Good morning! Looking forward to a BBQ this weekend? Lab-grown meat might one day be on the menu, as the USDA approves 2 separate businesses to sell their products to consumers. Today we’re exploring:
Losing the battle, and the war
Fewer 13-year-olds are unwinding at the end of the day with a good novel, as only 14% reportedly say they "read for fun," according to the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress.
The survey runs alongside the federal test commonly known as the nation's report card, which revealed that Math and English scores for 13-year-olds have fallen to their lowest level in decades — even underperforming the 2020 results, when education was disrupted heavily by the pandemic.
Focusing on reading specifically, the average scores have fallen from 260 to 256 compared to 2020 and now stand 7 points below the 2012 average score of 263.
The great escape
It's widely believed that reading for pleasure correlates with improved test performance, and the latest data does little to dispel that notion, as students who reported reading for fun almost every day scored on average 275, surpassing those who read less frequently in their spare time.
It's hard not to jump to the conclusion that the rise of screens and the internet has contributed to the slow demise of "reading for fun", with instant gratification the norm for so many of us. Perhaps most concerning is the 31% of students who reported "never or hardly ever" reading, up from just 9% in 1999.
Blocked
Meta is planning to follow through on threats to block Canadians from sharing any news on Facebook and Instagram, after the country’s Senate passed a law requiring social media platforms pay news outlets to share their stories.
The new law, known as the Online News Act, intends to create a more level playing field between big tech and the publishing industry — forcing search engines and social media platforms to engage in some kind of negotiation for licensing news content.
Drop the news, it's cleaner
Although not quite the news portal it once was, Facebook is still the most common social media site to go to for information. 28% of people in a recent survey by the Reuters Institute said they had used the platform for news in the last week, more than YouTube (20%), Twitter (11%), and Meta's other property, Instagram (14%).
Canada, however, isn’t the first country to entertain this kind of legislation. In 2021, Meta blocked news from its platform in Australia after the country passed a similar law — eventually leading to deals between major publishers and the site.
Related reading: Keep an eye out on Sunday for our latest deep dive into digital media.
3M to pay 10B
Industrial giant 3M has reached a $10.3 billion settlement with cities and towns across America, over claims that drinking water was contaminated by potentially harmful “forever chemicals”.
3M traces its roots back to a small mining venture in 1902, called the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company. Since then, the company has grown into an industrial giant with more than 60,000 products including consumer brands like Scotch (tape) and Post-It (notes).
It's PFAS products, substances used in a range of consumer products including nonstick cookware, firefighting foam and some cosmetics, that are the source of the issue. The company has pledged to stop making and using PFAS by the end of 2025.
Although it’s an eye-watering total sum — equivalent to nearly 2 years of the sprawling company’s profits — 3M's share price is actually up ~2% this morning, perhaps indicating some investor “relief” that this legal claim is now in the company’s rear view mirror. The money is to be provided over a 13-year period to test for and treat any contamination from PFAS. The company did not admit any liability with the settlement.
Earning their moniker because they don’t easily break down in nature or in the human body, forever chemicals have been linked to a variety of health problems, and PFAS lawsuits have been piling up against 3M and other companies for years (one story even became a Hollywood blockbuster called Dark Waters). 3M alone is reported to be facing some 4,000 lawsuits over the issue.
• Surely the most annoying thing about climate change: a few more "mosquito days" — when hot and humid weather brings out everyone's least-favorite insects.
• Warren Buffett’s charitable giving has now exceeded $50 billion, after he donated a further $4 billion worth of Berkshire Hathaway shares.
• New data from the US Census shows the median age in the US has risen to 38.9 years, up from 35 in 2000.
• Some great aerial pictures in the 2023’s Drone Photo Awards.
• How does your city rank in The Economist’s latest liveability index?
Off the charts: Edgy media upstart Vice has been sold for $225m after its bankruptcy, but what was the peak valuation of the edgy upstart? [Answer below].
Answer here.
