theNewsWorthy: Tuesday, May 7th, 2019
ALL THE NEWS YOU NEED - IN ONE PLACE.
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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...
UN Report: A new report from the UN says plants and animals are going extinct at an unprecedented rate, and we could see a massive die-off over the next few decades. About one million species are at risk of completely disappearing. This could have a major effect on humans by limiting our food sources. Climate change, overfishing and pollution have contributed to the situation, the report says.
Read more: NPR, USA Today, NYT, YouTube
Trump Tax Returns: The Treasury Department decided not to hand over Trump’s tax returns, marking the third time Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has rejected Democrats’ request. He says there is no legitimate reason to release the tax info, but Democrats argue it's for proper oversight. The matter could end up in federal court, which could reportedly take months – or even years – to resolve.
Read more: WSJ, Washington Post, NYT
Cohen's Comments: President Trump’s former fixer and lawyer Michael Cohen is now behind bars. He spent his final minutes of freedom talking to reporters. Though he didn’t mention President Trump by name, he used the opportunity to criticize him, saying he hopes when he gets out of prison “the country will be in a place without xenophobia, injustice and lies.”
Read more: ABC News, Reuters
Journalists Freed: Two award-winning Reuters journalists who spent 500 days in jail in Myanmar are now free. Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were arrested back in December of 2017. They were accused of having state secrets, but many believed it was all a set-up. The journalists told the media they’re excited to see family and get back to the newsroom.
Read more: Reuters, AP, TIME
Microsoft Voting Software: Microsoft is developing a new software called ElectionGuard in an effort to make voting more secure and transparent. It’s the first major tech company to take this on. Companies already making voting systems will have access to the program for free. ElectionGuard uses encryption techniques to let voters know when their vote is counted. It’s set to become available this summer and be tested during the 2020 elections.
Read more: TechCrunch, NPR, Engadget
CBS Changes: Big changes happening over at CBS News: Norah O’Donnell is leaving CBS This Morning and will become the third woman to solo anchor an evening network newscast (the first two were Katie Couric and Diane Sawyer). It’s all part of a major shake-up at the network.
Read more: CBS News
Post Privacy: Even when you think your posts on Facebook are private, thousands of strangers could be looking at them. Facebook hires people around the world to look at posts and label pictures to help "train" AI to identify different types of content. Some critics say this could cause even more privacy concerns for Facebook.
Read more: The Verge, Reuters
Royal Baby Born: It’s a boy! The Duchess of Sussex (Meghan Markle) gave birth yesterday, and the Duke of Sussex (Prince Harry) told reporters they're “absolutely thrilled.” The couple is breaking tradition a bit by keeping the baby’s arrival fairly private. Watch Prince Harry share his excitement on camera.
Read more: BBC, CBS News, People
Game of Thrones Coffee Cup: Fans spotted a modern-day coffee cup on Sunday's episode of Game of Thrones. The cup was only visible for a few seconds but it was enough to go viral. HBO admitted it was a mistake, and Starbucks even used the opportunity to plug its 'Dragon Drink.'
Read more: The Verge, Deadline, NYT
Wendy’s Social Promise: Another viral post means Wendy’s will bring back its spicy chicken nuggets. Chance the Rapper tweeted that he wanted the nuggets to make a comeback, since they’ve been discontinued for a few years. Wendy’s said they would if two million people liked a tweet. It worked.
Read more: Business Insider