Squiz Today / 29 March 2018
Squiz Today – Thursday, 29 March
SQUIZ SAYINGS
“Who bit Beyonce?”
That’s the question sweeping Western civilisation after comedian Tiffany Haddish said she saw an actress bite Beyonce on the face at a party last December. Haddish won’t disclose who it was which has set in motion a different kind of Easter hunt.
FACEBOOK TO FACE CONGRESS
THE SQUIZ
Mark Zuckerberg, the 33yo Facebook founder and CEO, will front a US Congressional hearing to give evidence about its involvement in the Cambridge Analytica scandal. The date is yet to be confirmed, but it’s likely to be in the coming fortnight. After refusing to appear before UK legislators, Zuckerberg is said to have accepted the pressure is too great not to appear before the US inquiry. His decision comes as the company’s market value has dropped by almost $80 billion in almost two weeks.
ARE WE STILL TALKING ABOUT THIS?
Oh yes, we most certainly are. Last week was just round one with the news that Cambridge Analytica used personal data from about 50 million Facebook users to come up with political campaigns to target US voters in the presidential election. Yesterday, former Cambridge Analytica staffer-turned-whistleblower Christopher Wylie told the UK inquiry that the data also likely helped Brexit campaigners win the referendum on the UK leaving the European Union.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
The US share market is certainly nervous and is punishing tech stocks beyond Facebook. One analyst said he thought the Cambridge Analytica thing would blow over but another scandal “might break the tech sector's back." Some think Zuckerberg’s evidence at the Congressional hearing could become the stage for a bigger tech-lash showdown. Which explains why lots of people have lots of advice on how Zuckerberg should handle it. For its part, Facebook is trying to show users it’s changing, and last night's release of new tools making it easier to manage your privacy settings is an example of that.
SUPPORTING INNOVATIVE EDUCATORS
PRESENTED BY COMMONWEALTH BANK
For a student and their family, a great teacher can change everything. Twelve amazing teachers and principals were recently acknowledged at the Commonwealth Bank Teaching Awards, Australia’s most prestigious award for teaching and education.
Each of the Commonwealth Bank Teaching Fellows receive $45,000 to go towards introducing new education programs into their schools.
One winner was Yasodai Selvakumaran - a country kid who now teaches at Sydney's Rooty Hill High School. She's done brilliant work tapping into her memories of moving from rural Australia to the big smoke in order to better connect with her students, who are from a variety of geographic and cultural backgrounds.
SQUIZ THE REST
CRICKET UPDATE
The latest is:
• Captain Steve Smith and deputy David Warner have been suspended from playing international and domestic representative cricket for 12 months.
• Ball tamperer Cameron Bancroft has been suspended for nine months.
• Smith and Bancroft can be considered for leadership positions after their suspensions, while Warner cannot.
• All three have been encouraged to play club cricket during that time and must complete 100 hours of voluntary cricket community service.
• Bancroft used sandpaper to damage the ball last weekend, not yellow tape. On that score, Smith and Bancroft made misleading statements to the media on Saturday.
Long story short – Warner has been collared as the one who told Bancroft to mess with the ball. Smith directed Bancroft to hide the evidence when he was sprung. And coach Darren Lehmann reiterated that he knew nothing. Smith is expected to face the media when he arrives in Sydney today.
KIM SAYS THE RIGHT THING, BUT QUESTIONS REMAIN
China and North Korea have confirmed that their leaders met this week. Kim Jong Un took his first-known foreign trip across the border for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Chinese media reported Kim committed to giving up his nuclear weapons if there is the removal of a US nuclear guarantee for South Korea. Which is fine, except the New York Times reports North Korea is currently firing up a new nuclear reactor. Kim will have plenty to talk about in May when he meets with US President Donald Trump.
GOVT’S COMPANY TAX DREAM MORE ELUSIVE THAN FIRST THOUGHT
Two-week-old senator Tim Storer has thrown cold water on the Turnbull Government’s dreams of getting corporate tax cuts through parliament anytime soon. Storer is a former Labor Party member who ran for the Nick Xenophon Team at the last election. He’s now an independent but replaced NXT senator Skye Kakoschke-Moore after she became a dual citizenship casualty. Finance Minister Mathias Cormann says they’ll keep working on Storer, adding if they can’t get the two votes needed to get the legislation through, they’ll take it to the election. Labor is salivating in anticipation…
RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR TAKES THE STAGE
Australia’s relations with Russia took a turn towards vaudeville yesterday with Russian Ambassador Grigory Logvinov fronting the media for an hour-long press conference that one reporter said “veered from euphemism to blatant denial and surreal obfuscation.” Just as unusual was the media’s invitation to capture Foreign Minister Julie Bishop’s ‘calling in’ of Ambassador Logvinov to explain Russia’s role in a Skripal nerve gas attack in the UK earlier this month. Weirder and weirder.
GREAT NAILS, BUT AT WHAT COST?
Are you addicted to one of those long-lasting gel nail polishes that require a UV lamp to set? A medical study says you need to apply sunscreen or wear fingerless gloves to avoid skin cancer concerns. While no formal guidance has been issued, dermatologists said the advice was sound.
THURSDAY LITES – THREE THINGS WE LIKED THIS WEEK
Have you wondered how Margot Robbie performed Tonya Harding’s ice skating routines in I, Tonya? The choreographer breaks it down here. And it’s pretty cool.
What is it in our nature that makes even the nicest of people enjoy a scathing review? Who cares, this one's a cracker. Actor Sean Penn has written a novel, and holy moly does this critic tear it apart…
We didn’t grow up in a church-going family, but fish for dinner on Good Friday was nevertheless adhered to. This fish curry has been a go-to recipe for the last couple of years. It’s quick and delish.
SQUIZ THE DAY
Thursday
ABS Data Release - Job Vacancies, February
Friday
Good Friday
Passover – begins at sunset on 30 March and ends at sunset on 7 April
7pm (AEDT) - Cricket - Start of the fourth test match between Australia and South Africa - Johannesburg
Sunday
Easter Sunday
2.00am - Daylight savings ends in NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Tassie. Put your clocks back an hour
Monday
Easter Monday
International Children's Book Day
As you can tell, we're taking Easter off. If you're travelling, be safe. See you next Tuesday.
The Squiz Archive
Want to check out Squiz Today from the archive?
Get the Squiz Today newsletter
It's a quick read and doesn't take itself too seriously. Get on it.