📰 News Roundup: The Wednesday Rundown

Your midweek digest delivers critical world developments, tragedy and crime updates, shocking incidents, strange oddities, celebrity and entertainment highlights, and health breakthroughs keeping attention worldwide. Here are the defining stories.

1. Oracle’s Larry Ellison Becomes World’s Richest Person

Key Points

• Oracle shares surged over 40% after strong earnings.

• Larry Ellison’s net worth jumped by more than $100 billion, overtaking Elon Musk.

• His stake in Oracle and thriving AI cloud business fueled the rise.

Oracle’s stock soared, its largest one day jump in decades, on the back of a stellar quarterly report and booming AI cloud demand. That sent Larry Ellison’s personal fortune up by about $100 to 101 billion, boosting his net worth to around $393 billion. This pushed him ahead of Elon Musk, who had held the title of the world’s richest person for nearly a year. Ellison’s wealth surge made it the biggest single day jump ever recorded on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. (theguardian.com)

2. Charlie Kirk, influential conservative activist, dies at 31

Key Points

• The shooting happened during his “Prove Me Wrong” debate at the university.

• A person of interest was taken into custody; the event sparked a federal investigation.

• The attack is part of a wave of increasing political violence in the U.S.

Charlie Kirk, who co-founded Turning Point USA and became one of the most influential voices among young conservatives, was shot during a campus appearance at Utah Valley University on September 10, 2025. He was speaking to students as part of his “American Comeback Tour” when a bullet struck him in the neck. He was rushed to a hospital but died later that day at age 31. His death was confirmed by his organization and publicly announced by former President Donald Trump. Kirk’s activism and media presence had made him a major force in conservative politics. (PBS NewsHour)

3. Apple Unveils Ultra-Thin iPhone Air Alongside iPhone 17 and 17 Pro

Key Points

• Apple introduced the thinnest iPhone ever, the iPhone Air.

• It debuted alongside the iPhone 17, 17 Pro, and 17 Pro Max.

• The Air measures just 5.6 mm and weighs 165 g while offering pro performance.

At its September event, Apple unveiled the new iPhone lineup featuring the impossibly thin iPhone Air. At just 5.6 mm thick and weighing only 165 grams, it is the slimmest iPhone to date but still packs the powerful A19 Pro chip and a 6.5-inch display. The iPhone Air joins the standard iPhone 17 and upgraded Pro models in Apple’s refreshed lineup. (finance.yahoo.com)

4. Trump Epstein Birthday Note Sparks Outrage

Key Points

• A note in Jeffrey Epstein’s “birthday book” included what appears to be Trump's signature.

• Trump denies the signature and the language belong to him.

• The note’s release has ignited bipartisan controversy.

A newly released page from Jeffrey Epstein’s 2003 “birthday book” appears to include a message signed by Donald Trump, with language that many saw as offensive. Trump publicly denied ever writing it, calling the signature “not mine” and the tone “not the way I speak,” dismissing the matter as nonsense. The revelation has kicked off a debate across the political spectrum, with both sides questioning authenticity. (abcnews.go.com, inkl.com)

5. Texas Governor Bans Sharia Law After Muslim Group Campaign Against Pork and Alcohol

Key Points

• A Houston imam pressured Muslim stores to stop selling pork, alcohol, and lottery tickets.

• Governor Greg Abbott responded by banning Sharia law in Texas.

• He urged citizens to report any attempts to impose Sharia compliance.

The controversy began when Imam F. Qasim ibn Ali Khan was filmed urging Muslim owned stores in Houston to stop selling items considered haram, like pork, alcohol, and lottery tickets. In response, Texas Governor Greg Abbott publicly banned Sharia law and related practices in the state. He declared that no one should fear religious pressure and encouraged people to report any such attempts to law enforcement. (indiatoday.in, abdpost.com)

More Top Headlines

1. GoFundMe has taken down multiple fundraisers meant to aid Decarlos Brown Jr., accused of the fatal stabbing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska aboard a Charlotte light-rail train, amid public outrage and violations of platform policies.

2. Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli stepped down on September 9, 2025, after Gen Z–led anti-corruption protests turned violent, prompting social media bans, arson, and government buildings being torched.

3. Indiana attorney Mark S. Zuckerberg has filed a lawsuit against Meta, claiming repeated suspensions of his Facebook account for “impersonating” himself, due to sharing a name with the tech billionaire.

4. The historic Burrillville, Rhode Island farmhouse that inspired The Conjuring films is slated for a mortgagee foreclosure auction at 11 a.m. on October 31, 2025.

5. Sony has officially scheduled the third Jumanji film continuing the Dwayne Johnson–Kevin Hart saga for release on December 11, 2026, marking the franchise’s next cinematic adventure.

That’s all I’ve got for today. Here is the Newsletter schedule every week

News Roundup - Monday, Wednesday & Friday

This roundup features 10 major headlines. The top 5 stories are explained in detail, while 5 additional stories are highlighted as honorable mentions. Coverage spans a variety of topics including world news, true crime, human interest, weird news, health, science, technology, business, AI and economy.

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This has been PBN. See you tomorrow!