theNewsWorthy: Tuesday, May 28th, 2019
ALL THE NEWS YOU NEED - IN ONE PLACE.
(in less than 10 minutes!)
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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...
Oklahoma Weather: People in Oklahoma and Arkansas are preparing for the worst flooding in recorded history. The Arkansas River already hit record-breaking levels and is still rising as more storms approach. Oklahoma also saw a powerful and deadly tornado over the weekend.
Read more: AccuWeather, The Weather Channel
Japan Stabbing: A man with a knife injured at least 19 people and killed at least one girl when he attacked a group of schoolchildren waiting for the bus. The attacker then took his own life. It happened in a city just outside Tokyo. Officials say they don’t know the motive yet.
Read more: AP, BBC, CNN
Trump in Japan: President Trump has returned from a four-day trip to Japan. There was a bit of tension between Trump and Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, mostly over trade and North Korea. While Trump says North Korea’s recent missile tests don’t bother him, U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton has said there’s “no doubt” the tests are a violation of U.N. resolutions. Japan also sees those missile tests as a threat.
Read more: AP, The Hill, Washington Post, CNN
Theresa May Steps Down: U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May is stepping down. May has tried – and failed – to get Parliament to approve a Brexit plan to help ensure the U.K. leaves the E.U. with a strategy in place. She will continue to fill in until her replacement is decided (by the Conservative Party, not a general election). As of right now, the frontrunner is Boris Johnson, a Conservative member of Parliament and the former mayor of London. He’s a supporter of Brexit, but one of the most divisive political figures in the U.K.
Read more: NPR, BBC, NYT, AP, The Washington Post, NBC News, TIME
Hiker Rescued: A hiker in Hawaii who survived for more than two weeks in the forest by herself has been rescued. She survived on wild fruit, water and determination. The physical therapist thanked the hundreds of volunteers who continued to search for her for 17 days.
Read more: USA Today, TIME
Mt. Everest Traffic Jam: It’s been one of the most dangerous seasons on Mount Everest, with at least 11 deaths. One of the reported issues this year is a traffic jam at the summit: a photo shows a long line of people huddled together along a dangerous ridge waiting their turn to make it to the top.
Read more: CNN, NYT, CBS News
Opioid Trial: The first major opioid lawsuit to go to trial starts today in Oklahoma. The state is challenging the companies that actually make the drugs, saying they knew they were fueling a deadly epidemic. The trial's outcome could impact thousands of lawsuits against drug companies brought by states and other local communities.
Read more: WSJ, CBS News, The Washington Post, NPR
Most Expensive Drug: The FDA just approved the world’s most expensive medicine. It will cost more than $2 million. The drugmaker says it's working with insurance companies to set up a payment plan. The one-time injection is a gene therapy used to treat kids with spinal muscular atrophy, the leading genetic cause of deaths in babies.
Read more: CNBC, Reuters
Indy 500: The Indianapolis 500 is known as the greatest spectacle in racing, and this year’s winner is Simon Pagenaud. Pagenaud won for the first time in his career, but only by two-tenths of a second. Pagenaud calls the win “a dream come true.”
Read more: CBS Sports, NYT
Major Merger?: A major deal in the car industry is in the works. Fiat Chrysler wants to merge with French car company Renault, which would create the third largest automaker in the world (in production). Carmakers are under pressure to make electric and self-driving cars. By merging, these companies could save billions of dollars and use that to invest in new technology. We'll see if the deal goes through.
Read more: NBC News, WSJ
IKEA App: The world’s biggest furniture retailer is trying to be even more digital-friendly. IKEA is revamping its augmented reality app to let customers visualize how their homes could look with IKEA’s furniture and then buy it all from the app.
Read more: Reuters
Snapchat & TikTok's Future: Snapchat is working with major record labels to bring more music to the app. Snapchat would license songs for users to use in their posts, similar to Instagram and TikTok, but it's not final yet. Speaking of video app TikTok, its parent company ByteDance may be making its own smartphone. If it happens, the China-based company could face some roadblocks in the U.S. as the Trump administration has been pushing back against Chinese tech companies.
Read more (Snapchat): Mashable, WSJ
Read more (TikTok): TechCrunch, The Verge
Aladdin Wins: Disney’s live-action film Aladdin brought in $113 million in North America over the four-day holiday weekend, which was even better than expected. The remake is now the fifth-highest Memorial Day weekend total ever.
Read more: Variety