Thursday Scoop: How was the 4th?
Welcome to the Morning Scoop for July 5th, 2018. Today, news on the 4th of July, a landmark for transgender acceptance, and the latest on the Thailand cave drama.
Yesterday, our team of student journalists took a much needed day off, kicked back and listened to some jams. Speaking of jams, should we change our name to College Music Network?
Celebrating 242
Americans threw down a mid-week party yesterday, with traditional fireworks, cookouts and pool parties happening in the midst of a record-breaking (and deadly) heat wave. Here’s what else happened while you were holding that sparkler:
- Joey “Jaws” Chestnut broke his own hot dog eating record, downing 74 dogs and buns in 10 minutes in Nathan’s Famous July Fourth hot dog eating contest. Miki Sudo defended her women’s title for the fifth straight year, gulping down 37 franks.
- Many communities in the western US cancelled fireworks displays over fears of fueling more wildfires. Northern California and Utah are particularly hard hit.
- A woman climbed the base of the Statue of Liberty, causing an evacuation of Liberty Island. She was apprehended and arrested by New York police after the act, which appeared to be part of an immigration protest.
- T.A. Frank wondered if this was America’s last Fourth of July.
- And we made an awesome Americana playlist.
Thai Cave Drama Turns Tense
A soccer coach and 12 of his players trapped in a cave in Thailand have been deemed not healthy enough to be removed, as doctors found them to be suffering from exhaustion from malnutrition.
There is increasing concern that expected rain may cause the cave to flood further in the coming days, putting pressure on rescuers to try to find a way to save the group soon. Authorities have been pumping water from the cave, while pumping oxygen in.
Miss Universe’s First Transgender Contestant
Last week, Angela Ponce was crowned Miss Universe Spain 2018, making her the first transgender woman to win the title. Her win grants her a place in the Miss Universe contest, which will be held in The Philippines in December 2018.
“Bringing the name and colors of Spain before the universe is my great dream,” wrote Ponce in Spanish shortly after her win. “My goal is to be a spokesperson for a message of inclusion, respect and diversity not only for the LGBTQ+ community, but also for the entire world.”
CMN’s Ife Abel has more details in her report.
Today in a Tweet
Chance the Rapper had an extra good 4th of July…
Last But Not Least: Meet the Mentorship Coordinator Matching Kids with College Students
CMN’s spent time with Casey Rogers, site coordinator for Communities in Schools of Richmond, Va. – a subset of a national program that pairs public school students with mentors of college age or older. She works at George Washington Carver Elementary.
At a population of over 500 students, roughly 400 of Carver’s “peanuts” are old enough to be matched with a mentor, usually students from Virginia Commonwealth University, the University of Richmond, J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College or Virginia Union University.
Read more about Rogers’ inspirational work here.
Wednesday’s Morning Scoop was made possible by Nicole Kitchens,
