Axios

The owner of Jezebel is shopping the trailblazing website to potential buyers, sources tell Axios.

Why it matters: G/O Media putting the online women's magazine up for sale highlights the struggles of niche, digital media brands that are suffering from a weak ad market and a fragmented landscape.

Selfishness is philanthropic. That's the message being sent by a series of high-profile Silicon Valley leaders, most recently billionaire venture capitalist Marc Andreessen.

Why it matters: Philanthropy has historically been framed as giving back — after making their fortune from and within society, individuals then return the favor.

It's annual general meeting (AGM) season, folks!

Why it matters: As a second year since the venture capital market downturn comes to a close, limited partners are heading into several weeks of annual updates from their portfolio funds. They're hoping to find out what their startup investments are worth and how they'll navigate the next year.

Sophisticated financiers often turn to derivatives when they want to accumulate a large position in a stock without the market getting wind of what they're doing. The Securities and Exchange Commission would love that practice to stop.

Why it matters: Rich investors love being able to operate in stealth mode, and they have a lot of lobbying clout. The final outcome of this fight will reveal a lot about how much power SEC chair Gary Gensler really has.

With rents hovering at historic highs and soaring mortgage rates pushing up the cost of buying a house, making the leap to homeownership has seemingly never been harder.

Why it matters: Owning your own home is a critical step in building wealth in the U.S., but younger Americans increasingly can't swing it, and instead are stuck renting — at steep rates that are eating into their income.

Roughly seven in 10 Gen Xers own their homes, but accessing that equity isn't easy.

Why it matters: Many Gen Xers are house-rich but cash-poor.

For actors on strike, it's a good year to dress up as a ghost over Barbie.

The big picture: SAG-AFTRA, the union representing Hollywood actors who have been on strike since July, advised members not to wear any Halloween costumes that could promote struck employers' content.

The Supreme Court lifted a restriction on Friday that prevented the Biden administration from communicating with social media platforms about the moderation of online misinformation.

Why it matters: The high court has agreed to take up the administration's appeal in what will become a high-stakes case on the future of free speech online and the government's role in it.

General Motors, Ford and Stellantis are offering striking workers record contracts with huge raises and improved benefits, but after a nearly five-week work stoppage, hard-line union leaders are still holding out for more.

• It's a risky strategy that will only succeed if the United Auto Workers follow it up with an equally aggressive effort to unionize other automakers.

For our money, the most interesting segment of Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell's appearance Thursday at the Economic Club of New York was a discussion of just why long-term interest rates have been surging — and bond prices falling — over the last few months.

Why it matters: Powell is an astute bond market observer — besides having hundreds of economists in his employ, he once was the Treasury undersecretary in charge of issuance — whose decisions also shape it.

• By parsing Thursday's answer, you can get hints of how the Fed will and won't react to the rates surge.

UAW president Shawn Fain acknowledged Friday that the Detroit Three automakers have offered "record contracts," but said he wants more before agreeing to deals.

Why it matters: Nearly 34,000 UAW workers are on strike at six plants and 38 distribution parts facilities, marking the first time the union has targeted General Motors, Ford and Stellantis at the same time.

D.C. council members plan to introduce a first-of-its-kind bill that would issue government-funded vouchers to city residents to donate to local journalism outlets of their choice, sources told Axios.

Why it matters: The bill, if passed, would mark the first time a local news voucher program would be implemented by a local government in the U.S.

The prospect of higher for longer rates got a lot more real these last few months — and it'll make it harder for high-debt companies with upcoming maturities to refinance their debt.

The big picture: The lagging impact of the Fed's policy-tightening is on full display in the corporate market, where much of the borrowing is fixed-rate. Nearly everyone took advantage of easy money in 2020-21 to refinance.

Kristin Burkhalter was a Division 1 athlete at Duke University and later helped build one of the most powerful and durable pipelines of high school lacrosse talent in America called "Stars."

• Today, she's an Axios SVP who oversees our events and Smart Brevity Studio — our fastest-growing business in 2023 — as a leader, coach and sometime player, Jim writes.
• Kristin runs events like a stand-alone business inside a larger one, with full autonomy and delegated authority.

The former Florida lawmaker who sponsored the state's controversial "Don't Say Gay" bill was sentenced to four months in federal prison on Thursday.

Driving the news: Former state Rep. Joe Harding (R-Williston) pleaded guilty in March to wire fraud, money laundering and making false statements related to COVID-19 relief funds, according to the Department of Justice.