Thursday, January 16th, 2020
Russia Gov’t Resigns, First Living Robots & Hall of Fame Inductees
(+ Royal Exit Explained)
All the news you need in less than 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by Zola. Go to www.Zola.com/newsworthy and use promo code mentioned
Thanks to The NewsWorthy Insiders! Become one here: www.theNewsWorthy.com/insider
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 perusing the latest happenings...
Impeachment Trial:
The House delivered the articles of impeachment to the Senate yesterday, setting the stage for the third impeachment trial in American history. Chief Justice John Roberts is expected to swear in the 100 senators today, though the significant portion of the trial won’t get underway until next week. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the seven House Democrats who will act as prosecutors in the trial. House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff will lead the way. President Trump has chosen White House counsel Pat Cipollone to lead his defense. There’s now controversy about how much access reporters will have during the trial.
Read more: CBS News, NYT, The Hill, Fox News, Politico
U.S. & China Trade Deal:
President Trump and China’s vice premier signed phase one of a trade agreement yesterday. The deal forces China to buy more U.S. exports and allows U.S. banks and insurers to expand in China. In exchange, the U.S. will cut tariffs. Critics says the deal is “weak” and was already covered by “existing agreements.” The new agreement had a positive impact on the stock market: the S&P 500 and Dow closed at record highs yesterday.
U.S. & China Sign Trad Deal: WSJ, ABC News, The Hill
Stocks Rise After Signing: Market Watch, AP
Russia Government Resigns:
Russia’s prime minister and entire government resigned yesterday. Outgoing officials say they didn’t do it in protest and are just getting out of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s way. Putin apparently wants to restructure the government to give other positions more power, which could potentially carve out a path for him to have power well past his presidency. Putin won’t be allowed to run for president again in 2024 because of term limits, but he could take another government role.
Read more: NYT, NBC News, CNN
Smoke Spreading:
Smoke from the wildfires in Australia has spread around the world. NASA found the smoke has traveled halfway around Earth, impacting the air quality in other countries. It’s expected the smoke will make at least one full circuit around the globe. In Australia the air quality is so bad from the devastating fires that some professional tennis players had to withdraw from their matches during the Australian Open.
Read more: CNN, ABC News, Weather Channel
Equal Rights Amendment:
Virginia made history when state lawmakers passed the Equal Rights Amendment. The ERA guarantees equal rights to everyone, regardless of sex. It’s a big moment in a long effort to add protections for women to the U.S. Constitution since it takes 38 states to turn an amendment into law (and Virginia was the 38th state to pass it). That said, the original deadline was back in the 80s, so some say it's legally expired. The fight will likely end up in court.
Read more: Washington Post, CBS News, NPR
Romaine Lettuce Safe Again:
It’s officially safe to eat romaine lettuce again. The CDC lifted the warning about E. coli contamination after nearly 200 people in 27 states got sick. No one died, but officials are still working to find out where the outbreak started.
Read more: USA Today, The Hill
World’s First Living Robots:
Scientists have created the world’s first living robots. At a millimeter wide, they’re made from frog stem cells and can apparently heal themselves. Researchers call these “xenobots” a new life form, which could eventually be used inside the human body to reprogram tumors, deliver drugs or scrape plaque out of arteries.
Read more: CNN, Engadget
Ninja Gets Fornite Character:
Hugely popular gamer Ninja has made millions of dollars playing Fortnite; now he’ll be in the game. Fortnite is adding a Ninja skin to the game, which is essentially a character that looks like him. The maker of Fortnite says Ninja is just the first of many real-world personalities coming to the game.
Read more: CNET, Business Insider
Spotify's Playlist for Pets:
Spotify is creating a list of songs for pets and owners. It's a bit odd, but the company did a survey and found 71 percent of pet owners around the world play music for their pets. Now, you can go to Spotify’s ‘Pet Playlist’ website to get yours.
Read more: The Verge, Billboard, Spotify for Pets
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Inductees:
Whitney Houston, The Doobie Brothers, The Notorious B.I.G. and others are being added to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. This year’s inductees were voted in by a group of more than one-thousand artists and members of the music industry who looked at style, musical influence and length of their career. The Hall of Fame induction ceremony will air live on HBO in May.
Read more: Variety, Rolling Stone
Thing To Know Thursday
Prince harry & meghan markle ‘step back’
EXPLAINING THE ROYAL COUPLE’S EXIT
Guest: Victoria Arbiter
CNN Royal Commentator Victoria Arbiter has spent a lifetime in close proximity to the British Royal Family. Her extensive knowledge and objectivity offers a unique perspective based purely on fact and insider knowledge.
In addition to her position with CNN Victoria is also a regular contributor to CBSN, Yahoo News, Entertainment Tonight, CTV (Canada), ITV (UK) and Channel 7 in Australia.