What to Know
- Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has apologized for a "major breach of trust," admitted mistakes and outlined steps to protect user data
- The latest effort to come up with a male birth control pill has found a formulation that appears to be safe, researchers said
- A female crew member on "The Grinder" sued actor Fred Savage and the network, accusing him of harassment and intimidating behavior on set
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Facebook Execs Admit Mistakes, Pledge More Security
Breaking five days of silence, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologized for a "major breach of trust," admitted mistakes and outlined steps to protect user data in light of a privacy scandal involving a Trump-connected data-mining firm. His mea culpa on cable television came a few hours after he acknowledged his company's mistakes in a Facebook post, but without saying he was sorry. The company's second-in-command, Sheryl Sandberg, shared Zuckerberg's post and echoed his sentiment. Zuckerberg and Sandberg had been quiet since news broke Friday that Cambridge Analytica may have used data improperly obtained from roughly 50 million Facebook users to try to sway elections. Facebook shares have dropped some 8 percent, lopping about $46 billion off the company's market value, since the revelations were first published. Even before the scandal broke, Facebook has already taken the most important steps to prevent a recurrence, Zuckerberg said.
"Crazy" Biden Would Go Down Crying If He Assaulted Me, Trump Says
Former Vice President Joe Biden said he would have "beat the hell" out of President Donald Trump if they were in high school together and Trump disrespected women. The comment prompted Trump to fire back that in such a hypothetical fight Biden would "go down fast and hard, crying all the way." Biden spoke at an anti-sexual assault rally at the University of Miami. Biden said any guy who disrespected women was "usually the fattest, ugliest S.O.B. in the room." The school's "It's on Us" rally sought to change on-campus culture surrounding sexual assault. Trump responded on Twitter. "Crazy Joe Biden is trying to act like a tough guy," he wrote. "Actually, he is weak, both mentally and physically, and yet he threatens me, for the second time, with physical assault. He doesn’t know me, but he would go down fast and hard, crying all the way. Don’t threaten people Joe!"
Texas Suspect's Recording Considered a “Confession,” Police Say
Local
Austin police have discovered a 25-minute recording on a cellphone found with bombing suspect Mark Conditt and police say they consider it a "confession." Police said at a news conference that Conditt talks on the recording in great detail about the differences among the bombs he built. They say the tape is "the outcry of a very challenged young man." Officials say the 23-year-old Conditt blew himself up in his vehicle as authorities closed in on him. Teams working inside the Austin-area home of suspected bomber Conditt have ordered an evacuation of the surrounding six blocks after finding a "treasure trove" of evidence, including homemade explosives. Officials have not said specifically what type of explosives were inside the 23-year-old man's Pflugerville home, which has been compared to a bomb-making factory, but did confirm explosives experts with the ATF and FBI were working to safely remove and dispose of the homemade devices and bomb-making material. NBC News has learned that many of the components used in the devices, such as galvanized steel pipe, different types of shrapnel and a low explosive, were "fairly rudimentary" and were easily purchased at home goods and electronics stores in person or online.
New Male Birth Control Pill Is Safe, Researchers Say
The latest effort to come up with a male birth control pill has found a formulation that appears to be safe, researchers said. NBC News reported Stephanie Page and her team are testing dimethandrolone undecanoate, a tweaked version of previous failed efforts to develop a male pill. Possibly the best hope yet for a non-permanent male contraceptive, it's being developed with funding from the National Institutes of Health. But the experimental pill has at least one of the same problems that plague female birth control pills: it caused the men to gain weight. And after just a few weeks of testing, it’s also not yet clear how well it works. Even though the researchers said they were “very excited” by the results, they haven’t been testing it long enough to show whether it decreases sperm production, and they haven’t shown whether it stops couples from conceiving.
Fred Savage Targeted in Harassment Lawsuit, Denies Accusations
A female crew member on the now-defunct Fox comedy series "The Grinder" sued actor Fred Savage and the network, accusing Savage of harassment and intimidating behavior on the set, but both the actor and Fox insisted the allegations are unfounded. YoungJoo Hwang, who worked in the costume department on the show, which co-starred Rob Lowe, claims in her Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit that she was subjected to a profane language and physical assault. Hwang contends other women on the show were also mistreated by Savage. Appearing at a late-morning news conference with attorney Anahita Sedaghatfar, Hwang said she was motivated to come forward by the #MeToo movement in Hollywood against sexual harassment. Savage, 41, best known for his work as a child actor on "The Wonder Years," issued a statement denying the allegations.
