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☆ Opinion | Do Not Panic. It’s Just a Moral Panic.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Pamela Paul | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Not to freak you out, but you may be in the middle of a moral panic. A moral panic is the pervasive belief that some great wickedness is threatening society and must be stopped. According to the panic police, if you are worried about children and social media, you are succumbing to moral panic. If you’re troubled about your employees ruining the corporate brand on TikTok, that’s right: moral panic. Trepidations about artificial intelligence, crime, teenage Juul use, policing, gender ideology, privacy, self-driving cars, feminism, A.D.H.D., racism — moral panics, all.

Persons: Nachman Ben, Yehuda, Erich Goode, ” Ben Organizations: Hebrew University Locations: Jerusalem

☆ How tech companies are working to help detect AI-generated images
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

In recent months, an AI-generated image of Pope Francis in a puffer jacket went viral and AI-generated images of former President Donald Trump getting arrested were widely shared, shortly before he was indicted. Some lawmakers are now calling for tech companies to address the problem. Reality Defender and Hive Moderation are working on the former. Other tech companies like Google appear to be pursuing a playbook that pulls a bit from both approaches. “We need everybody to participate.”For now, however, tech companies continue to move forward with pushing more AI tools into the world.

Persons: Jeffrey McGregor, “ We’re, we’re, ”, McGregor, ” McGregor, Pope Francis, Donald Trump, Vera Jourova, –, “, Dall, ChatGPT, ” Hany Farid, ” Farid, Tom Cruise deepfake, ” Ben Colman, Kevin Guo, ” Guo, —, Andy Parsons, Bing, Farid, ” Parsons Organizations: New, New York CNN, Microsoft, ” Tech, European, Google, Meta, Big Tech, Reality, University of California, CNN, Realty, “, Coalition, Adobe, CAI, BBC, Intel, Sony Locations: New York, EU, Berkeley

☆ Biden Trips and Falls at Air Force Commencement
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Michael D. Shear | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

President Biden tripped and fell after delivering a speech and handing out diplomas to graduates of the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs on Thursday. Mr. Biden, who is 80 years old, was helped up and appeared to recover quickly. He appears to trip, fall to his knees and catch himself with his hands on the floor of the riser. Mr. Biden had delivered an energetic speech to the Air Force graduates before helping to hand out the diplomas. He fell after he distributed the final diploma and was headed back to his seat.

Persons: Biden, Mr, Biden’s, Ben LaBolt, ” Organizations: Air Force Academy, Air Force, White House Locations: Colorado Springs

☆ What’s Next for Turkey?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Justin Porter | Jonathan Wolfe | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Although he fell just short of an outright majority, with 49.5 percent of the vote, signs point strongly to yet another Erdogan victory in two weeks. A third candidate, Sinan Ogan, received 5.2 percent, and his right-wing supporters are likely to vote for Erdogan in the runoff, analysts say. Erdogan’s party and its allies also maintained a commanding majority in the parliamentary vote after stepping up nationalist rhetoric. However, my colleague Ben Hubbard reported that Erdogan’s failure to secure an outright majority this weekend indicated that some voters had grown tired of his financial management and drastic consolidation of power. Turkey has been struggling with a sinking currency and painful inflation that exceeded 80 percent last year.

☆ The Masters were caddied by only Black men for nearly 50 years
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Jack Bantock | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

Located just three miles from The Masters venue, the historically Black district lay adjacent to Augusta Country Club. Eventually, many would hop across Rae’s Creek to begin work at Augusta National. A “good bag” at Augusta National would pay up to $5, Maben said, offering $20 for a particularly lucrative day’s labor. The 1983 Masters saw the first White caddies walk the greens at the major, with just 19 Black caddies on the bag, Clayton said. This year, the Lucy Craft Laney Museum will put the legacy of Augusta’s Black caddies – quite literally – center stage.

Persons: Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Willie Peterson caddied Nicklaus ’, Nathaniel “, ” Avery, Peterson –, –, Augusta, Nicklaus, Peterson, Augusta caddies, Leon Maben, Lucy, Lucy Craft Laney, Ward Clayton, “, ” Palmer, ” Clayton, …, Maben, Jerry ” Beard, caddie, Fuzzy Zoeller, John P, caddying, Willie “ Pappy ” Stokes, Stokes, Henry Picard, Ben Hogan, Hogan, Beard, Zoeller, Augusta “, Clayton, ” Maben, ” Beard, Heinz Kluetmeier, Tommy “, ” Bennett, Woods, scalding, John H, Stovepipe ” Gordon, Frank “, ” Stokes, Matthew “ Shorty Mac ” Palmer, Avery’s, Gordon, Gene Sarazen, Sarazen, Willie “, Perteet, Dwight D, Eisenhower, ”, ’, ‘, We’re, caddies, Jim Crow, Ron Townsend, Lee Elder, Elder, Andy Lyons, Townsend, ” Carl Jackson, Ben Crenshaw, Jackson, Crenshaw, “ Gentle Ben ”, Watson, Jamie Squire, Harvey Penick, ” Jackson, you’re, Andrew Redington, Avery, Palmer, Augusta caddies – Stokes, It’s Organizations: CNN, Augusta National, Bettmann, Getty, Augusta Country, Lucy Craft, Lucy Craft Laney Museum of, . Augusta National, ”, Augusta, ESPN, National, PGA, Augusta Country Club Locations: Georgia, Cedar Grove, Sand, Black, Augusta, caddies, Clayton, America, ”, Perteet

☆ SVB collapse was driven by ‘the first Twitter fueled bank run’
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —The massive amount of customer withdrawals that led to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank had all the hallmarks of an old-fashioned bank run, but with a new twist befitting the primary industry the bank served: much of it unfolded online. Customers withdrew $42 billion in a single day last week from Silicon Valley Bank, leaving the bank with $1 billion in negative cash balance, the company said in a regulatory filing. “It was the speed, fueled by zero distribution costs for both rumors and withdrawals, that was so destabilizing.”Silicon Valley Bank was arguably uniquely susceptible to those factors given its tech-focused customer base. The next day, the US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation stepped in and took control of the bank, which only added to the viral panic on Twitter. “THAT IS THE PROPER REACTION.”Hours later, the Biden administration stepped in and guaranteed the bank’s customers would have access to all their money starting Monday.

☆ Fox News election fraud revelations could take down the network’s embattled chief
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —Who will Rupert Murdoch exile from the Fox kingdom? The stunning levels of misconduct exposed in recent weeks raise questions about the future of Suzanne Scott, the embattled chief executive of Fox News. “They’re leading a trail of crumbs that lead back to her office,” added David Folkenflik, the NPR media correspondent and Murdoch biographer. In each case, Murdoch made the decision to sever ties with top personnel. “They should be reprimanded, maybe got rid of.”As Folkenflik noted, “If you’re Rupert, you can’t fire Rupert.

☆ 8 best gluten-free meal delivery services in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Mili Godio | Mili Godio Is An Associate Reporter For Select On Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +13 min

Fortunately, many meal kits and pre-made meal delivery services offer several gluten-free menu items for any type of meal that can be tasty, creative and easy to prepare when you’re in a rush. To determine the best meal delivery services with gluten-free options or entirely gluten-free menus, we spoke to nutritionists and dieticians about the best services to try out and highlighted each individual service’s pricing, delivery frequency and meal options. 8 best gluten-free meal delivery services to tryWe spoke to experts about their favorite meal delivery services that either provide gluten-free options or have an entirely gluten-free menu. One of Sunbasket’s 10 available meal plans is the Gluten-Free plan, which features five to eight gluten-free options each week. BistroMD offers a specialized gluten-free program that lets you choose from over 100 gluten-free meals each week, according to the service.

Morphe Cosmetics, a makeup brand once synonymous with YouTube beauty culture, confirmed Thursday it was shutting down all its U.S. stores — a move that shocked its employees, outraged customers and left some experts questioning the brand’s future. Morphe employees sounded alarm for weeksSome of Morphe's retail employees said it was shocking that the company had laid them off so abruptly — with several employees telling NBC News that they received a day’s notice before losing their jobs. TikToks under the hashtag #justiceformorpheretailemployees have received more than 7.5 million views, although some viral videos about the store closures have been deleted. As of Friday, Morphe employees who spoke with NBC News said they hadn’t received their severance packets yet. The store closures indicate that sales were continuing to flail, Ben-Shabat said.

☆ C-SPAN is having a moment
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Usually, the House forbids independent media coverage of proceedings, meaning that networks must rely on a government feed for coverage. But when there are special events taking place in the House, such as the election for speaker, independent coverage is allowed. In this case, that translates to C-SPAN deploying multiple cameras of its own into the House chamber, giving the public a rare front row view of the high-stakes negotiations between lawmakers. For example, C-SPAN’s cameras showed Republican Rep. Paul Gosar, who has voted against Kevin McCarthy for speaker, on the floor speaking Tuesday with Democratic Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez. You don’t see that during standard coverage.”O’Connell noted that C-SPAN would like to be able to do this far more often.

☆ Chicago police probe deaths of father and daughter in apartment where toddler was found unharmed
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Antonio Planas | Antonio Planas Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Chicago police are investigating the deaths of a man and his adult daughter discovered Wednesday in an apartment where her 2-year-old boy was found unharmed. She said the dead adults were “family members” and described the incident as “isolated,” noting the public was not in danger. NBC Chicago reported the dead family members are Curtis Hardman and Javonni Jenkins. NBC Chicago also reported police said the family members were fatally shot. Germaine Owens, Jenkins’ cousin, told NBC Chicago: “She didn’t deserve this.

☆ Netanyahu signs coalition deal with Israeli far-right
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-25 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu’s conservative Likud party signed its first coalition deal with Itamar Ben-Gvir’s far-right Jewish Power party, Likud said in a statement on Friday. “We took a big step tonight toward a full coalition agreement, toward forming a fully, fully right-wing government,” Ben-Gvir said in the statement. Far-right lawmaker Itamar Ben-Gvir shows his ballot during the Israeli elections earlier this month. His efforts to quickly form a government have hit roadblocks, however, as negotiations with coalition partners drag on. The incoming government looks to be the most right-wing in Israel’s history, forcing Netanyahu into a diplomatic balancing act between his coalition and Western allies.

☆ Before his epic fall, Sam Bankman-Fried was hailed as a crypto genius. Some clients saw smoke and mirrors.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Gretchen Morgenson | Gretchen Morgenson Is The Senior Financial Reporter For The Nbc News Investigative Unit. A Former Stockbroker | She Won The Pulitzer Prize In For Her | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +14 min

Until a few days ago, Sam Bankman-Fried was the king of crypto. “I’m sorry I didn’t do better,” Bankman-Fried said Tuesday in a message to investors reviewed by NBC News. The contentions of the people who spoke with NBC News are echoed in a 2019 lawsuit brought in federal court against FTX Alameda, Bankman-Fried and other executives. But the crypto market does not have the protections or price transparency found in listed stock markets, for example. FTX and Alameda, as a major crypto exchange and market maker, attracted crypto developers to list their projects for trading.

☆ Election Day deals: Donuts, pizza and cheap rides
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Danielle Wiener-Bronner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN Business —It’s Election Day in America, and some companies are offering deals and freebies to mark the occasion, while others are giving employees time off to vote. Election Day is not a national holiday, though it is a public holiday in some states, so some government offices may be closed. Here’s what you can expect from Corporate America on Election Day, including what you can get for free, or at a discount, on Tuesday. And this year, it’s sending food trucks to polling sites in Philadelphia on Election Day. Changes to schedulesAcross the country, some companies give workers flexibility on Election Day to go to the polls.

☆ Premarket stocks: Is the bitcoin winter beginning to thaw out?
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

But signs of a thaw, spurred on by global currency chaos, are beginning to appear. The gains gave crypto bulls hope that bitcoin was becoming a safe haven asset, or one that acts as a hedge when stocks are falling. Then, around midday, the dollar grew in strength and bitcoin came crashing down again, wiping out all of its recent gains. But all assets are suffering, bitcoin isn’t in this alone.”The silver lining: But even as bitcoin prices fall, investors see signs of a bottom. The central bank is also considering the launch of a Central Bank Digital Currency, which is essentially a digital version of the dollar.

☆ Kia, once the ‘value’ brand, now has the biggest price markups
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Peter Valdes-Dapena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN Business —Reversing a century of tradition, most cars now sell for over the manufacturer’s sticker price. It isn’t some luxury or performance brand; it’s Kia, the South Korean car brand usually thought of as a value purchase. On average, Kia cars and SUVs are selling for about 6% over their sticker price, according to data from Edmunds.com. Roughly tied for second, at 4% above sticker price on average, are Honda, Hyundai and the luxury SUV brand Land Rover. Kia Motors AmericaAdding to the pressure is that, while manufacturing slowdowns have hit the whole industry, Kia models are especially hard to find.

☆ The Truss tax plan cushions the wealthy while pushing borrowers toward a financial cliff
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

That’s because the Bank of England is now widely expected to hike interest rates even further to tackle inflation that will be exacerbated by the government’s sweeping tax cuts. That means many as 1.8 million borrowers are now hurtling toward a financial cliff as they prepare to refinance next year, when the mortgage rate may well have doubled. The vast majority (nearly two-thirds) of the tax gains go to the wealthiest one-fifth of households, according to one think tank estimate. According to the US Treasury, tax cuts reduced federal revenues by about 9% in the first couple of years. However, Congress eventually decided the sweeping tax cuts were unsustainable and, with Reagan’s approval, raised taxes by a lot in 1982.

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