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☆ BBC's Sharp resigns after breaching rules over Boris Johnson loan
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Sarah Young | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The investigation, initiated by the public appointments watchdog, examined the way in which Sharp was selected by the government to chair the corporation in 2021. Specifically, it looked at whether Sharp fully disclosed details of his role in facilitating an 800,000 pound ($1 million) loan for Johnson before he was named chairman. The report found that, while he had breached the government's code for public appointments, that breach did not necessarily invalidate his appointment. "I have decided that it is right to prioritise the interests of the BBC," Sharp said in a statement. The report mentions Johnson's Downing Street office as having recommended Sharp as "a strong candidate" for the role, which attracted 23 applications.

☆ ‘Hunger Games’ prequel reveals first look
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Lisa Respers France | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —“Every saga has a beginning.”That’s part of the message in the newly released trailer for “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.”The prequel for the “Hunger Games” franchise tells the story of Lucy Gray Baird, played by “West Side Story” star Rachel Zelger, and a teenage Coriolanus Snow, played by Tom Blyth. Things get dark quickly in the trailer as Lucy and young Snow try to survive the deadly games. “With his livelihood threatened, Snow is reluctantly assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), a tribute from the impoverished District 12. “With everything he has worked for hanging in the balance, Snow unites with Lucy Gray to turn the odds in their favor. Based on the book series by Suzanne Collins, the “Hunger Games” franchise has been extremely popular with the first film helping to launch Jennifer Lawrence’s stardom.

☆ Why Is Strep So Bad Lately?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Suryatapa Bhattacharya | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Amoxicillin pills are available, although they aren’t ideal for young children. Photo: Lucy Nicholson/REUTERSHealth officials are warning that strep-throat season could drag out, worsened by an antibiotic shortage and increased rates of a severe form of infection. Strep, a common infection in the throat and tonsils, can strike at any time of year, but most cases occur in late fall to early spring. Serious complications are rare.

☆ Dow Slips on Slowdown Fears Despite Tech’s Resilience
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( David Uberti | Chelsey Dulaney | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Microsoft shares’ rise Wednesday helped the Nasdaq Composite stay positive on the day. Photo: Lucy Nicholson/REUTERSTech companies including Microsoft Corp. were among the stock market’s few bright spots Wednesday, as investors digested corporate earnings that offered mixed messages about the state of the U.S. economy. Major indexes on Wednesday morning clawed back some of the previous day’s losses before edging lower leading to the closing bell. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.5% while the S&P 500 dipped 0.4% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked 0.7%, or 229 points, lower.

☆ Jerry Springer, raucous talk show host, dead at 79
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Brendan O'Brien | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Television personality Jerry Springer at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. July 25, 2016. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/File PhotoLONDON, April 27 (Reuters) - Television personality Jerry Springer, known for a long-running talk show that featured raucous audiences, controversial topics and fist-fighting guests and who briefly served as Cincinnati mayor, died at age 79 on Thursday, his family said. Springer was born in London on Feb. 13, 1944, and immigrated to New York City when he was 4 years old. In 1991, Springer landed his own television program, a syndicated talk show broadcast across the United States until 2018. The daytime program, known as "The Jerry Springer Show," was initially a politically oriented show but later featured everyday people discussing sensationalistic topics, often related to unconventional sexuality.

☆ New Zealand committed to cutting spending, PM Hipkins says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WELLINGTON, April 27 (Reuters) - The New Zealand government is committed to reducing spending even though severe weather events earlier this year caused asset damage of roughly NZ$9 billion ($5.51 billion) to NZ$14.5 billion, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said on Thursday. “For our part, the government is committed to reducing our proportion of spending to dampen demand in the economy,” Hipkins said in a speech to the Employers and Manufacturers Association. New Zealand is already dealing with historically high inflation and the central bank has previously raised concerns that any boost in government spending could add to the inflation problem. Hipkins said his aim is to get government spending down to around the low thirties as a percentage of GDP. ($1 = 1.6343 New Zealand dollars)Reporting by Lucy Craymer Editing by Alasdair PalOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Tesla broke U.S. labor law by silencing workers, official rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Daniel Wiessner | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - Tesla Inc supervisors at a Florida service center violated U.S. labor law by telling employees not to discuss pay and other working conditions or bring complaints to higher level managers, a U.S. labor board official has ruled. The judge ordered Tesla to cease and desist from violating workers’ rights and to post notice of the violations in the service center and email it to employees. Tesla had argued that it had quickly repudiated the managers’ comments by posting a notice in the service center that Tesla policy allowed workers to discuss their pay. The judge said that attempting to silence employees violated their fundamental right under U.S. labor law to band together to advocate for better working conditions. The company is also appealing an NLRB decision that said it unlawfully barred factory workers from wearing union t-shirts.

☆ Carol Burnett's birthday special' is an elegant (and hilarious) event
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Marianne Garvey | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Hulton Archive/Getty Images Burnett peeks at a portrait of herself that was being painted by artist Dmitri Vails in 1963. CBS/Getty Images Burnett interacts with the audience of her new variety show, "The Carol Burnett Show," in 1967. CBS/Getty Images Burnett, left, and Cher perform a skit on "The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour" in 1972. CBS/Getty Images Burnett poses with her memoir "One More Time" at a book signing in Beverly Hills, California, in 1986. Will Hart/NBC/Getty Images Carol Burnett Square was unveiled in Los Angeles in front of her alma mater, Hollywood High School, in 2013.

LONDON, April 27 (Reuters) - Britain on Thursday set out long-awaited plans to crack down on problem gambling as it aims to bring regulations up to date with a rise in betting online and on smartphones. The reforms would give extra powers to gambling regulators to take down illegal betting sites and tackle unauthorised operators. Campaign group Charity Gambling with Lives, which supports families bereaved by gambling-related suicide, welcomed the changes but said they did not go far enough. It had called for an end to all gambling advertising and affordability checks at 100 pounds of monthly losses. Habits have changed significantly since then, with an exponential rise in online betting.

☆ Former NZ PM Jacinda Ardern accepts Harvard fellowships
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WELLINGTON, April 26 (Reuters) - Former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Wednesday that she was taking up three fellowships at Harvard University later in 2023. Ardern stepped down as prime minister in January saying she had "no more in the tank" to lead the country and would also not seek re-election to parliament. Harvard University said in a statement she had been appointed to dual fellowships at Harvard Kennedy School and to a concurrent fellowship at the Berkman Klein Center. “I am incredibly humbled to be joining Harvard University as a fellow - not only will it give me the opportunity to share my experience with others, it will give me a chance to learn," Ardern said in the statement. Ardern has previously said she will continue to help tackle violent extremism online as an unpaid special envoy for the Christchurch Call.

☆ 'One of a kind': Australians pay tribute to 'icon' Barry Humphries
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] Australia's Barry Humphries poses after receiving his Most Excellent Order of the British Empire from the Queen at Buckingham Palace, London October 10, 2007. REUTERS/Steve Parsons/Pool/File PhotoSYDNEY, April 23 (Reuters) - Australians have paid tribute to Barry Humphries, the comedian best known for his character Dame Edna Everage, as both a "one-of-a-kind" entertainer and a charming and intelligent man. The Sydney Morning Herald said Humphries died on Saturday at St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney, where he had been treated for various health issues. Another Sydneysider, Lucy Bloom, said it felt like the character of Dame Edna would never come to an end. "Barry Humphries entertained us through a galaxy of personas, from Dame Edna to Sandy Stone.

☆ Women's Champions League: Barcelona takes 1-0 lead over Chelsea in semifinal in front of a record-breaking crowd
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Issy Ronald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Barcelona took a step forward to reaching the Women’s Champions League final by defeating Chelsea 1-0 in the first leg of their semifinal clash. In front of 27,697 fans at Stamford Bridge – a record crowd for a women’s Champions League game in the UK – Barcelona took the lead in the fourth minute thanks to Caroline Graham Hansen’s brilliant goal and never relinquished it. But the Blues regrouped after conceding the early goal, engineering chances for Guto Reiten and Sam Kerr, and banishing any thoughts of a similar collapse against Barcelona in the 2021 Champions League final when it lost 4-0. A record-breaking crowd watched Barcelona's victory at Stamford Bridge. Harriet Lander/Chelsea FC/Getty Images“I can’t ask any more of the players,” Chelsea manager Emma Hayes told the club website afterwards.

☆ Britain's Cleverly leaves New Zealand early to focus on Sudan response
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] People look for water during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan April 20, 2023. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin AbdallahWELLINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - British Foreign Minister James Cleverly will leave New Zealand Friday and cut his Pacific tour short, his office said, as he focuses on coordinating Britain's response to the Sudan crisis. Cleverly had been scheduled to meet with Samoan officials and New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta in Samoa on Friday before undertaking a bilateral meeting and press briefing Saturday in New Zealand. "It’s with real regret that due to the ongoing situation in Sudan I’ve had to cut the visit short. The Foreign Office said on Thursday that Cleverly was skipping his Samoa stop and heading straight to New Zealand where he could better coordinate London's response to events in Africa.

☆ The Best of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour Openers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Is it the best song on Haim’s sprawling and fantastic 2020 album “Women in Music Part III”? Even though she was born in 2000, “Care” shows how intuitively she understands something about the sort of scuzzy, anthemic indie-pop that underground labels like Slumberland Records were releasing in the ’90s. (A “Best of Slumberland Records” playlist in a future installment of The Amplifier? Muna featuring Phoebe Bridgers: “Silk Chiffon”Two Eras Tour openers for the price of one! Far and away my favorite song from Muna’s 2022 self-titled album, this one is pure pop bliss and a refreshing reverie of queer joy.

☆ New Zealand ships its last livestock as ban takes effect
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WELLINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - New Zealand's last exports of livestock by sea have been completed and live exports have ceased, its agriculture minister said on Friday, as it fully implemented a ban on export shipments of animals on the grounds of their welfare. Live exports by sea have contributed about 0.32% of New Zealand’s primary sector export revenue, which includes farming and mining, since 2015. The total value of live animal exports in 2022 was NZ$524 million ($322.78 million). New Zealand said in 2020 it was reviewing live exports when it introduced interim measures following the capsizing of a ship bound for China that killed nearly 6,000 cows and 41 of the 43 crew members. ($1 = 1.6234 New Zealand dollars)Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ UK's Deputy PM Raab quits over bullying probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsUK's Deputy PM Raab quits over bullying probePostedBritish Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab resigned on Friday following an independent investigation into allegations that he bullied colleagues. The loss of a third minister over personal conduct will damage Sunak's efforts to revive the governing Conservative Party's fortunes. Lucy Fielder reports.

☆ Investors cut cash holdings as market focus shifts to inflation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Lucy Raitano | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Market focus has shifted to inflation and the outlook for monetary tightening in recent weeks as fears around banking stocks receded and a market measure of volatility (.VIX) fell to its lowest level since November 2021. Cash funds saw outflows of $65.3 billion, BofA said, citing EPFR data. Bond funds recorded inflows of $4.6 billion, while investors sold $2.6 billion of global stocks and pulled $70 million out of gold funds. Last week data showed U.S. consumer prices rising in March, while data this week showed signs of the labor market cooling. "Core inflation in big economies remains stubbornly high," the BofA analysts said, adding that inflation is being aided by structurally low unemployment rates.

☆ Investors cut cash holdings for first time in eight weeks-BofA
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

LONDON, April 21 (Reuters) - Investors cut their cash holdings for the first time in eight weeks, while shedding equities and gold in the week to Wednesday, according to a report from BofA Global Research on Friday. Cash funds saw outflows of $65.3 billion, BofA said, citing EPFR data. Bond funds, meanwhile, recorded inflows of $4.6 billion, while investors sold $2.6 billion of global stocks and pulled $70 million out of gold funds. Emerging market debt funds saw their first weekly inflow in 10 weeks of $600 million. Investors put $2.3 billion into emerging markets equities, the biggest inflow in four weeks.

☆ A new long Covid treatment shows promise, but insurance won't cover it and some doctors are skeptical: Here's why
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Some long Covid patients swear by the treatment, with one describing it to CNBC Make It as a "total game changer." That's a huge stumbling block for many medical experts, who caution against viewing it as a universal remedy for long Covid. Most of the ones who do get treated have reported improved long Covid symptoms, the clinic adds. That's because a variety of underlying physiological conditions — like chronic lung issues, for example — can "drive different manifestations of long Covid," says Dr. Lucy Horton, an infectious disease physician who founded the long Covid clinic at UC San Diego Health. "For many [Covid] long haulers, including myself, financial freedom is gone because we can't work full-time."

☆ Ukraine’s corn and wheat exports are set to plummet. Here’s what that means for the world's food supply
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Lucy Handley | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Both Ukraine and Russia were among the world's top producers of commodities such as wheat and barley before the war broke out in February 2022. But the conflict saw the price of U.S. wheat and corn futures hit decade highs (with one benchmark wheat contract hitting an all-time high) and sparked volatility in global wheat prices throughout the year. 2023/24 Ukraine grains exports (corn + wheat) might be 27-30mmt, down 15-18mmt from 2021/22," he added. Global food tradeThe war in Ukraine has contributed to rising food prices, with inflation above 5% in more than 80% of low-income countries, according to World Bank figures. Climate change causing extreme weather is already damaging the food system, according to Alexander, a senior lecturer at Edinburgh University's Global Academy of Agriculture and Food Systems.

☆ Sterling eases against dollar; inflation keeps pressure on BoE
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] British pound banknote is displayed on U.S. Dollar banknotes in this illustration taken, February 14, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationLONDON, April 19 - Sterling eased on Wednesday as a higher dollar wiped out earlier gains made after data showed Britain has the highest inflation in western Europe, cementing market expectations for a rate hike at the Bank of England's meeting in May. The inflation data initially sent sterling as much as 0.8% higher against the dollar. On Tuesday data showed British wages rose faster than anticipated last month, further supporting more hikes by the BoE. The market is currently pricing in a 99% chance of a 25 bp rate hike from the Bank of England at its next meeting. .

☆ Mischa Barton joins 'Neighbours' reboot
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Amarachi Orie | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Reece will be an American that is new to the area and “not quite who she appears to be,” according to the show’s producers. The long-running drama series began almost four decades ago in 1985 and ended in July. The new season, which began production in Melbourne on Monday and is set to premiere in the autumn, will inaugurate the revitalized series’ new phase. “I’m excited to be part of this iconic show’s next chapter, and I am really looking forward to being back in Australia – a place I know and love,” said Barton in the release. Guests Ian Smith (as Harold Bishop), April Rose Pengilly (as Chloe Brennan) and Melissa Bell (as Lucy Robinson), will also reprise their roles.

☆ Don't believe these 4 myths about exercise, says 2021's ‘Fitness Influencer of the Year’
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Renée Onque | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

To help you get rid of the "gym jitters," we asked Lucy Wyndham-Read , the "Fitness Influencer of the Year" for 2021, about the myths about exercise that circulate and often deter people from working out. April 18 is National Exercise Day , which was established in 2020 to encourage people to engage in physical activity — it's the perfect day to get a quick workout in. "The reality is, actually, most people are in the gym, or work out, to focus on their wellbeing," she adds. This myth can become an excuse that gets in the way of you going to the gym, Wyndham-Read adds. "Home fitness has proved to be one of the most effective ways to really get people amazing results," she notes.

☆ EU slams Poland, Hungary for Ukraine grain bans
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsEU slams Poland, Hungary for Ukraine grain bansPostedNationalist governments in Poland and Hungary have banned imports of Ukrainian grain and other products to protect their farmers. The EU has condemned the member states' unilateral moves. Lucy Fielder has more.

☆ Should parents decide what their kids do online? These states think so
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Samantha Murphy Kelly | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

That, at least, is the vision emerging from a growing number of states introducing — and in some cases passing — legislation intended to protect kids online. Now, in the absence of federal legislation, states are taking action, and raising some alarms in the process. On the surface, providing more guardrails for teens is a step forward that some parents may welcome after years of worrying about the potential harms kids face on social media. “Not all parents are passionate, kind and supportive of their kids, and even the ones who are don’t have the capacity or time to deal with the 24/7 nature of social media,” said Heitner. “It’s an unfair burden.”Enforcement issuesGiven that the bills are unprecedented, it’s unclear how exactly social media companies will adapt and enforce it.

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