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Best Buy and Kohl's extends streak of quarterly sales slumps as Americans focus on the essentials None - The earnings results from Best Buy and Kohl’s, announced Thursday, offer the latest evidence of consumers’ cautious spending amid a challenging economic environment Best Buy and Kohl's extends streak of quarterly sales slumps as Americans focus on the essentials NEW YORK -- The earnings results from Best Buy and Kohl's, announced Thursday, offer the latest evidence of consumers' cautious spending amid a challenging economic environment. Best Buy, the nation's largest consumer electronics chain, reported another quarterly drop in sales as Americans pull back on gadget spending to prioritize essential purchases and pay more for things like rent. The company, based in Minneapolis, has reported quarterly sales declines for more than two years, a stretch reaching back to the pandemic when households were bulking up on new laptops and other goods to work from home. Sales were worse than Wall Street had expected, but profits were better than projected. Best Buy offered a muted forecast for the year. But shares rose more than 11% in morning trading as investors appeared to like how the company is trying to get shoppers to spend again. Kohl's reported a loss in the latest quarter and another drop in sales as the various moves to fix its business still haven't been enough to get shoppers to spend. The department store chain is also facing increasing competition from the likes of discounters and off-price stores like TJ Maxx which offer trendy apparel at affordable prices. The results missed Wall Street expectations, and Kohl’s offered a disappointing outlook. Shares of the retailer dropped close to 25%. The U.S. job market has remained strong, but Americans are paying more for necessities like rent and groceries even as inflation appears to have begun to cool overall. But Americans are paying more when they use credit cards because interest rates are higher, leading many to put off big ticket purchases like appliances and other goods typically bought using credit. They're also focusing more on experiences like travel and tickets to concerts. For Best Buy, that was a reversal of what they saw during the height of the pandemic, when its sales were being fueled by oversized spending from workers splurged on electronics to help them work from home, or to get their children better equipped for virtual learning. Government stimulus checks fueled a lot of that spending as well. Best Buy plans to modernize stores to entice shoppers and focus on its paid membership services that have resonated with its customers. The company has been also reducing its layers of management and reinvesting in more labor at its stores to help shoppers. “Customers remained very deal-focused and attracted to more predictable sales moments,” Best Buy CEO Corie Barry told analysts during the call. She said the overall appliance category has been very promotional, but the company has focused on being thoughtful in its deals. Barry told reporters on a media call on Thursday that Best Buy was also hurt by the pause in innovation as manufacturers were focusing on supply chain issues during the height of the pandemic. But she thinks that new gadgets like the new class of AI-imbued personal computers from the likes of Microsoft, while expensive, are more efficient and offer more battery life that shoppers will value. And those new devices will result in lower prices of the older computers. Best Buy reported a profit of $246 million, or $1.13 per share, for the quarter ended May 4. That compares with a profit of $244 million, or $1.11 per share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted earnings per share was $1.20, easily topping Wall Street expectations for $1.08, according to a poll by FactSet. Sales fell to $8.85 billion from $9.46 billion, and were short of the $8.96 billion that industry analysts had expected. Comparable sales — those from established online and physical store channels — dropped 6.1%. Best Buy anticipates earnings per share for the year ranging from $5.75 to $6.20 on revenue ranging from $41.3 billion to $42.6 billion. Analysts have been projecting earnings of $6.04 per share on revenue of $41.94 billion. Kohl's reported a loss of $27 million, or 24 cents per share, in the quarter ended May 4. That compares with a profit of $14 million, or 13 cents per share, in the year ago period. Analysts were expecting a profit of 5 cents, according to a poll by FactSet. The company said that sales were down 5.3% to $3.18 billion from $3.36 billion in the year-ago quarter. Analysts were expecting sales of $3.4 billion, according to FactSet. Comparable sales were down 4.4%. Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobaData, a research company, said the numbers are worse than they appear. First, he said, the latest results mark the third year in which first-quarter sales have declined. And, compared to the same period in 2019, sales are down by a sharp 16.8%. In cash terms, this means Kohl’s has lost $643 million in revenue. Saunders also highlighted that sales have been boosted by a sharp uptick in beauty, which have been driven by its partnership with Sephora. Excluding those figures, sales across Kohl’s core categories are even more negative than they appear, Saunders wrote. Kohl's, based in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, projected that annual earnings per share should range from $1.25 to $1.85 per share. Analysts were expecting $2.40, on average. It also expects sales for the year to decline anywhere from 2% to 4%. Comparable sales are projected to decline anywhere from 1% to 3%.
Tens of billions of dollars in gold flows illegally out of Africa each year, a new report says None - A new report has found that billions of dollars in gold is smuggled out of Africa each year and most of it ends up in the United Arab Emirates, where it is refined and sold to customers around the world Tens of billions of dollars in gold flows illegally out of Africa each year, a new report says DAKAR, Senegal -- Billons of dollars in gold is smuggled out of Africa each year and most of it ends up in the United Arab Emirates, where it is refined and sold to customers around the world, according to a report published Thursday. Over $30 billion worth of gold, or more than 435 metric tons, was smuggled out of the continent in 2022, according to the report published by Swissaid, an aid and development group based in Switzerland. The main destinations for African gold were the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Switzerland. The authors of the report said their goal was to make the trade in African gold more transparent and put pressure on industry players to do more to make gold supplies traceable and supply chains more responsible. "We hope that this will improve the living conditions of local populations and the working conditions of artisanal miners throughout Africa,” Yvan Schulz, one of the report's authors, told The Associated Press. The report found that between 32% and 41% of gold produced in Africa was not declared. In 2022, Ghana was the largest gold producer in Africa, followed by Mali and South Africa, it said. The UAE was by far the main destination for smuggled gold, the report said, with some 405 metric tons of undeclared output from Africa ending up there. During a 10-year period between 2012-2022, that amount summed up to 2,569 metric tons of gold, worth around $115 billion. The report said the gap between UAE imports and exports from African countries has widened over the years, meaning that the amount of gold smuggled out of Africa appears to have increased over the past decade. For example, it widened from 234 metric tons in 2020 to 405 in 2022. Switzerland, another main buyer of African gold, imported some 21 metric tons of undeclared gold from Africa in 2022, the report said. The real figure could be much higher if African gold imported through third countries was taken into consideration, the report said, but once gold is refined, it is virtually impossible to follow its flow to it final destination. The United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database, which contains detailed imports and exports statistics, shows that Switzerland is the main buyer of gold from the UAE. “Sourcing gold from the UAE is notoriously risky,” the report said, describing the difficulty in ascertaining the origins of the refined gold. A official within the UAE government's media office said the country has taken significant steps to address concerns around gold smuggling and the risks it poses. The continued growth of the UAE's gold market reflected the confidence of the international community in its processes, the official said, responding on behalf of the country's press office without providing further identification. “The UAE remains steadfast in its efforts to combat gold smuggling and ensure the highest standards of transparency and accountability within the gold and precious metals sector,” the official said. The Swiss government said it was aware of the challenges identifying the origins of gold and that it had introduced measures to prevent illegal flows. “Switzerland is and stays committed to improve the traceability of commodity flows, the transparency of statistics and the quality of controls," Fabian Maienfisch, spokesperson for Switzerland's State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, said. The report compared export data from African countries with import data from non-African countries, along with other calculations, to extrapolate the data. Among its recommendations, it called on African states to take steps to formalize artisanal and small scale mining and reinforce border controls. It also called on non-African states to publish the identity of the countries of origin and the countries of dispatch of imported gold, and to work with authorities to identify illicit gold flows. ___ Associated Press writer Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.
Xi pledges more Gaza aid and talks trade at summit with Arab leaders None - Chinese President Xi Jinping is calling for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and promising more humanitarian aid for people in Gaza BEIJING -- Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated calls for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state and promised more humanitarian aid for people in Gaza as he opened a summit with leaders of Arab states Thursday in Beijing. “Since last October, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict has escalated drastically, throwing people into tremendous suffering,” Xi said in a speech opening the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum. “War should not continue indefinitely." He called for an international peace conference for resolving the Israel-Hamas war and pledged 500 million yuan ($69 million) in humanitarian aid for Gaza. He also promised to donate $3 million to a United Nations agency that provides assistance and relief to refugees of the Israel-Hamas war. Beijing and the Arab states support Palestinians in the conflict, where Israel is facing growing international condemnation after its strike in the southern Gaza city of Rafah in which at least 45 people were killed over the weekend. The overall Palestinian death toll in the war exceeds 36,000, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Beijing has long backed Palestinians and denounced Israel over its settlements in the occupied territories. It has not criticized the Hamas attack on Oct. 7 — which killed about 1,200 Israelis — while the United States and others have called it an act of terrorism. However, China has growing economic ties with Israel. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, who spoke at the opening ceremony, praised China for supporting an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. “I call on all active actors of the international community to assume their moral and legal responsibilities to stop the outrageous Israeli war," el-Sissi said. "I further urge the international community to take immediate and decisive action to enforce the instantaneous and unfettered delivery of humanitarian aid and assistance to the Gaza Strip to break the Israeli siege and counter any attempts to forcibly displace the Palestinians from their lands,” el-Sissi said. Besides addressing the war, the Chinese leader also called on Arab states to deepen cooperation in areas such as trade, clean energy, space exploration and health care. The summit attended by heads of state from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Tunisia among others was set to focus on China’s expanding trade ties and on security concerns related to the Israel-Hamas war. “China’s priorities in the region are primarily economic,” said Maria Papageorgiou, a lecturer in politics and international relations at University of Exeter. “It wants to continue the momentum established in recent years with Gulf states and expand its investments, particularly in trade, technology (5G networks), and other cyber initiatives.” Additionally, China wants to present itself as an alternative to the West and a more credible partner to the region, one that doesn't interfere in the nations' domestic affairs nor exert pressure, Papageorgiou said. Xi and el-Sissi had a bilateral meeting on Wednesday, during which they signed a series of cooperation agreements in areas such as infrastructure, technology and food imports meant to strengthen their ties. China has invested billions of dollars in Egyptian state projects, including a Suez Canal economic zone and a new administrative capital east of Cairo. Investments between Egypt and China amounted to around $14 billion in 2023, compared to $16.6 billion in 2022, according to Egypt’s statistics agency. Also at the forum are Tunisia’s President Kais Saied, Emirati President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Bahrain King Hamad. The China-Arab States Cooperation Forum was established in 2004 as a formal dialogue mechanism between China and Arab states. China is Tunisia’s fourth-largest trading partner after Germany, Italy and France. Beijing has financed hospitals and sports complexes in Tunisia, and its companies have been contracted to build strategic infrastructure such as bridges and deep-water Mediterranean ports. The UAE also has expansive, growing economic relations with China and has faced U.S. criticism for an alleged Chinese military facility being built in Abu Dhabi. Besides China’s expansive trade ties in the Middle East, it has increasingly sought to play a diplomatic role in the region. In 2023, Beijing helped broker an agreement that saw Saudi Arabia and Iran reestablish diplomatic relations after seven years of tension in a role previously reserved for longtime global heavyweights like the U.S. and Russia. ___ Mistreanu reported from Taipei, Taiwan. Associated Press journalists Fatma Khaled in Cairo; Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates; and Sam Metz in Agadir, Morocco; and video producer Liu Zheng in Beijing contributed to this report.
Video Orange juice prices hit a record high None - 2020’s DNC and RNC are different than any before
Supreme Court gives homeowners another chance in escrow dispute with Bank of America None - The Supreme Court has given homeowners another chance to force Bank of America and other large banks to pay interest on mortgage escrow accounts Supreme Court gives homeowners another chance in escrow dispute with Bank of America WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court on Thursday gave homeowners another chance to force Bank of America and other large banks to pay interest on mortgage escrow accounts. The court unanimously threw out an appeals court ruling in favor of Bank of America, which has refused to pay interest on money it collects to pay borrowers' insurance and property tax bills. New York requires banks to pay at 2% interest on escrowed funds. Thirteen other states have similar laws: California, Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Oregon, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont and Wisconsin. A federal judge initially ruled in favor of the borrowers, but the federal appeals court in New York granted Bank of America's request to dismiss the suits, arguing that the federal law governing national banks does not permit such state-by-state regulation. Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the Supreme Court that the appeals court did not perform the kind of nuanced analysis required by federal law and prior Supreme Court decisions to determine if a state law must give way to a federal statute. In particular, Kavanaugh noted that the Dodd-Frank Act, enacted after the 2008 financial crisis, made clear that not all state banking laws are pre-empted. Jonathan Taylor, who argued the case for the homeowners, said in an email that the decision is a victory for consumers because it “vindicates Congress’ determination in Dodd-Frank to rein in the kind of aggressive preemption of state consumer-financial laws that helped lead to the financial crisis.” Bank of America did not immediately comment on the decision.
Gift registries after divorce offer a new way to support loved ones None - NEW YORK -- Monogrammed towels. A toothbrush holder for four, rather than three. Shared bedding. For people putting a life back together after divorce, mundane household objects can be painful marital reminders. Also difficult can be the absence of items that departed with the ex-spouse. Olivia Howell knows all too well how it felt, going through her own divorce in 2019 after eight years of marriage and two kids. Her husband decamped with his stuff and she donated other items that triggered unwelcome emotions to a thrift shop. “What was left in the house was almost nothing,” she said. Howell then got busy replenishing, and trying to make the experience better for others through Fresh Starts. It's a gift registry specifically for rebuilding after divorce that's also packed with vetted experts if needed and other resources. Divorce registries are part of a trend toward breaking the stigma of broken marriages, along with divorce parties and formal divorce announcements akin to wedding and marriage news. Howell built Fresh Starts from the ground up with her sister, Jenny Dreizen, who found herself in a similar situation after the end of a long-term relationship. Nearly three years after launch, it remains a rare support resource offering divorce-specific registries for those starting over, and for loved ones who may struggle to find the right words and ways to reach out. “I thought, you know, I had a baby registry and I had a wedding registry. This is when I actually need things to restock my life. I need the community support. I need new towels. I need new sheets, I need new utensils,” the 39-year-old Howell said. Today, Fresh Starts has between 50,000 and 70,000 monthly visitors. The sisters also host a podcast, “A Fresh Story,” featuring guests discussing how they began again after divorce or navigated other huge life changes. Erin Eloise Tulberg, a yoga teacher, actor and dancer in Brooklyn, has not yet finalized her divorce as she works out custody arrangements for her 9-year-old son. She started using Fresh Starts last summer at the suggestion of a friend. “There was an immediate need for me to get my own apartment. I was moving into a place with absolutely nothing. I had no furniture. I had no kitchenware. I had my clothes and my books,” said Tulberg, 37. The situation, she said, was “kind of scary.” Originally from Washington state, her closest family and friends are scattered around the country. “It was a great way to have my friends rally behind me,” Tulberg said of her registry. Flowers, bottles of wine, and a pile of “I'm sorrys” or “congratulations,” depending, are often how divorce news plays out. Those looking to support their friends or relatives don't often think about the need for a lamp or new sheets, Howell said. They may also not understand the emotional impact that simple objects can take on. New household goods at a time of rupture and despair can draw community closer and become totems, a rebirth of sorts, said Leslie Jamison, a Brooklyn novelist and essayist whose latest book, “Splinters,” is a personal exploration of her own divorce. “Part of it is a kind of faith and hope and trust that a new version of one’s life, household, family not only is possible but can be filled with beauty,” she said. Howell, among the first of her friends to get divorced, had loved ones who checked in daily to make sure she was eating and sleeping. They sent Mother's Day gifts after her separation just ahead of the holiday. And they reassured her with standing offers to assist in any way. But there was a lot they didn't immediately understand. “Every time I would go into the bathroom, I would feel horrible because I would see a toothbrush holder for a life that I thought I was going to have. It made me feel so much shame and guilt, and all of those other feelings that come with divorce,” Howell said. One day, her sister showed up with a new one just for three. "I still get emotional talking about it because it was really like, OK, this is happening. I’m going to be OK,” Howell said. For Tulberg, it was matching beds for her and her son. They share a studio apartment. “Suddenly, I had things from all of my friends that are real and tangible and not ephemeral," she said. “I look at my plates and I know exactly who they’re from. My friends say it feels good to be able to give something solid and real to us.” Many retail registries can be set up for a multitude of purposes, including divorce. Fresh Starts uses Amazon. It suggests bundles of items ranging from $99 to $500. Among the bedroom, kitchen, home office and bathroom essentials are a shower curtain, a can opener, a bedside clock, a humidifier. The site also groups bundles by room, including child-size hangers and a night light that projects the stars for a young one's space. Recipients can go the bundle route when choosing what to list, or they can pluck specific items from them. They can also select anything else on Amazon. Getting to the emotional place that allows someone newly separated to reach out for this kind of tangible help isn't always easy. “It’s about meeting people where they are,” Howell said. Divorce talk can be awkward. Fresh Starts offers text prompts covering how to introduce a registry to loved ones, along with suggestions for what friends and relatives can say. Howell doesn't describe divorce registries as “gift registries” but rather “support registries.” Some of her users create registries for other reasons, too. Not everyone is on board with the idea. Howell hears from a lot of haters. “There are some people that are very against it because they feel like divorce shouldn’t be celebrated. We’re saying that divorce is a brave decision and that you should be honored for that brave decision and supported,” she said. Angela Ashurst-McGee, 52, finalized her divorce in March after six kids and 32 years of marriage. She and her husband took turns choosing what they wanted in their 3,000-square-foot house about an hour south of Salt Lake City. She, too, heard about registries from a friend. “So it was like, I want the sofa in the living room, I want the sofa in the sunroom, I want the hedge trimmer. I want the drill, you know, down to the waffle maker,” she said. “Just on a practical level, I needed to replace various things. And also, I felt like this is a big life event that I think we should kind of rally around and celebrate." One of her sisters set up her registry on Amazon, without using Fresh Starts. Ashurst-McGee chose a few just-for-fun things among her essentials, including twinkle lights for her backyard patio. “Everybody who reached out said, I think this is a great idea, or I’ve suggested this to some other people I know. It’s hard to know what to do for somebody who’s getting divorced other than saying, you know, bummer. So it was kind of something concrete that people could do,” she said. Concrete, she said, and positive. “I think one fear people have is in regards to taking sides,” she said. “And this is something you can do without taking sides. It’s forward-looking. It’s not denigrating the other person. It’s not blaming anyone. It’s just practical support.”
Elon Musk has been getting Trumpier. A direct line to Trump may be next None - CNN — Elon Musk has sought to accumulate political capital commensurate with his extravagant wealth. In the past year, Musk has publicly opined on global conflicts, met with numerous world leaders and US senators to discuss artificial intelligence and his space and satellite technologies. And he has courted senior Chinese officials on their home turf. Now he is reportedly exploring what could be his next political project: Becoming an adviser to Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. Musk has discussed advising Trump should he win the 2024 election, the Journal reported, citing unnamed sources. Musk called Trump directly via cellphone to explore a role that could potentially give Musk significant influence over US policies. It’s not clear based on the Journal’s reporting which party initiated conversations about the potential role. The Trump campaign did not respond to CNN’s requests for comment; Musk also did not respond to the Wall Street Journal, but Brian Hughes, a Trump campaign spokesperson, told the outlet: “President Trump will be the only voice of what role an individual plays in his presidency.” Musk pushed back on the Journal report in a post on X Thursday, saying: “There have not been any discussions of a role for me in a potential Trump Presidency.” However, a potential role in a future Trump administration could expand upon the role that Musk played in the previous Trump administration, when he served on two business advisory councils before quitting them over Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris climate agreement. The privilege of whispering in Trump’s ear, should he win reelection, could give the billionaire – who is increasingly steeped in the rhetoric and imagery of the conservative culture wars – even more power on the global stage. Reporting that Musk and Trump’s relationship has improved comes after Musk’s politics have become more aligned with Trump’s. Musk has made supporting right-wing causes — and extremism, in some situations — increasingly central to his identity. He has vocally opposed Covid-19 lockdowns and embraced anti-vaccine ideology. He has elevated conservative speech on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter that he purchased in 2022. And he has pushed racist conspiracy theories about immigration. Musk has also obsessed over the “woke mind virus,” a term used by some conservatives to describe progressive causes. And he has explicitly called for Republican victories at the ballot box, warning of the country’s impending “doom” if a “red wave” does not materialize in November. A more formal alliance with Trump would mark the culmination of Musk’s long, winding quest for political relevance — and could greatly benefit his empire of companies that depend on government support. ‘A blatant conflict of interest’ Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images Musk’s various businesses, most notably SpaceX and Tesla, benefit from direct government contracts and federal subsidies. Their fortunes can rise or fall based on US policies governing energy, electric vehicles and the economy writ large. For Musk to have a direct, private line to a future President Trump “would seem to be a blatant conflict of interest,” said Darrell West, a senior fellow in the governance studies program at the Brookings Institution. The US government routinely solicits feedback from the private sector, and presidents have in the past solicited advice from CEOs and even appointed business leaders to cabinet-level positions. But those are official roles that require government officials to put their holdings in blind trusts. Less official roles for business leaders are often organized through councils such as the ones Musk participated in previously. In those advisory councils, dozens of stakeholders are invited to weigh in; they frequently involve competitors or rivals and the proceedings are relatively transparent, West said. Musk’s potential arrangement with Trump could be problematic because of the combination of personal business interests with exclusive access, where the influence could be boundless and immune to any scrutiny, West added. Additionally, Musk and his companies are currently the target of multiple federal investigations — by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Justice Department, to name a few. Musk and his companies have repeatedly gone to court to challenge aspects of those probes, but they have largely been rebuffed. It would be egregious if Trump intervened to halt or delay any of these investigations, but even the perception of improper influence would be highly damaging, West said. “It destroys the rule of law if a businessperson can cut a deal with a president to protect his own business interests,” West said. “The whole point of capitalism is fair play and people not having special advantages, and there’s a risk that we lose that benefit.” Meanwhile, Musk’s views on social issues may not necessarily sway Trump in a different direction, given how much they seem to overlap, but the billionaire’s penchant for extreme rhetoric could give Trump political cover for controversial action as president. Under Musk, a rightward shift at X Migrants line up to be transferred by US Border Patrol after having crossed the Bravo River in El Paso, Texas, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua State, Mexico, on April 18, 2024. Herika Martinez/AFP/Getty Images Musk’s management of Twitter — now known as X — reflects his own lurch to the right. One of Musk’s first moves after buying Twitter in 2022 was to reinstate Donald Trump’s account, after the former president was suspended for incitement following the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol. Since then, Musk has stopped short of using his widely followed X account to endorse a specific US presidential candidate and said in a March post that he didn’t plan to donate money to “either candidate for US President.” But he has repeatedly criticized Biden. This week, he has routinely railed against his policies on the US-Mexico border and immigration. The billionaire has used his platform to elevate right-leaning political candidates, including hosting the presidential campaign launch for Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who later dropped out of the race, as well as a livestream discussion with third-party hopeful Robert Kennedy, Jr. Musk has also repeatedly amplified on X fringe conspiracy theories popular in extreme right-wing spaces online, including a baseless claim about the attack on Paul Pelosi, the anti-Hillary Clinton conspiracy theory known as “Pizzagate,” and an antisemitic conspiracy theory often espoused by hate groups (the latter of which Musk later apologized for). His own posts aside, many of Musk’s changes to X have also contributed to a rightward shift in the platform’s culture. He reinstated the suspended accounts of White supremacists and conspiracy theorists, saying at the time he was responding to the wishes of platform users who expressed their opinions through an unscientific poll Musk posted from his account. X also made it easier for politicians and political candidates to qualify for newsworthiness exemptions from Twitter’s rules, when they would otherwise have had their content restricted or removed. Under Musk’s leadership, X allowed users to purchase blue “verification” checkmarks, adjusted its algorithm to boost the posts of those subscribers and began paying verified users a portion of the ad revenue their posts generate based on their popularity. Many of the users willing to spend $8 per month for a checkmark are those who are ideologically aligned with the billionaire – whose views are now elevated on the platform. In some cases, the policy shift appears to incentivize problematic behavior: the more extreme or outlandish a post is, the more likely it is to generate significant engagement and therefore the more likely the poster is to receive meaningful ad revenue share dollars if they’ve paid for a blue check. Musk’s changes to X have helped “the growing normalization of hate and lies which can only be damaging to democracies that are based on compromise, tolerance, science, and truth,” said Imran Ahmed, CEO of the online watchdog Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH). X sued CCDH last year for allegedly trying to drive away advertisers by publishing reports critical of the platform’s response to hateful content; CCDH won in March, when a federal judge threw out the case and excoriated X for trying to silence the group under a mountain of litigation. Biden aides told Politico last year that the President’s campaign viewed X as an increasingly hostile platform, although there were no plans to stop posting there. The Biden campaign on Thursday lashed out at the idea of Musk and Trump working together. “Despite what Donald Trump thinks, America is not for sale to billionaires, oil and gas executives, or even Elon Musk,” Biden-Harris 2024 spokesperson James Singer said in a statement. “Trump is selling out America to pay his legal bills and put himself in power, while all billionaires like Elon see is a sucker: They know if they cut him campaign checks, he’ll cut their taxes while he cuts Social Security and other benefits for the middle class.” – CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan contributed to this report.
Ticketmaster hit by cyber attack that compromised user data None - Live Nation disclosed the breach in a filing to the SEC. Live Nation, the parent company of Ticketmaster, revealed Friday evening that it was the victim of a cyber attack that compromised user data. The company said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that it discovered an "unauthorized activity within a third-party cloud database," on May 20 and promptly launched an investigation. A week later, "a criminal threat actor offered Live Nation what it alleged was user data for sale via the dark web, according to the filing. In this May 11, 2009, file photo, Ticketmaster tickets and gift cards are shown at a box office in San Jose, Calif. Paul Sakuma/AP. FILE "As of the date of this filing, the incident has not had, and we do not believe it is reasonably likely to have, a material impact on our overall business operations or on our financial condition or results of operations. We continue to evaluate the risks and our remediation efforts are ongoing," Live Nation said in its filing. The investigation is ongoing. No suspects have been officially identified. The FBI declined ABC News' request for comment. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) referred questions to Ticketmaster. The data stolen in the breach does not appear to be that serious, experts told ABC News. No banking or medical information appears to have been stolen, according to the experts. A Ticketmaster logo seen displayed on a smartphone SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images, FILE The experts said that customers can protect themselves from these types of online attacks by frequently changing their passwords, using two-factor authentication if available and keeping financial information private from any online solicitors. The alleged data breach took place three days before the Justice Department and dozens of state attorneys general filed a lawsuit to break up Ticketmaster. The suit alleged the company created a monopoly over ticket prices for live entertainment and hurt consumers. Live Nation dismissed the suit's allegations and said other factors are the root of higher prices, including scalpers and higher production costs.
Billionaire media magnate Rupert Murdoch marries at 93 None - New York CNN — Right-wing media mogul Rupert Murdoch tied the knot Saturday for the fifth time, according to British tabloid newspaper the Sun. The Sun, which is owned by Murdoch, released photos of the 93-year-old Australian billionaire alongside his 67-year-old wife, retired molecular biologist Elena Zhukova, at his vineyard in Bel-Air, California, where the ceremony took place. Zhukova is the mother of Russian American art collector Dasha Zhukova, the former wife of Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. Murdoch sat for decades at the helm of Fox Corporation and News Corp, two media companies with outlets that include the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post and Fox News. Murdoch, who has a net worth of $9.77 billion according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, announced in November 2023 he would step down as chairman of both organizations, handing the reins over to his son Lachlan. Murdoch at the time maintained he would continue an “active role” in News Corp and still serves in the capacity of chairman emeritus of the two companies. He began dating Zhukova last summer, according to the New York Times. The couple announced their engagement in March. Murdoch was most recently married to former supermodel Jerry Hall. The couple divorced in 2022. In March 2023, Murdoch proposed to Ann Lesley Smith but the engagement was called off two weeks later.
Rep. Horsford on how the Biden campaign can reach Black voters None - Rep. Horsford on how the Biden campaign can reach Black voters MSNBC's the Rev. Al Sharpton is joined by Nevada Rep. Steven Horsford, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, to discuss how the Biden campaign can win with Black voters this November and other political topics.June 2, 2024
'It shows how far we have come': Mexico set to elect first female president None - 'It shows how far we have come': Mexico set to elect first female president Polls are open in Mexico, where voters are set to elect the country's first female president. NBC News' Guad Venegas spoke to one woman who says she's excited that gender is no longer a deterrent to holding public office.June 2, 2024
Fmr. Biden Administration officials warn his Gaza policy is alienating staff and voters None - In recent weeks the Biden Administration has seen a number of resignations over its policy regarding the war in Gaza. At least nine people so far have resigned from their posts in the executive branch, including former State Department senior official Josh Paul and Interior Department official, Lily Greenberg Call. “Jewish Safety and Palestinian freedom are not oppositional to each other,” says Greenberg Call. Paul adds, “U.S. military support is an issue worthy of debate, and that debate has not been happening inside of our government.”June 2, 2024
Stormy Daniels speaks out on Trump conviction for the first time: legal panel reacts None - Donald Trump will have to wait over a month for his sentencing for his conviction on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Former U.S. attorney Joyce Vance and Just Security journalism fellow Adam Klasfeld analyze Trump’s promised appeal and Stormy Daniels’ first interview since Trump’s conviction.June 2, 2024
'Never seen a defendant beg for it more': James Comey on whether Trump will go to jail None - 'Never seen a defendant beg for it more': James Comey on whether Trump will go to jail Jen Psaki is joined by former FBI director James Comey to discuss Trump's guilty verdict in his criminal hush money trial and what sentencing a former president may look like. June 2, 2024
'He sounds nuts': Why Trump’s post-conviction rhetoric is so disturbing None - In the aftermath of his criminal conviction, Donald Trump has ramped up his attacks on the judge, the jurors, and others, in addition to peddling strange new theories about who is to blame. Molly Jong Fast and Jennifer Rubin join Ali Velshi to discuss Trump’s “unhinged” attacks and efforts to spin the narrative surrounding the conviction. “He didn’t sound this nuts, he didn't sound this disjointed, 5 years ago, 10 years ago, or even last year,” Rubin says. “He is mentally and emotionally unwinding."June 2, 2024
Mississippi officials oppose plan to house migrant children at old Harrah's Tunica hotels None - TUNICA, Miss. -- Local officials won't support a proposal to house unaccompanied migrant children at two former casino hotels in northwest Mississippi. The Tunica County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 on Thursday against issuing a letter of support after opposition from Mississippi's Republican state officials and the local sheriff, local news outlets reported. Shantrell Nicks is an attorney working for a company called Rapid Deployment, which wants to reuse the vacant hotels. She said during the meeting a letter of support from the county would have been an important part of the company’s proposal to the federal government. WHBQ-TV reported that proposal is due Monday, although it's unclear what happens now. Nicks told people attending the meeting that the facility would hold up to 250 children aged 17 and younger, not the 2,000 previously discussed, WREG-TV reported. She said that the facility would hire local employees and operate up to five years, that there would be no visitors, and that the children and teens would stay contained inside. “There’s no strain to the local government as a result of this temporary children’s shelter,” Nicks said. “We are not going to attempt to enroll these children in local schools." The hotels were part of the Harrah’s casino complex, which closed in 2014. The casino was demolished, and other proposals to reuse the hotels have not succeeded. Supervisors took the vote after again debating the plan in a closed session. Both of Mississippi's U.S. senators as well as a number of other Republican officials had opposed the plan. “Many of my constituents had raised concerns about this project’s impact on the community," U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker said in a statement Friday. “It was clear that Tunica County’s health care, transportation, and other services were not prepared for this sudden influx. I am glad this decision has been halted for now, but I am still worried about a similar proposal in the future.” Wicker send a letter to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Thursday opposing the plan. Tunica County Sheriff K.C. Hamp said earlier that the county doesn’t have resources, including a hospital, to care for immigrants, and they would have to be taken to neighboring communities. Some other local officials said they preferred efforts to redevelop the complex to enhance tourism and gambling in Tunica County. Harrah’s opened in 1996 as the Grand Casino and was conceived on a grand scale, topping out with 1,356 hotel rooms across three buildings. Its now-demolished casino floor was the largest between New Jersey and Las Vegas. Tunica’s casino market has been in decline for more than a decade, While it was once the nearest gambling destination to parts of the South and Midwest, most of those states now have their own casinos. A casino in West Memphis, Arkansas, has also lured away patrons.
Trump joins TikTok and calls it 'an honor.' As president he once tried to ban the video-sharing app None - Donald Trump has joined TikTok, the video-sharing app he once tried to ban as president Trump joins TikTok and calls it 'an honor.' As president he once tried to ban the video-sharing app By JILL COLVIN Associated Press , WILL WEISSERT Associated Press , and MEG KINNARD Associated Press Donald Trump has joined the popular video-sharing app TikTok, a platform he once tried to ban while in the White House, and posted from a UFC fight two days after he became the first former president and presumptive major party nominee in U.S. history to be found guilty on felony charges. “It's an honor,” Trump said in the TikTok video, which features footage of him waving to fans and posing for selfies at the Ultimate Fighting Championship fight in Newark, New Jersey, on Saturday night. The video ends with Trump telling the camera: “That was a good walk-on, right?” By Sunday morning, Trump had amassed more than 1.1 million followers on the platform and the post had garnered more than 1 million likes and 24 million views. “We will leave no front undefended and this represents the continued outreach to a younger audience consuming pro-Trump and anti-Biden content,” Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement about the campaign's decision to join the platform. “There’s no place better than a UFC event to launch President Trump’s Tik Tok, where he received a hero’s welcome and thousands of fans cheered him on," he added. Democratic President Joe Biden signed legislation in April that could ban TikTok in the U.S., even as his campaign joined in February and has tried to work with influencers. Trump received an enthusiastic welcome at the fight at Newark's Prudential Center, where the crowd broke into chants of “We love Trump!” and another insulting Biden with an expletive. It was Trump's first public outing since a jury in New York found him guilty Thursday on 34 charges of falsifying business records as part of a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election by covering up hush money payments made to a porn actor who claimed she and Trump had sex. Trump has maintained he did nothing wrong and plans to appeal the verdict. He will be sentenced on July 11. Throughout his campaign, Trump has used appearances at UFC fights to project an image of strength and to try to appeal to potential voters who may not closely follow politics or engage with traditional news sources. It's also part of a broader effort to connect with young people and minority voters, particularly Latino and Black men. TikTok, owned by Beijing-based ByteDance, is another opportunity to reach those potential voters. The platform has about 170 million users in the U.S., most of whom skew younger — a demographic that is especially hard for campaigns to reach because they shun television. As president, Trump tried to ban TikTok through an executive order that said “the spread in the United States of mobile applications developed and owned" by Chinese companies was a national security threat. The courts blocked the action after TikTok sued. Both the FBI and the Federal Communications Commission have warned that ByteDance could share user data such as browsing history, location and biometric identifiers with China’s government. TikTok said it has never done that and would not, if asked. The platform was a hot topic of debate during the 2024 GOP primary campaign, with most candidates shunning its use. Many, including former Vice President Mike Pence, called for TikTok to be banned in the U.S. due to its connections with China Trump said earlier this year that he still believes TikTok posed a national security risk, but was opposed to banning it because that would help its rival, Facebook, which he continues to criticize over his 2020 election loss to Biden. “Frankly, there are a lot of people on TikTok that love it. There are a lot of young kids on TikTok who will go crazy without it,” Trump told CNBC. The legislation signed by Biden gives ByteDance nine months to sell the company, with a possible additional three months if a sale is in progress. If it doesn’t, TikTok will be banned. Biden barred the app on most government devices in December 2022. His reelection campaign nonetheless uses the app, which it joined the night of the Super Bowl in February. Aides argue that in an increasingly fragmented modern media environment, the campaign must get its message out to voters via as many platforms as possible, including TikTok as well as WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Biden’s “bidenhq” account currently has more than 330,000 followers and 4.5 million likes. Trump's appearance at Saturday's fight came after he had sat down for an interview with Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends Weekend" that aired Sunday. In that appearance, Trump said he was “OK” with the prospect of potential jail time or house arrest, saying it was "the way it is.’’’ But he again suggested the public might not accept such a punishment for a former president now running to return to the White House. “I don’t know that the public would stand it, you know. I’m not sure the public would stand for it,” he said. “I think it would be tough for the public to take. You know, at a certain point there’s a breaking point.” Trump, as he has throughout the trial, maintained his innocence, saying he “did absolutely nothing wrong.” He was asked how his wife, former first lady Melania Trump, has taken the news. “She’s fine. But I think it’s very hard for her. I mean, she’s fine. But, you know, she has to read all this crap," he said. She did not appear with Trump in court at any point during his seven-week trial. ___ Colvin reported from Annapolis, Maryland, Weissert from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, and Kinnard from Chapin, South Carolina.
Rupert Murdoch ties the knot for the 5th time in ceremony at his California vineyard None - Media magnate Rupert Murdoch, who is 93, has married for the fifth time Rupert Murdoch ties the knot for the 5th time in ceremony at his California vineyard NEW YORK -- Media magnate Rupert Murdoch, 93, has married for the fifth time, his corporation, News Corp, confirmed Sunday. Murdoch and Elena Zhukova, a 67-year-old Russian-born retired molecular biologist, wed Saturday in a ceremony at his vineyard estate in Bel Air, California. Photographs of the newly married couple were released by News Corp. The couple announced their engagement in March. Murdoch was most recently married to model and actor Jerry Hall. They were wed in 2016 and divorced in 2022. Zhukova is the ex-wife of Alexander Zhukov, a billionaire energy investor and Russian politician. Their daughter, Dasha, was previously married to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, who used to own the Premier League soccer club Chelsea. Last fall, Murdoch stepped down as leader of both Fox News’ parent company and his News Corp media holdings. His son, Lachlan, took his place in a media empire that spans continents and helped to shape modern American politics. In 1952, Murdoch inherited a newspaper in his native Australia from his father. Over decades, he built a news and entertainment enterprise that became prominent in the United States and Britain, including ownership of such notable newspapers as The Times of London and The Wall Street Journal. Fox News Channel, the 24-hour network founded in 1996, has profoundly influenced television, becoming a popular news source among many conservative U.S. audiences and politicians.
Water begins to flow again in downtown Atlanta after outage that began Friday None - ATLANTA -- Water pressure was returning to downtown Atlanta and nearby neighborhoods on Sunday after a two-day water outage shut down businesses and left faucets dry at many homes. A large swath of the city remained under an order to boil water before drinking it, but Mayor Andre Dickens said in a late Saturday news conference that one of the two major water main breaks affecting the city had been repaired. “I know it's been a tough and frustrating day for many of you, but I'm glad to have some positive news to report tonight,” Dickens said. The first-term Democratic mayor, who faces reelection in 2025, was again apologetic, even as residents continued to savage the city's response. Among the critics: Megan Thee Stallion, whose Friday and Saturday night shows at downtown's State Farm Arena were canceled. “Call the mayor! All day they’ve been telling us we can perform,” the rapper said in a video she posted Saturday. Arena management said they hoped to have a Sunday night show to make up for the Friday night performance. The problems began Friday morning where three large water mains intersect just west of downtown. Department of Watershed Management Commissioner Al Wiggins Jr. said at a Saturday news conference that at least some of the pipes that burst were old and corroded. With pipes coming together in a confined area, it was a tight squeeze to make repairs, with only one worker at a time working in the manhole accessing the junction. Repairs were completed Saturday evening, officials said. Another water main later burst in the city's Midtown neighborhood, which is studded with new office, hotel and apartment towers. Wiggins said Saturday that officials weren't sure yet why that pipe had broken. That leak continued to gush through the city streets Sunday. City officials said Saturday that they were working on ways to isolate the leak from the larger water system and were awaiting a part needed to repair to the pipe. Dickens declared a state of emergency so the city could buy materials and hire workers without following the normal purchasing laws. Faltering infrastructure is a common story in older parts of American cities. Atlanta has spent billions in recent years to upgrade its aging sewer and water infrastructure, including a tunnel drilled through 5 miles of rock to provide the city more than 30 days of stored water. Last month, voters approved continuing a 1-cent sales tax to pay for federally mandated sewer upgrades. The city at one time routinely dumped untreated sewage into creeks and the Chattahoochee River. City workers spent much of Saturday handing out water and setting up portable toilets at several fire stations while checking on senior citizens who live in high-rise residences. Officials were widely criticized for being slow to update citizens on the situation. The city and its water management department sent out an update after 8 p.m. Friday and waited more than 12 hours to update residents again. Dickens didn't address the media until 2 p.m. Saturday, explaining he was in Memphis, Tennessee, when the problem began. Someone in the affected area posted flyers around the neighborhood asking “Don't have water?” and “Help us find our mayor.” Some attractions and businesses, including the Georgia Aquarium, reopened on Sunday, although the aquarium warned that the boil water order meant no ice or fountain drinks in its cafeteria.
Maldives will ban Israelis from entering the country over the war in Gaza None - The Maldives government will ban Israelis from the Indian Ocean archipelago, known for luxury resorts, as public anger in the predominantly Muslim nation rises over the war in Gaza Maldives will ban Israelis from entering the country over the war in Gaza COLOMBO, Sri Lanka -- The Maldives government will ban Israelis from the Indian Ocean archipelago, known for luxury resorts, as public anger in the predominantly Muslim nation rises over the war in Gaza. The president's office said Sunday that the Cabinet decided to change laws to prevent Israeli passport holders from entering the country and to establish a subcommittee to oversee the process. It said President Mohamed Muizu will appoint a special envoy to assess the Palestinian needs and to launch a fundraising campaign. Israel’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein said in response that the Foreign Ministry recommends Israelis avoid any travel to the Maldives, including those with foreign passports, and those currently there to consider leaving. Nearly 11,000 Israelis visited Maldives last year, which was 0.6% of the total tourist arrivals.