GM Pays $220M over Driver Data

Michigan will receive about $7.2 million from a $220 million settlement with General Motors over allegations it sold drivers’ private driving and location data without their consent.

From 2016 to 2024, GM’s Smart Driver program tracked habits like hard braking, speeding, and trip times, and the data went to brokers who sold it to insurers. Dealership employees often accepted the terms for customers without their knowledge.

The OnStar app also told more than 370,000 drivers they weren’t enrolled when they were. GM didn’t admit wrongdoing and ended Smart Driver in 2024.

GM must now get drivers’ express consent before collecting or sharing their data. “This agreement addresses Smart Driver, a product we ended in 2024, and reinforces steps we’ve taken to strengthen our privacy practices,” GM said.

Senate Race Heads into Final Weekend

Michigan’s U.S. Senate race enters its final weekend with President Trump’s expected visit scrapped and Democrats working to close ranks.

Republicans had expected Trump in Michigan on Nov. 2, but he’s switching to tele-rallies by phone, with Michigan among 19 states on the list.

Democrat Abdul El-Sayed will campaign Sunday in Detroit with Rep. Haley Stevens of Birmingham, whom he narrowly beat in the August primary, and Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina. It’s their first joint appearance since days after the primary.

Stevens says she still backs El-Sayed, even though her fiancé announced he’s voting for Republican Mike Rogers of White Lake Township.

Pranked Pizza Stocker Gets $500K Windfall

A Michigan father of four who snapped at a prankster while stocking frozen pizzas has received more than $500,000 from strangers online.

The Red Baron worker was restocking shelves at a White Lake store when a man filming himself played an Apple Pay sound, making him think he’d just lost $10. “My life is hard enough as it is,” he said. “I can’t pay my mortgage, and I got four kids at home.”

Viewers sided with the worker, and a stranger started a GoFundMe that drew more than 14,000 donors. The worker, identified only as “Walt Z.,” has asked for privacy.

Red Baron also put fears that he’d lose his job to rest, posting that he’s still with the company. The prankster’s account has been deactivated.

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➤ Statewide: Daylight saving time ends overnight tonight, and state fire officials are urging residents to test their smoke and carbon monoxide alarms when they set their clocks back. (Read More)

➤ Also Statewide: Michigan’s population held steady at 10.1 million in 2025, while Detroit and Grand Rapids each grew 0.5% and Lansing added 1.2%. (See the Numbers)

➤ Ann Arbor: Federal prosecutors charged four more people in an alleged intimidation campaign against University of Michigan officials over the school’s financial ties to Israel, bringing the total to 12. (Read More)

➤ Grand Traverse County: The road commission is seeking $47 million to rebuild Boardman River crossings on Brown Bridge, Supply, and South Airport roads after April’s flooding, though its director calls it a long shot. (See the Plan)

➤ Lansing: A $400,000 state grant will fund Michigan State University research into how PFAS chemicals move from farmland into crops and groundwater. (Read More)

➤ Comstock Township: Residents say a loud sound from a nearby energy station is keeping them up at night. (Hear More)

➤ Michigan volleyball took the opening set from unbeaten No. 1 Nebraska last night at the Crisler Center before falling in four. Ann Arbor native Harper Murray had 16 kills for Nebraska, which visits Michigan State today. (More)

➤ The Detroit Red Wings suspended Dylan Larkin without pay on Thursday, costing him $41,000 a day, after the Michigan native told the team he no longer wanted to be part of the organization. (More)

➤ Michigan football visits Rutgers today as a double-digit favorite, hoping to jump-start the nation’s 130th-ranked offense against a defense that just gave up 42 points to Northwestern. (More)

➤ No. 4 Michigan State faces No. 8 North Dakota today in Cedar Park, Texas, in a U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game featuring a record 13 first-round NHL draft picks, nine of them Spartans. A win would give coach Adam Nightingale his 100th career victory. (More)

➤ The Michigan High School Athletic Association removed Grand Rapids Catholic Central from the Division 5 football playoffs for using an ineligible player in six regular-season games. Comstock Park advances to a District Final in its place. (See Details)

➤ Yesterday’s Results: NCAAF | NHL | NBA | Soccer | Golf

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➤ A 70th-birthday skydive fulfilled a dream for West Michigan’s Gloria Lawless, who jumped from 14,000 feet just months after open-heart surgery to remove a tumor. (Watch the Jump)

➤ A winning Powerball ticket worth $1 million sat in Michael Vander Lugt’s wallet for nearly two months. The western Michigan man found out only after handing a cashier some old tickets when he was short on cash for a pop. (Read Story)

➤ A police K-9 in Grand Rapids needed surgery after eating garden rocks coated in crock pot juice from his handler’s beef sandwiches. Rocco is expected back on duty in about a week. (See the Recovery)

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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes, straight from the heart of the country. 

➤ What are the seven dirtiest things in your home? Hint: the toilet doesn’t make the list. (Hear List)

➤ Election season may take a measurable toll on your heart, researchers say, no matter which party wins. (Listen Now)

➤ New research is challenging centuries of scholarly doubt over a nearly 2,000-year-old non-Christian account of Jesus. (Podcast Available)

You find a $1 million lottery ticket in your wallet. What would you do first?

1. Pay off the house
2. Take a dream trip
3. Help my kids and grandkids
4. Save and invest it
5. Keep quiet and tell no one

Yesterday’s Results:

Would you spend a week living in a Lake Michigan lighthouse?

1. Sign me up: 33%
2. I’ll stick to my own bed: 32%
3. Fun to visit only: 19%
4. Only with modern plumbing: 14%
5. Other: 2%

Michigan has a tiny community called Hell, about 15 miles northwest of Ann Arbor. For about $100, what title can visitors buy there?

Show me the answer