| 1. GOLDEN GLOBES ANNOUNCE VEGAN MENU: The Golden Globes are going vegan. This year's award ceremony will serve an entirely vegan menu to guests at the Beverly Hilton. The Hollywood Reporter: "As part of its sustainability efforts, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association will be serving a plant-based meal at the Golden Globes on January 5, making it likely the first major awards show to go all vegan. The menu is a last-minute change from a menu previewed in December that included fish. ... The HFPA is also planning to reuse this year’s new red carpet at other events and, to reduce plastic waste, has a partnership with Icelandic Glacial to serve water in glass bottles." 2. FOOTBALL FANS ALREADY SNAPPING UP SUPER BOWL PACKAGES: Confident Baltimore Ravens fans are already buying flights and booking hotel rooms in advance of Super Bowl LIV in South Florida next month. While the teams facing off for the N.F.L. championship haven't been determined, the Ravens own the best record in football and have started making plans. Baltimore Sun: "BMORE Around Town, a Baltimore tailgate and event planner, had 150 people on its wait list this week to put down refundable $312 deposits for its travel, lodging, party, and Super Bowl ticket packages. The packages range from $1,995 to $8,495 per person, depending on a variety of factors, including how many people are in a group, how many nights they’ll be staying, and whether airfare and Super Bowl tickets are included." 3. ANTI-VACCINATION ACTIVISTS TARGET EVENT VENUES WITH NEGATIVE REVIEWS: An immunization nonprofit canceled two fund-raising breakfasts because of online harassment that targeted the event venues. Immunize Nevada instead hosted a virtual event to honor their sponsors. News 3 Las Vegas: "The posts on Yelp and Facebook targeted the restaurants planning to host the event. … Immunize Nevada says they are not sure if virtual events are the direction they are going in. Yet, in this case, they wanted to ensure the safety of everyone coming to the event." 4. CARNIVAL CRUISE LINE INTRODUCES DRESS CODE: Clothing with profanity, sexual innuendo, and messages that promote violence or hate are not welcome on Carnival cruises, according to a dress code that the company announced last month. While the goal is to maintain an environment that's respectful to all guests, exactly what constitutes "offensive clothing" and how it will be enforced is unclear. South Florida Sun Sentinel: "Carnival’s announcement this month of the new ban has triggered a debate over the difficulty of regulating speech in an era when society is more divided than ever, socially and politically, and discourse seems to have no bounds. It also raised questions about whether the ban is even enforceable and whether it infringes on free speech rights." 5. LAS VEGAS PLANS MAJOR VENUE AND TRANSPORTATION UPGRADES: Does any city match Las Vegas's pace for construction and renovation of venues for the meeting and event industry? Here's a roundup of upcoming projects in the city including updates on the Las Vegas Convention Center, Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, and an underground people-mover. Las Vegas Review-Journal: "The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority worked closely with the organizers of C.E.S., the National Association of Broadcasters, the Specialty Equipment Market Association, MAGIC, and RECon to plan the Convention Center’s new West Hall, set to open in time for C.E.S. 2021. That collaboration ensured that convention organizers got some of the features they wanted in the building while assuring that the city’s largest annual shows stay committed to Las Vegas." | 