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Fighting Climate Change: A New Era for Climate Lawsuits After UN Top Court Ruling (Bloomberg)

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An opinion by the world’s top court has galvanized those on the frontlines of the fight against climate change, by giving them fresh ammunition to pursue the biggest emitters.

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In a first-of-its kind ruling, the International Court of Justice said on Wednesday that countries have an obligation to do all they can to keep global warming below the 1.5C goal outlined by the Paris Agreement, and could face consequences if they don’t.

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There are nascent signs of building climate momentum ahead of the UN COP30 climate summit taking place in the Brazilian city of Belem in November. With the US under President Donald Trump reversing course on climate action, the EU and China — the next two largest economies and historical emitters —are committing to take on the leadership mantle ahead of the summit.

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Read more of Bloomberg's reporting on this potentially pivotal development here and here.

Partially submerged beach huts in in Port Vila, Vanuatu, in July. Photographer: Annika Hammerschlag/AP Photo

Strengthening Communities Through the Arts.

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Bloomberg Philanthropies published their Annual Report this week. Among its focus areas, including Public Health, Education, the Environment, Government Innovation, special Founder’s Projects and the pro bono city consultancy Bloomberg Associates, Bloomberg Philanthropies also has a robust program to harness the power of arts and culture to improve communities across the globe.

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Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Arts program invests in artists, arts organizations, and audience experiences to strengthen the creative landscape and quality of life in cities around the world.

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As one of the world’s largest philanthropic funders of the arts, Bloomberg Philanthropies partners with more than 700 cultural institutions globally to support their work, helps put on groundbreaking exhibitions, and shares programming with wider audiences.

What's more, the Arts program leads a number of efforts to strengthen the arts through technology, including Bloomberg Connects, which offers digital guides and in-depth, curated content from more than 1,000 museums, historical sites, botanical gardens, and other cultural institutions in more than 300 cities around the world, as well as its Digital Accelerator program to address arts organizations’ need for stronger digital infrastructure.

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From sparking collaboration through public art as part of its Public Art Challenge, to merging public art and street safety through its Asphalt Art Initiative, to expanding opportunities in the arts, including through the Bloomberg Arts Internship, Bloomberg Philanthropies' Arts program is helping cities and cultural organizations around the world to inspire creativity, spark collaboration, and improve people’s lives.

Learn more about their groundbreaking efforts here. And read the full Annual Report here.

At the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo, Japan, a visitor used Bloomberg Connects to explore Adrián Villar Rojas’ Untitled 22 (From the Series The End of Imagination).

What I'm Reading.

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Programming Note: The Sheekey Daily Read will be on summer hiatus through August 1. Look for your next Daily Read on Monday, August 4.

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Trump’s South Park Problem: Comedy Series Skewers Trump in Blistering Return, Just as Administration Approves Mega Paramount-Skydance Merger (Politico)

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Comedy Central's South Park returned to the airwaves on Wednesday night, the creators of the irreverent, long-running cartoon series skewers for his connections to Jeffrey Epstein and is depicted as a man who has lined the walls of the White House with naked photos of himself, according to Politico.

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It’s the latest sign that Trump has lost control of the Epstein narrative, and that the saga has broken Washington containment and permeated deep into popular culture. That makes it the worst kind of White House mess, Politico reports.

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The new South Park episode cites the Paramount-Skydance merger, in addition to toggling between Stephen Colbert’s recent late-night axing, efforts to kneecap diversity programs, and Trump’s penchant for suing critical media outlets (like CBS, who settled with POTUS for $16 million earlier this month over what was called a “meritless” 60 Minutes suit). A cowering 60 Minutes itself, Jesus in the school system, going to war with Canada (featuring a cartoon version of Prime Minister Mark Carney), censorship and corporate kowtowing were also in the mix.

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Watch the full South Park episode here or this much talked about clip.

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Remarkably, the episode ran just days after the South Park creators signed a $1.5 billion streaming deal with Paramount, which owns CBS and Comedy Central. And it ran the evening before the Trump administration's FCC-approved Paramount's merger with Skydance Media. The FCC approved the merger after the Trump administration extracted concessions on the news and entertainment company’s political coverage and diversity practices, including a $16 billion settlement over CBS's Kamala Harris interview, which Trump alleged was altered to reflect poorly on him.

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Made for TV Moment: Trump Pushes Jerome Powell on Interest Rates During Tour of Fed (Bloomberg)

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After an on camera hard hat tour of the central bank's renovation project that saw Trump and Powell publicly trade barbs over the cost of the project, Trump maintained there was no tension with the Fed chief and indicated that problems with the project probably weren’t reason enough to fire the central bank head.

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The tour opened with Trump and Powell speaking to reporters and almost immediately disagreeing over the cost of the project. The pair, donning white construction hats, walked through one of the sites and spoke briefly with reporters during the tour.

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Powell pushed back on Trump’s claims that the costs had hit $3.1 billion, shaking his head while the president spoke about the overruns. The president offered Powell a piece of paper which he cast as offering details on the new estimate, but Powell told the president his revised claim included a building that had already been completed.

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Watch the clip here:

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Poll: Independents Drive Trump's Approval to 37% Second-Term Low (Gallup)

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Six months into his second term, President Donald Trump’s job approval rating has dipped to 37%, the lowest of this term and just slightly higher than his all-time worst rating of 34% at the end of his first term. Trump’s rating has fallen 10 percentage points among U.S. adults since he began his second term in January, including a 17-point decline among independents, to 29%, matching his lowest rating with that group in either of his terms.

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For their part, Republicans’ ratings have remained generally steady near 90% and Democrats have been consistently in the low single digits.

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Leaving US Manufacturers in the Lurch: Trump’s Japan Trade Deal Raises Fears He Gave Away Too Much (Bloomberg)

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The president’s decision to grant Japan relief on automobiles provoked criticism that the agreement wouldn’t address the main source of the US’s trade deficit with Japan even as it disadvantages Detroit’s Big Three. Around 80% of the US-Japan trade gap is in cars and car parts.

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Leadership Announcement: CBS News Names Longtime Insider Tanya Simon to lead ‘60 Minutes’ (NY Post)

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Simon has been running the news magazine on an interim basis since Bill Owens abruptly quit in April amid a lawsuit from Trump over an interview with Kamala Harris. Simon is only the fourth executive producer to run the news magazine since it launched in the late 1960s under Don Hewitt’s lead, and the first woman to take the role.

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Inflation Nation: Ice Cream Prices Soar to Record Highs (Axios)

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At the height of summer, prices for America's go-to frozen treat are hitting new highs, according to federal data. Soaring ingredient costs, extreme weather and hot demand are fueling the higher prices. Plus: Chocolate-based flavors are impacted by a surge in global cocoa prices, which have increased 150% in the last 12 months.

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Mideast Update: Gaza Truce Talks Falter as US and Israel Pull Negotiators (Bloomberg)

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Another dispute in the negotiations, officials from both sides say, concerns a Hamas demand for the restoration of a United Nations-administered aid network that Israel sidelined. Israel said the move was necessary to prevent Hamas stealing food and medicine. Earlier Thursday, scores of aid groups said the humanitarian situation in Gaza is worse than ever and that starvation is spreading.

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UNGA Week Preview: US Criticizes France's Macron for Opting to Recognize Palestinian State (Bloomberg)

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Macron plans to make an official announcement during the next annual gathering of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September.

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Save the Date: Bloomberg Philanthropies Global Forum — September 24, 2025 (Bloomberg Philanthropies)

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Hosted by Mike Bloomberg, the Bloomberg Philanthropies Global Forum will take place on September 24 alongside the United Nations General Assembly in New York, bringing together top leaders from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to address the world’s most urgent challenges and opportunities.

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Eradicating Disease That Kills 600K Annually? Johns Hopkins Researchers Develop Genetic Tweak That Could Prevent Mosquitoes from Transmitting Malaria (NPR)

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"These mosquitoes will spread on their own and gradually transform the malaria-transmitting mosquito population to one that cannot transmit malaria," says George Dimopoulos, a biologist at Johns Hopkins University and study co-author.

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Higher Ed Latest: Columbia Agrees to $200 Million Fine, Clears Way for Reinstatement of $400 Million in Canceled Funding and End to White House Fight (Bloomberg)

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Deportation Hub in El Paso: Trump Awards $1.26 Billion Contract to Build Biggest Immigrant Detention Center in US (Bloomberg)

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Focus on US Senate: RNC Chair Michael Whatley Expected to Run for Senate in North Carolina as Lara Trump Opts Out (NBC News)

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Whatley's expected run comes after Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican, unexpectedly announced that he would not seek re-election, making the race to fill the seat one to watch in the 2026 midterms as Democrats try to retake the chamber. Popular former Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, also plans to launch a Senate campaign.

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OpenAI's Next Model: GPT-5 Slated for Release Early Next Month (Axios)

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In addition to being better at coding and more powerful overall, GPT-5 is expected to combine the attributes of both traditional models and so-called reasoning models such as o3. OpenAI is planning to launch GPT-5 with mini and nano versions that will also be available through its API, according to The Verge.

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Are We Headed for a Private Credit Boom? Carlyle CEO Harvey Schwartz Talks Private Credit Innovation, Personal History (Bloomberg)

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Harvey Schwartz, CEO of Carlyle Group, talks with Bloomberg TV's Sonali Basak about his parents' battles with mental illness and how he is taking Carlyle Group through a major shift in finance, revealing the forces behind today’s hottest market: private credit.

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In Memoriam: Michael Cardozo, Former NYC Corporation Counsel and Proskauer Partner, Has Died (New York Law Journal)

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Michael A. Cardozo, a prominent New York attorney who had vast experience in commercial, sports and municipal government litigation, and was the 2015 recipient of the American Lawyer Lifetime Achievement Award, died Wednesday at age 84.

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Cardozo was a legal legend. As Mike Bloomberg wrote: "After being elected mayor, I hired Michael Cardozo not only for his sharp legal acumen, but also for his unassailable integrity and lifelong commitment to the city’s civic health. Over his 12-year tenure as the city’s top lawyer — the longest-serving Corporation Counsel in history — he played a central role in all of our administration’s policy, legislative, and legal efforts, including fighting illegal guns, taking on tobacco, cutting air pollution, improving the public schools, building affordable housing, advancing development projects, and strengthening government ethics."

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Don't Miss Today's Daily Read Podcast: Click here to listen to the latest episode of the AI-generated companion of today's newsletter on Spotify. It's also available on Apple Podcasts .  Take a listen today.

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Free Concerts this Weekend in NYC: Last Chance to See Series Curated by Grammy Award Winner Cécile McLorin Salvant (Little Island)

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The series, part of Little Island's lineup of free summer events, concludes this weekend with The Emmanuel Michael Group tonight at 10pm; and Melanie Charles & Friends on Saturday, July 26, also at 10pm.

Weekend Guide.

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UEFA Women's Euro 2025 (FOX Sports and Disney+)

Spain will take on England in the final of UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 on Sunday in Basel. It is their first time reaching this stage of the competition as they look to add an inaugural European title to their growing list of football accolades by dethroning the reigning champions.

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Tour de France (NBC and Peacock)

The Tour de France — the oldest and most prestigious of the three major European professional cycling stage races — concludes on Sunday. The race began on July 5 in Lille, and will finish with the final stage at Champs-Élysées, Paris.

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Asura (Netflix)

Heralded as a "first-class domestic drama" by the New York Times in a rave review, this seven-episode drama by the Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda is "so good it makes other shows look bad."

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (Paramount+)

Now in its third season, this prequel to the original Star Trek (1966) follows Captain Pike and his crew to uncharted worlds and daring new missions. As the tagline says: "One show. Infinite adventures."

Best of Late Night.

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On reports that inflation is causing ice cream prices to hit record highs:

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“Say what you want about Biden, but you know damn well this wouldn't have happened under him.'” 

— Jimmy Fallon

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On the escalating pressure on Donald Trump and his administration over their handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case and related files:

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“Inflation is heating up, [Trump] is putting innocent people in camps, and he’s in more pictures with Jeffrey Epstein than Hall is with Oates.”

— Seth Meyers

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“You know how they say, ‘There’s no such thing as bad publicity’? They’re not talkin’ about this.”

— Stephen Colbert

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“But, yeah, this whole time, Trump already knew he was in the Epstein files, which is a good reminder that if someone’s acting guilty, they’re probably guilty. No one’s ever like, ‘Don’t look at my browser history — you’ll see all the charities I volunteer for!’” 

— Josh Johnson

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And from The Tonight Show: Jimmy Fallon performs a song about Trump’s attempts to distract everyone from talking about the Epstein files. Click on the photo below to watch.