Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has put his support behind a proposed bill that would require social media platforms to offer transparency about who pays for political ads on their sites, similar to existing legislation for radio and broadcast television. "We are open to working with lawmakers and reviewing any reasonable legislative proposals," a Facebook spokesperson said.
The annual Forbes 400 list of the richest people in the US has been released, and a record 169 people with a net worth more than $1 billion were not included. President Donald Trump ranks 248th with an estimated worth of $3.1 billion.
Senior students from various high schools recently collaborated with fifth-graders to design interactive "music walls" in the younger students' elementary school. The older students, who are studying Computer Aided Design engineering technology in the Excel TECC program, began working with their younger peers in February to create the walls for use with problem-solving.
If Congress does not enact tax cuts this year, stock market investors could see recent gains disappear, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said. Stocks are hitting record highs partly because tax cuts and regulatory relief are "priced in," he said.
Stop & Shop, Food Lion and Hannaford parent Ahold Delhaize will team with IRI to collect point-of-sale, supply chain and frequent shopper program data through IRI's Liquid Data platform. Through the deal, Ahold Delhaize will enhance its consumer insights and improve marketing and shopper targeting efforts.
The Personal Data Notification and Protection Act, a bill that calls for a national standard for data-breach notification, was reintroduced last month by Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I. The bill, previously introduced in 2015 amid opposition from the National Association of Attorneys General, calls for companies to notify affected individuals within 30 days with assistance from the Federal Trade Commission and from local media outlets, should the breach affect 5,000 or more people within a state.
Pinterest's Ads Manager now includes search ads, which give advertisers the opportunity to target users browsing for specific items via keywords and product categories. Advertisers can also use the platform's Taste Graph to auto-target search ads based on over 5,000 consumer interests.
High-end fashion company Gucci aims to make "sustainability an intrinsic part of our business" and will discontinue using fur by the launch of its 2018 spring-summer line, CEO Marco Bizzarri said. Gucci will auction any leftover fur items and donate proceeds to the Humane Society and Italian animal rights charity LAV.
⋅ ZDNet
Google has rolled out new features designed to enhance security. Chrome's predictive phishing protection offers warnings about phishing sites in real time, while Gmail's Advanced Protection Program offers an additional layer of email protection for select high-risk users.
Yescarta, or axicabtagene ciloleucel, the second drug in a new class of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy products developed to treat cancer, was approved by the FDA for patients with diffuse large B cell lymphoma. The treatment, originally developed by Kite Pharma, was acquired by Gilead Sciences in August, and a single dose is expected to cost $373,000.
⋅ The New York Times (free-article access for SmartBrief readers)⋅The Wall Street Journal (tiered subscription model)
Nielsen has announced a syndicated service that will allow studios and networks to compare their ratings to content on Netflix, including the streaming service's own original programming. Metrics similar to those used for traditional TV will be made available to subscribers, and the company plans to launch similar offerings for Hulu and Amazon Prime's over-the-top service next year.
⋅ CNN
About 35% of Puerto Rico households don't have access to safe drinking water one month after Hurricane Maria, and 80% still have no power. Although nonprofits and US government agencies are providing aid, a public health crisis is emerging.
⋅ Reuters
Fiji intends to issue a $50 million green bond to raise funds to combat the effects of climate change on its 300 islands. The World Bank says this is the first bond with this intended goal.
Body scanners are now in use at Lewiston-Nez Perce Regional County Airport in Lewiston, Idaho. The Transportation Security Administration has installed the scanners at multiple US airports over the past nine months.
Amadeus believes blockchain technology has the potential to become a huge game-changer for travel. Blockchain could enhance baggage tracking, make loyalty points more accessible and simplify the passenger identification process, as well as streamline payments between airlines and travel agencies.