Embattled Harvard President Forced Out

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In Today’s Brief

• Rochester: No sign fiery crash was terrorism

• Gaza War: Top Hamas leader killed in Beirut

• Trump: Maine ballot ban ruling appealed

• Apple: Stock down 4% after downgrade

• Taylor Swift: More music charts history

... and more

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Top Tips

1) Harvard’s president steps down

Claudine Gay resigned as Harvard University's president following a wave of plagiarism accusations and backlash following her controversial Congressional testimony on antisemitism.

• Historic exit: Gay, Harvard's first Black president, will finish with the shortest tenure in the school's history. She said yesterday, "it has become clear that it is in the best interests of Harvard for me to resign." Gay will remain a member of the school's faculty.

• The firestorm: Gay first faced calls for her firing or resignation last month; she refused to say calls for Jewish genocide violated Harvard's code of conduct during a House hearing on campus antisemitism. Gay later clarified her comments but then faced numerous plagiarism allegations related to her academic work. She updated her doctoral dissertation after a review found attribution errors but said she did not commit research misconduct.

• Money talks: The governing Harvard Corporation said it accepted Gay's resignation with sorrow and condemned personal attacks levied against her. But the school has also faced a donor revolt since Gay became embattled with billions in gifts at stake. Gay is the second university president to resign after the controversial hearing. Penn's Elizabeth Magill resigned last month amid an outcry about her comments.

2) Japan rocked by fiery plane collision

A Japan Airlines flight burst into flames yesterday after a crash with a military plane on a runway in Tokyo.

• What happened: An Airbus A350 collided with a Japanese Coast Guard flight at Haneda Airport while landing. All 379 passengers and crew on the commercial flight were evacuated with a handful of minor injuries in a process experts said was somewhat miraculous. Five crewmembers on the military flight died while the plane's captain suffered significant injuries.

• Cause unknown: A government official said the commercial flight had no known problems before attempting to land. An airline official said they believed the flight had received permission to land, although flight control exchanges were still under review. Japanese air traffic control has faced past warnings about safety and staffing issues. Officials said investigations were underway.

• Dark start to 2024: The military flight was preparing to take off to provide aid relief after Japan was hit by a 7.6 magnitude earthquake on New Year's Day. Almost 60 people have been confirmed dead so far after the earthquake destroyed buildings in central Japan. Rescue crews are racing to find survivors amid damaged roads and aftershocks.

3) Mickey Mouse, horror movie villain

Walt Disney’s most-beloved creation will be murdering people on the big screen very soon. No, really.

• Public domain: The earliest versions of Mickey (and Minnie) Mouse saw their U.S. copyright protection expire on New Year’s Day. Disney will have full control over the more modern versions of the character for many years. But the 1928 Steamboat Willie itineration is now fair game.

• Questionable taste: A trailer for Mickey's Mouse Trap, featuring a masked killer stalking teenagers in a Mickey Mouse mask, has already dropped. And an untitled horror comedy where the character himself terrorizes people has also been announced, as has a horror genre video game. A horror film take on Winnie the Pooh was previously released when that character hit the public domain.

• Some limits: The public domain only covers the earliest Mickey Mouse films. Disney will still have potential legal recourse on projects utilizing the character. The entertainment giant has said it will be vigilant in suing whenever it feels consumers are being confused about whether it endorsed the use of the character.

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Quick Tips

U.S. News

• Police said they have no indication a fiery car crash in Rochester, New York, was terrorism. Michael Avery crashed an SUV containing gas canisters into another car on New Year’s Day, killing himself and two others while wounding several others; cops said his motive is unclear (More)

• Ohio Rep. Bill Johnson, a Republican, will resign later this month to become president of Youngstown State University. His departure will narrow the GOP’s House majority to two votes (More)

• New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez faces a new federal bribery charge. Prosecutors now allege Menendez took bribes to assist Qatar in addition to previous indictments related to Egypt (More)

World News

• An Israeli drone strike killed a top Hamas leader in Beirut. Saleh al-Arouri was a key cog in the militant group's military wing and had ties to Iran and Hezbollah, a Lebanese militia group (More)

• Shipping giant Maersk reversed course and will continue its pause on operations in the Red Sea indefinitely. The Danish company had planned to resume journeys before another round of Houthi rebel attacks in the region last weekend (More)

• South Korean opposition leader Lee Jae-myung was conscious in intensive care after being attacked at an event in Busan. An autograph seeker stabbed him in the neck, damaging a major artery that required surgery (More)

Campaign News

• Former President Donald Trump has appealed his disqualification from Maine’s presidential ballot on 14th Amendment grounds. Trump is petitioning the state’s Superior Court after Maine’s secretary of state removed him; he has yet to appeal his Colorado ban to the U.S. Supreme Court (More)

• Trump will continue his boycott of GOP debates and participate in a FOX town hall in Des Moines, Iowa, on Jan. 10. CNN is scheduled to hold one that night; only Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley are expected to qualify (More)

• President Joe Biden will be the only Democratic candidate on North Carolina’s primary ballot. The state’s election board said the party had the right to keep Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips and others off a primary ballot (More)

Business & Markets

• Major indexes closed mixed yesterday, the first day of trading in 2024. The Dow Jones was up while the Nasdaq had its worst day since October; the S&P 500 also stumbled (Dow +0.07%, Nasdaq -1.63%, S&P 500 -0.57%).

• Apple's share price dropped almost 4% after the tech giant's stock was downgraded by Barclays. A firm analyst pointed to weak iPhone 15 sales, especially in China, ahead of the iPhone 16 release (More)

• The value of X, formerly known as Twitter, has dropped 71% since Elon Musk bought the company, according to Fidelity. Musk has weathered myriad controversies as owner (More)

Entertainment & Sports

• Taylor Swift now has more weeks atop the Billboard charts than any solo artist ever, with her 68th total week surpassing Elvis Presley's 67. The Beatles hold the overall record with 132 weeks (More)

• NBC has tabbed Snoop Dogg to be a special correspondent on its coverage team for this year’s Summer Olympics in Paris. The rapper will appear on primetime broadcasts in various roles (More)

• English Premier League legend Wayne Rooney was fired as manager of Birmingham City after just 15 matches. The EFL Championship club is in danger of relegation to League One, English soccer’s third tier (More)

Quick Hitters

• Feel Good: The internet was not impressed when McDonald's gave Kevin Ford a lackluster gift to commemorate his 27 years of employment without ever calling out sick. A GoFundMe was launched to help Ford afford to visit his grandchildren. After raising more than $400K, Ford -- who still works for the fast food chain -- recently closed on a new home in Nevada.

• Be Safe: Almost 7K pounds of ground beef was recalled due to E. Coli concerns. The meat was produced by Valley Meats on Dec. 22 and shipped to grocery stores and restaurants in Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and Michigan. There have been no confirmed illnesses at this point.

• Last Call: We talked about Dry January in yesterday's newsletter. But what about a dry 2024? Projections suggest alcohol consumption will decline nationally for the first time in over two decades. That trend, coupled with the changing legality of marijuana, has the alcohol industry concerned.

• Helping Hand: A jewelry store in Maui has begun offering a welcomed service to neighbors impacted by last year's destructive wildfires. No Ka 'Oi Jewelers is restoring fire-damaged jewelry free of charge. The owner pays for the restoration work himself, and nearly 500 pieces have been restored or are scheduled to be.

• Life Hack: More people are eating organic these days. But high prices can be an obstacle for those with limited grocery budgets. Here are some tips on how to eat healthy without breaking the bank, including focusing on frozen and in-season produce. 

Watch This

Hulu released a trailer for Vanderpump Villa, a new spinoff from Bravo's Vanderpump Rules series. The show will feature restauranteur Lisa Vanderpump launching a new venture at a country estate in France.

Links

Another kid got on the wrong plane. This time with Frontier Airlines ✈️

ESPN is sorry a woman flashed her breasts during the Sugar Bowl 🏈

A campaign advance man talks the tricks of his all-important trade 👨‍💼

... while George Santos is pitching himself for a cabinet position 🙃

Nicki Minaj announced she is done performing her hit Starships 🎤

Why workers should worry about AI’s impact on the hiring process 🤖

… and if you spot these signs, it is probably time to quit your job 💼

An alleged affair has sparked Spanish royal family conspiracy theories 👑

… and infidelity rumors surround the abdication of Denmark’s queen 👸

A New Jersey couple had twin boys on New Year’s Eve … and Day 👶 👶

Looking Ahead …

President Biden has a track record for being gaffe-prone. His White House staff has worked to keep him on script during his time in office. But as his reelection campaign kicks into high gear, he will be talking off the cuff more often at fundraising events. Which may be good for driving donations, but problematic for staying on message.

Question of the Day

Yesterday’s results:

Should the U.S. launch airstrikes on the Houthi Rebels?

Yes (69%)

No (31%)