Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Senior US officials meet with Turkey’s president. Vice president Mike Pence and secretary of state Mike Pompeo are in Ankara, to urge Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to order an immediate ceasefire in Syria.
More testimony in the Trump impeachment probe. The US ambassador to the EU, Gordon Sondland, testifies behind closed doors to several House committees. Meanwhile, Representative Elijah Cummings, a key figure in the inquiry, has died.
Mark Zuckerberg speaks. The Facebook CEO is livestreaming “the most comprehensive take” of his views on free speech. His company is once again facing strong criticism, this time for its decision to allow falsehoods in political ads.
While you were sleeping
A Brexit deal has been struck, says the UK prime minister. As the deadline for Britain’s departure from the EU approaches, Boris Johnson announced, “we’ve got a great new deal that takes back control.” It is now in the hands of the UK parliament, which meets on Saturday.
Unilever looked shaky. The consumer goods giant, and maker of Dove, Ben & Jerry’s, and other major brands posted disappointing sales growth for its third quarter, hurt by a slowdown in China and India.
Clashes rocked Catalonia for a third night. Police fired foam bullets, swung batons, and drove armored vehicles at crowds to disperse protesters, as unrest continued after Spain’s supreme court handed down lengthy sentences to nine separatist leaders earlier this week.
London commuters fought Extinction Rebellion disruption. Protesters tried to halt transport during rush hour, climbing on top of subway trains on the busy Jubilee line, only to be confronted by angry Londoners. Police had controversially banned all protests by the group.
Nestlé said it will buy back $20 billion in shares. The food and beverage giant will return billions to shareholders by 2022, aided by $10 billion in cash after the sale of its dermatology line. Further divestments are expected next year.
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Our culture editor Oliver Staley and entertainment reporter Adam Epstein discuss this fall’s television slate, touching on new shows, the upcoming Disney+ and Apple TV+ launches, and how the traditional broadcast networks can survive in the era of streaming. You won’t want to miss the latest episode of our must-see conference call.
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Getting the uncanny feeling you’ve read this before? Nearly two thirds of us experience the sensation of déjà vu, the impression that we’ve already done the thing we are currently doing. Whether it’s a function of memory or a glitch in the matrix, déjà vu can be disorienting, unsettling, and just plain weird. The Quartz Obsession does it all over again.
Matters of debate
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Do you really mean “millennial?” Most of the time, people are referring to “yuppies.”
Will computers ever be conscious? Machines and brains store and process information in fundamentally different ways.
The internet is a disaster, isn’t it? But its creator sees hope in places that offer good examples of collaborative systems, like GitHub.
Surprising discoveries
A Parisian zoo unveiled the mysterious “blob.” The amorphous being looks like a fungus, learns like an animal, and has nearly 720 sexes.
You can book a room at Versailles. The first hotel on the famous palace grounds will open in 2020.
A new dress code. China has banned the export of black clothes, often worn by protesters, to Hong Kong.
Bach was a scoundrel. Often depicted as a model of respectability, the composer was known to enjoy his share of fighting, drinking, and liaisons in the organ loft.
More rapid than Usain Bolt. The Saharan silver ant is the fastest ant in the world, with more than 10 times the Jamaican legend’s stride rate.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, black clothes, and Ben and Jerry’s to hi@qz.com. Join the next chapter of Quartz by downloading our app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was brought to you by Adam Rasmi, Rashmee Roshan Lall, and Hasit Shah.