Gun safety groups want ad restrictions, NFL hands down Watson suspension: 5 Things podcast

On today's episode of the 5 Things podcast: Gun safety groups say FTC should restrict firearm advertising

Investigative reporter Nick Penzenstadler explains. Plus, a judge orders the DOJ to redact the Mar-a-Lago affidavit ahead of its possible release, a top Trump organization executive pleads guilty, travel reporter Bailey Schulz says car ownership costs are way up and NFL quarterback Deshaun Watson will be suspended 11 games.

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Hit play on the player above to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript below. This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text.

Taylor Wilson:

Good morning. I'm Taylor Wilson and this is 5 Things you need to know Friday, the 19th of August, 2022. Today, guns and advertisements. Plus, a potential first step toward the full release of the Mar-a-Lago affidavit and more.

Here are some of the top headlines:

1. Frederick Woods, who kidnapped a school bus full of children in 1976 and buried them alive, has been granted parole. Children and their bus driver were ultimately able to dig their way out after 16 hours. Woods had the support for parole of two survivors.

2. A Wendy's employee is being charged with second-degree murder after a man was hit in the head at an Arizona location last month and later died. Officials said a customer complained about his food order when the employee came from behind the service counter and hit the customer in the head.

3. Apple has revealed serious security vulnerabilities for iPhones, iPads, and Max that could let hackers take complete control of the devices. The company said any hacker could get full admin access, allowing them to impersonate the device's owner and run any software in their name.

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Annual gun sales peaked during the coronavirus pandemic, with more than 21.5 million sold in 2020 in the US. And another 19 million were sold last year, the second highest ever recorded. Meanwhile, gun safety groups say the Federal Trade Commission should restrict firearm advertising based on bans of deceptive messaging used to regulate CBD and vaping ads. Investigative reporter Nick Penzenstadler and producer PJ Elliott have more.

Nick Penzenstadler:

There are groups of gun safety advocates that have seen this as an opportunity to maybe add some gun regulation aimed at the marketing and the messages that are coming out of these manufacturers. They're looking at messages that they can say are untrue or misleading, or deceitful. It breaks down to, "Are you safer with a gun at your house than, say, calling 911?" The gun safety folks say that's misleading. That's not true. So they should be held accountable for that.

PJ Elliott:

Is petitioning the FTC over advertisements anything new?

Nick Penzenstadler:

It's not. I mean, the FTC receives complaints and petitions about a wide range of consumer products. I mean, the gun complaints were compared to more recent examples like vaping, pens, like JUUL, and some of their messaging aimed at kids specifically. Of course, the most famous example is cigarette ads and Joe Camel and the Marlboro Man. In the '90s, we decided, or the FTC decided that those wouldn't be allowed anymore.

PJ Elliott:

You mentioned Joe Camel, and those ads were found to be targeting kids in the '90s. Is that the same case here with the guns?

Nick Penzenstadler:

Yeah. It breaks down to a few things. It's the messages that are focused on the safety in your home. There are people who are concerned about the ads that are potentially advocating for unlawful use of products. There's this example of this urban super sniper that we use in our story. It's hard to imagine the lawful case for using a sniper rifle in an urban environment. That's the case they're making. Then, of course, messages aimed at kids are a concern. Kids can't buy guns. The argument from the gun lobby is that these ads are aimed at parents who want to get their kids involved in sports shooting and hunting early and teach them all those lessons.

PJ Elliott:

Where do things stand now with the FTC? Are decisions being made about these ads?

Nick Penzenstadler:

Yeah. There are these pending petitions at the FTC. It's up to this independent commission whether they take this up and either study it or issue some guidance or issue some new rules. But there is a new bill that's been introduced in Congress to force them to do that. Congress can direct them to study certain things or take certain actions. That's happening. The congressional Democrat's Oversight Committee is investigating this. They've issued subpoenas and request letters to top manufacturers. They've had them before Congress. Just this week, Smith & Wesson responded: one of the biggest gun manufacturers in the country. This fight is definitely right in the mix, and there definitely could be some action coming soon.

PJ Elliott:

What is it about this battle that makes it unusual?

Nick Penzenstadler:

It's a really hot-button issue. It's really a unique one because it combines the First Amendment and the Second Amendment, where even the most liberal members of Congress say that the Second Amendment probably isn't going to change, but maybe there's room for this regulation or some oversight or guardrails on what can be advertised and what kind of messages can be sent.

Taylor Wilson:

You can find the full story in today's episode description.

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A judge has ordered the Department of Justice to redact the Mar-a-Lago search warrant affidavit ahead of its possible release. A federal magistrate ordered lawyers yesterday to provide a redacted copy of the document for his consideration by next week. The Justice Department has opposed the release of the affidavit authorizing the search of former President Donald Trump's Florida home. It's argued that release would give a roadmap to an ongoing investigation surrounding Trump, putting the investigation and witnesses in possible jeopardy. Trump himself, though, has pushed for the document's full release as have lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. A group of media companies, including the Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Network, have argued the affidavit should be unsealed because of clear and powerful interest in Trump's handling of classified documents.

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A top executive at former President Donald Trump's family business has pleaded guilty to tax evasion. Allen Weisselberg did so to 15 criminal charges. The APs Mike Sisak has more.

Mike Sisak:

Alan Weisselberg, the Chief Financial Officer of Donald Trump's company, The Trump Organization, is in court today to plead guilty to 15 counts, including tax evasion related to a scheme that prosecutors say involved off-the-books compensation, an apartment, cars, even the tuition for his grandchildren's private school.

Now, Allen Weisselberg was charged last summer, more than a year ago. He was the only Trump Organization executive charged in a three-year investigation being conducted by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office. He was scheduled to go to trial in October, along with the Trump Organization on these tax fraud charges but then, this week, cut a deal with prosecutors that will see him serve five months in jail, pay back about $2 million in taxes, penalties, and interest, and he has to testify at the Trump Organization's trial in October to talk about the illicit business dealings that he and the company were involved in.

The Trump Organization is synonymous with former President Donald Trump. Their headquarters is at Trump Tower, which has the gold-plated Trump Tower name. That's where President Trump lived for a long time in Manhattan. But there is a distinction here. Allen Weisselberg is testifying in a case against the Trump Organization, the company, not former President Donald Trump. But former President Trump has not been charged and has not been accused of a criminal wrongdoing in this matter.

Now, Allen Weisselberg has said through his lawyers that he felt he was charged as punishment because he wouldn't flip on the former president, that prosecutors were targeting him because they wanted him to cooperate. People around this case have made it clear that this is not a cooperation agreement like you might see in other cases where a witness will sit down and tell prosecutors everything they know about a subject. There's a specific condition here where in court today, and again in October, he will have to talk about his role and the company's role in this off-the-books confrontation scheme but not necessarily talking about Donald Trump and other members of the Trump family.

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Taylor Wilson:

Are you in the market for a new car? You better prepare to pay up with ownership costs averaging about $900 a month. Reporter Bailey Schulz and producer PJ Elliott have more.

Bailey Schulz:

There is a new report from AAA that looks at just how much it costs to own a new car if you're buying one in 2022. What they found is the expenses to own a new car are definitely going up. Main factor is fuel prices. That's one of the leading causes for this price hike. But AAA found that it costs about $10,720 per year, that's just under $900 per month, to own a new car in 2022. That factors in more than just the car payments. That's factoring in things like fuel, insurance, repairs, and maintenance, so a lot of things that you don't think of when you're initially buying a car and looking at those car payments that you're going to owe.

PJ Elliott:

What is the average cost, and how much are people paying for new cars?

Bailey Schulz:

AAA found that people are paying about $900 per month if they're buying a new car in 2022. That's up about 11% compared to their findings in 2021. A lot of different things have contributed to that spike in expenses that we're seeing. One big one is the cost of fuel, what you're paying at the pump, that those prices have been going down in recent weeks. But they're still a lot higher than what we were seeing in 2019 and 2020. Another one is just the price of cars themselves nowadays, where manufacturers are still dealing with supply issues. There's the microchip shortage. There is a demand for cars, and suppliers are just struggling at this point to keep up with that demand, which means the prices do go up for the vehicles themselves.

PJ Elliott:

What about with electric vehicles? You mentioned how gas prices have gone up and that's a big cost on owning a new car. But what about the EV side of things?

Bailey Schulz:

One interesting thing with this year's findings was that when you're looking at gas-powered vehicles to electric vehicles, AAA found that the cost comparisons are getting a lot closer for consumers nowadays, where electric vehicles are looking a lot more attractive for people trying to save some money, especially now that gas prices are so high. Their findings found that electric vehicles have the second lowest annual ownership cost behind only small sedans. That is largely due to what the drivers are paying in fuel, where it costs about 4 cents per mile to charge your car at your house compared to 18.40 cents per mile if you're driving a gas-powered vehicle. Those expenses really do add up over time, according to this report.

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Taylor Wilson:

NFL quarterback DeShaun Watson will be suspended 11 games and fined $5 million for violating the league's personal conduct policy. The move comes amid sexual misconduct allegations. Watson also agreed to be evaluated by behavioral experts and follow their treatment plan. The agreement overrides jointly appointed disciplinary officer Sue L. Robinson's August 1st ruling that Watson should serve a six-game suspension. But the settlement falls short of the year-long band the NFL had asked Robinson to bring against Watson. USA TODAY Sports NFL columnist, Mike Jones, explains.

Mike Jones:

DeShaun Watson and the NFL have reached a resolution. While waiting for arbitrator Peter Harvey to hand down his decision of the NFL's appeal of Sue Robinson's ruling of a six-game ban, Watson, the NFL Players Association, and the NFL have reached a settlement. The quarterback will now serve an 11-game suspension, pay a $5 million fine, and go through mandatory counseling as his punishment for his actions that led to more than two dozen women accusing him of sexual assault and misconduct during massage therapy sessions that he hired them for during his time in Houston.

The NFL had been asking for an indefinite suspension, which included terms that allowed Watson to reapply for reinstatement after a year. Feeling that it was likely that Harvey, who has worked with the NFL on multiple fronts before, would support the league's decision, Watson's camp went back to the table negotiating with the NFL towards the terms of the settlement.

Now, he gets something: which is, he avoids the longer suspension of a year or more. He does have to pay that fine. That's what the NFL wanted because they didn't like the way that the Cleveland Browns had structured his contract, where he was making less than a million dollars this year, so missing time was not going to really hurt him financially. Now, he'll pay that $5 million. The NFL gets a win because, yes, he has a longer suspension. Yes, they get the financial punishment. But also, if Harvey had overturned Robinson's ruling, there was a good chance that the NFL Players Association would've taken the league to court, and that would've dragged this out even longer. Now, both sides get some victories, both sides make some concessions, but it also means that Watson will make his NFL debut with the Cleveland Browns, or I should say NFL return with the Cleveland Browns, in week 13 at Houston of all places.

Taylor Wilson:

Thanks for listening to 5 Things. You can find us every morning, right here, wherever you're listening right now. Thanks to PJ Elliott for his great work on the show, and I'm back tomorrow with more of 5 Things from USA TODAY.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Weisselberg pleads guilty, Watson suspended 11 games: 5 Things podcast