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☆ Analysis: Biden's focus on deficit in budget is targeted at Republicans
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Trevor Hunnicutt | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Biden's increasing emphasis on the deficit now doesn't mean the White House sees an imminent crisis looming from the nation's $32 trillion debt. Instead, the White House hopes to draw a sharp contrast with Republican threats to refuse to raise the debt limit without sharp spending cuts. Including this fiscal plan in Biden's agenda can help shore up his economic credibility before his expected 2024 re-election campaign, the White House believes. That doesn't mean that what the White House is proposing is going to happen, of course. Reuters GraphicsNearly six in ten people told Pew Research Center in January that reducing the deficit should be a top Biden administration priority.

☆ Gen Z's New Relationship Trend: Ditching Online Apps, Dating Friends
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Daniel Cox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

But that's changing: Today's young adults, especially young women, are increasingly finding romance in their friend groups. In interviews conducted for our survey, young people told us that they found online dating too transactional. Trust is at even more of a premium when it comes to dating online. In a Pew survey conducted last year, 52% of Americans reported encountering what they believed to be a scammer on an online dating platform. In dating, especially online dating, women are bombarded with negative attention, harassment, or worse.

Chart showing the percentage cut the committee would make to each area of government spending to balance the budget over 10 years. 8 8 8 Deficit 6 6 6 4 4 4 Spending Spending Spending Revenue Revenue Revenue 2 2 2 2023 2033 2023 2033 2023 2033 Current projections Deficits are projected to grow to $2.7 trillion by 2033. 8 8 8 Deficit 6 6 6 4 4 4 Spending Spending Spending Revenue Revenue Revenue 2 2 2 2023 2033 2023 2033 2023 2033 Eliminate by increasing taxes Current projections Eliminate by cutting spending Deficits are projected to grow to $2.7 trillion by 2033. plan to balance budget 50% Projections 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 Current trajectory 200% of G.D.P. plan to balance budget 50% Projections 1930 1960 1990 2020 2050 Sources: Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget; Congressional Budget Office; Republican Study Committee Note: Both plans were released in 2022 and are based on outdated baseline projections; their debt reduction may differ modestly.

☆ Over 2 million workers are missing from the US workforce. Here's how they're paying their bills.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

There are over two million workers missing from the US labor force, per Bank of America Institute. They can thank gig work, living with others who are earning money, and excess savings or stimulus money during the pandemic. "There's no single driver that's really causing people not returning back to the labor force," Zhou told Insider. Below are different ways these "missing workers" from the labor force may still be affording expenses and paying bills. The "financial buffer" that some of these missing workers may be relying on could be a "temporary reason" they left.

☆ The US dollar is at a crossroads
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

New York CNN —Wall Street investors are reaching for their neck braces in preparation for yet another volatile swing in stock markets: A surging US dollar. What’s happening: The US dollar “finds itself at a significant crossroads yet again,” said Krosby. Don’t forget the debt ceiling: Another significant threat to the dollar is looming in Congress — the ongoing debt ceiling fight. “It would certainly undermine the role of the dollar as a reserve currency that is used in transactions all over the world. Initial claims have come in lower than expected in recent weeks and remain well below their pre-pandemic levels.

☆ TikTok sets automatic one-hour screen time limit for teens
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Rohan Goswami | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

TikTok said Wednesday it will implement an automatic 60-minute screen-time limit for all users under the age of 18. Teens will be able to opt out of the feature if they want, but TikTok said that the app will prompt teens to set a limit if they spend "more than 100 minutes on TikTok in a day." TikTok is taking steps to curb screen time for its younger users as it stares down growing scrutiny from regulators and lawmakers over its security and the safety of children on the platform. A study from the Pew Research Center last August found 67% of American teenagers used TikTok, with 16% of all teens saying they used it "constantly." TikTok parent ByteDance faces a probe from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, also known as CFIUS, over national security concerns.

☆ TikTok's potential ban in U.S. could be boon for Meta and Snap
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Jonathan Raa | Nurphoto | Getty ImagesInvestors in Meta , Snap and other U.S. digital media companies have been looking for signs of a rebound after a tumultuous 2022. Meta climbed 1% on Wednesday, and Snap was unchanged. She said that Meta's Facebook, Snap and Google's YouTube could be "huge beneficiaries" if the ban ultimately takes place. watch now"A U.S. ban on TikTok is a ban on the export of American culture and values to the billion-plus people who use our service worldwide," a TikTok spokesperson said Wednesday. Andrew Boone, an analyst at JMP, said that Meta likely stands to benefit the most should TikTok face a U.S. ban.

☆ The gender pay gap: Why it hasn't narrowed much over 20 years
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Jeanne Sahadi | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

“Higher education, a shift to higher-paying occupations and more labor market experience have helped women narrow the gender pay gap since 1982,” the Pew analysis noted. “To some extent, the gender wage gap varies by race and ethnicity because of differences in education, experience, occupation and other factors that drive the gender wage gap for women overall,” the Pew analysis noted. Regardless, the gender pay gap is typically narrowest when you pick any single occupation and control for measurable factors between men and women like education, tenure and hours worked. Another factor that may help explain the stickiness of the pay gap is that the wage premium for those with college degrees has grown smaller. Narrowing the gender pay gap from here may be tough sledding.

☆ More Parents Are Moving In With Adult Children—at Younger Ages
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Oyin Adedoyin | Photographs Zack Wittman For The Wall Street Journal | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

More parents are moving in with their young adult children, and they are doing it while they are younger, healthier and often still working. One in four Americans aged 25 to 34 lived with parents or older relatives as of 2021, the fastest-growing segment in multigenerational households, according to data from Pew Research Center. Most of this group is adult children moving back in with their parents, but a significant number of older adults are moving in with millennials, said Richard Fry , a senior researcher at Pew. In 2021, 9% of multigenerational households were headed by a 25- to 34-year-old, up from 6% in 2001.

☆ A 'baby bond' bill to give every child $1,000 at birth has been reintroduced in Congress. How it would work
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Lorie Konish | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The policy is aimed at narrowing the wealth gap, which has grown dramatically in the past 50 years, according to the lawmakers. The idea of baby bonds is getting traction in some states. Baby bond legislation has passed in California, Connecticut and Washington, D.C. Another eight states have introduced legislation, according to the Urban Institute, including Iowa, New Jersey, New York, Wisconsin, Washington, Delaware, Nevada and Massachusetts. A national policy may reduce the wealthy disparity between young white and Black Americans to a ratio of 1 to 4, according to the research. Estimates have found young white Americans have 16 times the wealth of young Black Americans, based on median incomes.

☆ Why a 70-year-old flour brand is suddenly surging in popularity among Gen Z
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Corn flour brand Maseca was one of the top brands among Gen Z consumers, per Numerator. People of Hispanic heritage make up a quarter of Gen Z, a larger share than any previous generation. Maseca ranked fourth on Numerator's list of the top Gen Z brands of 2022. In 2022, "89% of Maseca's Gen Z sales growth came from Gen Z Hispanics, compared to 60% of total Maseca's sales growth coming from Hispanics," a Numerator spokesperson said. Fifty-four percent of Gen Z Hispanic households consider heritage important to which foods and beverages they buy.

☆ The 'singles tax': People who live alone are paying thousands more on rent than their coupled-up counterparts
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

It costs to be single: Americans living alone are facing a "singles tax" that costs thousands. A recent Zillow analysis compares how much more single Americans are paying to live alone in a one-bedroom place, compared to couples in the same spots. The results: On average, solo Americans are paying a "singles tax" of almost $7,000 every year. Those three all have singles tax of above $10,000 per Zillow's analysis on one-bedrooms. Silvia Tergas, a financial planner with Prudential, told Insider the singles tax is also reflected in the actual tax system, which largely benefits married couples who file jointly.

☆ VP Harris: Young people will 'leapfrog' this generation in climate change work because they won't face the question: 'Is this real?'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

US Vice President Kamala Harris speaks about the administrations investments and actions to combat the climate crisis, at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia, on February 8, 2023. "Because, you know, especially for our younger leaders, the benefit that you have is you're not burdened by any question about, 'Is this real?'" Another 2021 survey showed that 59% of young people aged 16 to 25 years old around the globe are "very or extremely worried" about climate change and 84% are at least "moderately worried." Among other topics, Vice President Harris also spoke about electric vehicle and electric school bus use, water scarcity policy, and how climate change disproportionally impacts the most vulnerable in society. That migration, forced by climate change, may lead to conflict, she said.

☆ 42% of daters think apps like Tinder and Bumble make it easier to find a long-term partner
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Aditi Shrikant | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

42% of adults think dating apps make it easier to find a long-term partner, according to a new survey from Pew Research Center. Of respondents ages 18 to 29, 35% said dating apps make finding a serious partner easier — while 33% said it makes things harder. A whopping 43% of men said they are using the apps to casually date while 42% said they are looking for a long-term partner. Alternatively, 48% of women said they are using dating apps to find long-term partners and only 37% are using apps to date casually. A whopping 54% of women feel overwhelmed by messages on dating apps, but only 25% of men feel the same.

Seventy-five percent of Americans say strengthening the economy should be the top policy priority for President Joe Biden and Congress to address this year, according to a new Pew Research Center poll, higher than any other priority the survey tested. At the bottom of the list of 21 different policy priorities is dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, with just 26% of respondents saying Biden and Congress should address it this year — a drop from 2021 and 2022, when it was near the top in the poll. The Pew survey comes ahead of Biden’s State of the Union address on Tuesday, and it shows broad agreement that strengthening the economy should be priority, with 84% of Republicans and 68% of Democrat saying it should be. But there’s disagreement on dealing with immigration (70% of Republicans said it should be a priority, versus 37% of Democrats), on dealing with climate change (59% of Democrats vs. 13% of Republicans) and on addressing issues around race (49% of Democrats vs. 13% of Republicans). The online Pew poll was conducted Jan. 18-24 of 5,152 adults, and it has an overall margin of error of plus-minus 1.7 percentage points.

☆ Super Bowl a showcase for next generation of quarterback talent
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( Amy Tennery | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The next-youngest quarterback duo was Joe Montana and Dan Marino, who faced off at Super Bowl 19 at a combined age of 51 years and 350 days, according to ESPN, in 1985. Hurts will become the first member of Gen-Z to start in a Super Bowl, with Pew Research Center defining his generation as those born in 1997 or later. He has plenty of company among high-achieving young quarterbacks. "To find some stability in that position is like finding a massive gold nugget," ESPN analyst and retired twice Super Bowl champion Rob Ninkovich told Reuters. The Kansas City Chiefs play the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 57 on Feb. 12.

☆ Why Instagram Will Never Be Able to Compete With TikTok
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Chris Stokel-Walker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

TikTok's secret sauce is its ability to keep users on the platform, and without sacrificing its core, Instagram won't be able to compete. That's because on TikTok, every video a creator makes has to outperform every other TikTok video. Victim of its own successUnlike TikTok, Instagram has long been seen as a secure place on which to build a digital following. A year ago, when the researcher Valdovinos Kaye was interviewing TikTok creators for his book, he found that they desperately sought to transport their audiences over to Instagram. Rather than copying TikTok's success, Instagram might need to focus on what separates it from the pack.

China's population is shrinking. This shocking statistic is only the start of China's population decline. This year India is set to surpass China's population, and in a few years it will surpass China's working-age population — people 20 to 69. Because of its manufacturing prowess and importance to supply chains, China's shrinking working-age population has enormous, direct effects on the global economy. Among today's largest economies, only the US has a projection of positive population growth, though at very low levels.

☆ Black women on TikTok want to know, ‘Where’s our Alix Earle?’
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Uwa Ede-Osifo | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

TikTok creator Danessy Auguste has spent the past few weeks feeling confused over the frenzy surrounding influencer Alix Earle. But for white women, their least successful videos, on average, still have the capability to reach millions of viewers, Boffone said. What would it take to get a ‘Black Alix Earle’? Adding another dimension to the Alix Earle discourse, one influencer posed a provocative question:“Do we deserve an Alix Earle?” Niké Ojekunle, who goes by @specsandblazers on TikTok, said in a video. Communal support with trends such as #BlackGirlFollowTrain have already allowed Black women to intentionally engage with one another’s content.

The issue brief stated that a "10% increase in median childcare prices was associated with 1 percentage-point lower county-level maternal employment rates." "High childcare prices and minimal public childcare investments are especially detrimental to employment among mothers with lower wages, as childcare affordability is out of reach," the researchers wrote. Childcare costs have outpaced inflation during the pandemic, according to one recent report, and the lion's share of childcare duties have fallen on women during the pandemic, causing them to leave the workforce en masse. Childcare workers made a mean hourly wage of $13.31 as of 2021, with the bottom 10% earning about $9 an hour. That's as childcare workers are more than twice as likely to live below the poverty line as those in other industries.

☆ Remote work hasn't actually saved Americans much time — they're mainly just working more
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Not having to commute could mean getting to partake in leisure activities — or more time to get work done. A working paper looked at how people working from home are using their time saved by not commuting. In the US, 23 minutes of this time saved goes to jobs, 19 minutes on leisure, and four minutes on caregiving. Looking at just the results for these wealthy democracies, the US stands out for its lack of minutes saved. This isn't just the case for remote workers in the US; other countries like France also saw workers using most of their saved time on work.

☆ Robot Pets and VR Headsets Can Reduce Older Adults’ Loneliness. So Why Don’t They?
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( Julie Jargon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Older Americans face a growing loneliness epidemic. Startups are finding ways technology can help. The hard part is bringing them together. The U.S. globally has the highest percentage of older adults living alone, according to Pew Research Center. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have long warned that social isolation contributes to numerous health problems, including dementia and depression.

The Biden administration is proposing to allow people to check off Hispanic or Latino as their race. Currently people of such origin are included in the white category, something people in the MENA category have advocated to be changed for three decades, the proposal states. "The nation does periodically examine how it asks about race and ethnicity and the ways we report out those findings can be important," Mark Hugo Lopez, director of race and ethnicity research for Pew Research Center, said Thursday. The Census Bureau defines Hispanic or Latino as an ethnicity, not a race. For example, people could check white and then check boxes for Italian, German or other countries of origin and also check American Indian or Hispanic or Latino and then check Mexican or Mexican American or Puerto Rican and others.

☆ How Gen Zers are turning to dating apps like Bumble for platonic friendships
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Liam Mays | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Over the years, online dating has become almost completely normalized. A recent study showed that 39% of straight couples met online in the U.S. and more than half of LGBTQ couples have used dating apps, according to the Pew Research Center. Apps like Bumble BFF and Meetup have become popular ways to build platonic relationships. Berger said that by the end of 2021, 15% of Bumble users had also used BFF, which is short for best friends forever. Schenk said that Morgan Stanley's 2023 revenue estimate for Bumble is just over $1 billion — with only about $1 million coming from Bumble BFF and friend-finding service Bizz.

☆ Sanders’ Latinx ban delves into a generational, cultural Latino debate
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

— One of Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ first acts as Arkansas governor was to ban most state agencies from using the gender-neutral term Latinx, tapping into a debate that’s divided Hispanics along generational lines. Sanders’ order adds to the debate over a word that’s found little widespread support among Latinos and even prompted backlash from some Democrats. The Log Cabin Republicans, which represents LGBT members of the party, praised Sanders’ order. I’ve never met someone who says ‘thy.’”Hernandez called Sanders’ order “an attempt to erase” the LGBTQ Latino community. Castillo Reyes uses both Latinx and “Latine,” another gender-neutral term that’s been used by some in the Latino community to describe their ethnic identity.

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