Good morning, NBC News readers. There's one story leading the agenda today: the partial destruction of the beautiful Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.
Here's what you need to know:
Shocked and saddened, Paris begins to recover after the Notre Dame fire
Parisians woke up to images of their beloved Notre Dame Cathedral ravaged by fire and smoke, after the blaze that engulfed the 850-year-old building.The destruction may not be as bad as originally feared — the fire is now extinguished, and the structure appears to be intact — but this doesn't diminish the trauma of seeing the landmark and religious center damaged.NBC News has comprehensive coverage of the fire and its impact from our reporters on the ground, including:
• An overview of the night and how the fire spread
• How the cathedral's structure and its two bell towers remained remarkably unscathed
• How ongoing refurbishments made Notre Dame was vulnerable to fire
• How Parisians responded to the blaze
Why restoring Notre Dame is possible but won't be easy
How does Notre Dame recover from this? With great difficulty and as part of a long and arduous process, according to architects and historians — but it is possible.
Jonathan Foyle, an architectural historian and author, told NBC News: "This building has been through the French Revolution, the Huguenots and two world wars. I have no doubt it will rise again."
Video: How 850 years history went up in flames
Facebook used personal data to fight rival companies and help its friends, documents show
A big story from Olivia Solon and Cyrus Farivar this morning finds that Mark Zuckerberg was behind plans to consolidate Facebook's power in the social networking and marketing space by treating users' data as a bargaining chip.
According to documents seen by NBC News, Facebook would either grant or deny access to this data based on its relationship with other companies and apps.So Amazon got access because it was buying Facebook advertising, the documents show, while a messaging app was denied. Facebook denies any wrongdoing. More here.
White House staff concerns over Mueller report findings
A version of special counsel Robert Mueller's report expected to be released to the public on Thursday, and some of the current and former White House officials who gave evidence to the inquiry are now concerned that they may be identified through the report as sources of damaging information about President Trump, NBC News reports.
They are worried about how Trump and his allies will react and the "wrath" that could be unleashed.
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Plus
• A New Jersey woman has pleaded guilty to defrauding thousands of well-meaning GoFundMe donors out of $400,000 in a scam about a homeless vet.
• Georgia Engel, familiar to many as Georgette Baxter in the 'Mary Tyler Moore Show,' has died aged 70.
• Police in South Carolina say a man left his 1-year-old daughter to die in a burning car while he fled from traffic cops.
• If you're dating and over 40 you should get the HPV vaccine according to this professor.
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THINK about it
Reproductive rights activists are having to fight against emboldened anti-abortion groups and a hostile legal landscape, according to author Jill Filipovic.
Science + Tech = MACH
Self-driving cars may pose a threat to people of color because of difficulties in recognizing those with darker skin, a study has found.
Quote of the day
"So with pride I tell you tonight that we will rebuild this cathedral, all together. It's part of the fate, the destiny of France, and our common project over the coming years. And I am committed to it."
— French President Emmanuel Macron
One fun thing
Would you let a robot make your coffee in the morning? That could soon be reality according to researchers who have developed a new two-armed robot called Blue.
The team at the University of California, Berkeley believe that Blue could pave the way for household robots that people use to carry out a range of domestic tasks.
Thanks for reading the Morning Rundown. If you have any comments — likes, dislikes — drop me an email at: patrick.smith@nbcuni.com.
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Thanks, Patrick Smith
