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Elon Musk at the 2022 Met Gala.Andrew Kelly/Reuters

Elon Musk said COVID-19 "tricked people into thinking that you don't actually need to work hard."

Working from home didn't make workers less productive, three economists told Insider.

The only constraint on productivity was when workers had children at home they needed to look after.

Elon Musk is not a fan of remote work.

In the early hours of Wednesday, Musk commented on a tweet which appeared to be an email from him to Tesla executive staff, saying: "Anyone who wishes to do remote work for a minimum (and I mean *minimum*) of 40 hours per week or depart Tesla."

Although Musk didn't confirm the authenticity of the email, when asked whether such a strict in-office policy could be considered antiquated by some, he replied: "They should pretend to work somewhere else."

The tweets were not completely out of the blue.

Musk previously expressed distaste for American workers "trying to avoid going to work at all" in a May interview with The Financial Times although he was contrasting them with workers in China, rather than comparing in-office and remote workers.

And he tweeted last month: "All the Covid stay-at-home stuff has tricked people into thinking that you don't actually need to work hard."

Musk,who railed against lockdown mandatesanddefied shelter-in-place orders to send workers back to his California Tesla factory in May 2020, might have the wrong idea about remote work. Insider spoke to three economists, all of whom said remote work during the pandemic did not damage worker productivity.

"Most of the evidence shows that productivity has increased while people stayed at home," Natacha Postel-Vinay, an economic and financial historian at the London School of Economics, told Insider.

"People spent less time commuting so could use some of that time to work, and they also got to spend more time with their family and sleeping, which meant they were happier and ended up more productive," she added.

Musk did not immediately reply when contacted by Insider outside of usual working hours.

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Data shared with Bloomberg in February 2021 by VPN provider NordVPN Teams suggested that in many economies, working from home meant people worked longer hours.

Albrecht Ritschl, an professor of economic history, also said cutting out commuting was a bonus to worker productivity, and added that working from home led to fewer hours spent in "pointless meetings."

"Time spent at the office is not the same thing as working hard," Ritschl said.

Almarina Gramozi, a lecturer in economics at King's College London, said the largest surveys of workers in the US and the UK found workers were at least as productive at home as in the office although she said a similar study in Japan found workers did report lower productivity working from home.

All three experts said productivity occasionally dipped in some cases, but not because people were shirking.

People with children at home during the pandemic often had to split their attention between work and childcare, leading to a decrease in productivity, Postel-Vinay and Ritschl said.

Gramozi also added productivity isn't just down to individual employees.

"Productivity levels depend substantially on the support that employers offer, technology adoption, and on the type of work that would allow it to be easily conducted remotely," she told Insider.

Read the original article on Business Insider

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Elon Musk said working from home during the pandemic 'tricked' people into thinking they don't need to work hard. He's dead wrong, economists say. -...

While seasonal fantasy football drafts seem quite a ways off, 2022 best ball leagues and early mocks are starting to take off. At the very least, its time to start getting your projections and rankings in order.

With that in mind, I took a stab at mocking how the first two rounds of fantasy football leagues will unfold this year.

My first grand takeaway: I hate it, particularly Round 1.

[Set, hut, hike! Create or join a fantasy football league now!]

It was hard to find 12 desirable picks to put in the first round especially given that were seemingly at an inflection point at running back. Several of the top talents from the last three years are already close to aging out and were lacking in projectable workhorse young guys to take their spots. Getting the middle rounds right will be crucial this year if the early rounds prove to be as volatile as I think they might end up.

Yes, I hate how this first mock turned out. Im ready and eager to change my mind/approach the further we get into the summer.

The combination of Taylors age, dominant 2021 season and a potential upgrade at quarterback make him the clear first overall selection. Injuries can hit anyone at this position but no player at the top of the running back board inspires this much comfort.

Unlikely to repeat his Triple Crown performance from last year, Kupp is still in position to dominate high-leverage targets for a great offense.

I would be zero-percent shocked if Jefferson takes another leap and becomes the WR1 overall this season. A growing talent on a rocketship-upward trajectory, Jefferson has a similar outlook to Kupp this season.

Justin Jefferson has the stage set for him to be the No. 1 WR in fantasy. (Photo by Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

It wont feel good to do it but youre going to have to have to hate-click McCaffrey in the top-five picks this year. The recent injury history is terrifying but his ceiling and floor combination is too rare at this position to pass up.

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Ekeler has gone over 1,500 yards from scrimmage twice in the last three years and is coming off a career-best 20 total scores. The current Chargers coaching staff didnt put any weird sized-based limitations on his role in the scoring area. That gives us comfort when chasing that ceiling for another season.

Investing in a Steelers offense captained by either Mitchell Trubisky or rookie Kenny Pickett isnt the most comfortable proposition. But Harris is one of the few backs who is ticketed for 80-plus percent of his teams backfield touches. It might not always be a pretty experience but the numbers will be there.

Even within a running back crop that feels particularly rocky this year, Henry strikes me as more volatile than most. You can easily tell yourself a story that last years injury was a mere blip in an otherwise stellar run and hes right back at the top of the positional scorers come December.

The negative extreme is just as easy to visualize given the amount of volume hes handled since 2019. For what its worth, the Titans are clearly betting on the former outcome given they doubled down on their run-first, Henry-centric identity with just about every offseason move.

Much like Henry, Cook is already reaching the point in a running back's career where were starting to weigh their projected workload against their age and history. Still, Cook looks to be the featured back of an offense that likely got a bump in the coaching department and is essentially bringing back a talented ecosystem of skill-position players.

Diggs is coming off back-to-back 160-plus target seasons and theres no reason he shouldnt moonwalk right into that type of alpha target share once again. The Bills are light on proven pass-catchers behind him, despite the fantasy communitys excitement over Gabriel Davis. Diggs should land somewhere between 2020 and 2021 in the efficiency department this season.

Dont overthink it.

Ignore things like, Chase had x-percent of his fantasy points come on just a handful of plays, or other such noisy nuggets. We should be ecstatic to bet on and project growth for elite young receiving talents tethered to such a juicy situation as Chases setup in Cincy.

Kelce has averaged 141.3 targets over the last four seasons and could easily clear that mark in 2022 given the changes in Kansas Citys receiving corps. Kelce will be the lone, proven, familiar face for Patrick Mahomes this season.

Im trying to find as many reasons as possible to be ahead of ADP on Aaron Jones this season. The Packers have always been more run-heavy than you think and given the massive opening in their target share following the Davante Adams trade, Jones could set a career-high in looks. Hes an ideal selection around the turn.

Mixon seems to have successfully slid into the safe but boring era of his career as a fantasy running back. Totally fine. Hes a workhorse back at the center of a good offense.

Still a top-five wide receiver but not a first-round fantasy pick seems like the proper adjustment for Adams in a post-Packers world. Adams is an elite individual talent and Derek Carr is far from some slouch at quarterback.

Theres always some frustration with Chubb because of Kareem Hunts presence (though hes not a 2022 roster lock) but the upside is worth the worries. Chubb is a blistering talent and the lead back of one of the top rushing ecosystems in the NFL.

Swift cleared 1,000 scrimmage yards in just 13 games last season. Hell have more competition for targets this season but should remain high in the Lions' receiving pecking order. Swift checks a lot of the boxes we want in our fantasy backs.

Evans does nothing but pile up touchdowns and 1,000-yard seasons on an annual basis. With Antonio Brown gone and Chris Godwin still recovering from a late 2021 ACL tear, Evans could see his highest target totals of the Tom Brady era.

Andrews wrestled the TE1 title away from Travis Kelce last season and will push him again in 2022. Im buying all the Rashod Bateman hype but still, with Marquise Brown traded away Andrews should own a commanding share of the Ravens targets. Im not interested in his splits with/without Lamar Jackson.

Mark Andrews should continue to challenge for the top TE ranking. (Photo by Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Some worries about a possible suspension keep Kamara out of the first-round discussion. Otherwise, his outlook appears quite nice this season especially since we no longer have to worry about the goofy Taysom Hill offense distributing things midseason.

There is no reason to assume Fournette experiences a role change from what he was asked to do last season. A running back who thrived in that sort of three-down, receiving-heavy role on an offense led by Tom Brady is a Round 2 fantasy pick. Simple case.

Amari Cooper leaving town is a big deal for Lambs outlook. Michael Gallup possibly starting the season still recovering from a torn ACL is also quite consequential. We havent seen Lamb dominate the targets in Dallas quite yet but its all laid out for him to do so this season.

Anyone doing projections this year is going to struggle with Samuel. You cant realistically give him the target share he held in Weeks 1 to 7 and hes unlikely or unwilling to handle the rushing work he thrived with down the stretch.

There are also the Trey Lance questions and his own contract situation. Slotting Samuel toward the end of Round 2 despite his stellar 2021 feels fair, all things considered.

Dont let JaMarr Chasesrise let you forget about Higgins. If you include playoffs, Higgins finished last season with 1,400 yards and eight scores. Thats a non-outrageous outcome for him in the upcoming regular season. He is an extremely good young receiver.

I went slightly chalky with Hill at the end of Round 2. I really wanted to go A.J. Brown in this spot. The move to Philly is not a downgrade for his fantasy value. Just to be a bit bolder, I considered giving this spot to one of my absolute favorite wide receiver picks this year, Michael Pittman. Absolutely dripping with talent, Pittman is a true No. 1 receiver in every sense of the word who is now set to play with a steadier quarterback.

I will regret the Hill pick the moment I file this article.

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Early Two-Round Fantasy Football Mock Draft: Who are the riskiest Round 1 picks? - Yahoo Sports

This post was originally published on Tker.co.

Theres more evidence that the economic narrative could be undergoing a major shift.

For months, weve been living in an economy in which strong demand has been met with lagging supply, causing inflation inflation to surge. We now appear to be shifting to a phase where demand growth is cooling and supply chains are easing, which should cause inflation to come down.

According to Census Bureau data released Wednesday, orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft a.k.a. core capex or business investment climbed 0.3% to a record $73.1 billion in April.

While the 0.3% growth rate represents a deceleration from the 1.1% rate in March, its the kind of slowing thats welcome news for folks like the Federal Reserve, which is actively working to cool economic growth in its effort to bring down inflation.

That is consistent with our view that economic activity is bending rather than breaking under the impact of higher rates, Michael Pearce, senior U.S. economist for Capital Economics, said in a note on Wednesday.

Core capex growth represents a massive economic tailwind. And the fact that it continues to grow, albeit at a decelerating pace, is a good sign for economy-wide growth.

According to S&P Global Flash US Manufacturing PMI report released on Wednesday, these emerging economic trends have continued into May. Specifically, the composite output index fell to a four-month low of 53.8 in May. For this index, any reading above 50 signals growth, and so the declining number suggests growth is decelerating.

Growth has slowed since peaking in March, most notably in the service sector, as pent up demand following the reopening of the economy after the Omicron wave shows signs of waning, Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, wrote on Wednesday.

Growth appears to be cooling on the consumer front too.

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According to a BEA report released Friday, personal consumption expenditures (i.e., consumer spending) increased by 0.9% in April from the prior month to new record levels. However, this was a healthy deceleration from Marchs 1.4% growth rate.

The spending came as the saving rate (i.e., the difference between income and spending) fell to its lowest level since September 2008.

While this development on its own is unsettling, it comes after consumers spent over two years accumulating over $2 trillion in excess savings.

It looks like households have been eating into the excess saving that was built up at earlier stages of the pandemic in order to fuel consumer spending in recent months, Daniel Silver, economist at JPMorgan, wrote in a note on Friday.

As weve discussed frequently on TKer, these excess savings represent a massive economic tailwind. For a while, you could argue that it was exacerbating inflation. But now it appears to be bolstering spending as the economy slows.

News of a slowdown is not exactly the kind of thing that warrants a celebratory tone. But its exactly the kind of thing that should help bring inflation down.

S&Ps PMI report also suggested there could be some daylight in the disrupted supply chains.

Manufacturers in particular also report that capacity continues to be constrained by supply shortages, though these bottlenecks showed further encouraging signs of easing, S&Ps Williamson said (emphasis added).

Its also been a while since weve heard about ships idling outside of ports waiting to be unloaded.

U.S. port data suggest easing backlogs, JPMorgan economists wrote last week. Notable examples are the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which process about 40% of total imports into the US.

And its not just ocean freight thats loosened. Trucking freight seems to be loosening too.

According to BofAs Truck Shipper Survey for the week ending May 19, shippers find it much easier to secure capacity (its highest level since June 2020).

Unfortunately, at least some of these signs of loosening supply chains can be explained by easing demand for goods. But again, this is the dynamic that should make for easing inflation.

Bloomberg reported that tech behemoth Microsoft was slowing hiring in its Windows, Office, and Teams businesses.

PayPal laid off 83 employees at its headquarters in San Jose.

These are anecdotes. But the developments are in line with the Feds aim of cooling inflation by first cooling the labor market.

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Last month, I wrote about how economists across the board were saying that inflation as measured by year-over-year increases in prices had peaked.

On Friday, we got more evidence to confirm that may be the case.

The core PCE price index the Feds preferred measure of inflation climbed 4.9% in April from a year ago. This is down from the 5.2% rate in March and the 5.3% peak rate in February.

On a month-over-month basis, the core PCE price index has climbed by a cool 0.3% over the past three months.

Many have touted March as the peak in inflation and are looking for inflation to cool from here, Grant Thornton Chief Economist Diane Swonk said on Friday.. We are not as convinced given the risks we still face due to the war in Ukraine and lockdowns in China. Either way, it is important to note that any cooling we see will have a high floor. Both the overall and core PCE indices remain well above the Federal Reserves 2% target.

Indeed, inflation has a long way to go to get to 2% from 4.9%.

And so, well have to keep an eye on the incoming data to see if a major shift in the economic narrative is indeed underway.

More from TKer:

Stocks surge, ending 7-week losing streak: The S&P 500 rallied 6.6% last week, ending a seven-week losing streak. It was the biggest one-week gain since November 2020. The index is now down 13.3% from its January 3 closing high of 4796.56, but 6.6% above its May 19 closing low of 3,900.79. For more on market volatility, read this and this. If you wanna read up on bear markets, read this.

Corporate insiders are buying their companies stock: From JPMorgan: corporate insiders are holding a non-consensus view across most sectors and actively buying the dip with net insider buying activity reaching 1STDev above trend level.

Mortgage rates are still high, but tick down: The average rate for the 30-year fixed rate mortgage declined to 5.10% from 5.25% the week prior. Heres Freddie Mac: Mortgage rates decreased for the second week in a row due to multiple headwinds facing the economy. Despite the recent moderation in rates, the housing market has clearly slowed, and the deceleration is spreading to other segments of the economy, such as consumer spending on durable goods.

New home sales slump: Sales of newly built homes fell 16.6% month-over-month to an annual rate of 591,000 units, according to Census Bureau data.

Consumer sentiment tumbles: The University of Michigans index of consumer sentiment fell to 58.4 in May, its lowest level since August 2011. From the survey: This recent drop was largely driven by continued negative views on current buying conditions for houses and durables, as well as consumers future outlook for the economy, primarily due to concerns over inflation.

Keep in mind that deteriorating sentiment hasnt come with a decline in spending in recent months. For more on sentiment, read this.

People are doing stuff: From Yahoo Finances Emily McCormick: On Thursday, both Southwest Airlines and JetBlue raised their quarterly guidance, citing strong demand heading into the critical summer travel season. Both upward revisions came just weeks after the companies initially reported their forecasts last month.

This follows a similar announcement from United Airlines last week. Altogether, its apparent that people are refusing to put their lives on hold.

Its jobs week in America. Wednesday comes with the April Job Openings & Labor Turnover Survey and Friday comes with the April employment report. Employment growth has been very strong and record-high job openings have enabled workers to earning higher wages.

However, there are nearly two job openings per unemployed. This good news is being blamed for high inflation, which is bad, which is what the Fed is aiming to address with tighter monetary policy.

U.S. financial markets will be closed on Monday for Memorial Day.

Sam Ro is the founder of Tker.com. Follow him on Twitter at @SamRo.

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More signs that a major shift in the economic narrative could be underway - Yahoo Finance

You dont hear much applause at golf tournaments anymore.

"The art of clapping is gone," Tiger Woods said a couple years back. "Everyones holding a cell phone."

Oh sure, youll still hear plenty of "woo" and "mashed potato" and "Tiger Tiger Woods y'all" and, of course, "get in the hole." ("Baba Booey" has faded as Howard Sterns cultural footprint has diminished. "Brooksy" mostly vanished when Koepka and DeChambeau squashed their beef. And "dilly dilly" died the lonely, unmourned death it always deserved.)

But applause? No, theres very little applause anymore. Everyone tracks the players, cell phone in hand, filling their photo libraries with awkward, poorly timed or misaligned shots. Im as guilty of this as anyone; whenever Im at a course that allows cell phones, Im all over it, capturing gems like this from Kiawah Island in 2012:

(Yahoo Sports)

Its Tiger! And hes walking! Superstars are just like us!

And since were not pro photographers, we end up with a whole bunch of photos from a distance that look like this, from Pebble Beach in 2019:

(Yahoo Sports)

Check out Phil and DJ, right there just uh hanging out by the green or something.

The biggest crowds surround the biggest names, and unless youre right up front, you end up with gems like this, from the 2021 Tour Championship:

(Yahoo Sports)

Hey, thats Bryson down there! So close you could almost yell "Brooksy" at him!

Augusta National, as always, is the exception to all of this. Phones arent allowed on the grounds, on penalty of permanent lifetime expulsion, so everyone can freely applaud well, as long as theyre not holding cheap sandwiches and beers. At the Masters, youre always in the moment, unconnected to the world beyond.

The most fascinating part of watching any golf tournament is that if you happen to be standing at just the right spot, you can find yourself in the middle of the action. Unlike any other sport, golf can roll literally right up to your feet. You can be sipping a beer one minute, and the next, Tiger Woods is standing beside you ready to take one of his 70-or-so shots on the day.

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And if youre at a course that permits cell phones, that leads to photos like this:

(Maddie Meyer/PGA of America/PGA of America via Getty Images)

Take a look at that photo. Behold everyone in it, almost all of them busy with their phones. Notice anything odd? Out of place?

Yep, that one dude there on the left, in khaki shorts and a blue shirt. Hes holding his beer like you hold a cell phone, yes, but it is definitely a beer a Michelob Ultra, to be precise. Everyone else is viewing Tiger through the lens of their phone; hes watching the GOAT with his own two eyes. Hes living in the moment.

(Granted, considering the price of beer at the PGA Championship, he was holding something almost as valuable as a phone, but still )

You dont need me to tell you that putting down your phone and enjoying the life thats unfolding in front of you is a good idea. If youre like, well everyone, you know exactly how addictive that damn phone can be.

Now, since nothing in this life can go unbranded, Michelob turned beer-holding dude into a marketing campaign, complete with merch.

(At least its not an NFT. Yet.)

Still, the message is a good one. Put down the phone, be in the moment, and see the world through your own eyes. And if you want a memory for posterity that badly, just ask the person next to you to text you the video. You know they'll be filming.

______

Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Follow him on Twitter at @jaybusbee or contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com.

Excerpt from:

Put down the phone and watch Tiger Woods with your own eyes - Yahoo Sports

With Memorial Day weekend in the rear view mirror, fantasy baseball league standings have really started to take shape. By now, managers are well-aware of their teams strengths and weaknesses, and the odds of fixing their flaws via the waiver wire are slowing fading. All of these factors add up to the trade market becoming the best way to change the course of a fantasy season.

I recommend that that managers search for their best value deals in June by using their league standings and for you Yahoo Fantasy Plus subscribers, take advantage of the trade hub to help find your ideal trade partners. The plan should be to find teams who running away with specific categories, and then to approach their managers with the idea of trading from an area of strength. For example, a manager with a 15-homer lead over the next competitor is more likely than other teams to consider trading away one of their top sluggers. Also, the manager with the 15-homer lead is most likely to have a wide array of successful sluggers to choose from. This plan wont work in every category of every league, but in most leagues, about half of the categories will have one or two teams who have separated themselves from the pack.

Here are some players who should be involved in plenty of deals this week.

Perez recently returned from an IL stint, and this has been a quiet season for him overall (.588 OPS). There are many Perez managers who are now regretting drafting him, worrying that they invested a premium draft pick on someone who will never again come close to repeat his gaudy numbers from last year (48 homers, 121 RBIs). But the massive totals from last season also serve as a reminder that when he gets hot, Perez can carry a fantasy squad by providing huge numbers from the catcher position. For this reason, the 32-year-old is a great trade target for managers who need to take chances to turn around their season.

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I can hear some managers telling me that there is no way Soto is going to come cheap. Well, the 23-year-old is hitting .232 with 16 RBIs in a terrible lineup, and I can guarantee that managers in some Yahoo leagues have grown frustrated with him. If you dont believe me, check out his Trade Market page. Soto started slowly last year as well, with his two worst months coming in April and May, before he turned it on and posted a 1.164 OPS in the second half of the season. June might be the perfect month to acquire him.

Juan Soto's slow start could make some fantasy baseball managers desperate enough to trade the slugger at a discounted price. (Photo by Rob Tringali/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Wood is 53 percent rostered, which makes him available on the waiver wire in shallow leagues and an easy trade target in 12-team formats. Like many San Francisco pitchers, the right-hander struggled in May, and he now owns poor ratios (4.81 ERA, 1.47 WHIP) this season. But there is plenty to like about a starter with a 45:13 K:BB ratio in 43 innings, and he has mostly been felled by a .360 BABIP and a 16.1 percent HR/FB rate. I dont expect Wood to be a fantasy savior, but he should be a helpful lineup member once his luck evens out.

Clase has the lowest saves total of any top-tier closer, which makes him a worthwhile target on the trade market. Some of his managers might be getting more saves from their other closers, which will allow them to consider moving Clase in return for someone at a position of need. The Guardians are not going to win the 2022 World Series, but they should give Clase more chances to close out games in the coming weeks, and he has the skills to convert saves in bunches.

Kimbrel has struggled of late, giving up five runs (four earned) in his past three appearances. And while some fantasy analysts are worried about him, Im not one of them. The right-hander hasnt had control problems this year, nor has he given up many home runs. He is also collecting strikeouts at a reasonable rate for a closer. I dont see Kimbrel as a top-tier closer, but as part of an outstanding Dodgers team, I can see him getting to 30 saves.

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At age 34, Martinez remains an excellent hitter. But his .363 average will likely make him overvalued on the trade market. The slugger has enjoyed a .469 BABIP, and his rates of strikeouts and walks are similar to his marks in previous seasons. His batted ball tendencies havent changed much either, which is not surprising for a player of his age. Overall, Martinez perfectly fits the description of a sell-high player.

I put Bard in this article two weeks ago, and his sell-high window remains option. The right-hander ranks sixth in baseball with 11 saves, but this is a ride you want to get off of right now. Things typically dont end well for Colorado closers, and the guess here is that Bard does not have enough talent to reverse that trend. His ratios are solid (3.12 ERA, 0.98 WHIP) and unless you are desperate to keep him for his saves, I would look to trade him for a useful player at another position.

Gorman perfectly fits the profile of a high-level prospect who is off to a great start and gets fantasy managers dreaming about what he could become over the next few months. And while young players in these situations sometimes meet expectations, they often fall short once Major League hurlers have had a longer look at them. I have nothing against Gorman as a prospect, but he might be worth more on the trade market than on your roster right now.

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Fantasy Baseball Trade Analyzer: Deals are best way to improve teams at this point - Yahoo Sports

It's Bobby Brown's prerogative to dish some dirt in his A&E original biography and he delivers.

Part one of the two-night event took place Monday and was chock full of juicy tidbits about the singer's decades in the spotlight. The singer gave his unfiltered takes on his rise to stardom, getting booted from New Edition after clashing with his bandmates over his scene-stealing antics and then striking out on his own as a solo performer in Biography: Bobby Brown. The performer known for his Gumby 'do lived an excessive lifestyle at the height of fame, dropping $1 million in a day just because, and that included an out of control sex life with him admitting he was a sex addict. Brown also detailed romances with Whitney Houston and Janet Jackson, and a fling with Madonna.

Despite how it ended, Brown and Houston had a full-blown love affair, which began at the 1989 Soul Train Awards. He recalled feeling good that night, being recognized for the first time for his solo career, then going backstage only to have the songbird dubbed "The Voice" hit on him.

Bobby Brown met Whitney Houston at an awards show in 1989 and they had a day-long first date the next day. They were engaged in 1991 and married in 1992. The pair, who battled addiction, separated in 2006, and she died in 2012. (Photo: L. Cohen/WireImage)

"I remember that night like it was yesterday," Brown said. Not only did he pick up the award for Best R&B/Urban Contemporary Album of the Year Male, but "it's also when I fell in love."

After performing "My Prerogative" and going backstage, "Whitney walked up and was bumping me. She just kept bumping me," he remembered. "I turned around and I said, 'You know you keep bumping me.' She said, 'I know.'"

"From there it was just love at first sight," he continued. "Something about her eyes made me melt inside. I said, 'If I ask you on a date, would you say yes?' She said, 'Of course.'"

Wasting no time, the next day they had their first date. It began with shopping in Beverly Hills, dinner at The Ivy and then "we just chilled for the rest of the evening." But the bad boy was smitten. "Just the way she looked at me from day one until the last day that we were together was always special."

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Bobby Brown looks back at his life and career in Biography: Bobby Brown on A&E. (Photo: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

While night two of the doc gets into the sex, drugs and ultimate combustion of the pairing as well as the tragic death of their only child, Bobbi Kristina, Brown talked about his affection for Houston on the documentary's first night. He also opened up about the "crush of my life," Jackson.

"I had a big crush on Janet," whom he dated prior to Houston. "What was it about Janet? Everything. Her little smile. Body. Her dance moves. Her little laugh."

And while they "loved each other's company," they "didn't have that long of a relationship. The reason me and Janet broke off, she couldn't be with a man like myself. I'm from the projects. I'm hood. Her father" and manager Joe Jackson, "wouldn't allow her to be with someone like me. Janet was the crush of my life, but I was about to meet the love of my life," Houston.

He also spoke about a fling with Madonna. Asked if he slept with the Material Girl, he replied, "We didn't do any sleeping."

Bobby Brown was once arrested for violating a "lewd law" while simulating sexual acts on stage as he performed his song "Roni" in 1989. He said that was when his bad boy reputation really took off. He said the arrest, in Georgia, only helped his career because more people bought his music and went to his shows to see what the hype was about. (Photo: A+E Network)

Now 53, remarried to Alicia Etheredge and a dad to seven (five living), Brown spoke at length becoming a sex symbol, at just 15, and wild times with women that followed. He laughed about his crazy sexcapades, having multiple groupies in different hotel rooms at the same time as well as a wild night with Mike Tyson and two dozen women. He also spoke about his onstage arrest for lewdness in 1989 because simulating sex on the stage with audience members was part of his show in the Don't Be Cruel era. However, he also acknowledged that his addictions went beyond drugs and alcohol.

"I believe I was a sex addict," Brown admitted.

Looking back, "I definitely wish I got the guidance as far as sex was concerned. I didn't have anybody there to teach me. My dad was definitely not going to teach me. My mom was not going to teach me. My brother was too busy in his sex life to teach me. So I had to learn from all the older cats... I just wish, ya know, I would have been a lot safer."

The doc also looked at Brown's early years growing up poor in the Orchard Park Projects in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and started drinking at age 7 or 8. He watched as his best friend was stabbed to death. His mother, a teacher, was arrested and the victim of police brutality, leading Brown to be removed from his home by social services. While under state care, he was molested by a priest.

"Wow, I didn't think I was going to talk about that," he admitted as he detailed the violation.

And that was the vibe of the first two parts of the doc, which also touches on the heartbreaking deaths of his kids Bobbi Kristina and son Bobby Jr.

"My life hasn't been easy," he admitted. "Just trying to find ways to cope with the loss of so many individuals in my life."

Parts three and four air Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on A&E. Brown's new docuseries, Bobby Brown: Every Little Step, debuts after the doc with new episodes then airing Tuesdays at 9 p.m. starting June 7.

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Bobby Brown details Whitney Houston making the 1st move in doc - Yahoo Entertainment

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.Drew Angerer/Getty Images

A nonprofit advocacy group says a researcher's avatar was raped in the metaverse.

Other Meta users have also said they were sexually harassed or abused in the metaverse.

Meta investors wanted a report on harms facing metaverse users, but shareholders rejected the idea.

A researcher entered the metaverse wanting to study users' behavior on Meta's social-networking platform Horizon World. But within an hour after she donned her Oculus virtual-reality headset, she says, her avatar was raped in the virtual space.

"Metaverse: another cesspool of toxic content," a new report published by the nonprofit advocacy group SumOfUs on Tuesday, details the researcher's violent encounter in Meta's Horizon World.

According to SumOfUs' account, users invited the researcher to a private party on Horizon World earlier this month. Users in the same room then asked her to disable a setting that prevented others from getting within 4 feet of her.

The report linked to a video that the group says shows what happened to the researcher's avatar from her perspective. In the video, a male avatar is seen getting very close to her, while another male avatar stands nearby, watching. A bottle of what appears to be alcohol is then passed between the two avatars, per the 28-second video. Two male voices are heard making lewd comments in the video.

In a part of the video SumOfUs opted not to share but describe, the researcher "was led into a private room at a party where she was raped by a user who kept telling her to turn around so he could do it from behind while users outside the window could see all while another user in the room watched and passed around a vodka bottle," per the report.

Even though it happened in virtual reality, the incident left the researcher "disoriented," she said in the report. The researcher noted her controller vibrated when the male avatars touched her, resulting in a physical sensation that was a result of what she was experiencing online.

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"One part of my brain was like WTF is happening, the other part was like this isn't a real body, and another part was like, this is important research," she said in the report.

SumOfUs researchers also reported experiencing homophobic and racial slurs in Horizon World and said they witnessed gun violence on the platform.

"We think these incidents show that Meta needs to pause its headlong rush into the metaverse it has shown it's unable to moderate existing platforms causing serious harms to individuals and communities," a SumOfUs spokesperson told Insider.

"In Horizon Worlds, Personal Boundary is default on at almost 4 foot for non-friends to make it easier to avoid unwanted interactions. We don't recommend turning off the safety feature with people you do not know. We want everyone using our products to have a good experience and easily find the tools that can help in situations like these, so we can investigate and take action," a Meta spokesperson said in a statement sent to Insider.

Meta launched Horizon Worlds in December to users 18 and up in the US and Canada. By February, there were at least 300,000 users on the platform, according to The Verge.

Four other users also recently said their avatars were sexually assaulted or harassed in Horizon World and other Meta VR platforms, according to the SumOfUs report.

In November, a beta tester reported that her avatar had been groped in Horizon Worlds.

At the time, a Meta representative, Kristina Milian, told MIT Technology Review that users should have "a positive experience with safety tools that are easy to find and it's never a user's fault if they don't use all the features we offer." She continued: "We will continue to improve our UI and to better understand how people use our tools so that users are able to report things easily and reliably. Our goal is to make Horizon Worlds safe, and we are committed to doing that work."

But the next month, a metaverse researcher named Nina Jane Patel said in a post on Medium that within 60 seconds after she joined Horizon Worlds, three to four male-looking avatars gang-raped her avatar.

That same month, The New York Times reported that a female player's avatar was groped on a Meta-owned shooter game. Separately, a player on the sports game Echo VR said a male player told her he had recorded her voice so he could "jerk off" to her cursing.

MetaverseThinkhubstudio

Meta has staked its future on building its immersive metaverse virtual reality. It plowed $10 billion into designing the metaverse. CEO Mark Zuckerberg is playing the long game with his investment, recently saying the project could continue to lose money for three to five years, Insider reported.

At least two major Meta investors, however, were alarmed by emerging details of harassment and abuse on its metaverse platforms.

In December, the investors Arjuna Capital and Storebrand Asset Management, together with SumOfUs and several other advocacy organizations, co-filed a motion demanding that Meta publish a report examining any harms users could face on its metaverse platforms, they said in a press release.

"Investors need to understand the scope of these potential harms, and weigh in on whether or not this is a good idea before we throw good money after bad," Arjuna Capital's managing partner Natasha Lamb said in the release.

At Meta's Wednesday shareholder meeting, a proposal was introduced to complete a third-party assessment of "potential psychological and civil and human rights harms to users that may be caused by the use and abuse of the platform" and "whether harms can be mitigated or avoided, or are unavoidable risks inherent in the technology."

However, the proposal was voted down.

Earlier this month, Nick Clegg, the president for global affairs at Meta Platforms, said in a blog post that "the rules and safety features of the metaverse regardless of the floor will not be identical to the ones currently in place for social media" and "nor should they be."

But, he continued: "In the physical world, as well as the internet, people shout and swear and do all kinds of unpleasant things that aren't prohibited by law, and they harass and attack people in ways that are. The metaverse will be no different. People who want to misuse technologies will always find ways to do it."

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A researcher's avatar was sexually assaulted on a metaverse platform owned by Meta, making her the latest victim of sexual abuse on Meta's platforms,...

On the afternoon of June 30, 2019, Kevin Durant posted on Instagram that he would be leaving the Golden State Warriors. The next day, Kyrie Irving made it official that he would depart the Boston Celtics as an unrestricted free agent.

The destination for both: Brooklyn.

The NBA was abuzz, of course. Durant and Irving were considered two of the 10 best players in the league. Maybe top five.

Now they were united in making a so-called super team and possible champion out of a forlorn Nets franchise that lived in the shadow of the New York Knicks despite that franchises decades of playoff frustrations.

It was supposed to be just a matter of time before Brooklyn was competing in, let alone winning, the NBA Finals.

And, in turn, there were huge questions about what each left behind. Golden States roster was full of aging role players and an injured Klay Thompson. Boston had a bunch of promising young players but no leader just two years prior, the Celtics traded three players and three draft picks to Cleveland for Irving.

It was a dark day for both teams.

The Warriors' championship run appeared over after Kevin Durant left the Bay Area for Brooklyn. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Well, a funny thing happened en route to the dynasty in Brooklyn and the rebuilds of the Celtics and Warriors.

The Nets have won a whopping one playoff series in three seasons plagued by injuries, vaccine debates and drama.

Meanwhile, Golden State hosts Boston on Thursday (9 p.m. ET) in the opening game of the Finals.

The reasons are varied, but you couldnt blame either franchise for enjoying a bit of schadenfreude at the turn of events.

This really isnt about laughing at KD, Irving or the Nets. These Finals are actually the story of an old and often unfairly mocked NBA adage.

Players and coaches alone dont win championships; organizations win championships.

That was from the late Jerry Krause, who was the general manager of the Michael Jordan-led 1990 Chicago Bulls. The idea enraged and motivated MJ, but Krauses theory, while perhaps clumsy in its utterance, was correct.

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There was a measure of concern surrounding each franchise when its star players departed. Some fans may have even panicked.

Inside the front office of the Warriors and Celtics, there was resolve.

We made a risk Ill never regret that, then-general manager Danny Ainge said of trading so many assets for Kyrie. ... you just move on to the next deal.

Ainge didnt panic. No one with the Celtics did. They just stuck to the program and built around the young talent they had already drafted to support Irving. Maybe Kyrie headed to Brooklyn in part to play with a superstar in Durant, but he either didnt know or didnt care what he was leaving behind.

That includes Jayson Tatum (now 23), Robert Williams (24), Jaylen Brown (25) and Marcus Smart (27). Even as the 2021-22 season got off to a rocky start, the Celtics' front office, now led by former head coach Brad Stevens, didnt alter the plan. Tatum became a superstar. Smart the Defensive Player of the Year.

The Celtics' Jayson Tatum as well as fans erupt after his basket at the buzzer defeated Kyrie Irving and the Nets on April 17, 2022. (Photo by Jim Davis/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Golden State general manager Bob Myers admitted he was sad when Durant left. He harbored no ill will though and, meanwhile, continued the teams tradition of strong draft picks.

The Warriors plugged holes around the core of Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and a now-rehabbed Thompson. He drafted Jordan Poole in 2019 and traded for Andrew Wiggins and a future first-round selection that became Jonathan Kuminga. All three players are now essential pieces.

Six of Golden States top eight contributors in these playoffs (including big man Kevon Looney) were drafted by the franchise. None went higher than seventh overall. Golden State's average draft pick spot was 19.6.

The Warriors are older and more experienced 123 Finals games to Bostons collective zero but both clubs are now set up to be contenders for the next few years. They are rich with talent, well-coached and represent extremely well-run franchises.

They are the antithesis of the super team concept that seemed to be taking hold in the NBA only to yield mixed results.

It was Milwaukee after all, led by Giannis Antetokounmpo (the star the Bucks drafted 15th overall), who won it all last year.

And now itll be either a reboot of the Warriors' dynasty or the start of a potential new Celtics one this year.

One of these franchises will win a championship, just three seasons after they lost seemingly irreplaceable talent and simply shrugged it off.

Continued here:

NBA Finals appeared light years away for Warriors, Celtics after exits of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving - Yahoo Sports

DAVOS, Switzerland The crypto faithful shouldn't expect Bank of America to make a major push into the sector anytime soon.

"No," replied Bank of America CEO Brian T. Moynihan when Yahoo Finance Live asked him at the World Economic Forum whether he felt like the company was missing out on the next big thing by not aggressively moving into crypto (full interview above).

Moynihan who has driven a major digital banking transformation as BofA's CEO for the last 12 years explained the bank is heavily regulated and that prevents an all-in maneuver into crypto.

The banking industry veteran also said that it's more fruitful for BofA to continue to focus on what it does being a bank and encouraging financial freedom.

"Our big thing is helping consumers in America have a successful financial life," Moynihan said. "Our life plans, financial planning tool four or five million users only started three years ago. That's what you need to do, is get people to learn how to make their money work more for them to help in their lives."

Chairman and CEO of Bank of America Brian T. Moynihan attends a session at the 50th World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, January 21, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

Despite crypto's relatively robust presence at the World Economic Forum via various after-parties and the attendance of Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse and FTX President Brett Harrison, there remained a heavy skepticism on the digital currency among those Yahoo Finance spoke with.

The recent news is not pretty: Bitcoin's price recently fell below $30,000 amid a broader rout in all things tech, shares of companies that trade crypto such as Coinbase and Robinhood have been hammered, and the recent collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin felt like a watershed moment to many observers.

Amid the carnage, Guggenheim's Scott Minerd told Bloomberg bitcoin could plunge to $8,000 and there were now a bunch of "yahoos" in the sector.

More Yahoo Finance coverage of WEF 2022:

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Brian Sozzi is an editor-at-large and anchor at Yahoo Finance. Follow Sozzi on Twitter @BrianSozzi and on LinkedIn.

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Why Bank of America won't be rushing into crypto anytime soon - Yahoo Finance

Following a dysfunctional 2018-19 season that ended with Kyrie Irving sabotaging the Boston Celtics in a second-round playoff exit and reneging on his commitment to re-sign with the storied franchise, Al Horford chose the security of a more lucrative $109 million offer from the Philadelphia 76ers to leave in free agency.

Two seasons later, the prodigal veteran found his way home to Boston, where the fledgling Celtics he left were preparing to spread their own All-Star wings, and together they delivered what had escaped Horford for 14 seasons and 141 playoff games, more than any other active player: his first NBA Finals appearance.

Horford anchored a dominant defensive effort against the Miami Heat in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals on Sunday night, and the three players whose careers he has shepherded in Boston Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart provided enough offense to survive a 100-96 series-clinching victory.

"Nobody deserves it more than this guy on my right right here, man," said Brown, who spent the first three seasons of his career playing alongside Horford and sat beside him on the postgame podium. "His energy, his demeanor, coming in every day, being a professional, taking care of his body, being a leader, I'm proud to be able to share this moment with a veteran, a mentor, a brother, a guy like Al Horford. He's been great all season, really my whole career. I'm happy to be able to share this moment with somebody like him."

Horford, whose maternal grandfather died before Boston's heartbreaking Game 6 loss, fell to his knees as the emotions hit on his first conference finals win in four tries. He hunched over and screamed a single word into the hardwood of FTX Arena. "Yes," he said repeatedly, before teammates helped him to his feet.

"My grandfather was somebody I was extremely close with, somebody I really care for," said Horford, "and all week my mom, my family told me to just go out there and play. That's something that he would have wanted me to do, to just continue on and try and stay focused and understand that he's at peace now."

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Horford became the biggest free-agent signing in Celtics history when he signed in 2016. His Atlanta Hawks had just beaten Boston in a first-round series, but they were swept by LeBron James' Cleveland Cavaliers in the conference semifinals, and he saw what the Celtics were building. Boston had Isaiah Thomas, Smart, a hodgepodge of hard workers and the last vestige of the 2008 championship Celtics two high lottery picks obtained from the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett.

Horford led the Celtics to the East finals in 2017 and 2018, respectively the rookie years for No. 3 overall picks Brown and Tatum. Boston had traded Thomas for Irving and added Gordon Hayward between those two years, but season-ending injuries to both All-Stars left the Celtics with Brown and Tatum as their leading scorers in a seven-game loss to who else but LeBron's Cavs in the 2018 conference finals.

"When you lose those series, obviously it hurts and it's tough," said Tatum. "But you never forget it. That's what we all have in common. We've all been through those tough times, and we remember how that felt."

All the while, Horford was the consummate professional. He was ridiculed nationally for losing to LeBron in four straight playoffs and locally, where a Boston sports talk radio host nicknamed him "Average Al," ignoring Horford's contributions as a center who allows the Celtics to defend and space the floor offensively from all five positions. They just didn't have the firepower around him to match LeBron's greatness, at least not yet.

Boston Celtics big man Al Horford kisses the Eastern Conference championship trophy after defeating the Miami Heat to advance to the NBA Finals. (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

So, when James left the East, and Irving undermined the Celtics, Horford faced another difficult career decision between an incumbent team with a sub-championship ceiling and the next young roster on the rise. He chose Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and the Sixers, only to watch the evolving trio of Tatum, Brown and Smart lead Boston back to the 2020 Eastern Conference finals, where they lost to Miami in six games.

When Horford's frontcourt partnership with Embiid failed in Philadelphia, the five-time All-Star heard boos from Sixers fans and worse from their front office. They traded him, along with a lightly protected first-round pick, to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a salary dump. The Thunder put Horford on ice in their pursuit of a high lottery pick, and his career was headed for an unceremonious end, short of championship aspirations.

Only, the Celtics came calling again, once more needing him to captain a young crew who had fallen off course during a .500 season. Horford was available to anyone who could match his $27 million salary last summer, and nobody rang until Boston offered Kemba Walker and a first-round pick in a deal that was panned by some analytics-driven basketball people. Horford was the same as he ever was, undervalued.

The Celtics started this season on shaky ground, and first-year coach Ime Udoka reminded them of their instability at every downturn. Horford laid the foundation for their defensive identity, and he trusted the offensive development of Tatum, Brown and Smart. As necessary as Udoka's brutally honest criticism was, Boston needed Horford's steady hand to counterbalance the emotions on a young team still finding its way.

"When he came back, that gave us a sense of security," Smart said of Horford. "We've got Al back there. He's always going to make the right play on both ends, he's going to calm us down, he's going to show us what we missed, and he's going to help us learn the game even more. We appreciate everything that he brings to this game his mentality, his professionalism, and that's the big part for us, the way he comes in every day to work. We look up to that, and we try to implicate that into our lives and into our game."

Their faith in one another fueled a remarkable turnaround. Horford was the eldest in a brotherhood that formed the best team in basketball for the final four months of the regular season. Their bond on defense was as unbreakable as anything the league has seen since the last time the Celtics made the Finals in 2010, and the rising stars were realizing their potential. Tatum made the All-NBA first team, Smart was the Defensive Player of the Year, and Brown received votes for both the All-NBA and All-Defensive teams.

Just as important to Boston's success, Horford was Horford again. Given the chance to resurrect his career with a roster he helped raise, they lifted each other to heights no one imagined a year ago. They outgunned Kevin Durant's Nets, out-dueled Giannis Antetokounmpo's Bucks and, yes, outlasted Jimmy Butler's Heat.

"I've been a part of a lot of great teams, and I'm so proud of this group," said Horford. "I've seen [Brown] come in the league, take steps, take levels. I've seen [Tatum], the same thing. I've seen Smart grow. It's just special to be with them and be able to help them and be a part of this. I'm grateful to be in this position."

All that is left to hoist is the franchise's 18th banner. Only the three-time champion Golden State Warriors stand in the way of Horford's Hall of Fame legacy and fully realized potential for the roster he has mentored.

"Every athlete's dream is to get to that final stage and have an opportunity," said Smart. "I've been here four years in the Eastern Conference finals, and I've been sent home every year. It feels really good, and it feels really good for Jayson and Jaylen. We've been together for the longest even Al, man. Al, just happy for him. He played all these games, and he works his tail off. He deserves it more than any of us."

We so rarely see a second chance in sports, or ever in life, but these Celtics are making of the most theirs.

Ben Rohrbach is a staff writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach

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Al Horford and Celtics he mentored making most of second chance at first NBA title - Yahoo Sports