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Adidas Cancels Ye and Ends a 10 Year Partnership
Adidas has cancelled its partnership with rap artist Ye formerly known as Kanye West, saying it couldn’t survive a growing backlash over the rapper’s racist and antisemitic remarks.
The breakup will leave Adidas looking for another transcendent personality to help it compete with ever-larger rival Nike, but it will certainly cost Ye, as the rapper is now known, even more. The footwear business is the latest to cut relations with Ye, whose music career has dwindled as he courted controversy.
Adidas estimated that the move to halt production of its Yeezy line and discontinue payments to Ye and his firms would cost them up to 250 million euros ($246 million) in net income this year. Its stock dropped more than 2% on Tuesday.
“Adidas does not allow antisemitism or any other type of hate speech,” a spokesperson said in a statement released Tuesday. “Ye’s recent words and actions are reprehensible, hostile, and dangerous, and they go against Adidas values of diversity and inclusion, mutual respect, and justice.”
For weeks, Ye has made antisemitic remarks in interviews and on social media, including a tweet earlier this month declaring that he would go “death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE,” a reference to the United States defence preparedness state scale known as DEFCON.
He was barred from using Twitter and Instagram.
Ye expressed regret in an interview with podcaster Lex Fridman that was broadcast online Monday, describing his initial tweet as a mistake and apologizing to “the Jewish community.” An email sent to a Ye spokesman was not immediately responded to.
Despite prior problems involving his comments about slavery and COVID-19 vaccines, Adidas has stood by Ye. However, Ye’s antisemitic remarks resurrected the company’s own ties to the Nazi system, which it had tried hard to break. During WWII, Adidas facilities “manufactured supplies and weaponry for the Nazi regime, using slave labour,” according to the World Jewish Congress.
Jewish organizations said the decision to eliminate Ye was long overdue.
“I would have liked a clear statement earlier from a German corporation that was also involved with the Nazi government,” said Josef Schuster, President and head of Germany’s Central Council of Jews, the country’s main Jewish organization.
Adidas, whose CEO Kasper Rorsted is retiring next year, said it decided following a “thorough evaluation” of its association with Ye, whose talent agency, CAA, and fashion company Balenciaga had already dumped the rapper.
Some Adidas employees in the United States have expressed on social media the company’s silence in the hours leading up to the announcement. Despite the rising backlash, Allen Adamson, co-founder of marketing firm Metaforce, feels Adidas’ delay was “understandable.”
“The benefits are enormous in terms of the demographic it appeals to — younger, urban, trendsetters, and the size of the business,” Adamson said. “I’m sure they hoped against hope that he’d apologize and try to make things right.”
According to Morningstar analyst David Swartz in a Tuesday report, the impact of Yeezy sales will be greater than projected because the brand has discontinued production of all Yeezy products and ceased royalty payments.
Swartz forecasts Adidas revenues of $23.2 billion euros ($23.1 billion) this year, with the Yeezy brand accounting for 1.5 billion to 2 billion euros ($1.99 billion), or roughly 10% of the total. According to Swartz, the expensive brand accounts for up to 15% of the company’s net income.
According to Forbes, Adidas accounted for $1.5 billion of Ye’s net worth, which will drop to $400 million without the transaction, which includes his music catalogue, real estate, cash, and a share in ex-wife Kim Kardashian’s shapewear firm Skims.
Despite the rapper’s long-held belief that the magazine grossly undervalues his fortune, Forbes has announced that it will no longer include Ye on its list of billionaires.
In recent years, Ye has alienated even his most fervent followers. After the couple’s acrimonious divorce and disturbing posts about her subsequent connection with comedian Pete Davidson, everyone close to him, including Kardashian and her family, has stopped openly defending him.
Many Ye fans have been disappointed, according to Carl Lamarre, Billboard’s deputy director of R&B/Hip Hop, but the implosion of his commercial ventures has been painful to witness for those who appreciated the rapper’s ability to reach new heights of success outside of hip-hop.
“This is someone who might perhaps lay down the pattern for many next performers,” Lamarre added. “When you see someone graduate to his level of superstardom and transcend into business, into fashion, and touches that billionaire point, that’s tremendously aspirational for our community, for hip-hop, for African Americans.”
“But the same students, including myself, who were previously huge supporters, you want to defend him, but every day he gives you a reason not to,” Lamarre remarked.
The 24-time Grammy winner has been progressively losing his radio audience, and his streaming figures have also dropped marginally in the last month.
His airplay audience has dropped from 8 million in the week ending Sept. 22 to 5.4 million in the week ending Oct. 20, according to statistics provided by Luminate, an entertainment data and insights company whose data fuels the Billboard music charts.
During the same time period, the popularity of his tracks on streaming on-demand fell from 97 million to 88.2 million, a 9% decrease.
Since 2016, when Ye was hospitalized in Los Angeles for what his team described as stress and tiredness, Ye has gained a reputation for stirring up trouble. He had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder; it was later revealed.
He has stated that slavery was a choice and referred to the COVID-19 vaccine as the “mark of the beast.” Earlier this month, during Paris Fashion Week, Ye was slammed by the woke on Twitter for wearing a “White Lives Matter” T-shirt to the show and dressing models in the same style.
Ye attempted to buy Parler, a conservative social network with no gatekeeper, after being suspended from Twitter and Facebook.
On Tuesday, the fashion, music, and garment industries distanced themselves from Ye.
Foot Locker announced a break with the Yeezy brand and the removal of Yeezy Adidas sneakers from its shelves and online sites.
Gap has stated that it will remove Yeezy Gap merchandise from its stores and close yeezygap.com.
According to Universal Music Group, which owns the Def Jam label, Ye’s music and merchandise contracts expired last year. The MRC studio stated on Monday that it is cancelling a full documentary about the rapper.
A Vogue representative stated on Tuesday that the magazine and its global editorial director, Anna Wintour, have no plans to work with Ye again after his recent controversial words and behaviour.
Jewish organizations have warned about the rapper’s remarks, which come from growing antisemitism. Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, who hailed Adidas’ decision to drop Ye on Tuesday, claimed his group had documented a tripling of anti-Jewish harassment, vandalism, or violence since 2015.
“We are currently dealing in a context where antisemitism is empirically on the rise,” Greenblatt added. “When people with significant platforms give antisemitism and other forms of bigotry license, it creates an environment in which these kinds of acts have a degree of permission they might not have had previously.”
Lamarre stated that he recognized Ye’s mental health and personal concerns but that it is even more necessary to halt and evaluate providing him with a platform for his hateful words.
News
Katie Ledecky Hopes For Clean Races At Paris Olympics In The Aftermath Of The Chinese Doping Scandal
PARIS — Katie Ledecky is looking for clean Olympic races. On Wednesday, Hope had pretty much reached her limit.
The American swimmer hopes to add to her six gold medals as she competes in the 400, 800, and 1,500 meters at the Paris Games. Her program starts with the heavy 400 on Saturday, featuring Ariarne Titmus and Summer McIntosh.
Katie Ledecky | ESPN Image
Katie Ledecky Hopes For Clean Races At Paris Olympics In The Aftermath Of The Chinese Doping Scandal
The 27-year-old Katie is competing in her fourth Summer Olympics, but the first since a doping scandal involving almost two dozen Chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned chemical before the Tokyo Games — yet were permitted to compete with no consequences. The controversy has raised serious worries regarding the effectiveness of anti-doping initiatives.
Katie Ledecky | Vogue Image
“I hope everyone here is going to be competing clean this week,” Ledecky claimed. “But what truly counts is, were they training cleanly? Hopefully this has been the case. Hopefully, there has been worldwide testing.”
The International Olympic Committee has expressed concern over the ongoing US investigation into possible doping by Chinese swimmers. While awarding the 2034 Winter Olympics to Salt Lake City on Wednesday, the IOC urged Utah officials to do whatever they could to stop the FBI investigation.
“I think everyone’s heard what the athletes think,” Katie added. “They seek transparency. They want more answers to the remaining questions. At this point, we are here to race. We are going to race whoever is in the lane next to us.
“We are not paid to conduct the tests, so we trust those who follow their regulations. That applies both today and in the future.
Katie Ledecky | ESPN Image
Katie Ledecky Hopes For Clean Races At Paris Olympics In The Aftermath Of The Chinese Doping Scandal
SOURCE | AP
As the summer holidays begin, London may experience an official heatwave with temperatures reaching up to 29 degrees Celsius.
The Met Office predicts a long period of sunny and dry weather for London after a soggy spring and summer.
After a cloudy day on Saturday, temperatures are expected to reach 27C on Sunday, with lots of sunlight.
On Monday and Tuesday, temperatures are forecast to peak at 29 degrees Celsius. Monday is forecast to offer more sunlight, while Tuesday may see some gloomy weather.
Temperatures are expected to remain in the high 20s next week, with lows of approximately 18C.
According to the Met Office, a heatwave is “an extended period of hot weather relative to the expected conditions of the area at that time of year, which may be accompanied by high humidity.”
In the United Kingdom, a heatwave is proclaimed when daily temperatures meet or surpass a certain level for at least three consecutive days.
In London, the heatwave threshold is 28 degrees Celsius.
The Met Office reported that the UK is experiencing hotter and wetter weather on average due to climate change.
The UK experienced its warmest May and April on record this year, despite damp and dismal conditions in many areas.
According to the Met Office’s State Of The UK Climate 2023 report published on Thursday, the UK experienced historic levels of extreme weather last year.
In the United Kingdom, 2023 was the second warmest year on record, bringing storms, flooding, strong heatwaves, and rising sea levels; only 2022 was warmer.
It was 0.8°C higher than the average from 1991 to 2020, and 1.66°C higher than the 1961 to 1990 average.
However, 2023 will be a “cool year” in comparison to 2100, based on the planet’s warming trajectory.
The government’s plan to adapt to the hazards presented by climate change is currently being challenged in the High Court by campaigners who allege the Tory administration’s July 2023 National Adaptation Programme (NAP) fails to adequately address 61 concerns.
Source: The Standard
(VOR News) – The European Union’s medical regulator has granted approval to Wegovy, a blockbuster weight loss treatment manufactured by Novo Nordisk, in order to expand its application to include the reduction of major heart events in overweight or obese adults.
In order to expand the scope of the medication’s applicability, this authorisation was granted. The purpose of obtaining this approval was to broaden the medicine’s application.
The Danish pharmaceutical company announced on Thursday that the European Medical Agency has formulated a “positive opinion” regarding the label’s expansion.
The agency made this determination after conducting a comprehensive examination of the results of a SELECT study that was subjected to rigorous monitoring. Other applications of the substance are facilitated by this conclusion.
The SELECT experiment, which was financed by Novo Nordisk and published in August 2023.
Wegovy and Ozempic contain semaglutide as the active ingredient.
Reduced the risk of major cardiovascular events by twenty percent when compared to a placebo. The researchers arrived at this conclusion. This realisation was the outcome of the researchers’ investigation.
The notion that the European Medicines Agency label for Wegovy should be amended is a significant step forward for patients who are coping with cardiovascular disease and obesity, according to Martin Holst Lange, executive vice president and director of development at Novo Nordisk.
The company’s statement, which was disclosed, indicated that the recommendation to update the label is a substantial advancement.
It is evident that Wegovy has the potential to save lives by reducing the likelihood of significant adverse cardiovascular events, as evidenced by the findings of the SELECT research. An additional benefit of participating in this exercise is that it helps individuals effectively manage their weight, which is a benefit in and of itself.
The company also stated that the label update incorporates data from the SELECT trial, which showed a 15% reduction in the risk of death from cardiovascular causes and a 19% reduction in the risk of death from any cause when compared to situations in which a placebo was used in conjunction with the product.
The SELECT trial was conducted in the United States, according to the company. Furthermore, the organisation disclosed that the SELECT investigation was conducted in the United States of America.
It is anticipated that the label amendment will be implemented within the next month, as per the statement issued by Novo Nordisk.
Wegovy has also been approved for use in the United States.
Similarly, the UK medical regulator has taken similar actions. The United Kingdom on Tuesday granted its clearance for the use of Wegovy to reduce the risk of significant cardiac difficulties or strokes in adults who are overweight or obese, such as heart attacks or strokes.
The Food and Drug Administration of the United States of America granted sanction for the medicine to be used in specific applications during the month of March.
This resulted in a rise in the number of distinct applications for the highly popular treatment, which coincides with the sector’s increasing level of competition.
On Thursday, Roche, a global pharmaceutical company with its headquarters in Switzerland, announced that its Wegovy competitor weight reduction tablets will be incorporated into a collection of pharmaceuticals designed to mitigate the adverse effects of obesity.
The pharmaceutical collection will encompass a diverse selection of weight loss medications.
The company’s Chief Executive Officer, Thomas Schinecker, conveyed his satisfaction with the exceptional early-stage trial results of the two potential weight-reduction pharmaceuticals that the company is currently developing. In addition, he asserted that these medications demonstrated the “best in disease potential.”
In making this assertion, Schinecker was alluding to the fact that the medications exhibited the “best in disease potential.” He also stated that they will be a part of a more comprehensive portfolio that is intended to set the Swiss company apart from its competitors in the growing obesity therapy market.
This adds insult to injury. This strategy will be implemented in order to distinguish the Swiss company from other businesses in the market.
SOURCE: CNBC
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