In Other News: US traffic deaths drop slightly in 2022 but still a ‘crisis’; BuzzFeed News to be shuttered in corporate cost cutting move

Published 12:00 am Saturday, April 22, 2023

US traffic deaths drop slightly in 2022 but still a ‘crisis’

The number of people killed on U.S. roadways decreased slightly last year, but government officials say the almost 42,795 people who died is still a national crisis. Estimates by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration showed that the number of fatalities dropped 0.3% from the 42,939 killed in 2021. Traffic deaths declined slightly in the fourth quarter, the third straight quarterly decline. But they’re still close to 2021 numbers, which were the highest in 16 years. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says the nation continues to face a national crisis on its roadways. The department says it has adopted a strategy for reducing the deaths, including more than $800 million in grants to help communities with projects in high-crash areas.

An end to the reading wars? More US schools embrace phonicsMove over “Dick and Jane.” A different approach to teaching kids how to read is on the rise. For decades, two schools of thought have clashed on how to best teach children to read, with passionate backers on each side of the so-called reading wars. The battle has reached into homes via commercials for Hooked on Phonics materials and through shoebox dioramas assigned by teachers seeking to instill a love of literature. But momentum has shifted lately in favor of the “science of reading.” The term refers to decades of research in fields including brain science that point to effective strategies for teaching kids to read. The science of reading is especially crucial for struggling readers, but school curricula and programs that train teachers have been slow to embrace it. The approach began to catch on before schools went online in spring 2020. But a push to teach all students this way has intensified as schools look for ways to regain ground lost during the pandemic — and as parents of kids who can’t read demand swift change.

BuzzFeed News to be shuttered in corporate cost cutting movePulitzer Prize winning digital media outlet BuzzFeed News is being shut down as part of a cost-cutting drive by its corporate parent that’s shedding about 15% of its entire staff. In a memo sent to staff, Buzzfeed Inc. co-founder and CEO Jonah Peretti said that cuts would also occur across its business, content, tech and administrative teams, according to multiple media reports. BuzzFeed is also considering making job cuts in some international markets. Peretti said in a memo to staff that he “made the decision to overinvest” in the news division, but failed to recognize early enough that the financial support needed to sustain operations was not there.