Thousands of people turned to crowdfunding during COVID-19. For most, it didn't pan out.
CBSN
Aaron Davison has been without work since last spring, when the amusement parks in Orlando, Florida, furloughed thousands of employees. The 28-year-old is a caretaker for his parents, who are too disabled to work, and, after living in their car for part of 2020, the family has been staying in a hotel. But the unemployment benefits that made this possible are ending this week.
Given this precarious financial state, Davison is eager to discuss his GoFundMe campaign to attract donations. "I always would tell everybody, family or friend, if they had a platform to share the GoFundMe," Davison told CBS MoneyWatch. "A share can go a long way, even if it's not a donation. I think visibility is an important thing now." In the 18 months since he launched the crowdfunding campaign, it's raised just over $6,000 of a $10,000 goal — still short of the money he needs to sustain his family or move into permanent housing.On May 7, health influencer Paul Saladino, M.D.. posted a video to his X account that promoted feeding "raw dairy" to infants. The post received over 90,000 views and sparked strong backlash before it was removed the following day. Saladino regularly advocates for "animal-based" diets featuring raw milk, including on his TikTok channel where he has over half a million followers.
Everywhere you look, things are getting more complicated. Our phones have over a thousand settings. Showerheads come with apps. Cars have touchscreens. Ovens have touchscreens. "There's no doubt that 'featuritis' is real," said design consultant Jakob Nielsen. "Most of these things are too complicated."
New research is adding to the evidence linking ultra-processed foods to health concerns. The study tracked people's habits over 30 years and found those who reported eating more of certain ultra-processed foods had a slightly higher risk of death — with four categories of foods found to be the biggest culprits.