The News You Need To Read This Morning

A damning investigation into abuse in women’s soccer, the controversy around the new Jeffrey Dahmer show, and the summer of cheating.

This is an excerpt from Incoming, BuzzFeed News’ morning newsletter dedicated to making sense of this chaotic world we live in. Join the club here.

Women's soccer in the US has a culture of abuse, an investigation found

a woman wearing a jersey and holding a soccer ball on the field; the image is zoomed in on the ball and her torso

The National Women's Soccer League created a culture in which players faced verbal, sexual, and emotional abuse from coaches, and the sport's leaders failed to respond adequately to anyone who raised concerns, according to an investigation released Monday.

The US Soccer Federation ordered the investigation after the Washington Post and the Athletic reported on alleged verbal abuse and sexual misconduct involving several high-profile coaches. The investigation outlined both new and previously reported allegations after more than 200 interviews with current and former players, coaches, owners, and front office staff.

Even though players raised concerns in anonymous player surveys and made complaints, the teams, the League, and the US Soccer Federation failed to address the issues, according to the report. Erin Simon, Mana Shim, and Sinead Farrelly, some of the victims named in the report, said in a statement yesterday, "No one involved has taken responsibility for the clear role they played in harming players — not the teams, not the league, and not the federation. They chose to ignore us and silence us, allowing the abuse to continue."

The US Soccer Federation announced that its board of directors will share a plan for how it will act on the report's recommendations by Jan. 31. It will also immediately establish a new national Office of Participant Safety, publish soccer records from SafeSport’s Centralized Disciplinary Database, and mandate a minimum standard for background checks for all US Soccer members.

The full story contains graphic descriptions of verbal abuse and sexual misconduct.

Brittney Griner’s appeal court date

  • Brittney Griner's appeal hearing is slated for Oct. 25. Griner, who has been detained in Russia since February, was previously sentenced to nine years in prison for drug possession charges.

  • As Griner and former US Marine Paul Whelan remain detained in Russia, seven Americans who were held in Venezuela for years were released this past weekend, the New York Times reports. It was one of the biggest mass releases of American detainees abroad in years.

SNAPSHOTS

Sacheen Littlefeather, who famously condemned Hollywood's depiction of Native Americans at the 1973 Oscars, has died. Littlefeather mostly lived outside the public eye after the backlash from her appearance at the Oscars. This year, nearly four decades later, the Academy formally apologized to her for the racist abuse she received because of her speech.

A former US Immigration and Customs Enforcement warden is accused of fatally shooting an immigrant and injuring another. Immigrants had filed complaints against Michael Sheppard for years prior to the shooting.

A former Daily Mail Editor is now the King's top communications secretary. Many were surprised when news of Tobyn Andreae's hire first broke in July, given that he has no experience in public relations and worked at a tabloid that published columns critical of Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle.

Hollywood and other issues

left: someone holding a smiley face cartoon over their face; right: a pale man smiling

Kim Kardashian has been charged $1.26 million for failing to disclose a paid ad for crypto on her Instagram. The Securities and Exchange Commission found that Kardashian was paid $250,000 to post about a cryptocurrency, but breached advertising and anti-touting laws by not revealing it was an ad. In addition to the fee, she has also agreed to not promote any cryptocurrency for three years.

Here's how the Kardashian/Jenners have protected their sons from fame while publicizing and monetizing their daughters. Fans are noticing how the boys are afforded a far different level of privacy than the girls.

Here's why people are upset about Netflix's Jeffrey Dahmer show. The show’s legacy will be its rejection by the relatives of Dahmer’s victims and the disturbing way it’s been received on social media.

YouTuber Dream revealed his face and people have been really cruel and thirsty about it. After three years of anonymously streaming, Minecraft gamer Dream unveiled his appearance in a livestream viewed by 1.2 million people in real time.

The summer of cheating

A hand with fingers crossed holding a medley of alleged cheaters

If 2018 gave us the Summer of Scam, 2022’s gift was the Summer of Cheating, writes David Mack.

Every day, it feels like we’re waking up to a new niche sport or another obscure celebrity that’s become embroiled in a scandal. A Try Guy turned Wife Guy caught “losing focus”? Sure! The world of chess rocked by allegations of cheating via sex toys? Makes sense! The wives of hunky lineworkers doing repairs in Florida after Hurricane Ian using TikTok to warn off potential adulterous “bucket bunnies”? I had to google most of those words but OK!!

In addition to the sheer volume of betrayals, cheating seems to really touch a nerve with the public. It does, after all, make us feel good to dunk on a cheater. We live in an era of liars and scammers, of misinformation and disinformation, of gaslighters and election-deniers. A true cultural comeuppance has so far proved elusive, for the most part, as Donald Trump and his ilk wriggle out of yet another jam. No one is ever truly canceled, really. I think deep down what we’re thirsty for is consequences, and the assurance that none of this is normal.

Still reading, eh? Seems like you might want to get this in your inbox. No pressure though. Just some food for thought.

Topics in this article

Skip to footer