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More than 870,000 of them work in public service. If you're one of the lucky ducks who are getting their debt canceled, you will receive an email next week from the Department of Education with next steps.
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Very exciting email to receive one that will actually find you well, I'm sure. Listen, I love that for all of them who will be receiving said email. However, journalists, podcasters, we too are public servants. Okay. It is a fact. And I should qualify
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for this loan forgiveness. Okay. We do it for you, the people.
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Reddit made its debut on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday. The social media platform is known for its community threads like Ask Me Anything or Am I the Asshole? And on Thursday, it went viral when shares shot up 48% on the first day of trading through an IPO or initial public offering. The site hasn't been able to turn an annual profit since its launch in 2005, despite having more than 71 million users. Early Reddit initially turned off advertisers because the site's content can be a little unhinged to say the least. To say the least. Uh huh. Okay. And it's still struggled financially despite trying to install better content moderation. So by going public, Reddit hopes to make money by letting outside investors buy into it. But some Reddit users aren't stoked on the possibility of their favorite platform becoming publicly owned. Many of them, some of them producers on this very podcast you are listening to, prefer Reddit's edgier vibe that's more focused on platforming chaotic discourse rather than making a quick buck.
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Alabama's Republican Governor K.I.V. approved a bill on Wednesday banning public schools and colleges from using state funds on diversity, equity and inclusion or DEI programs. The new law will limit discussions of quote divisive concepts, aka gender, race and sexuality in classrooms. And such restrictions will also apply to state agencies. The law also requires that public colleges make clear that their restrooms are quote for use by individuals based on their biological sex. So I imagine they want a sign that says all of that on the door. Wild Alabama is just the latest GOP led state to take aim at DEI funding Florida, Texas and Tennessee have all adopted similar restrictions over the past several months and they all look like clowns. Hope they know Alabama's law goes into effect on October 1st.
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Two more Mississippi law enforcement officers who tortured two black men were sentenced yesterday. Joshua Hartfield received a 10 year prison sentence and Brett McAlpin, who was the highest ranked officer present at the attack, received 27 years. They're the last of six officers to receive their sentences for their attacks on Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker in 2023. All of the officers were part of the goon squad, a self named group of white deputies. Prosecutors said McAlpin was the one who called the shots that awful night and that he terrorized people in Rankin County, Mississippi for decades. As we mentioned on yesterday's show, an investigation by the New York Times show that the goon squad has a documented history of torture and the use of excessive force on other civilians as well. All
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eyes are on Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Shohei Otani, arguably the greatest baseball player of all time after his interpreter was fired on Wednesday. Otani's legal team accused Epe Mizuhara of stealing millions of dollars from the Japanese baseball star to cover his sports gambling debts. The IRS confirmed to the AP that Mizuhara and the book maker are under criminal investigation and the LA Times cited unnamed sources to say that Mizuhara plays sports bets but no betting on baseball has been alleged. Mizuhara told ESPN that he never bet on baseball as well. It is definitely a weird situation. There was also some back and forth over whether Otani agreed to cover Mizuhara's debts or if Mizuhara took the money without permission. For context, Mizuhara has not only been Otani's interpreter but his best friend. They are very close. Last year, Otani signed with the Dodgers for an insane amount of money, 700 million dollars. And this is a wild story that is transcending the world of baseball and permeating our bubble, which means it's definitely a big deal. I don't know what was going on, Epe, but
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inquire in mind's want to know.
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And those are the headlines.
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One more thing before we go on tomorrow's episode of what a day how we got here, I joined Anne Ryan to discuss the spate of lawsuits against music mogul Didi and whether hip-hop's Me Too moment has finally arrived. Here's a quick teaser from our discussion featuring journalist and author Garrett Kennedy.