Good morning readers. Amelia Earhart's enigmatic vanishing act over the Pacific Ocean, a mystery that has gripped the world for nearly nine decades, might finally see some closure. Deep Sea Vision, an ocean exploration company, has potentially unearthed a vital clue: an underwater anomaly resembling Earhart's Lockheed 10-E Electra (the airplane she was flying). Using sonar imaging, they scoured the ocean floor, 100 miles from her last known location, sparking hope of solving "the greatest mystery of all time." However, experts remain cautious, emphasizing the need for further investigation. The race to solve aviation's greatest riddle continues, with Earhart's legend soaring once more into the public imagination.

Let’s jump into today’s storylines.

In today’s digest:

• Social Media CEO’s head to Capitol Hill

• Headline Hustle: Non-opiod painkiller shows positive signs in late-stage trials, U.S. and China hold talks on curbing chemicals, Elon Musk’s $56 billion pay package gets rejected

• The theory Taylor Swift is an operative for the Democratic party

• Pulse Points: What’s Trending

LAW

Social media CEOs head to Congress for child online safety hearing

In a move that's less 'social media update' and more 'C-SPAN must-watch', CEOs of major social media platforms are set to appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee to discuss their companies' policies concerning child and teen safety online. The hearing, ominously titled "Big Tech and the Online Child Sexual Exploitation Crisis," will feature Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, Linda Yaccarino of X, Shou Chew of TikTok, Jason Citron of Discord, and Evan Spiegel of Snap, all under the congressional spotlight.

The mere presence of these CEOs highlights the gravity of the issues at hand, a departure from the usual practice of sending legal or policy representatives to such hearings.

The hearing's agenda is as broad as it is concerning

The agenda casts a wide net:

• It encompasses issues ranging from fentanyl sales on Snapchat to white supremacist extremism on X and self-harm and suicide content on TikTok.

• The inclusion of Discord in this line-up is particularly notable, given its popularity among young users and the concerning reports of sextortion and child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on the platform.

While tech giants are expected to showcase recent platform and policy changes aimed at enhancing the safety of young users, there are lingering questions about why these safeguards were not integrated from the outset.

The pièce de résistance of this hearing is the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA). This legislation seeks to compel tech platforms to take additional steps to shield children from harmful online content. But it's not all sunshine and rainbows, as critics warn of potential internet censorship and repercussions for the LGBTQ community. Organizations like GLAAD, the ACLU, and the EFF stand in opposition, while the American Academy of Pediatrics and Fairplay champion the cause, emphasizing the urgent need for child protection online.

But here’s where things get interesting…Snap's surprising endorsement of KOSA. Some speculate that this move could be a strategic play to curry favor with regulators and potentially impact the fate of its rival, TikTok. The company’s maneuver echoes a similar situation in 2018 when Meta, then Facebook, supported FOSTA-SESTA laws, which, despite their intention to combat online sex trafficking, had unintended consequences for sex workers and online spaces.

Zoom out: As the CEOs step into the spotlight, all eyes are on the showdown in Congress, where the future of online child protection hangs in the balance.

Headline Hustle

💊 Non-opiod painkiller shows positive results in late-stage trials. Vertex Pharmaceuticals has made significant progress in the development of its experimental painkiller, VX-548, which has shown promise in reducing post-surgery pain in late-stage trials. While it did not outperform a popular opioid, this marks a step towards a non-addictive pain relief solution in the midst of the opioid epidemic. Vertex plans to seek FDA approval for VX-548's use in treating moderate-to-severe acute pain by mid-year. Analysts predict the drug, which blocks pain signals at their source, could become a billion-dollar success if approved. Vertex's shares surged over 2% in response to the news.

🇺🇸 🇨🇳 U.S. and China hold talks on curbing chemicals amid thaw in relations. U.S. and Chinese officials have convened in Beijing to address the crisis fueled by chemical ingredients, including fentanyl, amid a warming in diplomatic relations. Following President Biden and President Xi's summit, lower-level delegates are now navigating finer aspects of the bilateral relationship. The talks signify a return to face-to-face diplomacy that had waned in recent years. The focus is on curbing the sale of chemical precursors for drugs, particularly to Mexican cartels, as the Biden administration seeks Chinese cooperation in tackling the U.S. opioid epidemic. While challenges persist, this dialogue is seen as a positive step in bilateral ties.

❌ Musk’s $56 billion pay package gets rejected. A Delaware judge has ruled that Tesla CEO Elon Musk's record-breaking $56 billion compensation package is invalid due to a lack of evidence of fair negotiation by the company's board. Tesla's stock fell approximately 3% in after-hours trading following the decision in response to a shareholder lawsuit. The judge ordered discussions on a final order for Musk to return his compensation, with the option for Musk to appeal to the Delaware Supreme Court. The 2018 pay package had made Musk the world's richest person. The judge also found that Musk, effectively controlling Tesla, led a flawed process with compromised negotiations. Tesla and Musk's lawyers failed to prove shareholders were fully informed.

MEDIA

Apparently Taylor Swift is a “Pentagon asset”

It looks like Taylor Swift has found herself in the crosshairs of right-wing media's most colorful characters. As the Kansas City Chiefs march towards Super Bowl LVIII, a bizarre narrative is taking shape, painting Swift as a pawn in a vast conspiracy involving the NFL, the Democratic Party, and, of course, the quest to secure the 2024 presidential election for Joe Biden.

T. Swift the operative

The stage was set when influential MAGA Media personalities lit the fuse, casting Swift and her beau, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, as unwitting pawns in a grand scheme orchestrated by the NFL and the Democratic Party. Their mission? To secure the 2024 presidential election for Joe Biden. This narrative gained momentum when Jesse Watters of Fox News called Swift a "Pentagon asset," exploding into a full-on inferno of speculation and accusation this Monday.

Notable figures like Vivek Ramaswamy and Jack Posobiec have spearheaded the notion that Swift is a pawn manipulated to influence the upcoming presidential election.

• They argue that she is being used by powerful entities, including the Democratic Party, to wage a campaign against former President Donald Trump.

• This conspiracy theory, however, stretches the limits of credibility and paints Swift as a mere puppet in a shadowy game.

But here's the reality. Celebrity endorsements in politics are as common as glitches in software updates. Swift, with her colossal platform, has been vocal about her political stances, urging fans to vote and expressing her support for Biden in 2020. But to leap from celebrity endorsement to mastermind of a political psyop? That's a stretch even Reed Richards would envy.

So what’s the endgame? We’re not sure there is one. But imagine if T. Swift really was an operative for sleepy Joe?

SNIPPETS

Pulse Points

• In 2023, Norway's sovereign wealth fund reported a record profit of 2.22 trillion kroner ($213 billion), driven by strong returns from technology stocks, marking its highest return in kroner ever with a 16.1% annual investment return.

• PayPal will cut about 2,500 jobs (or 9% of global workforce) and UPS announces 12,000 job cuts as layoffs continue in 2024.

• Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev lost a lawsuit accusing Sotheby's of aiding in art purchase overpayments.

• Walmart announced a three-for-one stock split as its shares near their all-time high.

• Carnival announced the rerouting of a dozen ship itineraries scheduled for the Red Sea due to rising tensions in the Middle East.

• Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan received a 14-year jail sentence for graft, a day after a 10-year sentence for leaking state secrets.

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