← The NewsWorthy
The NewsWorthy
Vaccine Showdowns, Gel Nails Toxic? & NFL Season Kickoff - Thursday, September 4, 2025
00:13:29
The news to know for Thursday, September 4, 2025! We’ll tell you about vaccine battles playing out across the country, which specific state might drop all vaccine mandates for schools, and why some other states plan to tackle the issue together....
Loading summary
Transcript1 lines
- [00:00]
A
Today is Thursday, September 4th. We'll tell you about vaccine battles playing out across the country, which specific state might drop all vaccine mandates for schools and why some other states plan to tackle the issue together. Also, a new message from survivors of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and Harvard's latest legal victory in its fight against the White House. Plus, why gel nail polish was just banned in Europe, how an alleged killer appeared as a fashion model and which football games are generating excitement as the NFL returns those stories and even more news to know next. Welcome. Welcome to the Newsworthy. All the day's news in around 10 minutes. Fast, fair, fun and on the go. I'm Erica. Mandy. Thanks so much for being here. You ready? Let's do this. The debate over vaccines in the US Is heating up and leading to some big changes in certain states. For starters, Florida plans to become the first state in the country to get rid of all vaccine mandates for public schools and elsewhere. The state surgeon general called the requirements immoral, saying they step on parents rights to make health decisions for their children. But the move to end them goes against decades of public policy and research that's shown vaccines are the safest, most effective way to stop the spread of disease, especially among kids. So many critics are calling Florida's move reckless and dangerous. And the American Medical association is asking Florida to reconsider for now. Florida has not given a timeline for this change. The surgeon general says his department can scrap its own rules for some vaccine mandates, but others will require state lawmakers to get involved. Of course, this comes as the health department on the federal level is going through restructuring and downsizing. So this week, the Democratic governors of Washington, Oregon and California announced a new health alliance. The idea is they'll coordinate their vaccination plans based on recommendations from respected national medical organizations, not necessarily federal health agencies. Eight Northeastern states are also reportedly thinking about doing the same thing. In response, the health department's communications director blamed Democrat run states for destroying public trust in health agencies. But even within the health department, there are some trust issues. In another letter this week, more than a thousand current and former federal health workers called for Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. S resignation. Senator saying actions like firing the CDC director and the CDC's vaccine advisory panel are endangering America's health. For now, though, the Trump administration is sticking by RFK Jr saying he's accomplished more than any health secretary in history to make America healthy again. More women who survived sexual assault by Jeffrey Epstein are telling their stories. They spoke at an event in Washington, D.C. about years of abuse they suffered. They also called for all the documents and information from the Epstein investigation to be released. Meanwhile, the women said they're creating their own list of Epstein's associates who they say were involved in the abuse, since the Justice Department said there was no client list like once promised. Now, to be clear, none of them said they ever saw or heard President Trump doing anything inappropriate. One did say Epstein had a photo of himself with Trump on his desk. As their survivors spoke, the president called the push to release the Epstein files a hoax. He he and other Republican leaders are against releasing all of the files, saying it could expose the identities of innocent people. But one Republican and Democrat are trying to force the Justice Departments to make them public anyway with a vote in Congress. So stay tuned. Harvard scored a big legal victory this week. A federal judge ordered the Trump administration to unfreeze nearly $2.2 billion in federal grants to the university that were meant to go toward research. The judge actually agreed with the White House that Harvard has been plagued by anti Semitism in recent years and should have done more to address it. But she also said she could not see how ending grants would improve the situation for Jewish students at Harvard, and that she could see how it would halt critical research projects that could be important all around the world. The Trump administration disagrees with the ruling, saying Harvard does not have a constitutional right to taxpayer dollars and that it's up to the president to hold the school accountable however he can. So the White House says it will appeal the decision. At the same time, the Trump administration is in talks with Harvard over a possible settlement. Stay tuned. For the first time in more than four years, there are fewer open jobs than there are people trying to get hired. That's according to the latest federal data out this week that looked at the labor market from July. It specifically showed American workers are staying put and layoffs are rising slightly. Job openings even fell in fields like health care and leisure and hospitality that have been resilient for years now. But openings were added in fields like construction and the federal government, where there's a hiring spree for immigration enforcement. We should find out more about the labor market from the August jobs report. That will include the number of jobs added or lost and the unemployment rate. And that's due out tomorrow. Northern California is dealing with nearly two dozen wildfires right now, including one that's burning through a historic gold rush town. The town was settled in the 1850s by Chinese miners who faced discrimination and were driven out of a nearby camp. Now everyone who still lives there has to be evacuated, some homes have been destroyed and the few remaining historic structures are threatened. The fire even closed a highway that's a main route between San Francisco and Yosemite National Park. It's believed that fire and more than 20 others were sparked by lightning. Now there's little rain in sight. Temperatures are in the 90s and winds are strong, so so fires could spread even more today. Meanwhile, a cold front is coming to other parts of the country and temperatures are falling 10 to 20 degrees below average. Already, the cooler weather has made it to the Northern Plains and the Midwest. Cities like Minneapolis, Milwaukee and Omaha are seeing highs in the 60s and lows in the 30s and 40s. Then the front moves east with even more cool air on the way for the weekend. More news still coming up, but first, a quick break for our sponsor as we head into fall. I've been loving my Trade Coffee routine even more. When we have crisp mornings, I have a comforting hot cup. But when it still feels like summer outside, or sometimes even in the afternoon, I switch to a refreshing, delicious iced coffee. Thanks to Trade, I have great options and can enjoy whatever I'm craving because I know the beans are freshly roasted and delivered right to my door. I've discovered roasters I never would have found at the grocery store, and the flavors are always next level. The beans smell so fresh the moment I open the bag, even my kiddo tells me, wow, your coffee smells so good. And I agree with him. Trade works with more than 50 top roasters around the country, including a special collection just for cold brew. And if you're not sure where you want to start, you just take their quiz and in under a minute they'll match you with coffees you'll love, hot or cold. Plus, if that first bag is not quite right, Trade will even replace it for free until they nail it. Right now, trade is offering 50% off a one month trial at drinktrade.com newsworthy that's drinktrade.com newsworthy to get 50% off one month drinktrade.com newsworthy now back to the news. Football fans, the wait is over. The NFL season officially begins tonight when the defending super bowl champions, the Philadelphia Eagles played the Dallas Cowboys. Then tomorrow, the Kansas City Chiefs played the Los Angeles Chargers. And a full slate of games is set for Sunday, including some interesting ones. For example, quarterback Aaron Rodgers will play his first regular season game with the Pittsburgh Steelers against his last team, the New York Jets. And the Baltimore Ravens will face the Buffalo Bills in what's seen as an elite quarterback matchup between two time MVP Lamar Jackson and the reigning MVP Josh Allen. Of course those are just the first few out of 272 games this season. All of them lead to Super Bowl 60 in February. The world's largest illegal sports streaming site has been taken down, an American based anti piracy organization reported Stream east was under investigation for a year before officially being busted. The network offered free access to the NFL, NBA, MLB, Europe's top soccer leagues and more. There were 1.6 billion visits to the platform over the last year, mostly from the us, Canada, uk, the Philippines and Germany. Last year, video posted on social media even showed basketball star LeBron James watching an NBA game on Stream East. The network apparently originated from Egypt and two men were arrested there on suspicion of copyright infringement. Already copycat sites have popped up, but those are now under investigation too. A popular fast fashion site is facing new scrutiny over its choice of a model. The listing on Sheehan's site for a white shirt showed the suspect accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO. The photo appears to be fake or generated by artificial intelligence, since the accused killer is now in prison awaiting trial. It picked up traction online this week with many people outraged, so Sheehan took down the listing. The company explained that the photo was listed by a third party vendor and it's now doing an investigation. This is just the latest example of someone's image being used to advertise products without their knowledge. It's happened with many celebrities like Taylor Swift, Tom Hanks and Scarlett Johansson. And Vogue faced backlash when its issue featured a Guess ad that had a fake AI generated model. So far, no comment from the suspected gunman or his lawyers about his image being used. Well, there are new questions about the safety of gel manicures. Regulators in the European Union banned an ingredient found in many of the gels that are popular for being more durable than traditional nail polish. The problem is the ingredient known as TPO was deemed toxic in the EU after several studies found it can cause fertility issues. But some experts say the evidence is mostly based on studies in animals, not humans. So the ban is more precautionary than preventative. The gel manicures are still available in the US even those including tpo. So if you're concerned, you can request TPO free nail products, which are becoming more common after this EU ban. Today kicks off the 50th annual Toronto International Film Festival. Like other big fests, this one has a reputation as being a predictor of Oscars and other awards. The but one difference is events like Cannes or Venice Lean heavily into industry insiders and critics. Whereas in Toronto, studios and distributors are testing how movies will play with general audiences, and many highly anticipated movies are set to debut there this year. For example, the latest Knives out movie starring Daniel Craig, The World War II movie Nuremberg starring Rami Malek and Russell Crowe, a movie about the so called Rooftop Robber starring Channing Tatum and Kirsten Dunst, and many more. Hundreds of stars and filmmakers are expected to be there in person, including Angelina Jolie, Ryan Reynolds, Matthew McConaughey, Kerry Washington, and so on. The Toronto International Film festival runs through September 14th. Well, that's it for the May news today. So now it's time for Thing to Know Thursday. But first, this episode is sponsored by Quints. This time of year, as we start fall, I'll be looking for pieces that feel timeless, special and cozy. And Quince has all of that. For a milestone birthday recently, my friends gifted me a beautiful bracelet from Quince. I've been wearing it every day and I love how it elevates even my simplest outfits. It's the kind of piece that looks and is luxurious, but true to Quinn's style, costs a fraction of what you'd expect for that level of quality. And as the weather cools, I'm also bringing back my wool sweater from last year. It's soft, stylish and still looks brand new, the kind of fall staple that makes getting dressed easy. Quince offers 100% Mongolian cashmere from $50, washable silk tops, tailored denim and beautifully made accessories. And by partnering directly with ethical top tier factories and cutting out the middlemen, Quince gives you the luxury quality pieces at half the price of similar brands. Keep it classic and cozy this fall with long lasting staples from quince. Go to quince.comnewsworthy for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's Q-U-I-N-C-E.comnewsworthy to get free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.comnewsworthy now back to Thing to Know Thursday. It seems big diamonds are back in style. A lot of that has to do with the newly engaged celebrities who have been showing off their pricey rings lately. First, there was the massive pink diamond billionaire Jeff Bezos gave to his new bride, Lauren Sanchez Bezos. Then, of course, there's the ring Travis Kelce got for Taylor Swift. Jewelers say that one could be somewhere between 8 to 15 carats, but even that was nothing compared to the stone soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo proposed with. He gave Georgina Rodriguez a ring that takes up about a third of her finger and is estimated at 35 carats. But the trend is changing for everyday buyers too. People who in the past could only afford a small natural gem can now opt for a bigger lab grown version for less. And the supply of less expensive lab grown diamonds has brought down the price of the naturals too. Granted that may change since one of America's biggest diamond suppliers is India which now faces 50% tariffs. Either way, many brides to be have their hearts set on sizable stones. Last year diamond industry data analysts found the average size for natural diamond engagement rings was 1.4 carats. That's 50% larger than before lab grown diamonds appear and the average is expected to grow even more to match the latest fashion trends. Well, thank you so much for listening today and for making us part of your daily routine. We'll catch you up on more news to know tomorrow. Until then, have a great day. Sam.