ABC News' Jonathan Karl, the president of the White House Correspondents' Association, said Friday that the White House "needlessly put reporters' health at risk" by moving chairs closer together for President Trump's Rose Garden event in violation of the CDC's social-distancing guidelines.
What he's saying: "The health of the press corps should not be put in jeopardy because the White House wants reporters to be a prop for a 'news conference' where the president refused to answer any questions," Karl told CNN's Brian Stelter.
The state of play: Stocks have rallied since the worst of the coronavirus sell-off ended in late March and looked past a spate of ugly economic reports — not to mention civil unrest.
Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, a venture capitalist who has championed civic causes such as stronger parental leave policies, is resigning from the board of the company he helped create, he announced Friday on Twitter.
Why it matters: His resignation comes amid increased scrutiny against Reddit for the way it moderates the content on its platform, including former executives.
A new study from the insurance industry that suggests automated vehicles will stop only about one-third of crashes is a reminder that much of what we hear and read about AVs should be taken with a grain of salt.
The big picture: Human error plays a role in 94% of crashes, according to U.S. government statistics, which is why automation is often held up as a potential life saver.
Last week I drove the 2020 Buick Enclave Avenir, a family-sized crossover that proved an important point: it pays to do your homework.
Quick take: The Enclave is an attractive alternative to a minivan, with plenty of space for people and stuff. It's handsome, quiet and comfortable, and it drives well, too.
The Athletic is laying off nearly 8% of staff, 46 people, according to an internal memo obtained by Axios.
Why it matters: It's the latest media company that's been been forced to take drastic measures to survive the economic fallout from the coronavirus. Like many sports media outlets, The Athletic has been particularly impacted by the loss of live sports.
Venture capital is beginning a belated conversation about its dearth of black investors and support of black founders, but hasn't yet turned its attention to the trivial participation of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) as limited partners in funds.
Why it matters: This increases educational and economic inequality, as the vast majority of VC profits go to limited partners.
A major reason banks were rolling in so much dough last quarter is the explosive growth of the U.S. personal savings rate, which hit the highest mark since the 1980s in March and a historic 33% rate in April.
By the numbers: The rate of savings as a percentage of disposable income was by far the highest since the Bureau of Economic Analysis started tracking it in the 1960s.
The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 13.3% in May, with2.5 million jobs gained, the government said on Friday.
Why it matters: The far better-than-expected numbers show a surprising improvement in the job market, which has been devastated by the coronavirus pandemic.
U.S. banks had a fantastic first quarter in terms of new deposits, with the top 50 banks adding nearly $2 trillion of assets, more than 10 times the average quarterly increase for the entire banking sector.
What happened: The 50 largest U.S. banks added $1.853 trillion in assets during the first quarter, a report from S&P Global Market Intelligence shows.
The shocking May jobs report — with a decline in the unemployment rate to 13.3% and more than 2 million jobs added — destroyed expectations of a much worse economic picture.
Why it matters: Traditional economic reports have failed to keep up with the devastation of the coronavirus pandemic and have made it nearly impossible for researchers to determine the state of the U.S. labor market or the economy.
As cord-cutting becomes increasingly prevalent, live sports — one of the last bastions representing the age of cable TV — represent a major opportunity for streamers and tech giants to set themselves apart from the pack.
Driving the news: Apple has hired Amazon executive Jim DeLorenzo to head up sports for Apple TV, signaling its intent to lean more heavily into sports programming and potentially invest millions in live sports rights.
As controversies around online speech rage against a backdrop of racial tension, presidential provocation and a pandemic, a handful of companies, lawmakers and advocacy groups have continued to promote a backlash against Big Tech.
The big picture: Companies like Facebook and Google got a reputational boost at the start of the coronavirus lockdown, but that respite from criticism proved brief. They're now once again walking a minefield of regulatory investigations, public criticism and legislative threats over antitrust concerns, content moderation and privacy concerns.
After being told for months to stay away from others, the idea of being shoulder to shoulder again in a bus or subway terrifies many people, requiring sweeping changes to public transit systems for the COVID-19 era.
Why it matters: Cities can't come close to resuming normal economic activity until large numbers of people feel comfortable using public transportation.
