Tag Archives: News

Talk about 2020 race builds

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By ADAM SPECTOR

The Democratic governor of Montana, Steve Bullock, has recently been on several trips to Iowa. This has fueled speculation that the red-state governor may run for president.

Ever since the 2016 election, there has been talk about 2020 on a daily basis. Some argue that the Democratic party should become the socialist party of America, while others argue that the Democratic party should take a more centrist and pragmatic approach to matters.

Other than former Vice President Joe Biden, most of the names being talked about for 2020 are notably more liberal than former President Barack Obama and are from liberal states such as California, New York and New Jersey.

Unlike many of the other talked about potential 2020 candidates, Bullock is from a conservative state. He was re-elected governor in a state where Donald Trump won by 20 percent during the general election in 2016.

Bullock says Democrats will lose the 2018 midterms if they make it “just a referendum against Donald Trump. It’s not enough from my perspective just to be against him.”

In addition to being from a conservative state, Bullock’s policies and goals are considerably different from what would be expected from a Democrat. Bullock has opposed having a sales tax in Montana and has on a number of occasions made budget cuts.

Unlike many blue-state Democrats, Bullock also had to appeal to Republicans in order to be elected and believes there is more to governing successfully than taking whatever is the most progressive position.

“Somewhere between 20 and 30 percent of my voters also voted for Donald Trump. But how I win and how I govern, I don’t think there’s any secret recipe,” Bullock said in an interview on ABC News.

A number of news outlets have mentioned Bullock as a possible 2020 candidate but have cited his lack of name recognition as a potential challenge for him.

Most mainstream news sources treat certain politicians like heroes and others like they are pure evil and they seem to want certain candidates to run in 2020. For an example, CNN has mentioned former bartender and current Democratic nominee for New York’s 14th district, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as “the new face of the democratic party,” even though she is yet to win a House seat.

Another example of a politician who is portrayed in a positive light is Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul. Time magazine wrote a cover story about Paul, calling him “the Most Interesting Man in Politics.” On the other hand, politicians such as Hillary Clinton are portrayed by sources such as CNN as a corrupt pathological liar despite having almost the same average of true and false statements as Obama according to Politifact.

Many news outlets are quoting advice on how to win non-liberal states from people with ultra-liberal viewpoints who are from liberal states such as Bernie Sanders, a socialist Senator from Vermont. Many news sources and Democrats that want to win elections are ignoring the opinions and ideas of Democrats who actually won elections in conservative states such as Bullock.

FDA opposes plant-based milks

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By ANABELLA ZAMBRANO

As people become more interested in plant-based diets, veganism is now the most talked about way of eating. Not only is the healthiest, if eaten right, but it also has thrived in market sales with vegan alternatives such as vegan Chao Cheese, Beyond Meat Burgers, and plant based milk.

Earlier this year, the dairy industry is troubled with a drop of sales. People are choosing alternatives to dairy whether it is for lactose intolerance reason, taste and simply just preference. The FDA argues consumers are being misled into buying milk alternatives since those alternatives have the word “milk” on their label.

According to Veganuary.com, the dairy industry has been in trouble for a while now due to milk alternatives. But until recently a bill was passed known as the Dairy Pride Act, which as it states, aims to “protect the integrity of dairy products by enforcing existing labeling requirements” with the purpose to enforce a new law against non-dairy products being labeled in the descriptor like milk and cheese with the claim that this is confusing to the consumer.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), sales of almond milk shot up over 250 percent between 2011 and 2016. Meanwhile, consumption of dairy milk has dropped 37 percent since the 1970s.

It is not a matter of consumers being confused. For a while, studies have shown that consuming dairy raises risks of osteoporosis and raises chances of having breast cancer for about 41 percent according to Cowspiracy.com.

Although it is not for sure whether or not plant-based milks will be limited to remain described as “milk,” it is no doubt that advertising affects what people consume. If it becomes popular, it will most probably end up on the news.

But when it comes down to deciding whether dairy will regain their sales or not, this milk war has become one of the hottest topics to talk about through YouTube, Instagram, and it has become an interesting thing to decide if consumers are being mislead, which I doubt.

Through out the news outlets, not enough is covered on the topic that dairy does increase risk of death by 93 percent, according to a study by the British Medical Journal. Or just the fact that milk from a cow is not healthy to consume.

But as long as it is about the labeling controversy, it will be more covered in the news.

Carolinas brace for impact of Florence

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By JENNIFER HUDAK

This Friday, Hurricane Florence will make landfall on the Carolinas as the strongest storm to make landfall on the continental U.S. in the last decade.

Mandatory evacuation orders have been put in place for North and South Carolina, as well as several counties in the surrounding states. While the government has advised that this storm will be catastrophic, some residents have decided to ride out the storm in their homes.

Florence is currently trekking along in the Atlantic Ocean, maintaining its status as a Category 2 storm, but is expected to strengthen before making landfall on Friday.

With wind speeds reported of up to 80 m.p.h., meteorologists say the biggest concern for coastal cities should be the storm surge and heavy rain.

What’s more, Florence appears to be moving slowly at roughly only 10 m.p.h., meaning these wind speed will batter the Carolinas for hours on end.

Aside from Florence, scientists are monitoring four additional tropical disturbances, all expected to develop into storms within the next three days. Sept. 10 marked the peak of Hurricane season.

Dramatics dominate Florence news

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By SARAH BRADDOCK

At the height of hurricane season, it’s no surprise that a large storm has formed and will hit the East Coast. That being said, news coverage of the storm is verging on theatrics.

It seems that each year the news media’s coverage of natural disasters increases in sheer time allocated towards the events and in the dramatics with which the news is delivered.

While this may very well be due to an increase in the intensity of storms, the news media are not attempting to quell the general population’s discomfort regarding impending natural threats. This leaves the outlet’s intent when covering storms to question: are they just doing their best to spread breaking information for public safety or are they intentionally using fear-inducing tactics to keep a captive and large audience?

This questionable phenomenon is no different with approaching hurricane Florence.

Opening with dubbing the hurricane as “violent,” Washington Post article “Category 4 Hurricane Florence drawing closer to Carolinas and threatens ‘catastrophic’ flooding” by James Samenow, is one of many fear-inducing pieces circling the web.

Throughout the piece Samenow uses various, arguably unnecessary, phrases to describe the approaching hurricane.

Samenow describes the storm as, “monstrous” and “like a bulldozer,” and emphasizes his intentions with verbs like “unleash.”

Even the direct quotations chosen for the piece are ominous. Including one from North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper saying, “Even if you’ve ridden out storms before, this one is different.”

Granted, Samenow does prove to have some educational intentions with this article through the inclusion of scientific information, quotations, and graphs via sources like The National Hurricane Center, High Plains Regional Climate Center, and The National Weather Service.

Furthermore, Samenow elaborates on various path projections and the fact that storms are very unpredictable.

The article is extremely informative, but the threatening vocabulary scattered throughout the piece points towards underlying intentions beyond informing the masses.

Twitter bans Alex Jones, InfoWars

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By ADAM SPECTOR

Twitter banned Alex Jones and other accounts pertaining to InfoWars, his fake news website on Thursday afternoon. This was covered by countless local and national news sources including ABC, CBS, NBC, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post to name a few. This story has also been covered by a number of tech websites such as CNET and Engadget.

InfoWars is known for promoting fake news stories and conspiracy theories such as 9-11 being an inside job, the Sandy Hook school shooting was a hoax, and countless untrue stories about various public figures.

“Today, we permanently suspended @realalexjones and @infowars from Twitter and Periscope. We took this action based on new reports of Tweets and videos posted yesterday that violate our abusive behavior policy, in addition to the accounts’ past violations,” the company wrote on its account.

Twitter is not the first high-profile company to drop Infowars. Apple, YouTube, Facebook and Spotify removed InfoWars from their platforms earlier this August. These companies mostly cited “hate speech” as their reason for removing Jones and InfoWars from their platforms and not for deliberately spreading false information.

Back in August, Twitter publicly stated that they would not remove Jones or InfoWars because they did not violate their policies. Twitter had previously suspended Jones for one week for promoting violence against news reporters, saying to get their “battle rifles” ready.

Twitter decided to ban Jones and InfoWars after Jones publicly harassed Oliver Darcy, a reporter at CNN. On this same day, Jones also harassed Senator Marco Rubio.

News sources such as The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and The New York Times have done a better job of covering this story than most other news sources because they also mentioned that these tech companies have been criticized for waiting too long to remove InfoWars and other fake news sources from their platforms.

Many believe that some of these companies only removed Jones and Infowars because other companies did so and not for the reasons that they provided. This is a fair and valid point, as sources like InfoWars have already made a major impact on the public. In addition to this, InfoWars has been around for years and has had few problems releasing false information, hateful content, and promoting violence. Many news sources have made the mistake of labeling InfoWars as a far-right website and not a fake news website.

Mass shooters seek media coverage

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By CAROLINA PEREZ

Today, an article published by Vox caught my eye. The headline was The Trenton, New Jersey, mass shooting isn’t getting much national attention. After reading the article, I asked myself, do mass shootings even need to be getting attention more attention than they already are?

Mass shootings, although tragic and heartbreaking, are seen as gold (in terms of content) for news media outlets. It is their gateway to all subjects controversial— gun control, mental health, and so forth. This is an outlet’s chance to use a national event to lure readers and viewers in-a chance to inform the public.

Yes- it is the news media’s role to cover all things newsworthy, but journalists don’t always understand the repercussions that come with this task.

Readers seek detail and that’s what journalists want to provide because, if not, then they’ll lack an audience. But sometimes, that depth can be seen as invasive and counter-productive.

When I say invasive, I speak for those whose parents are forced to mourn their lost child, or whose brother must suffer the loss of a sister.

But when I speak of counter-productivity, it is that very detailed reporting that enhances the recurring mass shootings our country faces.

In a way, the extensive coverage of mass shootings brings fame and recognition to the perpetrator. Presenting these shooters’ names in headlines, publishing their photos and sharing information about their personal lives is almost commemorating them for their actions. These people don’t deserve to be talked about but the coverage creates popularity by exposing them as a household name.

For this type of  event, I believe news reports should keep the victims, their families and the perpetrators anonymous. It is important for the people of our country to know what is happening and where but anonymity could help others who want the same attention from following the same footsteps.

When you give that person (in this case the shooter) attention, you are feeding into their desperate need to be known and talked about.

An example I can think of is the uni-bomber (which I will not name) in the 1980s. After the FBI printed his manuscripts, which contained his thoughts and ideas, there were many who agreed with his views and created a fan base. With the Columbine shooting, many outcasts also praised the shooters and created a cult known as The Columbiners.

These people should not be recognized for the mere issue that attention leads to popularity, and popularity leads to a following. Unfortunately, the news media know the more they give, the more people will listen and read. Censorship of any kind is difficult for journalists especially when they are committed to reporting the full truth— but at what expense are they doing so?

Singapore summit news lacks objectivity

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By CAROLINA PEREZ

President Trump met with Kim Jong Un on Tuesday and they have come to an agreement to work toward “complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.”

The news media have covered this issue with much scrutiny towards Trump. In other words, no one seems to show the president support for efforts to reach peace with North Korea. The coverage comes with very little information because the agreement lacks detail. Although there is much talk about getting rid of these nuclear weapons, there is no deadline set for when and no guarantee that the agreement will be irreversible.

The lack of detail has been leading journalists to cover this issue with much skepticism. News outlets believe that Trump is giving up too much and reporters are not hiding it. Objectivity has flown out the window for this summit’s coverage and Republican U.S. Senator Marco Rubio was not happy about it. Rubio jumped in to defend Trump by pointing out the news media’s “hypocrisy.”

“Presidents meeting with #KJU exposed incredible hypocrisy of many in media,” Rubio tweeted. “When Obama did these things, he was described as enlightened. When Trump does it he is reckless & foolish. 1 yr ago they attacked Trump for leading us towards war,now attack for being too quick for peace.”

The New York Times’ opinion columnist, Nicholas Kristof, wrote an article where he too criticized the exchange between Trump and Kim Jong Un. Kristof believes Trump was”out-negotiated” by Kim.

Rubio came back in with another two cents to swoop Trump away from scrutiny. Kristof’s piece was one out of the many opinionated journalists who expressed the same view about the exchange.

This issue leaves many questions unanswered for both sides. It is hard for the news media to cover an issue like this objectively without the right amount of detail needed to inform  readers and viewers. If politicians want to start seeing less “fake news,” then they should give the news media enough information to avoid misinformation. Until we get more detail, journalists will most likely continue criticism towards Trump.

Enquirer accused of covering for Trump

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By PATRICIA SANTANA

Popular celebrity magazine The National Enquirer is being accused of buying and burying stories that portray President Trump in an unfavorable light. This practice is known as “catch and kill.” It’s thought that David Pecker, publisher of the Enquirer and longtime friend of Trump, has been doing this as a favor to the president.

All the purchased stories relate to allegations of Trump having affairs.

According to the Washington Post, the source allegedly paid off by the National Enquirer is a former Trump Tower doorman, Dino Sajudin, who told the Enquirer that Trump had a child outside of wedlock and that top executives of the Trump Organization were aware. Sajudin claims to have been paid $30,000 for the exclusive rights to the story but the Enquirer never published it.

As reported by CNN, another source coming forward is Karen McDougal, a former Playboy model. McDougal was paid $150,000 for her account of an affair with Trump that lasted nine months. Allegedly, the deal included an agreement that McDougal would publish regular columns on aging and fitness in the Enquirer. McDougal’s story was never run, and only a small portion of the agreed-to columns were published. American Media Inc. claims that McDougal did not write the columns.

Trump has denied all allegations of cheating.

Of all the news outlets that I read from to learn more about this story, I found the one with the most comprehensive coverage of this story was CNN. CNN’s homepage had more stories on this scandal than the Miami Herald, The Washington Post and The New York Times. On the Herald’s homepage, there was not a single story on the scandal to be found today. I found this surprising because it’s a story of national relevance. In the case of the Times, I had to scroll to find a link to the story.

I think this speaks to how desensitized news outlets are becoming to the latest Trump scandals and also how difficult it is to report on a Trump scandal when there are so many happening all the time.

The CNN coverage took many angles. There was an article reporting on the “catch and kill” practice and on Pecker and another article reporting on the different sources paid off by the Enquirer. CNN also published a poll on what Americans think of the Enquirer’s coverage of Trump. The website also had a video uploaded with reporters discussing the story. I found this to be very comprehensive coverage, and I feel that I learned the most from CNN.

The coverage by the New York Times focused more on the investigation into the Enquirer and its possible ties to the Trump campaign. The investigation is sparking a First Amendment debate and it is looking into whether any campaign laws were violated.

If it’s true that the Enquirer is engaging in this “catch and kill” practice as a favor to Trump, I think that’s a very troubling ethical issue. Journalism is supposed to speak truth to power, not facilitate its lies.

Milky Way full of black holes

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By KATHERINE CERAVOLO

At the center of the Milky Way is one massive black hole, which we thought was the end of the story. However, a recent study shows that there are actually nearly 10,000 black holes surrounding this one massive black hole.

Apart from the thought that black holes sink to the center of a galaxy, this proves that black holes have the ability to join together in an area and gather near each other. A NASA telescope called the Chandra X-ray Observatory helped scientists discovers this observation.

This discovery is extremely important since prior belief was that isolated black holes don’t have the ability to be detected without an orbiting star, but since these multiples of isolated black holes formed practically a park of thousands, interaction with a star took place.

Media should explain what this discovery means to us. In this news, the focus is on the findings. However, this is immensely important to our galaxy, which is said to be 100,000 light-years across. This will lead to the discovery of a completely hidden population.

The locating of this tightly squeezed matter is just one example of the positive path our technology has taken to discovering more about this planet and the abilities of survival that may exist here. The capabilities of these new advances in technology will significantly help shape the future for discovering and proving theories for the galaxies thousands of light-years away.

A theorist explained that this helps estimate how many cosmic smashups might occur and generate detectable gravitational waves in our galaxy. The discovery of hidden populations will serve to show humans more information about our world and how to survive in certain situations, as this hidden area did.

Nonetheless, as the media are focusing on the discovery as a whole, the next step must include why this benefits the current population and how it will benefit the world we live in today.

Were your Facebook data shared?

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By ALLIE SIMON

After tens of millions of people have had their Facebook data harvested and exploited by Cambridge Analytics, a data analytics firm with ties to President Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, Facebook is attempting to redeem its reputation. Starting this past Monday, Facebook has begun adding a “see how you’re affected” tool to the top of affected user’s homepages.

The information was compiled after Facebook users granted a psychological questionnaire, hosted by a website called “This is your life,” access to their Facebook before completing the survey, according to CNN. The data, including location, friend’s information, and things user’s liked, was then sent to Cambridge Analytics.

According to The New York Times, Cambridge Analytics used the collected data to “help build tools that it claimed could identify the personalities of American voters and influence their behavior.” The firm obtained the data before 2015, but was hired by Trump’s campaign in 2016.

Records obtained by The New York Times say that about 300,000 people took the survey, but because the survey allowed access to user’s friends information, an estimated 87 million people have been potentially affected.

The new tool that is appearing atop affected user’s homepage is headlined “Protecting your information.” The users see a message explaining that some of their data was misused when Facebook shared it with Cambridge Analytics.

According to CNBC, the ex-CEO of Cambridge Analytics, Alexander Nix, was caught on camera saying that the firm ran all operations for Trump’s campaign. Despite this, Cambridge Analytics is denying any accusations.

Affected users will see a message at the top of their homepage addressing the breach.

Millions of users are appalled by the scandal and have even started a #DeleteFacebook movement. They want to voice their anger about their lack of privacy on the widely-used platform.

Christopher Deason, who owns his own computer business, said, “If I were just working my 9-to-5 at the local bank or whatever, and coming home and getting on Facebook to check on my friends and whatnot, yeah, I would delete Facebook.”

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg will testify in front of Congress on Wednesday, April 9.

Fatal crash unites hockey community

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By SOPHIA CONSTANTINO

At least 15 people were killed on Friday night when a tractor-trailer fatally collided with a junior Canadian hockey team bus.

According to CNN, the Humboldt Broncos hockey team was headed to a playoff game in Nipawin when a single-manned tractor -trailer collided with the bus just north of Tisdale. 15 were killed, the beloved head coach among them, and 14 were injured, three of whom are in critical condition. The players’ ages ranged from 16-21; they came from Saskatchewan, Humboldt and Alberta to play for the Broncos. The cause of the collision is yet undetermined and the tractor driver, though initially detained, has been released. His case is not being criminally investigated.

Though the cause of the collision is certainly of interest, the media is tactfully focusing instead on the families of the victims and the state of those still in the hospital. According to Royal Canadian Mounted Police Assistant Commissioner Curtis Zablocki, “It’s too early to comment on the cause of the collision.”

Given the gravity of the tragedy and hockey being such a nationally adored sport throughout Canada, the incident has incited grief and solemnity from leaders, fellow hockey players of every status and, of course, the boys’ hometowns.

According to CNN, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau received an outpouring of condolences from world leaders. He responded to the incident himself via Twitter, stating that he “cannot imagine what these parents are going through.”

President Trump also tweeted, “Just spoke to @JustinTrudeau to pay my highest respect and condolences to the families of the terrible Humboldt Team tragedy. May God be with them all!” The NHL responded via twitter as well, stating that it sends “…condolences, comfort and strength to all affected…”

Notably, Toronto Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock can be seen tearing up in a press conference held on Saturday, expressing his deepest sympathies towards the team’s family members. “It hurts,” he said.

The Philadelphia Flyers, Colorado Avalanche, Hall of Fame member Joe Sakic and former collegiate hockey player Tanner Lane are among the many others to publicly express their condolences to the Broncos, according to New York Daily News.

According to CBC, the towns are uniting at the team’s practice rink, the Elgar Petersen Arena, to support one another and at the Nipawin Apostolic Church to find updated information about recovering team members.

As the victims’ fates become more certain, the coverage of the accident will likely begin to shift towards the cause of the accident and the honoring of those lost in the collision.

UM student drives car into campus canal

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By PATRICIA SANTANA

On April 5, a University of Miami student drove his car into a canal connected to Lake Osceola.

University and Coral Gables police responded to the call at approximately 8:30 p.m. There were no injuries. The student’s car, a silver Nissan convertible, was fished out of the lake by a crane.

Officers on the said told Miami Hurricane reporters that the driver lost control of the car while cutting another driver off to enter a parking space. He was described as “driving too fast for road conditions.” A concrete parking barrier on Stanford Drive was destroyed when the car jumped the curb.

The Miami Hurricane did an excellent job at reporting this story. Their initial coverage was a “breaking news” Facebook post. The newspaper does these kinds of Facebook posts often, making them a convenient source to check immediately in the aftermath of an incident.

The Facebook post was very brief, stating simply that a car drove into the canal by the Whitten University Center, that there was no information on passengers or injuries, and that updates would be forthcoming. The post was accompanied by a slideshow of pictures taken at the scene, adding a compelling and informative visual element to the story.

The post was later updated as promised. The update mentioned that there were no injuries, that the driver was a UM student, and that the driver was speeding.

A news article was posted very quickly by The Miami Hurricane. It included a number of relevant quotes from police on the scene and from Pat Whitely, the vice president of Student Affairs.

The Miami Herald also reported on the story. While it is a very local story to Coral Gables, it makes sense that the Herald would report on it since it is unusual, and many outside of the Coral Gables area are interested in what occurs on the UM campus. The Herald pulled most of its information from the Hurricane, illustrating the reach and influence student news media can achieve when the reporting is reliable, well-written, and well-managed.

Tank fails at fertility clinic in Ohio

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By ALLIE SIMON

Called a “catastrophic” failure, a storage tank at an Ohio fertility clinic malfunctioned and resulted in the loss of more than 4,000 eggs and embryos this month. 950 patients were affected by the failure and have since had their childbearing plans altered.

The beginning of the newsletter issued by the University Hospitals fertility clinic. The full letter can be found at http://news.uhhospitals.org/news-releases/uh-fertility-clinic-update-patient-letter.htm.

According to a newsletter provided by the University Hospitals fertility clinic, the remote alarm system designed to alert employees of rising temperatures was turned off the weekend that the tank temperature rose.

The newsletter says that the clinic, “does not know who turned off the remote alarm nor how long it was off, but it appears to have been off for a long period of time.”

“We are heartbroken to tell you that it’s unlikely that any of the eggs are viable,” the newsletter said.

According to the letter, the clinic had recently come across issues with the auto-refill function of the tank, which fills the liquid nitrogen that preserves the eggs and embryos. Employees had been manually refilling the liquid nitrogen. The clinic claims that they do not know if the new fill process was affecting the temperature of the tank.

In an interview on March 21, cancer patient Elliot Ash said that he froze his sperm in 2003 before he underwent chemotherapy.  After getting married a few years later, Ash and his wife were able to use in-vitro fertilization to have a child in 2015. According to Ash’s wife, the couple’s “goal was to always give [their] son a biological sibling … it has been a rough few weeks.” The couple is “now unsure about their family plans,” according to The New York Times. The Ashs are filing a class action lawsuit against the clinic.

The newsletter issued by the clinic was sympathetic and deeply apologetic for the tank failure, but patients remain outraged and heartbroken. Jeremy and Kate Plants, a couple who lost their embryos, told the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper that they “had accepted that [their] embryos were lost, but [their] hearts still break for those who were holding on to hope that their embryos were still alive.”

Regarding the clinic, the Plants wrote, “why was nothing done before this disaster happened?”

The logistics of what actually happened are still being investigated.

Heineken slammed for racist ad

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By KATHERINE CERAVOLO

Oh no, Pepsi 2.0 is here. Heineken released an ad that showed a bartender spotting a light-skinned woman drink a glass of wine. He quickly grabs a Heineken and passed it down to her, but before it arrives, the bottle passes multiple dark-skinned people.

This issue can be previously seen in the Pepsi Co. ad featuring Kendall Jenner, who stops a police barricade with a can of soda. This ad received some of the most negative, traumatizing backlash a company has yet to experience. Critics from all over the world criticized the soda company for mocking true events that happened in the world regarding the Black Lives Matter movement. The ad was denounced from a respectable person as well: Dr. Martin Luther King’s daughter, who posted an image on social media of her father in the middle of a peace protest, captioning: “If only daddy would’ve known the power of #Pepsi.”

Heineken’s damage has received backlash from the hip-hop star Chance the Rapper, who tweeted that the ad was “terribly racist.” This tweet was one among many that denounced the ad and the company.

Most coverage of this issue is focused on the content and the people who criticized it. However, what about Heineken’s past and the company’s values showed before this ad.

For example, last year, Heineken released an ad called “Worlds Apart,” which contained the tagline “open your mind, open your world,” and showed people from all over the world with completely different viewpoints and beliefs, discussing their differences over a bottle of beer. This campaign gained an immense amount of attention and support, completely opposite of the “lighter is better” campaign.

Although it is difficult to forgive, critics must remember to cover all possible tracks before jumping to conclusions about a company. Heineken may have made a huge mistake, but the company has proven its acceptance for all races and people in general.

Space station to make crash-landing

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By ALLIE SIMON

A Chinese space station that was launched in 2011 has begun a spontaneous crash-landing towards Earth. The station is expected to crash on Earth’s surface within the next few months.

Illustration of the Tiangong-1.

The Tiangong-1 space laboratory, nicknamed “Heavenly Palace,” weighs 8.5 tons and has begun its downward spiral towards Earth. According to CNBC, pieces as much as 100 kg could potentially crash onto Earth’s surface.

Chinese officials say that the space station’s functions failed after two years of orbiting Earth.

Jonathon McDowell, a Harvard University astrophysicist, claims that scientists will only be able to predict where pieces of the station will come down a few hours before it happens.

Current predictions, according to ABC News, have debris from the Tiangong-1 hitting the surface anytime between March 29 to April 2. The majority of the station will supposedly burn up on it descent to Earth, but it is possible that some debris will make the journey to Earth.

Information on the falling station is extremely vague, despite that the potential landfall is just days away. Chinese officials have not given much information on what exactly happened to the station since it ceased functioning on March 6, 2016.

Instead, researchers and scientists have been making assumptions about the impact of the fall. According to CNN, researcher Alan Duffy claims that “China’s secrecy around the space mission made the risks difficult to assess.”

CNN claims that the last space station that fell to Earth landed in the ocean. The first U.S. space station that ever fell landed in a part of Australia that was hardly populated and injured no one. The falling of the Tiangong-1 is similar to the space stations that fell before it and poses little threat to humans. Researches claim that the odds that the debris will damage ground activity is “very low”.

Only few types of materials could withstand the plasma in space. If titanium, makes the journey, according to CNN, it could fall to Earth.

News media baffled by Nunberg outburst

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By SOPHIA CONSTANTINO

Nearly every major news media outlet across the country stopped in their tracks Monday afternoon to gape at a live MSNBC interview with a former campaign adviser to President Trump, Sam Nunberg.

The afternoon began with a Washington Post story by Josh Dawsey reporting Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office had subpoenaed Nunberg to testify before a federal grand jury regarding Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election. Nunberg refused.

Approximately 15 minutes after the story was released, MSNBC cut short an interview to go to Nunberg in a phone interview. The interview spiraled into a 20-minute, seemingly no-holds-barred spiel from Nunberg during which he divulged what he claims Muller’s office asked of him and that he had no intention of cooperating. Most shockingly, the former Trump-aide said that he thinks Trump “may have done something during the election” and that Muller may “have something” on the president, according to CNN.

Nunberg proceeded to call into various news media outlets, including two different CNN interviewers and New York news station NY1. He then reappeared on MSNBC, this time accompanied by three lawyers, to discuss whether or not he should cooperate with Muller.

The White House is baffled by Nunberg’s outburst, calling it “nuts” and “bizarre,” according to CNN’s Kaitlin Collins. National news media certainly share the sentiment.

Though Nunberg could have perhaps been motivated by his own alleged mistreatment by Trump along with Trump’s similar treatment of Nunberg’s mentor, Roger Stone, why Nunberg would then defy subpoena remains unclear. Nunberg suggests that Trump did something questionable during the 2016 election and, if so, has no interest in testifying.

Speculations as to why Nunberg, who actively hates Trump, would not testify, point towards Nunberg’s allegiance to Stone; according to Nunberg, Stone is suspect to collusion with Julian Assage, who is believed to have ties to Russian intelligence. If there is something to cover on Stone, it seems Nunberg is covering it.

Despite being initially adamant, The Washington Post reports that Nunberg may testify after a night of considerable advice gathering through his various news media appearances. It seems Nunberg’s obstinate resolve and speculative protection of Stone will not withstand the risk of jail time he could face for defying subpoena.

ACLU sues to challenge Ohio law

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By KATHERINE CERAVOLO

The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio and ACLU Foundation have stepped in on Ohio’s recent law. This law bans abortions if the fetal diagnosis is Down syndrome. This law came into place to put a stop against discrimination and pay more attention to the protection of people with disabilities. Pretty much, Ohio wants to ban abortion and can only move further by making ridiculous regulations.

ACLU said this law is “unconstitutional” and has nothing to do with discrimination. By March 22, this law will come into play.

Anti-abortion groups went so far into making their point that they called ACLU hypocrites and said the union wasn’t truly looking out for individual rights. Of course, it should be a black or white viewpoint: you either support abortion or don’t. However, us humans like to make things difficult.

These “Right to Life” supporters and anti-abortion groups use disabilities to fight for their rights. So now that the fetal diagnosis is Down syndrome, ACLU should fight for this law? It makes no sense.

Along with the Planned Parenthood funding issues continuing to rise, there seems to never be a middle ground when it comes to this topic. Why should ACLU be shamed and criticized when the union hasn’t changed their viewpoints at all? The point is simple: How can the fetal diagnosis change abortion regulations?

The point of abortion and national teen pregnancy programs is to assist women who are in a financial, emotional and physical disposition. Certain freedoms are given to women to ensure not only their safety but also the safety of what’s going on inside them. With the lack of sex education and health information worldwide, teens are not given the accessibility to learn about the seriousness of this issue.

Reproduction, birth control, safety and health care seem like another world to many teens, and it should be the influencers of our country to protect their innocence and inform them.

Laws like this are what stop progress in America. To take away the licenses of physicians to perform their duties on the basis of their patient is the unconstitutionality here. ACLU is only being seen as a union full of hypocrisy and violations against freedom. Pro-life groups need to speak up and show support for the issues arising in Ohio that interfere with the freedom of choice women have been given until now.

Parkland continues to dominate news

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By PATRICIA SANTANA

More than a week later, the mass shooting that took place at Marjory Stoneman Douglas Senior High in Parkland, Fla., continues to be the biggest talking point for most news organizations.

A quick visit to CNN or The New York Time’s websites will reflect this, as the stories closest to the top of the page and in the biggest fonts are related to Parkland. Even stories about the Winter Olympics or new developments from the Mueller probe into the Russia investigation, stories that at any other point in time would eat up most of the space on the homepage of any news organization, have not been garnering the same attention as any of the stories related to the Parkland shooting.

This is a typical occurrence with mass shootings. Tragedies such as these come as shocks to the community and to the country as a whole and we find ourselves unable to turn away our attention from the aftermath. Writing and profiles of victims and survivors become a means of paying respect to them.

Another aspect of mass shootings that keeps them in the news is the political debate over gun control and mental health that always follows. Some recent examples of this are the stories on the chief of the NRA attacking Democrats about their gun control stance and Trump’s suggestion that we let teachers be armed and incentivize them to carry guns with a bonus. Many marches and demonstrations have happened, and more are being planned, each one garnering coverage.

Details continue to emerge about the shooting, consistently reigniting interest in the story and leading to more stories. For example, a recent look at the police response found that an armed school resource deputy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School never went into the building where the killer was, drawing intense criticism. The deputy has since been suspended following an internal investigation.

Kate Upton joins list of #MeToo victims

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On Jan. 31, former Sports Illustrated model Kate Upton took to Twitter to join the #MeToo movement.

The #MeToo movement started in October 2017. The hashtag spread through multiple social media outlets to bring attention and shed light on sexual harassment. Paul Marciano is the creative director for the brand Guess. Upton was the face of Guess from 2010-11. Upton stated that her first day shooting Marciano tried to grab her breasts. However, Marciano denied the claims while releasing a statement to Time magazine, saying “I have never been alone with Kate Upton.”

Multiple women have claimed they have been sexually harassed by men in the business industry claiming they use their power to prey on women. Upton was offered to be the face of Guess Jeans in 2014, but couldn’t accept the offer due to her experience with Marciano in 2010.

Yu Tsai, the photographer who was present during Upton’s first photo shoot with Guess confirmed Upton’s claims to Time magazine. Tsai released a statement saying “extremely moved by the strength and courage that it has taken Upton to tell her story and for the countless brave women and men who have already come forward.”

Upton, like many other women have come forward to share their stories against CEOs, executive producers and other men in high positions in business.

Guess declined to comment on Upton’s allegations in an interview with Time magazine. Upton blames her experience with Marciano on her lack of confidence in the modeling industry and said she contemplated quitting. Upton said she hopes coming forward will inform other people on the appropriate behavior in and out of the workplace with one another.

Ancient Mayan site found in Guatemala

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By KATHERINE CERAVOLO

Everyone knows life existed a long time ago, but little did anyone know millions of people lived under a jungle. In what is now Central America, an ancient megalopolis has been uncovered.

With man-made products such as elevated highways and palaces in a complex world, Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) technology provides images of the hidden world by digitally editing the forest canopy to discover ancient ruins never before seen with the human eye.

Existing more than 1,200 years ago, research has shown that sophisticated architecture, including urban centers and irrigation systems, is comparable to the ancient civilizations of Greece and China. The highlight of the discovery is that until now researchers have believed that such civilization is impossible in the tropics.

The structures such as forts and defensive walls prove that the society was prepared for war and way more populated than previously thought. Extensive streets and roads were used for high traffic and trade in this densely populated area. With a suspected five million people living in the Mayan civilization, it is now proven that number is between 10 to 15 million.

This is the start to a whole new beginning to not only discover what life was like all those years ago but also may play a role in Guatemala’s environmental situation. Degradation has caused a loss of 10 percent of forests each year from burning the land in order to make room for human colonization. Researchers hope this will bring a revelation to those causing this loss to preserve the history that once existed under the Guatemala jungles.

The PACUNAM Foundation, a Guatemalan nonprofit organization that focuses on heritage preservation and ancient civilization, is a partner in this project. With more data to be analyzed, the project will answer questions as to how the Mayan civilization created and lived in these lowlands.