Anderson W. White, Author at IIB Network

A Looming Question for Paramount’s Board: How to Navigate Shari Redstone

04

Apr

Investments and Business

A Looming Question for Paramount’s Board: How to Navigate Shari Redstone

Shari Redstone won control over her media empire in 2018 after a hard-fought struggle with CBS. In the years since, she held off on selling the family business, merging Viacom and CBS to put iconic franchises like “60 Minutes” and “Top Gun” under one roof.Now, Ms. Redstone has decided to sell her controlling stake in Paramount, a decision that could put her in conflict with some of the company’s shareholders.The question that Paramount’s board has to answer — and may eventually have to defend in a courtroom: Is the deal under consideration good for all shareholders, or just Ms. Redstone?“Are…

Israel-Hamas War in Gaza and Middle East News: Live Updates

04

Apr

By Anderson W. White

Economy

Israel-Hamas War in Gaza and Middle East News: Live Updates

President Biden threatened on Thursday to condition future support for Israel on how it addresses his concerns about civilian casualties and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, trying for the first time to leverage American aid to influence the conduct of the war against Hamas.During an evidently tense 30-minute call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, Mr. Biden went further than ever in pressing for change in the military operation that has inflamed many Americans and others around the world. But the White House stopped short of directly saying the president would halt arms supplies or impose limits on their…

Judge Orders Timely Housing for Migrant Children Waiting at Border

04

Apr

By Anderson W. White

Economy

Judge Orders Timely Housing for Migrant Children Waiting at Border

The federal government is required to “expeditiously” house migrant children who cross into the United States unlawfully, rather than allow them to remain in unsafe open-air sites along the border, a Federal District Court judge ruled Wednesday night.The decision, handed down by Judge Dolly M. Gee of the United States District Court of Central California, sided mostly with the lawyers representing the children in a class-action lawsuit. It established that minors at the sites were in legal custody of the Department of Homeland Security and thus were entitled to certain rights and protections, such as a safe and sanitary environment,…

NFL executives unfiltered on 2024 free agency: The best and worst from all 32 teams

04

Apr

By Anderson W. White

Economy

NFL executives unfiltered on 2024 free agency: The best and worst from all 32 teams

NFL free agency continues, but with the major signings and trades complete, it’s time to check in with executives around the league for thoughts on all 32 teams’ moves to this point.There is so much to discuss, from Kirk Cousins’ Minnesota exit to the New York Jets’ desperation, the Green Bay Packers’ big additions and even what’s next for the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys as potentially tricky contract situations percolate.For each team, I’ve noted the average per-year salary (APY) of players who were added from other teams and players who left to sign with other teams, along with…

George Carlin’s Estate Reaches Settlement After A.I. Podcast

03

Apr

By Anderson W. White

Science and Technology

George Carlin’s Estate Reaches Settlement After A.I. Podcast

The estate of the comedian George Carlin reached a settlement on Monday with the makers of a podcast who had said they had used artificial intelligence to impersonate Mr. Carlin for a comedy special.As part of the agreement, the two podcast creators, Will Sasso and Chad Kultgen, agreed to permanently remove the comedy special and to never repost it on any platform, according to Josh Schiller, a lawyer for Mr. Carlin’s estate. They also agreed not to use Mr. Carlin’s image, voice or likeness on any platform without approval from the estate, according to court records.Mr. Schiller declined to elaborate…

Poor Nations Are Writing a New Handbook for Getting Rich

03

Apr

By Anderson W. White

Investments and Business

Poor Nations Are Writing a New Handbook for Getting Rich

For more than half a century, the handbook for how developing countries can grow rich hasn’t changed much: Move subsistence farmers into manufacturing jobs, and then sell what they produce to the rest of the world.The recipe — customized in varying ways by Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and China — has produced the most potent engine the world has ever known for generating economic growth. It has helped lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, create jobs and raise standards of living.The Asian Tigers and China succeeded by combining vast pools of cheap labor with access…

Canadian Lawmaker Says China Had Chinese Students Vote for Him

03

Apr

By Anderson W. White

Economy

Canadian Lawmaker Says China Had Chinese Students Vote for Him

A member of Canada’s Parliament testified on Tuesday that high school students from China were transported by bus to vote for him in a party election that is at the center of a federal inquiry into interference in Canadian elections by China and other foreign countries.Testifying during a public hearing in Ottawa, the Parliament member, Han Dong, a Chinese-Canadian politician formerly from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party, said that he had met and sought the support of the students from a private high school in 2019, but that he did not know who had chartered or paid for the…

How 2 Families Faced a Catastrophic Birth Defect

03

Apr

By Anderson W. White

Economy

How 2 Families Faced a Catastrophic Birth Defect

Ashlee Wiseman, a waitress at a Sizzler in Idaho Falls, Idaho, was 10 weeks pregnant when a nurse phoned with crushing news: a test of fetal DNA in her blood had found that her baby girl had trisomy 18, a catastrophic genetic abnormality, and was unlikely to survive.Devastated, she called her partner, Clint Risenmay, who was at work. He broke down in tears.Ashlee’s response was different.“A still small voice took over me,” she said. “I’m like, ‘I’m not going to listen to them. There has to be something that can help her. And there has to be someone who can…

Inside the ‘very predatory’ world of illegal betting that lured Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter

03

Apr

By Anderson W. White

Economy

Inside the ‘very predatory’ world of illegal betting that lured Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter

In the story Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter Ippei Mizuhara initially told to ESPN, the two men logged into Ohtani’s bank account together on eight or nine occasions in 2023 and wired increments of $500,000 to Mathew Bowyer, an alleged illegal bookmaker under federal investigation. In the story Ohtani told the public days after Mizuhara recanted his initial claims and was fired by the Dodgers, the interpreter stole the money to pay off his gambling debts.Both versions of the story generated a question that stumped the general public: Why would a bookie extend a line of credit of at least $4.5 million to…

How One Tech Skeptic Decided AI Might Benefit the Middle Class

01

Apr

By Anderson W. White

Science and Technology

How One Tech Skeptic Decided AI Might Benefit the Middle Class

David Autor seems an unlikely A.I. optimist. The labor economist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is best known for his in-depth studies showing how much technology and trade have eroded the incomes of millions of American workers over the years.But Mr. Autor is now making the case that the new wave of technology — generative artificial intelligence, which can produce hyper-realistic images and video and convincingly imitate humans’ voices and writing — could reverse that trend.“A.I., if used well, can assist with restoring the middle-skill, middle-class heart of the U.S. labor market that has been hollowed out by automation…