DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Photos challenge misconceptions about what it means to be an American Muslim
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Leah Dolan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

These are some of the faces featured in “Muslims in America,” an ongoing photography series by British artist Mahtab Hussain. Mahtab HussainSo far, Hussain has documented subjects living in New York, LA, Baltimore and Toronto, Canada. I’ve met people from all over the world in the US who are Muslim: Palestinians, people from all over Africa. Not only do Hussain’s photographs visually challenge the way American Muslims have been portrayed, he has also offered space for his subjects to share their experiences. Mahtab HussainMany members of Dearborn’s Arab American and Muslim American communities have openly rejected Biden for his handling of the Israel-Hamas war.

Persons: Julo, Adbul, Candace, Mahtab Hussain, “, ” Hussain, Hussain, Arslan, ”, Riz Ahmed, creatives, I’ve, ” Julo Cisse, Mahtab Hussain Syeda Monique Legette, he’s, ” Itar Mechmechia, ” Dayana Aziz, Abdullah Hammoud, Joe Biden’s, Biden, Netanyahu, Candace Ashley, that’s, Adbul Warsame, Mahtab Hussain Ahmed Mohamed Organizations: CNN, Nike Air Jordans, Pew Research Center, USC, Initiative, USC Annenberg, British Pakistani Muslim, American, The New York Times, Hamas Locations: United States, America, British, New York, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Glasgow, Kashmir, Pakistan, LA, Balitmore, Baltimore, Toronto, Canada, British Pakistani, Africa, Britain, New York City, Dearborn , Michigan, Gaza, American, Israel, Michigan

☆ While TikTok's future is unknown, micro-business owners continue to rely on it — including one founder who shared 3 tips for marketing and going viral
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-21 | by ( Bella Sayegh | Leila Jordan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

When Lauren Nelda Pascal sewed her first silk bonnet, she wasn't thinking about building a viral TikTok business. Now Pascal's TikTok business account has over 107,000 followers and 2.6 million likes, and Lizzo and other celebrities have featured her products on their pages. But she said the discussion forced business owners to consider how they might pivot their social-media strategy if needed. Unlike on TikTok, businesses using Instagram Reels, Instagram's short-form-video feature, should be more cautious with trending audio. I have a product that I believe in, and so I try to let that bleed through my content," Pascal said.

Persons: Lauren Nelda Pascal, Lolo's, Pascal, —, TikTok, I'm, KXAN Austin, Giselle Ugarte, Ugarte, KXAN, Karen North, It's, wasn't, doesn't Organizations: Service, Facebook, Business, Oxford Economics, USC Annenberg Locations: Jacksonville , Florida, TikTok

☆ Opinion: These three Oscar-nominated films couldn’t be more different. Together, they represent the change we need
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-07 | by ( Opinion Noah Berlatsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

All three films question male conventions and genres in ways that show exactly why we need more films by, and more nominations for, women-directed films. Les Films PelléasTriet’s “Anatomy of a Fall” is about a German novelist, Sandra (Sandra Hüller), accused of murdering her husband Samuel (Samuel Theis). Director Celine Song talks to lead actress Greta Lee on the set of "Past Lives." That doesn’t mean that women directors are less interesting or less original than male directors. Triet, Song and Gerwig have proved that women directors are uniquely positioned to question and rethink old genres, old stories and old ideas.

Persons: Noah Berlatsky, — Justine Triet’s “, Celine Song’s “, Greta Gerwig’s “, ” —, Noah Berlatsky Noah Berlatsky, it’s, Randa Haines, ”, —, Sandra Hüller, Justine Triet's, Pelléas, Sandra, Samuel, Samuel Theis, Billy Wilder’s, David Fincher’s, Triet, Nora Moon, Greta Lee, Hae Sung, Teo Yoo, Nora, Arthur, John Magaro, Celine Song, doesn’t, Gerwig, “ Barbie, “ Barbie ”, Barbie, Ken, Greta Gerwig, Margot Robbie, Jaap Buitendijk, Barbie ”, Bradley Cooper’s, Maestro ”, Christopher Nolan’s “ Oppenheimer, clichés, Alexander Payne’s “, Kelly Reichardt’s, Nida Organizations: CNN, USC, Initiative, Academy, New York Times, Everett, Warner Bros ., Warner Bros, Entertainment, ” Locations: Chicago, German, South Korea

LOS ANGELES (AP) — When the 2024 Grammy nominees were first announced, women dominated the major categories. And at Sunday's show, those nominations translated into awards: Every televised competitive Grammy went to at least one woman. But at the Grammys, where much of the focus is on performers, it appeared like women were ruling the industry. “I know that the way the Recording Academy voted is a direct reflection of the passion of the fans,” she said. SZA, who led nominations with nine, took home three awards — but was completely shut out of the general field categories.

Persons: Miley Cyrus, Victoria Monét, Lainey Wilson, Karol G —, Bonito, Paramore, Taylor Swift, we’re, Phoebe Bridgers, boygenius, Bridgers, Neil Portnow, Portnow, ” Bridgers, Harvey Mason, we’ve, Swift, “, ”, couldn't, Finneas, Billie Eilish, ” Jay Z, ” Emily Lordi, —, Janelle Monae, Lauryn Hill, Lauryn Hill ”, Lordi, Billie Eilish’s, Billie Holiday’s, Miley, Tina Turner, Taylor, Tracy Chapman, SZA, intersectionally, Leslie Ambriz, Gary Gerard Hamilton Organizations: ANGELES, urbana, Associated Press, AP, USC, Initiative, Recording Academy, Academy, Jay, Dre, Vanderbilt University Locations: Dua Lipa, Lipa, American

NEW YORK (AP) — Hollywood’s months of labor unrest are coming to an end, but the post-strike landscape that awaits actors and writers may be far from happy-ever-after. That helter-skelter transition threw much of the economics of entertainment out of whack. “Going through that with a streaming service that’s losing billions of dollars is really, really difficult to go on offense.”Cancellations have grown more commonplace as streamers get more selective. Due in part to the strikes, series production will dip for the first time in years in 2023 after reaching an all-time high last year, when 599 original series were made. “And so I think really we will see over the coming days, weeks and months what the industry’s real intentions are.

Persons: —, HBO Max, Max ”, ”, Jonathan Taplin, Crypto, Taplin, Puck’s Matt Belloni, Walt, Bob Iger, ” Iger, I’ve, it’s, Peacock, David Zaslav, Max, ” Zaslav, “, Martin Scorsese’s, Ridley Scott’s “ Napoleon, ” Duncan Crabtree, Krysta Fauria Organizations: Hollywood, SAG, HBO, Netflix, USC, Innovation Lab, International Alliance, Walt Disney Co, Disney, Comcast, Warner Bros . Discovery, Apple Studios, Associated Press Locations: Hollywood, Los Angeles

☆ Netflix Study Shows Streamer Making Progress in Diversifying Casts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Sarah Krouse | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Arsema Thomas in ‘Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story.’ Photo: Nick Wall/Netflix/Everett CollectionNetflix Inc. has made progress in casting more women and Black actors in major roles in recent years, but diversity is still lacking behind the camera in the making of many of its films and TV shows, according to a new report from the company and the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative. In the aftermath of the 2020 police killing of George Floyd , Netflix and other large companies pledged to invest more in inclusion efforts and expand opportunities for people of color and other underrepresented groups. The report found that Netflix has made strides in some areas, like increasing the representation of girls and women on screen and increasing the percentage of its films and series with a Black lead or co-lead.

Diverse creators are building incubators, their own production pipelines and venues where they can screen work and receive feedback and support each other. Of the 13,252 Oscar nominees since 1929, 6% are from underrepresented ethnicities, a USC Annenberg Inclusion at the Academy Awards report concludes. Located in Atlanta and Los Angeles, it creates collaborative spaces for diverse talent to support each other. As the most underrepresented group in the industry, Latino talent is also keen to change their narrative. There were 32 years without Latino nominees at the Academy Awards, with the most recent shutout in 2002.

☆ Taylor Swift is the highest paid female entertainer in the world, earning $92 million in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Morgan Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Taylor Swift is the highest paid female entertainer in the world, earning a cool $92 million in 2022 following the success of her 10th studio album "Midnights," according to a new report from Forbes. To determine the ranking, Forbes considers entertainers' total 2022 pretax earnings, minus fees for representation (managers, lawyers, etc.) While 2022 was a strong year for Swift, her annual earnings were still less than half of what the highest paid entertainers in the world, the progressive rock band Genesis, made last year. Altogether, Genesis earned $230 million in 2022, thanks to a $300 million music rights sale to Concord Music Group in September. There wasn't a single woman on Forbes's list of the top 10 highest paid entertainers in 2022 — the highest paid female entertainer, Reese Witherspoon, ranked 12th for making $115 million in 2021.

☆ With Twitter upended by Musk, these services see an opportunity
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Like Twitter, it offers a social feed of posts with 280-character limits. The list of newer entrants in the markets includes apps created by former Twitter employees, a startup backed by one of Musk’s Twitter investors, and a service from former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. The service launched publicly in June of last year, after Musk offered to buy Twitter. (As part of the acquisition, Musk took Twitter private and the company no longer reports user numbers in quarterly securities filings.) Though controversy remains, many Twitter users may feel less urgency to jump ship today than in late October.

☆ M&Ms Super Bowl commercial: How ads have become weeks-long campaigns
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-12 | by ( Danielle Wiener-Bronner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The Super Bowl commercial, billed as the conclusion to weeks-long drama surrounding the status of the “spokescandies,” left some viewers scratching their heads. But if you weren’t paying attention, the final commercial might be a head scratcher -— one risk a brand takes when it uses a weeks-long campaign ahead of its Super Bowl commercial. In a change for the decades-old Super Bowl ad wars, it’s actually become a commonplace strategy to use social media to tease, preview and create buzz ahead of their Super Bowl commercials. Companies spend millions just for a Super Bowl ad slot — reportedly over $7 million for some 30-second spots — before investing into the commercials themselves. Dance contests and bettingDespite the high cost of a Super Bowl commercial, companies are eager to nab a spot.

☆ Should AI be used to classify humans? An AI researcher at USC says it's reductive and ethically dubious
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Kate Crawford, author of "Atlas of AI" discussed the ethics of categorizing humans using AI. In an email interview with Insider, Kate Crawford, AI researcher at USC Annenberg and author of "Atlas of AI," expanded on the risks of relying on AI to help classify humans. Where did the idea of using AI to classify humans come from and why are companies interested in using this technology? Is there any safe or ethical way in which AI technology can be used to classify humans? Why is the AI industry so adamant about using data and data collection methods that have been proven to exacerbate inequality?

Federal dollars are also not an option for reimbursement because regulations prohibit federal funds from being used to replace stolen SNAP funds. SNAP participants say they cannot wait that long after a month or more of stolen benefits plunged them into financial turmoil. Washington, D.C., also reimburses SNAP skimming victims. In the meantime, anti-hunger advocates say there’s no reason states can’t fill the gap for SNAP skimming victims. How states can helpCalifornia, one state that restores stolen benefits, has a law allowing state funds to be used that dates back to 2013.

☆ Twitter exec says there will soon be three types of accounts: official, paid, and unlabeled
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Some originally verified accounts will soon sport an "official" label, she said, while any user who pays $7.99 per month for Twitter Blue, the company's subscription product, will sport a blue checkmark. Musk himself has benefitted from having the Twitter verification checkmark. Under Musk's direction, the new Twitter Blue checkmark will instead work as a paying subscriber badge that the company nonetheless plans to call "verification." "The new Twitter Blue does not include ID verification – it's an opt-in, paid subscription that offers a blue checkmark and access to select features. "Not all previously verified accounts will get the 'Official' label and the label is not available for purchase.

☆ Dr. Fauci: These 2 new fast-spreading omicron Covid subvariants are ‘pretty troublesome'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

As winter inches closer, Dr. Fauci is sounding the alarm about a pair of "pretty troublesome" Covid variants. There's no guarantee that the two strains will eventually overtake BA.5 as the dominant variant in the country. But if they do spread rapidly, they could threaten to reverse a nationwide decline in Covid cases, hospitalizations and deaths, leading Fauci to urge Americans against letting their guard down. Scientists from Peking University in China published a study earlier this month that found BQ.1.1's ability to evade antibodies was "far exceeding" that of BA.5. The CDC recommends masking indoors if you're in a county with a substantial or high-level spread of Covid.

Search resuls for: "USC Annenberg"

14 mentions found