Afternoon Briefing: Cultural commissioner faces bullying allegations
Good afternoon, Chicago.
After canceling a quarterly meeting with some of Chicago's top cultural minds for a second time, Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events Commissioner Clinée Hedspeth is facing criticism from appointees of past administrations who say she is leaving a 'void' in the struggling arts industry.
Hedspeth postponed until late February the Cultural Advisory Council's meeting just days before it was set to occur last week. The decision 'continues a pattern' of noncommunication with arts leaders left in the dark about her vision for Chicago culture, advisory council member Amina Dickerson said.
Hedspeth also faces bullying allegations from several staffers, records obtained by the Tribune show. Around a quarter of the department's staff has resigned or been fired since Mayor Brandon Johnson appointed Hedspeth in March.
Here's what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit chicagotribune.com/latest-headlines and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices.
Subscribe to more newsletters | Asking Eric | Horoscopes | Puzzles & Games | Today in History
Chicago Public Schools officials had a calm, seemingly friendly conversation with two Secret Service agents outside Hamline School hours before the district sparked a nationwide panic when it falsely proclaimed Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents had tried to enter the building, according to recently released security footage. Read more here.
More top news stories:
Trump administration sues Illinois, Cook County and Chicago over sanctuary immigration laws
Judge asked to allow Highland Park parade shooting victims who testify to watch trial of alleged shooter
Fidelity Brokerage Services will be allowed to use the ground floor of the former Barnes & Noble store downtown for its new location, but the Naperville City Council wants safeguards to prevent other banking institutions from doing the same in the future. Read more here.
More top business stories:
USW president moves to dismiss U.S. Steel, Nippon Steel lawsuit
Honeywell, one of the few remaining US industrial conglomerates, will split into three companies
Virginia McCaskey, principal owner of the Chicago Bears and the only daughter of team founder George Halas, died Thursday, the team announced. She was 102. Read more here.
More top sports stories:
Jason Dickinson injures his leg in the Chicago Blackhawks' OT loss: 'That's a guy you can't just replace'
How honing his cutter could help new Chicago Cubs reliever Ryan Brasier return to dominant 2023 form
Nominations have been announced for the 51st annual Non-Equity Jeff Awards, with Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre and Kokandy Productions earning the most nominations for their off-Loop musicals. Read more here.
More top Eat. Watch. Do. stories:
Column: Scott Turow's Rusty Sabich returns for more courtroom drama in 'Presumed Guilty'
Gene Barge, renowned sax man and producer known as 'Daddy G,' dies at 98
Over the past year, President Donald Trump's threatened 25% tariffs against Mexico and Canada have plunged manufacturing hubs all along the northern Mexican border into limbo, a state that persists despite a one-month reprieve to which Trump agreed on Monday. Read more here.
More top stories from around the world:
Judge temporarily blocks Trump plan offering incentives for federal workers to resign
President Donald Trump blames 'obsolete' US air traffic control system for the plane and chopper collision near DC
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Insider
33 minutes ago
- Business Insider
In their investment era: Swifties celebrate helping their idol reclaim her music
Tori Cummins cried when she heard that Taylor Swift had bought back the rights to her original albums. The 32-year-old estimated she's spent around $700 on Taylor's Version vinyls and merch, and it was worth every penny. "All I could think of was like, 'oh, I will keep spending money on this woman," Cummins said, adding that she'd had to explain to a non-Swiftie why she felt the pop star's victory was hers, too. "It's so easy to be a fan of hers because at no point do you really feel like you aren't getting just as much as you put in." Last week, Swift announced that she had bought back her original master recordings for a reported $360 million. In a letter announcing the news, Swift cited the support of her fans through the Taylor's Version rerecordings and the Eras Tour as the reason she was able to make the acquisition. "Not to be parasocial or anything, but it is so cool to think about the fact that we did support her all throughout this Taylor's Version journey," Allie Buckman, a 19-year-old Swiftie in Kentucky, said. For Swifties, it's a gratifying end to a yearslong battle. They've been loyally listening to re-recorded "Taylor's Version" songs and abstaining from listening to the "stolen" versions since 2019 to avoid enriching mega-manager Scooter Braun and then Shamrock Holdings, from whom Swift made the purchase last week. It's also another prescient marketing move from the megastar: Fans are joking that their spending on the Eras Tour, which for many was in the hundreds or thousands, functioned as a form of GoFundMe for Swift to make the purchase. Crystal Haryanto, who started a course on Swift at UC Berkeley and is the author of the upcoming book, "The Glory of Giving Everything," on the star's business model, said the letter Swift wrote did more than express gratitude. It "reminds fans that they have equity in the music," though not legally, of course. "From a marketing perspective, presenting this milestone as a joint effort is conducive to sales of future albums," Haryanto said. "Fans are motivated to keep listening to her music because such actions appear to have a measurable impact on Swift's well-being—the dream of any fan toward their favorite person." For Kerry Weber, a 46-year-old Swiftie in marketing who attended the Reputation tour and multiple dates of the Eras Tour, said that Swift made several "genius" marketing moves in the lead-up to the masters acquisition, such as the re-recordings and adding new sets to the tour after the wildly successful concert film was released. Weber said that the sentiment among the "haters" was that Swift milked money from her fans — something she disputes. "I got something in return is how I look at it. I got to go to London with my daughter for the first time, and that was amazing. I don't care, she can have my money just for that alone," Weber, who estimated that she spent a few thousand dollars on a London trip for the Eras Tour, said. "And if that money bought back her masters, I think it's fantastic." Haryanto said that bridging the gap with fans has always been "foundational" to Swift's branding strategy. She described it as akin to attracting repeat customers in retail — it curates customers who not only come back, but get even more satisfaction from supporting the brand as a whole. "To know that the money I spent at a concert was going to something like this and was going to this project that I think will hopefully also change things for other artists and younger artists in the future — it's a really gratifying moment," Larissa Miles, a 26-year-old Swiftie in Minnesota, said. Bridget Doyle, a 30-year-old Swiftie in Boston who previously told BI she spent $1,500 on attending the Eras Tour, said that the masters move feels like a return on investment of 20 years of being a fan. "If anything, I think it's going to make fans want to spend more because I think fans get more of a direct, like I'm investing in you making this art in order to encourage you to continue making more art that we all enjoy and love," Doyle said. The move from Swift coincides with a larger conversation over intentional spending. Americans are participating in "Tesla Takedowns" over Elon Musk's political involvement and boycotting Target over the department store's DEI retreat. While Swift's music might not seem as pressing an issue, Swifties said that they like seeing their investments serve what they see as a great purpose. "It goes to show you that boycotting and supporting causes that matter to you make a difference," Brittany Michalski, a 36-year-old Swiftie, said. "What we do matters. And even if it's so a pop star can own her music, it's going to make a difference in the music industry for people who aren't as powerful as her."
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
MongoDB Inc (MDB) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Strong Revenue Growth and Strategic Expansions
Revenue: $549 million, a 22% year-over-year increase. Atlas Revenue: Grew 26% year over year, representing 72% of total revenue. Non-GAAP Operating Income: $87 million, with a 16% non-GAAP operating margin. Customer Count: Over 57,100 customers, with approximately 2,600 added sequentially. Net ARR Expansion Rate: Approximately 119%. Gross Margin: 74%, down from 75% in the year-ago period. Net Income: $86 million or $1 per share. Operating Cash Flow: $110 million. Free Cash Flow: $106 million. Cash and Equivalents: $2.5 billion. Share Repurchase Program: Increased by $800 million, totaling $1 billion. Q2 Revenue Guidance: $548 million to $553 million. Fiscal Year '26 Revenue Guidance: $2.25 billion to $2.29 billion. Fiscal Year '26 Non-GAAP Income from Operations Guidance: $267 million to $287 million. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 3 Warning Sign with VRNT. Release Date: June 04, 2025 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. MongoDB Inc (NASDAQ:MDB) reported a 22% year-over-year increase in revenue, reaching $549 million, surpassing the high end of their guidance. Atlas revenue grew 26% year over year, now representing 72% of total revenue, indicating strong adoption of their cloud-based platform. The company achieved a non-GAAP operating income of $87 million, resulting in a 16% non-GAAP operating margin, which is an improvement from the previous year. MongoDB Inc (NASDAQ:MDB) added approximately 2,600 new customers in the quarter, bringing the total customer count to over 57,100, the highest net additions in over six years. The company announced a significant expansion of their share repurchase program, authorizing up to an additional $800 million, reflecting confidence in their long-term potential. Despite strong results, MongoDB Inc (NASDAQ:MDB) noted some softness in Atlas consumption in April due to macroeconomic volatility, although it rebounded in May. The non-Atlas business is expected to decline in the high single digits for the year, with a $50 million headwind from multiyear license revenue anticipated in the second half. Gross margin slightly declined to 74% from 75% in the previous year, primarily due to Atlas growing as a percentage of the overall business and the impact of the Voyage acquisition. The company experienced slower than planned headcount additions, which could impact future growth and operational capacity. MongoDB Inc (NASDAQ:MDB) remains cautious about the uncertain macroeconomic environment, which could affect future consumption trends and overall business performance. Q: Can you explain what's driving the growth of Atlas and the types of applications being built on MongoDB? A: Dev Ittycheria, President and CEO, explained that MongoDB is used for a wide variety of applications, including transactional-intensive, IoT, streaming, and AI use cases. The platform's ability to handle complex, nested, and evolving data, scale elastically, and run on any cloud makes it attractive for developers. The strong customer additions indicate MongoDB's growing adoption. Q: How do you plan to manage and communicate metrics in a consumption-based model? A: Mike Berry, CFO, noted that MongoDB already provides relevant metrics for investors, such as consumption and customer growth. He plans to focus on capital structure, cash flow generation, and operating margin improvements. More insights will be shared at the upcoming NYC event. Q: What is your perspective on the recent moves by Snowflake and Databricks towards PostGres? A: Dev Ittycheria highlighted that these moves validate the importance of operational data stores, especially for AI. He emphasized that building an OLTP store is challenging and questioned the need for additional PostGres databases. MongoDB's architecture is designed for modern applications, offering advantages over relational databases that are retrofitting features like JSON support. Q: How do you view the long-term relevance of relational databases like PostGres compared to MongoDB? A: Dev Ittycheria stated that while the database market is large enough for multiple winners, MongoDB is optimized for modern applications, especially in AI. He noted that relational databases adding JSON support indicates their limitations in handling complex, real-world data. MongoDB's architecture is better suited for these needs. Q: Can you provide an update on MongoDB's growth initiatives, such as moving upmarket and sales force refocusing? A: Dev Ittycheria reported progress in R&D investments, moving upmarket, and increasing awareness and education. MongoDB 8.0 has seen rapid adoption, and the company is expanding its engineering efforts in AI. The move upmarket is yielding larger deals, and the self-serve business is efficiently acquiring mid-market customers. For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Richemont publishes FY25 Annual Report and Non-Financial Report
5 JUNE 2025 RICHEMONT PUBLISHES FY25 ANNUAL REPORT AND NON-FINANCIAL REPORT Richemont has today published its combined Annual Report and Accounts with the Business review, the Compensation Report and the Corporate Governance Report, along with its Non-Financial Report, for the year ended 31 March 2025. The Annual Report and Accounts, which includes the Chairman's review to shareholders, the annual consolidated and statutory financial statements, and the corresponding audit reports was already published on 16 May 2025. The Non-Financial Report 2025, prepared in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards (2021), provides Richemont's disclosures on non-financial matters. The report complies with the reporting disclosure required by Articles 964a-c of the Swiss Code of Obligations, including the Swiss Ordinance on Climate Disclosures. Selected disclosures and indicators have been independently assured (limited assurance) by PricewaterhouseCoopers SA (PwC). Both reports are available for download on the Company's website at and Hard copies will be mailed to parties who have requested it and may also be obtained from the Company's registered office at the address below or by contacting the Company via the website at In South Africa, the Annual Report and Non-Financial Report may be obtained directly from the Depository Agent at the following address: Computershare Investor Services Proprietary Limited, Rosebank Towers, 15 Biermann Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg, 2196, South Africa. About Richemont At Richemont, we craft the future. Our unique portfolio includes prestigious Maisons distinguished by their craftsmanship and creativity. Richemont's ambition is to nurture its Maisons and businesses and enable them to grow and prosper in a responsible, sustainable manner over the long term. Richemont operates in three business areas: Jewellery Maisons with Buccellati, Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Vhernier; Specialist Watchmakers with A. Lange & Söhne, Baume & Mercier, IWC Schaffhausen, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Piaget, Roger Dubuis and Vacheron Constantin; and Other, primarily Fashion & Accessories Maisons with Alaïa, Chloé, Delvaux, dunhill, G/FORE, Gianvito Rossi, Montblanc, Peter Millar, Purdey, Serapian as well as Watchfinder & Co. Find out more at Richemont A shares are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange, Richemont's primary listing, and are included in the Swiss Market Index ('SMI') of leading stocks. Richemont A shares are listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, Richemont's secondary listing. Investor/analyst and media enquiries+41 22 721 3003 (investor relations) 22 721 3507 (media)pressoffice@ Click here for a printer-friendly version in English (PDF)Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
