Odell Beckham Jr. Laments Lack Of Financial Literacy After Making Millions In NFL
'We weren’t taught about no financial literacy…We weren’t taught this skill.'
NFL player Odell Beckham Jr. discussed the lack of financial literacy among young athletes on a recent episode of The Pivot.
Beckham, who won a Super Bowl with the Los Angeles Rams in 2021, has made hundreds of millions but said he lacked the right tools to be financially solvent.
“I’ve always explained this to people, bro, you give somebody a 5-year, $100 million contract–what is it really? It’s five years for 60 (million),” he said on the podcast. “You’re getting taxed. Do the math, that’s 12 a year that you have to spend, use, save, invest, flaunt, whatever. I’ma buy a car, I’ma give my momma a house. Everything costs money. So, if you’re spending $4 million a year, that’s really $40 million over five years, eight a year.”
But, Beckham said, after taxes, buying property, investments, and regular expenses, the money isn’t as much as it appears.
“Now, you start breaking down the numbers, and it’s like that’s a five-year span of where you’re getting $8 million,” he explained. “Can you make that last forever? And you always hear the people who ain’t us and ain’t be in the position, like, ‘Oh, that would last a lifetime.’ Yeah, this job I sacrificed my whole life for, they are giving me that. I didn’t ask for the certain dollar amount or whatever. But we weren’t taught about no financial literacy…We weren’t taught this skill.”
Beckham is a free agent and isn’t currently on a roster. However, according to The Root, he accepted a six-game suspension after he tested positive for having unusual testosterone levels. If and when he signs with an NFL team, he will have to serve the punishment before he can play in a game.
Elevate Your Excellence: From Comedy Stage To Global Empire, Byron Allen Is Taking Over The Media Space
Comedian-turned-mogul Byron Allen is the Founder/CEO of Entertainment Studios, owning The Weather Channel and championing Black media ownership.
Byron Allen Folks, widely known as Byron Allen, is an American comedian, producer, and entrepreneur who built a sprawling, multibillion-dollar media empire from a foundation in syndicated television.
As the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Allen Media Group, formerly Entertainment Studios, Allen oversees a global media company with assets in film, television production, broadcasting, and digital media, including the acquisition of The Weather Channel and the news platform TheGrio.
Born in Detroit in 1961, Allen moved to Los Angeles as a child after his parents divorced. His early exposure to the industry came via his mother, Carolyn, a publicist for NBC Studios, which allowed young Byron to mingle with stars like Redd Foxx and Freddie Prinze. Allen began performing stand-up comedy at age 14.
He was quickly discovered by Jimmie Walker, who invited him to join a writing team that included future late-night stars Jay Leno and David Letterman. This trajectory culminated in Allen’s historic appearance at age 18 on The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson, making him the youngest comedian to ever perform on the program.
After hosting NBC’s reality program Real People and touring as a stand-up opening act for musicians like Dolly Parton and Lionel Richie, Allen pivoted from “show business” to “business show,” establishing his production company, CF Entertainment, in 1993. His initial syndicated talk show, Entertainers with Byron Allen, employed a pioneering revenue-sharing model in which he distributed the program to stations at no cost, generating revenue through advertising sales.
Despite early struggles, including home foreclosures and the loss of phone service, Allen persevered, and his show remains in syndication.
Renamed Entertainment Studios in 2003, the company is now valued at over $4.5 billion. Allen has built one of the industry’s largest cable network portfolios, featuring 10 24-hour HD networks, including THE WEATHER CHANNEL, COMEDY.TV, CARS.TV, and LOCAL NOW. The company also continues to produce and distribute Emmy Award-winning and nominated shows while selling advertising for 43 broadcast and cable television programs.
Allen has aggressively pursued business acquisitions, including the film distributor Freestyle Releasing (now Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures), which released the 2017 hit shark thriller 47 Meters Down. Other film successes include the Western Hostiles and the mystery-thriller Chappaquiddick.
In the digital space, Allen acquired TheGrio in 2016, transforming it into a video-centric news platform that delivers compelling content to African Americans and attracts over 20 million annual visitors. The company’s 2018 acquisition of The Weather Channel, the No. 1 weather news television network, further diversified its portfolio. The Weather Channel has since deployed cutting-edge Immersive Mixed Reality (IMR) technology to enhance climate and weather reporting.
Allen has consistently championed economic inclusion and Black ownership of media companies, asserting, “Blacks need to both be on the camera and own the camera.”
In October, Allen was featured in Variety and shared his latest projects from his film studio with the publication.
This vision led to the formation of ALLEN MEDIA BROADCASTING in 2019, which began building a broadcast station group through a series of acquisitions, including 11 stations from USA Television. He also personally partnered with Sinclair Broadcast Group to acquire 21 Regional Sports Networks (RSNs) from Walt Disney/FOX Corporation for $10.6 billion.
Allen is married to TV producer Jennifer Lucas, and the couple has three children. He was inducted into Broadcasting and Cable’s Broadcast Hall of Fame in 2019.
Serena Williams Quickly Shuts Down Rumors Of A Comeback
'Omg yall I’m NOT coming back.'
After reports started coming out that retired tennis legend Serena Williams had re-entered the drug testing pool, there was speculation that she would be making a comeback. Still, once she caught wind of the same rumors, she quickly shut it down on social media.
According to The Athletic, the Compton-raised Williams reportedly contacted the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) to request reentry into the International Registered Testing Pool. After contacting the organization’s spokesperson, speculation was leaning toward Williams gearing up for a comeback to the sport she has dominated for years.
In a text message to the media outlet, Adrian Bassett, a spokesperson for the ITIA, stated, “She has notified us that she wants to be reinstated into the testing pool.”
Williams’ name appears on the updated list of players dated Oct. 6, but Bassett did not know if that meant she was doing that to get back on the tennis court.
“I do not know if this means she is coming back, or just giving herself the option. All I can say is she’s back in the pool and therefore subject to whereabouts.”
Almost as soon as the news started to float around the media, Williams took to social media to dispel any rumors of her coming back.
Omg yall I’m NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy-
Now that she has put that rumor to rest, the organization requires its players to provide details of their whereabouts at a given time every day of the year. Anyone who has recently reentered the list must be in the pool for six months before being eligible to play in a tournament.
So, if she were to come out of retirement, she would not be able to play until April 2026, but since she has already stated that she is “NOT coming back,” it does not matter at this point. Yet folks are wondering why she is back in the pool; only she knows.
Google Update Allows All Employee Messages, Including Deleted Ones, To Be Archived
The change allows employers to bypass previously selected message settings.
Google rolled out a new feature that allows employers to archive text messages sent on company-provided Android devices.
Under the update, employers using device-management tools such as Google’s Enterprise platform log every message regardless of status in the default Google Messages app, according to Google Blog.
“Our new solution allows third-party archival apps to integrate directly with Google Messages on a work device. When configured by your IT organization on a fully managed device, the archival application is notified upon the receipt of each RCS message, not only when a message is sent or received, but also if a message is edited or deleted too.”
According to Google, this is meant to help businesses meet compliance and record-keeping requirements. Messages remain end-to-end encrypted, but archiving occurs on the device itself before encryption is applied. Subsequently, a copy of the conversation is recorded in the employer’s logs.
The change effectively turns workplace text chats into searchable, archived communications, much like company email logs.
Under Google’s guidance, when the archival feature is activated, employees are supposed to see a clear notification on their device. However, many workers may ignore or overlook such alerts. Since most employer devices require updates to access work email, apps, or calendars, the alert is inconsequential.
Work-provided device policies have long allowed employers to monitor email, calls, and app usage. However, the expansion into real-time message archiving adds a new dimension. For some industries, such as finance, healthcare, or legal services, compliance rules already require full communication logs. For others, the change blurs the line between professional and personal communication more than ever. Employees will have to think twice before communicating workplace grievances via employer-owned devices.
Employees who use a company device are now advised to treat all text messages as potentially subject to monitoring. Those concerned with privacy should reserve personal conversations for personal devices. Meanwhile, companies adopting the feature are reviewing their acceptable-use policies to reflect the new reality of workplace communications.
On Dec. 1, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced that the new fee will take effect Feb. 1, 2026, The Travel reports. Critics say the increase will disproportionately impact families, especially those who travel infrequently.
The TSA’s Confirm.ID option only covers a 10-day travel window, meaning families may need to pay $45 per adult more than once on longer trips—while frequent flyers are more likely to get their money’s worth within that period.
For instance, a family of four without REAL IDs or passports taking a two-week U.S. vacation would pay $45 per adult to clear security—$180 each way. Because their return falls outside the 10-day window, the total jumps to $360, and even more for larger families.
Families with younger children may feel less of the strain, since travelers under 18 don’t need to present ID for domestic flights when accompanied by an adult with valid identification. However, international trips still require passports for minors, and households with multiple adults over 18 will face the steepest added costs.
“I think the fines are too high, and rules around the fines are too strict,” a former TSA agent said.
However, the ex-employee said similar fees were proposed several times in the past, but this is the first time the agency is actually imposing penalties for non-compliance, a step many travelers never expected TSA to fully enforce.
“Passengers don’t listen; a lot of them think the TSA is a joke. The fines are a way to enforce the rules for the REAL ID,” the former TSA officer said.
On Dec. 1, university leaders informed staff at the women’s magazine Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six, which focuses on Black culture and student life, that shifting federal rules on D.E.I. mean the school can no longer support the publications, the New York Times reports.
Officials cited a July memo from Attorney General Pam Bondi outlining how federally-funded institutions should steer clear of what the Trump administration considers unlawful DEI practices.
At a meeting to announce the suspensions, Steven Hood, the university’s vice president of student life, told students that their magazines had violated anti-DEI standards. Hood specifically referenced sections of Bondi’s memo cautioning against “unlawful proxies,” defined as “ostensibly neutral criteria that function as substitutes for explicit consideration of race, sex, or other protected characteristics.”
“You can understand why, under federal guidance, as a public institution, we might not be able to support magazines that are based on demographics like these two,” Hood said. (A recording of the meeting was shared with the New York Times.)
One magazine team member pointed out that their publications welcomed students of all backgrounds, not just their target audiences. Hood, however, said that wasn’t enough to satisfy federal guidelines.
Alex House, a university spokeswoman, said on Tuesday, Dec. 2, that the suspensions were carried out in compliance with the law.
“This requires us to ensure all members of our community feel welcome to participate in programs that receive university funding from the Office of Student Media,” House said, adding that the university “will never restrict our students’ freedom of expression.”
After the suspensions, Kendal Wright, editor-in-chief of Nineteen Fifty-Six, said she was “devastated but, regrettably, not surprised” by the university’s decision, citing “the current climate of our country.”
Gabrielle Gunter, editor-in-chief of Alice, criticized the move. “I was under the impression that we were protected from being affected by any anti-DEI legislation and rulings because of our First Amendment right to freedom of the press, but it appears I was wrong,” Gunter said in a statement, according to Insight on Academia.
Hood said the university plans to launch a new campus lifestyle magazine aimed at all students and invited the editors of the suspended publications to help create it.
New Jersey Law Student Who Faked Attack Over MAGA Beliefs Charged For Conspiracy
Greene was charged with conspiracy after an investigation revealed her story to be a hoax.
A New Jersey law student who claimed she was attacked for her MAGA beliefs is facing charges.
Natalie Greene once worked on the Hill for Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew. However, she made headlines in July when she claimed she was attacked for her conservative values. According to Blavity, she fabricated a story about three men threatening her and a co-conspirator at a New Jersey nature preserve.
The alleged co-conspirator initially called 911 to report the fake attack. She told authorities that the men were “talking about politics and stuff.” She also falsely asserted that “they were like calling her names,” referring to Greene.
When police arrived, they found Greene with zip ties on her hands and marks all over her body. She told police that the men threatened to kill her with a gun. The 26-year-old even went so far as having “TRUMP Whore” scribbled on herself with other writing that Van Drew “is racist.”
Later, new insight revealed that the entire ordeal was Greene’s plan. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey released a statement confirming Greene had conjured up the scheme.
“The investigation revealed that Greene had not, in fact, been attacked by three men at gunpoint on July 23. Instead, Greene had paid a body modification and scarification artist to deliberately cut the lacerations on her face, neck, upper chest, and shoulder, based on a pattern that she had provided beforehand,” the U.S. attorney’s office said in the statement obtained byABC News.
The investigation into her phone also saw her contact with the scarification artist. The artist gave authorities the $500 receipt of her payment for the marks. Police also allegedly found similar zip ties in Greene’s car.
She has since been arrested and charged with conspiracy to convey false statements and hoaxes, as well as making false statements to federal law enforcement. If found guilty, Greene could face up to ten years in prison.
Her former employer released a brief statement on the ordeal, stating that he hopes she’s “getting the care she needs.” Her lawyer, however, has maintained her innocence as Greene anticipates a trial over the matter.
“At the age of 26, my client served her community working full-time to assist the constituents of the Congressman with loyalty and fidelity. She did that while being a full-time student. Under the law, she is presumed innocent and reserves all of her defenses for presentation in a court of law,” expressed her lawyer, Louis Barbone.
A motive for why she faked the attack remains unknown. However, critics have called her actions harmful, especially in an already-tense political environment.
Family Of Brain-Dead Georgia Woman Seeks Support To Meet GoFundMe Goal For Baby’s Medical Costs
The Smith family set their donation goal as $600K and has yet to meet it.
The family of Adriana Smith, the Georgia woman who served as what some call a “human incubator” while on life support, is seeking financial assistance to pay for medical fees and other expenses.
In Feb. 2025, Smith, who was 8 weeks pregnant, experienced a medical emergency that left her brain dead. The mom of one was put on life support, and due to abortion laws, her family was refused the right to stop it. After the fetus was held in utero for weeks, he was delivered via C-section on June 13. Smith’s family is now asking for help with medical fees as the infant, named Chance, is reportedly still being cared for in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) 6 months after delivery.
The Smith family set their donation goal as $600K and has yet to meet it.
While many details have not come to light about the condition of baby Smith, social media users have hinted that his condition is less than ideal.
X User @mara_marinara is raising awareness of the financial burdens placed on the Smith family as a result of the state of Georgia’s decision.
“Remember the dead woman that was forced to carry her baby? Well, surprise, the baby is in terrible health. The baby has been in the NICU for 6 months. The state of Georgia is not helping pay for the medical expenses for that baby, even though forced a dead woman to carry it…”
Remember the dead woman that was forced to carry her baby? Well surprise, the baby is in terrible health. The baby has been in the NICU for 6 months. The state of Georgia is not helping pay for the medical expenses for that baby even though forced a dead woman to carry it…
In response, another X user, @Smoke_nd_pearlz, gave an update on baby Smith’s condition. It is unclear where the information was acquired, though if true, it paints a harrowing picture.
“Yup. He’s up to 11 pounds. They have to transfer him to another hospital because the current hospital he’s at cannot meet his complex needs. The family is 100% responsible for the cost, even though the state forced them to keep that poor woman “alive” as a human incubator.”
April Newkirk, Adriana’s mother, has said little in recent months about Chance. However, at the time of the C-section, she confirmed the infant weighed 13 ounces. To donate to the Smith/Newkirk family, visit GoFundMe. The family is only about $ 50,000 away from their original goal.
Federal Appeals Court Brings Back Georgia’s Ban On Food, Drinks In Voting Lines
The law came with a misdemeanor penalty of up to a year in jail for giving out food and drink in the restricted zones in addition to major backlash that resulted in the Major League Baseball moving its 2021 All-Star Game out of Atlanta.
A federal appeals court has sidestepped a federal judge’s ruling to bring back a Georgia state law that bans giving people food and water in voting lines, 11 Alive reports.
The Election Integrity Act, also known as Senate Bill 202, came about following outcry over President Donald Trump’s loss in the 2020 presidential election, resulting in the installation of a 25-foot zone around anyone standing in a voting line, where food and water were banned.
More than two years after Atlanta-based federal district Judge J.P. Boulee upheld a portion of the ban, permitting food and water to voters, a Dec. 1 ruling from the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals claims Boulee failed to analyze the case properly. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger supported the court’s ruling and took a jab at former gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, saying in a statement that the state has a right to shield voters from being influenced.
“The Eleventh Circuit’s ruling reinforces a simple truth: Georgia has the right and the responsibility to shield voters from influence and interference at the polls,” Raffensperger said. “Despite what Stacey Abrams and her cronies say, our laws safeguard every Georgian’s right to free, fair, and fast elections.”
The appeals court ruling pushes Boulee’s ruling, which did not conduct a facial analysis of the First Amendment issues highlighted and instead sought to challenge the ban, citing that it came from alleged liberal and progressive advocacy groups. The lack of facial analysis renders the law unconstitutional, as the Supreme Court ruled in Moody v. NetChoice, LLC. “The district court didn’t conduct the facial-challenge analysis now required by Moody,” the 11th Circuit Court said.
“…the court failed to systematically assess the full sweep of the regulation and weigh the constitutional against the unconstitutional applications. It instead emphasized the plaintiffs’ particular activities and the overarching justifications offered by the government — lumping together a narrow range of applications and considering them as a whole without accounting for the First Amendment’s varying protections across different activities.”
According to CBS News, SB 202 was enacted in 2021. It included a ban and other changes to Georgia’s election laws, such as limitations on absentee ballot drop boxes, new ID requirements for absentee ballots, and changes to early voting. Supporters feel the ban was necessary to prevent voter influence, but critics think giving food and water is a simple form of civic engagement and all-around kindness.
The law carried a misdemeanor penalty of up to a year in jail for giving out food and drink in the restricted zones, in addition to major backlash that led Major League Baseball to move its 2021 All-Star Game out of Atlanta.
The outcry caught the attention of the then Biden-Harris administration Department of Justice (DOJ), resulting in a lawsuit where former President Joe Biden referred to the ban as “Jim Crow in the 21st Century.”
The Trump administration’s DOJ dismissed the lawsuit in March 2025.
Teen Founder Scales Up Platform To Help Brands Connect With User-Generated Content Creators
Elijah Khasabo celebrated his journey from broke teen to successful tech entrepreneur.
A Black college student in Massachusetts is commemorating his platform that helps brands discover and connect with user-generated content creators.
Elijah Khasabo launched Vidovo at just 19. Celebrating the platform’s second anniversary of streamlining content creation, the teen founder reflects on the journey to becoming a successful tech entrepreneur.
The UMass Amherst student shared on LinkedIn about how Vidovo transformed one of his lowest points into a story of triumph and determination.
“I was at one of my LOWEST points. No connections, nothing handed to me, and no reason anyone should’ve taken me seriously,” he wrote. “It didn’t matter that I had nothing. I had the drive, and honestly, that was enough to start.”
Vidovo works by helping brands find and hire UGC creators to create captivating and innovative content for their products. However, Vidovo is not your typical hiring source.
It also simplifies the process of hiring and managing creators while ensuring deliverables. Vidovo not only enables brands to access high-quality content from emerging creators but also helps these social media users gain exposure while building relationships with reputable companies.
He added, “It made sense on paper, brands were sick of paying for content that didn’t work, and creators deserved a platform that actually helped them grow.”
While noting that the “struggle was real” to scale up Vidovo, hard, intentional work paid off, as the “tiny wins” yielded long-term success.
“Bootstrapping has tested everything, patience, confidence, even sanity some days, but it’s made me who I am. I don’t think I’d have the discipline or edge I do now without it. It’s truly forced me to grow up fast,” continued the 22-year-old.
Still working toward his Bachelor’s in marketing, Khasabo plans to scale up operations to help more brands and creators fulfill their own dreams. With Fortune projecting a $1 million milestone in revenue for the Vidovo in 2025, Khasabo is on track to make history as a teen founder.
“Brands are showing up. Creators are thriving. It’s all coming together, and it makes me so damn happy.”
