 |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| Happy Thursday, Daily Briefing readers! It's a day of firsts as President Joe Biden will hold his first news conference since taking the oath of office in January. It's also a day of lasts as Thursday is the final day teams in the NBA can make player moves as the trade deadline falls at 3 p.m. ET. It's also a day we've seen before as the CEOs from the biggest tech companies will answer questions yet again from members of Congress. |
| Steve and Jane are here with Thursday's news. |
| Let's get started with some stories that people are talking about today. |
| 💉 AstraZeneca released updated information on its COVID-19 clinical trial Wednesday evening, showing an effectiveness rate of 76% instead of the 79% rate it claimed earlier in the week. The update came after an independent review committee that examined the results said the data was misleading, because it contained information only through Feb. 17. |
| ⚖ In the early months of the pandemic, when COVID-19 tests were scarce, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo vowed to make the testing available to those most in need. Apparently, that included family members and other well-connected people close to his administration, according to two reports. |
| 🏔 On Wednesday night, as a string quartet played while a news helicopter clattered overhead, hundreds of mourners held candles and flowers in downtown Boulder, Colorado, to pay their respects and call for a more loving and supportive world after the attack at a supermarket Monday that left 10 dead. |
| 💻 Chrissy Teigen said that she is walking away from Twitter because the constant criticism thrown her way has taken a toll on her mental health. Teigen is not alone as Pamela Anderson and Alec Baldwin are among the celebrities who have abandoned various social media platforms this year. Experts say we could all try taking a page out of their playbook. |
| 🏀 Midweek March Madness! In the Mercado Region of the women's NCAA Tournament, Jordan Nixon's layup at the buzzer gave second-seeded Texas A&M a dramatic 84-82 overtime victory over No. 7 Iowa State at the Alamodome in San Antonio on Wednesday night. The Aggies will face No. 3 Arizona in the Sweet 16. |
| 🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, Washington Bureau chief Susan Page looks at new polling data that shows most Americans support stricter gun laws. You can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker. |
| Here's what's happening today: |
Biden to hold his first solo news conference as president |
| On the 65th day of his term in office, President Joe Biden will hold a news conference from the White House for the first time Thursday. While he has taken questions from reporters on other occasions, this will be an arena for members of the media to ask pressing questions on the situation at the southern border, the coronavirus pandemic, recent gun violence and more. The president also has the opportunity to strike a different tone with reporters than his predecessor, Donald Trump, who frequently sparred with the media and deemed them "the enemy of the people." White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday that Biden is "looking forward to the opportunity to engage with a free press." |
| |
Boulder shooting suspect to appear in court for the first time |
| The suspect in the Boulder, Colorado, mass shooting that left 10 people dead will appear in court Thursday and face charges of first-degree murder. Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 21, will be advised at the hearing of the charges he faces and his rights as a defendant. He won't enter a plea until later in the judicial process. Alissa's court appearance comes nearly three days after he was shot by police during the shooting and taken into custody. A police affidavit said he left a rifle and handgun in the store when he was apprehended. |
| |
| New this morning: As climate change strikes the USA in devastating ways, governors in California, New Jersey, Louisiana and Colorado have laid out ambitious timetables for ramping down climate emissions. Yet in these same states, the nonprofit news organization Capital & Main found that oil companies are granted approval for projects that will tie their financial success to fossil fuel production for decades to come. |
| ICYMI: Dr. Rachel Levine became the first openly transgender official confirmed by the U.S. Senate, making history as she advanced to serve as the assistant secretary of Health and Human Services in the Biden administration. |
What else people are reading: |
| 🔵 Former child star Houston Tumlin, who is best known for playing Will Ferrell's son in "Talladega Nights," died by suicide at the age of 28. Tumlin played Walker Bobby, one of the trash-talking sons of Ferrell's iconic character, in the 2006 NASCAR-themed comedy. |
| 🔵 The Internal Revenue Service sent out COVID-19 relief checks to another 37 million Americans under the second round of payments made under President Joe Biden's American Rescue Plan, the agency said Wednesday. If you haven't received your payment yet, you can get updates by using the IRS "Get My Payment" tool. |
| 🔵 J.C. Penney has delayed the closings of 15 stores that were scheduled to shutter in March and added three locations to its closure list. Check to see if the store location near you is on the list. |
| 🔵 Patriots player Justin Herron was one of the two Good Samaritans who saved a woman who was being attacked in a park in Arizona and held the suspect until police could arrest him last week. Herron and fellow rescuer Murry Rogers, a Phoenix resident, were both presented with "Outstanding Service" awards by police. |
| 🔵 South Korea said its neighbor North Korea fired two unidentified projectiles into its eastern waters Thursday, as it revived its testing activity to expand its military capabilities and pressure the Biden administration while nuclear negotiations remain stalled. |
Millions in South brace for possible tornadoes, severe weather |
| Millions of people across the South are bracing for another severe weather outbreak Thursday, just a week after dozens of tornadoes tore across the region. Long-track tornadoes – twisters that carve up the ground for several miles – are possible, the National Weather Service said. Large hail, damaging wind gusts and localized flash flooding are also a concern. In all, about 50 million people live where severe storms are possible Thursday, including Birmingham, Alabama; Jackson, Mississippi; and Memphis and Nashville in Tennessee. |
| |
Newsmakers in their own words: Jay Leno apologizes for racist jokes |
| Comedian and former "Tonight Show" host Jay Leno has apologized for decades of racist jokes he's made about Asian people. Leno recently met with the Media Action Network for Asian Americans (MANAA) to discuss how his past comments have been harmful to the Asian community, according to a news release from the advocacy group. Leno added that MANAA, which seeks to improve the depiction of Asian Americans in media, has "been very gracious in accepting my apology." Leno's apology comes in the wake of three shootings near Atlanta-area spas on March 16, in which eight people, most of them of Asian descent, were killed. |
Tech CEOs to speak at misinformation hearing on Capitol Hill |
| Facebook Chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Google CEO Sundar Pichai and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey will appear before two House subcommittees Thursday at a hearing titled, "Disinformation Nation: Social Media's Role in Promoting Extremism and Misinformation." The hearing comes on the heels of a dozen state attorneys general, in a letter sent Wednesday, calling on Facebook and Twitter to take more aggressive action against conspiracy theories, hoaxes and lies that are undermining public confidence in the COVID-19 vaccines. The letter cited research from the Center for Countering Digital Hate and Anti-Vax Watch showing that a small number of anti-vaccine accounts are responsible for falsehoods about the safety of the vaccines that have reached more than 59 million on Facebook, Instagram, Google's YouTube and Twitter. |
| |
NBA title contenders look to make a splash before trade deadline |
| In an NBA season with more unpredictable results than normal further impacted by numerous high-profile injuries, a series of teams are reportedly in the mix to make moves prior to the league's trade deadline Thursday at 3 p.m. ET. Championship contenders like the Los Angeles Lakers, Brooklyn Nets, Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Clippers are rumored to be interested in trading for the likes of Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry, New Orleans Pelicans guard Lonzo Ball and Cleveland Cavaliers center Andre Drummond. Other big-name trade targets that could land on playoff teams: Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon, Houston Rockets guard Victor Oladipo, New Orleans Pelicans guard JJ Redick and Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins. |
| |
ICYMI: Some of our other top stories published Wednesday |
| |
| |
| |
| |
No comments:
Post a Comment