(WASHINGTON) — U.S. hiring slowed from its breakneck pace but remained robust in August, with the economy adding 315,000 jobs and the unemployment rate rising to 3.7%, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday.
The report comes one week after Fed Chair Jerome Powell triggered a stock sell-off and stoked recession fears with his vow to fight inflation with interest rate hikes “until the job is done.”
The Fed has instituted a series of aggressive borrowing cost increases in recent months as it tries to slash near-historic inflation by slowing the economy and choking off demand. But the approach risks tipping the U.S. into an economic downturn.
So far this year, however, employment has boomed. The robust hiring numbers have defied expectations and quieted fears of a major slowdown.
U.S. hiring far outpaced expectations in July, as the economy added a blockbuster 528,000 jobs and the unemployment rate fell to 3.5%, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics last month.
The jobs added in July exceeded the already-robust hiring sustained over the first half of 2022, during which the economy added an average of 461,000 jobs each month.
Government data put out this week reinforced evidence that the jobs market remains strong. Job openings rose in July after falling for three consecutive months, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Tuesday, which showed job openings on the last day of July had jumped to 11.2 million from 11 million the month prior.
The labor market has withstood the Fed’s effort to slow the economy, even as the central bank tries to bring down inflation in part by cutting demand for workers and slowing wage increases, AnnElizabeth Konkel, a senior economist with Indeed Hiring Lab, told ABC News.
At meetings in June and July, the central bank increased its benchmark interest rate 0.75% each time — dramatic hikes last matched in 1994.
“We aren’t seeing the employer demand get tamped down,” Konkel said. “Your interpretation of it in a macro sense depends on what hat you’re wearing.”
“If you’re a worker and see a strong labor market, that means you have choices,” she added. “You might be able to negotiate a higher wage or flexibility on work location. If you’re the Fed, it means your job just got tougher.”
Garth Brooks may be the GOAT in country music, but at least around Jon Pardi’s farm, he’s a literal goat, too.
Jon’s 15-acre Nashville-area farm is home to a whole menagerie of animals, including five goats — two of whom are named Garth and Trisha, after the legendary singer and his equally legendary country star wife, Trisha Yearwood.
“I named ’em Garth and Trisha out here when we first got ’em. I thought it’d be funny,” Jon says in a new interview with ET Online.
Along with the other goats, the Pardi farm is also home to five cows, four dogs and four cats. The goats aren’t the only ones with punny names, either: Jon’s cats are the Kat-dashians.
As for the dogs? Well, Jon has even cast one of them as the co-star in a music video. The singer’s Australian cattle dog, Cowboy, makes a show-stealing cameo in the video for his song “Tequila Little Time.”
The first of two tribute concerts honoring late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins takes place Saturday at London’s Wembley Stadium.
The star-studded event, which will feature a towering roster of guests performing alongside Foo members Dave Grohl, Nate Mendel, Chris Shiflett, Pat Smear and Rami Jaffee, is set to stream live via Paramount+ and MTV’s YouTube channel beginning at 11:30 a.m. ET.
An hour-long version of the concert will also air as a special on CBS on Saturday at 10 p.m. ET. MTV will also air a two-hour special later in September.
The many artists joining the Foos in London for the tribute include AC/DC‘s Brian Johnson, Led Zeppelin‘s John Paul Jones, Rush‘s Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, Queen‘s Brian May and Roger Taylor, the Joe Walsh-fronted James Gang, The Pretenders‘ Chrissie Hynde and Martin Chambers, Metallica‘s Lars Ulrich, The Police‘s Stewart Copeland, Nirvana‘s Krist Novoselic, ex-Oasis singer Liam Gallagher and Wolfgang Van Halen.
Grohl’s daughter Violet and Hawkins’ son Shane are also on the bill, as is Taylor’s cover band Chevy Metal.
You can view a full list of participants at TaylorHawkinsTributeConcert.com, which also features personal messages from a number of the guest artists sharing their memories of Hawkins and what it means for them to be performing in his honor.
Hawkins died on March 25 at age 50. The second tribute concert will be held at Kia Forum near Los Angeles on September 27.
This Labor Day weekend, instead of the fan cruise she’s been doing for years, Melissa Etheridge is hosting her first fan destination festival, Etheridge Island, at a Mexican resort. Melissa tells ABC Audio that the festival, which started Tuesday and runs through Monday, is a better solution than a cruise ship for her fans — and not just because of COVID.
“COVID…ecologically…[and] there’s some fans that are just like, ‘I’m not getting on a boat, I’m just not going to do it!'” Melissa laughs. “And many asked for this: a destination, a place we can go. And I can also get more artists to come. There’s less artists that are willing to get on a boat for a few days. So it just made sense.”
The artists are a key ingredient in both the cruises and Etheridge Island: This year, in addition to three shows by Melissa, fans will also see Elle King, KT Tunstall, Ani DiFranco and lesser-known acts. Melissa loves that her fans tell her how she’s helped them discover new music that way.
“That’s my favorite thing: when they say, ‘Oh, I didn’t know this artist until Melissa introduced us [to them],'” she says. “And that means so much to me, because I spend the year finding these artists.”
She adds, “Since the late nineties I’ve been doing that: [I] really, really enjoy finding artists — especially females — that are so good, and [I] can really get them in front of people, knowing that my crowd will like them.”
To prove that she’s got a talent for, well, spotting talent, Melissa recalls doing a VH1 Duets show in the ’90s when she insisted on singing “with some artists that no one’s ever heard of.” Their names werePaula Cole, Joan Osborne and Jewel.
The xx bassist and vocalist Oliver Sim has canceled his upcoming tour dates in support of his debut solo album, Hideous Bastard.
In an Instagram post, Sim writes, “Part of the reason Hideous Bastard came to be was imagining playing the songs live. But timing is everything and sometimes things don’t quite come together the way we’d hoped.”
“The shows booked for September and October are sadly not able to happen so we’ll have to wait a little longer to hear these songs in a room together,” Sim continues. “I’m sorry for any inconvenience cause but I look forward to putting on a truly hideous show for you very soon.”
If you’re disappointed by the news, your heart may be warmed by a comment left by Sim’s The xx bandmate Romy Madley Croft, who writes, “When the time is right I’ll be in the front row.”
(NOTE LANGUAGE) Bob Odenkirk addressed the Venice Film Festival via video from Los Angeles Friday, and he explained he wants some action now that Better Call Saul is over.
According to Deadline, Odenkirk spoke fondly of his 2021 hit Nobody, in which he played a seemingly boring suburban dad who goes all John Wick on his enemies.
“I was very surprised by Nobody,” the actor explained. “I had initiated that project because I had a feeling that the character I was developing in Better Call Saul was the kind of character you see in an action film. He has earnest desires and he was willing to sacrifice himself…”
Odenkirk continued, “I still train multiple times a week and if I get my way you’re going to see me doing more action. I found the action sequences a great deal of fun and close to doing sketch comedy…I love the early Jackie Chan films which had humor in them. I’d like to get that in in future.”
Odenkirk also shared what he thought was the secret behind the success of Nobody, which director David Leitch has said has a sequel in the works: “It’s almost like people like to see older people lose their s***,” he said. “Why does that seem to make sense to everyone? It’s funny.”
When asked to look back at Better Call Saul weeks after the show’s highly-rated finale, Odenkirk said, “I have very mixed feelings. It was a long time to play one guy and portray his psyche…”
He added of his Saul Goodman, “that’ll be the role I’ll be known for my whole life. And I’m proud of that.”
Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
The Osbourne family’s return to the U.K. has inspired a new BBC reality series.
The 10-part show, titled Home to Roost, will follow Ozzy and Sharon‘s life as they move back to their home country after decades of living in Los Angeles.
“Home to Roost will document Ozzy and Sharon’s journey back to Britain, alongside [children] Kelly and Jack‘s efforts to support them, as they attempt to re-start their lives in rural Buckinghamshire,” a press release reads. “The series will follow the Osbournes as they celebrate one of their most important years yet — with everything from Sharon’s 70th birthday to Kelly’s soon-to-be-born baby, Ozzy’s tour, and of course the big move itself.”
The Osbournes, of course, are no strangers to reality TV. The family famously starred in the MTV show The Osbournes, which aired from 2002 to 2005.
Meanwhile, Ozzy is slated to release a new solo album, Patient Number 9, on September 9. He’s also set to launch a European tour in 2023, which has long been delayed due to Ozzy’s variety of health issues and the COVID-19 pandemic.
(WASHINGTON) — A federal judge on Friday unsealed a more detailed inventory of what the FBI seized in the search of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate last month.
The judge, who is considering the Trump legal team’s request to name a third party to review the materials, ordered the release in a court hearing in Florida Thursday.
Judge Aileen Cannon also ordered unsealed a status review of the records seized during the Aug. 8 search of Mar-a-Lago.
She has not yet ruled on the question of a review by an independent “special master.”
(WASHINGTON) — The Pentagon’s latest survey on reported sexual assaults in the military show that in 2021 an estimated 8.4% of active duty women and 1.5% of active duty men indicated experiencing at least one incident of unwanted sexual contact.
The survey also showed that despite major efforts to address the issue of sexual assault in the military, including reforms instituted last year, women in the military services have significantly lost trust in the military to follow through on their cases or treat them with respect.
Using a new metric for the survey, carried out every two years, the number of service members who reported they had experienced unwanted sexual contact increased significantly, to a record 35,800. However, the change in metric made it difficult to make a full comparison to the estimated 20,400 reported in the most recent survey.
Unwanted sexual contact is defined as ranging from groping or abusive sexual contact, to attempted sexual contact, to rape. The new survey found the highest increase was in the category for non-penetrative sexual assault and attempted sexual assault.
The number of sexual assaults on service members reported in 2021 also spiked to a new high of 7,249, representing a 13% increase over last year’s numbers. The increased number of reports was due in large measure to a 25.6% increase in the number of reported incidents in the Army, a number far higher than the 9.2 % increase reported by the Navy, the 1.7% increase in the Marine Corps, and the 2.4% increase in the Air Force.
“The results are a tragic reminder of the challenges we face and the absolute need for continued leadership engagement, historic reforms that remain underway, and a focus on the latest and prevention so we can achieve the foundational change we need,” Elizabeth Foster, executive director of the Pentagon’s Office of Force Resiliency, told reporters on Thursday.
“These numbers are tragic and extremely disappointing,” she added. “On an individual level, it is devastating to conceptualize that these numbers mean that over 35,000 service members lives and careers were irrevocably changed by these crimes.”
According to the Pentagon study, 8.4% of active-duty female service members are estimated to have experienced some form of unwanted sexual contact in 2021, an increase from 6.2%, the highest percentage since data measurements began in 2006. The figure for men increased to 1.5% up from .7%, the second-highest level recorded.
There were steep 25 to 30% drops in the trust that service members have in the military’s system to handle their cases and protect their privacy after reporting an incident.
For example, 39% of women said they trusted the system, down from 66% in 2018, and the number of female service members who said the military protected their privacy following the report of an incident dropped steeply by 34%, down from 63% in 2018.
(NEW YORK) — NASA kicked off Monday its plan to send an unmanned space capsule into the moon’s orbit, marking the initial launch in an ambitious plan to establish a long term presence on the moon for scientific discovery and economic development.
The space capsule, called Artemis I, will travel for roughly 40 days — reaching as close as 60 miles from the moon, and then 40,000 miles above the moon when orbiting over its dark side — before landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego.
After the launch was scrubbed, the next attempt will occur Sept. 3.
Sep 02, 9:32 AM EDT
Artemis still on track to launch Saturday
NASA officials announced Friday that Artemis I is still on track to launch Saturday afternoon between 2:17 p.m. ET and 4:17 p.m. ET.
Jeremy Parsons, deputy manager of exploration ground systems at the Kennedy Space Center, said pre-launch tests and checks are “proceeding right on schedule.”
Melody Lovin, launch weather officer at the U.S. Space Force, said the weather forecast is currently a 60% go overall and 80% toward the end of the two-hour window, If the launch needs to be delayed until Monday, the forecast is a 70% go.
“I do not expect weather to be a showstopper by any means for either launch window,” she said.
Sep 01, 6:57 PM EDT
Artemis launch attempt still a-go for Saturday
The Artemis I launch attempt is still planned for Saturday from 2:17-4:17 p.m. ET, NASA officials said during a press conference Thursday.
“We’re comfortable with our risk posture,” Artemis mission manager Mike Serafin said. “That said, there’s no guarantee that we’re going to get off on Saturday, but we’re going to try.”
If not Saturday, the next launch attempt would be Monday from 5:12 p.m.-6:42 p.m. ET, officials said. Tuesday could also be an option, after which the next earliest launch attempt would be Sept. 19, Serafin said.
Sunday is no longer a backup option because the spacecraft would fly into an eclipse scenario, which would not allow it to get the power it needs from the sun.
If the launch is Saturday, the mission will be 37 days long, with the splashdown on Oct. 11, Serafin said.
-ABC News’ Gio Benitez and Meredith Deliso
Aug 30, 7:40 PM EDT
Artemis not launching Friday due to weather, NASA says
NASA officials said the Artemis I new launch date that was initially scheduled for Friday had to be moved due to bad weather.
The weather is 60% no go for Friday but looks to be more favorable Saturday.
“Looking forward to Saturday, weather would be a little bit different than what we experienced yesterday,” Mark Berger, launch weather officer with the U.S. Space Force’s 45th Weather Squadron, said during a media briefing Tuesday. “We will have a fairly strong onshore flow, and so that does favor showers and possibly a few thunderstorms moving in from the coast during the morning and early afternoon hours.”
He added, “I’m optimistic that we’ll have at least some clear air to work with during the afternoon to count on Saturday.”
The window for launch on Saturday kicks off at 2:17 p.m. ET and ends at 4:17 p.m. ET. If need be, the launch can be pushed back to Monday.
If the launch does not occur by Monday, Artemis I will have to roll back to the Vehicle Assembly Building and won’t be able to launch until later in September.
This is because the flight termination batteries, which allow Artemis to be blown up if it veers off course, run low after 25 days.
-ABC News’ Gio Benitez and Gina Sunseri
Aug 30, 7:05 PM EDT
Problem with Artemis engine may have actually been faulty sensor: Officials
The issue with an engine on Artemis I that led to the launch on Monday being scrubbed may not have been an engine issue at all.
NASA officials said Monday that engine three did not chill down to a temperature of 500 degrees Rankine, or 40 degrees Fahrenheit, which is needed for ignition, compared to the other three engines.
However, John Honeycutt, manager of the Space Launch System Program from Marshall Space Flight Center, said the problem may have actually come from a faulty sensor, rather than the engine not cooling down enough.
“I think we’ve got enough data to put the story together but we’ve still got to go put the pieces together,” Honeycutt said Tuesday.
Aug 30, 6:23 PM EDT
NASA moves Artemis launch date to Saturday
NASA officials announced Tuesday that they’ve moved the launch of Artemis I to Saturday.
Mike Sarafin, Artemis mission manager, told reporters during a media briefing that the mission management team met earlier in the day and agreed on the new date.
“We agreed on what was called option one, which was to operationally change the loading procedure and start our engine chill down earlier,” he said.
One of the reasons for the scrub on Monday was because engine three did not cool down enough to the point needed for ignition, he explained yesterday.
“We also agreed to do some work at the pad to address the leak that we saw and we also agreed to move our launch date to Saturday, September the 3rd,” Sarafin added. “We are going to reconvene the mission management team on Thursday, September the 1st, to review our flight rationale and our overall readiness.”
Aug 29, 1:21 PM EDT
NASA administrator says launch scrubs are normal
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said it’s normal for launches to be scrubbed after the Artemis I launch was delayed Monday for multiple reasons.
“I am very proud of this launch team. They have solved several problems along the way and they got to one that needed time to be solved,” he told reporters.
“I want to say, understand that scrubs are just a part of this program on the space flight,” Nelson said.
Nelson spoke about the seventh mission of Space Shuttle Columbia, which he flew in January 1986.
“We scrubbed four times on the pad,” Nelson said.
He added, “It was the better part of a month and, looking back, after the fifth try got off to a perfect mission. It would have not been a good day had we launched on any one of those four scrubs. So when you’re dealing in a high-risk business and spaceflight is risky, that’s what you do.”
Aug 29, 2:11 PM EDT
Engine does not need to be replaced on Artemis, NASA says
NASA officials said there is no sign one of the engines needs to replaced on the Artemis I rocket after the launch was scrubbed.
During a media briefing Monday, Mike Sarafin, Artemis mission manager, told reporters engine three did not cool down enough to the point needed for ignition.
“Do we need to remove and replace an engine? There is no indication we are at that scenario at this point,” he said.
Aug 29, 1:51 PM EDT
NASA breaks down details behind Artemis launch scrub
NASA officials on Monday offered more details behind the decision to postpone the Artemis I launch.
Mike Sarafin, Artemis mission manager, explained engine three was not cooling down enough to the temperature needed before ignition.
“I don’t recall exactly where the engines were but engines one, two and four were pretty close to that. Three was not getting there,” he told reporters during a media briefing Monday afternoon.
Sarafin said there were other issues earlier in the day including tanking — filling the rocket with liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen — being delayed for about an hour after the Kennedy Space Center went into a lightning alert as well as a hydrogen leak, although both were resolved.
“So the combination of not being able to get engine three to reach chill down and then the vent valve issue that they saw at the inner tank really caused us to pause today and we felt like we needed a little more time,” he said.
Sarafin added that he is hopeful about the second launch opportunity on Sept. 2.
“There is a non-zero chance we have a launch opportunity on Friday,” he said.
“But we need time, we really need time to look at all the all the information, all the data and, you know, we’re gonna play all nine innings here and we’re not ready to give up yet,” Sarafin continued.
Aug 29, 1:21 PM EDT
NASA administrator says launch scrubs are normal
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said it’s normal for launches to be scrubbed after the Artemis I launch was delayed Monday for multiple reasons.
“I am very proud of this launch team. They have solved several problems along the way and they got to one that needed time to be solved,” he told reporters.
“I want to say, understand that scrubs are just a part of this program on the space flight,” Nelson said.
Nelson spoke about the seventh mission of Space Shuttle Columbia, which he flew in January 1986.
“We scrubbed four times on the pad,” Nelson said.
He added, “It was the better part of a month and, looking back, after the fifth try got off to a perfect mission. It would have not been a good day had we launched on any one of those four scrubs. So when you’re dealing in a high-risk business and spaceflight is risky, that’s what you do.”
Aug 29, 10:20 AM EDT
VP Harris praises NASA team behind Artemis launch
Vice President Kamala Harris praised the NASA team behind the Artemis I mission after the launch had to be scrubbed Monday due to an engine problem.
Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff had been visiting the Kennedy Space Center before the launch was postponed.
The scrubbed launch was “about showing the great work that happens here,” Harris told reporters.
“These exceptional public servants, these exceptional skilled professionals who have the ability to see what is possible and what has never been done before. How exciting is that?” she said.
According to a White House official, Harris and Emhoff will continue with their visit under a revised itinerary.
“She met with astronauts at NASA Operations Support Building II and will proceed to a tour of Artemis II and Artemis III hardware as planned. The Vice President will gaggle following the tour and then depart,” the official said.
Aug 29, 9:40 AM EDT
‘We don’t launch until it’s right,’ says NASA administrator
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson defended the scrubbing of the Artemis I launch, saying the launch shouldn’t take place until the team is sure it’s ready.
“We don’t launch until it’s right,” he said during an interview on NASA TV Monday morning.
“There are certain guidelines. And I think it’s just illustrative that this is a very complicated machine, a very complicated system, and all those things have to work, and you don’t want to light the candle until it’s ready to go,” he said.
Nelson said the engineers will continue to “stress” and “test” the rocket to make sure it’s ready by the next attempt, which is Sept. 2.
Earlier in the day, Nelson had welcomed several Biden administration officials, including Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff, to the Kennedy Space Center ahead of the launch.
He said the vice president has been briefed and the White House will continue to receive regular updates.
Aug 29, 8:48 AM EDT
NASA scrubs Artemis I launch
NASA announced a few minutes after Artemis I was initially scheduled to lift off that the launch has been scrubbed.
Engineers said the problem came from a liquid hydrogen line that was not chilled enough inside one of the rocket’s four core-stage engines, which needs to occur before they can be ignited.
The next attempt will occur on Sept. 2.
Aug 29, 8:31 AM EDT
Artemis launch delayed due to storms, rocket troubleshooting
Artemis I will likely not be launching at 8:33 a.m. ET as originally planned after NASA ran into several delays in its preparation to send it into space.
The process of tanking, which includes filling the rocket’s core stage with liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, was delayed due to some passing storms and lightning in the area, NASA said.
Moreover, a leak was discovered in the hydrogen fuel line, which NASA quickly resolved. The leak concentration was “at an acceptable level,” NASA said.
Engineers also discovered a potential crack in the inner stage flange, which connects two of the rocket’s cylinders.
The countdown clock is currently paused at T-40 and the launch can go as late as 10:33 a.m. ET If that window passes, the next attempt at launch will be Sept. 2.
