THE BIG STORY Bernie Sanders won the New Hampshire primary in a show of staying power for his movement
When Sanders ran for the Democratic nomination four years ago, he beat Hillary Clinton by 22 points in New Hampshire. This time around, it was a closer contest — only a couple of points and some 5,000 votes separated Sanders and Pete Buttigieg, with Amy Klobuchar in third. With his win in New Hampshire and his lead in the raw votes from the Iowa caucus, the senator is poised to leave the first two contests as the dominant candidate, months after a heart attack threatened to derail his bid for the White House. Sanders’ win wasn’t the only significant event of the night — Andrew Yang dropped out of the race. His loyal supporters say they’re not finished. Elizabeth Warren and Joe Biden, previously seen as frontrunners, finished below 15%, which means they leave the state without any pledged delegates. Warren made an explicit call for party unity. Joe Biden left the state before the polls closed, moving on to South Carolina. His New Hampshire party was… well, you can see for yourself. Justin Sullivan / Getty Images STAYING ON TOP OF THIS Four prosecutors quit hours after the Trump administration tried to lighten a prison sentence for the president’s friend
Four federal prosecutors who rose to national prominence for their role in the Russia probe abruptly resigned their posts at the Justice Department. Their resignations came as President Donald Trump and the Justice Department interfered in a case in order to lessen the punishment for Roger Stone, an ally of the president who was convicted of seven federal crimes. The four had been lead prosecutors in the case against Stone, who is scheduled to be sentenced next week. Moments after the first three prosecutors quit, the Justice Department officially asked the court to grant Stone a lighter punishment than the one its own prosecutors had requested just the day before. SNAPSHOTS Jussie Smollett has been charged again over his alleged fake attack. A year after charges were dropped against the Empire star, the actor was charged once again in connection to the allegedly false police report he filed last year, insisting he was attacked by two men in Chicago Harvey Weinstein’s lawyers had witnesses repeatedly say how “normal” women appeared after alleged sexual assaults. The defense’s witnesses were called to dispute their friends’ accounts by saying the women did not appear to be distressed after the alleged assaults. A father moved with his daughter to college. Then he allegedly started a sex cult with her classmates. According to a federal indictment, Lawrence Ray physically, sexually, and psychologically abused his victims on campus at a New York college. People who worked on Cats are fighting back after James Corden and Rebel Wilson dragged the movie. After Corden and Wilson appeared to take a thinly veiled jab at Cats during the Oscars, the Visual Effects Society released a scathing statement, saying: “The best visual effects in the world will not compensate for a story told badly.” Meow. TAKING ON MISINFORMATION Instagram is trying to reroute people clicking into the #coronavirus hashtag to more credible sources
If you search the #coronavirus hashtag on Instagram, you’ll get a notice encouraging you to visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website for credible information about the virus. It’s a new change Instagram implemented this week, following the footsteps of its parent company, Facebook. Both platforms are working on combating misinformation related to the coronavirus. In addition to the disclaimer, the company said it will give free advertising credits to health organizations who want to run educational ads about the coronavirus on its platforms, and that it's “closely coordinating” with these organizations to provide “accurate information about the situation.” Facebook is not the only one on the hunt for misinformation, as YouTube cracks down on fake and unverified content as well. Among 500 of the most-watched YouTube videos featuring the keyword “coronavirus” that BuzzFeed News watched, dozens included unconfirmed or made-up facts. WAS IT SOMETHING I SAID? Jimmy Fallon revealed what he was thinking during a seriously awkward moment with RuPaul Last week, RuPaul was on The Tonight Show, and one moment from the conversation went viral after people noticed a moment where Jimmy Fallon looked absolutely terrified that he'd said something seriously offensive. After the clip went viral, Fallon revealed in a hilarious monologue that the moment did indeed have him worried. Figure out what it means to be good to yourself today — then do it, Elamin P.S. If you like this newsletter, help keep our reporting free for all. Support BuzzFeed News by becoming a member here. (Monthly memberships are available worldwide). 📝 This letter was edited and brought to you by Elamin Abdelmahmoud and BuzzFeed News. You can always reach us here. 🔔 Want to be notified as soon as news breaks? Download the BuzzFeed News app for iOS and Android (available in Canadian, UK, Australian, and US app stores). 💌 Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up to get BuzzFeed News in your inbox! Show privacy notice and cookie policy. BuzzFeed, Inc. 111 E. 18th St. New York, NY 10003 Unsubscribe |