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  Mute buttons and masks: Inside the final 2020 debate NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — While millions of people are watching on television, only around 200 are inside the massive college arena in Nashville where President Donald Trump and his Democratic challenger, Joe Biden, are facing off in their second and final debate of the 2020 election. One of those 200 is controlling a mute button. A representative of the Commission on Presidential Debates — not the moderator — is supposed to ensure each candidate has a two full minutes of uninterrupted time to deliver opening answers on six major topics, according to debate commission chair Frank Fahrenkopf. A member of each of the the Trump and Biden campaigns was expected to monitor the person who controls the mute button backstage, Fahrenkopf told The Associated Press, noting that the button would not be used beyond the first four minutes of each topic. The mute button is among a handful of changes implemented by the nonpartisan debate commiss...

Quibi is shutting down just months after launching Quibi, the short-form video streaming service from Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman, announced Wednesday that it will be shutting down. The abrupt end to the expensive project comes just six months after its debut. Quibi was reported to be returning  $350 million  of the $1.75 billion it raised from investors. (NBCUniversal, the parent company of NBC News, is a minority investor in Quibi, and NBC News produced a daily show on the platform. NBCUniversal and NBC News declined to comment.) The company struggled to win over subscribers and meet its growth targets. Since it launched in April, Quibi has faced tepid reviews and internal strife, and it has failed to win over consumers in the numbers it needed to thrive. Katzenberg was already exploring options last month, including  selling the company , as he struggled to sign up subscribers. The service, which was highly anticipated given the involvement of Katzenberg, the fo...

Jamie Lynn Spears on Why She Decided to ‘Hide Away' After Announcing Pregnancy at 16 "There's a human being growing inside of me, and I'm so young, I'm almost a baby myself," Spears recalled thinking at the time Peter Kramer/NBC/NBC NewsWire Jamie Lynn Spears appears on NBC News’ “TODAY” show. Jamie Lynn Spears is opening up to  Nylon  about her decision to avoid the spotlight after announcing she was  pregnant at 16 . The former child star, 29, went public with her pregnancy news in 2007 shortly after wrapping filming on the wholesome Nickelodeon series "Zoey 101." "You have your first love, or what you call love in high school. You think it's forever, and then oh my gosh, I'm pregnant," Spears recalled thinking at the time. "I am mortified to have to tell my parents this and my family this. I do not care what TMZ thinks about it. That was all I was thinking about: 'These are the people I love that I have to tell, and also...

Debate commission to mute candidates during their opponent's initial responses to prevent interruptions  (CNN) Former Vice President   Joe Biden   and President   Donald Trump   will have their microphones muted during portions of the second and final presidential debate on Thursday night, the Commission on Presidential Debates announced on Monday in a decision that will likely anger the President. The decision came after the commission met Monday afternoon to discuss potential rule changes to the debate format. They decided that the changes were needed because of how the first debate between Biden and Trump devolved into chaos, with the President frequently interrupting the former vice president. The change is sure to anger the Trump and his campaign, who have signaled that any changes to the procedures will be unacceptable to them, which the commission acknowledged in its statement. "We realize, after discussions with both campaigns, that neither campaign may ...