Shares of telecom company Avaya began trading yesterday on the New York Stock Exchange, more than a decade after an $8.2 billion private equity takeover whose debt-load helped drive the company into bankruptcy early last year.
Jim Chirico, who took over as CEO last October after previously serving as chief operating officer, still has some hard feelings over the balance sheet imbalance:
It was like driving a car with the parking brake on.
HuffPost, the left-leaning website that skyrocketed to success as "The Huffington Post" under the George W. Bush administration, announced Thursday that it's shutting down its popular 2005 Opinion Bloggers program that featured over 100,000 contributors.
Why it matters: The original opinion-blogging program was an instrumental part of HuffPost's growth, but is now outdated in the age of social media. In a blog post announcing the change, Editor in Chief Lydia Polgreen noted that too many open platforms can lead to more noise and false information.
A new Pew survey on global attitudes toward the news media finds strikingly divergent attitudes among developed countries.
78% of Canadians and 82% of Dutch people believe their country’s media does at least “somewhat well” at reporting the news accurately, for example.
Just 22% in Greece and 36% in South Korea do.
Why it matters: This question — essentially, do you trust what you see, hear and read about your government and the world around you — is of enormous significance. In the U.S. and much of the world, the answer for millions of people is “no.” In many countries, though, faith in the press remains high.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above 26,000 for the first time today. It rose from 25,000 to 26,000 in just seven trading days.
Data: Money.net; Chart: Andrew Witherspoon / Axios
Behind the rally: The Wall Street Journal said stocks are being driven higher by some money managers who had been wary of the bull market but now have "fear of missing out" as stocks keep rising and have started to buy.
After 11 years in prison, Lamont Carey was determined to use the education he had earned behind bars to build a life for himself. He filled out job applications and landed phone interviews, only to be told again and again that hiring him violated company policy. "It felt like they were just calling me back to see why I went to prison," he tells Axios.
Quick take: Carey, imprisoned for armed robbery, attempted murder and selling heroin, has gone on to become a success. But even in a vibrant economy that appears now to be starting to absorb even convicts, his story still seems to be rare.
Two years ago, B8TA launched as a physical outlet for tech gadgets otherwise sold only online, but it's now being embraced by traditional chains. Its secret sauce: introducing consumers to new product concepts, and not necessarily selling them anything.
Quick take: CEO Vibhu Norby's approach makes B8TA look as much a media company as a retailer, something he sees as a long-term trend.
Bitcoin fell below half its peak price on Tuesday, extending a losing streak that has led business leaders to increasingly doubt its viability as a currency.
Why it matters: If business does not see bitcoin as a reliable means of exchange, there's no reason to believe it will end up in wide circulation.
20 years ago today, back in 1998, Matt Drudge posted his most famous siren banner: "NEWSWEEK KILLS STORY ON WHITE HOUSE INTERN." Drudge's own anniversary posting includes the 1998 headline: "Arrival of the digital age."
Simpler times: A week later, the BBC reported: "[I]t was in the wilds of cyberspace — not the morning newspaper — that the story of Bill Clinton's alleged affair with a young White House intern, Monica Lewinsky, first unfolded...In the future, academics, politicians and journalists aren't likely to dismiss the Internet so quickly."
Manufacturing has now rebounded sharply from the Great Recession. The sector turned around last year after losing jobs in 2016, and economists say the trend seems to be continuing into 2018.
Why it matters: No one knows precisely why it's happening.
Walmart last week became the GOP's poster child for how tax reform helps workers when it raised its minimum wage to $11 an hour — until, just a few hours later, it said it will also close 63 Sam's Club stores and cut 10,000 employees. And then Tuesday, the WSJ reported that the retailer is cutting another 1,000 jobs — this time at the corporate level.
Why it matters: These moves capture the new tax law's schizophrenia. While delivering bonuses and raises for workers, it hasn't mastered the rapidly changing economy.
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) urged his colleagues Wednesday to speak out against President Trump's attacks on the free press, driving home how damaging the relationship between Trump and the truth is to American democracy:
"No politician will ever get to tell us what the truth is and is not ... When a figure in power reflexively calls any figure that doesn't suit him 'fake news,' it is that person who should be the figure of suspicion, not the press."
Flashback: Flake's plea is reminiscent of his emotional Senate retirement speech in October, where he condemned the "flagrant disregard of truth and decency" in politics today.
Nestle is selling its U.S. candy business to Italy's Ferrero for $2.8 billion, the company said Tuesday. The move follows a push from the Swiss giant's CEO Mark Schneider to keep up with the increasing U.S. demand for healthy snacks.
Why it matters: Nestle said its candy business made up just 3% of its U.S. sales, lagging behind Mars, Hershey and Lindt, reports Reuters, and a sale would help it focus on its many other sectors from around the world. Meanwhile for Ferrero, which will become the U.S.'s third biggest confectionery maker, the deal creates an opportunity for the company to build greater scale in the U.S. market.
