Gas Prices Rise As Saudi Pipeline Attacked; Trump Calls AI Fears A Hoax; Sydney Sweeney Ad Controversy; Malls Are Back

Mosheh Oinounou (0:04)

Hey, everybody, it is Tuesday, September 15th. You're listening to the Mo News podcast. I'm Moshe Oinounou.

Jill Wagner (0:09)

And I'm Jill Wagner. This is the place where we bring you just the facts.

Mosheh Oinounou (0:12)

And where we read all the news and read between the lines so you don't have to. And one thing we didn't really have to read between the lines on, Jill, was this viral Sydney Sweeney ad that so many people are talking about.

Jill Wagner (0:24)

There were no lines. There were no lines.

SPEAKER_3 (0:27)

They left where we're going.

Jill Wagner (0:29)

Full of footballs, I think.

Mosheh Oinounou (0:31)

Yeah, exactly. Or a basketball or a tennis ball.

For those of you who have not seen this, I know this is an audio platform. Some of you do watch us on YouTube. There's a new ad out for a new betting platform that leaves little to the imagination Sydney Sweeney, who's no stranger to taking off some clothing. There's nearly everything for this ad for Novig. It's a new sports betting app that has left the Internet divided, including Jill, a lot of female athletes who are pretty upset about this.

Jill Wagner (1:03)

Yeah, you've got some female athletes saying that Sweeney is demeaning and sexualizing women's sports. It's definitely sparked a conversation, whatever you think about it, which may have been the point, I guess, mission accomplished for Novig that no one I think has heard of before this week.

Mosheh Oinounou (1:22)

Well, and they acknowledge as much, right? Because you've heard of Polymarket, you've heard of Kalshi, but Novig is trying to break in to that market. And so they decided to, well, have Sydney Sweeney do this ad for them. And it's getting a lot of buzz here, right? And one of the challenges that women in sport have had for years is fighting this idea of sexualizing women in sports. Some athletes, including Olympic athletes coming out saying, I didn't realize this was still a thing. Women in sport, one Australian swimmer says, is about teamwork, friendship, dedication, excellence and unity.

Please stop doing this to us.

And so you saw some people come out, and others being like, thank you for saying something. Let me say something here. I was trying to ignore it altogether. Now Novig officially says, the campaign was about embracing a fun idea. The concept is simple, cut through the noise, and put the focus entirely on sports. Not sure I was entirely on sports there. The campaign brings that idea to life with confidence, humor, and a playful edge, says Novig. We have not seen, as of Monday afternoon, a comment from Sweeney here, but this is a story that is getting a lot of chatter online.

Jill Wagner (2:30)

So the thing I'm not totally clear about is that it's not just a women's sports betting market, it's men's sports too.

Mosheh Oinounou (2:38)

Right, and there's much more betting on male sports than women's sports. But ultimately, I think the issue that a lot of female athletes are having here is that they have to fight a lot of stereotypes and the idea of being sexualized in various sports. And so they feel that Sydney Sweeney is making life more challenging for them and reversing years of progress. Though no one will confuse, if you watch that ad, Sydney Sweeney for trying to pretend to be an athlete of any sort, at least based on the things she's doing and saying in that ad. But Jill, to be continued, we have some serious matters to attend to in this podcast.

Jill Wagner (3:15)

Yes, we do. Okay, to the headlines, starting in the Middle East, word that the key Saudi oil pipeline hit by drones could be out of service for weeks. What that means for gas prices, the national average, up by about 13 cents in one week. To the latest on AI, President Trump says, the industry does not need more guardrails and actually calls safety fears a hoax.

Mosheh Oinounou (3:40)

The AI story continues here, Jill, with a conference about humanity that will have Bernie Sanders teaming up with Steve Bannon. Yes, the far right Steve Bannon and far left Bernie Sanders. Sound the alarm about AI. We'll tell you about some of the interesting bedfellows this story is making.

Jill Wagner (3:59)

El Nino just leveled up to super status, what exactly that means.

Mosheh Oinounou (4:04)

Bad for you in the Pacific, potentially good for you in the Atlantic.

Jill Wagner (4:08)

And all of those record heat waves in France are set to make champagne stronger.

Mosheh Oinounou (4:13)

It's not champagne unless it comes from the Champagne region of France, Jill. Otherwise, it's just super strong, sparkling wine.