Employers Are Using AI To Screen Job Seekers’ Online Presence
What does your digital footprint say about you?
Artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping the hiring process as more employers adopt technology that analyzes job applicants’ public online activity before extending job offers, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Hiring platforms and background screening firms are increasingly using AI to review publicly available content from social media accounts, discussion forums, and other online sources. Unlike traditional background checks, these systems can quickly analyze years of digital activity, helping employers flag posts or behaviors they believe could affect workplace culture or company reputation.
The expansion of AI in recruitment comes as businesses continue investing in automated hiring tools despite ongoing discussions about transparency, privacy, and algorithmic bias. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has cautioned employers that AI-based employment tools must comply with existing federal anti-discrimination laws, while the Federal Trade Commission has warned companies against deceptive or unfair uses of automated decision-making in employment.
According to the outlet, some background screening companies are also using facial recognition and data-matching technology to connect online accounts that applicants may have believed were anonymous. The publication reported that employers are applying these reviews beyond executive hiring to customer-facing and other public-facing positions.
“After the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack, quite a few companies came to us and wanted to know, ‘Do we have pro-Hamas people in our ranks or antisemitic people?'” Darrin Lipscomb, chief executive of background screening company Ferretly, told the outlet.
The report also found that removing an online presence altogether may raise additional questions during the hiring process.
“Where it starts to be a liability is when it’s very clear that you used to have a presence and now you don’t. As a hiring manager, that would invite inquiry,” Vinda Souza, chief marketing officer at RefAssured, told the newspaper.
As AI continues to influence recruiting, workplace experts say job seekers should assume that their public digital footprint may become part of the hiring conversation. Rather than attempting to erase their online history, experts recommend maintaining a professional and authentic public presence while regularly reviewing privacy settings and publicly accessible content.
Sen. Raphael Warnock Gets Law Passed, Limiting Private Equity Purchase Of Excess Single-Family Homes
The law prohibits private equity firms that own 350 or more existing single-family homes from purchasing additional existing houses.
Large private equity firms will no longer be able to expand their portfolios of existing single-family homes under a new federal law aimed at easing competition in the housing market for prospective homebuyers, CBS News reports.
The measure, led by U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., became law July 11, as part of the bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act. The legislation took effect after President Donald Trump allowed the bill to become law without his signature, a process permitted under the Constitution when a president takes no action during the allotted review period while Congress remains in session.
The law prohibits private equity firms that own 350 or more existing single-family homes from purchasing additional existing houses. Companies found in violation may face civil penalties of at least $1 million or three times the value of the home purchased, whichever is greater.
Newly constructed homes are generally exempt from the restriction. Warnock said the legislation is intended to help families compete in a housing market where institutional investors have increasingly acquired residential properties.
“I hear from Georgians across the state who have been clamoring for action from Washington on the affordable housing crisis, and this legislation is proof that when we center the people instead of the politics, we can get good policy done,” Warnock said in a statement.
The issue has been especially pronounced in metro Atlanta, where institutional investors collectively own more than 72,000 single-family rental homes, according to the outlet. Analysts say the growing presence of large investment firms has intensified competition for existing homes, particularly affecting first-time buyers who often cannot match all-cash offers.
In addition to the restrictions on corporate home purchases, the broader housing package includes provisions designed to expand the nation’s housing supply. Those measures encourage local housing development, support factory-built housing, promote the redevelopment of underused commercial properties into residential units, and strengthen housing initiatives for veterans.
But I believe we’ve overlooked another form of capital that quietly determines whether financial capital can flourish at all: narrative.
Before investors place bets, they believe a story. Before neighborhoods are revitalized, someone imagines possibility. Before policies change, public imagination shifts.
Before markets move, narratives move. Capital follows belief. And belief is built through story. For generations, Black communities have produced extraordinary wealth—not simply in dollars, but in creativity, innovation, mutual aid, cultural production, entrepreneurship, spiritual wisdom, and radical imagination. Yet the stories most often told about us continue to emphasize scarcity over abundance, pathology over possibility, and crisis over creativity.
Those stories are not benign. They shape where investment flows. They influence whose businesses receive funding. They determine whose neighborhoods are considered “up-and-coming” and whose are deemed disposable. They influence hiring decisions, philanthropic priorities, public policy, and even what our own children come to believe is possible for themselves.
Narrative isn’t separate from economics. Narrative creates economic conditions. Which means narrative itself is a form of capital. And perhaps one of the most undervalued assets Black America possesses.
As our nation continues to celebrate its 250th birthday, I find myself asking a different question than many institutions are asking. Not simply: How do we tell a more inclusive American story? But rather: What stories are we investing in today that will become the inheritance of Black communities seven generations from now?
The Black Radical Tradition has always understood that liberation begins long before laws change. Our ancestors imagined freedom before they experienced it. They sang it before they could vote it. They preached it before they could legislate it. They painted it, quilted it, danced it, organized it, and whispered it into existence long before the world recognized its possibility.
Black futures have always been built through radical imagination. That imagination deserves investment. Not as charity. Not as branding—as infrastructure.
This conviction shaped the work we are building through the Deaconess Foundation‘s Narrative Network. Rather than treating storytelling as a communications strategy or a marketing campaign, we asked a different question: What if we invested in the relationships, creative ecosystems, and cultural archives capable of sustaining Black imagination long after any individual grant has ended?
The answer became a nine-month Narrative Lab bringing together artists, organizers, filmmakers, writers, cultural strategists, and trusted community leaders to create something larger than content. We are cultivating narrative infrastructure. That infrastructure looks like filmmaker Cami Thomas and the My Friends and I cohort producing The Solution is Beautiful, a documentary that reframes Black wealth not as accumulation, but as “love through action.” Instead of reducing communities like Kinloch, North St. Louis, and the East Side to stories of disinvestment, the film explores the food, memory, rituals, relationships, and cultural inheritance that have sustained generations despite structural inequity. Wealth, in this telling, is measured as much by what communities preserve as by what they possess.
It looks like Trevor Smith, Yoni Blumberg, Kristian Blackmon, and the BLIS Collective producing the Abundance Zine—a polyvocal publication that challenges the myth that scarcity is inevitable. The project argues that Black communities already possess extraordinary assets: creativity, relationships, knowledge, and collective wisdom. Scarcity, they remind us, is often a political design rather than a natural condition.
It looks like Stevie Selby, Rosa Parks, and the Warm Cookies of the Revolution cohort creating This Is Our City, a living archive documenting the emotional interior of a city through poetry, photography, visual art, and community storytelling. Rather than preserving buildings or institutions, they are preserving belonging itself—the relationships, acts of care, and collective imagination that make a place worth fighting for. Each project stands on its own.
Together, however, they reveal something much larger. They are creating cultural assets. Archives. Artifacts. Evidence.
Not simply documenting where Black communities have been, but preserving how we imagined ourselves free while we were still building that future. This, to me, is where philanthropy—and all institutions concerned with Black economic prosperity—must evolve.
For decades we have invested in programs, services, and systems. Those investments remain essential. But if we want Black wealth to compound across generations, we must also invest in the infrastructure that sustains imagination itself. Who preserves our stories? Who documents our innovations? Who records our neighborhood wisdom before it disappears? Who archives the futures we are dreaming today?
Because if we fail to invest in those questions, someone else will answer them for us. Too often our communities become historical only after tragedy. Our archives begin with oppression. Our stories become valuable only once they are safely in the past. I reject that premise. I believe Black communities deserve living archives. Living memory. Living imagination.
The cultural wealth we create today should not wait for historians to discover it decades from now. It should be stewarded now. Protected now. Expanded now. This is what I mean by narrative capital. Narrative capital is every story that expands what our children believe is possible. Every film that humanizes rather than stereotypes. Every publication that refuses the logic of scarcity. Every archive that preserves Black brilliance before it is forgotten. Every relationship that strengthens the ecosystem from which new stories emerge. Like financial capital, narrative capital compounds. Its dividends may not always appear on quarterly earnings reports. But they appear in public imagination. In policy. In investment. In entrepreneurship. In belonging. And ultimately, in freedom.
As we commemorate America’s 250th birthday, perhaps the most important question isn’t what story this nation tells about itself. Perhaps it is whether we are willing to invest in the stories that future generations of Black children will inherit about themselves because financial wealth alone cannot sustain Black futures.
Those futures also require narrative wealth—the radical imagination, cultural memory, creative ecosystems, and collective stories that teach each generation not only what we survived, but what we dared to build. The most undervalued asset in Black America isn’t money. It’s stories that make new economies, new communities, and new futures imaginable.
Shantell Hinton is a Narrative Strategist. Constance Harper is the Vice President of Strategic Impact & Innovation at Deaconess Foundation.
Adults Under 30 Are Saving Money By Living With Their Parents
Living with parents is increasingly becoming a strategic financial decision for young adults.
For decades, moving out of your parents’ home symbolized independence and the start of adulthood. Today, that milestone is being delayed as millions of young Americans grapple with the rising cost of living.
The trend comes as home prices remain above $400,000 nationally, rents continue climbing in major cities, and many young professionals struggle under the weight of student loan debt and rising everyday expenses. Even those who contribute toward household costs often pay significantly less than they would living independently.
“Everything is just out of reach,” 28-year-old Megan Talley, who lives with her mother in suburban Atlanta, told the WSJ. “If a young person wants to live alone, you could do it, but you would be dead broke at the end of the month.”
Unlike previous generations, many young adults say the stigma surrounding living at home has largely disappeared. A spring survey by financial services firm Thrivent found that 55% of young adults who moved back home did so out of financial necessity, reflecting the growing acceptance of the arrangement. For 33-year-old Samantha Stobo of Miami, living with her mother has become both financially beneficial and socially acceptable. “No one ever judges me,” she told the WSJ. “The conversation tends to be more like, ‘That’s awesome, and I bet you’re saving money.'”
Experts say the trend is reshaping American life in ways that extend beyond personal finances. Temple University psychology professor Laurence Steinberg, author of You and Your Adult Child, told the newspaper that living with parents has become a “dominant living arrangement in America” for this age group. The shift is influencing when young adults marry, purchase homes, and have children, as well as how developers design new housing.
Some states, including California and New York, have loosened regulations around accessory dwelling units, often called granny flats, creating additional housing options for adult children and aging parents alike.
For Carmen Johnson, who lives in the Detroit area, moving back home during the COVID-19 pandemic turned out to be a financial blessing. By eliminating rent and sharing grocery expenses with her family, she’s been able to invest more in her music career while saving for a future home. “COVID flipped the script,” Johnson said. “It’s a blessing in disguise.”
As the cost of living continues to outpace wage growth for many younger workers, economists say multigenerational households may become less of a transitional phase and more of a defining feature of modern adulthood. Once considered a setback, deciding to live with a parent as an adult is increasingly being viewed as a practical path toward long-term financial stability.
Alabama Students Turn $1 Into Thousands Through School Entrepreneurship Challenge
The challenge began with two dozen students who were given $1 and seven days to generate at least $100.
A group of Alabama high school students transformed a $1 investment into profitable businesses during a weeklong entrepreneurship challenge, demonstrating how creativity, community connections, and determination can outweigh access to startup capital. Their experiences are featured in the documentary Learn to Earn: A Student’s Journey From $1 to $100, according to Entrepreneur.
The entrepreneurship challenge began in February 2024, when approximately two dozen students were each given $1 and seven days to generate at least $100 through legal business ventures. The exercise encouraged participants to identify opportunities in their communities, develop customer relationships, and solve problems with minimal financial resources rather than relying on traditional startup funding.
Among the participants was Darrick Ramsey, who launched a pressure-washing and auto-detailing business after reconnecting with local business owners he had previously met through his school’s entrepreneurship program. Ramsey earned $2,065 during the challenge while balancing his academic responsibilities.
“I kind of overbooked myself,” Ramsey said to the outlet. “I really got to see the community coming together. It was just great.”
Another student, Alexis Jordan, surpassed the challenge’s financial goal by cleaning churches and local businesses while selling Kool-Aid-flavored pickles, a snack that quickly attracted customers in her area.
“It’s weird,” Jordan said. “But a lot of people bought them. Everybody bought them.”
The challenge’s impact extended well beyond the initial competition. Ramsey now teaches physical education while continuing to operate his business, PeerPressure. Jordan founded Blended Threads LLC to promote awareness of juvenile diabetes, published the children’s book Why Did Diabetes Pick Me, and regularly shares her experience living with the disease through speaking engagements.
Organizers said the project was designed to teach students practical business skills by demonstrating that successful ventures can begin with limited financial resources. Participants said the experience reinforced the importance of persistence, networking, and recognizing unmet needs within their communities—lessons they continue to apply long after the challenge concluded.
Halo Lands $7M To Launch Speedy Braiding Device For Stylists
The capital will support manufacturing, engineering expansion, and the commercial launch of HaloBraid.
Hair technology startup Halo has secured $7 million in funding to accelerate production of HaloBraid, a patent-pending device designed to help professional stylists complete braided hairstyles more efficiently while reducing the physical strain associated with the service, the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company announced on June 23. The company did not disclose the investors participating in the funding round.
The capital will support manufacturing, engineering expansion, and the commercial launch of HaloBraid, which Halo describes as the first braid-assist device developed specifically for professional braiders. According to the company, stylists begin each braid by hand before the device completes the remaining length while maintaining the stylist’s individual braiding technique. Halo said the technology can complete braids up to five times faster than traditional hand-braiding methods.
The announcement comes as beauty technology companies continue investing in products that improve workplace efficiency without replacing skilled professionals. For professional braiders, whose appointments can often last six hours or longer, reducing service times could increase appointment capacity while helping minimize repetitive-motion injuries commonly associated with the profession.
Halo estimates that approximately eight billion hours are spent braiding hair worldwide each year. The company said prolonged braiding sessions can contribute to occupational health issues, including carpal tunnel syndrome, tendonitis, and arthritis among professional stylists.
“Braiding is an essential cultural practice and economic engine, but the process has remained virtually unchanged for thousands of years,” Halo said in its announcement.
“HaloBraid empowers stylists by preserving their artistry while reducing the physical toll of the work.”
The company said the device is intended to complement, rather than replace, the expertise of licensed braiders by allowing them to maintain creative control while shortening appointment times for clients.
Halo plans to use the new funding to expand its engineering team, increase manufacturing capacity, and prepare HaloBraid for commercial distribution to professional salons. The company has not announced a retail price or release date, but said additional details will be shared as the product moves closer to market.
12-Year-Old Entrepreneur Turns $600 Into A Growing 3D-Printing Business
Aaron Osirus launched A3D after recognizing demand for customizable fidget toys among classmates.
A 12-year-old Georgia entrepreneur is proving age is no barrier to business ownership after transforming a $600 investment into a growing 3D-printing company with the help of his twin brother, CBS News Atlanta reports.
Aaron Osirus launched A3D after recognizing demand for customizable fidget toys among classmates. Using money borrowed from his parents, he purchased a multicolor 3D printer and began producing personalized toys from his home.
As customer demand increased, Aaron enlisted his twin brother, Alain Osirus, to help manage the business. Alain now assists with product design, marketing, production scheduling, and order fulfillment while the brothers balance running the company with school responsibilities.
“I’m a designer for A3D. Sometimes I make the toys, and I also help with marketing,” Alain told the outlet.
. “I check the time, how long it takes, the cost, fulfillment, and everything.”
The brothers specialize in 3D-printed articulated toys and fidget products that customers can customize by color and design. Their most time-intensive item, a four-color kitten figurine that takes about 24 hours to print, sells for $5. They also encourage repeat business by offering returning customers a 50-cent discount and say the company generates about $200 in monthly profit after expenses.
The venture has become more than a source of income. It has introduced the twins to budgeting, pricing, production planning, and customer service while giving them firsthand experience operating a small business at an early age.
“When I see them play with my prints, I’m like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s really cool because I made it,'” Aaron said.
The brothers hope their success inspires other young entrepreneurs to pursue their own ideas despite their age.
“Follow your dreams. Just try your hardest,” Aaron said. “You’ve got to save up the money. You’ve got to plan for everything.”
Alain echoed that message, encouraging aspiring business owners to remain competitive and committed to their goals.
“Chase your dreams. Outcompete everyone else in your business,” he said. “Show them what you’re made of.”
‘March On Washington 2026: Defend the Vote’ Planned For Aug. 28
Rev. Al Sharpton, Martin Luther King III, and other civil rights leaders and labor groups plan to protest what they describe as an attack on the Black vote.
Led by Rev. Al Sharpton, civil rights groups announced the “March on Washington 2026: Defend the Vote,” which will take place on Aug. 28 to mark the 63rd anniversary of the historic 1963 march. Sharpton’s National Action Network is organizing the effort in partnership with Martin Luther King III, Arndrea Waters King, the Drum Major Institute, and a coalition of civil rights, labor, faith, and community organizations, reports Reuters.
The announcement comes months after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that narrowed key protections under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, a decision organizers say threatens Black political representation and weakens longstanding safeguards against racial discrimination in voting.
“Defending the vote means defending the foundation of our democracy,” Martin Luther King III said in a statement, according to NBC News. “Sixty-three years after my father stood at the Lincoln Memorial, we are called to march again, not only in remembrance, but in action.”
The coalition includes prominent organizations such as the NAACP, National Urban League, National Council of Negro Women, League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the American Federation of Teachers, the American Federation of Government Employees, and the Working Families Party. Members of Congress, including Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.), are also expected to participate.
Organizers say the march is intended to honor the legacy of the original March on Washington while drawing attention to ongoing debates over voting access and representation ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
The 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom drew approximately 250,000 people and helped galvanize support for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Organizers of this year’s march say they hope the gathering will similarly inspire public engagement around protecting voting access and democratic participation.
Baby Boomers’ Low Retirement Shortfalls Could Put Their Millennials Kids’ Finances In A Chokehold
Financial planners say the trend is forcing many adult children to prepare for the possibility of helping aging parents while also saving for their own futures.
Millennials who have spent years building retirement and savings may face an unexpected financial challenge as more baby boomers retire without enough money to support themselves, according to Business Insider.
Financial planners say the trend is forcing many adult children to prepare for the possibility of helping aging parents while also saving for their own futures.
The issue is unfolding across the United States as rising housing costs, healthcare expenses, and longer life expectancies place additional pressure on retirees with limited savings. Although baby boomers collectively hold a significant share of the nation’s wealth, retirement preparedness varies widely, leaving many families vulnerable to unexpected financial obligations.
The report stated that only about 40% of baby boomers are financially prepared for retirement. The Employee Benefit Research Institute has also found that many Americans remain at risk of falling short of retirement income needs, particularly when long-term care costs are factored in.
For some millennials, that concern has already become personal.
“I’m terrified that I’ll have to support my mom,” Brandon, a millennial father, told the outlet while describing his concerns about balancing his own family’s financial goals with his mother’s uncertain retirement.
Experts say those situations are likely to become more common as millennials juggle mortgages, child care expenses, student loan payments, and retirement contributions while also navigating parents’ financial needs.
According to the outlet, research indicates Black and Hispanic families often experience a greater economic impact because caregiving responsibilities frequently begin earlier and require larger financial sacrifices. Women are also more likely to reduce work hours or leave the workforce to care for aging relatives, limiting future earnings and retirement savings.
Financial advisers recommend discussing retirement assets, estate plans, long-term care options, and healthcare costs before a crisis occurs. Early planning, they say, can help families better understand available resources, reduce financial uncertainty, and avoid making costly decisions under pressure.
Martin University’s Closure Leaves Former Students Fighting To Finish Degrees
The Indianapolis university's closure disrupted degree programs, eliminated jobs, and left many searching for financial and academic stability.
More than six months after Martin University permanently closed on Dec. 31, 2025, former students and employees say they are still working to recover from the collapse of Indiana’s only predominantly Black institution of higher education. The closure of the Indianapolis university disrupted degree programs, eliminated jobs, and left many searching for financial and academic stability, according to The Indianapolis Star.
Martin University’s Board of Trustees voted to cease operations after determining the institution could no longer overcome years of financial challenges, declining enrollment, and mounting debt. The university announced the decision in late 2025, saying it lacked the resources necessary to continue serving students. According to the board, officials began coordinating teach-out agreements with other colleges while preparing to wind down operations and liquidate assets to address outstanding obligations.
Former students told the outlet that the closure forced them to reconsider graduation plans as they attempted to transfer credits and secure financial aid through new institutions. Several said the unexpected shutdown created additional financial burdens and delayed their educational goals.
“I’ve just been trying to survive,” one former employee told the newspaper while describing the months following the university’s closure.
Another former student said the experience left them feeling as though they had to “start over” after investing years toward earning a degree.
Founded in 1977, Martin University was created to expand access to higher education for adult learners, low-income students, and historically underserved communities in Indianapolis. Federal education data show enrollment declined from nearly 1,000 students in 2010 to about 223 students by 2023, reflecting years of shrinking attendance that contributed to the institution’s financial struggles.
In its closure announcement, the university’s trustees pledged to assist students through the transition.
“Our work now is to ensure that Martin’s legacy of access, faith, resilience, and opportunity does not disappear,” the board said.
“We will wind down operations with dignity, transparency, and compassion. We will continue to advocate for the educational future of our students.”
Former students continue to transfer to partner institutions while university leaders oversee the remaining closure process and resolution of the school’s financial obligations.
