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Steve Bannon indicted on contempt of Congress
Steve Bannon, a senior aide to former President Donald Trump, was indicted by a federal grand jury on Friday. He was leveled with two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to provide information to the House committee’s inquiry into the Capitol riots of Jan. 6.
LA judge ends Britney Spears’s conservation
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge ended Britney Spears’s conservatorship on Friday, effectively terminating the 14-year-old rule that had controlled her finances and business decisions. Spear’s conservatorship was so controversial it sparked a global #FreeBritney movement because fans were concerned about the popstar’s mental health and safety.
Biden-Xi to hold virtual summit
President Biden and China’s Xi Jinping will hold a much-awaited virtual summit on Monday evening to smooth over U.S.-China relations after a rocky start between the two earlier in 2021 when Biden took office.
Astroworld death toll rises to 10
Nine-year-old Ezra Blount became the tenth and the youngest person to die from injuries sustained at the Nov. 5 Astroworld concert. The Houston outdoor performance was headlined by rapper Travis Scott, and packed 50,000 attendees causing fatal overcrowding. Blount’s death was announced by Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner on Sunday night.
Europe now the epicenter of the pandemic
In a startling mirroring of early 2020, Europe returned to being the epicenter of COVID-19. On Friday, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that Europe reported 2 million COVID-19 cases the previous week.
Kaiser-Alliance Health Care partnership staves off strike
An alliance of unions representing 50,000 Kaiser Permanente workers called off a strike set for Monday because the health care network announced a partnership with the Alliance of Health Care Unions that’s meant to protect and improve employee conditions.
Sesame Street adds Korean-American character for Thanksgiving special
Sesame Street added a Korean American resident to its ever-expanding roster. Ji-Young, a seven-year-old Korean American character will be a part of Sesame Street’s Thanksgiving special, airing on Nov. 25. The episode will feature several celebrity voiceovers from Padma Lakshmi and Simu Liu among others. Producers said they are hoping to address anti-Asian racism through Ji-Young.
