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Greetings !

The theme of this week’s world famous News Haiku™ competition is that Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her fight for democracy in the country. I’ve already had one entry in Spanish. Email me your entry by Thursday at noon Eastern for your chance to be voted winner by your Cheddar peers! Now let’s talk about today’s news you Need2Know, shall we?

—Matt Davis, Need2Know Chedditor

News You Need2Know

• News organizations reject new Pentagon reporting r …

• Investors shift 401(k) allocations to bonds, cash …

• Slowdown in US hiring suggests economy still needs …

• Foundations want to curb AI developers’ influence

• OpenAI partners with Walmart to let users buy prod …

What’s the stock market up to, eh?

$SPX ( ▲ 0.11% ) $DJI ( ▼ 0.01% ) $NDX ( ▲ 0.53% )

Companies mentioned in today’s newsletter

$NWSA ( ▲ 0.02% )  $WBD ( ▲ 1.56% )  $DIS ( ▲ 0.49% )  $CBS ( ▲ 1.17% )  $CMCSA ( ▼ 1.3% )  $WMT ( ▲ 1.67% )  $JPM ( ▲ 2.11% )  $AMZN ( ▼ 0.7% )  $GOOGL ( ▲ 1.04% )  

News organizations reject new Pentagon reporting rules

Major news organizations have united to reject the Pentagon's newly imposed reporting rules for journalists. The regulations, spearheaded by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, restrict reporters from covering news unless explicitly approved by his team, threatening eviction from the Pentagon for noncompliance. Media outlets such as Fox News $NWSA ( ▲ 0.02% ) , CNN $WBD ( ▲ 1.56% ) , ABC $DIS ( ▲ 0.49% ) , CBS $CBS ( ▲ 1.17% ) , NBC $CMCSA ( ▼ 1.3% ) , and the Associated Press (AP) have vocally opposed the new policy, emphasizing its potential harm to press freedom.

“The policy is without precedent and threatens core journalistic protections,” said the coalition in a joint statement. The AP rebuked the Pentagon’s stance: “The restrictions impede the public’s access to information about their government and limit the people’s right to know. AP remains focused on continuing to produce strong independent coverage of the Pentagon in the public interest.”

Hegseth’s directive has garnered heavy criticism from journalists and organizations alike. The Pentagon Press Association stated, “Our members did nothing to create this disturbing situation. It arises from an entirely one-sided move by Pentagon officials apparently intent upon cutting the American public off from information they do not control and pre-approve.”

While some conservative outlets, like One America News Network (OANN), have agreed to the rules, the overwhelming rejection signals a brewing legal battle, with journalists determined to uphold press freedoms enshrined in the First Amendment.

Let us know what you think in today’s poll 👇🏻

Song of the day: Richard Ashcroft, ‘Lover’

Verve frontman Richard Ashcroft has built his new song around a sample of Joan Armatrading's “Love and Affection,” (a song I think we can all agree is genius). It's a pop-oriented song with Ashcroft singing and speaking his lines. It marks Ashcroft's first bit of new original music in seven years, following the release of his 2018 solo record “Natural Rebel.” Some people love it. Others? Not so much. You tell me: Is it good?

Investors shift 401(k) allocations to bonds, cash in September

How many times do I have to tell you: Timing the market is impossible. Still, a recent analysis by retirement plan administrator Alight reveals a significant trend among 401(k) investors in September — a marked shift from equities to safer assets like bonds and cash. While overall 401(k) trading activity remained low, there was a clear preference for more conservative investment options.

“When people did make trades, they moved from equities to fixed income,” noted Rob Austin at Alight. He explained, “There’s this flight to bonds, money market, and stable value funds.” Alight’s analysis, which tracked the activity of more than 2 million investors with over $200 billion in assets, showed that 20 out of 21 trading days in September overwhelmingly favored these safer asset classes.

Financial advisors caution against reactionary moves during market fluctuations. “Keep in mind that nobody can really time the market well, and it’s best to have a long-term focus on what you’re trying to accomplish,” advised Austin, encouraging investors to stay the course despite short-term market jitters.

Which is what she said. As in, me. #NotFinancialAdvice

Today on the ‘gram: It gets knocked down, but it gets up again…

Post of the day: Rest in peace, D’Angelo

Quote of the Day

Slowdown in US hiring suggests economy still needs rate cuts, Fed’s Powell says

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has raised concerns about a sharp slowdown in U.S. hiring, stating it highlights “rising downside risks to employment” and reinforces the need for additional rate cuts. Speaking at the excitingly-named National Association of Business Economics, Powell suggested the Federal Reserve is prepared to lower interest rates twice more this year to stabilize the economy during uncertain times.

Powell emphasized that despite the lack of official economic data due to the federal government shutdown, “the outlook for employment and inflation does not appear to have changed much since our September meeting,” when the Fed implemented its first rate cut of the year. Economists, including Michael Feroli, chief U.S. economist at JPMorgan Chase $JPM ( ▲ 2.11% ) , believe the Fed’s stance “solidified expectations for further rate cuts.”

In addition, Powell hinted that the Federal Reserve might soon halt the shrinking of its $6.6 trillion balance sheet to further ease borrowing costs. “We may approach that point in coming months,” he noted. Amid criticism of the Fed’s aggressive measures during the pandemic, Powell acknowledged, “With the clarity of hindsight, we could have — and perhaps should have — stopped asset purchases sooner.” However, he defended the Fed’s actions, saying they were necessary to prevent economic collapse: “Our real-time decisions were intended to serve as insurance against downside risk.”

Should you check your 401(k) today?

👍️ 

Yes. It’s back up again.

Foundations want to curb AI developers’ influence

Just in case you were scared about AI, good news: America’s philanthropic foundations are riding to the rescue. I’m sure everything will be totally okay now.

AI may be transforming industries, but many are questioning whether its development truly prioritizes “human flourishing,” apparently. To address this, ten philanthropic organizations have launched Humanity AI, a coalition committing $500 million over the next five years to ensure AI evolves in service of humanity, not profit-driven agendas.

“Every day, people learn more about the ways AI is impacting their lives, and it can often feel like this technology is happening to us rather than with us and for us,” said MacArthur Foundation President John Palfrey. Humanity AI plans to amplify the voices of civil society by investing in initiatives that prioritize human interests, including democracy, education, personal security, and protecting artists.

Michele L. Jawando, President of the Omidyar Network, criticized tech giants for their focus on efficiency rather than wellbeing. “We feel like Humanity AI can really answer the question: what do humans need for flourishing? … I want my life to feel rich and robust and healthy and safe,” Jawando said.

The coalition, which includes notable foundations like Mellon, Ford, and Mozilla, hopes to expand its reach through grants and a collaborative fund managed by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors, an organization where everything is definitely all fine of late.

“We can choose participation over control,” said Mozilla’s Nabiha Syed, underscoring the coalition’s vision for open, human-centered systems fueled by imagination.

OpenAI partners with Walmart to let users buy products in ChatGPT

My wife took me to Walmart $WMT ( ▲ 1.67% ) on the weekend. We bought huge amounts of cheese and fig newtons for our kid — and for an extremely reasonable price. In the parking lot, a man saluted me, mistaking my limited edition LL Bean x Todd Snyder Collab jacket for military attire. I must say it was all a rather delightful experience.

Still, Walmart has announced a new partnership with OpenAI to allow customers to make purchases directly within ChatGPT. As one of the largest retailers in the world, Walmart aims to transform the e-commerce experience by harnessing the power of AI.

The collaboration will let ChatGPT users browse and purchase Walmart products with a simple conversation, using OpenAI’s "Instant Checkout" system. From groceries to household items, customers will soon be able to shop for anything they discuss with the chatbot in real-time. "For many years now, eCommerce shopping experiences have consisted of a search bar and a long list of item responses,” explained Walmart CEO Doug McMillon. “That is about to change.”

Sam Altman, CEO and co-founder of OpenAI, added, “This partnership will make everyday purchases a little simpler.”

While Walmart hasn’t announced an official launch date, its promise of shopping through ChatGPT is expected "soon." The move follows OpenAI’s recent ventures into e-commerce through partnerships with Shopify and Etsy, signaling an intensifying push into online retail.

For Walmart, the ChatGPT integration complements its growing use of AI across operations, including the development of its AI shopping assistant, “Sparky.” With this partnership, both OpenAI and Walmart are eyeing new opportunities to reshape digital shopping and compete with giants like Amazon $AMZN ( ▼ 0.7% ) (whose shares were down 1.7% yesterday) and Google $GOOGL ( ▲ 1.04% ) (whose shares were up modestly).

Poll of the day: Right of approval?

Poll results: You’re rich!

We asked: What's your tax bracket for 2026?

You answered:

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 10 %: $0 to $24,800 (26)

 🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨 12%: $24,801 to $100,800 (190)

 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 22%: $100,801 to $211,400 (199)

 🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ 24%: $211,401 to $403,550 (91)

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 32%: $403,551 to $512,450 (10)

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 35%: $512,451 to $768,700 (11)

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 37%: $768,701 or more (13)

540 Votes via @beehiiv polls

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