Author: Sophie Robinson

Sophie Robinson is a recent graduate from Clemson University and is a Digital Intern at UnmutedCo.

Clothing company Patagonia released a new message about this upcoming election, sewing it into the tag of some of its new shorts. What is the message? “Vote the a–holes out”. What We Know: The outdoor clothing and gear company has a long history of environmental activism, but as we seem to be moving closer and closer to a harmful climate crisis, Patagonia’s founder Yvon Chouinard said he isn’t afraid to get political and call out climate deniers who hold positions of power. In addition to providing election resources and encouraging people to vote for climate leaders, Chouinard is also making Patagonia’s…

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Netflix has announced that it recently wrapped up a deal acquiring the worldwide rights to Sam Levinson’s Malcolm & Marie, a love story starring Zendaya Coleman and John David Washington for a whopping $30 million. What We Know: This deal marks the largest amount of money paid for a film acquisition out of a film festival. Malcolm & Marie premiered at this year’s Toronto Film Festival, which was largely virtual due to the coronavirus pandemic. The film is a romantic drama directed by Levinson, the same director behind Zendaya’s HBO series Euphoria and was the first film shot after the initial coronavirus quarantine…

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The FBI is currently investigating allegations that celebrity cheerleader, Jerry Harris, 21, solicited sexually explicit photos and sex from minors. What We Know: On Monday afternoon, agents searched Harris’ home in Naperville, Illinois, as part of the investigation. “The FBI is conducting court-authorized law enforcement activity in the area,” Siobhan Johnson, FBI special agent and public affairs officer said but declined further comment. Harris, who gained national prominence when he was featured in Netflix’s recent docuseries, Cheer, has not been criminally charged. The criminal investigation is based on allegations from 14-year-old twin brothers. In an interview with USA TODAY, both…

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According to a nurse that works there, immigrants in a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in Georgia are subjected to horrific conditions and treatment, including “jarring medical neglect” and a high rate of hysterectomies among women. What We Know: A whistleblower complaint was filed by several legal advocacy groups on behalf of Nurse Dawn Wooten, when she came forward with information on the center. Wooten has been a practicing nurse for more than 10 years, spending three of those as an employee of Irwin County Detention Center in Georgia, which is run by private corporation LaSalle Corrections.…

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Former New York City mayor and presidential candidate, Michael Bloomberg, announced on Sunday that he plans to spend $100 million in Florida over the next few weeks to support Joe Biden’s presidential candidacy. What We Know: The announcement comes as new polls show a particularly tight race between Biden and President Trump in Florida, a key battleground state in the election due to its 29 electoral votes. The announcement also follows criticism from within the Democratic Party that Bloomberg did not deliver on his promise to put the full weight of his fortune behind the Democratic nominee in the general-election…

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Former NFL quarterback and Lousiana native, Peyton Manning, along with the help of his foundation, has sponsored six endowed scholarships at historically Black colleges and universities. What We Know: Manning’s Peyback Foundation, which was founded in 1999 by Peyton and his wife, Ashley, has endowed six scholarships at four HBCU schools in Manning’s home state of Louisiana and two in Tennessee, where he played college football for the University of Tennessee. The six HBCU’s receiving endowment scholarships are Grambling State University, Southern University, Tennessee State, Fisk University, Xavier University of Louisiana, and Dillard University in New Orleans. The award for…

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On Thursday, a federal court rejected President Trump’s order to exclude undocumented immigrants from the 2020 census. What We Know: The court, a three-judge panel in Federal District Court in Manhattan, voted unanimously that President Trump lacked the authority to remove noncitizens from census counts which will be used next year to reallocate seats in the House of Representatives. They ruled that it was illegal and therefore a lawsuit challenging the order did not need to go to a trial, saying that Trump’s proposal exceeded his authority under federal laws governing the census and reapportionment. They also said it violated the…

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Alicia Keys has joined forces with the National Football League to launch a $1 billion endowment fund focused on supporting Black-owned businesses and communities. What We Know: The announcement coincided with another announcement from Keys and the NFL: Keys would be performing at the NFL’s Kickoff event for the 2020 season prior to Thursday’s game between the Houston Texans and the Kansas City Cheifs. She performed a moving rendition of her 2007 hit, “No One” followed by her new song, “Love Looks Better.” She additionally performed “Lift Every Voice and Sing” with imagery of the protests and graphics supporting the…

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Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that starting on September 30th, New York City restaurants can open for indoor service at 25% capacity. What We Know: On Wednesday, Cuomo announced that the prohibition on indoor dining in New York City would be lifted on Septemeber 30th, ending its status as one of the few places in the nation still facing a ban. The governor’s decision to allow restaurants to have indoor dining at 25% capacity will be a major milestone in the coronavirus crisis in New York City, giving a boost to the city’s recovery from the pandemic and signaling to tourists…

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On Tuesday, pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca announced it was temporarily pausing its global phase three trials of its possible coronavirus vaccine after one participant suffered an unexplained illness. What We Know: The vaccine “candidate” was developed by AstraZeneca, along with Oxford University, and is currently being tested in large-scale human trials in the United Kingdom, the United States, Brazil, and South Africa. All of those trials have currently been put on hold to allow scientists time to scrutinize the data as well as determine if the possible adverse reaction was related to the drug. “As part of the ongoing randomized, controlled…

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