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Smoke-Covered Cities, Outbreak Source IDed & 'Ghetto Kids' Perform - Friday, July 17, 2026
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Today is Friday, July 17th. We're talking about dangerous smoke that's pushing air quality to extremely unhealthy levels in multiple states and the food that's now officially been linked to a parasitic outbreak. Also, the US now targeting Iranian infrastructure and President Trump's warning about foreign interference in American elections. Plus, why Wall street has been seeing some wild swings, how the Pentagon is responding to fear over low flying fighter jets and what to expect at the final World cup match and the star studded spectacle surrounding it. Those stories and more news coming up. Welcome to the Newsworthy all the Days News in less than 15 minutes. I'm Erica. Mandy, thanks so much for being here. Let's do this. Dangerous wildfire smoke is filling the skies from the Midwest to the Mid Atlantic today. Forecasts Show More than 115 million people will be exposed to unhealthy air. And across at least 18 states, it's a worst case. Combination of factors happening in the atmosphere. Winds are funneling smoke south from out of control fires in Canada and Minnesota. And a heat dome is trapping that smoke near the ground. Already yesterday, Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis and New York had some of the worst air quality in the world. In Detroit, the air quality index reached a value of 728. Anything higher than 300 could potentially cause health emergencies and impact everyone, not just people who are sensitive to it. So people are being told to stay inside as much as possible, use AC or an air purifier and wear a high quality N95 mask if they have to go outside. Winds and rain could usher the dense smoke out by Saturday. Meanwhile, millions of Texans are in the grips of catastrophic flash flooding. About a year's worth of rain has already fallen in parts of Texas. And this morning, the hardest hit areas are expecting even more downpours. Some rivers are expected to reach historic levels. Hundreds of people have had to be rescued from high waters so far. And at least two people have died in the Texas hill country. And that's the same area where more than 100 people died from devastating floods last year. The extreme weather pattern that's behind these storms is finally expected to weaken this afternoon. The US Once again stepped up the war in Iran. Early this morning, the US Hit more bridges and highways and collapsed a tower at a key Iranian port. It's all part of President Trump's plan to start striking infrastructure as a way to pressure Iran to loosen its grip on the Strait of Hormuz. But Iran has been striking back by targeting American interests, as ABC News reports bases that house U.S. assets in Jordan Bahrain and Qatar have been damaged from Iranian missile and drone strikes. A former United nations base camp and an industrial area in Kuwait have also been struck. And both the US And Iran are now threatening to escalate further. But the White House says behind the scenes Iran is still desperate to make a deal with the US and that the Trump administration is open to negotiations. President Trump gave a primetime address to the nation to raise doubts about past election results, and he accused American intelligence agencies of a cover up. Specifically, he said America's election system is vulnerable to hacking, exploitation and foreign interference in a way that's, quote, worse than any third world country. He claimed there was a fraud scheme about voter registration in Michigan, which the FBI is now investigating. He also claimed his administration uncovered hundreds of thousands of non citizens in state voter rolls. Part of his speech focused on China, saying it carried out what he called the largest compromise of election data in history, in part by acquiring 220 million American voter files and that bureaucrats buried the intelligence. China has already denied those claims. While Trump was speaking, the White House released previously classified documents related to the 2018 and 2020 elections. They show Chinese hackers and intelligence operatives collected large amounts of information on Americans and discussed possible influence operations, but they do not appear to offer any direct evidence that China altered votes or changed the outcome of the 2020 election. Already during both Trump's first term and former President Biden's term, intelligence officials publicly warned about Chinese cyber operations and but they concluded there was no effort to actually sway the outcome of any election. They also reported about Russia, saying the country launched wide ranging influence campaigns aimed at helping Trump in 2016 and 2020. President Trump did not mention Russia in his speech though, and denied those conclusions at the time. It's also worth noting that this term the Trump administration has actually dramatically cut the federal election security infrastructure, cutting employees and specifically ordering the end of election security programs. But now Trump says election vulnerabilities could be solved if Congress were to pass his strict voter ID and proof of citizenship bill. To be continued. Federal health officials say they found one food that's been making thousands of people sick in a parasitic outbreak. They've traced the outbreak back to shredded lettuce served at Taco Bell in five Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. And now investigators are working with the supplier to figure out if the contaminated lettuce also went to other places. The health department did not actually name the supplier, but the Washington Post and other news outlets cite sources who say it's Taylor Farms that describes itself as one of the leading global producers of salads and healthy, fresh foods, so there could be more states, restaurants or products involved. When the CDC last updated their data earlier this week, it said nearly 7,000 people around the country may have been infected with cyclospirasis. The illness can cause weeks of severe diarrhea and other symptoms. Health officials have said it's likely that multiple outbreaks are ongoing, but it appears the one in the five states we mentioned is the biggest one. Taco Bell says it's already removed the impact of lettuce from its supply chain. Millions of Americans with high cholesterol now have a new treatment option. The FDA has approved a first of its kind pill that's designed to lower cholesterol levels beyond what current popular medications can achieve. It's called Liphendra, and in clinical trials it was shown to lower bad cholesterol by up to 60% when combined with statins. That's about double the impact of what statins can do on their own. More research is now underway. We have much more news for you still ahead. But first, thanks to our sponsor, my son has started learning a little bit of Spanish and it's inspired me. He'll say a word or phrase here and there and I love seeing how naturally kids pick things up. It reminds me that learning a language is not just about memorizing vocabulary, it's about connection, understanding more people, more places, and maybe even sharing that learning with your family. That's why Rosetta Stone Sapphire feels so exciting to me. Rosetta Stone just came out with Rosetta Stone Sapphire, their biggest launch in over a decade. This brand new language learning app uses the research backed method Rosetta Stone is known for and adds fresh cutting edge features, making it easier than ever to go from knowing a couple of phrases to speaking confidently about topics you care about. I love that. With Sapphire Studio you can personalize learning around what actually matters to you, whether that's travel, food, family or everyday conversations. If you want to take your language skills to the next level, don't wait to try Rosetta Stone Sapphire the News early listeners can get 20% off the Rosetta Stone Sapphire subscription when they sign up today. This gets you access to Rosetta stone Sapphire in 25 languages. Visit RosettaStone.com Newsworthy to redeem your 20% off. That's Rosetta.com Newsworthy now back to the news. The U.S. stock market has gone from thriving to slumping and is expected to keep swinging back and forth wildly. Yesterday was a downturn with all three major US Stock indexes closing lower. The biggest drag came from tech companies, especially chip makers that have helped fuel the AI boom. And that's even though companies reported strong earnings yesterday. Plus, new data came out yesterday showing solid retail sales and a drop in new unemployment claims. So what's behind the drop? Well, reports suggest some investors are now cashing in after tech stocks huge run ups this year. Investors are also apparently nervous about the economy as they wait to see whether recently cooler inflation will last or whether higher oil prices caused by renewed conflict in the Middle east could push oil prices back up. Plus, there's the possibility of interest rate hikes when the Federal Reserve meets later this month. All that said, stocks have not exactly erased all their gains, even after yesterday's downturn. The S&P 500 closed just around 1% off from its all time high reached last month. New policy shifts will put more limits on legal immigration to the U.S. for example, the Trump administration is bringing back a policy that says immigration officers can deny green cards to applicants who use public benefits like Medicaid, food stamps or housing vouchers. It says the point is for green card applicants to show they won't be burdens to American taxpayers and will be able to support themselves. But immigrant advocates say the rule will discourage families from seeking benefits they're entitled to, potentially hurting their American born children. The same policy was first implemented during President Trump's first term, but former President Biden reversed it. Separately, there's the decades old policy that lets international students and exchange visitors stay in the country for as long as their studies last. The Trump administration is now replacing it with a four year limit. It's four years whether they finish the degree, plan to enroll in graduate school or seek work experience. Some will get to stay longer, but only if they get special permission from the government and pay a fee. The Trump administration says this will help crack down on fraud and overstays. But the American Council on Education says it will have a devastating impact on universities, students and the whole US Economy since visas typically attract global talent and billions of dollars in tuition revenue to the U.S. both rule changes were published this week and are scheduled to take effect in September. You may have seen that viral video of a Navy fighter jet flying extremely low over a crowded Florida beach. The jet appears to pass just above beachgoers, kicking up sand, knocking over tents and umbrellas and sending some people running. Now the US Navy has said no one will face discipline for the incident. The Navy's elite Blue Angels initially announced a safety review and confirmed the plane flew lower than its standard flight profile. But yesterday, Acting Navy Secretary Hung Kao said the review was over. He wrote, quote, no reprimands, no firings, no problem. That's the sound of freedom. Defense Secretary Pete Hagseth also appeared to defend the flyover, posting that the flyovers will continue until morale improves. And the Pentagon's top spokesperson shared what appeared to be an image of the past with the message carry on Patriots. It's believed more than one and a half billion people all around the world already know exactly what they'll be doing this Sunday. And that's watching the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final. As we told you yesterday, it's all down to Argentina versus Spain, but the actual match is just one part of the big production. About 90 minutes before the game starts, there's going to be a World cup closing ceremony featuring big stars like Tom Cruise, Robbie Williams and Post Malone. This year's game will also include FIFA's first ever World cup halftime show. Coldplay frontman Chris Martin curated it with performers like Justin Bieber, Madonna, Shakira and bts. Even Sesame street characters are expected to be involved. The halftime show is looking to raise $100 million to expand access to quality education and sports for children around the world. Then it will be back to the game. Argentina is trying to defend its 2022 World cup title and become the first repeat champion in more than 60 years. Spain is chasing its second World cup title and first since 2010. Ahead of the final match though, we are looking back at this history making tournament and and what it means for the future of soccer in the world and right here in the US in our special edition Saturday episode. And that comes out tomorrow morning. Then the World Cup Final begins Sunday at 3pm Eastern on Fox. That's it for the main news today. So now it's time for Feel Good Friday when we bring you one extra feel Good or positive news story before the weekend. But first, a quick break to talk about our sponsor. I've said this before, but one of the reasons I keep coming back to one skin is that it doesn't feel like skincare that's overly complex or built all around trends. Instead, it's backed by real science and it still fits so easily into my normal routine. Everything feels lightweight, thoughtful and effective without making my routine overly complicated. And with summer here, I especially love the SPF options. So much visible skin aging comes from sun exposure and Oneskin's limited edition Summer Bundles pairs their skincare and SPF essentials together. So the OS 1 peptide is helping to reverse the visible effects of UV aging while while you're getting SPF protection from any new damage, AKA Mineral SPF protection and supporting healthier looking skin long term. I personally love the face and Lip SPF products and appreciate that Oneskin's results are backed by four peer reviewed clinical studies, over 10,000 five star reviews and recognition from Bloomberg as a leader in skin longevity. Born from over a decade of longevity research, Oneskin is helping you unlock your healthiest skin now and as you age and for a limited time you can try OneSkin with 15% off using the code Newsworthy at Oneskin co. Newsworthy that's 15% off OneSkin Co with the code Newsworthy. After your purchase they'll ask you where you've heard about them. So please support our show and let them know we sent you okay, now back to today's Feel Good Friday. A group of young dancers from Uganda is about to take its biggest stage yet. The group, known as the Ghetto Kids will perform with Shakira during the World cup final halftime show this Sunday, and video of the moment they found out is almost as joyful as their dancing. The kids screamed, jumped up and down and hugged each other as Shakira delivered the invitation. In a video message, one of the dancers said words could not express their happiness, calling it a dream come true. The group was founded in Uganda in 2014 to create opportunities for children growing up in poverty. It now includes dozens of kids between the ages of 4 and 16 who have attracted millions of social media followers with their energetic dance videos. They've already performed on Britain's Got Talent and an event during the 2022 World Cup. But their founder says nothing compares to this. The kids plan to bring their own style and choreography to the performance, along with one thing they're already famous for pure joy. Thank you so much for listening today. We'll be here tomorrow with our special edition Saturday episode all about the World Cup. Then we're back on Monday with the latest news. For now, have a great weekend. Sam.