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The 8 headlines that our followers ranked as the most conversational are:
THE SEC IS TARGETING MORE COLLEGES FOR EXPANSION
According to Barstool Sports’ Jack McGuire, the SEC has been in contact with Ohio State, Clemson, Florida State and Michigan amid massive expansion talks. The conference is already on the verge of adding Texas and Oklahoma. However, it sounds like the SEC wants to control as much territory as possible. If the SEC does try to steal these four teams, you’re going to see a civil war break out in the world of college football unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.
[SOURCE: dailycaller.com / ENGAGEMENT: 15.84%]
SIX INJURED AFTER MAN DRESSED AS SPIDER-MAN ATTACKS WORKERS
A shocking video has surfaced on Twitter that shows a man dressed as Spider-Man punch and kick a female staff member at an Asda branch in London. In the clip, the man – dressed in a superhero ensemble – appears to walk into the Clapham Junction supermarket before attacking a female member of staff. A spokesperson for Metropolitan Police confirmed that five people between the age of 17 and 37, (including a 17-year-old and an 18-year-old girl) were arrested on suspicion of affray and violent disorder after police were called to the disturbance just before midnight on Thursday.
[SOURCE: indy100.com / ENGAGEMENT: 6.69%]
SPOKESPERSON DENIES REPORT PRINCE HARRY IS WRITING MORE THAN ONE BOOK
Earlier this week, Prince Harry made headlines with an announcement that he is writing a “intimate” and “heartfelt” literary memoir. The Daily Mail added a report claiming that Prince Harry’s publishing deal is actually for four books, including an additional book not to be published until after the Queen’s death. A spokesperson for the Sussexes denies the story, saying that contrary to false media reports, Prince Harry only has one memoir in the works.
[SOURCE: townandcountrymag.com / ENGAGEMENT: 3.72%]
WALT DISNEY WORLD TO PERMANENTLY RETIRE TWO SHOWS
“EPCOT Forever” will conclude its planned limited-time run on September 28, and you have until September 29 to take in the spectacle of “Happily Ever After” at Magic Kingdom Park. Harmonious and Disney Enchantment will replace the aforementioned shows, and both debut on October 1st, 2021 at the start of “The World’s Most Magical Celebration” to mark the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World.
[SOURCE: wdwnt.com / ENGAGEMENT: 3.60%]
HUCKABEE SANDERS SHATTERS RECORD FOR MONEY RAISED IN GOVERNOR CAMPAIGN
The former White House Press Secretary under President Trump and daughter of former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee has made a massive wave in the 2020 races in America. According to her campaign she has raised over $9 million in her bid to be Arkansas next governor. According to her campaign, Sanders will report $4.2 million in the second quarter, including more than $1.5 million from Arkansans, increasing her total to $9.1 million from over 67,000 donors.
[SOURCE: thedcpatriot.com / ENGAGEMENT: 3.21%]
NBC HAS 33-YEAR LOW VIEWERSHIP FOR TOKYO OLYMPICS OPENING CEREMONY
The Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony, delayed a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, drew 16.7 million viewers for NBC on Friday, the smallest audience for the network broadcast in the past 33 years, according to data from the Comcast-owned NBCUniversal on Saturday. The TV audience dropped 37% from the Rio de Janeiro opening ceremony in 2016, when 26.5 million people watched, and 59% from 2012, when 40.7 million people watched the London opener. Reuters described Friday’s fall, the lowest since the 1988 Seoul Games, as a “steep drop.”
[SOURCE: foxnews.com / ENGAGEMENT: 2.41%]
BOSTON BEER STOCK TUMBLES 26% ON WEAK TRULY HARD SELTZER SALES
Shares of Boston Beer closed Friday down 26% after disappointing demand for hard seltzer dragged down the company’s quarterly earnings and revenue. The Sam Adams brewer reported earnings of $4.75 per share on net sales of $603 million. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv expected earnings of $6.69 per share and revenues of $658 million. The company laid the blame for the disappointing quarter on softer-than-expected demand for hard seltzer. Boston Beer owns Truly Hard Seltzer, one of the top brands in the category, but new competition and slowing growth were among the factors that hurt the brand’s sales this quarter.
[SOURCE: cnbc.com / ENGAGEMENT: 2.34%]
YANKEES LOSE NO-HITTER, GAME TO RED SOX WITH DISASTROUS EIGHTH INNING
The Red Sox’s 5-4 win was a stunner and a heartbreaker for the Yankees due to the circumstances at Fenway Park and their dire place in the AL East standings. Domingo German took a no-hitter and a four-run lead into the eighth inning, and he exited after Alex Verdugo’s leadoff double over right fielder Greg Allen’s head. Jonathan Loaisiga entered the game, and could not retire any of the four Red Sox he faced, yielding hits to Hunter Renfroe (RBI double), Christian Vazquez (RBI single), Franchy Cordero and Enrique Hernandez (RBI double). Entering with runners at second and third, Zack Britton yielded the tying run on pinch-hitter Kevin Plawecki’s groundout to shortstop. The go-ahead run scored on Xander Bogaerts’ medium-depth sacrifice fly to right, with Hernandez skidding across the plate with an aggressive head-first slide. Matt Barnes stranded the tying run on second base in the ninth, getting Rougned Odor on a pop out to the delight of 32,009 fans – nearly silent for the first seven innings Sunday.
[SOURCE: https://www.usatoday.com / ENGAGMENT: 2.10%]
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 the past day.
A full weeks’ data (from Friday to Friday) is compiled, weighed, and sorted to produce the content for the Weekly Wrap-Up 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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