The Broadsheet: August 4th

EVERYONE'S TALKING

 • Susan Cameron fights back. The CEO of Reynolds American strongly disagrees with a Florida court ruling that would force Reynolds to pay $23.6 billion to the widow of a tobacco smoker. "We feel that this (the verdict) is grossly excessive," Cameron told CNBC. To put the fee into context, the penalty is nearly as large as her company's recent $27.4 billion acquisition agreement for tobacco giant Lorillard --the largest acquisition ever led by a female CEO, but which still needs to be approved by the Federal Trade Commission. Cameron doesn't seem worried about pushback from the FTC either, and she says the American tobacco market will remain competitive because companies like Altria and Imperial Tobacco still hold significant market share.  CNBC

ALSO IN THE HEADLINES

•The Kennedys want Warren to run against Hillary. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren has said he has no plans to run for President in 2016, but members of the Kennedy family are encouraging her to change her mind, The New York Post reported yesterday. “Bill and Hillary take the threat from Elizabeth Warren very seriously and are doing everything in their power to neutralize her,” a member of the Clintons’ inner circle reportedly told The Post. NYPost 

• Angela Ahrendts: I wouldn't fit in a tech company. Apple's new SVP of retail and online stores still isn't speaking to the press, but she is fielding questions from employees. The former Burberry CEO said that Apple's unique culture is what drew her to join the tech company despite some reservations she initially had about the switch 9to5Mac

• Sandberg to interview Malala Fund founder. Malala Yousafza, the 17-year-old Pakistani activist, will sit down with Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg for a live-streamed conversation this Friday. The Malala Fund, created after Malala was shot in the head on a school bus for fighting for her right to an education, is a nonprofit dedicated to empowering young women across the world. Sandberg has recently championed similar causes through her work with her Lean In organization.  Mashable 

•Will big data curb campus sexual assaults? A bipartisan bill making its way through Congress aims to shame college campuses into taking the epidemic of undergraduate sexual assault more seriously, by creating a public database of offenses. Information would be provided by students, not administrators, through a public survey. [ bs_link link="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/02/upshot/campus-sexual-assault-bill-relies-on-public-shaming.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0" source="NYTimes"] 

• MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Judy McGrath, the former CEO of MTV, was named a member of Amazon's board of directors.

BROADVIEW

When money meets power

Last Friday, The Huffington Post posted a graphic that caught our eye. Movoto, a real estate blog, put together a map that shows the net worth of the richest resident in each U.S. state. While a majority of people on the map are men, we were surprised that a woman is the richest resident in 18% of U.S. states.

But after doing a little bit more digging, we found not a single woman on the list can fully be described as "self-made." Of the nine women listed as the richest resident of their respective states, six were born into families that helped them earn their fortunes, and three inherited their net worth from their husbands.

The top three wealthiest women by state all inherited their money from their families. Christy Walton and Alice Walton, the richest women on the list with combined net worth of $73.2 billion, both are heirs to the Walmart fortune. The Waltons are followed by Virginia-based Jacqueline Mars, the granddaughter of candy tycoon Frank Mars.

Furthermore, few women on the list appear to be actively involved in the companies founded by their families or husbands. Exceptions are Abigail Johnson -- the richest resident of Massachusetts with $18.2 billion -- who is the president of Fidelity Investments, a company started by her grandfather, and Pennsylvania's Mary Alice D. Malone, the granddaughter of Campbell Soup founder John T. Dorrance. She sits on the company's board.

These findings bring to mind another theme that we have seen in the news recently: Women need to become more active financial planners. Although women live longer than men, a vast majority still rely on their husbands or families to manage their finances. Perhaps Johnson could share some tips with her peers so that the next version of this map includes more self-made women.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

•  Women are more likely than men to be lied to. Women are thought to be easier to mislead and more likely than men to be lied to during negotiations, according to a study. The result is that women tend to do worse in negotiations because they use more misinformation. Time 

• Victoria's Secret just lost the war for "Pink." The lingerie company's Pink brand, aimed at college-aged women, too closely resembles a London-based retailer that sells apparel for women, a British court ruled last week. The decision could force the company to remove the Pink brand from its UK stores. That would be a huge blow for Victoria's Secret, as it has seen major success with the line since its debut in 2004  Businessweek 

ON MY RADAR

Lean In circles build confidence  Albuquerque Journal  

The fav gadgets of an Academy-award winning makeup artist  WSJ 

Tech industry layoffs are up 68%   Business Insider 

Feeling safe at work is important  Dealbook

QUOTE

Try to find your passion and follow it, because I feel really sorry for people who dread going to work every day. Another thing is to be patient. You have to earn your stripes. I think there is a tendency, especially with this younger generation, that if they are bright, they think they’re going to burst onto the scene. It takes time.

Sharon Sloane, C.E.O. of interactive movie simulation company Will Interactive, tells the New York Times the advice she gives to recent college grads.