NowThis

Shakira is facing some serious tax trouble again in Spain, and it’s not because her hips don’t lie — allegedly, her tax info does https://go.nowth.is/3rxzOTP

Author Ta-Nehisi Coates attended a school board meeting in South Carolina that was debating a decision to block his book ‘Between the World and Me’ from being used in an advanced English class. Coates sat next to the class' teacher, Mary Wood, to show his support. https://go.nowth.is/3K5MZC3

A major shift is underway in Florida’s educational landscape after the state Board of Education approved academic standards on July 19 that will reshape the teaching of Black history. Education and civil rights leaders were quick to criticize the changes, with the state's largest teachers union saying the new standards mean Florida students won't be taught the ‘full truth’ of American history. https://go.nowth.is/44QIVxb

According to a leaked internal memo, In-N-Out Burger will be rolling out a new policy that prohibits its employees from wearing masks unless they have a doctor’s note https://go.nowth.is/3Q5mpfT

The number of exhumed bodies believed to be connected to a doomsday cult in Kenya has topped 400, almost 3 months after Kenyan officials received a tip that a pastor had mass graves on his property. According to the Associated Press, pastor Paul Mackenzie convinced his followers to starve themselves to death to gain salvation and meet Jesus. Mackenzie and 36 other suspects are currently in police custody but have not been charged yet.

The debate over legacy admissions has gained momentum in recent weeks, with multiple universities announcing they will be shifting away from taking into account whether an applicant has alumni relationships, commonly referred to as being a ‘legacy,’ during their admissions process. https://nowthisnews.com/news/several-schools-including-wesleyan-and-carnegie-mellon-have-ended-legacy-admissions

The phrase 'Taco Tuesday' has been liberated after the decades-long owner of the trademark, Taco John, decided to wave the white tortilla flag and end its trademark battle against fast-food giant Taco Bell. Taco John said it made the decision to release the trademarked phrase to avoid costly legal battles.

Several high profile performers—such as Kevin Bacon, 'Succession' stars Alan Ruck and Justine Lupe, and 'Abbott Elementary' writer/actor Quinta Brunson—were spotted out on the picket lines. Listen to them explain the industry protections they're fighting for.

The city of Los Angeles has launched an investigation into the alleged trimming of a row of Ficus trees outside the Universal Studios lot. For weeks, the row of trees provided shade to striking WGA members, and the trimming came days after Hollywood’s main actors union, SAG-AFTRA, announced its members would join the picket line with the Writers Guild of America.

Country music singer Jason Aldean has defended his song ‘Try That in a Small Town’ after its music video was pulled from Country Music Television (CMT) on July 17 following accusations it was ‘pro-lynching’ and promoted gun violence.

An unopened first-generation iPhone just sold for $190,372 at auction. The iPhone originally came out in 2007 with an option for either 4 or 8GB of storage. The 8GB version was more popular with consumers, so Apple discontinued the 4GB after a few months. The auctioned device was the 4GB version and belonged to a member of Apple's original engineering team. The winning bid broke the previous auction record for an unopened first-generation iPhone, which sold for $63,356 back in February 2023.

Authorities in Nevada carried out a search warrant in connection with the long-unsolved killing of Tupac Shakur, almost 30 years after his death. The warrant was served in Henderson on July 17 as part of an ongoing investigation by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department. Further details of the search were not disclosed due to the case being open. Tupac was fatally shot in a drive-by incident in Las Vegas on Sept 7, 1996, at age 25. His murder has remained unresolved.