Good Afternoon. It's Wednesday, December 1st, and you’re listening to Ausum’s Afternoon News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

Here's the latest in Omicron news:

According to AP News: As scientists around the world race to determine whether the new, mutant version of the coronavirus is more dangerous than previous ones, the United States recorded its first confirmed case of the omicron variant on Wednesday in a vaccinated traveler who returned to California after a trip to South Africa.

BBC reported that the Supreme Court of the United States appears to be leaning toward upholding a Mississippi law that prohibits abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, even in situations of rape or incest. Conservative justices hinted at the majority support for preserving the rule during a hearing on the issue on Wednesday. Millions of women may lose access to abortion if the law is overturned, which is expected in June.

CNN updates us on the Michigan Shooting case, stating that the 15-year-old suspect in the Michigan high school shooting will face four counts of first-degree murder and one act of terrorism resulting in death as an adult, among other charges. The suspect will also be charged with seven counts of assassination with intent to murder and 12 counts of felony firearm possession. And, since yesterday, the incident claimed one more life, totaling four students.

Fox News spoke with Darrell Brooks Jr., after reportedly mowing past barricades and into spectators at the Waukesha Christmas parade, killing six people and injuring 62, who has spent the last ten days in a Wisconsin jail cell. During a brief video visit with Fox News Digital on Wednesday, he said, "I just feel like I'm being monsterized - demonized." Darrell Brooks Jr. is accused of plowing his SUV through a throng at a parade. The victims range in age from eight to eighty-one years old. Brooks is being jailed on $5 million cash bail and faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if found guilty on all counts.

Forbes reported that since the CDC confirmed the first U.S. case of the novel omicron variety in California, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has dropped 1.3 percent, or nearly 450 points, while the S&P 500 has dropped 1.2 percent and the Nasdaq Composite has dropped 1.8 percent. According to LPL Financial chief market strategist Ryan Detrick, the Omicron version is "wreaking havoc on markets." Investors should "buckle up their seatbelts" for "a rough end to the year 2021," according to Detrick.

Reuters reported that a patent infringement case could be filed against Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) for their vaccine. On Wednesday, a federal appeals court dismissed its challenge to Arbutus Biopharma's patents. Following the decision, Arbutus stock nearly quadrupled in value, reaching $6.25. Moderna's stock was trading at $316.43, down more than 10%. If the patents are upheld, Moderna believes Arbutus would file a lawsuit seeking royalties on its COVID-19 vaccine, according to court records.

Business Insider reported that internal Amazon data shows a revenue increase on Black Friday compared to the previous year. This year's growth comes despite a decline in overall internet spending. Amazon outperformed the rest of the e-commerce business on Black Friday, with revenue up more than 10% year over year. According to Adobe Analytics, overall e-commerce spending on Black Friday and Cyber Monday decreased from the prior year, shoppers spent $10.7 billion on Cyber Monday, down 1.4 percent from last year, and $8.9 billion on Black Friday, down 1.3 percent.

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Good Morning, it’s Wednesday, December 1st. And You’re listening to Ausum’s Morning News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

Following yesterday’s school shooting in Michigan which resulted in the death of three people, The Washington Examiner reports that the suspected shooter, a 15-year old who cannot be named, used the gun his father bought four days before the attack.

The Federal advisory committee voted in favor of the US government's use of the Merk Covid-19 treatment pill. The New York Times noted that this is the first time an antiviral pill to tackle the coronavirus pandemic has been authorised.

Wall Street Journal announced that a US federal judge has temporarily issued a nationwide block on the Biden Administration’s vaccine mandate for healthcare workers.

Abortion rights within The United States are being discussed once again in the Supreme Court. AP News states that justices are weighing up whether to allow a Mississippi law that bans abortion after 15 weeks.

Finally, Forbes reported Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has been forced to isolate under NBA Covid protocols. This suggests that the basketballer had a positive or inconclusive Covid-19 test.

That’s all for today. For the full Ausum experience, make sure to download the Ausum app. Catch us, every weekday, morning and afternoon.

Good Afternoon. It's Monday, November 29th, and you’re listening to Ausum’s Afternoon News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

Here's the latest in Omicron news:

AP News reports Japan and France reported their first cases of the omicron variant Tuesday, according to recent data, and the mutant coronavirus was already in Europe nearly a week before South Africa raised the alarm. The discovery highlights the virus's difficulty in being contained in an age of jet travel and economic globalization. And it left the globe torn between the promise of a return to normalcy and the worry that the worst was yet to come.

BBC reports that people who are ill or at risk of developing severe Covid-19 should postpone travel due to the Omicron form, according to the World Health Organization. People over the age of 60, as well as those suffering from heart disease, cancer, or diabetes, are included in the UN agency's latest travel recommendation. Last Monday, South Africa notified the rest of the globe about the mutation. According to the World Health Organization, broad travel bans do not limit the spread of the variation.

Reuters adds that, if necessary, the EU might approve vaccinations targeted against the Omicron version of the coronavirus in three to four months. Existing vaccinations would continue to give protection, according to the European Medicines Agency.

The Daily Dispatch continues by stating that today, a federal judge in Kentucky, U.S. District Judge Gregory F. Van Tatenhove, issued a preliminary injunction against Democrat President Joe Biden's coronavirus vaccine mandate for federal contractors and subcontractors. It was in reaction to a lawsuit filed by Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who joined several other state attorneys general in opposing the mandate.

President Biden's rationale behind the mandate is that instead of enforcing limits, US officials recommend immunizations and boosters, according to The Guardian. According to experts, the United States should invest swiftly in diagnostics, genome sequencing, and surveillance. A novel coronavirus variety has been discovered all over the world and is threatening to spread to the United States. Joe Biden attempted to reassure Americans that his government is working to slow the spread of the virus.

According to Axios, in connection with a shooting at Oxford High School in Michigan, a 15-year-old kid has been arrested. Three individuals are deceased, all of whom are students, and six others are injured, one of whom is a teacher. The reason for the attack is yet unknown. During the event, which began at 12:51 p.m., 9-1-1 dispatchers received over 100 calls. CNN adds that Rep. Elissa Slotkin tweeted about the shooting in her district in Michigan today, calling it a "dark & painful day" for the state.

Business Insider reported that in a business memo, Elon Musk stated that the Raptor program was at "'risk of bankruptcy'." He claimed it represented a serious threat to the space program. While SpaceX is considered the world's second-most valuable private corporation, the success of its Raptor engine production is critical to the firm's future, especially Musk's desire to colonize Mars. SpaceX is constructing the Starship rocket to send people and cargo to Mars and the moon. For orbital launches, Starship will require as many as 39 Raptor engines. 

Forbes published a piece on the "Facebook Papers" that shed light on Facebook's advertising business and how people react to advertisements. The documents also provide fascinating insights into Facebook's ad products, how users and marketers perceive them, and how the social network's staff have attempted to address a variety of issues. Last month, Haugen told the British Parliament that serving up "hateful, angry, divisive" commercials was cheaper than serving up other types of adverts and that Facebook's ads were priced partly on the likelihood that people would interact with them.

That’s all for today. Be sure to download the Ausum app to get the full Ausum experience. Catch you next time for the Ausum News Briefing every weekday, morning, and afternoon.

Good Morning, it’s Tuesday, November 30th. And You’re listening to Ausum’s Morning News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

Barbados has become a republic and replaced the UK Queen with Dame Sandra Mason, the Caribbean nation's first president. Axios reports that the ceremony was attended by the United Kingdom’s Prince Charles.

Within China, Forbes announced that China is stepping up its vaccine diplomacy. Xi Jinping, amid the Omicron outbreak, has promised to donate 600 million doses of its Covid-19 vaccine to African states.

The Guardian noted that Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s chief executive, has stepped down. Dorsey was one of the co-founders of the site in 2006.

Regarding the Covid-19 pandemic, Fox News states that the CEO of Moderna claims that vaccine effectiveness may likely drop against the omicron variant. US President, Joe Biden, says that this new variant is a 'cause for concern, not a cause for panic'.

Following the deadly US airstrike in Syria that killed dozens of women and children in 2019, The New York Times reports that the Pentagon has announced that it will be launching a new inquiry. A legal officer has flagged the bombing as a potential war crime.

That’s all for today. For the full Ausum experience, make sure to download the Ausum app. Catch us, every weekday, morning and afternoon.

Good Afternoon. It's Monday, November 29th, and you’re listening to Ausum’s Afternoon News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

AP News reports that according to early findings, the global risk from the omicron variety is "extremely high," and the altered coronavirus might lead to surges with "serious effects," according to the WHO. BBC quoted WHO stating that "Omicron has an unprecedented number of spike mutations, some of which are concerning for their potential impact on the trajectory of the pandemic."

Axios adds on by reinforcing the CDC's previous recommendation for booster vaccinations, stating that everyone aged 18 and up "should" get one. The little but substantial shift occurs in the wake of the Omicron coronavirus variant's appearance.

FOX News continues by stating that President Biden said on Monday that the new omicron variety of coronavirus is a "cause for concern, not a cause for fear," and that his administration's approach to tackling COVID-19 this winter will not include "shutdowns or lockdowns," but rather a campaign to increase vaccination coverage. The president emphasized the importance of vaccinations, calling them "the best defense against this new type."

Because of this Reuters adds that more countries are closing their borders, casting a pall over the economy's recovery from the two-year pandemic. Big airlines are acting quickly to protect their hubs by restricting passenger travel from southern Africa, where the new Omicron variant was first discovered, fearing that a spread of the variant would lead to restrictions on destinations outside of the immediate affected regions.

And, for those in New York, New York City officials on Monday issued an advisory recommending all residents wear masks in indoor public settings, citing the emergence of the omicron variant, the Washington Post reported.

Forbes featured the author of "The Changing World Order," Ray Dalio, who claims that the United States is in danger of economic hardship and conflict. The country is in jeopardy due to its debt, income inequality, and diminishing influence. According to Dalio, there is a 30% possibility that

the US will be involved in a major conflict over the next five years.

The Verge reported that Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Twitter, has announced his departure, effective immediately, and CTO Parag Agrawal will succeed him and join the board of directors. Bret Taylor is the new chairman of the board. in the company's official statement, Dorsey says, "I've decided to leave Twitter because I feel the company is ready to move on from its founders. I have a lot of faith in Parag as Twitter's CEO. His work has had a profound impact during the last ten years. I owe him a debt of gratitude for his talent, heart, and soul. It is now his turn to lead."

Business Insider reported that about a quarter of Zillow's workers will be laid off, and employees at Zillow are dealing with uncertainty as a result of the company's decision to stop buying properties. Some are concerned about two upcoming rounds of budget cuts, while others received raises in their pay as a result of their continued employment. However, they are receiving conflicting information regarding the future of their divisions and the corporation.

That’s all for today. Be sure to download the Ausum app to get the full Ausum experience. Catch you next time for the Ausum News Briefing every weekday, morning, and afternoon.

Good Morning, it’s Monday, November 29th. And You’re listening to Ausum’s Morning News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

The Guardian reports that Anthony Fauci, Joe Biden’s chief medical advisor, has said that the United States could face a ‘fifth wave’ of Covid-19 as the Omicron variant comes closer.

As worries about the Omicron variant expand, Reuter, states that Japan has joined Israel in closing its borders. The World Health Organisation claimed that it could take "days to several weeks" to comprehend the new variant's level of severity.

As China is speeding up the nuclear arms race, The New York Times announced that the United States wants to finally talk with the country about American missile defences in the Pacific as well as China’s experiments to blind U.S. satellites in times of conflict.

Business Insider noted that Ghislaine Maxwell is fighting, at her criminal trial, to keep jurors from seeing Jeffrey Epstein's 'little black book'. Her lawyers claim that the book, which links people to Epstein, may have been altered.

In the next five years, Nissan Motor Co. is planning to spend 17.6 Billion on Battery-Powered Vehicles. Wall Street Journal reports that 20 new battery-powered vehicles have been added to its lineup.

That’s all for today. For the full Ausum experience, make sure to download the Ausum app. Catch us, every weekday, morning and afternoon.

Good Morning, it’s Friday, November 26th. And You’re listening to Ausum’s Morning News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

The World Health Organisation is meeting to discuss the new “heavily mutated” coronavirus variant. Fox News reports that the South African minister of health identified the new variant which appears to be highly contagious among young people.

Forbes announced that a fire in a Russian coal mine has left 52 dead and 38 people missing. Six of those dead included rescuers.

In the United States, Axios noted that during the Thanksgiving holiday Southern California is experiencing “critical” wildfire risk.

During Biden’s Thanksgiving message, The Guardian states that the US president paid tribute to the Covid-19 victims and their families.

The Washington Post reported that the former Trump White House advisor, Stephen K. Bannon, has filed an opposition to the U.S. district court’s standard protective order for discovery. This prohibits either side from publically releasing evidence or documents.

That’s all for today. For the full Ausum experience, make sure to download the Ausum app. Catch us, every weekday, morning and afternoon.

Good Morning, it’s Thursday, November 25th. And You’re listening to Ausum’s Morning News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

Three white Georgia men all face life in prison for the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year old black man. The Washington Examiner reports that prosecutors argued that the murder was prompted by Arbery’s race.

At least 27 migrants drowned in the English channel while trying to cross to Britain. The New York Times states that this is one of the worst death tolls for migrants making this dangerous journey.

As soon as next week Biden will reinstate the Trump-era “Remain in Mexico” policy. Axios noted that despite asylum seekers being turned away back to Mexico, they will be given the option to receive the Covid-19 vaccine.

Forbes announced that Pfizer is suing an employee claiming that she stole thousands of the company’s files including some concerning the Covid-19 vaccination. It is claimed that she intended to take a job with one of its competitors.

Within North Korea, a man is being sentenced to the death penalty for smuggling “Squid Game” into the country. Business Insider further reports that a high school student who bought a USB drive with the TV show on has been sentenced to life in jail.

That’s all for today. For the full Ausum experience, make sure to download the Ausum app. Catch us, every weekday, morning and afternoon.

Good Morning, it’s Wednesday, November 24th. And You’re listening to Ausum’s Morning News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

Regarding the Covid-19 pandemic, Forbes reported that 20% of fully vaccinated US adults have received their booster shot.

DART, a NASA spacecraft, has been launched to change the orbit of an asteroid deep in space. Axios noted that this mission was to test if technology could one day be used to deter a dangerous asteroid heading towards earth.

The New York Times announced that a jury has found the main organisers of the deadly far-right rally in Charlottesville in 2017 as liable under state law for the injuries of counter-protesters. This has resulted in over $25 million awarded in damages.

China has accused Joe Biden of making “a mistake”, The Guardian states that this is after the US invited Taiwan to participate in a democracy summit alongside 109 other democratic governments.

The Daily Wire reports that Biden is taking off the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a rebel group from Colombia, from a list of terrorist groups.

That’s all for today. For the full Ausum experience, make sure to download the Ausum app. Catch us, every weekday, morning and afternoon.

Good Afternoon. It's Tuesday, November 23rd, and you’re listening to Ausum’s Afternoon News Briefing, where we round up the top latest articles that everyone is talking about.

Fox News updates us on Petito Case, claiming that Brian Laundrie's parents reported him missing in mid-September after his former fiancée Gabby Petito was strangled. They gave over all of the guns in their home to the FBI – but one was missing, detectives notified the parents on Tuesday afternoon that an autopsy indicated their son died in September of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. It's unclear if the lost pistol is the one Laundrie used to commit suicide. The FBI did not reply quickly to a request for comment on Tuesday.

Reuters reported that According to a court filing, the US government sought a federal appeals court to promptly release a court-ordered stay on a sweeping workplace COVID-19 vaccination mandate to avert "enormous" harm to public health or to enable a masking-and-testing requirement.

AP News reported that President Joe Biden authorized the release of 50 million barrels of oil from America's strategic reserve on Tuesday, in collaboration with other major energy consumers such as India, the United Kingdom, and China.

According to Axios, a federal jury found that Walgreens, CVS, and Walmart irresponsibly supplied pain medicines in two Ohio counties, Lake and Trumbell, contributing to hundreds of overdose deaths. According to the Associated Press, this is the first verdict for drugstore firms in an opioid-related lawsuit. The verdict, which is expected to be heard by a court this spring, could establish a precedent for other local governments seeking to hold pharmacists accountable.

BBC reported that seven survivors of a bus disaster in Bulgaria that killed at least 46 people rushed to safety via a window after the vehicle caught fire. The bus collided with a barrier and caught fire on a highway south of Sofia. Bulgaria and North Macedonia have announced three days of national mourning.

Business Insider reported that celebrities in China may no longer use social media to "show off affluence" or "extravagant pleasure." China's Cyberspace Administration (CAC) announced the move on Tuesday, which comes in the aftermath of the Communist Party's push on China's growing entertainment industry, which officials feel is causing societal unrest. Celebrities are also prohibited from spreading rumors, releasing false or private information, inciting fan groups to "verbally attack each other," and urging followers to engage in "illegal fundraising or irrational investment."

Best Buy's CEO told CNN, organized retail crime is on the rise, and Best Buy's profitability is suffering as a result, which may compromise the company's ability to retain and recruit employees. The retail industry is struggling to deal with theft since it has increased by nearly 60% since 2015 and costs businesses an average of $719,548 every $1 billion in sales.

Forbes updates us that Cargill has reclaimed first place in Forbes' annual ranking of America's largest private firms. Revenues at the Minnesota-based corporation increased 17 percent to $134.4 billion in the fiscal year ending May 2021, thanks to higher agricultural commodity prices.

That’s all for today. Be sure to download the Ausum app to get the full Ausum experience. Catch you next time for the Ausum News Briefing every weekday, morning, and afternoon.