Latest news with #Jeff Bezos
ABC News
19 hours ago
- Politics
- ABC News
ABC NEWS top digital news brand in June
ABC NEWS was again Australia's top digital news provider in June with a monthly audience of 12 million people, according to the latest Ipsos iris data released today. Average read time for the ABC NEWS website across the month was also the highest of the top 10 brands at 31 minutes. The overall news digital audience was down in June after federal election coverage drove record audiences in May. Big national news stories during the month included the disappearance of Queensland teenager Phoebe Bishop, coverage of the Erin Patterson 'mushroom murder' trial and the second game of the 2025 NRL State of Origin series. Major global news events included the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and Ukraine, including the US air strikes on Iran, the LA protests, the Air India plane crash and the celebrity wedding of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez.
The Independent
a day ago
- Business
- The Independent
Washington Post exodus grows as MSNBC host and Pulitzer Prize winner Jonathan Capehart takes Bezos buyout
The flood of high-profile editorial talent fleeing the Washington Post as the storied newspaper revamps its opinion section to focus exclusively on 'personal liberties and free markets' continued to grow this week as Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Jonathan Capehart decided to take a buyout. Capehart's departure comes just days after longtime Post reporter and writer Philip Bump announced that he had also accepted a buyout and had written his last column, which followed the paper's beleaguered CEO Will Lewis' ultimatum to staffers to leave if they 'do not feel aligned' with the company's new direction. As first reported by Axios' Sara Fischer Monday morning, Capehart – who was a member of the Post's editorial board until 2023 – ended his 18-year run with the paper this week after taking a buyout through the company's recently implemented voluntary separation program. Capehart, meanwhile, will continue to co-host MSNBC's The Weekend, and serve as a political analyst for PBS. The Washington Post and Capehart did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The paper has been experiencing an exodus of reporters, columnists and editors since late last year when the Post's owner Jeff Bezos blocked the editorial board's planned endorsement of Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. The meddling from the Amazon founder, who has increasingly cozied up to Trump over the past year, resulted in the loss of hundreds of thousands of subscribers and the resignations of several editorial board members. That internal turmoil, which had already featured the paper's journalists unsuccessfully begging Bezos to visit the newsroom and restore the 'trust that has been lost' under his watch, only grew worse in February when the mega-billionaire instituted a new mandate for the Post's opinion pages that resulted in the section's top editor resigning. 'We are going to be writing every day in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets,' Bezos stated in a memo to staff. 'We'll cover other topics too, of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others.' In the months since, a number of veteran Washington Post journalists have quit, directly citing the new opinion directive and editorial restrictions that they've faced. Ruth Marcus, who had been with the paper since 1984, resigned in March when she said Lewis declined to publish her column that saw her 'respectfully dissenting' from Bezos' edict. The following month, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Eugene Robinson – who had worked for the paper since 1980 – announced that he was 'retiring from my longtime journalistic home but not from journalism,' adding that 'significant shift' in the opinion section's mandate had pushed him to do so. Longtime cartoonist Ann Telnaes quit earlier this year after her cartoon mocking media titans – including Bezos – bending the knee to Trump was rejected by her editor. She would win a Pulitzer Prize for her work months later. With morale at an all-time low at the paper, Lewis has been described as being in a 'state of hiding' by staff. In late May, executive editor Matt Murray revealed that the paper would be offering a voluntary separation program for news employees with at least 10 years of service, along with all members of the Post's video department, copy desk and sports section. Weeks later, after intense speculation over who would take over the opinion section after David Shipley's resignation over the new mandate, Bezos and Lewis tapped Adam O'Neal to take the job – despite the fact that his only prior management experience was a short and tumultuous run as executive editor of conservative outlet The Dispatch. 'I know this represents a shift for many of you, and maybe even an unwelcome one for some, but simply being reconciled to these changes is not enough,' O'Neal wrote to opinion staffers in an introductory memo earlier this month. 'We want those who stick with us to be genuinely enthusiastic about the new direction and focus.' Meanwhile, Lewis reiterated in a letter to the newsroom a couple of weeks ago that those who aren't fully on board with Bezos' edict should take the money and run. 'As we continue in this new direction, I want to ask those who do not feel aligned with the company's plan to reflect on that,' he noted. Amid the buyout push and the new direction of the paper's opinion pages, the paper has seen more and more veteran journalists add their names to the list of ex- Washington Post staffers. Joe Davidson, who helmed the outlet's Federal Insider column for the past 17 years, said earlier this month that he quit in protest after one of his pieces was killed for being 'too opinionated under an unwritten and inconsistently enforced policy.' Though he said he had 'no reason to believe' Bezos was directly involved in spiking the column, 'it would be naïve to ignore the context.' Sharing his latest column about authoritarians stepping in when 'trust in institutions' crumbles, Bump told his social media followers on Thursday that it was his last Post article. 'I was offered and accepted a buyout,' he stated. 'To answer one possible next question, I'm not sure what's next save taking some time off.' As for Capehart, his decision to walk away from the Post comes two months after he revealed in his latest book what sparked his resignation from the paper's editorial board in 2023. According to his book, Capehart got into a heated disagreement with fellow editor Karan Tumulty over the editorial board writing an op-ed that criticized then-President Joe Biden for calling Georgia's voting laws 'Jim Crow 2.0,' claiming he had been 'hyperbolic.' 'Capehart, the only Black man on the Post's editorial board at the time, agreed with Biden's description and was bothered by the editorial and the fact that readers may believe it represented his view,' Semafor reported about the incident. 'He was incensed when Tumulty later did not apologize to him for publishing it; Capehart said he felt additionally put off when Tumulty said Biden's choice of words was insulting to people who had lived through racial segregation in the South.' Semafor added that Capehart's book had been the 'subject of internal recriminations' at the paper, largely because it 'publicly pitted current colleagues against each other and appeared to run afoul of the Post's editorial guidelines around collegiality, as well as rules that restrict staff from publicly disclosing internal editorial conversation.'
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Rice prices have skyrocketed in Japan — and farmers warn that ‘everyone who eats' that disaster could be near
Moneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below. In today's developed economies, lining up to buy a staple grain may seem like a thing of the past. But in Japan, it's become a stark reality as a rice shortage sends prices soaring. A 5 kilogram (11 pound) bag of rice cost 4,280 yen ($29) in May 2025 — double the price from a year earlier, according to Bloomberg. Don't miss Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now become a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to deal with tenants or fix freezers. Here's how I'm 49 years old and have nothing saved for retirement — what should I do? Don't panic. Here are 5 of the easiest ways you can catch up (and fast) You don't have to be a millionaire to gain access to this $1B private real estate fund. In fact, you can get started with as little as $10 — here's how The surge stems from a supply crunch dating back to 2023, when a severe heat wave hit Japan's rice harvest. The extreme temperatures not only lowered the quality of the crop but also caused a sharp decline in overall production. In response, the government has begun releasing rice from its stockpiles. Long lines now form hours before stores open to buy stockpiled rice, with The Japan Times reporting some customers start queuing as early as 8 p.m. the night before. According to Nikkei Asia, shelves in Tokyo have been 'frequently empty' as of early July, with supermarkets rationing sales to one bag of rice per family per day. Nobuhiko Kurosawa, a rice farmer in Yamagata, is worried about what could happen next. 'The Japanese government has already released most of its rice reserves, so if this summer turns out to be as hot as the year before last, it could be disastrous,' he told Nikkei Asia. 'If we have no reserves left and the quality of the rice has deteriorated due to the extreme heat, Japan may have to import a considerable amount. The food problem is not [just] a problem for farmers, but a problem for everyone who eats.' While Japan's rice crisis is especially severe, it's also part of a broader trend: Food prices around the world have been steadily climbing. From staples like grains and cooking oil to fresh produce and meat, inflation has put pressure on household budgets everywhere — not just in Japan. In the U.S., the Consumer Price Index has increased 25% over the last five years, with the food index surging 26%. The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects food prices to rise another 2.9% in 2025. But there are steps consumers and investors can consider to help protect their purchasing power as the cost of living rises. Real estate Real estate has long been considered a reliable hedge against inflation, thanks to its intrinsic value and income-generating potential. When inflation rises, property values often increase as well, reflecting the higher costs of materials, labor and land. At the same time, rental income tends to go up, providing landlords with a revenue stream that adjusts for inflation. Legendary investor Warren Buffett has often pointed to real estate as a prime example of a productive, income-generating asset. In 2022, Buffett stated that if you offered him '1% of all the apartment houses in the country' for $25 billion, he would 'write you a check.' Why? Because no matter what's happening in the broader economy, people still need a place to live and apartments can consistently produce rent money. Traditionally, investing in real estate meant buying property and becoming a landlord. New investing platforms are making it easier than ever to tap into the real estate market. For accredited investors, Homeshares gives access to the $35 trillion U.S. home equity market, which has historically been the exclusive playground of institutional investors. With a minimum investment of $25,000, investors can gain direct exposure to hundreds of owner-occupied homes in top U.S. cities through their U.S. Home Equity Fund — without the headaches of buying, owning or managing property. With risk-adjusted target returns ranging from 14% to 17%, this approach provides an effective, hands-off way to invest in owner-occupied residential properties across regional markets. If you're not an accredited investor, crowdfunding platforms like Arrived allow you to enter the real estate market for as little as $100. Arrived offers you access to shares of SEC-qualified investments in rental homes and vacation rentals, curated and vetted for their appreciation and income potential. Backed by world-class investors like Jeff Bezos, Arrived makes it easy to fit these properties into your investment portfolio regardless of your income level. Their flexible investment amounts and simplified process allows accredited and non-accredited investors to take advantage of this inflation-hedging asset class without any extra work on your part. Read more: Rich, young Americans are ditching the stormy stock market — Gold When it comes to preserving wealth and fighting inflation, few assets have stood the test of time like gold. Its appeal is simple: Unlike fiat currencies, the yellow metal can't be printed at will by central banks. Gold is also considered the ultimate safe haven. It's not tied to any one country, currency or economy, and in times of economic turmoil or geopolitical uncertainty, investors often flock to it — driving prices higher. Ray Dalio, founder of the world's largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, recently highlighted gold's role in a resilient portfolio. 'People don't have, typically, an adequate amount of gold in their portfolio,' Dalio told CNBC earlier this year. 'When bad times come, gold is a very effective diversifier.' In just the last 12 months, the price of gold has surged by 39%. One way to invest in gold that also provides significant tax advantages is to open a gold IRA with the help of Goldco. Gold IRAs allow investors to hold physical gold or gold-related assets within a retirement account, which combines the tax advantages of an IRA with the protective benefits of investing in gold, making it an attractive option for those looking to potentially hedge their retirement funds against economic uncertainties. With a minimum purchase of $10,000, Goldco offers free shipping and access to a library of retirement resources. Plus, the company will match up to 10% of qualified purchases in free silver. If you're curious whether this is the right investment to diversify your portfolio, you can download your free gold and silver information guide today. Farmland The steady rise in food prices serves as a powerful reminder: No matter what happens in the economy, people still need to eat. That's why farmland is considered a natural hedge against inflation. As food prices climb, so does the value of the land that produces it. At the same time, farmland is a tangible, income-generating asset that isn't directly tied to the ups and downs of financial markets. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. farmland values have steadily climbed over the past few decades, driven by increasing demand for food and limited supply of arable land. These days, you don't need to buy an entire farm or know how to grow crops to get in on the opportunity. FarmTogether is an all-in-one investment platform that lets qualified investors buy stakes in U.S. farmland. The platform identifies high-potential agricultural properties and then partners with experienced local operators to manage the land effectively. Depending on the type of stake you want, you can get a cut from both the leasing fees and crop sales, providing you with cash income. Then, years down the line after the farm rises in value, you can benefit from the land appreciating and profit from its sale. What to read next Here are the 6 levels of wealth for retirement-age Americans — are you near the top or bottom of the pyramid? This tiny hot Costco item has skyrocketed 74% in price in under 2 years — but now the retail giant is restricting purchases. Here's how to buy the coveted asset in bulk Car insurance in America could climb to a stunning $2,502/year on average — but here's how 2 minutes can save you more than $600 in 2025 Want an extra $1,300,000 when you retire? Dave Ramsey says this 7-step plan 'works every single time' to kill debt, get rich in America — and that 'anyone' can do it Money doesn't have to be complicated — sign up for the free Moneywise newsletter for actionable finance tips and news you can use. This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind. Sign in to access your portfolio
Fox News
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Taylor Swift's Dad Undergoes Major Heart Surgery
Taylor Swift's father is recovering well after undergoing major heart surgery. Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez were seen dining in Miami. Plus, Nicki Minaj and SZA are at odds after a social media post sparked a heated and very public exchange. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit FOX News Radio
Fox News
15-07-2025
- Business
- Fox News
Washington Post's new opinion editor promises ‘ambitious' changes, echoes Jeff Bezos' talking points
The Washington Post's new opinion editor promised "ambitious and thorough" changes to the storied section while making it clear that he aligns with billionaire owner Jeff Bezos' desire to "rebuild trust with more Americans." Bezos announced some major changes to the outlet's opinion page in February when he declared, "We are going to be writing every day in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets. We'll cover other topics too of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others," and that top opinion editor David Shipley decided to step away. Post opinion section staffers were eager to learn about their new boss and the direction of the sections for months until Adam O'Neal was plucked from The Economist. O'Neal was announced as Shipley's replacement in an unusual selfie-style video that was posted to X by the Post's communications department in June. He began his tenure leading the opinion section of the Post on Monday, where staffers were greeted with an email titled simply, "Looking forward," that echoed Bezos' "personal liberties and free markets" message. "After thinking and planning for quite some time, I'm beyond thrilled to finally get to work. It won't be easy, but we have a real opportunity to build the most popular, vibrant and influential opinion section in the country. My top priority will be to significantly increase the reach and effect of our work. Advocating for free markets and personal liberties will be critical as we rebuild trust with more Americans and scale our high-quality journalism," O'Neal wrote in the email obtained by Fox News Digital. "This is not a partisan project, and we will welcome robust debate within the twin pillars. It's also important that we communicate with optimism about this country in particular and the future in general," he continued. "The changes we have planned are not marginal. They will be ambitious and thorough." Bezos was scolded by liberal commentators after his February announcement of major changes to the opinion section, with many critics accusing him of bending the knee to President Donald Trump. O'Neal, who has also worked at The Dispatch and The Wall Street Journal, told staffers that his department would embrace the paper's longstanding traditions as changes are made. "Throughout, we will cultivate and maintain core values: encouraging original reporting; creating a collegial atmosphere; expecting high standards; and embracing experimentation and innovation. We won't let sentimentality slow down much-needed reform. I have tremendous respect for The Post's 148-year history, as well as its culture of adaptation and evolution. We will embrace that tradition wholeheartedly as we chart a new, transformative path for this iconic institution," O'Neal wrote. "I know this represents a shift for many of you, and maybe even an unwelcome one for some, but simply being reconciled to these changes is not enough. We want those who stick with us to be genuinely enthusiastic about the new direction and focus," he continued. "While I've spent the past few months learning about the inner-workings of our section, I'll also spend the coming days having a close-up look at our systems and workflow. That means that, in addition to learning from you all individually, I'll be sitting in on meetings and discussions as an observer." O'Neal called it a "unique and exciting time for The Post" and wrapped up his email by noting that the opinion section's "future" team is not currently in place. "I'm eager to put together the team that will bring us into the future," O'Neal wrote. It's been turbulent times at the Post, which famously came under fire after Bezos stopped the editorial page from endorsing then-Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024 over Trump, prompting several staffers to leave the paper. The Post endorsed former President Biden in 2020 and Hillary Clinton in 2016. When Bezos explained the decision, he cited a Gallup poll showing Americans losing trust in the media, even falling below Congress, telling readers, "Our profession is now the least trusted of all. Something we are doing is clearly not working." Last week, publisher and CEO Will Lewis offered a blunt ultimatum to staff who aren't onboard with the "new direction" the paper is taking under Bezos. "I understand and respect, however, that our chosen path is not for everyone," Lewis wrote in a memo obtained by Fox News Digital. "That's exactly why we introduced the voluntary separation program. As we continue in this new direction, I want to ask those who do not feel aligned with the company's plan to reflect on that. The VSP is designed to support you in making this decision, give you the ability to weigh your options thoughtfully and with less concern about financial consequences. And if you think that it's time to move on to a new chapter, the VSP helps you take that next step with more security."
