got access to the network, installed malware, and took files back in October. Planned Parenthood Los Angeles now says it’s hired a cybersecurity firm to help investigate and protect data moving forward.
Read More: LA Times, WSJ, WaPo, Bloomberg
Capital One Ditches Overdraft Fees
Capital One says it’s getting rid of all overdraft fees for its consumer bank customers. The company says the move means losing about $150 million in revenue a year. Overdraft fees are typically about $25-35 per transaction that goes beyond the amount of money left in a customer’s bank account. Capital One already offers overdraft protection that pays the amount, but the customer gets charged extra. Now, Capital One says that protection will be free. Or, for those who aren’t enrolled, the bank will just decline the transaction. The change is set to take effect early next year.
Read More: CNBC, Fox Business, CBS News, Reuters, Capital One
Square Name Change
Another big tech company is changing its name. The financial services company Square will become Block. Square is known for its payment processing tools, like the little white card reader many businesses use. That payment platform itself will still be called Square, but the corporate company is now Block. The company says there’s no single inspiration for the name change, but the name acknowledges the company’s growth. Block also owns the consumer payments and investing app Cash App, acquired the music streaming service Tidal, and started a financial services division focused on Bitcoin.
Read More: CNET, WSJ, The Verge, TechCrunch, Square
PEOPLE’s People of the Year
People Magazine’s 2021 ‘People of the Year’ are Olympic gymnast Simone Biles, country music icon Dolly Parton, award-winning actor Sandra Oh, and the nation’s teachers. People Magazine says these people all “led the way in their fields to help make the world a little better.” The magazine cited Simone Biles’ focus on mental health, saying she “redefined what it means to win in sports.” Dolly Parton donated $1 million to Covid-19 vaccine research. Sandra Oh fought anti-Asian hate and signed on to projects that showcase various perspectives and voices. And, the nation’s more than 3 million teachers showed resilience during the pandemic.
Read More: PEOPLE, AP, The Hill, Billboard
Thing to Know Thursday: Sequencing COVID Variant
If you get sick with Covid-19, chances are you won’t know which variant infected you. This is because it’s tough to know right away, and doctors don’t think it’s medically necessary since the treatment for Covid-19 is the same for now. But, it does matter for health departments to track the different variants so they can know how it’s spreading, who’s most impacted, and figure out what guidelines should be in place. There are a few dozen state public health labs that take positive Covid-19 tests and do full genetic sequencing on them. But, several public health experts think it’s not enough. The CDC says it's now leaning on states to do more.
Read More: NPR, BBC, Vox, KSHB