May 7 Weekend Quiz: Surprise Writers, Big Weddings, Big Tech

Billie Eilish was born on December 18, 2001, three months and one week after the 2001 September 11 Attacks on New York City and Washington DC. She will be 20 by the end of 2021.

What is Billie Eilish wearing on her Vogue cover?

Eilish, known for her baggy clothes and covered-up style, appears on the cover of British Vogue’s June 2021 edition wearing a custom Gucci corset and skirt with an Agent Provocateur bra, accessorized with latex gloves. “Don’t make me not a role model because I turn you on,” she says in the interview. According to the singer, her body “was the initial reason for my depression when I was younger” – a situation worsened when she quit dancing at 13 due to injury. Hence the baggy clothes she wore so far.

Former Danish PM Helle Thorning-Schmidt is a member of the Facebook Oversight Board. Since ending her political career between 2015 and 2019, she has been the chief executive of the British international NGO Save the Children.

What did Facebook's Oversight Board rule?

Facebook's Oversight Board, the independent body that reviews content moderation decisions made by the social media company, on May 5, 2021, upheld Facebook's Jan. 7 decision to "restrict" former President Trump's access to his Facebook and Instagram account. In its ruling, the Oversight Board found that Trump "severely violated Facebook's Community Standards and Instagram's Community Guidelines."

What happens now?

According to the decision, "Facebook's normal penalties include removing the violating content, imposing a time-bound period of suspension, or permanently disabling the page and account." Therefore, the Oversight Board has given Facebook six months to apply an appropriate "proportionate response that is consistent with the rules that are applied to other users of its platform."

71-year-old Caitlyn Jenner announced her campaign for California Governor in April 2021 on Twitter and followed it up Monday, May 3, with a three-minute video posted on her website.

News Fact:

The reality TV personality, transgender rights activist, and 1976 Olympics hero continued her campaign with an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity aired Wednesday, May 5, 2021. Watch the interview.

In a "Selena: The Series" scene, the late Selena Quintanilla, "Queen of Tejano music," meets Beyoncé Knowles, AKA Queen Bey, in a shopping mall.

Did Beyoncé meet Selena Quintanilla as portrayed in "Selena: The Series"?

According to an interview with MTV tr3s, Beyoncé approached Selena Quintanilla as a child in The Galleria mall in Houston, Texas, but didn't say much.

Selena Montgomery is voting rights activist Stacey Abrams’s pen name. She wrote several romantic suspense novels during her third year at Yale Law School and published her most recent book in 2009.

What’s new?

Penguin Random House (thru Berkley imprint) recently acquired the rights to republish three of Abrams’s early Selena Montgomery novels, Rules of Engagement, The Art of Desire, and Power of Persuasion, in 2022. "As Selena and as Stacey, I am proud to be a part of the romance writing community and excited that Berkley is reintroducing these stories for new readers and faithful fans," Abrams said in a statement on May 4, 2021.

Are there newer Stacey Abrams thrillers?

Stacy Abram’s legal thriller (under her name) While Justice Sleeps, published by Penguin Random House, will hit online and book stores on May 11, 2021.

Mark Wahlberg was born June 5, 1971, which means he turned 50 in 2021.

What's new?

Wahlberg, known for his strict fitness regimen, wrote on Instagram Saturday, May 1, 2021, that he's "up about 20" pounds in weight in three weeks — and plans on "going up another 20." "Yes, it's for a role," he added, captioning a video of himself in the gym. In an early April appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Wahlberg said he was planning to put on the pounds to play a fighter-turned-priest in an upcoming movie. According to IMDB, Wahlberg is filming "Stu" opposite Mel Gibson, directed by Gibson's girlfriend, Rosalind Ross.

Australian office supply store chain Officeworks has pulled Apple's newly launched AirTags from sale amid child safety concerns surrounding its button battery. Button batteries pose a significant hazard to small children and can cause severe injury or death if swallowed. Incidents involving button batteries severely injure an average of one child per month in Australia.

The Bench is the title of Meghan Markle's new children's book. Markle released her book published by Random House Children's Books on June 11, 2021.

What inspired Meghan Markle's first children's book?

The inspiration for the book came from Markle's poem to her husband, Prince Harry, on his first Father's Day as a dad to son Archie.

China is New Zealand’s largest trading partner and was responsible for 29% of New Zealand’s total exports in 2020. New Zealand was the first developed nation to sign a free trade deal with China in 2008. China now buys twice as much from New Zealand as New Zealand’s next most significant market, Australia (12.7% of New Zealand’s total exports in 2020).

What’s new?

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern took a tougher stance on China’s human rights record in her speech to the China Business Summit in Auckland Monday, May 3, 2021. Ardern said New Zealand had raised “grave” concerns with China on human rights issues, including the situation of Uyghurs in the Xinjiang region and people who live in Hong Kong.

Until 2018, Pakistan's late Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was the only elected world leader in modern history to give birth while holding office. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern joined this exclusive club when giving birth to her daughter, Neve.

News fact:

In an interview, Wednesday, May 5, 2021, on the Coast radio breakfast show, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she and her longtime partner Clarke Gayford have finally set a date for their wedding. The celebration will take place during the Southern Hemisphere summer. The couple announced their engagement two years ago.

Bill and Melinda Gates married on the Hawaiian Island of Lanai on January 1, 1994, about one year before the Windows 95 launch.

News Fact:

Bill Gates and Melinda Gates said in a joint statement posted by Bill Gates’ Twitter account on Monday, April 3, 2021,  that they have decided to end their marriage. “We ask for space and privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life,” their statement said.

American phone giant Verizon owned internet pioneer AOL since 2015 and 90s internet index Yahoo since 2017.

What’s new?

The New York Times reported on Sunday, May 2, 2021, that Verizon is near a deal to sell Yahoo and AOL to the private equity firm Apollo Global Management. The sale was completed on Sept. 1 for $5 billion and includes Verizon’s advertising technology business. The agreement is one sign that Verizon has given up on its media business.