A deadly tornado ripped through Oklahoma on Tuesday, destroying schools, homes, and killing 24 people. The city and the country are working to help the survivors and provide aid however possible. Yahoo announced that it will be buying Tumblr, and this has raised concerns about an influx of ads on the site. Yahoo is trying to connect with the younger crowd, but Tumblr users are just hoping that the company doesn’t “screw it up.” A British soldier was killed in a London street, causing an uproar talk about terrorist threats. Obama made his national security speech on Thursday, addressing the concerns about drone strikes and Guantanamo Bay. The strikes will continue, but with increased monitoring, and the detention center is on its way out.
These are just some details on the top news stories of this week. For more information, read on in this week’s NEWSFLASH!
Oklahoma Tornado Kills 24
A vicious tornado ripped through Moore, OK on Tuesday, killing 24 people. Although the number of fatalities went down from the initial report of 51, there was the possibility that the number could still rise in the following days. The two-mile wide tornado, which was given the most powerful ranking by the National Weather Service, hit five schools and demolished homes along its path. Over 200 people were injured, including young school children, but more than 100 people who were trapped under rubble were rescued.
Support came in from around the country to help those affected by the storm in the days following the aftermath. President Obama ordered federal aid to the state and has plans to visit the damaged area, country music star Toby Keith, who grew up in Moore, OK, is in talks with other country musicians about holding a benefit concert, Oklahoma City Thunder player Kevin Durant donated $1 million to the Red Cross, and several nonprofits began collections for supplies and monetary donations.
The town is slowly beginning to put the pieces back together, a process that will take a while for families and individuals who lost everything. However, Saturday brought happier moments with the graduation ceremonies of three high schools in the area, all of which were among the schools that were damaged. Many students and parents thanked the brave teachers that made smart moves to protect their students, and while the graduations were a celebration, it was also a time to remember those who were injured or those who did not survive.
Yahoo buys Tumblr for $1.1 billion
The week started off with some big news for social media and blog lovers when Yahoo announced that they would become the new owner of Tumblr. Yahoo’s new CEO Marissa Mayer is trying to give the new company a new edge, and this purchase provides an opportunity to tap into the younger generation that typically uses Tumblr. While this might be a great option for Yahoo, some Tumblr users are worried that this purchase might lead to a clutter of ads taking over the site. To ease the worried fans, Mayer published a post on her own Tumblr announcing the new deal, saying that Yahoo will operate Tumblr independently, and she also promised that they would “not to screw it up.”
Yahoo has seen some tough days with their more recent acquisitions and not everyone agrees that this was a smart choice for the company either. Mayer seems dedication to making this new partnership work, and now only time (and the stock market) will tell how this will play out.
British Soldier Killed in London
A British soldier was hacked to death in London by two men shouting Islamic slogans. The attack, which occurred Wednesday, has led to many suspicions of terrorist activity and arrests of suspects involved with the killing. Three suspects have been arrested as of Saturday, but politicians and religious leaders are calling for a calm in regards to a rising number of threats against Muslims. One of the suspects said that the attack served as revenge for British military deployments in Muslim countries, but officials say that the attack appears to be a “lone-wolf” episode. Britain is outraged by the brutal attack, and while authorities are dealing with the suspects, religious leaders are working on promotion tolerance.
From Drones to Guantanamo Obama Talks National Security
The use of drones, or unmanned aircrafts, has been a hot topic for Obama and the government. Although some drones are used just for intelligence, they also have the power to target suspected terrorist, and Obama recently admitted that four American citizens have been killed in these attacks. Although these strikes did not occur recently, this is the first time that news of these deaths has been released to the public. Obama addressed the drone strikes during his National Security Speech on Thursday, saying that the use of drones will continue. Previously, the CIA had been allowed to launch strikes, but now the strikes will be monitored much more closely by the White House administration.
The President also mentioned the future of Guantanamo Bay and his plan to shut it down. He spoke of resuming the process of transferring prisoners who are cleared for release and the self-imposed ban on sending prisoners back to Yemen was lifted. In his speech, Obama voiced his concern about how the concept of Guantanamo Bay goes against American standards. He questioned the rationality of detaining people who have been charged with no crime in a detention center on land that is not part of the country, and he also addressed the concerns of the hunger strikes that have been occurring.