This news may sound vaguely familiar to some. And it is. Less than three years ago, AT&T's WarnerMedia announced its intent to launch a new streaming service by late 2019. But if the key addition of Discovery doesn’t give Disney and NBC/Universal a run for their money, nothing will. The result will be a massive “pure play” content portfolio containing more than 100 brands: HBO, Warner Bros., Discovery, DC Comics, CNN, Cartoon Network, HGTV, Food Network, the Turner Networks, TNT, TBS, Eurosport, Magnolia, TLC, Animal Planet, and more. 

It’s a heavy price for the two companies to pay, but one that could have a huge payoff. In an announcement, Discovery CEO David Zaslav -- who will run the new venture -- said the new company will start with $55 billion in debt and that the company revenue goal for its first full year of business -- 2023 -- is budgeted at $52 billion. 

Investors who own stock in either company will also see some shifting around. If you’re an investor in AT&T, your new stock will represent 71% of the new company whereas Discovery shareholders will own 29% of the new company. 

What consumers can hope to gain

The new company starts out with a lot of shareable content -- some 200,000 hours of “iconic programming,” according to the companies. While Zazlav didn’t show all his cards, he suggested that consumers should see more original content from “under-represented storytellers and independent creators,” as well as a sizable investment in family-friendly nonfiction video content.

"During my many conversations with [AT&T’s CEO John Stankey], we always come back to the same simple and powerful strategic principle: these assets are better and more valuable together. We believe everyone wins... [including] consumers with more diverse choices,” Zaslav said. 

“We will build a new chapter together with the creative and talented WarnerMedia team and these incredible assets built on a nearly 100-year legacy of the most wonderful storytelling in the world. That will be our singular mission: to focus on telling the most amazing stories and have a ton of fun doing it.”

The extra time was granted because of the pandemic, and many people needed it. If even more time is needed, taxpayers can file Form 4868 for an automatic extension. The extension gives you until October 15 to file your federal return. However, it does not give you more time to pay any taxes you owe. 

When you file Form 4868 for an extension, you are required to send the IRS an estimated amount of the taxes you owe by using the information available to you. Failure to send the required money will result in penalties and interest charges.

There is an exception to today’s deadline. The IRS announced last week that victims of spring storms in Tennessee will have until August 2 to file their returns.

Taxes paid on unemployment benefits are being refunded

Meanwhile, the IRS this week could be sending you some money. The agency said it will begin sending out refunds on unemployment insurance taxes that millions of Americans paid last year.

Under current tax law, you have to pay taxes on unemployment benefits. Normally, people estimate and pay those taxes on a quarterly basis. But the latest stimulus law, the American Rescue Plan (ARP) that was enacted in March, did more than just send most Americans $1,400. It excluded the first $10,200 in unemployment benefits received in 2020 from federal taxes. About 10 million taxpayers fall into that category.

Starting this week, the IRS will begin sending out the refunds. The agency says single taxpayers will probably be the first to receive a refund, while married couples filing jointly will get their money later. The agency says it expects to complete the process by the end of the summer.

According to a new report from the Taylor & Francis Group, faculty and students in higher education believe the ideal student excels in more than just academics. The researchers explained that factors like punctuality, organization, and mindset are just as important.

“Marketisation has directed higher education institutions and policies to focus on student support and provisions that promote better experience and value,” the researchers wrote. “By contrast, expectations of university students are under-researched and understated, with less attention placed on what and how students should perform in higher education. 

“This paper further develops the contrast of the ideal student at university, which aims to promote transparency and explicitness about what is expected of students, and potentially alleviate inequalities driven by implicit and unspoken rules of higher education.” 

What is an ideal student?

The researchers conducted surveys and let focus groups that included data on over 1,100 students and faculty members across British schools. Participants wrote down their most and least important qualities associated with the ideal student, and then they voted on the ones that they considered most important.

Ultimately, the researchers narrowed down the list to the top eight most important qualities of an ideal student. They include:

• Diligence and engagement 
  

• Organization and discipline
  

• Reflection and innovation
  

• Positive and confident outlook 
  

• Support of others
  

• Academic skills
  

• Employability skills
  

• Intelligence
  

“Being intelligent and strategic do not appear to be important for staff and only moderately more importantly for students,” said researcher Dr. Billy Wong. “This is surprising, given the extent to which graduates are often judged on their degree results. Universities are also increasingly measured, advertised, and ranked by the employment statistics of their graduates, so it is interesting to see that employment skills feature towards the bottom of the ideal list of attributes.”  

Not all about grades

These findings are important because they show that academic performance isn’t the number one quality that university students or faculty members consider to be important when thinking of what makes an ideal student. However, the team learned that students and staff members had differing opinions about what the most important qualities were. 

Overall, having a positive mindset and better general mental health were more important qualities to students. On the other hand, staff members viewed employability as a more prominent skill. The researchers hope that these findings highlight the role that mental health plays in college students’ success. By knowing how highly college students rank mindset, universities have a chance to do their part to ensure that students feel encouraged and supported in and out of the classroom. 

“The importance of student happiness and confidence is crucial in efforts to promote better student mental health and well-being, especially as demands for university mental health services and counseling have reportedly increased in recent years,” Dr. Wong said. 

Jane Manchun Wong, who is known for finding new features before companies officially announce them, found evidence that Twitter is planning a subscription service called Twitter Blue. It will initially be priced at $2.99 per month. For that price, subscribers will reportedly get the following features: 

• “Undo Tweets.”When a user posts a tweet, an “Undo” button with a timer will appear, allowing users a few seconds to change their mind and stop the tweet from appearing on the live feed. 
  

• “Collections.” This feature gives users the ability to save and organize their favorite tweets into folders dubbed “Collections,” with the aim of making them easier to find later. 
  

Finding different revenue streams

Wong said Twitter is working on a tiered subscription pricing model, which suggests that other tiers could have even more features than the two named above. She shared a screenshot in which Twitter stated that the service would auto-renew each month and could be canceled any time. 

The rumored new subscription model comes as the free-to-use social media site explores new ways of making money. Last July, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey told analysts that it could eventually launch a subscription service. He told investors that there is a "a really high bar" for when Twitter would ask users to "pay for aspects of Twitter." 

"We want to make sure any new line of revenue is complementary to our advertising business," Dorsey said in July. "We do think there is a world where subscription is complementary, where commerce is complementary, where helping people manage paywalls ... we think is complementary."

“Vegetables and fruits contain important nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, flavonoids, and carotenoids that can reduce inflammation and oxidative stress, and therefore improve mental well-being,” said researcher Simone Radavelli-Bagatini. “Inflammation and oxidative stress in the body are recognized factors that can lead to increased stress, anxiety, and lower mood.

“We found that people who have higher fruit and veggie intakes are less stressed than those with lower intakes, which suggests diet plays a key role in mental well-being,” she added. 

Improving diet and stress

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 8,600 people enrolled in the Australian Diabetes, Obesity, and Lifestyle (AusDiab) Study. Throughout the study, participants reported on their diets and general stress levels so the researchers could determine what role fruits and vegetables had on long-term stress. 

Ultimately, the researchers learned that regularly consuming fruits and vegetables was linked with lower stress levels. Compared to those who ate around a half-pound of fruits and vegetables per day, those who ate a full pound every day reported 10% less stress. 

These findings are important because of the long-term consequences associated with stress disorders. The researchers explained that adding more fruits and vegetables to consumers’ diets could be a good way for them to maintain healthy stress levels.

“Long-term and unmanaged stress can lead to a range of health problems including heart disease, diabetes, depression, and anxiety so we need to find ways to prevent and possibly alleviate mental health problems in the future,” Radavelli-Bagatini. “The study’s findings emphasize that it’s important for people to have a diet rich in fruits and vegetables to potentially minimize stress.”