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☆ I Direct Music Videos — the Bigger the Artist, the More Stressful the Job
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Eboni Boykin-Patterson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Courtesy of Neil FavilaMusic video director Hannah Lux Davis grew up watching TRL and always loved music videos. I took out a student loan to pay for my first two official music videos. I always loved music videos and was very passionate about them. I grew up watching MTV's music video show "TRL," and was inspired to be a director by music videos from Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, NSYNC, Christina Aguilera, and Janet Jackson. They assume some artists get more money for a video, so they're comparing their videos to other artists' videos.

☆ Amazon sued for not telling New York store customers about facial recognition
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Kevin Collier | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

People shop at the newly opened Amazon Go Store on May 07, 2019 in New York City. The cashier-less store, the first of this type of store, called Amazon Go, accepts cash and is the 12th such store in the United States located at Brookfield Place in downtown New York. Amazon did not alert its New York City customers that they were being monitored by facial recognition technology, a lawsuit filed Thursday alleges. The lawsuit says that Amazon only recently put up signs informing New York customers of its use of facial recognition technology, more than a year after the disclosure law went into effect. Perez is represented by the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, a legal advocacy group devoted to New York privacy protections.

☆ Storm Freddy triggers floods in Malawi, killing at least 11
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Frank Phiri | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Branches of trees sway as cyclone Freddy hits, in Quelimane, Zambezia, Mozambique, March 12, 2023, in this screen grab taken from a handout video. UNICEF Mozambique/2023/Alfredo Zuniga/Handout via REUTERSBLANTYRE, Malawi, March 13 (Reuters) - At least 11 people have died and 16 are missing around Malawi's second-largest city Blantyre after tropical storm Freddy brought torrential rains that triggered floods and landslides, police said on Monday. It pummelled Mozambique for the second time in a month as a cyclone over the weekend before weakening as it moved inland towards Malawi. "Some missing people are feared buried in rubble and our team is working with other cooperating national agencies," Kalaya said. Scientists say climate change is making tropical storms stronger, as oceans absorb much of the heat from greenhouse gas emissions and when warm seawater evaporates heat energy is transferred to the atmosphere.

[1/3] Branches of trees sway as cyclone Freddy hits, in Quelimane, Zambezia, Mozambique, March 12, 2023, in this screen grab taken from a handout video. It pummelled central Mozambique on Saturday, ripping roofs off buildings and bringing widespread flooding around the port of Quelimane, before moving inland towards Malawi with torrential rains that caused landslides. At least six people died in Mozambique's Quelimane, which was struck hard by the storm, authorities told the public broadcaster on Monday. The total number killed by storm Freddy in Mozambique, Malawi and Madagascar since it first made landfall last month is now nearing 100. Malawi has been battling the deadliest cholera outbreak in its history, and U.N. agencies have warned the situation could now get worse.

☆ TikToker shows people how to live off Dollar Tree groceries that cost $35 a week as Americans flock to dollar stores for cheaper food
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Mary Hanbury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

More people are shopping for food at dollar stores as inflation bites and food prices soar. Dollar Tree Dinners, a TikTok page run by Rebecca Chobat, shows shoppers how to cook on a budget. Chobat says it's possible to eat a varied weekly diet using $35 worth of Dollar Tree groceries. According to a recent report from Coresight Research, Dollar Tree, and Dollar General ranked in the top five retailers from which consumers bought food in 2022. Dollar Tree stores have mostly sold non-perishable items in the past.

☆ China to form a national bureau to manage its troves of data
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SHANGHAI, March 7 (Reuters) - China will form a national data bureau that will be responsible for coordinating the sharing and development of the country's data resources, according to a plan submitted on Tuesday to parliament. The proposed bureau will be administrated by the state planning agency, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the plan said. This has included issuing a series of new laws that require organisations with large user bases undergo assessments and obtain approvals when handling data. Some firms are struggling with a deadline requiring them to seek approval to export user data. "Multinationals will no doubt want to understand how a centralised data regulator will interface with overseas stakeholders."

☆ A Senate hearing on drug trafficking shows how meaningless the world 'cartel' has become
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Steven Dudley | Insight Crime | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

During a recent Senate hearing on fentanyl trafficking, lawmakers and officials used the word "cartel" 90 times. InSight Crime analysisA Sinaloa Cartel leadership chart from November 2015 with "El Chapo" Guzmán and two of his sons, Ivan Archivaldo and Jesus Alfredo. The Sinaloa Cartel, for instance, has at least three major poles of power, each of which is controlled by different leaders. Sinaloa cartel chief Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman arrives in New York after his extradition in January 2017. Milgram, for instance, pointed to the DEA's laser focus on the Sinaloa Cartel and the CJNG as the path to success.

☆ Furuhashi the hero again as Celtic beat Rangers 2-1 to win League Cup
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

GLASGOW, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Celtic beat rivals Rangers 2-1 at Hampden Park on Sunday to lift a 21st Scottish League Cup title, as Japanese forward Kyogo Furuhashi repeated his heroics from last season's final with a brace. Celtic dominated throughout the contest to claim a third trophy under manager Ange Postecoglou. Furuhashi, who also scored twice in a 2-1 win over Hibernian in last season's final, missed a gilt-edged opportunity to put Celtic ahead in the 42nd minute, sending a header over the bar. Yet he quickly made amends by drifting into the six-yard box and slotting home a Greg Taylor cross two minutes later. Time after time, you're tasked to win at this club," Celtic captain Callum McGregor told the BBC.

☆ U.S. agrees to extradite former Peruvian President Toledo, says Peru
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LIMA, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Peru's attorney general's office said on Tuesday on Twitter that the U.S. State Department had agreed to extradite former Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo on corruption charges. Toledo, 76, was arrested in the United States in 2019 after Peru formally requested his extradition. Last August, the U.S. Department of Justice said it would return to Peru about $686,000 seized from Toledo. Federal prosecutors in the New York City borough of Brooklyn said Odebrecht had paid Toledo $25 million in bribes for highway construction contracts. Peru has faced a wave of corruption scandals related to the Odebrecht case in recent years.

☆ Marijuana legalization has stalled in Mexico, but farmers and cartels are still making big plans to profit off a new market
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Luis Chaparro | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

An effort to legalize marijuana in Mexico has stalled after several years of debate by lawmakers. But Mexican cartels and independent growers are still preparing to cater to a new domestic market. The Sinaloa Cartel in particular is drawing business lessons from marijuana dispensaries in the US. At the current price for weed, Margarita gets roughly $25 a kilo. A marijuana legalization activist smokes marijuana in front of the San Lazaro Legislative Palace in Mexico City in October 2022.

☆ China's people shortage is a grim omen for the rest of the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( Matt Turner | Dave Smith | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

We're merging with our daily Insider Today newsletter, so we'll be known as the Insider Today: Sunday Edition moving forward. On the agenda today:Up first: It was a big week for tech earnings. Senior tech reporter Diamond Naga Siu, who writes our 10 Things in Tech newsletter, is here to break it all down. Apple meanwhile retained its crown as the only Big Tech giant that hasn't conducted mass layoffs within the past year. That means reining in costs, stripping back perks, and upending the office culture that's defined the world of Big Tech for so long.

☆ Italy facing attacks by international anarchists, foreign minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Alvise Armellini | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ROME, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Italian embassies all over the world are at risk of anarchist attacks linked to the case of the hunger-striking Alfredo Cospito, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said on Tuesday. Cospito, 55, is an Italian anarchist who has been on a hunger strike for more than 100 days to protest against being jailed under the strict "41 bis" isolation regime. "We are raising security in all of our embassies and consulates because at the moment international anarchists are mobilised against the Italian state," Tajani told a news conference in Rome. Italian embassies, consulates or culture institutes have been targeted in Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Spain, Germany and Switzerland, he said. Cospito was placed under the regime in May, after he wrote articles from prison calling on fellow anarchists to continue their armed struggle.

☆ I followed Nancy Pelosi's diet of breakfast ice cream and hot dogs for a week, and I ping-ponged between euphoria and the depths of despair
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Sophie Kleeman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +22 min

My research found that Pelosi eats ice cream for breakfast, hot dogs for lunch, pasta, and chocolate. Chocolate ice cream for breakfast, rich and creamy pasta, and lots of snacking chocolate. She claims she does not exercise; her daughter once arrived home to find her mother eating chocolate ice cream while using a stationary bike. I save the ice cream for later to avoid a massive sugar crash and start out with a cup of black tea instead. However, I don't want to slack off after the ice cream episode, so I slather it on.

☆ Fintech startup Meadow wants to make paying for college easier and update the 'outdated tech' at many colleges. It just raised $3.5 million.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Meadow is a fintech-meets-edtech startup that lets students calculate what they'd pay for college. On Meadow, students can see what their full cost for school would be after financial aid. The startup has landed partnerships with big universities and just raised $3.5 million in funding. It was especially hard for first generation or immigrant students, Brillembourg said, because of the hoops they needed to jump through to secure funds from multiple sources. "You're 18, not financially literate, and being thrown into this large complex financial payments journey with little or no support to navigate it," he said.

☆ Edtech startup Meadow wants to make it easier for students to track the cost of their tuition and update the 'outdated tech' at many colleges. It just raised $3.5 million.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Meadow is a fintech-meets-edtech startup that lets students calculate what they'd pay for college. On Meadow, students can see what their full cost for school would be after financial aid. The startup has landed partnerships with big universities and just raised $3.5 million in funding. It also sends reminders to current students to keep track of when their tuition payments are coming up and how much they owe. "You're 18, not financially literate, and being thrown into this large complex financial payments journey with little or no support to navigate it," he said.

☆ Ovidio Guzmán's arrest may be the start of a campaign against El Chapo's sons and the Sinaloa cartel
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Chris Dalby | Insight Crime | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Mexican authorities arrested Ovidio Guzmán, son of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzmán, earlier this month. The US has demanded action on fentanyl, and Ovidio's arrest may prompt Mexico to continue a targeted campaign. Ovidio Guzmán López is one of the four sons of Joaquín Guzmán Loera, alias "El Chapo," who is seeking to continue their father's legacy. Vehicles torched during a January 5 operation to arrest Ovidio Guzman in Culiacan on January 7. In the last couple of years alone, they have mounted targeted operations at rivals within the Sinaloa Cartel and beyond.

☆ Peru protesters clash with police in airport takeover attempt in Puno
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] Demonstrators block the Desaguadero Border Crossing Point between Bolivia and Peru during a protest following the ouster of Peru’s former President Pedro Castillo, in Desaguadero, Peru, January 6, 2023. Protesters set fire to a police tank outside the Inca Manco Capac airport in Juliaca, in Peru's Puno region, according to images on social media and local television. News outlets in Puno reported 15 injured, including two policemen. Andean Airports of Peru, which operates the Juliaca airport, said services were suspended "due to the violent acts and lack of security." In the Ica region, on Peru's central coast, protesters have blocked a key highway, stranding dozens of passenger and cargo transport vehicles.

☆ Violence hits Mexican cartel stronghold after arrest of El Chapo's son
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Ovidio Guzman Lopez during his arrest in Culiacan, Mexico, on Oct. 17, 2019. An escaped Mexican cartel kingpin known as “El Neto” meanwhile died after a shootout early on Thursday, four days after he fled prison in a violent mass break-out, authorities said. Police arrive on the scene after a store was looted in Culiacan, Mexico, on Jan. 5, 2023. Martin Urista / APAt Culiacan’s airport, a Mexican military flight was able to spirit Guzmán away to Mexico City. Asked if the attempt to capture Guzmán was worth another day of tension and uncertainty in Culiacan, Téllez said, “If they caught him, it was worth it.”

☆ Mexican cartel leader dies in shootout after mass jail break
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Jose Luis GonzalezMEXICO CITY, Jan 5 (Reuters) - An escaped Mexican cartel kingpin known as "El Neto" died after a shootout early on Thursday, four days after he fled prison in a violent mass break-out, authorities said. He was injured, but on the way (to the state attorney general's offices) he died," Chihuahua state governor Maru Campos said on Twitter. At least seven people, including police, were killed in another confrontation during the search in the state on Monday, authorities said. State prosecutors in Chihuahua said the head of the Juarez prison had been dismissed and was under investigation alongside others. Reporting by Isabel Woodford; Editing by Jackie Botts and Andrew HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Mexico nabs son of drug lord 'El Chapo' before Biden visit
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Defense Secretary Luis Cresencio Sandoval said Army and National Guard personnel had captured a son of "El Chapo." Ovidio Guzmán, nicknamed "the Mouse," had not been one of El Chapo's better-known sons until an aborted operation to capture him three years ago. "This is a significant blow to the Sinaloa cartel and major victory for the rule of law. A burning truck is seen across a street during an operation to arrest the son of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, Ovidio Guzman, in Culiacan, Sinaloa state, Mexico, on January 5, 2023. Marcos Vizcarra | AFP | Getty ImagesVigil said that Ovidio Guzmán was involved in all of the cartel's activities, especially the production of fentanyl.

☆ Death toll rises to 19 from prison attack in Mexican border town
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Members of the Mexican Army arrive at Cereso number 3 state prison after unknown assailants entered the prison and freed several inmates, resulting in injuries and deaths, according to local media, in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico January 1, 2023. REUTERS /Jose Luis GonzalezMEXICO CITY, Jan 2 (Reuters) - An attack on a prison in the Mexican border town of Juarez left 19 dead and allowed a cartel kingpin to escape along with two dozen other prisoners, authorities said Monday. The attack allowed 25 inmates, including Ernesto Alfredo Pinon de la Cruz, also known as "El Neto," to escape. She added that state authorities had not requested that any dangerous prisoners, such as "El Neto," be transferred from the overcrowded prison to a higher-security location. The incident Sunday resulted in one of the highest death tolls from prison attacks in Mexico in recent years.

☆ Conservative Peruvian groups march for peace ahead of fresh protests
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] Demonstrators hold a giant national flag as they participate in a march asking for peace, after violent protests in the country, following the ousting and arrest of former President Pedro Castillo, in Lima, Peru January 3, 2023. People dressed in white carried Peru's flag at the march, which was organized by conservative groups. Former President Castillo, a leftist who was previously a teacher, attempted to illegally dissolve Congress in early December and was subsequently ousted and detained. There are millions of us who want peace and just a few vandals," said Monica Sanchez at the march. The government issued a state of emergency when violent protests first erupted in December, sending security forces into protest areas.

☆ Head of Mexican jailbreak prison fired, deadly manhunt gathers pace
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Jose Luis GonzalezMEXICO CITY, Jan 3 (Reuters) - Mexican authorities on Tuesday said they had fired the director of a prison near the U.S. border where at least 30 inmates escaped at the weekend after a deadly riot, as police began a manhunt for missing convicts. State prosecutors in the border state of Chihuahua said Alejandro Alvarado, head of the prison in the city of Ciudad Juarez, had been dismissed, and is also under investigation for his possible role in the jailbreak, alongside others. Federal authorities arrived to restore order, later finding a "VIP zone" in the state-run prison with drugs and money. On Monday night, Chihuahua's government said seven people had died during subsequent police clashes as part of the hunt to find the escaped inmates. Sunday's incident resulted in one of the highest death tolls from prison violence in Mexico in recent years.

☆ 17 Gifts for the Ultimate New Year’s Eve Host
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Sarah Medford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Photo: Clockwise from top left: Courtesy of Ralph Lauren, Courtesy of Carolina Herrera, Jonas Marquet, Andrew Lipovsky, Courtesy of Silvia Furmanovich, Courtesy of Abask, Courtesy of Carolina Irving & Daughters, Alfredo Paredes Studio, Courtesy of MatoukIn the PinkWhat to give the seen-it-all host? Something handmade, like this ceramic platter shaped and painted in Portugal by craftspeople who collaborate with Carolina Irving & Daughters. Gigi Pink Oval Platter by Carolina Irving & Daughters, $295. Period PieceFor the host who can’t stop channeling the ’60s, send a vintage Italian decanter dressed in a silverplate turtleneck. 1960s Italian Decanter, $1,235.

☆ In Peru, shamans see end of Russia-Ukraine war in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LIMA, Dec 28 (Reuters) - Peace between Russia and Ukraine is on the horizon in the new year - or so predicted a group of shaman and healers in Peru's capital Lima on Wednesday. Atop a hilltop, the shamans, donning traditional Andean attire, welcomed the coming year in a purification ceremony incorporating flowers, incense, a snake, and photos of the Ukrainian and Russian presidents. That's what we've seen," said shaman Cleofe Sedano, predicting a peace treaty would be signed by August. The ceremony, performed every year in late December, comes ten months after Russia's invasion of Ukraine that has left tens of thousands dead. Issuing their omens after hovering over a sheet of flowers and coca leaves, with skulls on the ground, the shamans also predicted natural disasters.

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