Press Play with Madeleine Brand
California Oil Town Runs Dry, Glitter Bomb Hoax and '3 ½ Minutes'
Oil prices hit a six-year low today, falling below $44 a barrel. We look at what that means for oil industry workers in Kern County, who are facing layoffs and bleak future prospects as drilling has fallen off. Then, how are similar stories playing out around the world?
By Madeleine Brand • • 52m ListenOil prices hit a six-year low today, falling below $44 a barrel. We take a look at what that means for oil industry workers in Kern County, and also how the same dynamic is playing out around the world. Then, in our weekly web roundup, the founder of a website that allowed customers to mail glitter to their enemies now claims it was all a hoax. But was it really? Next, we hear from the filmmaker behind the new documentary 3½ Minutes, about the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager in Florida by a white man - and the trial that followed. And finally, USC raised $700 million last year, putting it behind only Harvard and Stanford in fundraising. What do universities do with all that cash?
Banner Image Credit: Hamish Reid
In this episode
5 storiesA Look at The Other Side of the Pump in Kern County
Oil prices hit a six-year low today, falling below $44 a barrel. That’s great news for L.A. drivers; all over town, gas is less than $3 a gallon. But tumbling prices have devastated California’s oil towns.
Read the story9 minA Worldwide View of Low Oil Prices
It’s not just California that’s feeling the effects of cheap oil. Thousands of contract workers in the oil industry have been laid off around the world. This week, oil giant BP announced that it will freeze pay for 84,000 workers, and governments in places like Venezuela, Nigeria and Russia - which are dependent on oil - are running out of money.
Read the story11 minThe Glitter Hoax and Other Web News
A young Australian man had an idea for a business like no other: He’d mail your enemies a “glitter bomb,” an envelope full of annoying glitter that would get everywhere and ruin the recipient’s day. The business was an immediate success, thanks to the coverage in media outlets like Time, Huffington Post and Fast Company.
Read the story7 min'3 ½ Minutes'
On November 23, 2012, four suburban black teenagers pulled into a gas station in Jacksonville, Florida to get a pack of gum. Minutes later, one of them - a 17-year-old named Jordan Davis - was dead, shot to death by a middle-aged white man. He’d gotten into an altercation with Jordan after asking the boys to turn down their music.
Read the story12 minThe University Fundraising Race
USC raised more than $700 million in 2014 according to a new report out this week. That puts the school behind only Harvard and Stanford when it comes to raising money.
Read the story8 min
