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Low crude oil prices, record-high inventories, and low demand drive gasoline prices down (5/6/2020)

On April 27, 2020, the U.S. average regular retail gasoline price was $1.77 per gallon (gal), the lowest price since February 2016. On May 4, the U.S. average gasoline price increased slightly to $1.79/gal. The United States declared a national emergency on March 13 in response to concerns regarding spread of the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). From March 16 to May 4, the U.S. average regular retail gasoline price fell by $0.46/gal. The lower gasoline prices reflect low crude oil prices, low gasoline demand, and rising gasoline inventories. ...




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Tumblr now removes reblogs in violation of its hate-speech policy, not just the original posts

Tumblr is making a change to how it deals with hate speech on its blogging platform. The company announced today it will also remove the reblogs (repostings) from any blogs that were suspended for violating its policies around hate speech. Already, the company says it’s identified nearly 1,000 blogs that were banned for blatant violations […]




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Social network for women, Peanut, raises $12M Series A amid pandemic

Peanut, an app that began as a tool for finding new mom friends, has evolved into a social network now used by 1.6 million women to discuss a range of topics, from pregnancy and parenthood to marriage and menopause, and everything in between. On the heels of significant growth in online networking fueled by the […]




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Platforms scramble as ‘Plandemic’ conspiracy video spreads misinformation like wildfire

A video about the coronavirus featuring a well-known vaccine conspiracist is spreading like wildfire on social media this week, even as platforms talk tough about misinformation in the midst of the pandemic. In the professionally-produced video, a solemn interviewer named Mikki Willis interviews Judy Mikovits, a figure best known for her anti-vaccine activism in recent […]










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Flickr owner SmugMug emails subscribers with an urgent request: help us find more paying users

When in April of last year, the photo-hosting service SmugMug acquired the photo-hosting service Flickr from Verizon’s digital media subsidiary, SmugMug CEO Don MacAskill said he was committed to breathing new life into the service, calling it “core to the entire fabric of the Internet.” MacAskill didn’t reveal at the time how much SmugMug — […]




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Estonian fintech askRobin scores $1.7M to bring ‘fair credit’ to emerging markets

AskRobin, an Estonia-founded fintech that operates a financial services marketplace for “underbanked” customers in Latin America, has picked up $1.7 million in funding. The seed round is backed by VC funds Change Ventures, Vereeni Early Stage Fund, BENE Asia Capital, and Lemonade Stand. In addition, a number of tech entrepreneurs from Estonia participated, such as […]





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Unemployment Surged to 14.7 Percent in April

The U.S. lost a record 20.5 million jobs over the past month.



  • News and Trends

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Apple and CMU researchers demo a low friction learn-by-listening system for smarter home devices

A team of researchers from Apple and Carnegie Mellon University’s Human-Computer Interaction Institute have presented a system for embedded AIs to learn by listening to noises in their environment without the need for up-front training data or without placing a huge burden on the user to supervise the learning process. The overarching goal is for […]




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Adtech scores a pandemic pause from UK privacy oversight

The coronavirus is proving to have an unexpected upside for the adtech industry. The U.K.’s data protection agency has paused an investigation into the industry’s processing of internet users’ personal data, saying targeted suspension of privacy oversight is merited because of disruption to businesses as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The investigation into adtech […]




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5 Ways to Capture Email Addresses From Landing Page Traffic

Grow your elist with these 5 smart strategies.




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Free Webinar | June 8: Simple Marketing Techniques to Re-Engage With Customers and Make Them Feel Safe

Franchise Bible author Rick Grossmann discusses how marketing is changing and new ways and platforms for sending your marketing messages to your customers.



  • Franchise Crisis Management Series

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Stop Wasting Email Sends on Non-Verified Addresses. This Tool Promises 99 Percent Deliverability.

Run more effective email marketing campaigns and hit more leads with a verified list.




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The Social Selling System: Flipping a Follower into a Client

Create posts that feature you, your clients and how you can work together.




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Low transportation fuel demand and low profitability drive refinery run declines

Transportation fuel demand has decreased since early March 2020 as a result of reduced economic activity and stay-at-home orders aimed at slowing the spread of the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). U.S. refineries have reduced the amount of crude oil and other inputs that they process (also known as refinery runs). U.S. refinery runs fell for four consecutive weeks, reaching 12.8 million barrels per day (b/d) in the week ending April 17, and increased slightly to 13.2 million b/d for the week ending April 24, or nearly 21% lower than the previous five-year average for this time of year.




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Daily electricity demand in New York falls about 13% after COVID-19 mitigation efforts

Recent business shutdowns and changes to normal routines related to mitigation efforts for the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have caused daily, weekday electricity demand in New York state to decrease by 11%–14% in March and April compared with expected demand, after accounting for seasonal temperature changes. Electricity demand changes in New York state and in New York City, in particular, have been more pronounced than in other parts of the country, which may partly be caused by differences in electricity consumption across regions and the varying effects of COVID-19 mitigation efforts on these sectors.




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Daily electricity demand impacts from COVID-19 mitigation efforts differ by region

Recent business shutdowns and changes to normal routines related to mitigation efforts for the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have caused daily weekday electricity demand in the central region of the United States to decrease by 9%�13% in March and April compared with expected demand, after accounting for seasonal temperature changes. This decrease is similar to declines seen in New York. In contrast, other areas of the country, such as Florida, have not experienced significant changes, which may partly be caused by regional differences in how much electricity each end-use sector consumes and the varying effects of COVID-19 mitigation efforts on the sectors.




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Fight for Your Franchise Challenge, Week 5: Implementing the Franchise Equation

When a business is running at its peak in all areas, efficiency and profitability increase exponentially.




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How to Recruit Employees With Equity

Before raising capital, it's often hard to pay potential employees, but you can still offer exponential future returns.



  • Starting a Business

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How to Remain Competitive in a Saturated Online Retail Market

Strategies for staying ahead amid a dizzying e-commerce landscape.




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3 Tricks for Getting More Email Clicks

Many marketers will tell you their engagement rates need to improve. Here's how to not be one of them.




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3 Major Opportunities That Will Come From This Pandemic

It's a time of major growth and change. Get ready for it.




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Come dine at Downton: Chicken a la creme paprika

Kingly kedgeree, lobster cutlets and cocktails the Crawleys would have quaffed, in this extract from the new Downton Abbey recipe




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Downton Abbey movie EXCL: Thomas Barrow fumes as he is DEMOTED for returning Carson

In an exclusive first look at the film Thomas struggles to hide his fury as he asked to step aside, and snaps that he 'won't be a sort of anything.'




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Downton Abbey movie: Allen Leech's wife Jessica debuts her baby bump at the London premiere

Allen Leech's wife Jessica Blair Herman debuted her baby bump as the couple hit the red carpet for Downton Abbey's world premiere, held in London on Monday.




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Downton Abbey Movie: Hugh Bonneville is joined by wife Lulu Evans at star-studded London premiere

The pair looked every inch the happy couple as they attended the world premiere of Downton Abbey in Leicester Square on Monday.




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Downton Abbey Movie: Sophie McShera oozes glamour in a plunging black gown at the premiere

Sophie McShera turned heads on the red carpet in a plunging black floor length dress as she joined the cast for the world premiere of Downton Abbey the movie, held in London, on Monday night.




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Downton Abbey movie: Maggie Smith attends the star-studded premiere in London 

The actress, 84, looked in high spirits as she arrived at the premiere of the feature film adaptation of Downton Abbey in Leicester Square on Monday.




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Downton Abbey Movie: Tuppence Middleton exudes glamour as she attends star-studded film premiere

The actress, 32, looked nothing short of sensational as she attended the red carpet premiere of Downton Abbey in Leicester Square on Monday.




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Downton Abbey movie: Michelle Dockery dazzles as she joins glamorous co-stars at the world premiere

Michelle Dockery, Elizabeth McGovern and Laura Carmichael led the star-studded glamour as they arrived at the Downton Abbey Movie premiere on Monday night. 




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Downton Abbey Movie: Katie Piper cosies up to husband Richard Sutton at star-studded premiere 

The TV star, 35, cut a glamorous figure as she attended the premiere of the feature film adaptation of Downton Abbey with her husband Richard Sutton in Leicester Square on Monday.




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Downton Abbey star Allen Leech's pregnant wife Jessica shows off her bump at New York premiere

Allen Leech's wife Jessica Blair Herman looked absolutely glowing as they attended the New York premiere of the Downton Abbey movie on Monday.




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Huma Abedin attends the New York premiere of Downton Abbey without husband Anthony Weiner

The Hillary Clinton aide, 43, has been keeping a low profile in recent weeks following Dailymail.com's reports that Weiner, a disgraced politician, was living in the same Manhattan block.




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Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael and Elizabeth McGovern at NY premiere for Downton Abbey movie

The British cast continue the story of the Crawley family in the feature-length drama written by the show's creator Julian Fellowes and directed by Michael Engler.




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Downton Abbey's Michelle Dockery and Elizabeth McGovern claim Dame Maggie Smith 'loves a meme'

In scenes set to air on Saturday's edition of the Jonathan Ross Show, the pair joked that that the iconic British actress, 84, 'loves a meme'.




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Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes reveals he has an incurable and uncontrollable tremor

The award-winning screenwriter said that the incurable 'essential tremor', often mistaken for Parkinson's disease, doesn't hurt but is a 'nuisance' and 'tiresome'.




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Rada director Edward Kemp blames 'Downton Abbey effect' for working-class actors being side-lined

Edward Kemp claims that middle and upper class actors are being cast because of a rise in the success of British TV shows such as The Crown and Downton Abbey.




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British Fashion Awards 2019: Tom Cruise dines with stunning Michelle Dockery at ceremony

The actor, 57, was in good company as he joined by stunning Downton Abbey star Michelle Dockery at Monday evening's British Fashion Awards, held at the Royal Albert Hall in south-west London.




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Michelle Dockery dons jaw-dropping jewels for Tatler cover shoot as she discusses The Gentleman

The actress, 38, posed in a series of stunning images for the publication while reflecting on her career and forthcoming role in Guy Ritchie's latest flick, which is set for release in January 2020




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What I know about women: Actor Tom Cullen, 34, says that men need to stop and listen to them more

Tom Cullen, 34, is a Welsh writer, actor and director who played Viscount Gillingham in Downton Abbey. His directorial debut, the film Pink Wall, is out now.




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Michelle Dockery is effortlessly chic at The Gentlemen photocall in New York

The Downton Abbey star, 38, put on a stylish display in the all-black ensemble as she joined her male co-stars at the event at the event in The Whitby Hotel




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Danny Dyer, wife Joanne Mas and Emma Willis lead the stars getting ready for the NTAs

Danny Dyer, wife Joanne Mas and Emma Willis led the famous faces getting ready for the National Television Awards on Tuesday.




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NTAs 2020: Loose women put on a united front in an all red ensemble

ITV's Loose Women put on a united front in an all red ensemble as they walked the NTA's red carpet in hopes of winning the Best Daytime Show award over rivals This Morning.




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NTAs 2020: Georgia Toffolo takes tube to the ceremony before getting the BUS home

In keeping up with tradition, Georgia Toffolo, 25, surprised onlookers for the second year in a row by taking the tube to the glitzy event on Tuesday night.