Media Navel Gaze: September 22, 2014
The Week Unpeeled
Although the controversy at the NFL continued to hold the media's attention stage most of the week, financial news shifted its focus late to the Alibaba Group stock listing, with the Chinese e-commerce company pricing at $68 per share, and surging some 38 percent, making it the largest IPO in the US, raising at least $21.8 billion with a market value of $231 billion, and as The Wall Street Journal noted, larger than Procter & Gamble.
Elsewhere:
- Oracle founder Larry Ellison stepped down as CEO, the tech behemoth's only chief since it was launched in 1977;
- The Scots voted to stay in the UK following a closely watched and heated campaign and British Prime Minister David Cameron quickly announced a surprise proposal that will give more powers to Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England;
- The Royal and Ancient Golf Club voted to admit females, reversing a 260- year-old policy;
- NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced a new conduct committee at a press conference last week amid the second week of the domestic-violence scandal that has hit the league; The Baltimore Ravens organized a Ray Rice jersey exchange, while Nike terminated its endorsement deal with NFL star Adrian Peterson but no word on the company's NFL partnerships;
- The Dow Jones recorded another new high, ending the week 1.7 percent higher to close at 17,279 based in part of comments from Fed Chief Janet Yellen that rates will stay low; and
- Vogue has made it official, announcing we have made it to the "Era of the Booty," which only means the editors missed out on the Sir Mix-a-Lot era who went there a long time ago.
