- Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
In Mississippi
1. PSC hosting Natural Gas Summit today
The Mississippi Public Service Commission is hosting a Natural Gas Summit scheduled for Tuesday, January 28, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. in Jackson.
Commissioners say the Natural Gas Summit is a component of the PSC’s Gas Safety Campaign launched in December.
The Commissioners invite all interested parties to this free educational summit bringing together regulatory leaders and stakeholders for a more comprehensive understanding of the current state of natural gas in Mississippi. Among the presenters are representatives from Centerpoint, Atmos and Spire Energy.
Click here for the agenda and here to watch the livestream.
2. USM College of Nursing hosting research symposium
The University of Southern Mississippi’s (USM) College of Nursing and Health Professions (CNHP) will host its first-ever research symposium on Thursday, February 6.
The university says the event will take place at Asbury Hall on the Hattiesburg campus from 1:00- 4:30 p.m., spotlighting groundbreaking research and fostering collaboration and innovation in the fields of nursing and health professions.
The event, supported by the Mississippi Idea Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) Community Engagement and Training Core, and the Gulf South Center for Community Engaged Health Research and Innovation, is free and open to the public. Students, researchers, healthcare professionals and members of the community are encouraged to attend.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Trump Administration pauses federal loans, grants
Late Monday, the White House directed federal agencies to pause the disbursement of loans and grants while the government conducts a review to ensure spending aligns with President Trump’s agenda, as reported by The Hill.
“A memo issued by acting director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Matthew Vaeth directs federal agencies to temporarily pause ‘all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance,'” The Hill reported.
“This temporary pause will provide the Administration time to review agency programs and determine the best uses of the funding for those programs consistent with the law and the President’s priorities,” the memo states.
The Hill also noted that the memo indicates “that Social Security or Medicare benefits should not be impacted, nor should assistance that is provided directly to individuals.”
2. Latest executive orders focused on ending military gender, DEI policies
The Washington Examiner reports that President Donald Trump signed multiple executive orders on Monday night, “each focusing on revamping the military to fit his vision for the country’s fighting force.”
“The president’s orders involved various matters that would have significant consequences in the armed services,” the Washington Examiner reported. “From troops who were discharged years ago due to COVID-19 vaccine mandates to eliminating political ideologically driven programs that prioritized things such as race, gender, and sex over merit, Trump’s directives called for sweeping changes in the military.”
Sports & Entertainment
1. Miss. State baseball ranked No. 18 in preseason poll
Baseball America has listed the Mississippi State baseball team as the No. 18 club in the country in its preseason rankings recently this week.
Miss. State Athletics notes that the Diamond Dawgs completed 2024 with a 40-23 overall record. MSU earned a berth into the NCAA Tournament, their 40th appearance in an NCAA Tournament. Miss. State tied a program record with MLB Draft Picks in 2024 with 11 players being drafted, the most by a university.
The 2025 season gets underway on February 14 when Miss. State hosts Manhattan in a three-game series at Dudy Noble Field.
2. JSU’s Rowell earns SWAC honor
Jackson State’s Ledamian Rowell was named SWAC co-Field Performer of the Week last week for his performance at the Samford Open.
Rowell won the triple jump with a distance of 15.45 meters. His distance led the Tigers as the sole first place finish in their first meet of the season.
Markets & Business
1. Chinese AI startup DeepSeek sends U.S. markets downward
CNBC reports that concerns over DeepSeek, a Chinese AI startup, came to a head on Monday, with the Nasdaq Composite losing more than 3%, while the S&P 500 slid about 1.5%.
On Tuesday morning, CNBC noted that stock futures “tied to the S&P 500, along with Nasdaq 100 futures, traded just above the flatline, rising 0.1%. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were also flat.”
CNBC went on to add that “DeepSeek surpassed rival OpenAI on Monday to become the most-downloaded free app in the U.S. on Apple’s App Store.”
2. Google Maps to show Gulf of America, Mount McKinley name change
Google Maps will reflect President Trump’s changes in the United States and will show the Gulf of America and Mount McKinley, Fox News Digital reported on FoxBusiness.
“Google will make the changes once the Department of the Interior updates the Geographic Names Information System,” Fox reported. “Once the update is made, Google will ‘update Google Maps in the U.S. quickly to show Mount McKinley and Gulf of America.’ Google also said that, in line with its longstanding practice, when official names vary between countries, Maps users will ‘see their official local name.'”
Magnolia Tribune
