SIMONE DEL ROSARIO:

REGULATORS IN THE E-U AND U-K ARE SPLIT ON WHETHER TO ALLOW MICROSOFT TO GOBBLE UP ACTIVISION BLIZZARD. THE U-K’S WORRIED IT WOULD GIVE X-BOX MAKER MICROSOFT TOO MUCH CONTROL IN THE GAMING SPHERE. BUT YOU MAY BE SURPRISED TO LEARN THE MERGER IS NOT ENOUGH TO MAKE THEM NUMBER ONE. HERE ARE THE BIGGEST GAMING HEAVYWEIGHTS IN THIS WEEK’S FIVE FOR FRIDAY.

ACTIVISION BLIZZARD’S $7.5 BILLION IN REVENUE LAST YEAR WAS ENOUGH TO MAKE THE CALIFORNIA COMPANY THE 5TH BIGGEST GAMING PLAYER IN THE WORLD. IT HAD THE MOST SOLD MOBILE AND CONSOLE GAME LAST YEAR WITH CANDY CRUSH SAGA AND CALL OF DUTY MODERN WARFARE 2. ITS BACK CATALOG OF GAMES IS ENOUGH TO GET MICROSOFT’S ATTENTION. BUT THE COMPANY ITSELF HAS A CULTURE PROBLEM, CALIFORNIA SUED IT OVER A ‘FRAT BOY’ ENVIRONMENT FOLLOWING WOMEN’S SEXUAL HARASSMENT CLAIMS, ONE OF MANY LAWSUITS THE COMPANY’S FACED.

JAPAN’S NINTENDO WAS FOUNDED IN 1889, MAKING JAPANESE PLAYING CARDS. NOW, IT’S A NOSTALGIA-DRIVEN GAMING BEHEMOTH WITH 12 BILLION IN REVENUE LAST YEAR. BEYOND MARIO, ZELDA AND POKEMON, THE COMPANY ALSO GOT GRANDMA OFF THE COUCH TO PLAY WII BOWLING IN THE MID AUGHTS. APPARENTLY IT CAN EVEN PREVENT DEMENTIA. NOW THE NINTENDO SWITCH HAS BEEN A HUGE HIT, SELLING 125 MILLION UNITS, MAKING IT THE THIRD BEST SELLING CONSOLE EVER.

IT’S CRAZY THAT THE $16.2 BILLION MICROSOFT MADE IN GAMING IN FISCAL YEAR ‘22 IS JUST 8% OF ITS OVERALL BUSINESS, ESPECIALLY SINCE ACTIVISION WOULD BE ITS BIGGEST EVER ACQUISITION. MICROSOFT’S SPENT BILLIONS TO BUY THE MAKERS OF DOOM, THE ELDER SCROLLS AND MINECRAFT…ALL THAT TO BOOST CLOUD GAMING, WHICH IS THE BIGGEST ISSUE FOR REGULATORS IN THE ACTIVISION BLIZZARD TAKEOVER TALKS.

CHINA’S TENCENT IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST ENTERTAINMENT CONGLOMERATES ON EARTH, AND ITS GAMING DIVISION RAKED IN AROUND $24.5 BILLION LAST YEAR, 31% OF TOTAL REVENUE. IT HAS STAKE IN HUGE GAME COMPANIES LIKE LEAGUE OF LEGENDS MAKER RIOT AND FORTNITE MAKER EPIC. YOU KNOW, THERE’S A LOT OF CONCERN ABOUT CHINA’S CONNECTIONS TO TIKTOK, BUT WE DON’T HEAR MUCH ABOUT ALL THIS GAMING STUFF.

JAPAN’S SONY WILL STILL HOLD THE THRONE WITH $26.5 BILLION IN ANNUAL GAMING REVENUE EVEN IF NUMBER THREE MICROSOFT AND NUMBER FIVE ACTIVISION COMBINE THEIR GAMING PROWESS. BUT THE PLAYSTATION MAKER STILL WANTS TO GET ITS RIVAL’S DEAL AXED, EVEN IF IT HAS A LARGER PLAYERBASE. SONY’S FIRST JUMP INTO THE GAMING BIZ WAS ESSENTIALLY A SUPER NINTENDO CD, WHICH EVENTUALLY BECAME THE PLAYSTATION. THEY MAY BE ONTO THE PS-5, BUT THE PS-2 IS THE MOST SOLD CONSOLE OF ALL TIME.

TRUE STORY, WHEN I WAS A KID I WON A PS2 IN A RAFFLE BEFORE IT WAS EVER EVEN RELEASED. I TRADED IT FOR THE CASH. NO REGRETS. THAT’S FIVE FOR FRIDAY, I’M SIMONE DEL ROSARIO. IT’S JUST BUSINESS.

SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: UNPRECEDENTED RATE HIKES. A SOCIAL MEDIA DRIVEN BANK RUN. AND CONTAGION. THESE ARE THE EXTERNAL FORCES TOP BANK EXECUTIVES BLAMED FOR THE COLLAPSES OF SILICON VALLEY BANK AND SIGNATURE BANK. BUT SENATORS DIDN’T BUY IT. 

SEN. ROBERT MENENDEZ: I hear you testify all collectively that you did everything right. Something happened because the banks failed. 

SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: FOR THE FIRST TIME, FORMER LEADERS AT SVB AND SIGNATURE BANK SPOKE PUBLICLY ABOUT TWO OF THE LARGEST BANK FAILURES IN U-S HISTORY.

GREGORY BECKER, FORMER SILICON VALLEY BANK CEO: Rumors and misconceptions quickly spread online culminating on March 9 with the first-ever social media bank run, leading to $42 billion in deposits being withdrawn from SVB in 10 hours, or roughly $1 million every second.

SEN. SHERROD BROWN: Mr. Becker, your version of events blames SVB’s failure on too many interest rate hikes, a social media driven bank run, the closure of the much smaller Silvergate Bank and the regulators for being slow to highlight its long standing problems. It sounds a lot like the dog ate my homework. 

SEN. JOHN KENNEDY: This was bone deep down to the marrow stupid. You put all your eggs in one basket. You put all your eggs in one basket. And unless unless you were living on the International Space Station, you could see that interest rates were rising and you weren’t hedged.

SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: SENATORS FROM BOTH PARTIES CITED GREED, A FAILURE TO HEDGE INTEREST RATE RISKS, AND IN THE CASE OF SVB, 31 RED FLAGS CITED BY REGULATORS THEY SAY THE BANK IGNORED. 

SEN. TIM SCOTT: Three times the average number, that’s 31 notices that you received flashing red lights that something was desperately wrong. But let me say this, SVB was an anomaly and your lack of judgment, Mr. Becker, shows that you should not have been running the bank.

SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: WELL, REGULATORS TOOK OVER SIGNATURE BANK TWO DAYS AFTER SVB COLLAPSED, BUT ITS CHAIRMAN INSISTED THE BANK COULD HAVE SURVIVED. 

SCOTT SHAY, FORMER CHAIRMAN & CO-FOUNDER OF SIGNATURE BANK: I believe that Signature Bank was a responsibly managed bank, solvent until the end.

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN: Yeah, well, I’m sorry, your opinion on what is responsible is now laughable. So you’re planning to return to how much? 

SCOTT SHAY: The answer is…

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN: None. That’s it?

SCOTT SHAY: I’m not planning to do so. No. 

SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: SENATOR WARREN CONTINUED HER CLAWBACK CRUSADE WITH GREG BECKER FROM SVB. FOLLOWING THE BANK COLLAPSE, WARREN PROPOSED BIPARTISAN LEGISLATION THAT WOULD CLAW BACK THE COMPENSATION OF FAILED BANK EXECUTIVES.

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN: How much of the $40 million are you planning to return? How many times are we gonna do this dance?

GREG BECKER: Senator I promise to cooperate with the regulators as they do…

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN: Are you planning to return a single nickel to what you cost the fund?

GREG BECKER: Senator, I know there’s going to be a process review of compensation.

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN: I’ll take no. 

SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: BANK EXECUTIVES AREN’T THE ONLY ONES IN THE HOT SEAT THIS WEEK. REGULATORS FROM THE FED AND FDIC ARE BACK THURSDAY TO ANSWER WHERE THEY MAY HAVE DROPPED THE BALL ON BANKS RED FLAGS.

I’M SIMONE DEL ROSARIO, IN NEW YORK IT’S JUST BUSINESS. 

IT’S THE SHARPEST MATERIAL ON EARTH. MILLIONS OF YEARS OLD. AND MORE RECENTLY – ITS MAKING APPEARANCES ON YOUR TIKTOK FEED AND ON ‘GAME OF THRONES’.

WE’RE TALKING ABOUT OBSIDIAN. 

DONNY DUST | WILDERNESS SELF RELIANCE EDUCATOR: “Obsidian is a very unique stone. It’s not even technically a stone / It’s a volcanic glass. And that’s typically where you find pieces of obsidian, ancient volcanic areas, lava flows, things to that extent. And the one thing that makes obsidian so remarkable is it is essentially the sharpest thing on this planet.”

DONNY DUST IS A PROFESSIONAL CAVEMAN. SPECIALIZING IN PRIMITIVE SKILLS AND ANCIENT TECHNOLOGIES. HE SAYS THE CUTTING EDGE OF OBSIDIAN IS 500 TIMES SHARPER THAN THE SHARPEST STEEL BLADE.

DUST: “If you were to look at obsidian underneath a microscope compared to a razor blade, the razor blade would look like Swiss cheese under the microscope. And the piece of obsidian would be super smooth, you can get all the way down to a single molecule on a piece of obsidian. And it is beyond sharp. / @ 07:36 But if you drop it, you shoot it out of a bow and you miss your target. It’s very likely that obsidian is just going to explode, it’s going to fracture because it is glass.”

THE SMOOTH, BLACK GLASS ISN’T JUST TRENDY- IT’S BEEN AN IMPORTANT PART OF HUNTER-GATHERER CULTURES AROUND THE WORLD FOR 2-MILLION YEARS. HERE IN THE STATES, OBSIDIAN CLIFF IS ONE OF THE LARGEST DEPOSITS OF THE IGNEOUS ROCK. 

DOUG MACDONALD | PROFESSOR OF ANTHROPOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA: “Native Americans arrived in Yellowstone National Park and, and started to collect obsidian as soon as they arrived about 11,000 or 11,500 years ago.

ARCHEOLOGIST DOUG MACDONALD SAYS NATIVE AMERICANS FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY SOUGHT IT OUT BECAUSE OF ITS HIGH QUALITY. 

MACDONALD: “The most common period of time in which it was used nationally is called the Hopewell interaction sphere. It was about 3000 years ago to about 1000 years ago. And this was a group of Native American that lived along the Mississippi River and its tributaries in the Midwest, and they would bury their dead in mounds. And so as part of those burial ceremonies, they would accumulate wealth items from all over the country. And obsidian was one of those wealth items that was very much treasured at the for those burial ceremonies.”

TODAY, RESEARCHERS STUDY OBSIDIAN TO TRACK THE TRAVELS OF ANCIENT TRIBES. YELLOWSTONE OBSIDIAN CAN BE FOUND AS FAR AWAY AS NEW YORK STATE. 

MACDONALD: “The modern technology called X-ray fluorescence has been able to show the chemical compositions of these different obsidian flows throughout the world, even though it all looks pretty much the same, or that you’re finding in Italy or Africa, Asia or the Americas. The obsidian looks kind of the same, but it all has very distinctive chemical compositions. And so the X RF or X ray fluorescence technology has allowed scientists to identify that unique chemical composition of each volcanic flow. So there’s about 1520, different obsidian flows, even within Yellowstone itself. And so each one of those is distinctive, and we can identify which ones are which, based on the chemical composition.”

MACDONALD SAYS THE AMOUNT OF GLASS AT OBSIDIAN CLIFF COULD FILL THREE LARGE FOOTBALL STADIUMS. 

LAURA JOKI | OWNER, ROCK YOUR WORLD: “Obsidian isn’t just recognized as a modern day treasure. It’s still used in ceremonies and also the rituals of indigenous people throughout the world” 

BUT WHAT ABOUT MODERN USES? 

JOKI: “In modern day parlance, essentially what we’re using it for now, and probably, you know, others felt about it in the past is that it’s known for being a grounding stone that can help you avoid taking on others negative energy, which frees you up to use your energy to move forward in life.”

LAURA JOKI IS A ROCK AND GEM EXPERT. SHE SAYS WHILE OBSIDIAN CAN BE FOUND IN SOME MODERN DAY SURGICAL  SCALPELS, IT’S MAINLY BEING USED IN RECREATING ARTIFACTS AND MAKING JEWELRY. 

DUST @ 19:30 “If your goal is to make a living, you know, collecting obsidian, you might as well pick a different sort of pursuit because it’s not a huge profit.”

IF YOU’RE STILL THINKING OF PICKING UP A PIECE OF OBSIDIAN FOR YOURSELF, OUR EXPERTS HAVE A WARNING. 

JOKI: “The most dangerous thing about obsidian is buying potentially fake obsidian which sometimes, you know, it could have who knows what kind of manufacturing chemicals and like the pendant or how the processing went.”

DUST: “A lot of people get fooled online when they buy materials online because you see the black obsidian in its original form. But what’s actually going on inside that stone could be completely different than what’s on the outside. You could have crystals, you could have air pockets, you can have all these irregularities, because at that time, that’s how it formed. And essentially, it’s just junk stone. So a little bit more regulation wouldn’t hurt.”

FOR NOW OBSIDIAN IS ONLINE, AND NOT JUST IN MINECRAFT.

You’re going to serve your country….

MANDATORY FUNDAY IS THE ONLINE HANDLE OF A SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER WHO CATERS TO A SPECIFIC AUDIENCE.

At least I’ll meet a lot of great people. Nah, a lot of the people are mid

HE’S AN ACTIVE DUTY LIEUTENANT IN THE UNITED STATES ARMY. HE’S ALSO WHAT’S CALLED A MUSTANG OFFICER, BECAUSE HE SERVED AS AN ENLISTED SOLDIER FIRST.

LT: I humanize the uniform, so to speak, I’ve been shocked to find out that there’s a lot of people that believe that you have to be some kind of, like, superhuman to join the military. And it’s just not the case. Like we can take damn near anybody, and turn them into what we need to turn them into.

THE VIDEOS MANDATORY FUNDAY CREATES POKE FUN AT A RANGE OF TOPICS TO WHICH MOST MILITARY FAMILIES CAN RELATE.

We’re going to put a bunch of support facilities on base with you like finance offices and different resources for families and what not.

Ah, great. Yeah, nice. I mean that would be super useful for troops.

They’re all going to close at 17:00.

They close at 17:00, what? No, we get off at 17:00. We need them to be open.

THE LT SAYS HE FIRST STARTED MAKING THE VIDEOS BECAUSE HE WANTED TO HAVE SOME FUN AND SHARE HIS EXPERIENCES IN THE ARMY. BUT AS IT TURNS OUT, THOSE FUNNY VIDEOS ARE LEADING TO REAL CHANGES

LT: I have gotten messages from many senior leaders too, at this point in, in every branch of service and even some people in other NATO militaries telling me that they’re implementing new policy, or a new way of doing things based on some of the videos that I’ve created. It’s been really cool because there’s a disconnect between senior leadership and junior guys, right? And I feel like I’m bridging that gap a little bit.

THE VIDEOS MANDATORY FUNDAY CREATES, AS WELL AS THE IMPACT THEY HAVE, ARE A SORT OF MICROCOSM OF A MUCH LARGER EFFORT WITHIN THE MILITARY. SENIOR LEADERSHIP, LISTENING TO JUNIOR ENLISTED, ON WAYS TO IMPROVE MILITARY LIFE.

DURING THE OPENING CEREMONIES OF THE NAVY LEAGUE’S SEA AIR SPACE 2023 EXHIBITION IN NATIONAL HARBOR MARYLAND, THE TOP OFFICERS FROM THE NAVY, MARINE CORPS AND COAST GUARD ALL TALKED ABOUT THE IMMEDIATE NEED TO INVEST IN PEOPLE

Ravan: Our Navy and Marine Corps are more than just advanced platforms and weapons systems. Our people remain our greatest strength and are at the heart of everything that we do.

Fagan: If we don’t make the investments in the people the aircraft won’t operate. The ships won’t be able to maneuver.

Berger: But if nothing else I’ve learned in the past years, the most important thing most often we can do is listen. Actually not talk. If we ask them what’s important to them, it’s not all that complicated. They live somewhere: the barracks or their family housing. They get up and they work out in the morning: fitness centers. And then they go home and if they have kids, they’re going to need to find a place to watch their kids during the day: child development centers. And they’re going to work somewhere in a hangar or a maintenance bay or go to the field. Where they work, where they eat, where they live. All these are things that some people call “quality of life,” but for us I think they are the centerpiece. They’re the focus. And we must invest in that now.

TO BE CLEAR, THE GOVERNMENT IS MAKING INVESTMENTS TOWARD IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE FOR MILITARY MEMBERS, BUT IT MAY NOT BE ENOUGH.

INCLUDED IN THE FISCAL YEAR 2023 OMNIBUS BILL WAS A PROVISION TO SET ASIDE MORE THAN 17 BILLION DOLLARS TO HELP RESTORE AND IMPROVE ON BASE FACILITIES. ANOTHER $2 BILLION WENT TO IMPROVE PRIVATIZED HOUSING.

THE MOST RECENT NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT ALSO INCREASED PAY BY 4.6% FOR MILITARY MEMBERS AND CIVILIANS SERVING IN THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.

AT THE SAME TIME, A RECENT STUDY SHOWED AROUND 1 IN 4 MILITARY MEMBERS WENT THROUGH SOME FORM OF FOOD INSECURITY RECENTLY. THERE’S A GROWING NUMBER OF MILITARY FAMILIES QUALIFYING FOR SNAP BENEFITS, ALSO CALLED FOOD STAMPS. AND JUST LIKE IN THE CIVILIAN WORLD, ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE CHILD CARE CAN BE A STRUGGLE.

Bacon: We got to adjust our pay, or the basic allowance for subsistence now, the food allowances so that we can get our junior enlisted all the way through our mid-level enlisted, and particularly those who are married with kids, and adjust their pay so they’re not qualifying for SNAP.

RETIRED AIR FORCE GENERAL AND CURRENT CONGRESSMAN DON BACON IS LEADING A NEW HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE FOCUSED ON QUALITY OF LIFE FOR MILITARY MEMBERS.

Bacon: We have housing that’s falling behind. We have medical care that’s being hollowed out a little bit at a time. We have families on long waiting lists to get daycare. And so, there’s, we have spouses who can’t get jobs because we move them too often. So, I wanted to look at this holistically and say we could do so much better for quality of life.

CONGRESSMAN BACON SAYS IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE MILITARY WILL ALSO MAKE IT EASIER TO GET NEW MEMBERS TO SIGN UP. IN 2022, EVERY SERVICE BRANCH EXCEPT THE SPACE FORCE MISSED ITS RECRUITING GOALS. 2023 ISN’T LOOKING MUCH BETTER.

Bacon: This is going to be something in the house that won’t be Republican versus Democrat. It’s going to be Americans, and patriotic Americans, trying to solve a problem for patriotic Americans.

PATRIOTIC AMERICANS LIKE THE MUSTANG LT BEHIND MANDATORY FUNDAY. THE LT SAYS HE’S NOT SURPRISED THERE’S A HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE ON IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE MILITARY. FOR HIM, IT’S PROOF OF WHAT THE ARMY TEACHES IN ITS OFFICIAL DOCTRINE: GOOD LEADERS LISTEN

LT: I think the Army and the, you know, the military in general does a fairly good job of trying to meet people halfway, if that makes sense?

BUT WHILE THEY MAY BE LISTENING, DON’T PUT IT PAST SOME FOLKS TO STILL POKE FUN EVERY NOW AND THEN.

What is the military going to give me?

What it’s going to give you is an empty place in your soul and after you’re It’s going to give you an empty soul. After you get out, despite the fact you hated so much of it you’re going to miss it more than you’ve missed anything in your life.

Oh god! He’s right!

CONGRESSMAN DON BACON’S SUBCOMMITTEE ON IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE WILL MEET TWICE A WEEK FOR 8 MONTHS STARTING IN JUNE. FROM THERE, THE COMMITTEE WILL OFFER UP ITS RECOMMENDATIONS TO BE INCLUDED IN FUTURE LEGISLATION.

FOR MORE STORIES ABOUT OUR NATION’S MILITARY, BE SURE TO CHECK OUT OUR UNBIASED, STRAIGHT FACT REPORTING AT STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS DOT COM.

SHANNON LONGWORTH: ACCORDING TO THE RNC…

THIS IS WHAT AMERICA WOULD LOOK LIKE AFTER A BIDEN REELECTION.

HOW DO THEY HAVE IMAGES OF SOMETHING THAT HASN’T HAPPENED?

THEY USED GENERATIVE AI.

THESE IMAGES, AUDIO, AND VIDEOS ARE CALLED SYNTHETIC MEDIA…AND IT’S HAVING A HUGE IMPACT. HENRY AJDER IS AN ADVISOR ON GENERATIVE AI, DEEP FAKES, AND AI POLICY. HE LOOKS AT THE IMPLICATIONS IN SOCIETY.

AJDER: “I THINK WE’VE ALREADY SEEN EVEN NOW IN 2023, THAT DEEP FAKES AND  GENERATIVE AI, HAVE BECOME A MASSIVE PART OF THE DIGITAL LANDSCAPE IN TERMS OF MEMES IN TERMS OF SATIRE.”

“SO I IMAGINE IN THE YEAR OF THE ELECTION IN 2024, WE WILL SEE MUCH MORE OF THIS KIND OF CONTENT, SOME OF IT INTENDED AS SATIRE. SOME OF IT IS, YOU KNOW, INTENDED AS KIND OF INTENTIONALLY DECEPTIVE.”

LONGWORTH: AJDER IS ADAMANT THAT SYNTHETIC MEDIA CAN MANIPULATE PUBLIC OPINION.

IT CAN ALSO SPREAD DISINFORMATION–WE SAW HOW THAT COULD HAPPEN WHEN FAKE PHOTOS OF PRESIDENT TRUMP IN HANDCUFFS CIRCULATED ON SOCIAL MEDIA.

AND MORE PEOPLE ARE GAINING ACCESS TO THE TECHNOLOGY, WITH AI IMAGE GENERATORS, LIKE MIDJOURNEY.

AJDER: “THE REAL QUESTION FOR ME, THOUGH, IS WHETHER WE’RE GOING TO SEE THAT HYPER REALISTIC VIDEO OR AUDIO, THAT EVEN CRITICAL VIEWERS CAN’T TELL IF IT’S REAL OR NOT.”

CONVINCING DEEP FAKES COULD MAKE IT LOOK LIKE A CANDIDATE DID OR SAID SOMETHING INCRIMINATING OR DEFAMATORY AND TANK THEIR CAMPAIGN.

LONGWORTH: THERE ARE TELLS – THINGS LIKE DISTORTED LIGHTING, BLURRY EDGES, EVEN A LACK OF BLINKING CAN GIVE AN AI-GENERATED VIDEO AWAY. BUT AJDER DOESN’T THINK VOTER VIGILANCE IS NECESSARILY THE SOLUTION.

AJDER: “IT’S REALLY UNFAIR TO EXPECT THE INDIVIDUAL TO BE ABLE TO DEDICATE SO MUCH OF THEIR TIME TO SORT OF POUR OVER ALL OF THE DETAILS OF EVERY SINGLE IMAGE THEY SEE ON THEIR SOCIAL MEDIA FEED, OR KEEP UP TO DATE WITH ALL THE LATEST TECHNIQUES AND THE LATEST PAPERS COMING OUT ABOUT WHAT NEW GENERATIVE TOOLS ARE GOING TO BE RELEASED.”

LONGWORTH: AJDER SAYS, IT’S TIME TO TALK ABOUT RESTRICTIONS AND CONTENT MODERATION.

AJDER: “FOR ME, THE EMPHASIS REALLY NEEDS TO BE PLACED ACTUALLY, ON THE COMPANIES THAT ARE DEVELOPING THE TECHNOLOGIES AND THE PLATFORMS THAT ARE HOSTING THE CONTENT, AS WELL AS THE GOVERNMENT, YOU KNOW, INTERNATIONAL GOVERNMENTS THAT ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR REGULATING AND HOLDING THOSE GROUPS TO ACCOUNT. WE NEED TO HAVE BETTER SAFETY MEASURES IMPLEMENTED IN THESE TOOLS TO STOP THEM BEING MISUSED SO EASILY.”

LONGWORTH: WE’VE SEEN SOME LEGISLATION ATTEMPT TO WRANGLE SYNTHETIC MEDIA IN POLITICS.

IN 2019, CALIFORNIA BANNED DEEP FAKES OF POLITICIANS WITHIN 60 DAYS OF ELECTIONS…IF THE CREATOR INTENDED TO HARM THAT POLITICIAN’S REPUTATION OR DECEIVE VOTERS. BUT IT’S DIFFICULT TO PROVE THAT INTENT AND ENFORCE THE LAW. AND CRITICS, LIKE THE CALIFORNIA ACLU, SAY IT ENCROACHES ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH.

THAT LEGISLATION ALSO HAS AN EXCEPTION FOR SYNTHETIC ADS THAT DISCLOSE THEIR ORIGIN–LIKE THE RNC VIDEO DID.

THIS DEBATE OVER MODERATING SYNTHETIC MEDIA ISN’T GOING AWAY ANYTIME SOON. WE’RE MARCHING TOWARD THE NEXT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION AND AI IS OUT HERE SPRINTING.

Simone Del Rosario: HBO’S HIT SERIES SUCCESSION HAS GIVEN US A WILD LOOK AT CORPORATE POLITICS, ESPECIALLY WHEN FAMILY IS INVOLVED. IS THE REAL WORLD QUITE AS CRAZY AS WAYSTAR-ROYCO? HERE ARE THE REAL-LIFE SUCCESSION STORIES AT SOME OF AMERICA’S TOP COMPANIES IN THIS WEEK’S FIVE FOR FRIDAY.

BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY’S WARREN BUFFETT IS STICKING TO HIS SUCCESSION PICK GREG ABEL, BUT THE 92-YEAR-OLD HAS NO TIMELINE FOR STEPPING DOWN. ABEL’S BEEN AT BERKSHIRE SINCE 2000 AND RAN THE ENERGY DIVISION. AT THIS YEAR’S ANNUAL MEETING BUFFETT SAID HE’S 100% CONFIDENT IN ABEL AND SAYS ABEL’S EVEN BETTER THAN HIM IN SOME AREAS. THERE’S NO PLAN B, SO HOPEFULLY ABEL, WHO WAS NAMED SUCCESSOR TWO YEARS AGO, ISN’T TIRED OF WAITING.

AMAZON FOUNDER JEFF BEZOS APPARENTLY SHOCKED ANDY JASSY WHEN HE ASKED HIM TO SIGN ON AS HIS SUCCESSOR IN EARLY 2021. JASSY HAD BEEN INSTRUMENTAL IN GROWING A-W-S, WHICH CONTROLS AROUND A THIRD OF THE CLOUD COMPUTING MARKET.. BEZOS IS STILL EXECUTIVE CHAIR OF THE BOARD, GIVING HIM A LOT OF SWAY AS TO WHAT HAPPENS WITH LEADERSHIP. BUT AS THE THIRD WEALTHIEST PERSON ALIVE AND HIS OWN SPACE ROCKET COMPANY, HE’S GOT OTHER THINGS TO WORRY ABOUT NOW.

WALMART LIKES TO KEEP IT IN HOUSE, ALWAYS PROMOTING FROM WITHIN. IN FACT, CURRENT CEO DOUG MCMILLON STARTED UNLOADING TRUCKS FOR THE NATION’S LARGEST RETAILER AS A TEEN. HE WENT ON TO GET AN MBA AND WORKED HIS WAY UP TO THE CEO SPOT IN 2014, THE 4TH WALMART CEO SINCE FOUNDER SAM WALTON. MCMILLON PLANS TO STAY ON FOR AT LEAST 3 MORE YEARS WHILE THE COMPANY IS STILL SEARCHING FOR HIS SUCCESSOR. MEANWHILE THE WALTON FAMILY IS THE RICHEST IN THE WORLD AT A QUARTER OF A TRILLION DOLLARS, THERE ARE A FEW WALTONS ON THE BOARD AND GREG PENNER, SAM WALTON’S GRANDSON-IN-LAW, CHAIRS IT. PENNER ALSO OWNS THE DENVER BRONCOS.

APPLE CEO TIM COOK WAS BROUGHT ON BY STEVE JOBS HIMSELF IN 1998. HE OFFICIALLY TOOK OVER AS CEO IN 2011 A COUPLE OF MONTHS BEFORE JOBS DIED, AFTER FILLING IN HERE AND THERE WHEN JOBS WAS ON MEDICAL LEAVE. SINCE COOK ARRIVED IN CUPERTINO, APPLE’S ANNUAL REVENUE JUMPED FROM $6 BILL IN ‘98 TO $394 BILL IN 2022. COOK SAYS HE’S GROOMING AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE TO BE THE NEXT CEO, BUT CURRENT COO JEFF WILLIAMS HAS BEEN FLOATED AS A FRONT RUNNER. COOK WILL LIKELY STAY ON UNTIL AT LEAST 2025 WHEN HIS OPTIONS FULLY MATURE, PLUS HE’S ONLY 62, SO APPLE HAS SOME TIME.

LIKE WAYSTAR ROYCO, DISNEY HAS ITS HANDS IN A NUMBER OF BUSINESSES AND BOTCHED SUCCESSION PLANS. AFTER FEWER THAN 3 YEARS AT THE HELM, DISNEY CANNED BOB CHAPEK AND REINSTATED BOB IGER, WHO HAD HAND PICKED HIM TO TAKE OVER. THE COMPANY SAID CHAPEK HURT THE BRAND, BUT THERE WERE ALSO REPORTS THAT IGER WAS UNDERMINING HIM AT EVERY TURN. IGER SIGNED ON TO HELP THE HOUSE OF MOUSE FOR TWO MORE YEARS, AND A SHORT LIST OF POSSIBLE SUCCESSORS INCLUDES NBA COMMISSIONER ADAM SILVER?

FROM THE OUTSIDE IT’S NOT AS CUTTHROAT AS IT IS ON TV, BUT I BET BEHIND CLOSED DOORS IT CAN GET PRETTY RUTHLESS, ESPECIALLY WHEN THERE’S NOT A PLAN IN PLACE. THAT’S FIVE FOR FRIDAY. I’M SIMONE DEL ROSARIO. IT’S JUST BUSINESS.

SIMONE DEL ROSARIO: HOLLYWOOD WRITERS HIT THE PICKET LINES FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 15 YEARS THIS WEEK. THE GUILD SAYS THE MOVE TO STREAMING HAS CUT WRITERS’ PAY. WHILE MOST PRODUCERS ARE UNDER PRESSURE TO CUT STREAMING COSTS EVEN MORE, STILL TRYING TO TURN A PROFIT AT ALL. LABOR DISPUTES IN TINSEL TOWN ARE NOTHING NEW, WE HAVE THE MOST PIVOTAL STRIKES IN ENTERTAINMENT IN THIS WEEK’S FIVE FOR FRIDAY. 

FOUR YEARS AFTER THIS BOX OFFICE SUCCESS, 1941.  DISNEY ANIMATORS DECIDED IT WAS NO LONGER THE HAPPIEST PLACE TO WORK. THE STUDIO WAS IN DEBT AND THE ARTISTS WERE WORKING LONGER HOURS WITH LESS PAY.  WALT DISNEY PUSHED BACK AGAINST THEM JOINING THE SCREEN CARTOONIST’S GUILD, WHICH LED TO THE WALKOUT. AND THEIR TALENTS LED TO ARGUABLY THE BEST STRIKE SIGNS IN HISTORY. FIVE WEEKS LATER, A FEDERAL MEDIATOR SIDED WITH THE ARTISTS ON ALL THEIR DEMANDS. THE COMPANY WORKERS UNIONIZED, PAY WAS EQUALIZED AND THEY CREATED A SET SALARY STRUCTURE.

THIS 1945 CREW STRIKE SHUT DOWN HOLLYWOOD IN A VIOLENT WAY. THE CATALYST WAS CONFLICT OVER WHICH UNION WOULD REPRESENT SET DECORATORS. THOUSANDS OF C-S-U WORKERS WENT ON STRIKE IN MARCH, AND AFTER NEARLY SEVEN MONTHS, SOME STUDIOS STILL HELD OUT… INCLUDING WARNER BROTHERS, THE SCENE OF THIS BLACK FRIDAY MELEE. NON STRIKERS REPPED BY THE I-A-T-S-E TRIED CROSSING THE PICKET LINE AT THE LOT AND CHAOS RAINED DOWN. TEAR GAS, FIRE HOSES, BATONS, BRASS KNUCKLES, FLIPPED VEHICLES. DOZENS WERE HURT, THOUGH NO ONE WAS KILLED. C-S-U EVENTUALLY WON THE RIGHT TO NEGOTIATE BUT IT WAS SHORT-LIVED. ACCUSED OF BEING RUN BY COMMUNISTS, THE UNION FOLDED IN THE EARLY 50S.

FUTURE PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN RESHAPED HOLLYWOOD WITH THIS ONE, BACK WHEN HE WAS A DIFFERENT KIND OF PRESIDENT…OF THE SCREEN ACTORS GUILD. IN THE 40S AND 50S, THE RISE OF T-V HAD REALLY TAKEN A TOLL ON THE MOVIE INDUSTRY, AND WHEN MOTION PICTURES SWITCHED TO THE SMALL SCREEN, ACTORS DIDN’T GET PAID FOR THOSE RUNS. DESPITE PRESSURE FROM REAGAN, PRODUCERS REFUSED TO PAY OUT, AND ACTORS EVENTUALLY REFUSED TO WORK. AFTER SIX WEEKS STRIKING IN 1960, SAG MEMBERS STRUCK A DEAL. IT INCLUDED SMALL PAYMENTS WHEN FILMS ARE TELECAST, KNOWN AS RESIDUALS, SOMETHING THAT HAPPENS TO THIS DAY. 

IT’S THE COMMERCIAL ACTORS’ TURN IN THE STRIKE SPOTLIGHT. IN 2000, 135,000 UNION MEMBERS LAUNCHED A SIX-MONTH WORK STOPPAGE AGAINST THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF ADVERTISING AGENCIES  COMMERCIAL ACTORS WOULD GET RESIDUAL PAYMENTS EVERY TIME A COMMERCIAL AIRED ON NETWORK T-V,BUT NOT CABLE, WHERE THE AVERAGE UNION ACTOR WOULD GET A THOUSAND BUCKS FOR THE AD AND NOTHING MORE. AFTER A BOYCOTT OF BLUE CHIP BRANDS,  THE FINAL DEAL BOOSTED CABLE AD PAY BY 140% AND INTRODUCED INTERNET AD NEGOTIATIONS, THE NEXT FRONTIER. 

HERE’S ONE EVERYONE BUT GEN Z REMEMBERS. THE LAST HOLLYWOOD STRIKE WAGED BY THE WRITERS GUILD IN 2007 AND 2008.THE FOCUS WAS RESIDUALS FOR DVD SALES AND LOOKING AHEAD TO DIGITAL. WITHOUT WRITERS FOR 100 DAYS, PRIME TIME WENT DARK. SEASONS WERE CUT SHORT, SHOWS WENT ON HIATUS, AND THE LA COUNTY ECONOMY LOST $2.5 BILLION. EVENTUALLY WRITERS GAVE UP DVD DEMANDS AND FOCUSED ON INCREASING UNION PAY IN STREAMING, WHERE WE PICK BACK UP TODAY.

WITH THE WRITERS OUT, ENJOY THOSE RERUNS, LET’S HOPE THERE’S A DEAL BEFORE T-V DEVOLVES INTO THIS. THAT’S FIVE FOR FRIDAY I’M SIMONE DEL ROSARIO, IT’S JUST BUSINESS.