--:-- Shamita Basu: Good morning. It's Friday, July 21st. I'm Shamita Basu. This is Apple News Today.
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--:-- Shamita Basu: On today's show, women in Texas take the state's strict abortion laws to court with emotional testimony, the young student journalists holding powerful institutions accountable, and the U.S. players to watch in the Women's World Cup. But first, let's take a look at some other major stories in the news.
--:-- Shamita Basu: For the third night in a row, Russia hit Ukrainian ports with airstrikes. This comes after Russia withdrew from the Black Sea grain deal. The U.N. Security Council will meet today to discuss humanitarian consequences of Russia's withdrawal.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Meanwhile, U.S.-supplied cluster munitions are being used by Ukraine for the first time. The controversial weapons are banned in over 120 countries. They explode in the air and rain down smaller bombs. Human rights groups say this increases the risk of civilian casualties.
--:-- Shamita Basu: In climate news, scientists say we are likely living through the single hottest month on Earth on record. The heat is already having deadly consequences. At least 18 people have died from the extreme temperatures in the Phoenix area this year, according to public health officials.
--:-- Shamita Basu: In Florida this week, dozens attended a vigil for a farm worker named Efrain Garcia, who family and friends say died from heat exposure while on the job. An official cause of death has not been announced.
--:-- Claudia Gonzalez: We're just asking, you know, four basic things, water, shade, breaks, and to have a buddy system in case the other companion does not feel well.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Advocates are working to create a heat standard in South Florida. A public hearing has been tentatively scheduled for September.
--:-- Shamita Basu: A warning, this next story includes audio testimony about non-viable pregnancies.
--:-- Shamita Basu: In Texas this week, several women took the stand in a courtroom and shared their personal stories about how the state's abortion laws impacted them and their pregnancies. They're part of a group of 13 patients and two OBGYNs who are suing the state in a case brought by the Center for Reproductive Rights.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Texas passed one of the country's strictest abortion laws after the Supreme Court overturned abortion rights last year. Abortions are banned after six weeks with one exception: medical emergencies where the life of the mother is at risk.
--:-- Samantha Cassiano: I didn't have any option. I was pregnant. She then called in a caseworker. Caseworker came in, and they handed me a paper that said funeral homes.
--:-- Ashley Brandt: I would have had to give birth to an identical version of my daughter without a skull and without a brain. And I would have had to hold her until she died.
--:-- Shamita Basu: As more women in Texas are forced to carry non-viable pregnancies to term under the state law, the infant mortality rate is climbing. It was 11% higher in 2022 compared to 2021, reversing a decade-long trend of decline.
--:-- Shamita Basu: More than 2,000 babies died, and OB-GYNs who focus on high-risk pregnancies told CNN that the state's abortion laws likely contributed.
--:-- Shamita Basu: We always like to highlight good journalism on this show, and lately, there's been some impressive reporting happening by student journalists. We want to tell you about two stories that have had impact this week, starting with the Stanford Daily, the student-run paper at Stanford University.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Rising sophomore Theo Baker and his fellow students at the paper reported last fall on flaws in research papers authored by Stanford president Mark Tessier He, a widely cited neuroscientist. Their investigation led to the announcement of his resignation as president this week.
--:-- Theo Baker: It was a challenge at the beginning because student newspapers don't have built-in credibility. No one really returns your calls. So what that meant is that our investigation started with open source work.
--:-- Theo Baker: We started with things that were already published and were able to turn to forensic image analysts who were able to show or prove that there was manipulation or photoshopping in these figures that had already been published.
--:-- Theo Baker: That meant that we were able to start the story going. And then once we had skin in the game, once we'd published a dozen articles, that's when people started responding.
--:-- Theo Baker: That's when they started trusting us with their stories, even though they had non-disclosure agreements, even though they were talking about a powerful man.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The Stanford Daily's reporting triggered an independent review of Tessier Levine's work by the university. The report found no evidence he knowingly falsified data, but it concluded he had opportunities to correct mistakes and failed to do so.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Now, Tessier-Levine will retract three papers and issue corrections to several more. He'll continue to teach biology at the school.
--:-- Shamita Basu: The second story is out of Illinois. There, students at Northwestern University, reporting for the Daily Northwestern, detailed allegations of hazing, sexual abuse, and racism within the football program that went back years.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Days after one of the stories was published, the university fired longtime head coach Pat Fitzgerald. A group of former players have now filed a lawsuit against him, the university, and other officials.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Both of these stories are a reminder that it's not easy pulling off this kind of investigative journalism while juggling schoolwork.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And it's definitely not easy challenging the authority of the institutions you are a part of and have a stake in as a student.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Baker told us his reporting took a lot of time. He spent more than 1,000 hours this fall interviewing experts and digging into dense neuroscience research.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And that's part of why, you know, we were the only publication that was dedicated enough to really get deep on these stories.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And that's part of why, you know, we were the only ones to report certain things.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And that's because we put in the hours.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And I really think that's actually something that student journalists across the country show, that when you belong to a community, you really care about it, then you're going to push for transparency harder than anyone else.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Today is a big day for American soccer. The U.S. women take the field tonight against Vietnam in their first game in the World Cup.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And on the men's side, Lionel Messi is expected to play his first game after joining the MLS club Inter. Full disclosure, Apple is reportedly involved in this deal since they own streaming rights to major league soccer.
--:-- Shamita Basu: I recently sat down with Rebecca Lowe, one of the hosts of our World Cup podcast, After the Whistle.
--:-- Shamita Basu: Ahead of tonight's match, I asked her which U.S. players we should be watching out for.
--:-- Rebecca Lowe: Wow. So when you deal with a team as good as America, you could basically just give the 1 to 11 and say they're all, you need to know them all.
--:-- Rebecca Lowe: Yeah, because they're all so good. I mean, my brain straight away goes to Alex Morgan. She has been around since the 2011 World Cup. This will be her fourth World Cup.
--:-- Rebecca Lowe: So Alex Morgan plays what we call the number nine, which is the out-and-out striker up top. And she is a true United States legend. She scores goals, you know, like it's the easiest thing in the world.
--:-- Rebecca Lowe: There is a young player called Sophia Smith, who is, I think, a definite starter. Another player you must watch. She's crazy good, ridiculous good. First World Cup, lots of NWSL teams want to try and trade her. I think she could be a breakout star in this World Cup.
--:-- Rebecca Lowe: Further back, a young lady called Naomi Girma. She is what we would call in England a Rolls-Royce of a footballer, like a Lamborghini of a footballer. She is smooth, she has awareness, she's got pace, but she knows how to bring the ball out to try and start to play.
--:-- Rebecca Lowe: She, for me, will also be, I think, one of the performers of the tournament.
--:-- Shamita Basu: So Alex Morgan, Sophia Smith, Naomi Girma are my top three. But really, they're all so good, I could pick any.
--:-- Shamita Basu: We also got to talk a little about Messi, undoubtedly one of the biggest acquisitions ever for major league soccer. It is seismic. He's 36, which is the only downside.
--:-- Rebecca Lowe: Goodness, how I wish he'd done this when he was 30. He was never going to, but that would have been double seismic.
--:-- Shamita Basu: I saw that the sleeve sponsor, so the tiny area on the sort of top of the bicep of the Inter Miami shirts, that little sponsorship badge has been sold for a ridiculous amount of money, never seen before in any game ever.
--:-- Rebecca Lowe: It just shows you the power of Messi. I think it's brilliant. I think anything that draws eyeballs to soccer in America, for me personally, trying to grow the game here, is brilliant.
--:-- Shamita Basu: You can follow Messi's big first day in Major League Soccer by checking out my sports in the Apple News app.
--:-- Shamita Basu: That's also where you'll find the latest on the Women's World Cup.
--:-- Shamita Basu: And if you're already listening in the News app right now, stick around. My full chat with Rebecca Lowe is queued up to play for you next as part of our weekly show, Apple News in Conversation.
--:-- Shamita Basu: We talk about the evolution of soccer fandom and her love for the game.
--:-- Shamita Basu: That's up next. Have a great weekend. If you're observing Barbenheimer, Godspeed, and I'll be back with the news on Monday.
