1. GOOGLE EMPLOYEES PETITION SAN FRANCISCO PRIDE TO DROP COMPANY FROM PARADE: Just days after Google warned staff about protesting the company during Pride events, employees sent a letter to San Francisco Pride, urging organizers to exclude the company from the event over its handling of L.G.B.T. hate speech on its platforms. In a statement Wednesday, S.F. Pride said Google will still participate in the parade. Bloomberg: “‘Whenever we press for change, we are told only that the company will ‘take a hard look at these policies,’ the employees wrote in a letter sent Wednesday to the board of directors of San Francisco Pride. ‘But we are never given a commitment to improve, and when we ask when these improvements will be made, we are always told to be patient. We are told to wait. For a large company, perhaps waiting is prudent, but for those whose very right to exist is threatened, we say there is no time to waste, and we have waited too long, already.’ The petition, which was also posted online, asks that Google be dropped as a sponsor of the parade as well as excluded from having a presence at the event.”
2. AMAZON PRIME DAY WILL HAVE TAYLOR SWIFT-HEADLINED CONCERT: Amazon Prime Day, the e-commerce giant’s annual two-day sales event, will have more than just deals this year. On July 10, the company will have a live streamed Prime Day Concert for Prime members, headlined by Taylor Swift. Amazon Prime Day takes place July 15-16, marking the first time the event will span two days. USA Today: “Prime members can view the show on-demand for a limited time after the concert. Dua Lipa, SZA, and Becky G. will also star in the concert, to be hosted by actress Jane Lynch on Wednesday, July 10.”
3. I.O.C. WILL CHANGE OLYMPIC BIDDING PROCESS: The International Olympic Committee voted Wednesday to introduce a new process in how Olympic host cities are selected. The process will include forming Olympic panels for winter and summer games, which will recommend one or more cities for an election. Associated Press: “Future Olympic bidders will be required to use existing and temporary venues and infrastructure, while being steered away from costly construction projects. A new, flexible campaign timetable will end the Olympic Charter rule requiring hosts to be voted on seven years in advance of a Summer or Winter Games. That rule already had to be waived in 2017, allowing Los Angeles to be picked 11 years in advance of the 2028 Summer Games. There might not be an election at all.”