These are the top maybe-not headlines from the past 84-hours presented by The Conversation Project from raw engagement data from our social media to the headlines posted over the past weekend.
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The 8 topics that our followers ranked as the most conversational are:
BRIE BELLA REVEALS DANIEL BRYAN HAS AN AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE, WILL GO INTO QUARANTINE AFTER WRESTLEMANIA 36 TAPINGS
WWE is taping WrestleMania 36 and several episodes of Raw and SmackDown at the WWE Performance Center this week due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. And while two of its stars have already reportedly gone in quarantine (Rey Mysterio and Dana Brooke), Daniel Bryan will apparently step away from WWE television for several weeks after the tapings by putting himself in quarantine. Brie Bella, Bryan’s wife, revealed on The Bellas Podcast this week that the former world champion has an autoimmune disease and is it high risk by being down in Florida during the pandemic. Bryan said on a separate recent episode of the show that he’s considering ending his career as a full-time wrestler later this year. All signs point to Bryan challenging Sami Zayn for the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania, though the match hasn’t been made official on WWE television of yet.
[SOURCE: comicbook.com]
CORONAVIRUS LONG ISLAND: LONG BEACH CLOSES BOARDWALK INDEFINITELY AMID COVID-19 EPIDEMIC
The city of Long Beach has closed its boardwalk indefinitely in an effort to encourage social distancing amid the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic. City officials report that on nice days, the boardwalk was crowded with too people — many of them from other areas of Long Island. City Council President John Bendo said the beaches will remain open. Bendo said he is concerned about the rise in cases in Long Beach. About a week ago, the city had only five cases. But as of Wednesday afternoon, the number of cases stood at 62. He said closing the boardwalk is necessary in order to encourage social distancing. Nassau County Executive Laura Curran applauded the City of Long Beach for closing the boardwalk, saying that’s how officials can ensure we flatten the curve. The entrances to the beach have also been closed for the length of the boardwalk. The beach remains open, however, at the far west and east ends of Long Beach where there is no boardwalk.
[SOURCE: abc7ny.com]
TRUMP SAYS US WILL NOT PAY FOR PRINCE HARRY, MEGHAN MARKLE’S SECURITY
President Donald Trump says the United States will not foot the estimated $1 million-a-year bill for security for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle after the couple jetted to California amid the coronavirus pandemic. Page Six reported on Friday that the couple left their $14 million bolthole in Canada and took a private jet to the Los Angeles area after President Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the borders were closing amid the coronavirus crisis. There were reports the pair – who have both criticized President Trump – may need to ask him for “special help” for security protection because the UK taxpayer will no longer fund their guards following their decision to step down as senior royals. However, Trump tweeted on Sunday, “I am a great friend and admirer of the Queen & the United Kingdom. It was reported that Harry and Meghan, who left the Kingdom, would reside permanently in Canada. Now they have left Canada for the U.S. however, the U.S. will not pay for their security protection. They must pay!” A rep for Harry and Meghan said, “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have no plans to ask the US government for security resources. Privately funded security arrangements have been made.”
[SOURCE: pagesix.com]
FORMER SEN. TOM COBURN, FISCAL HAWK AND ‘DR. NO,’ DIES AT 72
Former Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn, whose inflexible support of conservative policies placed him at the heart of many major congressional battles, has died at the age of 72. His former communications director, John Hart, confirmed that Coburn died Saturday morning “after a long battle with prostate cancer.” Coburn served his state in Congress for two decades — first as a representative in the House, then, after a three-year spell out of office, as a senator during the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Coburn rarely hesitated to spar with the latter over policy, despite his close personal friendship with the Democrat. By the time he announced his early departure from the Senate in 2014, citing a fifth bout with cancer, the obstetrician-turned-congressional fiscal hawk had earned a reputation for obstinacy in pursuit of a slimmer federal budget — and a fitting nickname to go along with it: “Dr. No.” Perhaps few of his works were more emblematic of his time in Congress than his annual “Wastebook,” a regular compilation of examples of what he deemed to be flagrantly unnecessary government spending.
[SOURCE: npr.org]
A RESTAURANT IN SOUTH CAROLINA HAS BEEN ACCUSED OF RESELLING COSTCO PIZZAS AT A 700% MARKUP AS ‘GOURMET ROMAN-STYLE THIN CRUST PIZZA’
There’s nothing unusual about an $18 to $20 gourmet pizza from an upscale wine bar. But there’s definitely something unusual about passing off a $2 to $2.50 frozen pizza from Costco as an $18 to $20 gourmet pizza from an upscale wine bar. That’s what may have been happening at Charleston, South Carolina restaurant Coquin, the Post and Courier first reported. Coquin opened in October 2019 as a neighborhood tapas and wine bar. This week, diners and Coquin employees tipped off the Post and Courier, saying the $18 to $20 pizzas that Coquin was selling for delivery were actually just frozen Costco pizzas. Coquin started selling the pizzas on its website last weekend, marketing them on the restaurant’s Instagram. The restaurant’s owner, Chip Grimalda, says that Coquin has since sold around 20 pizzas a day. A reporter from the Post and Courier watched Grimalda go from the restaurant to his private apartment after receiving a pizza-delivery order. Grimalda then left to deliver pizzas in boxes marked, “Fresh Pizza, Oven Baked.” The reporter then found four-pack boxes for frozen Costco pizzas in the dumpster outside Coquin. A four-pack of Kirkland Signature Cheese Pizza with Breadcrumb Crusts costs around $10, or $2.50 per pizza. The mark-up if sold for $20 each? 700%. When asked if he was passing off Costco pizza as homemade, Grimalda told the Post and Courier reporter, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. It’s definitely not Costco, and that’s all I have to say.”
[SOURCE: businessinsider.com]
ELDERLY NYC WOMAN DIES OF CORONAVIRUS MINUTES AFTER HOSPITAL DISCHARGE
A 71-year-old Queens woman who had been diagnosed with coronavirus died just minutes after being discharged from the hospital, police sources told The Post. Carolyn Frazier was released from New York Presbyterian Queens Hospital Friday at about 10 a.m., despite doctors diagnosing her with the COVID-19 virus, the sources said. A private ambulance took Frazier back to her home on Parsons Blvd. in Flushing—but she had passed away by the time it arrived. The woman was pronounced dead at 10:14 a.m., less than half an hour after she’d left the medical center, sources said. It was not immediately clear why Frazier — who suffered underlying medical issues including high blood pressure and diabetes — was allowed to leave the hospital.
[SOURCE: nypost.com]
EMERGENCY FIELD HOSPITAL BEING BUILT IN CENTRAL PARK TO DEAL WITH CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK CITY
New York City’s famed Central Park will be home to a field hospital that will provide care for patients who are battling COVID-19, the disease associated with coronavirus. Tents are being put up in the park’s East Meadow to serve as emergency care by Mount Sinai Health System, various governmental agencies and humanitarian aid organization Samaritan’s Purse, Mount Sinai confirmed Sunday. The field hospital is set to open Tuesday.
[SOURCE: nbcnews.com]
ROMAN REIGNS HAS PULLED OUT OF WWE WRESTLEMANIA
Pro Wrestling Sheet is reporting that Roman Reigns has pulled out of the show. Reigns reportedly told officials that he did not feel comfortable doing the show at the Performance Center during the coronavirus pandemic. Reigns’ immune system is compromised due to his battle with leukemia and he did not want to take the risk. If you recall, we noted two weeks that Reigns expressed concern even before WWE announced the move to the Performance Center when he liked a tweet from a fan suggesting for him to pull out of the event. WWE is taking every precaution possible to make sure that their performers are not exposed to the virus. Obviously, anyone with underlying health issues or anyone at an advanced age has a higher risk of serious complications if they are exposed to the virus. There is no word yet on if other wrestlers have pulled out of the show but we’ll post updates if we hear more. WrestleMania matches were taped on Wednesday and Thursday and will air on the WWE Network on Saturday, April 4 and Sunday, April 5. There is no word yet on what the alternate plans were for Goldberg vs. Reigns for the Universal Championship.
[SOURCE: wrestlingnews.co]
Eight Things To Talk About uses the raw engagement data from the social media engagement from The Conversation Project to generate the top-ranking headlines over the course of a weekend.
A full weeks’ data (from Friday to Friday) is compiled, weighed, and sorted to produce the content for the Wrap-Up Show with J Cleveland Payne, published every Saturday as a podcast available at ThisIsTheConversation.com or wherever your favorite podcasts are found.
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