WHAT'S BREWING
NFL PLAYERS DUNBAR, BAKER SURRENDER TO POLICE New York Giants cornerback DeAndre Baker and Seattle Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar turned themselves in to police in Florida over the weekend. Both men face four counts of armed robbery with a firearm. Baker also faces four counts of aggravated assault related to an alleged incident at a party Wednesday night in Miramar, Florida. Arrest warrants were issued on Thursday for Baker, 22, and Dunbar, 27. Attorneys for both men said the two NFL players took no part in the alleged armed robbery. [Reuters]
PHARMA 'BRO' DENIED PRISON TIMEOUT TO WORK ON COVID-19 TREATMENT A federal judge has denied a request from Martin Shkreli — the smirking, price-gouging former drug company executive known as “Pharma Bro” — for a three-month prison release to research a COVID-19 treatment. Brooklyn U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto said in her ruling that she agreed with a probation report that described Shkreli’s plan as the same kind of “delusional self-aggrandizing behavior” that landed him in prison. [HuffPost]
ERIC TRUMP: COVID-19 WILL 'MAGICALLY VANISH' AFTER ELECTION DAY Taking a page from his dad’s playbook, Eric Trump insisted in an interview that COVID-19 will “magically” disappear — after Election Day. He claimed that the coronavirus that has killed 312,000 people around the globe — including nearly 90,000 Americans — is a ploy cooked up by the Democrats to stop Donald Trump from rallying his supporters at campaign events. Democratic presidential front-runner Joe Biden “loves this,” Trump’s middle son told Jeanine Pirro on Fox News. [HuffPost]
THE U.S. IS BUILDING A CONTACT TRACER ARMY Since late April, Jana De Brauwere has added a new routine to her work-from-home schedule. For four hours a day, four days a week, she calls up strangers, asks them if they are experiencing symptoms of the coronavirus, and suggests next steps if they are. De Brauwere, a 44-year-old library manager at the main branch of the San Francisco Library, was furloughed from her job in mid-March when the city issued its stay-at-home order. About a month later, the city called on her and employees from other offices to help its contact tracing efforts. [HuffPost]
ON A TINY BAY ISLAND, FEARS THAT COVID-19 COULD DEAL THE FINAL BLOW About 70 miles north of Virginia Beach lies the island of Tangier ― a place whose residents are as familiar with isolated living as they are with an uncertain future. This 700-acre spit of marshland, accessible only by boat or small plane, is rapidly vanishing due to a combination of a climate change-driven rise in sea levels, and erosion. Its economy is dependent on the bay’s crab and oyster fisheries and the scores of visitors that flock to the island each spring and summer, a fragile factor even in good years. And 2020 is not a good year. [HuffPost]
CELEBRITY CULTURE WILL NEVER BE THE SAME The advent of influencer culture has dominated the conversation over the past few years. As more people are finding fame, notoriety and lucrative careers through “content” creation on platforms like Instagram and YouTube, the idea of what fame is — and who gets to be famous — has drastically shifted. Now, people are as inclined to obsess over the Alison Roman backlash as they are over the latest movie star breakup. [HuffPost] |
