Global News
Mexico Makes Milestones
On Oct. 1, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo took the oath of office
and was sworn in as the President of Mexico, starting her
six-year term. Before becoming president, she served as
mayor of Mexico City since 2018. Sheinbaum is the first
female president of Mexico and the first of predominantly
Jewish heritage. Sheinbaum follows into the same leftist
Morena political party as her predecessor (Andrés Manuel
López Obrado) was, and plans on continuing similar pledges,
according to NBC news.
Airport Bomb Explodes
On Oct. 2nd at Miyazaki Airport in southwestern Japan,
a dormant United States (U.S.) bomb from World War II
that had been previously buried exploded, disrupting more
than 80 flights and leaving no casualties, according to the
Associated Press (AP). Asphalt explosions disrupted a large
part of the taxiway. Flights resumed the following morning,
according to Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayash.
Miyazaki Airport, built in 1943, was used by the former
Imperial Japanese Navy as a flight training field.
National News
Hurricane Helene Horror
On Sep. 26th, Hurricane Helene made its mark on land when
it hit Florida as a Category 4 hurricane. According to AP
news, Hurricane Helene is the deadliest hurricane in the
mainland U.S. since Katrina hit in 2005. North Carolinians
have received more than $27 million in individual assistance
from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Gov.
Roy Cooper’s office has reported that over 83,000 people
have signed up for individual assistance.
Google Gets Served
On Oct. 7th, Google was ordered by a federal court in San
Francisco to allow competition apps into their Android app
store in an antitrust case, allowing more app options to be
available to users. This verdict will hurt the illegal monopoly
Google has held, according to AP news. The Department
of Justice also proposed sanctions to end the monopoly on
the search engine and laid out ideas for ending exclusive
agreements Google has with companies such as Apple and
Samsung.
Harris Reaches New Heights
As of Oct. 9th, Kamala Harris reached over one billion
dollars for her campaign since her start as the Democratic
candidate in July. Harris raised $25 million on the day she
was named the candidate and had amassed $500 million in
about a month. According to the New York Times (NYT),
Harris is one of the only candidates to raise such a quantity
in such a time. Harris has also surpassed the amount Donald
Trump, the Republican candidate, has raised so far in the
election. This announcement comes during a tough part of
the race where election day is coming up, the NYT reported.
State News
Paxton Prosecutes TikTok
On Oct. 3rd, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed
a lawsuit against the social media platform TikTok for
allegedly sharing and selling minors’ personal information.
This violates a new state law that aims to protect children on
social media, according to the Texas Tribune. TikTok, which
has been previously brought under fire for their Chinese
parent company, denied these allegations.
H-E-B Taps Into Online Pay
On Oct. 7th, H-E-B Grocery Company announced that it will
now feature tap-to-pay programs in all of its stores around
Texas, including its Central Market stores, restaurants, and
pharmacies. This will allow customers to use Samsung,
Google, and Apple Pay. H-E-B announced their pilot
program for tap-to-pay at a Central Market location in Dallas.
This program comes after numerous requests according to
Ashwin Nathan, a vice president of marketing and payment at H-E-B.
Local News
Music of the Economy
On Oct. 4th, Austin City Limits kicked off its first weekend
with three days of performances Friday to Sunday before
picking up again the following weekend. According to
KXAN, the annual Austin music festival dates back to 2002,
with an economic impact beginning in 2006. It is estimated
that the festival has brought in more than $3.5 billion to
the greater Austin area. Roughly hundreds of thousands of
people were expected to be in attendance at the festival over
its first and second weekend, KVUE reported.
Austin FC Hands Wolff a Red Card
As of Oct. 6th, Austin FC announced they are looking for
a new head coach after Josh Wolff was fired, according to
a statement put out by club officials Anthony Precourt and
Rodolfo Borrell. They met with Wolff to discuss options
concerning next season as the decision comes after a major
loss for the club when they lost to LA Galaxy. This eliminated
the team from the 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs, according to
the Austin Chronicle. With only one match left in the 2024
season, an interim manager will be found for the final match
on Oct. 19.