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☆ Wounded Virginia teacher walked her students to safety after she was shot by 6-year-old, officials say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Antonio Planas | Antonio Planas Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

The Virginia elementary teacher who police say was intentionally shot by a 6-year-old student is being hailed as a hero who saved lives by escorting her students out of the classroom while wounded. The boy's mother had legally purchased the gun, Drew said. After the shooting, Drew said, police consulted with various agencies including the Commonwealth's Attorney's Office, and services for children's welfare. Police, city and school district officials had not publicly named Zwerner as the teacher who was wounded prior to Monday. “Because of the ongoing nature of the investigation, we will not be releasing any further information at this time.”The 6-year-old student was not identified because of his age.

☆ Final farewell: From Sidney Poitier to Pope Emeritus Benedict a look back at the influential figures who died in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +55 min

Other world leaders who died in 2022 include former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who died in August. The final days of 2022 saw the loss of some exceptionally notable figures, including Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Here is a roll call of some influential figures who died in 2022 (cause of death cited for younger people, if available):___JANUARY___Dan Reeves, 77. A Cuban-born artist whose radiant color palette and geometric paintings were overlooked for decades before the art world took notice. A prolific character actor best known for playing villains and tough guys in “The Manchurian Candidate,” “Ocean’s Eleven” and other films.

☆ Creator economy experts say 2023 will be a buyer's market for M&A. Here are 5 themes to watch, from tech buyers like Shopify to startup consolidation
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Marta Biino | Sydney Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

"As a result, institutional acquirers, like PE firms who still have dry powder to spend, will start snatching up mid-to-large sized creator startups at much more advantageous prices." Insider spoke with creator-economy and market experts about what deals and the broader M&A landscape in 2023 may look like. "They're going to see that the creator economy exists as a direct failure of them to support creators," Gestetner said. "But if an opportunity arises for us to significantly enhance our capabilities to make us a better business powering the creator economy, we'll consider it." Startups can expect consolidation in saturated marketsThe crowded niches within the creator economy startup sphere could also face a wave of consolidation.

Share this -Link copied'It's too much for me': Zelenskyy begins speech by thanking U.S. Zelenskyy began his remarks before a joint meeting of Congress at 7:40 p.m. "I think we share the exact same vision, that of a free, independent and prosperous Ukraine," Biden said. The Ukrainian president added that the soldier told him that "many (of) his brothers, this system saved." President Joe Biden holds a medal presented to him by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office. Share this -Link copiedPhoto: Zelenskyy shakes hands with Biden as he arrives President Joe Biden welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the White House.

The Taliban on Tuesday released two Americans who had been detained in Afghanistan, according to State Department spokesperson Ned Price. The releases were announced as the United Nations Security Council was meeting about Afghanistan. “Out of respect for the privacy of these individuals and their families, we are not going to confirm names.”The release came the same day the Taliban banned women from private and public universities in Afghanistan. The U.S. "condemns in strongest terms the Taliban's indefensible decision to ban women from universities, girls from secondary schools," Price said. When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, it banned female education and most employment.

The email went out to students at Knox College, a small liberal arts school in Illinois, on the evening of Dec. 12. But this group had a new wrinkle for Knox students. “We have compromised your collage networks,” the email said, written in the kind of broken English common among international ransomware hackers. For you, its a sad day where everyone will see your personal and private info.”The incident at Knox College marks the first known case in which hackers used their access to contact students directly in order to intimidate them. The hackers’ website lists an entry to download data for Knox College but doesn’t actually lead to any student data.

☆ Democrats run out the clock on a congressional stock-ban bill
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Madison Hall | Dave Levinthal | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

After months of wrangling over a congressional stock-trade ban, Pelosi is getting that wish. Some government ethics advocates had hoped that congressional stock-ban legislation would be packaged with the 2023 omnibus spending bill. Meanwhile, lawmakers from both the Republican and Democratic parties continue violating the STOCK Act while 11th-hour pleas from Democratic stock-ban advocates go unanswered by Democratic leaders. A ban on members of Congress trading individual stocks and cryptocurrencies will officially die on January 3, when the 118th Congress is seated. Any stock-ban bill introduced next year will therefore require bipartisan support across Congress' two chambers.

☆ Top government ethics officer was late disclosing his personal finances on multiple occasions
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

The attorney, Office of Government Ethics General Counsel David Apol, missed deadlines to report at least 12 different bond transactions since 2015. Improperly reporting purchases and sales of bonds or stocks is a violation of the 2012 Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act, or STOCK Act. Officials are only required to report transactions in broad ranges. Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia has been one of the lead proponents in Congress of reforming the STOCK Act. Congress this year discussed changes to the STOCK Act and the US House even held a hearing following the publication of "Conflicted Congress."

☆ It's just the beginning of M&A in the creator economy. Industry experts predict 2023's top trends, and the buyers and sellers to watch.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Marta Biino | Sydney Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

"As a result, institutional acquirers, like PE firms who still have dry powder to spend, will start snatching up mid-to-large sized creator startups at much more advantageous prices." "They're going to see that the creator economy exists as a direct failure of them to support creators," Gestetner said. "But if an opportunity arises for us to significantly enhance our capabilities to make us a better business powering the creator economy, we'll consider it." Startups can expect consolidation in saturated marketsThe crowded niches within the creator economy startup sphere could also face a wave of consolidation. In the creator economy, companies bet on the fact that YouTube advertising revenue on the videos will increase as the audiences of creators grow and they gain more views.

☆ TikTokers are increasingly using SEO to boost their reach on the app, which Gen Zers prefer over Google to search. Here are 3 techniques they’re using to make their videos more discoverable.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Shriya Bhattacharya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

In September, research found that more Gen Zers use TikTok to access information compared to Google. Here are three techniques they're using to ensure their content is more visible to users on the app. That changed in September when the New York Times reported on how TikTok is the new search engine for Gen Zers. Gen Zers are also using TikTok to find recommendations for vacation spots, activities in their area, and to learn about concepts like non-fungible tokens or artificial intelligence. This shift, combined with the news about Gen Zers, has many creators planning and posting content more intentionally.

☆ Iran ousted from U.N. women's rights commission amid crackdown and executions
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Dan De Luce | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Abigail-Williams-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Eight members voted against the resolution and 16 abstained. “The commission is the premier U.N. body for promoting gender equality and empowering women,” she said. Iran's ambassador to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani, during a meeting to remove his country from membership in the Commission on the Status of Women on Wednesday. Yuki Iwamura / AFP - Getty ImagesIran, which ranks 143rd among 146 countries in the World Economic Forum's global gender gap index, was voted onto the commission by secret ballot. The vote to oust Iran from the commission came days after the country carried out a second known execution of a prisoner detained and convicted amid the nationwide protests challenging the country’s theocracy.

Banks still have to mark the loan to its market value on their books and set aside funds for losses that are reported in quarterly results. The deliberations of how some of these banks are thinking about accounting for these losses have not been previously reported. Three banking industry sources said the remaining $3 billion, which is unsecured, could lead to steeper losses for the seven Twitter banks. Some market participants expect the losses from the debt to be significant unless market conditions improve. Some $35 billion to $40 billion of such loans are stuck on banks' books, according to two fixed income bankers.

Car buyers are watching the clock tick down for the Inflation Reduction Act’s updated electric vehicle tax incentives to kick in. If you shop right nowState and federal EV incentives already exist. Their car was built in Tennessee and qualified for the full $7,500 federal tax credit, which they were able to combine with a Massachusetts EV tax exemption of $2,500, effectively knocking $10,000 off the price. Plus, caps on how many vehicles can qualify for existing tax incentives have kept some buyers on the sidelines. If you shop in 2024After next year, the IRA makes an important change to how consumers apply their tax credit.

☆ House Democrats reject a rules change that could've empowered junior members amid concerns about aging leadership
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

"Six years is a pretty long time," Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia told Insider at the Capitol earlier this month. "I'm not for term limits," House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told Insider during a briefing with reporters at the end of November. "I'm not taking a position on any single rules proposal that is before the House Democratic Caucus," he said. Another prominent young lawmaker — 33-year-old Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York — has also been vocal in her criticism of the system. "Whatever the mechanism is, we need to have more opportunities for people to bring their leadership to bear in different places," she told Insider.

Don't be surprised if economic data coming out over the next week kicks off a rally into the end of the year and potentially 2023, according to Andrew Slimmon, Morgan Stanley Investment Management's senior portfolio manager. The key period of data releases begins Friday with the producer price index, followed by November's consumer price index and another likely rate hike from the Federal Reserve next week. "The last time those were released they all led to rallies in the stock market because we had better inflation prints," he said. Like many investors, Slimmon expects a downturn ahead, given the inverted yield curve, but does not anticipate the "big earnings collapse," or downturn, many people are predicting in the first quarter. This is in part due to the fact that many consumers have beefed up savings in recent years given the proximity of the most recent recession.

☆ Asia markets fall amid recession fears; China to report trade data
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Abigail Ng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Aerial view of containers sitting stacked at the Qinzhou Port on August 15, 2022 in Qinzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China. Shares in the Asia-Pacific slipped on Wednesday after major U.S. indexes fell more than 1% each overnight as recession concerns weigh on markets. China's November trade data is predicted to show a sharp drop in exports and imports, according a Reuters poll. The Nikkei 225 in Japan was down 0.59% in early trade and the Topix also fell 0.44%. South Korea's Kospi shed 0.29%, and the Kosdaq was 0.58% lower.

☆ The effort to ban members of Congress from trading stocks is mostly dead — at least for now
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Time has largely run out in this Congress to ban lawmakers from trading stocks. On Monday, he told Insider in a statement that he would "keep pushing to get this debated on the floor and get it passed." Democratic senators formed a working group, with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's blessing, to draft legislation to ban stock trading among lawmakers. In the Senate, Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts told Insider that it was "not yet" time to declare the effort dead, pointing to ongoing discussions. "I support a stock ban for members of Congress," he told reporters in September.

☆ Asia-Pacific markets fall after Wall Street slips; Australia's rate decision ahead
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Abigail Ng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Australia's central bank is expected to raise its cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.1% on Tuesday, according to economists polled by Reuters. That would be the Reserve Bank of Australia's eighth hike this year, and the third consecutive hike of 25 basis points since October. In a statement following its November meeting, the RBA said "the full effect" of the series of cash rate hikes lie ahead. Meanwhile, Matt Simpson, senior market analyst at City Index, said there's potential for a pause in rate hikes further ahead. "Some measures of inflation expectations are moving lower, and the monthly inflation print suggests inflation has peaked."

☆ Asia markets set for mixed session ahead of private survey results on China's services activity
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Abigail Ng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Citizens dine at a restaurant on December 1, 2022 in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province of China. Shares in the Asia-Pacific were poised to trade mixed on Monday ahead of the results of the Caixin Purchasing Managers' Index, a private survey on China's services activity. The Nikkei futures contract in Chicago was at 27,635 while its counterpart in Osaka was at 27,700. That compared against the Nikkei 225's last close at 27,777.90. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.31%.

☆ U.S. to expand solar panel tariffs after probe finds Chinese evasion
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Nichola Groom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The announcement was welcomed by Auxin Solar, a small U.S. solar panel maker that requested the Commerce investigation in February. Producers including New East Solar, Hanwha Q CELLS, Jinko Solar (JKS.N) and Boviet Solar were found not to be dodging the tariffs, Commerce said. "The only good news here is that Commerce didn't target all imports from the subject countries," Abigail Ross Hopper, president of solar trade group the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), said in an emailed statement. Buyers of solar panels for both large utility projects and residential rooftops say new tariffs will worsen what is already a difficult market for accessing solar energy equipment. The mere threat of new tariffs on solar imports also contributed to a slowdown in project development this year, the industry has said.

☆ Explosive envelope delivered to U.S. Embassy in Madrid detonated by police
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Abigail-Williams-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Abigail Williams | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

An explosive envelope that was delivered at the gate of the U.S. Embassy in Madrid was detonated in a controlled environment without injury, two U.S. officials told NBC News on Thursday. Over the past couple of days, similar explosive letters were sent to other locations throughout Spain, including the Spanish Ministry of Defense. Police in Spain said the envelope "contained substances similar to those used in pyrotechnics." Earlier this week, a package was sent to the Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid, injuring a security officer, and to an arms company in Spain that manufactures rocket launchers donated to Ukraine. The package sent to the embassy was addressed to Ukraine's ambassador to Spain, Serhii Pohoreltsev.

☆ China tech stocks have 'a lot of upside' and peak regulation is over, fund management firm says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Abigail Ng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The Chinese government is unlikely to introduce new regulations for the internet tech sector and there could be more support going forward, according to Jonathan Krane of KraneShares. "I do not foresee much regulation going forward." He added that the Chinese tech industry makes up a big portion of the economy. "It's a very important sector, it's the consumer of China — so I think you're gonna see a lot of support around the sector going forward as China reopens." Chinese tech stocks have had some difficult years following the regulatory crackdown and amid the ongoing Covid restrictions, though the sector has recovered slightly on reopening hopes.

You can connect two pairs of AirPods to your iPhone with Apple's audio sharing feature. Thankfully, Apple has an audio sharing feature that lets you listen to audio from your iPhone using two separate sets of wireless earbuds. Devices with AirPods compatibilityBelow is a list of devices that have the audio sharing feature. Abigail Abesamis Demarest/InsiderQuick tip: To connect two pairs of AirPods to a Mac, go to Finder, then Utilities, then Audio MIDI Setup. Abigail Abesamis Demarest/Insider

☆ Asia-Pacific markets slip ahead of China factory activity data
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Abigail Ng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Workers work on a speaker production line at Luyang Electronics Co LTD in Fuyang City, Anhui Province, China, Oct 31, 2022. Asia-Pacific shares fell on Wednesday ahead of the release of data on China's November factory activity, in which analysts are expecting to see a contraction for the second time in a row. The Nikkei 225 in Japan fell 0.52% and Topix slipped 0.42%. The MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was 0.14% lower. Japan's Fast Retailing and electric-vehicle maker Xpeng are set to report earnings, and Fed Chair Jerome Powell will be delivering a speech at the Brookings Institution on Wednesday.

☆ Stolen checks, fraudulent activity: three major trade association PACs fell victim to theft in what's become a political epidemic
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

An Insider review of FEC filings shows that the National Association of Manufacturers' PAC reported eight instances of stolen and fraudulent checks and bank transfers, amounting to more than $10,000 in losses. Federal Election CommissionAnother trade association, the National Association of Home Builders, reported three instances of "fraudulent debit" during the 2021-2022 election cycle, amounting to more than $20,000 in lost funds. A filing with the FEC from the PAC of the National Association of Home Builders that details money lost from fraudulent disbursements. Federal Election CommissionThe National Association of Home Builders represents more than 140,000 members who construct close to 80% of all the new homes built in the US, per the association's website. The National Association of Home Builders did not respond to Insider's request for comment.

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