Britney Spears is officially free of her conservatorship: 5 Things podcast
On today's episode of the 5 Things podcast: A judge has freed Britney Spears from her conservatorship. Plus, reporter Nina Mandell talks concert safety, USA TODAY Sports' Paul Myerberg fills us in on the next Manning quarterback, Aaron Rodgers may make his return after COVID-19 and snow falls in the East.
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 Five Things You Need to Know, Saturday, the 13th of November, 2021. Today, Britney is free. Plus, how to navigate anxiety around concert safety after the Astroworld tragedy, and more.
Taylor Wilson:
Here are some of the top headlines.
- President Joe Biden and Chinese president Xi Jinping have set a virtual summit for Monday together. The two countries recently announced more cooperation to fight climate change, but have otherwise had stiff tensions to start the Biden administration.
- Judge Bruce Schrader, who is overseeing the Kyle Rittenhouse murder trial is again under fire. Video came out this week of the judge making jokes about Asian food in the courtroom.
- And it was a big night for US soccer. The United States Men's National team beat Mexico two nil, to rise to the top of CONCACAF standings for next year's World Cup in Qatar. They still have seven qualifiers left to play, with Jamaica coming up on Tuesday.
Taylor Wilson:
Britney Spears has been officially freed from her conservatorship.
Speaker 2:
(singing) It is official. The conservatorship of Britney Spears has been terminated.
Taylor Wilson:
That was the scene in Los Angeles, where the pop stars fans gathered after a judge's decision yesterday to free her from the nearly 14 year conservatorship. Spears wrote on Instagram, "Good God. I love my fans so much it's crazy. I think I'm going to cry the rest of the day." Her lawyer, Matthew Rosengart said after the decision that the case could shine a light on other conservatorships.
Matthew Rosengart:
I'm so proud of her. I thank her. I thank her for her courage and poise and power. I thank her for our relationship. Not only is this momentous for Britney, but she helped shuns a light on not only this conservatorship, which was corrupted by her father James P Spears, but she helped shine a light on conservatorships and guardianships from coast to coast, from California to New York. And that took a tremendous amount of insight, courage, and grace.
Taylor Wilson:
Spears turns 40 next month and was put under the conservatorship in 2008 when she was 26 after suffering a public breakdown the year before. The conservatorship included her father and others who had control over her financial and personal life. The fight to end it picked up steam earlier this year with the release in February of the New York Times documentary, Framing Britney Spears. Public outcry then ramped up again in June when Spears herself testified, calling the conservatorship abusive.
Taylor Wilson:
A week ago, nine people were killed during an apparent crowd surge at Houston's Astroworld music festival. The concert run by rapper Travis Scott gathered tens of thousands of people. One of the early large festival gatherings since the pandemic took over life in March of 2020. For many, concerts seems scary as it is in what's still a virus written world, and the Astroworld tragedy didn't help. But report Nina Mandel is here to try and work through some of the anxiety about getting back to shows.
Nina Mandel:
I think that in the wake of everything that happened at Astroworld, which is obviously an incredible tragedy, it's just important to remember how rare that is, thankfully. Some of the advice that I got from experts was to just remember how rare it is, and to think about all the systems that are in place to keep us safe, and all the concerts that have gone on before and after that nothing ever happened, and we never had to worry about or think about.
Nina Mandel:
I know we have some great reporting across USA today on all the thoughts from safety experts. What I do know from people I talk to is that everybody agreed, something probably went very wrong with safety protocols there that are likely in place in other places. And that there's also something very unique about a festival of 50,000 people that is unlike most concerts.
Nina Mandel:
I also just think it's important to remember that it's a stressful time. And this didn't make it into my article, but one expert from Stanford told me it's like we're carrying a backpack. And with everything that's gone on since COVID, it's just things that are adding to a heavier and heavier backpack. And we just have to keep that in mind when we have stress reactions that we're already a little on edge a lot, and things are pretty different, and to just take a step back when you think you're getting stressed out about something
Taylor Wilson:
You can read Nina's full story in the life section on USAtoday.com.
Taylor Wilson:
First there was Archie Manning, then Peyton and Eli. Next up, Arch Manning. The 17 year old might just be the best Manning quarterback yet. USA Today Sports Paul Meyerburg has more.
Paul Meyerburg:
Arch Manning is the grandson of Archie Manning, who's a really famous football figure in the south and SEC country, and New Orleans for the New Orleans Saints. He's a nephew of Peyton Manning and Eli Manning. Peyton won two Super Bowls. Eli won a pair with the New York Giants. And he's a 17 year old prospect, a five star quarterback recruit. On a scale of two to five, These recruiting services attempt to project how a player will play in college and at the next level if they get to that point. And according to the 247sports.com, which composes this team, or individual composite rankings, he's the number one player in the country for 2023. So right now he's a high school junior. He's got one more year after this, and we expect him to announce where he'll go to school at some point either next spring or early summer.
Paul Meyerburg:
Yeah, I think it's important to out that while he's Arch Manning and there's enormous amount of expectations on him because of his last name and the fact that he shares a first name with his grandfather, it's just important to recognize that if he was Steve Jones from Kalamazoo, he'd still be a five star prospect, and there's no favors done by University of Georgia to [inaudible 00:06:34] support with Peyton so they'll say something nice on a Monday night telecast. It's about how good he is. And if he was in Michigan or California or New Orleans, he'd be a five star recruit and the top player in the country. So he's stayed humble, he's earned this, and regardless of where he ends up, I think he will end up making his own way and telling his own story, regardless of the fact that he's a Manning.
Taylor Wilson:
For the latest football news from high school to college and the NFL head, to USA Today Sports.
Taylor Wilson:
Aaron Rogers is widely expected to return to the field tomorrow for the Green Bay Packers. The Pack are hosting the Seattle Seahawks, but won't know the official status of its superstar quarterback until later today, which marks the required 10 day quarantine window for unvaccinated players. Rogers tested positive for COVID 19 the week before. He previously told reporters in August that he was immunized against the virus, and led people to believe that meant he was vaccinated, but he was not. The revelation led to fines of $14,500 against Rogers and $300,000 against the Packers. Some were surprised the punishments were so minor, but columnist, Jared Bell explains how those penalties came to be.
Jared Bell:
You can ask about the minuscule amount or the fine for Aaron Rogers, but that was actually negotiated by the NFL and the NFLPA when they did the protocols in terms of establishing a fine schedule. And so the way it's set up is if there are other major violations from this point on, then it gets to be a whole lot stiffer. But the thing that I see, the significance of this, is the Packers fine. $300,000 is a pretty hefty fine by NFL standards. And if you look back at the Saints last year, you look at the Raiders last year, where those fines were in the ... It was several hundred thousand dollars more for repeated violations. I think that's the warning shot to the Packers that you'd better comply and do all that you can do as a team to make sure that you're in compliance. So there could be another shoe to drop, pending on how Rogers and the Packers execute the protocols from here on out.
Taylor Wilson:
For more on the NFL's handling of the pandemic, search Aaron Rogers on USAtoday.com.
Taylor Wilson:
The first snowflakes of the season could fall this weekend in the Northeast. AccuWeather forecasters are tracking an active storm, combined with a prolonged blast of cold air in the east. That'll bring snow opportunities for parts of the Appalachians, Mid-Atlantic, and New England over the next few days. That includes places like Washington, Philadelphia, and New York City by tomorrow night.
Taylor Wilson:
Thanks for listening to Five Things. You can find us seven mornings a week right here, wherever you're listening right now. And if that place happens to be Apple Podcasts, we ask for a five star rating and review, if you have a chance. Thanks to PJ Elliot for his great work on the show, and he can check out the Sunday edition of Five Things right here tomorrow from USA Today.