A power outage has affected more than 100 flights at the JFK airport in New York, with an entire terminal expected to remain closed today. This story and more highlight your daily rundown for Friday, Feb. 17, 2023.
JFK terminal closed due to electrical issue
Travel disruptions at one of the world’s busiest airports will continue into Friday after an already 130 flights have either been canceled or delayed due to the power outage according to a flight-tracker’s website.
The fire department responded to a utility room fire at JFK, leading to an electrical panel failure according to the Port Authority. The electrical issues caused some incoming flights to be redirected to other airports on the East Coast. And some passengers boarded buses that took them to a nearby airport assisting JFK with international flights meant to depart from JFK’s terminal one.
The terminal shut down is just the latest stumble as airports around the country face scrutiny over operations.
YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki steps down
Susan Wajcicki, YouTube CEO and one of the first Google employees, is stepping down from her role at the tech giant that started in her garage nearly 25 years ago. The change at the top comes as YouTube’s advertising revenue has fallen for the second straight quarter. Ad revenue during the final six months of last year also dropped 5% from the previous year.
YouTube faces big competition from Tiktok, Facebook and Instagram reels.
Wojcicki is stepping down after nine years in the position.
Fetterman hospitalized for depression
Democratic Sen. John Fetterman, Pa., checked himself into Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to receive treatment for clinical depression. His chief of staff said the first-year senator is receiving treatment on a voluntary basis.
Fetterman suffered a stroke last May, and last week he felt lightheaded and had to be hospitalized again.
His chief of staff said doctors have told his office that Fetterman is getting the care he needs and will soon be back to himself.
Bruce Willis diagnosed with dementia
Bruce Willis has been diagnosed with dementia, evolving from a previous diagnosis of aphasia last spring according to his family. More specifically, the actor has frontotemporal dementia, which can bring challenges to speaking and writing according to doctors.
Willis’s family said last year the actor would be stepping away from his decades-long career due to his impaired cognition.
This type of dementia causes nerve damage in the frontal and temporal lobes, which leads to a loss of function in those areas, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
Microsoft looks to tame chatbot
Microsoft’s new Bing AI is experiencing a few woes and seems to have a mind of its own.
Microsoft has admitted there are some kinks to work out after Sydney has been found to insult people’s looks or even compare people to Adolf Hitler.
Microsoft said in a blog post that the search engine chatbot is responding with a style they didn’t intend to certain types of questions.
McDonald’s rolls out plant-based nuggets
McDonald’s is famous for its golden chicken McNuggets, but the classic is transforming into a plant-based version in a new roll out expected to first hit 1,400 locations in Germany next week.
The McPlant nuggets are made from peas, corn, and wheat. It’s the second plant-based product from the fast-food giant. McDonald’s first sold a McPlant burger in 2021.
The announcement is part of a growing trend of fast food restaurants expanding into the plant-based food market.
This post has been updated.
