[clock ticking]
[music playing]
CARL AZUZ: Another billionaire is
buying another media company.
The reasons why and the concern surrounding the deal
are all part of today's down the middle coverage.
I'm Carl Azuz thankful to have you watching.
We'll start with the company being bought.
Twitter is a social media giant.
Hundreds of millions around the world
regularly use it, sharing their thoughts
in tweets that are limited to 280 characters or less.
The company has grown tremendously
since it was founded in 2006.
But it's been criticized for how it governs its users
and the information they share.
Many political conservatives, for example,
have said Twitter has a double standard, that it's
more likely to censor the tweets or suspend
the accounts of conservatives than it
is of political liberals.
Twitter has denied doing this, saying
its policies are based around users' behavior, not
where they stand politically.
But there have been several instances of Twitter appearing
to suppress or put warning labels
on conservative publications.
That brings us to a question asked recently by billionaire
businessman Elon Musk.
The founder of SpaceX has said in the past he's not
a conservative, that he's an independent whose
views are politically moderate.
But last month, Musk accused Twitter
of failing to adhere to the principles of free speech.
And he asked what should be done about that given
that the platform functioned as what
he called a public town square.
Well, he has decided to buy it.
The agreement, which is worth more than $40 billion,
is one of the biggest deals ever to put a public company
into private ownership.
Musk says he wants to make Twitter better than ever
by adding new features, making its algorithm
clearer to the public, and getting rid of spambots
on the platform.
Congressional Republicans called the deal a victory
for free speech and said they hoped it would keep technology
companies from, quote, "censoring users that
have a different viewpoint."
Musk is not the first billionaire
to buy a major media company.
In 2013, Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon,
bought the "Washington Post" newspaper.
In 2018, Marc Benioff, the founder of Salesforce,
bought "Time" magazine.
But there are critics of Musk's purchase of Twitter.
Brian Todd reports on what they're saying.
BRIAN TODD: The world's richest man buying up
one of the world's most powerful social media companies
generating huge buzz tonight.
Twitter has agreed to sell itself
to Elon Musk, the flamboyant, controversial CEO of Tesla
and SpaceX, for about $44 billion,
a deal that could bring enormous change to the popular platform.
BRIAN FUNG: What we're talking about
here is the confluence really of a number of conversations
we're having nationally and internationally about the power
of billionaires, for example, the influence of tech
platforms on democracies.
ELON MUSK: We're going to have an option--
BRIAN TODD: With this purchase, Twitter will now
be led by one of the quirkiest business
titans America's ever known.
Musk himself has used Twitter and has
more than 80 million followers to build his brand
but also to troll others.
MARA SCHIAVOCAMPO: You know, it's
hard to know when exactly to take him seriously
because he is so eccentric.
And so when this idea came up, we know that this would
cost him billions of dollars.
BRIAN TODD: Even with his quirks,
why should the average consumer care that Elon
Musk will lead Twitter?
BRIAN FUNG: Many of its users are
government officials or government
accounts or politicians or business leaders.
That could have really important effects on how the rest of us
perceive many of these topics that have so many
influential people engaging on.
BRIAN TODD: One concern critics have?
Musk's goal of bolstering free speech on Twitter
and his complaints about Twitter censoring too much content
and its permanent bans of some users.
JESSICA GONZALEZ: I don't think we actually
want an anything-goes Twitter because we've
seen that conspiracy theorists are willing to use the platform
to spread lies and disinformation,
to spread hate and harassment campaigns.
CARL AZUZ: Between January and December of 2021,
average gasoline prices in the United States rose about $1
per gallon or more than 45% over the course of the year.
In 2021, average grocery prices rose 3.5%.
And this year, prices for gas and food
have climbed even higher in part because
of widespread complications from the war in Ukraine.
The Biden administration says it's
not expecting a food shortage in the US during the months ahead.
But that may not hold true for the rest of the world.
CHRISTINE ROMANS: Russia's invasion
of Ukraine shocked the oil market,
sending crude skyrocketing and prices
at the pump to record highs.
But that could look like a blip compared to food prices.
Consider this.
Russia supplies 8% of global oil exports.
But Ukraine and Russia together supply about 29%
of all wheat exports.
The prospects of sharply curtailed supplies
from the world's breadbasket is sending
gyrations through the market.
Wheat futures surged in early March
and have been volatile ever since.
In the US, expect higher prices for bread and cereal, which
were rising even before Russia launched its war
in Ukraine late February.
But most US consumer brands don't rely on imported wheat.
So supply disruptions are unlikely.
But that's not the case for the rest of the world.
Russia and Ukraine are the top wheat suppliers
for Egypt, Turkey, Nigeria, Indonesia,
Bangladesh, and Pakistan.
And it's not just wheat.
Ukraine is also a major exporter of corn oil
and the world's largest supplier of sunflower oil.
Those prices have surged too as war prevents supply
from leaving the country.
Fears are growing that soaring prices
in the Middle East and Africa could fuel social unrest.
In the months before, world food prices hit a record high.
More than a decade later, prices are again in record territory.
And Russia's invasion of Ukraine is only
making the situation worse.
Cracks are already showing with recent protests
in Sri Lanka, Pakistan, and Peru over rising
food and fuel prices.
A food-crisis driven by shortages, skyrocketing prices,
and hunger could bring even more people to the streets.
CARL AZUZ: 10 Second Trivia--
what is the most commonly used password online?
123456, Qwerty, Password, or Default?
Cybersecurity experts say the world's most common
password is the first, 123456.
[music playing]
Passwords and you-- many of us get
annoyed at having to type upper and lower-case letters
and numbers and special characters
to get into online accounts.
But cybersecurity is a growing problem.
And all of the potential solutions have drawbacks.
The Verizon Wireless company says weak passwords or ones
that have been figured out or stolen
are responsible for more than 80% of data breaches
when someone who isn't authorized
gets into an account.
Some businesses require two-factor authentication
like when you're texted a code you have to enter
in addition to your password.
But hackers have reportedly found a way around those
as well.
CNBC reports that Apple, Google, and Microsoft
are working on ways to address password insecurity.
Instead of keyboard characters, your face or your fingerprint
would be used to unlock your online accounts.
Might sound more secure since only you
have your exact fingerprint.
But an image of that or your face can still be stolen.
So constantly having to change and update passwords
may still be easier.
[music playing]
Amazon has been given the green light
to build its HQ2, its second headquarters,
in Northern Virginia.
The estimated cost is $2 and 1/2 billion.
And it's supposed to have room for 25,000 workers.
But it's the helix design of it, which is unique,
that kind of reminded me of soft serve ice cream.
Other interpretations weren't all flattering.
- When it comes to its new second headquarters
to be built across the Potomac from Washington, DC,
Amazon's designers are thinking outside the box.
- (SINGING) Give a little bit of your love to me.
- The Arlington County Virginia Board
gave Amazon a lot of love--
KATIE CRISTOL: All those in favor, please say aye.
Aye.
[applause]
- --unanimously approving plans, including the helix building
with a walkable ramp surrounded by greenery,
sort of a mountain hike that the public
could access two days a month.
"Please tell me there's a slide to get down from the top
after you hike it."
Nope, sorry.
The height will be about 350 feet.
PETER SCHULZ: It does not have stories
in the traditional sense.
- Twitter invented stories, comparing the helix
to everything from a rotini to a spaceship in disguise
to the Tower of Babel.
Some noted similarities to an ancient mosque
built back in the 9th century in present-day Iraq.
The helix sure is eye catching, Amazon in its prime.
And while this commenter used a bedazzled emoji
to say how cool is this building,
someone else weaponized another popular emoji.
Looks pretty shiny to us.
CARL AZUZ: Guess if you're one of the world's wealthiest
companies, you're going to put your own spin on things,
try to turn heads, ramp up, spiral up, spring
forward, hang around, stay ahead of the curve,
design with a twist.
Sure, critics might be turned "Ama-zoff," but it will
raise eye lines to the skyline.
Kingwood Park High School is in Kingwood, Texas.
It is great to have you watching.
You get today's shout out.
I'm Carl Azuz for CNN.