McDonald’s CEO blames mother’s etiquette training for awkward burger bite in video
The chief executive officer of McDonald’s recently blamed etiquette guidance from his mother for a February on-camera taste test that made him a target for ridicule – and summarily recorded another video of him eating one of the fast-food giant’s offerings in a manner potential consumers found awkward.Chris Kempczinski suggested to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) earlier in April that he was simply heeding maternal advice to never talk with his mouth full when he took the humorously small bite at the center of a viral video which depicted him discussing and sampling the new Big Arch burger from McDonald’s.“I blame it all on my mom because she told me, ‘Don’t talk with your mouth full,’” Kempczinski remarked to Tim Higgin, a WSJ columnist, in an interview captured on video.“And I think, probably in that case, I should have just said, ‘You know what? To hell with it.I’m gonna go talk with my mouth full.
’”During the conversation, Higgins asked Kempczinski whether he had any advice for how to smoothly eat on camera.“Just dive right in,” Kempczinski replied while laughing – before announcing his intent to take a bite out of a McDonald’s chicken nugget and proceeding to do so.The reaction was familiar to any of the many internet denizens who were put off by the 4 February social media video of him barely biting into a Big Arch, referring to it as a “product” that he didn’t “even know how to attack” because “there’s so much to it”.One Instagram user responded to the chicken nugget video by writing that Kempczinski’s minuscule bite in that clip “was worse than the burger one”.Another user of the platform added, “He still looks like he does not want to eat his own ‘products.
’”On TikTok, one user mused: “Why does he make it look painful?” A second user commented: “This doesn’t help,” while another asserted, “Damage control not working,”The rhetoric in such comments called to mind the reaction to the Big Arch video, which achieved virality in late February and early March – and inspired one social media user to write: “It scares me when you call the food product,’”Another said Kempczinski’s “aura screams kale salad”, implying he made an unconvincing sales pitch for the decadent Big Arch’s white cheddar cheese, tangy sauce and two quarter-pound beef patties,Multiple users expressed frustration with Kempczinski being in the public spotlight again,Business leaders have increasingly sought to place themselves in front of cameras as they try to seem relatable to social media-first audiences.
The strategy can pay dividends if done correctly – yet it can invite digital mockery when it backfires,None of the fun being had online at Kempczinski’s expense may bother him too much,Business Insider recently reported that McDonald’s stock was up about 3% over the previous year, despite the lukewarm critical reception with which the Big Arch was met in some sectors,Kempczinski joined McDonald’s in 2015 after stints as a PepsiCo vice-president and Kraft International president – along with induction into the American Advertising Federation’s Hall of Achievement,He became the Chicago-based chain’s CEO in 2019.
‘Abhorrent’: the inside story of the Polymarket gamblers betting millions on war
“Horekunden” was rapidly losing patience.His frustration was with the Institute for the Study of War, a US thinktank which produces a daily map of the frontline in Ukraine.For Horekunden, and other anonymous gamblers, the map was a “disjointed, incoherent mess … like the painting of a five-year-old”. Therefore it was no use to them in their aim: to settle a bet on the online prediction market Polymarket.The map they were unhappy with depicted the city of Kostyantynivka, which Ukrainian troops have been holding for five months amid shelling and swarms of drones
Federal workers struggle to find roles a year after Trump cuts: ‘I’ve applied to over 250 jobs’
Maggie was faced with a tough choice in February 2025: quit her job at the US office of personnel management or be unceremoniously fired.Though she was a few months pregnant at the time, Maggie was offered one of the buyouts that were offered to tens of thousands of federal government employees by the office of personnel management.“I couldn’t be without health insurance through the delivering of my baby,” said Maggie, who requested to omit her last name for fear of professional repercussions. “I was going to have six to seven months of paid parental leave, because I’d been on my job for five years and I accrued time.”She took a buyout offer in May 2025 and, like many federal employees who took buyouts, and was placed on administrative leave until September 2025
Amazon to finally launch Leo satellite internet in ‘mid-2026’, says CEO
Amazon has said its long-awaited satellite internet rival to Elon Musk’s Starlink will finally go live in “mid-2026”.The chief executive, Andy Jassy, said in a letter to shareholders that the technology company was “on the verge of launching Amazon Leo” and had secured “revenue commitments from enterprises and governments” for the scheme.Originally conceived in 2019 as Project Kuiper before being renamed last year, Leo now has 200 low-orbit satellites in space, with Jassy promising “a few thousand more” in the years to come.While on track to make Leo the second commercial satellite presence in space, the plans would still leave it far behind SpaceX’s Starlink, which has nearly 10,000 satellites in space and aims to have as many as 42,000 operational in the future.Jassy promised Leo would incorporate the successful Amazon Web Services cloud computing software into its function, writing: “Leo will seamlessly integrate with AWS to enable enterprises and governments to move data back and forth for storage, analytics, and AI
US summons bank bosses over cyber risks from Anthropic’s latest AI model
The US Treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, summoned major American bank chiefs to a meeting in Washington this week amid concerns over the cyber risks posed by Anthropic’s latest AI model, according to reports.Jerome Powell, chair of the Rederal Reserve, was said to have been among those gathered at the Treasury headquarters for the meeting after the release of the Claude Mythos AI model that Anthropic says poses unprecedented cybersecurity risks.A recent leak of Claude’s code prompted the startup to publish a blogpost at the beginning of the month saying that AI models had surpassed “all but the most skilled humans at finding and exploiting software vulnerabilities”, adding: “The fallout – for economies, public safety, and national security – could be severe.”This week’s meeting was reportedly called while bank bosses were already in Washington for a lobby group gathering, with a guest list focused on heads of so-called systemically important banks – meaning regulators believe that a major disruption to their operations, or their potential collapse, would put financial stability at risk.Those in attendance included the Goldman Sachs chief executive, David Solomon, Bank of America’s Brian Moynihan, Citigroup’s Jane Fraser, Morgan Stanley’s Ted Pick and the Wells Fargo boss Charlie Scharf, according to Bloomberg, which first reported details of the meeting
Rory McIlroy aims for ‘free’ state of mind in final round of Masters after losing six-shot lead
Rory McIlroy hopes to benefit from a “free” state of mind on the final day of the Masters, despite the defending champion conceding he will have to improve markedly from round three to retain the Green Jacket. McIlroy saw his six-stroke lead evaporate on Saturday, meaning he enters the fourth round in a tie with Cameron Young at the top of the leaderboard. McIlroy was visibly short of his best during a one-over par 73.The Northern Irishman can, however, pull upon the glory of 2025 at the same venue. “I’d like to think that I’ll play a little bit freer and I’ll play, like I’ve already got a Green Jacket, which I do,” McIlroy said
Cameron Young reels in Rory McIlroy with pack on their tails for Masters finale
Rory McIlroy began this Masters in the company of Cameron Young and will finish it in the company of Cameron Young. McIlroy arrived at this tournament as the holder of the Green Jacket. By Sunday night he will …? Goodness only knows. Day three proved predictions are a fool’s errand at the Masters.Such drama played out at Augusta National on Saturday that by close of play it was extraordinary to see McIlroy’s name still atop the leaderboard, albeit now with Young for scoring company
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