Monday, February 24th, 2020
Democratic Frontrunner, AI-Discovered Antibiotic & Friends Reunion
All the news you need in less than 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 perusing the latest happenings...
Nevada Caucus Results:
Sen. Bernie Sanders won the Nevada caucuses over the weekend. He’s now considered the frontrunner in the race for which Democrat will take on President Trump in November. Sanders also held rallies in California and Texas ahead of Super Tuesday on March 3, and his momentum is making some moderate Democrats nervous. They worry his call for a political “revolution” might make it tough to appeal to independents. Former Vice President Joe Biden came in second and former Mayor Pete Buttigieg came in third in Nevada.
Read more: AP, NYT, WaPo
President Trump in India:
President Trump is on his first presidential visit to India this week. Trade talks are on the agenda, and Trump is expected to speak in front of what may be the largest crowd he’s ever addressed. More to come this week...
Read more: FOX News, LA Times
COVID-19 Update:
South Korea just went on its highest alert level for infectious diseases, which gives the government the right to lock down cities and limit travel. More than 300 new cases have been confirmed just in the last few days. The number of cases is also going up in Iran and Italy. The spike caused Italian officials to cancel events and lock down about a dozen small towns and cancel some events. That said, most cases are still concentrated in mainland China.
South Korea: WaPo, NYT
Italy: BBC, WSJ, NBC News
RIP B. Smith:
Model turned lifestyle-guru, author and restaurant owner B. Smith has passed away from Alzheimer's Disease. The 70-year-old was one of the country’s first high-profile black models, and she went on to own several restaurants in New York and Washington D.C. She also wrote three cookbooks, launched a home goods line and hosted her own TV show called B.Smith With Style.
Read more: USA Today, ABC News, Variety
Kobe Bryant Memorial:
A public memorial will be held today in Los Angeles to honor Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna, and the seven others who died in last month’s helicopter crash. It’ll take place at the Staples Center where Bryant played 20 seasons with the LA Lakers. Vanessa Bryant and her daughters will be there in their first public appearance since the crash. Tickets for the memorial sold out last week, but it will be live-streamed online.
Read more: NBC News, USA Today
Fury vs. Wilder:
Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder faced off on Saturday night in one of the most anticipated re-matches in recent boxing history. It has been called the biggest heavyweight fight of the past 20 years. Tyson Fury won after Wilder threw in the towel during the seventh round for the first defeat of his boxing career.
Read more: ESPN, CBS Sports
AI-Discovered Antibiotic:
Scientists have discovered a new type of antibiotic by using artificial intelligence. A powerful algorithm was used to analyze more than 100 million chemical compounds in a matter of days. The new antibiotic was shown to be able to kill 35 types of potentially deadly bacteria. While AI has been used in the medical space before, it’s a world first for this type of discovery.
Read more: FT, BBC, Engadget
Trump on YouTube:
President Trump’s campaign will claim some of the most sought-after ad space on the internet: the top of YouTube on Election Day. No word yet on what the ad will look like, but the ad buy is said to cost as much as $1 million per day.
Read more: Bloomberg, TechCrunch, The Hill, NPR
Lyft Cartop Ads:
Lyft just acquired Halo Cars, a small startup that lets ride-hailing drivers earn money by putting ads on top of their cars -- similar to the look of a taxi. The deal could mean Lyft drivers will start running these ads as a way to make extra money, but it's still not clear if the company itself will keep the money or want a cut.
Read more: Axios, Engadget
NAACP Image Awards:
The 51st annual NAACP Image Awards happened over the weekend. Anthony Anderson hosted the ceremony, and his series Black-ish won several awards. Lizzo was recognized as Entertainer of the Year. Just Mercy won Best Film. Rihanna got a standing ovation when she accepted the President’s Award for her philanthropy and called for more unity in the country.
Read more: THR, USA Today
Friends Reunion:
An unscripted, one-off Friends special reunion will air on HBO Max when the new streaming service launches in May. It will celebrate the sitcom’s 25th anniversary and the launch of the entire library of the former NBC favorite on the new streaming platform. The cast will earn more than double their former per-episode pay to take home about $2.5 million each. There will only be one episode, and the cast says they won’t be doing a full reboot.
Read more: The Hollywood Reporter, People
Weekend Box Office:
Sonic the Hedgehog came in first again at the box office this weekend, barely beating The Call of the Wild, an adaptation of the 1903 book by Jack London. Both movies beat expectations despite criticisms of the characters.
Read more: Variety, Deadline, AP
Money Monday – Ride-Sharing Spending:
Research from the money-managing app Empower (a new sponsor) shows Americans in some cities spend upwards of $100 per month on ride-sharing services, like Lyft and Uber. Users in San Francisco spend an average of $110 per month, while riders in cities like St. Louis, Missouri spent about $30 per month. A different recent survey also showed the average household spend on taxi-like services in the U.S. more than tripled from 2015 to 2018.
Read more: Business Insider, CNBC, Quartz