Apple News Today

Ten people are dead, including a police officer, after a shooting at a supermarket in Boulder, Colorado. CNN reports. The Wall Street Journal looks at legal questions facing workers and managers about requirements to get COVID vaccines. Last night, the city council of Evanston, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, voted to pay reparations to Black residents for historical housing-discrimination. The Washington Post reports on the nation’s first government reparations program for Black people. Doctors are concerned about a spike in cases of alcoholic liver disease among younger women that started before the pandemic and may be intensifying. NPR looks at the research. The two cousins behind the company that provides the bulk of America’s COVID-19 swabs despise each other. Bloomberg Businessweek has the story of how family drama got tied up with the national effort to boost testing.

The Department of Justice may seek sedition charges against some of those who stormed the U.S. Capitol on January 6. Evidence points to a carefully planned plot, executed with military training. The insurrection has revealed a number of law-enforcement officers and former members of the military who take part in extremist behavior: According to an analysis from USA Today, 43 of the 324 people who’ve been arrested so far are military veterans, current or former police officers, or public-safety workers. Spring breakers continue to wreak havoc in Miami. The Miami Herald writes that crowds have been so “violently rowdy” that restaurants have had to close down. And CNN reports that police have made more than 1,000 arrests since February 3. The pandemic has led to a housing boom for white-collar Americans, with prices reaching peaks not seen since 2006. The Wall Street Journal explains why it’s getting easier for wealthy people to buy second homes. Oral Roberts University made history on Sunday, becoming only the second 15th-seeded team to advance to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. CBS Sports has the story. It was part of a weekend of upsets that ruined fan predictions: Marketwatch says no perfect brackets remained out of the 20 million filled out online. And Yahoo Sports reports that COVID-19 forced Virginia Commonwealth University to exit the tournament before playing its first game.

Many people want the murders in Georgia — where six of the victims were women of Asian descent — to be called a hate crime. But the decision to do so comes down to a strict legal definition that isn't employed very often by law enforcement. Time breaks it down. The filibuster is back in the news this week after President Biden signaled that he’s open to changing Senate rules. Historians explain in the Washington Post how the filibuster has been used over the decades to deny fundamental rights to Black people. A political war over meat is playing out in two states. Politico looks at the conservative backlash the Democratic governor of Colorado has faced after encouraging people to avoid eating meat on March 20, or “MeatOut Day.” And the Guardian highlights the governor of Nebraska’s response: to declare the same date “Meat on the Menu Day.” March Madness is officially underway. And ESPN says Jalen Suggs and Paige Bueckers are two players you should watch during the men’s and women’s tournaments, not just because of their skills, but because of their close, lifelong friendship.

Asian-American communities are calling for more action after the killings in Georgia, in which most of the victims were women of Asian descent. The shootings have intensified fears about increased anti-Asian violence during the pandemic. The Washington Post and CNBC have more. Ohio’s attorney general is suing the Biden administration over the COVID-relief bill and rules about whether states can use federal money to offset tax cuts. Bloomberg News explains the debate, and the Washington Post reports on how other Republican attorneys general are challenging the provision. The pandemic could permanently change the college-admissions process. The Wall Street Journal looks at the widespread impact of a move by many schools to allow applications without standardized test scores. The apes at your local zoo might be in line for a vaccination. NPR highlights research into ways to protect animals from COVID-19, including an experimental vaccine the San Diego Zoo is giving to its gorillas, bonobos, and orangutans.

Children are now taking part in trials of COVID-19 vaccines. National Geographic and the Wall Street Journal explain how the testing works for kids. The Washington Post reports on the deadly shootings at Atlanta-area massage parlors. Is America’s tax code racist? Bloomberg Businessweek profiles a woman who spent decades answering that question. A chunk of dirt from a long-forgotten Cold War mission is revealing surprising new information about our planet. The Washington Post has the story.

The $1.9 trillion coronavirus-relief bill is just one of many big plans the Biden administration is hoping to push through. Bloomberg News reports that, in order to help fund the president’s agenda, his administration is planning the first major federal tax increase since 1993. And the Washington Post breaks down how corporate taxes might change. New York magazine takes a deeply reported look into the behavior of New York governor Andrew Cuomo. The Biden administration is planning a new advertising blitz to encourage Americans to get vaccinated. Stat reports on the $1.5 billion campaign. And the Washington Post sat in on a focus group of vaccine-hesitant Trump voters to understand what could convince them to get a COVID-19 shot. Spring break is here, which means Florida is filling up with college students, despite warnings to stay away due to the coronavirus. CBS News looks at how one community is trying to shut down the party.

Millions of Americans are starting to receive money from the COVID-relief bill. NPR and New York Magazine’s the Cut spoke with people about how they are spending the money. The Biden administration has ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help with the growing number of unaccompanied children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border. CBS News looks at what’s happening and the Washington Post explains who the minors are. As March Madness returns following its cancellation last year, CBS Sports breaks down the technology the NCAA is using to track basketball players and control the spread of the coronavirus. There are new developments in the long-running debate over daylight saving time. CNET reports on a bipartisan group of U.S. senators who want an end to the biannual clock change. An op-ed in the Chicago Tribune argues for keeping the custom, while an L.A. Times editorial says, “Dump the clock-changing foolishness.”

Apple News Today talks to Alexis Madrigal, co-founder of the COVID Tracking Project at the Atlantic. Madrigal explains how data failures deeply hindered the U.S. government’s pandemic response. Plus, when we can expect life to return to normal.

The World Health Organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic one year ago. But Stat reporter Helen Branswell saw the global health crisis coming months in advance. Branswell sits down with Duarte Geraldino to discuss the early signs of the pandemic and why world leaders didn’t take action sooner.

Since the start of the pandemic, more than 2.3 million women have left the workforce. In January, women’s participation in the labor force hit its lowest level since 1988. In the latest episode of a special series, Shumita Basu talks with Jen Gann, features editor at New York Magazine’s the Cut, about the toll the pandemic has taken on women.