Happy #NewstodonFriday! Here, we’re sharing stories that are inspiring, infuriating, upsetting and uplifting, all from newsrooms that are active in the fediverse. Please boost, follow, donate, and join in the conversation in the comments.
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#Media #Journalism #News #MastodonMigration #FollowFriday
#MediaIndustry
Tale as old as time: Finance company tells customers with poor credit “we’re here to help,” and then does exactly the opposite. @ProPublica@newsie.social tells the story of Exeter Finance, an auto lender that offers people high-interest loans that leave them in a perilous financial state, and with no car.
https://www.propublica.org/article/exeter-finance-skip-payments-debt
#Finance #Money #Loans #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday
Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei died early this month of injuries sustained when she was set alight by a former boyfriend, who later also died from burns. @thecontinent@mas.to writes about this in the context of the horrifying stats on gender-based violence in Kenya, where Cheptegei lived. “One in three women in Kenya report suffering physical violence or abuse, according to a 2022 official report, and success puts women athletes particularly at risk,” the article says.
https://continent.substack.com/p/man-kills-olympian-again
#Sports #Women #WomensRights #GenderBasedViolence #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday
When González Barrios saw “An Inconvenient Truth” in 2006, he wanted to do his part to help the environment. This set him on the path to establishing Organización Autolibre, a company that teaches people across 14 South American countries how to convert their gas-fueled cars to electric vehicles. @restofworld@restof.social looked into the retrofitting service he offers, and whether concerns about its safety are founded.
https://restofworld.org/2024/electric-vehicle-conversions-uruguay/
#Technology #Tech #ElectricVehicles #Automotive #Cars #Environment #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday
Antibiotic resistance is a growing problem: More than 70 percent of hospital-acquired bacterial infections in the United States are resistant to at least one type of antibiotic. @KnowableMag@mstdn.science reports on new twist on an old technique for addressing this that’s getting a second look: phage steering, where viruses trap bacteria in an evolutionary dilemma. Here’s more.
https://knowablemagazine.org/content/article/health-disease/2024/phage-therapy-helps-to-fight-antibiotic-resistance
#Science #Medicine #Health #AntibioticResistance #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday
Some Brits — particularly the posh ones — are obsessed with red squirrels, which these days are vastly outnumbered by their gregarious (American) gray cousins. Our @CultureDesk shared this story about where this reverence originated, and whether there’s any ecological basis to saving squirrels.
https://www.thedial.world/articles/news/issue-20/england-red-gray-native-squirrels
#Ecology #Animals #Squirrels #UnitedKingdom #KingCharles #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday
“Collaborations are, quite simply, the best way of doing science,” writes Kevin Bender, a professor of neurology, for @thetransmitter@mastodon.social. He gives tips on finding the right people to work with and ensuring those relationships stay healthy. His advice is targeted at fellow neuroscientists, but applies to lots of different professions.
https://www.thetransmitter.org/craft-and-careers/should-i-work-with-these-people-a-guide-to-collaboration/
#Science #Neuroscience #Collaboration #Careers #ProfessionalDevelopment #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday
And finally, to Luling, Texas and its annual Watermelon Thump, which has taken place every June for the past seven decades. Mitchell Pitcher writes for @TexasObserver@texasobserver.social about the fruit-growing competition and auction (one year a single watermelon fetched $35,000), and the contest to become Watermelon Thump Queen. Before the winner is announced, the outgoing queen speaks, recalling her grandfather’s tears when she won in 2023 because when he immigrated to the States, he would never have imagined his granddaughter representing a town.
https://www.texasobserver.org/a-slice-of-life-in-luling/
#Culture #Festivals #Lifestyle #Texas #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday
@Flipboard@flipboard.social @ProPublica@newsie.social What else is new?