Comcast says it will spin off NBCUniversal
(CNN) — Comcast’s media businesses, including NBC, Peacock and Universal, are moving one step closer to a sale. On Monday morning Comcast said it is spinning off NBCUniversal as well as its European media arm, Sky, into a new publicly traded company. The new company – housing the Universal movie studios and theme parks, Peacock streaming service, and brands like NBC, Telemundo and Bravo – will be well positioned for deep-pocketed buyers. Officially, though, Comcast said the new content business “will be poised for growth” on its own. Comcast patriarch Brian Roberts said the separation plan “will unlock a more entrepreneurial management approach and open up a multitude of new opportunities for each business.” But the breakup will require regulatory approval first. Comcast said it expects to complete the spinoff in about a year. The spinoff announcement was welcomed by investors; Comcast shares traded up more than 20% in premarket trading. The company’s stock has struggled in recent years, reflecting Wall Street skepticism about its combination of content and distribution and its ability to compete with the likes of Netflix.
Alex Murdaugh expected to be in court
Lexington, South Carolina (CNN) — Alex Murdaugh, the disbarred South Carolina attorney accused of killing his wife and son, is expected to appear in court Monday in what will be his first hearing since his murder convictions were overturned on appeal. Murdaugh, 58, is due in court for a status and scheduling conference on Monday at 10 a.m. in Lexington before Circuit Court Judge Debra McCaslin, who will now oversee the case. The hearing is expected to be on camera. Murdaugh’s attorneys filed several pretrial motions last week, including requests for a change of venue, for further independent testing of DNA evidence and for Murdaugh to get access to a computer behind bars. It is possible, but unlikely, the judge will rule on all of the motions from the bench Monday. Instead, both parties will likely learn more about the timeframe for the next steps in the potentially lengthy legal re-do. Separate from the murder case, Murdaugh pleaded guilty to dozens of financial crimes and remains behind bars on concurrent state and federal sentences of 27 and 40 years. He is expected to be in shackles when he comes to court Monday, the result of an intriguing legal back-and-forth with prosecutors. Though Monday’s hearing is expected to be uneventful, dozens of members of the public showed up early to court hoping to snag a seat within view of the man whose sprawling saga has already had enough twists to fill multiple true-crime documentaries, dramatized shows and best-selling books. The hearing marks the start of the road to retrial for Murdaugh, whose case stems from the June 2021 fatal shootings of Murdaugh’s wife, Maggie, and 22-year-old son, Paul, outside their family home in Islandton, a small community in South Carolina’s Lowcountry.
Trump must pay E. Jean Carroll $5M
(CNN) — The Supreme Court Monday declined to take up an appeal from President Donald Trump over a $5 million verdict and finding that he sexually abused and defamed E. Jean Carroll, a decision that means the president will now have to pay the magazine columnist. Carroll sued Trump in 2019 for defamation and then she sued him again in 2022 for defamation and battery after New York enacted a law allowing the victims of sexual abuse to file civil claims for past incidents. In an unusual quirk, the second case — the one filed in 2022 — went to trial first and the jury awarded Carroll $5 million. The 2019 case went to trial second and resulted in an $83 million judgment against Trump. Including interest, Trump owes Carroll over $100 million in all. Carroll’s 2022 lawsuit alleged that he sexually assaulted her in a New York department store in the mid-1990s and defamed her by claiming she made up the story to boost sales of a book. Trump, who has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, has claimed US District Judge Lewis Kaplan, who oversaw the civil trial, made numerous errors by allowing the jury to hear testimony from two women who alleged Trump sexually assaulted them years ago. “It is deeply damaging to the fabric of our republic for President Trump, in the midst of a historic presidency, to have to take his focus away from his singular and unique duties as chief executive to continue fighting against decades-old, false allegations and the myriad wrongs throughout this baseless case,” the president’s attorneys told the Supreme Court in a January filing. “This mistreatment of a President cannot be allowed to stand.”
Dangerous likely record-setting heat wave to scorch millions
(CNN) — Millions of Americans across the eastern half of the US are facing a prolonged stretch of dangerous heat that’s likely to break records as Americans get set to head outdoors to celebrate the country’s 250th Independence Day. The oppressive heat and humidity will hover over the Midwest early this week, then move into the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast by Wednesday. The sprawling heat dome will linger over the East, particularly the Interstate 95 corridor, and peak by Friday, just in time for the long Fourth of July weekend. Many areas will endure consecutive days of temperatures in the mid-90s to low 100s. Humidity will make it feel even hotter and make it harder to cool down — pushing “feels like” temperatures as high as 110 degrees or more. Daily record high temperatures will be threatened in dozens of locations, most from Tuesday through Saturday. Charlotte, North Carolina, Cleveland, New York City, Pittsburgh and Washington, DC, are just some of the cities where records could fall. On Thursday, New York City’s Central Park could record its first 100-degree temperature since July 2012, although the Big Apple came close last year when it hit 99 degrees in June. Washington, DC, could have three or more consecutive days of 100-degree heat for just the eighth time on record. The capital’s longest stretch is four days, last set in 2024.
Kate, Princess of Wales, climbs Britain’s three highest peaks
London (CNN) — Catherine, Princess of Wales, completed Britain’s arduous Three Peaks Challenge over the weekend to support the hospital where she underwent cancer treatment two years ago. She said she undertook the endurance challenge – which involves summitting the three highest mountains in England, Scotland and Wales within 24 hours – to support The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity, a specialist cancer center in Chelsea, west London. “Lots of people have asked me why I’m doing this challenge,” she said in a video message, posted on Sunday. “Partly it’s personal – I’m so grateful to be here, to be strong enough to walk these hills. But, more importantly, it’s to give something back and acknowledge all the incredible work going on up and down this country.” Kate, 44, announced her cancer diagnosis and that she was undergoing chemotherapy treatment in March 2024, two months after she had major abdominal surgery. Almost a year later, she shared that she was in remission.
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