VOL. 47 | NO. 38 | Friday, September 15, 2023
Multiple musical styles, outlooks represented at festival
From its earliest days emerging from an idea at South By Southwest, to its current incarnation as a multiday, multivenue celebration of modern day roots music, the Americana Music Association’s annual conference and music festival brings professionals and fans of multiple genres to Nashville for an immersive experience.
JOE ROGERS: MY TAKE
The death of Jimmy Buffett – the “poet of paradise,” as President Biden described him – calls to mind for me the degree to which cities or states can rightfully stake a claim to celebrities.
RICHARD COURTNEY: REALTY CHECK
In 2020, when the residential real estate market fell into the dimension of the surreal, and houses began selling for astronomical prices, there was some concern the buyers were overpaying. The fear was that these buyers would never be able to recoup the investments they had made in these properties.
STOCK MARKETS
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks slumped Wednesday after the Federal Reserve said it may not cut interest rates next year by as much as it earlier thought, regardless of how much Wall Street wants it.
REAL ESTATE
Top Davidson County residential real estate sales for August 2023, as compiled by the Nashville Ledger.
Top Davidson County commercial real estate sales for August 2023, as compiled by the Nashville Ledger.
NEWSMAKERS
Horrell Company, one of the oldest commercial real estate companies serving Nashville and Middle Tennessee, has announced that Elliott Smith has acquired the company and will serve as its president.
BRIEFS
The Music City Walk of Fame has announced four new inductees: three-time Grammy Award-winner Darius Rucker; Don McLean of “American Pie” fame; rock ’n’ roll guitarist Duane Eddy; and former record-label executive Joe Galante, the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp announced.
BUSINESS BOOK REVIEW
Auditions are always nerve-wracking. Will the part be yours?
TENNESSEE TITANS
This “new” offense that was supposed to be a big boost for the Tennessee Titans is already facing major issues.
The Titans chose in the offseason to try and make another go of it, adding a number of veteran free agents while riding Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry for one more go-around.
The Titans home opener won’t be an easy one as Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers come to Nissan Stadium. Here are the Titans keys to victory.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
There’s often a point when car enthusiasts are looking to purchase their first new performance car or sports car. Inflation and price creep have pushed many desirable models out of reach, but fortunately, a handful of automakers remain committed to offering thrill-making machines with wallet-friendly price tags. Edmunds’ car experts have rounded up six of the best with starting prices under $33,000. These vehicles have a high Edmunds rating and are listed by the manufacturer’s suggested retail price and include the destination charge.
ECONOMY
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve left its key interest rate unchanged Wednesday for the second time in its past three meetings, a sign that it's moderating its fight against inflation as price pressures have eased. But Fed officials also signaled that they expect to raise rates once more this year.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it is providing $600 million in funding to produce new at-home COVID-19 tests and is restarting a website allowing Americans to again order up to four free tests per household — aiming to prevent possible shortages during a rise in coronavirus cases that has typically come during colder months.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — With no clear strategy, no sure support and not much time left to prevent a government shutdown, Speaker Kevin McCarthy nevertheless vowed on Wednesday he would not give up trying to convince his colleagues to pass a temporary funding bill through the House.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday came face-to-face with his most ardent critics as House Republicans used a routine oversight hearing to interrogate him about what they claim is the "weaponization" of the Justice Department under President Joe Biden.
NEW YORK (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to have his long-coveted meeting with President Joe Biden on Wednesday — bringing together the two leaders for the first time since the Israeli leader took office at the helm of his country's far-right government late last year.
TECHNOLOGY
NEW YORK (AP) — John Grisham, Jodi Picoult and George R.R. Martin are among 17 authors suing OpenAI for "systematic theft on a mass scale," the latest in a wave of legal action by writers concerned that artificial intelligence programs are using their copyrighted works without permission.
COURTS
ATLANTA (AP) — Lawyers for three Georgia Republicans who falsely claimed that Donald Trump won the state and that they were "duly elected and qualified" electors are set to argue Wednesday that criminal charges against them should be moved from state to federal court.
NATIONAL DEFENSE
KANSAS CITY NATIONAL SECURITY CAMPUS, Mo. (AP) — In an ultra-sterile room at a secure factory in Kansas City, U.S. government technicians refurbish the nation's nuclear warheads. The job is exacting: Each warhead has thousands of springs, gears and copper contacts that must work in conjunction to set off a nuclear explosion.
EDUCATION
Historically Black land-grant universities in Tennessee and 15 other states have missed out on $12.6 billion in funding over the last three decades, according to the Biden administration.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 19
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — President Joe Biden made his case before the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday that the world must remain united in defending Ukraine against Russian aggression, warning that no nation can be secure if "we allow Ukraine to be carved up" as he tries to rally support for Kyiv's effort to repel a nearly 19-month-old Russian invasion that has no end in sight.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans detained for years in Iran arrived home Tuesday, tearfully hugged their loved ones and declared "Freedom!" after being let go as part of a politically risky deal that saw President Joe Biden agree to the release of nearly $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets.
AUTO WORKERS STRIKE
The leader of the United Auto Workers said that a limited strike targeting plants in Missouri, Michigan and Ohio may be expanded if "serious progress" toward an new contract agreement isn't made by Friday at noon.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
REDMOND, Wash. (AP) — A top product executive at Microsoft who launched its Surface line of computers and Windows 11 is leaving the company.
Instacart on Monday priced its initial public offering of stock at $30 a share, raising $660 million for the grocery delivery company.
TECHNOLOGY
Google is introducing Bard, its artificially intelligent chatbot, to other members of its digital family — including Gmail, Maps and YouTube — as it seeks ward off competitive threats posed by similar technology run by Open AI and Microsoft.
SPORTS
LOS ANGELES (AP) — ABC will be airing more "Monday Night Football" games than originally planned.
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 18
ECONOMY
WASHINGTON (AP) — Since Federal Reserve officials last met in July, the economy has moved in the direction they hoped to see: Inflation continues to ease, if more slowly than most Americans would like, while growth remains solid and the job market cools.
COURTS
ATLANTA (AP) — A federal judge who rejected efforts by former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows to move his charges in the Georgia election subversion case to federal court is set to hear arguments Monday from former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark on the same issue.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court's decision siding with Black voters in an Alabama redistricting case gave Democrats and voting rights activists a surprising opportunity before the 2024 elections.
UKRAINE
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Russia on Monday called a Ukrainian case alleging that Moscow abused the Genocide Convention to justify its invasion last year an "abuse of process," as lawyers for Moscow sought to have judges at the United Nation's highest court throw it out.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hunter Biden sued the Internal Revenue Service on Monday, claiming that two agents publicly alleging tax-probe interference wrongly shared his personal information, a case that comes amid escalating legal and political struggles as the 2024 election looms.
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The commitments were far-reaching and ambitious. Among them: End extreme poverty and hunger. Ensure every child on Earth gets a quality secondary education. Achieve gender equality. Make significant inroads in tackling climate change. Create "universal access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all." And achieve all of this by 2030.
WASHINGTON (AP) — On one side of the Capitol, two senators have steered the debate over government funding mostly clear of partisan fights, creating a path for bills to pass with bipartisan momentum.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran and the United States will exchange prisoners on Monday after some $6 billion once frozen in South Korea reached Qatar, a key element of the planned swap, officials said.
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China's military sent 103 warplanes toward Taiwan in a 24-hour period in what the island's defense ministry called a recent new high.
NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump repeatedly declined in an interview aired Sunday to answer questions about whether he watched the Capitol riot unfold on television, saying he would "tell people later at an appropriate time."
ENTERTAINMENT
NEW YORK (AP) — Jann Wenner, who co-founded Rolling Stone magazine and also was a co-founder of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, has been removed from the hall's board of directors after making disparaging comments toward Black and female musicians. He apologized within hours.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 15
NASHVILLE ELECTION
Two-term Metro Council member Freddie O’Connell won election as the 10th Metro Nashville/Davidson County mayor Thursday night, outpacing opponent Alice Rolli with 63.8% of the votes cast in a runoff.
UT SPORTS
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — No. 11 Tennessee began the week with a players-only meeting. Topics ranged from focusing on Florida to flushing Austin Peay.
VANDERBILT SPORTS
Vanderbilt (2-1) at UNLV (1-1), Saturday, 7 p.m. ET (CBS Sports Network)
AUTO INDUSTRY
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday dispatched two of his top aides to Detroit to help resolve the strike by unionized autoworkers, expressing sympathy for the union by suggesting that the Big 3 automakers should share their "record profits."
DETROIT (AP) — About 13,000 auto workers have walked off the job at three targeted factories after their union leaders couldn't reach a deal with Detroit's automakers.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors in the case charging Donald Trump with scheming to overturn the 2020 presidential election are alleging that the former president has targeted individuals with threats, harassment and inflammatory statements, a judge said Friday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department is challenging efforts by former President Donald Trump to disqualify the Washington judge presiding over the case charging him with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
UKRAINE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected at the White House and on Capitol Hill next week as he visits the U.S. during the United Nations General Assembly.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is trumpeting Medicare's new powers to negotiate directly with drugmakers on the cost of prescription medications — but a new poll shows that any immediate political boost that Biden gets for enacting the overwhelmingly popular policy may be limited.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Republicans whose elections in swing districts next year will determine which party gains control of the House are overwhelmingly voicing their support for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden. It's a stance, Democrats say, that could come back to haunt them.
TECHNOLOGY
LONDON (AP) — European regulators slapped TikTok with a $368 million fine on Friday for failing to protect children's privacy, the first time that the popular short video-sharing app has been punished for breaching Europe's strict data privacy rules.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14
ECONOMY
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. wholesale prices increases accelerated in August, a sign that inflation remains stubbornly persistent despite a series of sharp interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits last week ticked up modestly after falling to the lowest level in seven months the week before, as companies continue to retain employees despite the Federal Reserve's efforts to cool the economy.
NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices are creeping higher and raising concerns about the impact on inflation's cooling trajectory, consumers' wallets and the Federal Reserve's interest rate policy.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hunter Biden was indicted Thursday on federal firearms charges, the latest step in a long-running investigation into the president's son that puts the case on track toward a possible high-stakes trial as the 2024 election looms.
SCIENCE
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA said Thursday that the study of UFOs will require new scientific techniques, including advanced satellites as well as a shift in how unidentified flying objects are perceived.