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☆ 'Four Daughters' mixes documentary, fiction to portray Tunisian mother
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Miranda Murray | Thomson Reuters | Speed Editor On The Berlin Hub Who Provides General Coverage On Everything Politics To Energy In Germany | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] The 76th Cannes Film Festival - Screening of the film "Les filles d'Olfa" (Four Daughters) in competition - Red Carpet Arrivals - Cannes, France, May 19, 2023. Nour Karoui, Ichraq Matar, Hend... Read moreCANNES, May 19 (Reuters) - Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania mixes fiction and documentary to capture the story of Olfa Hamrouni, whose older daughters left to fight for Islamic State in "Four Daughters," her first entry for the Cannes Film Festival's top prize. It is the role of cinema to explore these areas, these ambiguities of the human spirit," Ben Hania said in a news release. For the film, Ben Hania wanted to show Hamrouni's complexities but noticed she would fall into the well-trodden narrative of guilt-ridden mother whenever the camera was on. Her last film, "The Man Who Sold His Skin," was the Tunisian entry for best international feature at the 2021 Oscars.

☆ Sam Zell, billionaire real estate investor, dead at 81
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Equity Residential, the company he founded decades ago, did not provide a cause of death but described Zell as an “iconic figure in real estate and throughout the corporate world.”Among his wide-ranging portfolio of investments were distressed assets in real estate and in media, including an ultimately disastrous bet on the Tribune Company. Zell had a personal net worth of $5.9 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Zell had a penchant for scooping up cheap real estate and selling it later at a profit, a strategy he outlined in a 1978 article titled “The Grave Dancer,” which became his nickname in the industry. But Zell’s impressive track record of successful bets was marred by a brief, unsuccessful foray into media in 2007 when he orchestrated the $8.2 billion leveraged buyout of Tribune Company. In 2018, during the rise of the #MeToo movement, Zell sparked outrage by making a lewd comment about hiring women.

☆ The bullwhip is back: Harrison Ford in Cannes for 'Indiana Jones' premiere
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Miranda Murray | Thomson Reuters | Speed Editor On The Berlin Hub Who Provides General Coverage On Everything Politics To Energy In Germany | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] The 76th Cannes Film Festival - Screening of the film "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" (Indiana Jones et le cadran de la destinee) Out of Competition - Red Carpet Arrivals - Cannes, France,... Read moreCANNES, May 18 (Reuters) - Harrison Ford was in Cannes for the much-anticipated premiere of "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" on Thursday evening, 15 years since the actor last picked up the adventurous archaeologist's iconic bullwhip and hat on the big screen. The newest movie's release date had been postponed several times after it had been announced in 2016 and follows 2008's "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," which received mixed reviews. The "Indiana Jones" franchise, created by George Lucas of "Star Wars" fame, has grossed nearly $2 billion at the global box office with four films and amassed a global fan base. It also inspired a TV series, "The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles." "Dial of Destiny" is the first "Indiana Jones" movie the Walt Disney Co (DIS.N) has made after buying the distribution rights for the franchise from Paramount Pictures in 2013.

☆ At Cannes, independent film firms optimistic as streamers stumble
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Miranda Murray | Thomson Reuters | Speed Editor On The Berlin Hub Who Provides General Coverage On Everything Politics To Energy In Germany | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

CANNES, May 17 (Reuters) - Independent film companies facing a market upended by the entry of streaming services are showing some optimism heading into this year's Cannes Film Festival as the Netflix era has begun flattening out and audiences start trickling back into cinemas post-pandemic. Cannes may make headlines for its glitz and glamour, but as the world's largest event for buying and selling movie rights, its importance to the industry is unparalleled. "It's a transitional time on the business side as the traditional business model that independent buyers use sees lessened value," said O'Shea. The similarity among much of the content offered on streaming platforms leaves theatre audiences wanting something different, an unmet appetite that independent companies could fulfil, he said. "Something good is happening, and I'm sure other streaming services will follow suit," Cannes Film Festival director Thierry Fremaux said in an interview with Le Film francais magazine in April.

☆ Opinion: What Trump gets right on Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Opinion Daniel R. Depetris | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

For many political pundits and politicians, his observations on the war in Ukraine were no exception. Asa Hutchinson, who is challenging Trump for the 2024 nomination, declared that “Trump reminded everyone tonight of his support of Russia and his willingness to sell out Ukraine. The major difference between the Biden administration and Trump on the Ukraine question seems to be not whether talks should happen, but when. Another point Trump gets right is the vast disparity between the US and its European allies on the issue of assistance to Ukraine, even if his grossly exaggerates the amount of US aid. Join us on Twitter and FacebookTo be clear, some of what Trump said at the town hall about Ukraine was incorrect.

☆ Byron Allen sues McDonald's for allegedly lying about commitment to Black media
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Byron Allen, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Entertainment Studios and Allen Media Group, speaks at the 2021 Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., October 19, 2021. REUTERS/David SwansonMay 8 (Reuters) - The media entrepreneur Byron Allen has filed a second lawsuit against McDonald's Corp (MCD.N) over the fast-food chain's alleged refusal to advertise with Black-owned media. Allen said he would know if McDonald's were honoring that pledge because his Allen Media Group represents more than 90% of Black-owned media. The case are: Weather Group LLC et al v. McDonald's USA LLC, California Superior Court, Los Angeles County, No. 23STCV10045; and Entertainment Studios Networks Inc et al v McDonald's Corp, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, No.

☆ Supreme Court: New documents show how Sandra Day O'Connor helped George W. Bush win the 2000 election
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Joan Biskupic | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

CNN —Justice Sandra Day O’Connor provided the early framework that steered the outcome in the dispute over the 2000 presidential election and ensured George W. Bush would win the White House over Al Gore, Supreme Court documents released on Tuesday show. They also demonstrate the tension among the nine justices being asked to decide a presidential election on short deadlines. The five conservative justices (O’Connor, Kennedy, Rehnquist, Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas) sided with Bush. The Florida results had been too close to call at the end of Election Day, November 7. The next day, Kennedy wrote to the chief justice, “Sandra’s memorandum sets forth a very sound approach” and said he wanted to build on it.

☆ Fact Check-Laurance Rockefeller, John Podesta and Chester Bennington are not related
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

There is no evidence that oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller’s late grandson Laurance Rockefeller, White House adviser John Podesta and late Linkin Park lead singer Chester Bennington are directly related, contrary to rumors on social media. An image circulating online, which shows black-and-white photographs of the three men, reads: “This is Laurence (sic) Rockefeller, his son pedophile John Podesta, and his son, Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington. Reuters found no evidence that Rockefeller, Podesta and Bennington are related. The Linkin Park frontman died by suicide in July 2017 (here), (here). There is no evidence Laurance Rockefeller, John Podesta and Chester Bennington are related.

☆ 2023 layoff tracker: The latest on which companies have announced job cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Jennifer Korn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +20 min

New York CNN —BuzzFeed, Lyft, Whole Foods and Deloitte all recently announced layoffs affecting thousands of US workers. With 11,000 job cuts announced in November and the 10,000 announced in March, Meta’s headcount will fall to around 66,000 — a total reduction of about 25%. The company announced in January that it was eliminating some 18,000 positions as part of a major cost-cutting bid at the e-commerce giant. IndeedJob listing website Indeed.com announced cuts of approximately 2,200 employees, representing almost 15% of its total workforce, the company said in March. The cuts come after the company announced several rounds of job cuts throughout the pandemic due to falling demand, followed by rapid hiring last year.

☆ Gail Christian, Trailblazing News Correspondent, Dies at 83
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Alex Williams | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

“I always wanted to be ‘the Black reporter,’ as in covering Black stories,” she said in an interview with The Chicago Tribune in 1986. “I felt that was the reason I was there. I didn’t resent it in the least. “And her pioneering role as a Black news reporter allowed young Black kids to see, many for the first time, someone admirable on TV who looked like them. That program featured several award-winning segments, including one about a banking scandal that hurt low-income communities and another about a chemical spill in Orange County that caused illnesses in the area, each of which won a Peabody Award.

☆ Why Netflix Hit Eject on DVDs
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Dan Gallagher | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

If Netflix’s DVD business kept declining at the most recent pace, it would have fewer than 1.4 million subscribers now. Photo: Michael Tercha/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service/Getty ImagesMany are apparently upset over Netflix ’s plan to finally get out of the DVD business. Netflix’s domestic DVD rental-by-mail business generated $145.7 million in revenue last year, according to the company’s most recent 10-K filing, and may have still had more than a million loyal customers. The DVD business had already shrunk so much that the company stopped disclosing other pertinent financial information about it in 2019. For that year, domestic DVDs generated $297.2 million in revenue—about 1.5% of the company’s total—and had 2.15 million subscribers.

☆ Most Major Insurers to Continue Preventive Care Services
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Stephanie Armour | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Preventive healthcare services include mammograms and cancer screenings. Photo: Heather Charles/Chicago Tribune/Getty ImagesThe majority of insurers in the U.S. don’t expect to drop no-cost preventive healthcare services as a lawsuit challenging the Affordable Care Act requirement works its way through the courts, according to a letter to lawmakers from the six trade groups representing the insurance industry. Their decision was outlined Wednesday in a letter by trade groups to House and Senate Democratic health committee leaders, who on April 12 wrote to a dozen of the nation’s largest health insurers and trade associations asking whether they intend to cover all recommended preventive services without cost-sharing until all appellate review in the case is concluded.

☆ Report: McDonald's tells corporate employees to work from home for layoffs
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Danielle Wiener-Bronner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —McDonald’s instructed corporate employees to work from home this week in anticipation of layoffs, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. McDonald’s has 150,000 employees in its company-owned locations and offices globally, with 70% of those positions outside of the United States, according to the Journal. McDonald's CEO said in January that job cuts were coming. Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service/Getty ImagesIn January, McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said in a memo to staff that job cuts are coming. Meta (META), owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, said in March that it would make a second round of job cuts.

☆ Father of cellphone says people will learn not to stare at their phones while crossing the street 'after a few people get run over'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

"Father of the cellphone" Martin Cooper says he is "devastated" by pedestrian phone use, per AFP. The engineer's comment comes 50 years after he invented the world's first Motorola cellphone. Cooper told AFP that we are still at the "mindless staring phase" with our phones. A 2022 study on how pedestrians use their phones found that 14.4% of pedestrians don't pay attention to traffic when crossing. Despite the safety risks, Cooper told the AFP he isn't worried about the longterm dangers of unfettered cellphone usage.

☆ New Starbucks CEO plans to pull barista shifts in stores every month
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Danielle Wiener-Bronner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Starbucks’ new CEO Laxman Narasimhan teased his plan for the company in a letter to employees. It includes working in Starbucks stores as a barista once a month. “Critically, we will reinvigorate our culture around what it means to be a partner at Starbucks,” Narasimhan continued. Starbucks employees react and cheer at the sound of honking motorists supporting them in a nationwide strike at the Starbucks at 1601 W. Irving Park Road on Dec. 16, 2022, in Chicago. Schultz, who remains on Starbuck’s board, is scheduled to testify about Starbucks’ labor practices during a Senate hearing next week.

☆ Police say Volkswagen refused to track a stolen car with a 2-year-old inside — after the thieves ran over the child's pregnant mother — until the owner paid a fee
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Bianca Giacobone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A carjacker knocked and ran over a pregnant woman to steal her Volkswagen car. Volkswagen said the incident is a "serious breach of the process" it has in place for emergencies. On February 23, a 34-year woman, who's six-months pregnant according to news reports, pulled into her driveway with her Volkswagen car. A man got off the BMW, knocked the woman to the ground, and drove off with her car with the child inside, running her over, according to police. The woman, whose injuries were serious, according to the police statement, is in the hospital in stable condition, and her car was found abandoned in a parking lot.

☆ Walmart's experiment with pickup-and-delivery stores appears to be over as the last two prepare to close
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Ben Tobin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Walmart opened up its first pickup-and-delivery-only store in its headquarters city of Bentonville, Arkansas, in 2014. The retailer appears to be abandoning the model by closing the concept's last 2 remaining stores. But less than nine years after this launch, Walmart appears to be abandoning the concept as it closes the only two remaining standalone Walmart pickup and delivery stores in the country. In addition to the locations in Lincolnwood and Bentonville, a Walmart pickup and delivery only store opened in Metairie, Louisiana, in 2017 and closed last year. Walmart's decision to close these stores, where customers placed orders on walmart.com or the Walmart app, comes as the company has seen ecommerce growth slow greatly.

☆ Big Oil rakes in record profit haul of nearly $200 billion, fueling calls for higher taxes
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Exxon Mobil's 2022 haul of $56 billion marked a historic high for the Western oil industry. Chicago Tribune | Tribune News Service | Getty ImagesThe West's five largest oil companies raked in combined profits of nearly $200 billion in 2022, intensifying calls for governments to impose tougher windfall taxes. Altogether, the five Big Oil companies reported combined profits of $196.3 billion last year, more than the economic output of most countries. His comments came shortly after Shell reported its highest-ever annual profit of nearly $40 billion, comfortably surpassing its previous record of $28.4 billion in 2008. watch nowThe CEO of Saudi Aramco, the world's largest energy company, has previously warned about the dangers of pressuring oil companies through higher taxes.

☆ FDA withdraws Covid antibody treatment Evusheld because it's not effective against 93% of subvariants
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The FDA pulled Evusheld from the market because it is not effective against more than 90% of the Covid subvariants that are currently circulating in the U.S. People with compromised immune systems, such as cancer chemotherapy and organ-transplant patients, are some of the groups most vulnerable to severe disease from Covid. More than 7 million adults in the U.S. have a compromised immune system. He said lawmakers' failure to pass additional Covid funding means there isn't money to invest in new antibodies. President Joe Biden told people with compromised immune systems to consult with a doctor.

☆ 'That' 90s Show' star Debra Jo Rupp says the worst moment in her career was her audition for producer Aaron Spelling
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Debra Jo Rupp has appeared in many fan-favorite shows, like 'Friends,' and 'Grey's Anatomy.' Rupp says the worst moment of her career was in 90s LA, where she auditioned for a major producer. But in a recent interview with Chicago Tribune, Rupp opened up about the worst moment of her career — auditioning for "Beverly Hills, 90210" and "Charmed" producer Aaron Spelling. The show apparently never made it to air, but Rupp remembers the audition experience to this day. When she came back for the second audition, this time with Aaron Spelling in the room, Rupp says she had an experience that she now recalls as the worst moment in her career.

☆ Ken Griffin has built two of Wall Street's most powerful firms. His next target could be influencing politics.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ken Griffin, the founder and CEO of Citadel. It's good to be Ken Griffin. Plenty of people find success on Wall Street that most can only dream of. But Ken Griffin seems to be winning in ways that even his peers can't fathom. Click here to read more about Ken Griffin rise to the top of Wall Street and what could be next for the billionaire.

☆ Pioneering U.S. television journalist Barbara Walters dead at 93
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( Bill Trott | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Television personality Barbara Walters arrives for the premiere of the film "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" in New York September 20, 2010. "I asked Yeltsin if he drank too much, and I asked Putin if he killed anybody," Walters told the New York Times in 2013. "These two men were really quite brutal to me and it was not pleasant," Walters told the San Francisco Examiner. The New York Times called her "arguably America's best-known television personality" but also observed that "what we remember most about a Barbara Walters interview is Barbara Walters." Walters' three marriages - to businessman Robert Katz, theatrical producer Lee Guber and television executive Merv Adelson - ended in divorce.

☆ Michael Jordan: The NBA has renamed its MVP trophy after the Bulls great
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Amy Woodyatt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images Jordan poses for a Little League Baseball photo in the late 1970s. Ken Levine/Getty Images Jordan famously shrugs his shoulders after hitting another 3-pointer during the 1992 NBA Finals versus Portland. "There is a reason you call someone the Michael Jordan of ... neurosurgery, or the Michael Jordan of rabbis, or the Michael Jordan of outrigger canoeing. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Jordan continues to promote Nike's Jordan Brand across the world. Jordan Brand/Getty Images Jordan cries at the Kobe Bryant memorial in Los Angeles in February 2020.

☆ Here's what Charles Schwab's Liz Ann Sonders has to say about the economy, her favorite book, and investing in a recession
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Today's newsletter features my conversation with Liz Ann Sonders of Charles Schwab, and why she thinks the economy's already in a recession. Charles SchwabLiz Ann Sonders is the chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab. Phil Rosen: Can you explain your "rolling recession" assessment of the US economy? Liz Ann Sonders: Typically when you go into a recession, everything's sort of hit all at once. Read the full interview with Liz Ann Sonders here.

☆ 'It's A Wonderful Life': See the classic Christmas film on the big screen this month
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Jeanne Bonner | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Karolyn Grimes and James Stewart in "It's A Wonderful Life." Fathom has long wanted to revive showings of “It’s A Wonderful Life,” Carey said, noting that fans have been asking for it. No film is a failure if it has fansWhat’s long delighted film historians is the fact that when “It’s a Wonderful Life” debuted, it was largely deemed a wash. As film historian Jeanine Basinger writes in her compendium, “The It’s A Wonderful Life Book,” the original idea for the film languished for years before the studio RKO sold it to Capra in 1945 for a mere $10,000. William Edmunds and James Stewart in 1946's "It's A Wonderful Life."

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