Month: December 2024

AP Sports Writer CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s hiring of NFL coaching great Bill Belichick marks another sign of the growing influence of the NFL on college football. The challenges of managing the transfer portal and looming revenue sharing for athletes has led teams to take on more NFL-like structures to their programs.

Associated Press FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Daniel Penny, a military veteran who choked an agitated New York subway rider and was acquitted of homicide this week, has been invited by Vice President-elect JD Vance to join Donald Trump’s suite at the Army-Navy football game on Saturday. The Marine veteran was cleared of criminally negligent

AP Music Writer NEW YORK (AP) — At the end of every year, great art inevitably gets overlooked. A top 10 list doesn’t leave a lot of room for discovery. In music, that sometimes means the most innovative records lose out to make room for other titles. In this list, Associated Press music writer Maria

Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — McKinsey & Company consulting firm has agreed to pay $650 million to settle a federal investigation into its work to help opioids manufacturer Purdue Pharma boost the sales of the highly addictive drug OxyContin, according to court papers filed in Virginia on Friday. As part of the deal with the

AP Business Writer Some banks and banking trade groups are suing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over a finalized rule that limits overdraft fees banks can charge. The rule is part of President Joe Biden administration’s campaign to reduce junk fees that hit consumers on everyday purchases, including banking services. A lawsuit has been filed

Associated Press Saudi Arabia says that to host the 2034 World Cup in men’s soccer, it will build or renovate 15 stadiums, create a futuristic city and expand airports and public transport in a massive buildout to accommodate millions of athletes, coaches and spectators. That will emit tons of planet-warming greenhouse gases as concrete and

AP Sports Writer MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — The Miami Dolphins released wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. on Friday, ending the former Pro Bowler’s short tenure with the team. Beckham had missed the past two days of practice for what the team called personal reasons. Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel indicated Friday that the decision to

Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A bird strike took out one of an American Airlines jet’s two engines after takeoff from New York’s LaGuardia Airport and forced the the plane to turn around and land at John F. Kennedy International Airport, authorities said Friday. “Mayday mayday mayday American 1722 engine failure,” the pilot of

Associated Press MORONI, Comoros (AP) — The islands of Comoros, Madagascar and Mayotte in the Indian Ocean are bracing for Cyclone Chido as it makes its way toward Africa’s east coast. The small archipelago of Comoros ordered schools to close as authorities expect Chido to hit the islands early Saturday. The cyclone was due to

AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — How many roads must a man walk down to play Bob Dylan? Quite a few, at least, if you’re Timothée Chalamet. Off and on for some six years, Chalamet has been obsessively working toward his performance in “A Complete Unknown.” He has visited Dylan’s childhood home, learned how

Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union countries have agreed a draft law aimed at preventing and countering migrant smuggling, which critics say could be abused to target people or charity groups that try to help migrants in trouble. The draft broadens the definition of what migrant smuggling involves and increases prison sentences and fines.

Associated Press PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — As the year draws to a close, a remarkable initiative involving “superheroes” clad in unique costumes brings unexpected joy — not only to the sick children but also, perhaps even more deeply, to their parents. For seven children battling leukemia and other grave cancer illnesses in a hospital ward

Associated Press DAMASCUS (AP) — Exuberant Syrians observed the first Friday prayers since the ouster of President Bashar Assad, gathering in the capital’s historic main mosque, its largest square and around the county to celebrate the end of half a century of authoritarian rule. The gatherings illustrated the dramatic changes that have swept over Syria

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish officials say President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has offered to mediate to resolve tensions with the United Arab Emirates. The offer was made during a phone call Friday with Sudan’s military leader, Gen. Abdel-Fattah Burhan. It comes just days after Erdogan brokered a deal between Ethiopia and Somalia toward resolving a

Associated Press/Report for America WASHINGTON (AP) — Reps. Abigail Spanberger and Jennifer Wexton are hoping the electoral change they were part of in the 2018 midterms continues. The two Virginia congresswomen were first elected to Congress in 2018 after ousting conservative incumbents in two red districts. They joined 33 other Democratic female newcomers on Capitol

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans may have recently elected Donald Trump to a second term, but that doesn’t mean they have high confidence in his ability to choose well-qualified people for his Cabinet — or effectively manage government spending, the military and the White House, according to a new poll from the AP-NORC Center

AP Business Writer Stanley is recalling approximately 2.6 million of its switchback and trigger action stainless steel travel mugs sold in the U.S. because of a potential burn hazard. The company said that the mug’s lid threads can shrink when exposed to heat and torque, causing the lid to detach during use, posing a burn

Associated Press GENEVA (AP) — At least three feminist activists have been detained for vandalising a monument outside the United Nations building in Geneva to protest Russia’s war against Ukraine and what they see as the UN’s failure to stop the conflict. Two topless women with the group FEMEN, which is known for its provocative

AP Sports Writer Luke Littler was virtually unknown a year ago. Now he is making millions, transcending his sport and is searched for more often on Google than King Charles and the British Prime Minister. That Littler is a 17-year-old darts player who still lives at home with his parents in northwest England makes his

Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese high court has ruled that the refusal to recognize same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, the latest victory for the LGBTQ+ community that adds pressure on the reluctant government. Friday’s decision by the Fukuoka High Court in southern Japan marks the eighth victory out of nine rulings since the first

PARIS (AP) — An ancient relic that many Christians revere as Jesus Christ’s “Crown of Thorns” returned Friday to Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, five years after it was saved from the flames of the medieval monument’s devastating 2019 fire. The crown — a circular band of branches encased in a gilded golden tube —

BEIJING (AP) — The former coach of the Chinese men’s national soccer team Li Tie has received a 20-year prison sentence for bribery. Chinese state media reported Friday that Li, who once played in the English Premier League for Everton, was found guilty of “leveraging his positions” as head coach of the national football and

NYON, Switzerland (AP) — UEFA has punished Serbia’s soccer federation for racist acts by fans at two Nations League games including trying to burn an Albania flag in Switzerland. On Monday, UEFA’s executive committee is set to confirm Serbia and Albania as co-hosts of the Under-21 European Championship in 2027. At a Switzerland-Serbia game last

BANGKOK (AP) — Police in Thailand say a 14-year-old has been arrested on charges alleging that he stabbed a Thai-Australian schoolmate to death in a fight after having an ongoing feud. A police official in Chonburi province outside Bangkok said the suspect told investigators he and the victim harbored a mutual dislike from school and

Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Scientists suspect the first complete specimen ever recorded of the world’s rarest whale died from head injuries, an expert said Friday. The first dissection of a spade-toothed whale, a type of beaked whale, was completed last week after a painstaking examination at a research center near the New Zealand

Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched a massive aerial attack against Ukraine on Friday, firing 93 cruise and ballistic missiles and almost 200 drones, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, describing it as one of the heaviest bombardments of the country’s energy sector since Russia’s full-scale invasion almost three years ago. Ukrainian defenses shot

AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — A quarterly survey by Japan’s central bank shows business sentiment among manufacturers has improved slightly, especially in major heavy industries such as automaking, fossil fuels and machinery. The survey by the Bank of Japan, called the tankan, is a factor the central bank takes into account in assessing its

BEIJING (AP) — China’s military is keeping silent on its large deployment of naval and coast guard ships off Taiwan this week. Its top spokesperson quoted an ancient Chinese text called “The Art of War” instead. Wu Qian said Friday that military tactics adapt to changing conditions, just as flowing water does. He offered no