The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 11.15 Horrifying After School Beating Turns Into 8 Murder Charges, Pokimane Scandal, Gaza, & Today’s News

Episode Date: November 15, 2023

Go to http://partner.bokksu.com/defranco and use code DEFRANCO to get $15 off your Bokksu Japanese snack subscription box! Transform your style statement at  http://www.vessi.com/defranco  for their best deals of the year! Free shipping to CA, US, AU, JP, TW, KR, SGP. shhh this is a secret link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE0YARXGNfc –✩ TODAY’S STORIES ✩ – 00:00 - Las Vegas Teen Dies After Being Attacked by 15 Teens While Defending Friend 04:01 - UK Baby With Incurable, Painful Condition Dies After Legal Battle 06:03 - Pokimane Denies Claims Snack Company Copied Other Cookie Brand 09:03 - Sponsored by Bokksu 10:07 - Paul Pelosi And His Attacker Testify in Dramatic Trial 12:34 - Israel Raids Al Shifa Hospital 15:51 - Concerns Mount in Case Over Reporters Being Forced to Disclose Confidential Sources 17:50 - Sponsored by Vessi 18:44 - FTC Cracks Down on the Food Industry and Paid Influencer “Dietician” Posts 22:24 - South Africa to Block “Too White” Farms From Exporting Goods to Certain Markets 24:07 - Your Thoughts on Yesterday’s Stories ——————————   Produced by: Cory Ray Edited by: James Girardier, Maxx Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks Art Department: William Crespo Writing/Research: Philip DeFranco, Brian Espinoza, Lili Stenn, Maddie Crichton, Star Pralle, Chris Tolve  ———————————— #DeFranco #Pokimane #Gaza ———————————— Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we're talking about the eight teens who are getting charged with murder after a back alley after-school fight, if you could even call it that. The FTC is cracking down on influencers in a way that may drastically change the space. We break down the accusations against Pokimane in a response. This landmark case playing out right now could change journalism forever. We learn the wild truth about what happened with Paul Pelosi and Israel's latest raid on a Gazan hospital. We're talking about all that and so much more on today's brand new Philip DeFranco show. You daily dive into the news, so just make sure you're subscribed and let's jump into it. Starting with...

You know, even all these years into the job, I am still shocked at people's capacity for cruelty, like what they are truly capable of. And this latest news that we have to talk about from Rancho High School in Las Vegas is yet another example. With initial reports saying that on November 1st, a group of 15 kids allegedly stole something from a small boy and then threw him in a trash can outside of a building. But that's not where it ends because the boy's friend, 17-year-old Jonathan Lewis Jr. then confronted the group. But then the group attacked him too, with a bystander's video appearing to show them gathering around, kicking and beating him. Which I can't include in this video because YouTube will just suppress it and kill it, but it's very easy to find. And after they left, paramedics arrived, they performed CPR, they rushed Jonathan to the hospital where he was put on life support.

His father calling him a hero for standing up for this smaller student, also setting up a GoFundMe, asking for $25,000 and saying, we denounce violence as a means to resolve sociological conflict. We believe community members can coexist peacefully and we love our son and all children with all our hearts. Our son is a kind, loving, gentle young man who has the heart of a champion and the brightest loving energy that attracts people to him with love. And that GoFundMe ultimately raised over $100,000,

but that didn't get to be like a silver lining to a bad situation. Because then on November 7th, after days of shock and anger, Jonathan passed away from complications related to multiple blood and force injuries. And so with that, we immediately began seeing people calling for the arrests of these teens,

but also Jonathan's dad told local news. Justice is a deep, deep thing for me, and there's a lot more to it than just these kids going to prison. To me, what is the community going to do about this? You know, when are people going to wake up and start having some compassion for one another and have some empathy and actually have a sense of community and actually work towards real solutions for these children that

are just going absolutely mad. The big news regarding arrest, Las Vegas police yesterday announced that eight of the attackers, all between 13 and 17, have been taken into custody and will be charged with murder. And they are police saying that they plan to charge them as adults and that they're also looking for at least two others. And the authority is also going on to reveal more of what happened. Apparently, this all started earlier in the week over a pair of stolen AirPods and possibly a marijuana vape pen with all the kids involved then agreeing to meet after school for a back alley fight. There, police believe Jonathan wasn't part of that initial agreement that he only joined after his friend told him that he was going to be fighting the other boys. Lieutenant Jason Johanson saying the video shows Jonathan taking off some of his clothes to get ready for the fight

and then the minute the punch is thrown with that person, 10 subjects immediately swarm him, put him into the ground and begin kicking, punching and stomping on him. And so while that is the core main story, there's also been a different kind of conversation around this. And that because you have people saying, you know, Jonathan was white and it at least appears that all of his assailants were black. And around that one tweet going absolutely viral for saying over the weekend, you didn't hear anything about this story because it doesn't fit the narrative. Right in that account, now they're suggesting either media bias or that race was a factor. Well, obviously that conversation and debate has continued online.

Yesterday, you had Johansson telling reporters, Me, it's, you have to follow the evidence. And the only thing I'll say to that is there is no evidence at this time that this is a hate crime and one thing i can assure you is if this was a hate crime there would be someone getting arrested for charges related to being hate crime right now i have no evidence at all that this is a hate crime also with this situation i think it's important to highlight like the sheer fear that this whole situation has caused for the community without many calling into question other fights at the high school where this has happened. One junior there also telling a local

reporter. It could happen to anybody. It could happen for me just for like because I have a natural mean face. It could happen to me just from looking at somebody the wrong way. But ultimately that is where we are with this infuriating and heartbreaking story right now and while we wait to see how this plays out I gotta pass the question off to you. What are your thoughts here and why? And then the legal tug of war over this baby girl, Indy Gregory, has finally come to an end. And if you don't know Indy, she was born in February to a family in England, but her parents never actually took her home

because she suffered from a rare and incurable condition that was diagnosed in June as mitochondrial disease. And her specific mutation causing respiratory insufficiency, abnormalities in the brain, developmental arrest, and eventually premature death. And then to make matters worse, the family said Indy's condition worsened after she caught an infection at the hospital in August. They're having to go on a ventilator on eight occasions and undergoing cardiac arrest three times,

according to court records. So by September, Indy's doctors put her on full life support, but they also petitioned the high court in London to let them take her off of it, arguing that any medical interventions would only put this poor girl through more pain and that it was in her best interest to stop treating her. We also had Indy's parents wanting to keep her alive as long as possible, with her father, Dean Gregory, saying, On her good days, she is babbling, making noises, moving all her limbs. She can definitely experience happiness. She cries like a normal baby. We know she is disabled, but you don't just let disabled people die. We just want to give her a chance. But a judge actually sided

with the hospital in October, saying, In short, the significant pain experienced by this lovely little girl is not justified when set against an incurable set of conditions, a very short lifespan, no prospect of recovery, and at best, minimal engagement with the world around her. And so then, the parents backed by a Christian legal group took their case to the High Court, the Court of Appeal, and the European Court of Human Rights, all with no success. But then, a pediatric hospital in the Vatican offered to treat Indy with funding from the Italian government. Experts there are saying that alternative treatments would, quote, more likely than not enable Indy to survive without artificial ventilation. So you had Italy's Prime Minister, Giorgia Maloney, championing the parents' case,

and Indy was actually given Italian citizenship. But then a UK judge refused to transfer the girl to the Vatican again, saying that it is not in her best interest and ordered her life support to be removed immediately. And this week, Indy was transported to a hospice where she took her last breaths in her mother's arms. And so while Indy's life has been cut short, the conversation around it, of course, has continued. And so with that, the question I leave you with now are what are your thoughts?

What do you think is more important here, parental autonomy or professional medical opinion? And while every kind of medical situation is not gonna be a one-to-one to this, I'd say give me your thoughts on this one specifically and go from there. And then in internet drama and business news, let's talk about this Pokimane controversy, which is a massive online creator. And just this week, she launched a snack company called Mina Snacks. And with that

writing, I could never find the perfect healthy snack that tasted good. So I made one for us. The Midnight Mini Cookies are made with real non-GMO ingredients and added vitamin D. And she made these with a co-founder named Darcy, who has 20 years of experience in the food industry. With a pack of four bags of the Midnight Mini Cookies costing $28. And while some are very excited about the venture, others are calling it a scam. With people accusing Pokimane and her team

of not actually creating or making these cookies, like they said, but throwing a new brand on an already existing product. And that in part because you had Twitter users noting that a company called Creation Foods has a product called Midnight Mini Cookies by Totesy. With those at least at one point being sold at Costco. And while information about those cookies isn't available on their website,

that Twitter user did some digging to find the nutrition information and ingredients to compare them to Pokimane's brand. They said they discovered that in addition to these snacks bearing the same name, they also had the same amount of calories, carbs, fat, and protein, and the same number of cookies per serving size. And that person writing, This would mean that Mina Snacks is possibly a cash grab attempt where all they needed to do was establish the company and branding.

No work into the cookies themselves was put into it, and the claim of creating the cookie is allegedly a lie. You also had others claiming that on top of all that, this is just rebranded with an inflated price. And so with all this, you had some pissed off, sounding off on it, others defending Pokimane. There are people saying there's nothing nefarious about all this, it's just how a lot of products work. Though also very notably, you had a spokesperson for Pokimane snack brand denying that this is some sort of copy and paste situation in a statement at Exerto, saying our product formulation is unique to Mina and exclusive to us.

And adding, we can confirm the Midnight Mini cookies were in development for two years. This process included many rounds of testing and ingredient changes. And in fact, the situation got so big, Pokimane herself addressed it this morning. And they're noting that the same manufacturer was used between those two cookies,

but it's not quite the same situation everyone has assumed here. Saying that the current batch of Mina cookies was made three weeks ago with its own formula and adding, the cookies they are being compared to were also made by our manufacturer, Creation Foods. The compared cookies had one test batch sold before they were retired. Months later, we partnered with Creation Foods and fell in love with the flavor profile of the Midnight Cookie. And adding, we then decided to work together to refine and improve the formula. While the ingredients list may look similar, they are entirely different in terms of ingredient quality,

quantity, ratio, sourcing, the size, texture of the cookie, and of course, the added vitamin D. And saying refining formulas is a very common practice in the food industry, and around 70 to 80% of the foods you see in grocery stores are white-labeled. And then regarding the price, she said, hey, it's not cheap to make a healthy, gluten-free snack with added vitamins, and this is not some cash grab.

Noting there that she rarely does sponsorships and hasn't even sold merch in a while. So if she wanted fast cash, this would be actually a really weird way to do it. With that said, it's going to be interesting to see how people respond to this. Personally, based on everything I have seen, I believe her here. But that said, the reality of the situation and the public perception of it or how people act, that those don't always add up. You're put in this position where you're having to explain behind the scenes business practices to a general public that might not be that well versed in it. But also that said, the marketing monkey part of don't always add up. Or you're put in this position where you're having to explain behind the scenes business practices to a general public that might not be that well versed in it.

But also that said, the marketing monkey part of my brain wonders if this supposed controversy actually benefits her or it hurts her. Because for her, probably for better and worse, now more people know about this brand because of this controversy.

You know, time will tell. That's the story. Some of my personal opinion on it. And whether you agree or you disagree with me, I'd love to hear from you. And then we all have that person in our life who is impossible to shop for, but thanks to today's sponsor, Bokksu,

they've made the impossible possible. Because Bokksu is a premium Japanese snack box working with family businesses all over Japan to deliver a new theme of authentic treats each month. You know, this makes a great gift idea because it is more than a gift. It's unique and more of an experience. You know, I recently gifted a box to my dad

because he loves snacking, and I don't think he's had that kind of snacking experience before. And he received the first Bokksu box, which is Seasons of Japan. And like I thought, he loved it. He also, I will say, took it pretty seriously. Like he read through the booklet that comes in each box

to learn about more of the snacks and the culture of Japan. And while he did enjoy everything, the Yokohama butter cookie was his latest obsession. I think that along with the organic Genmaicha tea. And it was cool seeing him enjoy this and actually getting like a thank you, like for trying something new. I will also say I'm personally obsessed with the white strawberries or their chocolate infused strawberries that work any time of day, or at least that's what I tell myself. Oh my God. I'm just going to keep it in

my mouth. I'll let my tongue have some fun. What did he say? I know James is going to be like, pause. The main thing, if you want to give the gift of authentic Japanese snacks and support the channel, just click the link in the description and use my code DEFRANCO to get $15 off your first Bokksu order. And then, so one way to characterize this story is that right-wing YouTubers led an inflatable unicorn to bludgeon an old man for the content. Or I guess the other way to put it is that the man who attacked Nancy Pelosi's husband finally took the stand in his trial to explain why he did what he did. Or so you probably remember that 43-year-old David DePapp broke into the Pelosi home late last year looking for Nancy and then assaulted Paul Pelosi with a hammer, with Paul, who's at the ripe old age of 83,

spending six days in the hospital for a fractured skull and injuries to his arm and hand. So DePapp was charged with attempted kidnapping of a federal official and assault upon an immediate family member of the official on account of her job duties. Because the charges involve assault on a federal official, prosecutors have to prove that his actions

were motivated by Nancy's elected position, which really shouldn't be too hard since he admitted to police that he went there to interrogate her about Russiagate and expose the supposed political corruption in Congress. But then you have DePapp's defense arguing, hey, he wasn't motivated by Nancy's political office, but rather his belief in right-wing conspiracy theories.

And yesterday, DePapp took to the stand to explain how his life's trajectory put him inside the Pelosi household, with him claiming that he used to have left-wing political beliefs before a transformation that started when he was living in a garage without a toilet or shower playing video games for hours at a time. And according to him, he fell down the rabbit hole of Gamergate,

an anti-feminist trend that became huge in the gaming world and the broader internet starting in 2014, with him saying that he listened to right-wing podcasters naming James Lindsay, watched political YouTube videos that radicalized him, and in court, he appeared to sob as he described how the mainstream media lied about Trump and said he believed that 9-11 was an inside job. So he said he developed a list of targets led by a university professor that he believed was, quote, trying to turn our schools into pedophile molestation factories.

And those names including Gavin Newsom, Tom Hanks, Adam Schiff, Mike Pence, Bernie Sanders, George Soros, and former Attorney General Bill Barr. And his account is that he formulated a grand plan that involved luring them to the Pelosi home. And then, after he got his targets to admit to corruption, he would ask the president to pardon everyone he considered a criminal, explaining, while crying, it's just easier giving them a pardon so we can move forward as a country. But also other testimonies suggest that his plans were more violent than that. With him saying that he planned to wear an inflatable unicorn costume

and upload his interrogation of Nancy online, and adding that if she lied, quote, I was going to break her kneecaps. When asked why he struck Paul after the police arrived, he said, quote, I reacted because my plan was basically ruined. He was never my target, and I'm sorry that he got hurt. So whether any of that is actually sincere or he's just repeating what his lawyers told him, I'll leave that to you. But ultimately, that is where we are with this situation where I'll just remind you that half the country and online still joke about this situation. And many of those who do still characterize it in ways that have been debunked, saying there was a gay lovers tussle that got exposed and everyone freaked out. Instead

of the genuinely insane and dangerous situation that it was. And then the focus on Israel's war in Gaza continues to centralize around the regions, hospitals, and Al-Shifa hospital in particular, as IDF troops close in on the site. Or when we talked about this two days ago, there were widespread reports of fighting was happening all around the hospital and the power had been lost, the latter just making a ton of medical emergencies at the hospital even worse. But for Israel, Shifa was a major point of contention as they have long accused Hamas of using it or at least bunkers underneath the hospital as a base of operations and described it as the quote, beating heart of Hamas operations. Something that the IDF claims

is indisputable now after its troops enter the hospital and they said they found weapons in a terror infrastructure inside. There you had Reuters reporting that once inside, things were relatively calm, saying soldiers calmly searched the place and only sporadic shooting could be heard, although it's unclear if that was from inside or outside the building. So with this, there's now an expectation that more information about the alleged command center hiding underneath could be coming soon. But there, also, the big question for most is what happened to the patients, where they had been without power for a while. So those needing medical systems to stay alive, such as premature babies were in a real bad spot. And as of right now, as of recording this video, it is

unknown how many have died because of that fuel shortage. But you had the Israeli military saying, we can confirm that incubators, baby food, medical supplies brought by IDF tanks from Israel have successfully reached the Shifa hospital. Our medical teams and Arabic speaking soldiers are on the ground to ensure that these supplies reach those in need. They also released footage alongside that showing at least some supplies making its way there. We also just got the news this morning that at least some Israeli forces are leaving the hospital after conducting interrogations, according to an interview with Gaza's director of hospitals. They're looking like it's mostly the frontline soldiers, such as the tanks that have left. Now that said, for its part, Hamas has

blasted Israel's description of the situation and said that the claim that weapons were found were, a continuation of the lies and cheap that the claim that weapons were found were, quote, a continuation of the lies and cheap propaganda through which Israel is trying to give justification for its crime aimed at destroying the health sector in Gaza. However, you also have the U.S. backing Israeli claims that Shifa was also used as a cover for Hamas. And even some Gazans are saying that, at the very least, Hamas was hiding among civilians. With the most viral example of this coming from an Al Jazeera interview from within a hospital, where in this interview they're talking about how Israel bombed a compound. And this person saying,

It was not one house that was bombed. An entire compound was erased. Over 15 or 20 houses. Is this a humane act? No, this is a criminal act. And then saying, As for the resistance, they come and hide among the people. Why are they hiding among the people?

Why don't they go to hell and hide there instead? And then much to his frustration, the Al Jazeera reporter cut the interview short and walked off. And that entire exchange leading many to accuse Al Jazeera of editorializing and covering up anything that shows Hamas engaging in war crimes, such as using human shields. However, at the same time, even if Hamas is using human shields, Israel continues to face pressure for a ceasefire. As many out there right now feel like they are still handling the situation with at the very least a hammer rather than a scalpel. Right in this as Gaza still continues to get bombed with an Israeli government spokesperson even addressing this in an interview saying,

You're right, the optics are bad, but we are not fighting for our image. We are fighting for survival. And then going on to say, The optics of the October 7th massacre are even worse. 1,200 people who were brutally executed, butchered, beheaded, burned. Many of them were tortured and mutilated before they were killed, their bodies mutilated after they were killed. That is what we are fighting against, and our right to self-defense, our duty of self-defense is to eliminate the

terrorist organization that did that. Although according to reports, that has come at the cost of more than 11,000 Palestinians killed, including more than 4,600 children. And even though Israel has implemented daily four-hour humanitarian corridors, they still face pressure for a ceasefire as well as pressure from the U.S. government to allow way more humanitarian aid into Gaza, especially because the refugee situation in the southern part of the territory continues to get worse and worse. But that is where we are for now in this developing situation, and we'll have to wait to see what comes next. And then we need to talk about this landmark case playing out right now that pits journalistic integrity against individual privacy, because the court's decision here could reshape

the landscape of American journalism. So the defendant here is Catherine Herridge, a reporter who used to work at Fox News and now works at CBS. What she's under fire for is a series of stories Fox aired back in 2017 about Yanping Chen, who's a Chinese-American scientist that the FBI investigated for years to see whether she lied about past work with the Chinese military.

And more importantly, whether she used a professional school that she founded in Virginia to help the Chinese government obtain information about American service members. So in her reporting, Herridge obtained personal photographs, FBI documents, and information

from Chen's immigration forms, among other things. And while the FBI ultimately closed its investigation, Chen claimed that her reputation was damaged by those leaked details, so she sued the government. And obviously here, the specific people who leaked the details is relevant.

So in August, a federal judge ordered Herridge to be interviewed under oath about her sources. And saying there that Chen's need for the requested evidence overcomes Herridge's qualified First Amendment privilege in this case. But Herridge refused dozens of time

to say who her sources were, citing her First Amendment rights as a journalist. And now, Chen's lawyers are asking the judge to hold Herridge in contempt, with him specifically asking for a fine that would increase over time until the reporter finally buckles. So now you have the situation where the judge has to decide what's more important, a journalist's professional obligation to protect her confidential sources or an individual's right to pursue compensation over perceived privacy violations by the government. And with what we've seen in the past, similar cases haven't always resolved in the journalist's favor.

Like, for example, in 2005, when New York Times reporter Judith Miller spent 85 days in jail after being held in contempt for refusing to divulge a source on a story about Bush's war in Iraq, with Miller there very notably eventually giving up her source, though only after that person gave her permission to do so. But, unlike in that case, Herridge is being sued by a private individual, not the government, so the plaintiff's privacy claims may be treated differently. But still, a lawyer who represented her in that case, Floydidge is being sued by a private individual, not the government. So the plaintiff's privacy claims may be treated differently. But still, a lawyer who represented her in that case, Floyd Abrams, argues that both are dangerous

because sources will be too scared to come forward with sensitive information. And saying, quote, allowing confidential sources to be ordered, revealed, means that the public will have less information. The more significant the story, the more significant the topic, the greater the loss to the public

in not knowing the truth about what's going on. And so now, while we wait to see how this plays out, you have defenders of Herridge calling for a federal version of the reporter shield laws that you have in many states that protect journalists from subpoenas and the forced disclosure of sources. And then, you know, we all have daily outfit choices and sometimes that choice needs to take you from day to night. Running out for a morning coffee and ended up at an outdoor event or a rooftop dinner is a real thing. But also, have you ever been caught off guard by the weather or even knowing the forecast is calling for rain or snow? What's going to go seamlessly with your ensemble that fits into your plans?

Well, that is where the fantastic partner of the PDS comes in, Vessi. Vessi sneakers are the unsung hero of your outfit and could also be a lifesaver. These sneakers kept me dry during the crazy rain last spring. You know, most of you have torrential weather way more than we do in Southern California, though this week is supposed to be a fun one. Vessi allows your life to not be dictated by weather. And Vessi sneakers come in light or dark colorways. They look great. They're super comfortable and they keep your feet dry. They also don't stop at sneakers, right? Check out their waterproof

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as well as influencers for failing to properly disclose ads in sponsored content promoting artificial sweeteners and sugary foods. And in that press release this morning, the agency said that it sent warning letters to American Beverage, a huge lobbying group with members like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo and the Canadian Sugar Institute. That's in addition to a dozen

health influencers who together have more than 6 million followers on TikTok and Instagram. Right, and very notably here, this move comes after the Washington Post published a sweeping investigation back in September that revealed how those two trade groups had paid influencers to promote their messages and posts without proper disclosures. And what's more, that report also found that American Beverage had paid a dozen health influencers to post videos that tried to undercut health warnings from the World Health Organization about the artificial sweetener aspartame, which is in many diet sodas. And you also had the Canadian Sugar Institute sponsoring at least another 12 influencers

to make videos that told people to give in to their sugar cravings, made fun of advice to limit sugar intake, and told parents to let kids eat as much candy as they wanted. Now, at the time, both industry groups responded to the report by claiming that the nutrition influencers had properly disclosed that they were being paid for these social media campaigns through hashtags and other information in the posts. And some of the influencers in question also said they believed they were in compliance with disclosure rules. But the FTC has now made it abundantly clear that many of those claims are not true, with specifically the agency flagging nearly three dozen posts from the 12 influencers it

named that went against disclosure rules and sent letters to all the influencers in both trade groups warning them of those violations, as well as saying in the press release that all those posts either didn't disclose their sponsors at all or contained disclosures that were inadequate, with the letters explaining that while some of the posts included disclosures like hashtag sponsored or hashtag ad, they said that those were not clear enough because they were often buried several lines down, with the FTC also noting that descriptions for TikTok and Instagram posts are often shortened and people would not see those unless they intentionally expanded them. As well as adding that in both TikToks and Instagram reels, the text is small, sometimes hard to see with the

video background and does not stand out. Letters also noted that some influencers relied on the paid partnership disclosure tools. And while they should always do that, the agency has now made it clear that they do not think that goes far enough because it's too easy to miss in posts. And what's more, the agency said that even if the influencers did those disclosures, many of the posts didn't say who their sponsor was or did so in a way that wasn't adequate, like by abbreviating their name. And this one specifically is the most important here. The FTC said that none of the videos they reviewed from any of the influencers included any kind of disclosure within the body of the video itself. There was no text on screen in the videos, and the influencers also never said anything to the effect out loud in those sponsored

clips. And the agency explicitly saying that disclosures need to be made in their videos themselves, like through large text superimposed on the screen, as well as adding that the videos where endorsements are made audibly, they need to also include an audible disclosure. So the influencer would have to make that disclosure out loud in the video. And if the videos include endorsements that are both audible and visual, then the influencer needs to both give the disclosure out loud and include visual text on the screen. Now with all that, as far as what happens next, you have the FTC warning the trade groups and influencers that they have 15 days to respond with how they're going to fix these concerns and urge them to review posts to make sure they meet requirements.

And noting that any future violation will result in a $50,000 fine, and that violation of federal FTC law could result in legal action. So with this, while this is absolutely massive because it marks the first time ever that the agency has taken enforcement action against major food and beverage industry groups for their social media marketing strategies, it is also incredibly significant because it goes way beyond just this industry, right? I mean, it has the potential to shake up the entire influencer economy. And that's something that's been explicitly stated by Samuel Levine, the director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, with him telling the Post that the FTC is intentionally

trying to set a precedent for social media disclosures that apply to the entire influencer marketing industry and saying that he believes this crackdown quote is going to be heard loud and clear not only from trade associations and influencers in this space but also in other industries that may think that influencers don't need to disclose their connections and we've also seen experts echoing all of this saying that this new crackdown could usher in a new era for the FTC one notably marked by much stronger enforcement of much tougher rules. And then, it's late last weekend, there was news that South Africa was going after farms that were, quote, too white. And farmers who didn't meet certain black economic empowerment targets would lose access to export permits, particularly to places like Europe, which is a major deal for many farms. We're not going to get into every single detail,

but the broad strokes here are that it applied to farms making over $534,000 a year. And the products affected included dairy products, fruits and its derivatives, sugars, yeast, and grapes, as well as wine, which all in all pretty much means some of the largest parts of the South African agricultural market. And all this is ever since the end of apartheid, the South African government has sought to claw back land and economic power from white South Africans. And this has all kind of been an extension of that.

But also very notably here, you have critics claiming at this point, it's just racism in reverse. With policies like limiting how much water white farms get or an alleged lack of going after anti-white attacks. With comments like, farms that are too white will no longer be allowed to export to Britain and the European Union in terms of new regulations that the government has quietly introduced. I really hope the world sees what's going on here in South Africa. This is not going to end well. But then, in a twist, about a day after these reports went out, the South African government said it actually had no plans for any

such policy. However, it's not like this story just came out of thin air. Both the Johannesburg-based City Press and Rapport newspapers got their info from a government gazette notice published on November 2nd. However, the government here claims that the articles, quote, misrepresented the government's message about the procedure and annual application for export limits. These requirements are not new, and there is no threshold or level that an applicant must reach to be awarded a permit. And its statement also went on to clarify that these requirements are part of an agreement with the EU and UK to help its farmers get duty-free exports.

So there aren't massive taxes laid on top of it, which can kill the industry. And while some with this were happy to hear that such a policy didn't exist, it still didn't satisfy everyone. And that is because race-based milestones still exist across South Africa, including in its farming industries.

Although at the same time, you have many arguing that these are necessary to even give black and mixed South Africans a chance to break into an industry that has long been dominated by white farmers. But now, with all that said, I gotta pass the question off to you. What are your thoughts here? And then, let's talk about yesterday today, where we take a look back at yesterday's show.

We dive into those comments to see what y'all had to say. What are your thoughts? What are your opinions? Where do you stand on things? Why? Starting with all the talk around that fight that almost broke out in the Senate, all that chest puffin'. Y'all saying things like, Senators reading mean tweets to each other during a hearing is equal parts hilarious and horrifying. And people saying, agreed, Sanders de-escalating by speaking to two prominent people, like the belligerent children they're acting like. It sounds like a hilarious concept for a comedy skit. Him actually having to do so in real life is surreal. Then, regarding the deep dive on the

salmon situation, you guys left comments like, I was deeply moved by the insights into the salmon and how the American government and native tribes had a treaty to protect fishing rights. As an indigenous Australian, I felt a connection to this struggle. We have experienced a decline in native species and the absence of similar treaties has made it difficult to preserve our cultural practices for future generations. Our storytelling tradition is integral to passing on our culture and the inability to take your young ones fishing has posed a significant challenge. Thank you, Phil, for shedding light on this crucial issue. Some claiming the salmon issue in Oregon is insane, saying we're shooting seals because they're eating the salmon

made easier to catch by the dams and all that. It's idiotic. Others adding my husband's uncle lives in Alaska and utilizes the salmon up there for food. He said the salmon problem has been getting worse and worse. We used to be rivers overflowing with salmon of all kinds. A lot of those rivers and ponds no longer see salmon coming back upstream. It's so sad.

Also, regarding the Wile E. Coyote situation, we had some claim, I was an animator on Coyote vs. Acme and I was devastated to hear about it being shelved. So many talented people worked on that film for years and to have some suits decide to bury it makes me so angry. We all had to make difficult sacrifices to get this film made and our work deserves to be shared. I hope someone picks it up, but I'm still hesitant that it'll happen. And then finally, a lot of y'all loved a section of yesterday's yesterday today section with one of the things I kept seeing being, it's hard to believe someone is dying of thirst when you're drowning is an amazing quote. It can apply to so many situations and so much of the divisiveness in society today.

And others adding it works completely in reverse as well, making it hard to believe someone is drowning while you're dying of thirst without invalidating anyone. And others adding we're all so incredibly ignorant and it's not necessarily our fault, but we definitely should take pause in how we react to things more often. And that is actually where our daily dive into the news is going to end. But for more news you need to know, or a little secret for those of you that made it to the end and still listen to me doing my outro, I got a little something secret for you here as well. You can click or tap or I got links in the description, but keep it a secret because I only want people like on my text line and people that are watching the full videos to know about it. But that said, of course, as always,

my name's Philip DeFranco. You've just been filled in. I love your faces and I'll see you right back here tomorrow to break down more news.