Author: Jeffery Carter

USA OFFICIALLY BANS LGBT FLAG EMOJI: Washington, D.C. – In a landmark decision that has sent shockwaves across digital communication platforms, the United States government has officially banned the LGBT Pride flag emoji. This marks the second official emoji ban in the country’s history, following this mornings controversial decision to remove the Pregnant Man emoji from all federally approved digital keyboards. The move, announced in a late-night press release from the newly formed “Digital Integrity and Symbolism Oversight Committee,” cites concerns over “ideological neutrality” and “maintaining a standard set of emojis that align with national values.” “Emojis should represent universal…

Seven medical professionals are accused of providing ‘reckless’ and ‘deficient’ treatment to Maradona, who died in November 2020.Four years after the death of Argentinian football legend Diego Maradona, seven healthcare professionals will go on trial accused of negligence during his final days. More than 100 witnesses, including members of Maradona’s family and doctors who tended to him over the years, will take the stand over the course of the four-month trial, which starts on Tuesday in the Buenos Aires suburb of San Isidro. The seven defendants risk between eight and 25 years in jail if convicted. Diego Armando Maradona died…

Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading: Okta — Shares surged 24% after the cloud software firm posted a fourth-quarter earnings and revenue beat. Okta reported adjusted earnings of 78 cents per share on revenue of $682 million, while analysts polled by LSEG expected 74 cents in earnings per share and $670 million in revenue, according to LSEG. GitLab — Shares gained 12% after the software platform posted a fourth-quarter earnings and revenue beat. On the other hand, GitLab guided for full-year earnings that came in below what analysts polled by FactSet had expected. Target — Worries around…

Alvarez | E+ | Getty ImagesHome prices have been rising, and so have down payments.The median down payment among homebuyers in December was $63,188, according to a recent report by Redfin. That’s up 7.5%, or about $4,000, from a year prior.”That is mostly reflecting the fact that home prices have increased,” said Chen Zhao, an economist at Redfin.On top of high home prices, other issues homebuyers face include high inflation, volatile mortgage rates and limited savings balances.The typical homebuyer down payment was equal to about 16.3% of the purchase price in December, when the median home-sale price was $428,000, per…

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday creating a strategic bitcoin reserve, marking a major shift in U.S. digital asset policy.White House Crypto and AI Czar David Sacks, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist, wrote in a post on X that the reserve will be funded exclusively with bitcoin seized in criminal and civil forfeiture cases, ensuring that taxpayers bear no financial burden.According to estimates, the U.S. government controls approximately 200,000 bitcoin, though no full audit has ever been conducted. Trump’s order mandates a comprehensive accounting of federal digital asset holdings and prohibits the sale of bitcoin from the…

Why Is Gap (GAP) Stock Rocketing Higher Today Shares of clothing and accessories retailer Gap (NYSE:GAP) jumped 18.9% in the pre-market session after the company reported impressive fourth quarter results that beat analysts’ revenue and EPS expectations. What drove shares up was the full-year guidance for operating profit growth. The company called for 8-10% growth, which was well above expectations. While store closures continued as part of its optimization strategy, growth in online sales and improved operating efficiency should help sustain profitability. Overall, this was a strong quarter, with the company positioning itself for solid earnings growth. The shares closed…

You read that headline correctly! The best deals for TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 tickets are about to end in just 7 days. Save up to $1,130 on individual passes and up to 30% on group tickets. Don’t wait — these offers end on February 28 at 11:59 p.m. PT. Join us in celebrating 20 years of TechCrunch Disrupt from October 27-29 at Moscone West in San Francisco. Connect with 10,000+ tech leaders, dive into 250+ sessions, and gain valuable insights from 200+ experts. Plus, experience the legendary Startup Battlefield 200 and next-level AI insights. Register now to secure the biggest Disrupt…

Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy weight loss drug has seen a meteoric rise in popularity. Nurphoto | Getty ImagesNovo Nordisk on Wednesday said it will offer its weight loss drug Wegovy for less than half of its usual price per month through a new direct-to-consumer online pharmacy.The cash-pay offering is available to millions of patients without insurance coverage for the blockbuster injection. It aims to make Wegovy available to more people, while also ensuring that patients use the branded medication instead of cheaper compounded copycats that exploded in popularity during a recently resolved U.S. shortage of Novo Nordisk’s drug.The pharmacy, called NovoCare, will…

US President Donald Trump waits to greet British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the entrance of the West Wing of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 27, 2025. Carl Court | Afp | Getty ImagesTensions between the U.S. and Europe have hit something of a low in recent weeks — and China could be poised to use the spat to bolster its relationships on the continent.Transatlantic strains came to head last week during a disastrous meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office. What started out as a…

Who: India vs New ZealandWhat: ICC Champions Trophy 2025 finalWhen: Sunday at 1pm (09:00 GMT)Where: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates After 14 matches and 18 days, the elite one-day international (ODI) men’s competition comprising the world’s top eight teams has whittled down to a battle between the top two contenders. India and New Zealand meet in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai on Sunday. Here’s everything you need to know about the big showdown: Why is Dubai hosting the Champions Trophy final? In the months preceding the Champions Trophy, the ICC found itself…