Farmer subsidies from the Trump administration aimed at mitigating the effects of the U.S.-China trade war have reached $28 billion, about double the amount of money shelled out in the government bailout of Detroit automakers in 2009, Bloomberg reports.
Why it matters: Trump's bailout still doesn't cover all of the farmers' losses. The government has provided $973 million in aid to Iowa farmers during a trade war that is estimated to have cost them $1.7 billion in losses, according to Iowa State University researchers cited by Bloomberg.
Why it matters: The effects of the U.S.-China trade war and record spring rainfalls across the center of the country left many farmers unable to fully plant their crops, requiring them to find new sources of income.
The WeWork soap opera had been scheduled to take a short hiatus, at least until Q3 numbers could be compiled, but then the company surprised everyone with a pop-up episode over the weekend.
What's happening: The WSJ reported yesterday that "a bloc of WeWork directors is planning to push Adam Neumann to step down as chief executive." CNBC added that SoftBank's Masayoshi Son supports the move.
For 25 years Silicon Valley has built successful companies by handing control to inventive and driven but sometimes eccentric or reckless startup founders. From Facebook to Google, these leaders often receive special kinds of voting stock that let them sell shares to the public — and become fabulously wealthy — while retaining power over their firms.
Why it matters: As the latest wave of tech startups lines up for its string of IPOs, the pendulum may be swinging the other way — with investors demanding problematic founders step back or cede control.
HBO managed to thwart competition from big streaming companies again Sunday night, taking home far more Emmy wins than any other network or streaming company.
Yes, but: Other legacy cable and broadcast networks otherwise had a rough night. All other broadcast and cable networks combined nabbed 24 awards — 10 fewer than HBO.
Streaming services are putting up billions of dollars to win the rights to TV classics like "Friends" and "Seinfeld," both of which debuted over 2 decades ago on broadcast.
Why it matters: Many of these classic shows had previously been made available on other streaming services, but they're now being scooped up — and often for a lot more cash — by rivals that think they're necessary to compete for users.
Walmart, which first banned assault weapon sales and now vaping products, is providing a template of how CEOs can move beyond a monomaniacal focus on profits.
Why it matters: It’s one thing to sign an unenforceable pledge to think more about employees and society, like most members of the Business Roundtable did. It’s another to take specific action while politicians dither.
