Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Nearly 350 newspapers will publish editorials against Donald Trump’s war on the press. The Boston Globe coordinated the effort after the president intensified his anti-press attacks, including barring a reporter from a public event. National papers have agreed to participate alongside hundreds of local media outlets.
Chipmaker Nvidia reports second-quarter earnings. As analysts question whether the semiconductor industry can sustain high growth rates, Nvidia is expected to post an increase in revenue, thanks to brisk demand for its graphics chips.
Walmart and JC Penney post results. A day after US retail sales exceeded expectations for July, two retail giants will present their own numbers (paywall). Walmart’s will indicate whether its efforts to take on Amazon are succeeding. JC Penney is struggling to rebound from weak sales after a management reshuffle.
While you were sleeping
A glimmer of goodwill appeared between China and the US. Beijing said it will send a trade envoy to Washington this month in response to an invitation from the Treasury Department, the first meeting since early June. The plans were made as the US considers tariffs on another $200 billion of Chinese goods.
A Montana judge ordered an environmental review of the Keystone XL pipeline. The judge said the State Department had a duty to “analyze new information relevant to the environmental impacts” of the pipeline’s revised route. This could delay construction, another setback for the Trump administration.
Kim Jong Nam’s alleged killers will face trial. A Malaysian court said there was enough evidence to send the two women—one Vietnamese and one Indonesian—to trial for allegedly killing Kim Jong Un’s half brother in February using VX nerve agent. They could face the death penalty if convicted of murder.
Facebook admitted its response to hate speech in Myanmar was “too slow.” After a Reuters investigation highlighted how the social media platform had failed to stop hate posts against the Rohingya Muslims, Facebook said that violence against the ethnic minority was “horrific.” It said it would increase efforts to detect hate speech and misinformation.
Brazil’s “Dr Bumbum” was charged with homicide. Brazilian prosecutors claim that the celebrity plastic surgeon, aided by his mother and assistants, injected an unsafe quantity of acrylic glass filler into the buttocks of a patient, who later died from the procedure.
Quartz Obsession interlude
Aisha Hassan on how NASA is trying to wake up its Mars rover with a playlist. “NASA engineers played Wham!’s ‘Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go’ in an attempt to wake up Opportunity, a rover on Mars that has been radio silent for months. But even the lively spirits of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley failed to stir the rover, and NASA has been playing a different song each day ever since, in the hopes that Opportunity will soon say something back.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
The concept of luxury doesn’t mean anything anymore. It’s been used over and over by unimaginative marketers to the point of banality.
Man’s best friend is the key to women’s success. Owning a dog provides women with uncomplicated and joy-filled companionship.
Companies must be accountable to employees. Thinking solely of shareholders’ returns widens the wealth gap and hurts workers.
Surprising discoveries
A Mexico City restaurant was busted for its tarantula tacos. They were serving up the Mexican red rump tarantula, a protected species, for $27 apiece.
El Chapo is making New York traffic even worse. Authorities must close the Brooklyn Bridge (paywall) each time the drug lord’s motorcade brings him to court.
Climate change has Andean flamingos feeling frisky. Six of them laid eggs at a UK reserve for the first time in 15 years during Europe’s heatwave.
Too many Americans can’t read well enough to be soldiers. The US Army is having trouble recruiting from a pool of people who are overweight, undereducated, or have criminal records.
Brazilian cops no longer have to be macho. One state has dropped “masculinity” from a list of requirements for prospective police officers.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, tarantula-free tacos, and frisky flamingos to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day or download our apps for iPhone and Android. Today’s Daily Brief was written by Jill Petzinger and Rosie Spinks and edited by Eshe Nelson.