DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Dunkin’s newest pumpkin drink contains actual donuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Dunkin’ is elevating the pumpkin drink wars with, what else, donuts. The drink, called “Ice Spice Munchkins Drink,” is a collaboration with rapper Ice Spice and perhaps Dunkin’s biggest fan, actor Ben Affleck. Dunkin rolled out its fall-themed menu in mid-August, a few weeks before Starbucks added its pumpkin spice latte to menus. On Tuesday, Wendy’s began selling for a limited time a pumpkin spice-flavored Frosty, a new flavor to its menu, and a pumpkin spice-flavored cold brew coffee drink, which uses the same syrup from the pumpkin spice Frosty. Dozens of other food products, from pumpkin spice Oreos to beer, hot chocolate mix and even protein powder have crammed into the market.

Persons: New York CNN — Dunkin, Ben Affleck, ” It’s, Affleck, Dunkin, Wendy’s, Dunkin ’ Organizations: New, New York CNN, Starbucks Locations: New York

☆ ADL chief fires back at Elon Musk for waging campaign of harassment against the group
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Greenblatt told CNN on Wednesday that the ADL has seen a surge in threats directed at the organization since Musk began waging his campaign of bullying against the renowned institution. As a result, Greenblatt said, the ADL has been forced to increase its security. Nevertheless, despite the ominous climate, Greenblatt said that the ADL remains undeterred in its mission and insisted that it will not be intimidated. “For over 100 years, the ADL has been the leading anti-hate organization in the country fighting raging anti-semites, wild bigots, hardened anti-Zionists. Greenblatt said that while Musk is blaming the organization for its advertising woes, he has not been talking to advertisers.

Persons: CNN — Elon, Jonathan Greenblatt, Greenblatt, Musk, ” Greenblatt, “, It’s, —, We’ve, I’m, ”, Red Bull, Puck Organizations: CNN, Defamation, ADL, Twitter, Apple, Gatorade, Ritz Crackers, Samsung, NFL, MLB, Paramount, State Farm, IBM, Century Fox ., Washington Post, Street, The New York Times, Bloomberg, CNBC

☆ Wendy’s is selling a pumpkin spice-flavored Frosty
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Wendy’s is entering the pumpkin spice wars. For the first time, Wendy’s is adding a pumpkin spice-flavored Frosty to its menus for a limited time beginning September 12. Adding pumpkin spice-flavored drinks seems like a no-brainer for Wendy’s since the flavor keeps growing in popularity, partly because of Starbucks. The chain doesn’t mix up its Frosty flavors as nearly as often as McDonald’s does with its McFlurry lineup. Also for a limited time this year, Wendy’s is adding a pumpkin spice-flavored cold brew coffee drink, which uses the “same delicious syrup from the pumpkin spice Frosty,” it said.

Persons: New York CNN — Wendy’s, Wendy’s, Carl Loredo, it’s, ” Organizations: New, New York CNN, Starbucks, CNN Locations: New York, Wendy’s

☆ Amazon will soon let you pay for groceries with your palm at any Whole Foods—but tech experts urge caution
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-26 | by ( Cheyenne Devon | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Amazon One is a type of biometric-based form of payment which uses your unique physical features, such as your face or palm print, to authorize payments. This means customers who sign up for the Amazon One program won't need their wallets or phones to pay for groceries. To its credit, Amazon says its palm scanners use liveness-detection technology and are able to tell the difference between a live palm and a fake one. Consumers should also be aware that the database where their biometric data is stored could potentially be hacked. It's important to understand that your biometric information is some of the most sensitive data you create, says Greer.

Persons: you'll, that's, Hafiz Malik, Malik, Evan Greer, Cynthia Rudin, Rudin, Greer, That's, Warren Buffett Organizations: Foods, University of Michigan, Corporations, CNBC, Duke University Locations: U.S

☆ 16 Adults on the Virtues and Pleasures of Being Bad - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +14 min

They’re almost enough to make you forget the pleasures of being a little bit bad. We asked 16 writers — most of them respectable adults — about the irresponsible, immoral, indulgent things they do. Years later, we bumped into each other in public, resulting in a humiliating exposition that left everyone questioning my sanity. Can’t stop won’t stop ShopliftingWhenever I’m at the airport, I like to do a little shopping at the Free Store. Yes yes yes.

Persons: —, it’s, I’ve, Kennedy, Dan Cathy, Burger King, Jack, they’re, Chick, I’m, ”, Tell, Wranchers, pant, Henry Hill, Bob Hughes, — let’s, Kelly I, It’s, Saint Augustine, “, It’s icky, Jamieson Webster, Rinee Shah Organizations: Harvard, New York Times Locations: British, New York, “, YOLO, San Francisco

Competition for workers is fierce: The Wendy’s on Mr. Bellman’s drive home from work advertises wages of $18 an hour. New Hampshire is surrounded by states where the minimum wage is above $13, so if Granite State employers tried to offer substantially less, many workers could cross the border for a bigger paycheck. Paige Roberts, president and chief executive of the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce in Mississippi, said she was “nearly laughed out of a job” when she started asking members about paying the minimum wage. Faster hikes in the wage floor in the late 2010s forced up long-stagnant wages in fields like restaurants and retail. And some businesses, such as summer camps, say they are still paying the minimum wage for entry-level workers or those in training.

Persons: Bellman’s, Mr, Bellman, Paige Roberts Organizations: Granite, Jackson County Chamber of Commerce Locations: New Hampshire, Granite State, Alabama, Mississippi, Jackson County

☆ Grocery prices rose in July
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Danielle Wiener-Bronner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Grocery prices ticked up 0.3% in July, after staying flat in June, driven largely by rising beef prices. Uncooked beef steaks prices rose 2.3% and uncooked ground beef rose 1.5%. Tyson (TSN) reported that while its prices for pork and chicken were down in the quarter ending in July, beef prices went up. Altogether, grocery prices rose 3.6% for the year, higher than the overall 3.2% increase of consumer prices — but not by much. What’s going on with menu pricesIn the month of July, menu prices rose a tiny bit, just 0.2%.

Persons: Joe Raedle, ”, Donnie King, Tyson, Bread, Rice, Sweets, Milk, WEN, Papa Johns, Rob Lynch, “, we’ve, I’ve, Lynch Organizations: New, New York CNN, Bureau of Labor Statistics, TSN, USDA, Burger, Papa Johns Locations: New York

☆ Ahead of two key inflation reports, what would a soft landing look like exactly?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-06 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

But aside from simply skirting a recession, it’s not obvious what the economy would look like in a soft landing. And who even declares that the Fed has officially defied the odds and achieved a soft landing? The main aspect of a soft landing, according to economists, is the absence of a recession, which is determined by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER.) In a soft landing, the job market has to remain intact. The other key feature of a soft landing is for the Fed to successfully control inflation, but that’s open to some interpretation.

Persons: we’ve, ”, Kayla Bruun, “, Julia Pollak, ” Pollak, Josh Markman, cooldown, Austan Goolsbee, ” Goolsbee, Raphael Bostic, Michelle Bowman, Patrick Harker, Armour, Ralph Lauren Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, DC CNN, Federal Reserve, Bank of America, Fed, National Bureau of Economic Research, Morning, Atlanta, ZipRecruiter, Labor, Bel Air Investment Advisors, Federal, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Bloomberg, Atlanta Fed, “, Tyson Foods, UPS, Fox, Restaurant Brands, The National Federation of Independent Business, US Commerce Department, China’s National Bureau of Statistics, Disney, US Labor Department, National Statistics, University of Michigan Locations: Washington

☆ Thanks to Carol Burnett and Dolly Parton, New Life for a 1988 Film
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( Ben Kenigsberg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In the pre-internet days, without the distributor, there wasn’t much way to check in on the film’s afterlife, she explained. They begin a relationship and, with some reluctance, she joins his band covering American hits. Although Kuzui wrote the screenplay with her friend Lynn Grossman, “Tokyo Pop” was made with a mostly Japanese crew — unusual at the time for any American director, let alone a woman. “Foreigners in Japan — they were not held to, and they still aren’t held to, exactly the same rules that Japanese people follow,” Kuzui said. If she was going to be successful as a director, she felt, it couldn’t be with that sort of advantage.

Persons: ”, Kaz Kuzui, Hamilton, Yutaka Tadokoro, Kuzui, Lynn Grossman, “, she’s, Japan —, ” Kuzui Organizations: Blockbuster, Tokyo, Foreigners Locations: Great Neck, N.Y, Japanese, Wendy, New York, Japan

☆ Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu on the Rise of the Ultra-Orthodox
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

What Burger King’s New Logo Says About Its StrategyBurger King revealed its first total rebrand in over 20 years as it looks to win back sales from rivals like McDonald’s and Wendy’s. A branding expert and reporter explain what Burger King is trying to say with its new logo. Photo illustration: Ryan Trefes