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McConnell Says a Fall Led to His Hospitalization, Breaking Weeks of Silence About Health Condition
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Mitch McConnell on Sunday revealed for the first time that a fall led to his hospitalization, breaking the silence about his condition after weeks of mounting speculation about the Kentucky Republican’s health. The statement comes following his hospitalization on June 14.
LeBron James Social Media Post Leaves 76ers Fans Intrigued
LeBron James’ NBA free agency run has included hints that he’s interested in potentially joining the Philadelphia 76ers. Nearly two weeks down, James still hasn’t joined his next team after a run with the Los Angeles Lakers. Every move is being watched closely, and James’ latest location has Sixers fans talking. The superstar forward posted […] The post LeBron James Social Media Post Leaves 76ers Fans Intrigued appeared first on HEAVY.
AMC Entertainment (AMC) to Sell 95.25 Million Shares to Institutional Investors For $200 Million
External financing arrangements during recent weeks, along with analyst revisions to the stock’s target price, have led to optimism around AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. (NYSE:AMC), which is one of the 15 best NYSE penny stocks to buy according to hedge funds. On June 24, AMC Entertainment (AMC) entered into an agreement with some institutional investors […]
Steelers training camp: Projecting the Steelers first offensive depth chart
The Steelers will release their first official depth chart in a few weeks and we take a shot at predicting what the offense will look like.
Daily Bean: Bruins Prospect Retires; Center Trade Talk; Goalies
We are almost two weeks removed from the start of free agency, the big names that have moved, and the […] The post Daily Bean: Bruins Prospect Retires; Center Trade Talk; Goalies appeared first on Boston Hockey Now.
I couldn't have been more wrong about the Fitbit Air — here's what changed my mind
I expected the Fitbit Air to confirm everything I liked about WHOOP. Instead, after three weeks of testing, it completely changed my mind.
They're Building Half A Bridge to Save Science...
Today’s post is about science: what you can do now to protect it from unprecedented threats, and how your action is the first half of a long-term program that Congress must take up next. Let me start with describing the embryonic state of science advocacy. There are many well-meaning organizations: the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Research!America, and subject-specific organizations such as the Society for Neuroscience and the American Physical Society. Their general approach is to emphasize the common good: the remarkable value that science and innovation have provided to all Americans. However, these organizations are offering an incomplete solution. Before I start, a preliminary: If you already know about the threat, go ahead and weigh in with OMB at this link. Ideas about what to say come from Research!America and the American Physical Society. You have until Monday, July 13 at 11:59pm Eastern. Then come back here and read the rest of this post. Finally, get in touch with whoever is likely to be your next member of Congress in 2027. The threat: An end to merit-based science… The onslaught of attacks on science is accelerating. It’s not just cuts to grants, which was the last battle. That battle is not done yet, but there is a new and worse threat. Now comes a proposed public rule from the Office of Management and Budget. The rule would take decision-making power over grants away from experts and put it into the hands of political appointees. Former NIH official Elizabeth Ginexi wrote an excellent summary of what OMB is trying to do, which is codify the executive branch’s ability to award or terminate grants, for arbitrary cause or no stated cause. Since World War II, a necessary step in scientific grant-making has been consideration of scientific merit. This approach has made America into a dominant scientific superpower, the envy of the world. Of course, political considerations do come into the mix. The proposed rule tilts the balance dramatically away from merit. …but why? Many people have difficulty comprehending why Russell Vought and OMB would want to damage science in this way. If you’re a working scientist, you are likely to be particularly uncomprehending. Who would hurt an activity so self-evidently good? The answer is: this is part of the program to replace the rule of law with a personalist regime. OMB Director Russell Vought, a Christian nationalist, would like to implement what legal scholars call a “unitary executive,” and what I would call a dictatorship. Or if you like, a personalist authoritarian regime. I am a working scientist. This rule will debilitate my research. It may chill the speech of scientists for speaking freely in the public sphere. It is a form of personalizing power and decision-making within the executive branch. In short, it sacrifices science in the service of tyranny. To Russell Vought, a decrease in the quality of science might be an acceptable cost. He might even consider it an added benefit to weaken a pillar of soft U.S. power based on knowledge and skepticism. The professional societies are building half a bridge The nonprofits are asking you to make public comment. Public comment is like building the first half of a bridge. Before implementation, OMB is compelled by law to have a period of public comment. Rules have to be consistent with the law and the Constitution. They express the federal government’s stance toward how those laws will be implemented. When a presidential administration works in good faith, these public comments are used to inform their eventual action, and sometimes mitigate it. The comment period reflects our First Amendment right to petition our government. The executive branch is then supposed to take those comments into account - completing the bridge between us, the people, and our government. Project 2025 seeks to take away the second half of the bridge. We have to replace it. The first half of the bridge Organizations like AAAS, Research!America, and SfN are partly right. You should certainly comment. Their core model is earnest: if enough of us make noise, then we will achieve change. This idealistic point of view is offered in good faith. That point of view is also currently bullshit. The fundamental reason is that the federal rulemaking process has two parts: There has to be a period of public comment. OMB makes the final rule…but is free to disregard public comment. Oops. That’s a loophole. However, not all is lost. Congress can complete the bridge Congress has enormous power. That power suggests a roadmap for how to proceed. This lawless administration is still going to issue that rule. Nonetheless, your comments still play an essential role. Here are two steps you can take. Step 1: Send your comment to your Representative and Senator. Whether they are Democrats or Republicans, many of them support science. Whatever you wrote as public comment in the Federal Register, also send it to your member of Congress. You can include information about jobs in your district or state by looking at Joshua Weitz’s ScienceMatters interactive map. Call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and give your town, zip code, or state, then deliver your message. Step 2: Politicize the hell out of science. You heard me, politicize it as an issue. We hear a lot from the old scientific establishment about science being nonpartisan. This is obsolete, sentimental thinking. Under normal conditions, it was true. But we can no longer make that assumption. We can keep on pretending, but we’re putting science at risk. There is a way forward. Rules are subordinate to the law…and Congress makes laws. Therefore Congress can step in. In this fall’s election, it is likely that Democrats will retake the House of Representatives. That puts at least one chamber of Congress in the hands of Democrats. They are far more inclined than the current Congress to investigate and legislate. This opens a path to undoing the damage. It also creates a permission structure for pro-science Republicans to find a way back from the brink. We have to encourage them. In the House, every district is up every two years. In your district, contact both of the major party candidates. If your state has a Senate race, contact those candidates too. Specifically mention the proposed OMB rule. Ask for two things: For this year’s appropriations process in August and September, ask that amendments be added to stop the implementation of the new rule. Those amendments should support peer-reviewed science and stop political interference. Looking ahead to next year, ask the Congressman/Congresswoman/Senator to work to hold hearings in 2027 on the importance and benefits of peer-reviewed science for health and prosperity. What hearings and amendments will accomplish Congress can use its investigatory power to summon heads of agencies and the director of the OMB. That will allow fact-finding regarding the consequences of this rule. Congress can override the rule through the appropriations process. They can write into statute a requirement to follow peer review and best scientific practices. In this way, Congress can stop the attacks on science. Postscript: Moving forward Now I have a request for you, to help me. As many of you know, I ran for Congress in order to save democracy and science. Although I did not win, that battle continues by other means. I met and heard from thousands of supporters both here in New Jersey and nationally. I learned that pro-science, pro-democracy activists have the potential to become a much greater force. In the weeks and months ahead, I will be building ways to harness that energy. I will be announcing those plans soon. In the meantime, an important step is to wind down the Congressional campaign, which has a few remaining bills to pay. Please help me retire that last debt.
Mitch McConnell and wife Elaine Chao's relationship timeline
Mitch McConnell, 84, has been hospitalized for nearly four weeks, prompting speculation about his health.
Top Stories: 'iPhone Ultra' and Apple TV Rumors, iOS 27 Beta 3, and More
Apple's annual iPhone event is just two months away, but we're still not quite clear on when and in what quantities the new foldable "iPhone Ultra" will be available. It sounds like we could end up in a situation similar to that of the iPhone X where it was introduced at the September event but didn't become available for pre-orders until around six weeks later.
Women’s Sports Sundays holding its own after replacing ‘Sunday Night Baseball’ on ESPN
ESPN replaced Sunday Night Baseball with Women’s Sports Sundays, and three weeks in, we are getting our first look at how the change is working for ESPN. Through three weeks, WNBA games on Women’s Sports Sundays are averaging 1.04 million viewers. The latest edition of Women’s Sports Sundays was by far the series’ biggest viewership…
Florida Politics Recap: Byron Donalds under pressure, James Fishback in court and Amendment 3 under fire
Florida's August primary is less than six weeks away, and this week several major political fights started running straight into the election calendar.
The Senate reconvenes Monday. Will Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell be there?
As Mitch McConnell is in his nearly four weeks of hospitalization, it’s unknown whether he will return to the Senate Monday afternoon.
Crews are draining the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool again as part of Trump's troubled revamp
The president at first suggested his renovations would last a century. But, within weeks of the project originally reaching completion last month, the water was beset by an algae bloom and pieces of the new coating appeared to be peeling off the bottom.
Hegseth pushes for action after sailors appear to flout his beard policy
As the US-Iran war risked reigniting in recent weeks, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth boarded a Navy ship for what was supposed to be a routine visit with sailors.
Elon Musk reverses course on Anthropic, calls rival the 'leader in AI'
In recent weeks, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has shared kinder words for Anthropic, not long after repeatedly disparaging the competitor.
Maine Democrats seek path forward in critical US Senate race
At least five candidates have come forward in the hours since Graham Platner dropped out less than three weeks before the ballot deadline.
Where Buster Posey, Giants stand with MLB trade deadline less than a month away
Buster Posey said the Giants would need to win a lot to avoid a selloff. But the winning hasn't happened, making the next few weeks very interesting.
Last Call: M5 Pro MacBook Pro Remains at Pre-Hike Price But Not for Much Longer
It's been a few weeks since Apple announced widespread price hikes across numerous product categories, including the 2026 MacBook Pro. These new prices are now reaching third party retailers, but there remains one exception at Best Buy, which still has one model of the 14-inch M5 Pro MacBook Pro at its pre-hike price. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Best Buy. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
What happens next in Maine and the battle for Senate control
After a twisty-turny month in Maine politics, the uncertain fate of the Senate race — and perhaps the Senate itself — may be written in the weeks to come.
Cannes Drama ‘A Girl Unknown’ Gets Domestic Deal With Greenwich Entertainment
EXCLUSIVE: Greenwich Entertainment has acquired U.S. distribution rights to A Girl Unknown, the debut feature by Chinese filmmaker Zou Jing. The movie premiered in the Critics Weeks section of the 202...
Trump's voter ID bill catches unlikely break as McConnell remains sidelined
Mitch McConnell's weeks-long absence removes one key "no" vote on the SAVE America Act, but Senate Republicans still face a filibuster problem.
CMS Approach to Work Reporting Requirement Won’t Work for People with Substance Use Disorders or Mental Health Conditions
By Deborah Steinberg, Senior Health Policy Attorney, Legal Action Center A few weeks ago, CCF explained how the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a new interim final rule with comment period (IFR) that went far beyond its authority to implement the new work reporting requirements. H.R. 1 – the budget reconciliation law […]
Entertainment around the area
Alison Krauss & Union Station, whose latest album “Arcadia” arrived in 2025, lead the entertainment coming to local and regional venues over the next couple of weeks. The bluegrass/country act, kn...
Kentucky governor asks McConnell about health
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is directly asking Sen. Mitch McConnell, the state's most powerful figure in Congress, to disclose more about his condition after three weeks of silence from the 84-year-old since he was hospitalized in Washington.
Katie Couric shares health scare
Journalist Katie Couric describes the terrifying moments when she lost her memory just a few weeks ago. She was diagnosed with transient global amnesia - a sudden episode of memory loss that’s rare. NBC News’ Kate Snow has the story.
McConnell health condition: Politicians react
Questions remain surrounding U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell’s health after several weeks of hospitalization, with his office offering limited details about the reason for his stay.
Preparing for Boilermaker Race Day
Thousands of people will come to the City of Utica to participate in the Boilermaker Road Race, making this one of the busiest weeks of preparation.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear asks Sen. Mitch McConnell for a health update
The Democratic governor’s letter comes weeks after the 84-year-old lawmaker entered the hospital for reasons he hasn’t explained.
Michigan's cyclosporiasis outbreak grows to nearly 1,000 cases in two weeks
Kentucky Gov. Beshear asks Mitch McConnell to share health update
As Sen. Mitch McConnell remains in the hospital more than three weeks after he was admitted, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is requesting he share an update on his health.
Hungary moves to overhaul university models banned from Horizon Europe
Hungary’s new government is aiming to overhaul the governance model of the institutions and universities that lost access to Horizon Europe and Erasmus+ funds “in a short timeframe,” according to Péter Horváth, the new state secretary for science policy and innovation. “As of today, the two non-university foundation-controlled institutions under my remit have been transformed,” he told Science|Business. “We hope the universities will follow and that this will be enough to satisfy the EU’s demands.”Under the previous government, led by Viktor Orbán and his Fidesz party, many academic and scientific institutions were restructured and made into special public trust foundations, with members strongly linked to the government given lifelong mandates and significant decision-making powers with little oversight. The European Commission deemed that this undermined academic freedom and transparency in the country, leading to a ban on 34 institutions in 2022, including 21 universities, which saw academics in Hungary lose access to Horizon Europe grants. The new Hungarian government, elected in May and led by Péter Magyar and his Tisza Party, has promised to dismantle this governance model and restore the institutions to EU programmes. As a result, the European Commission has promised to return access to the Erasmus+ education mobility programme, but so far no concrete agreement has been made on the Horizon Europe programme for research and innovation. Hungary has already made legislative changes in June to allow the institutions to be reformed and set a timeline for the implementation.The non-university foundations, which are mainly cultural centres such as the Foundation for Hungarian Culture or the Makovecz Campus Foundation, will all be dissolved by August 31 this year, a date tied to EU-set milestones that Hungary must meet to unlock frozen funds, with control transferred to relevant ministries. Meanwhile, the universities will have until 31 August 2027. For each university foundation, the government will set the dissolution date and the body to take over operations. There is no final decision on a permanent new model for the universities, according to Hungarian MEP Eszter Lakos, who is shadow rapporteur for the Horizon Europe specific programme, a separate piece of legislation detailing implementation rules for the EU’s next research programme, due to start in 2028. “The aim of the transition year is to settle this with [the universities], not to impose a model, and not to put them under state control,” she told Science|Business. “The goal is to give academic independence back to universities.”There are three models that are most likely to be implemented. One would be a return to a traditional, state-run model. Another could be a newer, more self-standing public institution. A third option would be a reformed version of the foundation models that meet EU standards. According to Lakos, the dismantling of the system put in place by the Orbán government is well underway and if all goes according to plan, Hungary could regain access to EU research money by the start of the next academic year in 2027. “I believe that the Hungarian government is doing the necessary changes so the universities could return as beneficiaries to Horizon from the next school year,” she said. In the meantime, “the universities, institutes and cultural assets carry on under proper public stewardship rather than a handful of unaccountable trustees,” said Lakos. The laws passed in June impose new safeguards: board terms are capped at four years and renewable only once, appointments are made through open competitions and sitting politicians cannot join joining these boards.It remains unclear whether a domestic science funding programme set up as a back-up scheme by the former government following the EU funding ban, called HU-rizon, could be continued. “This programme should never have had to have been established in the first place, but it has proven to be quite popular,” he said. “I am considering continuing this programme with a refined focus on helping international collaborations.”Re-organising the research network One of the first priorities for Horváth and his cabinet is to resolve questions over the future of the Hungarian Research Network, Hun-Ren. The network of academic institutes was taken away from the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in 2019 and turned into a quasi-private organisation, with similarities in its governance to the public trust foundations.Horváth and his team have consulted over 5,000 representatives from the network and the conclusion is broad unhappiness with the directors of all the institutes involved. “We have presented the results to the president and the chief executive of the network and this is currently being discussed,” Horváth said. The plan is to re-integrate the network back into the Academy of Sciences but in an improved way, “learning from mistakes of the past,” he added. The government also wants to reintegrate four humanities and social science research centres into the network that the previous government had transferred to Eötvös Loránd University. The transfer brought sharp criticism from the academic community, with a group of Hungarian research heads, including European Research Council grant recipients, sending an open letter to Orbán warning that the transfer would “cause historically significant harm to the entirety of Hungarian scientific life.” The transfer was “one of the biggest shames in Hungarian research in the past 20 years,” Horváth said. “We want to immediately re-integrate them back into the research network and to regain the trust of these institutions, because the way they were treated was really unfair.”Another pressing issue is the Élvonal Excellence Research and Talent Development Foundation, led by Nobel laureate Ferenc Krausz. The foundation signed a financing agreement with the former government earlier this year for a budget of over €730 million over the next five years. The goal is to create a world-class centre to attract top talent from abroad and to develop local researchers. But there was little transparency about this foundation, and news of its huge budget, which is nearly as much as Hungary’s entire research budget, caused a stir in the media following the recent elections. Another issue is that, as with the foundation boards of the institutes banned from Horizon Europe, there was little-to-no oversight of decisions led by Krausz. “It was an excellent idea but an unacceptable execution,” Horváth said of the foundation. “The fact that this is out of the Hungarian funding scheme, mostly concentrating on one person who decides on the budget is unacceptable for us.”The government plans to merge the centre with the National Research, Development and Innovation Office, the country’s R&D funding agency, with a reduced budget. Horváth is hopeful that Krausz will still be involved. The new government’s R&D goalsA phrase that crops up regularly during the discussion with Horváth is “democratic process.” The new state secretary is determined to involve Hungary’s research community in shaping future policies. This marks a departure from the previous government’s approach, and several people in Hungary’s research community have commented on the openness of the new government. In terms of concrete goals, Horváth and his team already have plans. He wants to create a new science fund in Hungary, based on the best practices of other European countries. The fund would not be tied to annual government budgets and would provide long-term, stable financing. “If we were to succeed in creating this fund, then I think it would be one of the biggest achievements for me in this period of government,” Horváth said. On the innovation side, he is looking into how best to bring in the private sector. “We want to make sure that we are working with the private sector to support innovation,” Horváth said. One of his big aims is to introduce entrepreneurship teaching into high schools. Hungary already has a reputable national academy offering research and innovation training in the field of natural sciences, and Horváth wants to expand this to all disciplines and across the whole country. “One of the main ways to elevate our innovative businesses is to teach our children to be innovative,” he said. “This will probably need ten years to pay off, but this is what we should do. Our aim is to make Hungary strong in our region, and this is what is needed.” Related articlesHungary’s Horizon Europe performance in numbersCommission unlocks Erasmus+ cash for Hungary, Horizon could be next‘Academic Huxit.’ Hungarian researchers speak out on impact of EU ban A more difficult task will be funding. The new government is aiming to increase research spending to 2% of the GDP by 2030, and then increase it to 3% in line with EU objectives. Currently, spending sits around 1.3%. But according to Horváth, the current budget, inherited from the previous government, is “heavily in the negative,” so any plans to increase research spending will have to start next year. Achieving 2% by 2030 already needs a big push, almost doubling the research budget. “This is something we’d definitely like to reach, and something I can see us achieving,” he said. “From the 2030s, I’d like to see an innovative generation growing up that can help us reach the 3% target.” Positivity in the new governmentDespite the many challenges facing Horváth and his team, the mood is positive. “It feels a bit like a start-up right now. Everyone is working 24/7, day and night, trying to do as much as they can. There is a lot of energy,” he said. It is a big change for the state secretary who, like many in his cabinet, is coming from a background in research or business, and not in politics. “Six weeks ago, I was sitting with my microscope and my research PhDs, so it’s been a big change for me,” said the computer scientist, who was previously the director of the Institute of Biochemistry at the Hun-Ren Biological Research Centre in Hungary and worked at the Institute for AI for Health at Helmholtz Munich. But he is relishing the task to transform the country’s R&D landscape. “We feel enormous support from the Hungarian people, but also from Europe,” he said. “We’ve received a lot of letters of support from around Europe. There is big trust there, and huge responsibility on our side. We want to get everything back on track, and there’s a lot to do.”
‘Running out of time’: Family demands medical transfer for Huron Valley prisoner over health concerns
An inmate at the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility has died two weeks after being hospitalized, marking a fourth inmate death within two months.
El-Sayed, Stevens trade pointed barbs in Democratic US Senate debate
With four weeks to go until the Aug. 4 primary, the two Democrats held a debate in Grand Rapids hosted by WOOD-TV8
Samsung might start taking pre-reservations for the new Galaxy Z foldables tomorrow
Tomorrow is exactly two weeks before the expected July 22 date for the next Galaxy Unpacked event. Samsung will kick off the pre-reservation campaign for...
Here's what Microsoft offers in severance in latest layoff plan
Microsoft plans to lay off 4,800 staff, impacting sales and Xbox divisions. It's offering severance up to 39 weeks for most laid-off US employees.
Explaining The Comcast and NBCUniversal Divorce
(Welcome to the “Most Important Story of the Week”, my bi-weekly strategy column analyzing the most important (but often not buzziest) news story of the last two weeks. I’m the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a former streaming executive who now analyzes business strategy in the entertainment industry. Please subscribe.) I hope everyone had a happy Fourth of July in America, celebrating the country’s 250th birthday. Frankly, I am bummed the 250th wasn’t a bigger celebration, but that’s a different topic for a different Substack. While it was generally a quiet week on the entertainment/streaming/media business fronts, we still had some interesting news stories. Actually, that kinda undersells one of the stories, a huge, huge, huge divestment that could upend the entertainment landscape... So let’s get right to it. In today’s column, I’ll cover Comcast spinning off the rest of NBCUniversal, an entertainment company investing in an LLM company and an LLM-owner investing in a movie studio, the latest round of threats of digital tariffs, and more. Let’s dive in. Subscribe Most Important Story of the Week - Most: Comcast/NBCU Breakup!!!! If I had to describe my reaction to Comcast spinning out NBCUniversal, it feels like a relationship ending, either breaking up or divorcing. Comcast’s decision to spin off the rest of NBCUniversal, after spinning off some of its cable assets into Versant last year, really does feel like a family breaking up under “irreconcilable differences”. Of my stereotypes of the entertainment moguls, my go-to for Comcast CEO Brian Roberts—heir to the Comcast fortune, but a man who’s been at the helm for 24 years now, and president for twelve years before that—is that he likes building empires. He cut his teeth acquiring cable rivals in the 1990s and tried to buy Disney repeatedly, then settled for NBCUniversal after a long court battle. (Contrast this with Rupert Murdoch, a man who also loved to buy, but would also sell when the price is right. Murdoch made Fox out of nothing, but then sold 20th Century Fox to Disney, arguably at the top of the market. So I understood why he sold.) But I don’t understand Roberts’ motivation to sell now. I have some explanations but no single, super-satisfying explanation. Strategically, it would just make more sense to have kept NBCUniversal in-house, especially for a one-time empire builder like Comcast. Yet one powerful force—arguably the decider in modern capitalism—likely overwhelmed all other considerations. At first, I thought I’d arrange my thoughts as a “Five Why” analysis, digging through each layer of the puzzle. But instead, I found myself asking, “But…why?” (And I only ended up with four sections.) So let’s look at Comcast from that angle. Then, at the end, I’ll give my biggest strategic recommendation for every company in Hollywood. It’s obvious, but sometimes, the obvious strategy is the most ignored. But…Why? The Stock Market, Conglomerations, and Sum of the Parts Analysis We’re just getting started with this issue, but the rest is for paid subscribers of the Entertainment Strategy Guy, so if you’d like to find out… Why Comcast could never get a “tech company” valuation The not-so-secret motivation for Comcast What Versant has to do with all of this The key strategic advice I think every entertainment exec should follow (though it’s really obvious) Some big AI investment news… Whether we’ll see digital tariffs… And more… ...please subscribe! We can only keep doing this great work with your support.
Republican Leaders Say They’ve Spoken With Mitch McConnell Since Hospitalization
The top two G.O.P. senators each said they had lengthy phone conversations with Senator Mitch McConnell, who has been hospitalized for three weeks, as questions mount about his condition.
Longtime Kentucky Commentator Said He Spoke With McConnell This Morning—What We Know About His Health
The 84-year-old senator has been hospitalized twice this year, with his latest hospitalization lasting weeks.
Questions over McConnell's health continue three weeks after medical emergency
Questions continue to swirl around the health of Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., more than three weeks after he was sent to the hospital due to a medical emergency. NBC News' Sahil Kapur has the latest on what lawmakers and reporters are hearing about the senator's health.
Mitch McConnell has been hospitalized for three weeks and his team won’t say why. What we know.
US Sen. Mitch McConnell has been hospitalized for three weeks and it’s still not clear why he was admitted or what his condition is.
Inaugural Becca Taylor Stakes Highlights Los Alamitos September Meet
The first running of the $100,000-guaranteed Becca Taylor Stakes will highlight the upcoming September Thoroughbred meet at Los Alamitos. The six-day season is scheduled to begin Friday, Sept. 11 and continue through Sunday, Sept. 20. Racing will be conducted Friday-Sunday both weeks (Sept. 11-13 ...
Food giant behind Spam, Planters sells operations in ‘challenged’ market
The transaction is expected to close in the coming weeks.
World Cup: Despite U.S. loss, Phoenix businesses expect booming crowds to continue
Even with the U.S. team out of the tournament, local Phoenix bars are gearing up for two more weeks of high energy and big crowds from diverse fan bases.
Nationals Star Displays Most Insane Power Surge Since Kyle Schwarber
About two weeks ago, I wrote that Luis Garcia Jr. was the missing piece on the team that was going to push the Washington Nationals to the next level. Well, I was right and wrong. I was right because since that point, Garcia has been absolutely raking. Over his last 15 games, the Nats first baseman ...
Sen. McConnell’s office quiet on his health 3 weeks after his hospitalization
Any extended absence for McConnell, 84, could make matters more difficult for Republicans to pass legislation this year.
Here’s what we know about Sen. Mitch McConnell’s health
McConnell has been hospitalized for more than three weeks, and his office still will not say what sent the 84-year-old Kentucky Republican there.
Here’s what we know about Sen. Mitch McConnell’s health
McConnell has been hospitalized for more than three weeks, and his office still will not say what sent the 84-year-old Kentucky Republican there.
NFL Analyst Claims Vikings’ Locker Room Could Get Ugly
The Minnesota Vikings will host a quarterback competition at training camp in three weeks, and for the most part, fans […]
Fast-food restaurants among dozens closed due to health violations
Dozens of restaurants and markets across Los Angeles County, including several fast-food chain locations, have been forced to close their doors over the past several weeks after health inspectors d…
Mitch McConnell remains hospitalized after more than three weeks
The former Senate Republican leader’s office has not detailed what led to his hospitalization or the status of his recovery, but police scanner audio shows CPR was performed at his home.
Explosive diarrhea? Here's what to know about Cyclospora
It's invisible to the naked eye, difficult to trace and can cause weeks of diarrhea. Here's what to know about the parasite, Cyclospora.
Apple Seeds Third iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 Betas to Developers
Apple today seeded the third betas of iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 to developers for testing purposes, with the update coming two weeks after Apple released the second betas. Registered developers can download the betas from the Settings app on the iPhone or iPad by going to the General section and selecting Software Update. iOS 27 introduces Apple's smarter version of Siri, Siri AI.
Northwestern summer program helps high school students REACH for science and art education
In just three weeks, a Northwestern summer program introduces high school students to astronomy, art and coding. The Research Experiences in Astronomy at CIERA for High School Students program trains students to become modern researchers, teaching them how to code and analyze data, according to REACH director James Schottelkotte. The program is running two three-week...
One of my favourite weeks of the year is here: Summer Games Done Quick 2026 begins and anyone with a passing interest in games should dip in
Running from 5th July 5 until 12th July, Summer Games Done Quick is a week-long video game speedrunning marathon raising money for Doctors Without Borders.
Upward Bound, Upward Bound Math, science students Showcase Knowledge, skills gained at Summer Academy
GREENEVILLE – Five weeks of thorough preparation and mentoring by Tusculum University staff members with local high school students participating in a summer program resulted in high-caliber research projects that highlighted their hands-on learning experience. Upward Bound and Upward Bound Math and
Heatwave conditions forecast in Somerset as health alert issued
Just weeks after a June temperature record was set in Merryfield, Somerset, the hot weather is set to return.
Liverpool can capitalise on £100m Tottenham mistake
Liverpool are now just a couple of weeks away from the start of their pre-season. A lot of change has already occurred at Anfield with Andoni Iraola and Victor Munoz both being brought in.This is obvi...
I apologize, Cedric Mullins: Rays 5, Royals 2
If you would’ve told me the Rays would convincingly sweep a team on the road two weeks ago after what I saw in person at Dodger Stadium, I’d hedge your bet. The Rays, on their first west coast swing of the season, went 1-5 and lost three straight games in one-run fashion. and in the […]
Mitch McConnell Has Been Hospitalized For Weeks—What We Know About His Health
The 84-year-old senator has been hospitalized twice this year.
Questions raised about Senator Mitch McConnell’s health after little information is released
Numerous people from Frankfort to Washington are saying very little about long time serving US Senator Mitch McConnell following reports he was hospitalized nearly 2 and a half weeks ago.
Giants' Matt Chapman goes on injured list with abdominal strain
Matt Chapman said his abdominal area had been bothering him over the last several weeks.
Onimusha: Way Of The Sword Will Now Launch Three Weeks Earlier
The game's release date has been moved forward to the beginning of September.
Onimusha PS5 Has Actually Brought Its Launch Forward to 4th September
Now releasing three weeks earlier
Onimusha: Way of the Sword release date moved up to September 4
Capcom has moved up swordplay action game Onimusha: Way of the Sword from its previously announced September 25 release date to September 4, three weeks earlier than planned. It will be available f…
20 companies moving forward in Fort Worth Business Plan Competition
The field has narrowed in the 2026 Fort Worth Business Plan Competition, with 20 competitors moving on to participate in several weeks of business
Sony will cease production of discs for new PlayStation games in 2028
New games sold for PlayStation consoles will only be available digitally and won’t be sold on discs effective January 2028, Sony has announced. The move applies to all PlayStation games released from that point on, including those made by Sony and those released by third parties. The PlayStation group calls the change “a natural direction for Sony Interactive Entertainment to adapt to consumer trends as the general preference for digital media significantly outpaces physical discs,” according to a PlayStation blog post reviewed by Game File in advance of its publication. As movies, TV and music have shifted from physical media to an age of downloads and streaming, Sony’s move could speed the demise of physical media in a gaming. The industry has offered consumers games via cartridges, cassettes, floppy discs, CDs, DVDs and Blu-Rays across a 50-year stretch. Sony has been reporting to investors in recent years that PlayStation games have been increasingly purchased as downloads, not as discs. The most recent figures show nearly four in five purchases of full games for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 were purchased digitally in the past year. Stats like that may cause today’s news to carry an air of the inevitable. But Sony’s declaration for 2028 is still likely to produce a shock, as the biggest gaming platform on the planet that uses game discs leaves them behind. Discs going away, but the fate of game boxes is unknown Sony is committing to still selling games in physical retailers even after they drop discs in 2028. Just how those games will be sold—in boxes with codes inside, as cards marked with digital redemption codes—is unclear. Digital games will also continue to be sold in the online PlayStation Store. New games released for PlayStation consoles prior to January 2028 will be unaffected by the policy change, Sony says. That means the PS5 games of 2027, be they a new Madden, a new God of War, a new Call of Duty, a new Sly Cooper (one can dream?), would still potentially be offered on disc. PlayStation 6 implications Sony’s timeline for a transition to a no-disc era will also spin up more speculation about the timing and configuration of Sony’s next-generation console, the probable PlayStation 6. “This pretty much guarantees that PS6 won’t arrive until 2028 at the earliest,” Piers Harding-Rolls, senior games research analyst at Ampere Analysis tells Game File. Harding-Rolls also concludes from today’s news that “the base version of a PS6 will not include a physical media drive,” as Sony looks to keep costs down on the device. Sony itself is saying nothing about the PS6 today: not its timing, nor how it might or might not support internal or external disc drives in order to run disc-based PS4 and PS5 games, should the console be backwards compatible. The many signs this was coming Industry support for games being released on physical media has been waning. As has consumer interest in them. PC games effectively went all-digital years ago, thanks to the popularity of playing games through Steam and other digital storefronts. The Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdowns that kept much of the global population home helped shift shopping patterns toward downloads. Sony’s own data shows PlayStation game downloads being an uncommon consumer choice a decade ago and now becoming the norm. On consoles, physical media has been in such decline that Sony and Microsoft both launched their current gen Xbox Series and PS5 consoles in 2020 with cheaper versions that lacked disc drives. In early 2024, Phil Spencer, then head of Xbox, told me that ““[w]e ship games physically and digitally, and we’re really just following what the customers are doing.” He added that the game industry had become an outlier in still supporting disc-based entertainment, even as movies and TV have bailed on discs in favor of downloads and steaming: “Gaming consoles themselves have kind of become the last consumer electronic device that has a drive. And this is a real issue, just in terms of the number of manufacturers that are actually building drives and the cost associated with those. And when you think about cogs that we’re going to go put in a console—and as you have fewer suppliers and fewer buyers—the cost of the drive does have an impact.” Last year, the Nintendo’s Switch 2, which uses cartridges rather than discs, introduced the concept of game-key cards, which are physical media that contain no game, just a prompt for a download. Even disc-based games aren’t what they once were, now frequently containing just stubs of games rather than the whole thing. The website Does It Play has tested over 3000 games and found that, for example, that the disc version of this year’s hit 007: First Light, only contained the game’s first mission, with the rest needing to be downloaded. Beyond all that, last week brought the news that Grand Theft Auto VI, likely the biggest game launch this decade, will debut for PS5 and Xbox Series without a disc-based version. Today’s big news comes to you for free. Game File is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and ensure more of my work is possible, please consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe Discs helped define PlayStation However the trends in entertainment may be going, it is still remarkable to see PlayStation ditch discs given their importance in PlayStation history: In the late 1990s, the first PlayStation’s support for games on relatively cheap CD-ROMs instead of traditional game cartridges allowed the upstart console to outmaneuver cartridge-based systems from Nintendo and Sega, as it drove down game prices down in the process. (The cheaper disc format even prompted Final Fantasy VII maker Square to taunt Nintendo in a magazine ad, saying that if the game was “available on cartridge, it’d retail for around $1200.”) PlayStation devices often doubled as machines for watching movies and TV on the latest disc-based formats. In the late 2000s, for example, Sony’s pricy PS3 gained traction as a go-to device for playing then-novel Blu-Ray discs. In 2013, Sony effectively roasted the digital game-sharing restrictions proposed by rival Microsoft for its upcoming Xbox One console by showing how games could be shared for the then-upcoming PS4. In a 21-second clip that has over 20 million views on YouTube, one PlayStation executive simply handed a game box—presumably with disc inside—to another, who said “thanks.” Sony’s possible motivations The PlayStation announcement today cites “consumer preferences” and a shift away from discs among “the broader entertainment industry,” but does not delve into the decision-making process that brought Sony to this point. Sony is not discussing the economics of this move (I asked!), but there are a number of potential factors: Abandoning discs will spare Sony the cost of manufacturing and shipping them, which analysts and industry veterans I spoke to said could account for $1 or so of a game’s retail price. For first-party games, that’s direct savings for Sony, though the amount is limited by the winnowing percentage of people who were even buying the disc-based versions. For third-party games, Sony could pass the savings on to partners or just retain the better profit margin for themselves. As the 2024 comments from Phil Spencer alluded to, leaving discs behind could mean leaving disc-drives behind, allowing Sony to produce consoles more cheaply. Switching to digital-only for games could diminish the risks of copies of new games leaking. It would also seemingly make second-hand sales of used games impossible, pushing more people to buy their own copies of games. These economic benefits for Sony could be boons for the games industry overall, Ampere analyst Piers Harding-Rolls tells Game File. Among other things, it could free publishers and retailers from having to worry about securing an inventory of game discs when trying to sell games, he noted. “If there is a way to streamline the business of games retail, I generally think it’s a good thing for the industry as it removes unnecessary costs,” Harding-Rolls said. “This will help offset pressure on margins from other directions – development and staffing costs for example.” Should the industry shift from game boxes that contain discs to smaller, cheaper game cards, Harding-Rolls said, that reduces pressure on publishers and retailers. “The advantage of everything going digital for the industry is that sales can be tracked much more easily and there is less commercial risk for publishers wanting to continue selling via retail,” he said. The shift to no discs will also likely impact game development timelines, as developers will no longer face the same urgency to have a build ready to submit to PlayStation for the production of a disc, as industry experts noted around GTA VI’s no-disc news last week. Instead, projects may gain weeks of development time, in the event delivery deadlines for platform approval move closer to release date. Preservationists’ likely worries While millions of gamers have shifted to digital, there are still people who associate game discs—and only game discs—with actual ownership of PlayStation games. That portion of the gaming community spoke up last week about wanting to buy a version of GTA VI that they could hold in their hands, could lend to a friend and could potentially pop into a well-preserved PS5 console three decades from now and still see it run. Such gamers didn’t want to worry that they’d merely purchased a digital copy that could lose access to the game if, say, the company behind the game someday turns of the servers that transmit downloadable copies. Digital copies of games are inherently less long-lasting, because consumers aren’t actually buying a game (on a disc), just buying access to the game. The fine print in online gaming shops notes this, as does a recent law that went on the books in California in 2025. That lasw requires game publishers doing business in the state to refrain from words like “sell” when offering digital copies of games, unless they explicitly tell consumers that what’s being sold isn’t the game itself but a potentially revocable license to access it. A Sony spokesperson noted to Game File that “[w]ith all digital content, including games, movies, and music, players are purchasing a personal license for non-commercial use.” Regarding the fears of PlayStation games being lost to time in an all-digital era, the rep also noted that Sony remains “committed to delivering experiences from past generations to the new platforms our players are using.” They noted that PlayStation has used emulation and remasters to keep offering its classic games to modern gamers. It’s true that many consumers have become accustomed to not having physical copies of new music albums or movies, but the relative precariousness of digital copies of games is in fact being highlighted today by…. Sony’s other big announcement: the upcoming closure of the PS3 and PS Vita online stores Sony said today that it will be closing the online marketplaces for its PlayStation 3 console and PS Vita handheld in most countries in July 2027 (sooner elsewhere: August 2026 for the PS3 store Mexico, Honduras and Nicaragua; late 2026 for PS3 in other Latin American countries and the Middle East). “We know this news may be disappointing to PS3 and PS Vita players who hold a special place in their hearts for this generation of gaming,” Sony said in its announcement, saying the move “was not an easy decision for us to make.” Sony said that PS3 and Vita marketplaces “are no longer able” to support modern commerce systems, prompting a “need” to close the shops and focus on more modern PlayStation platform stores. The news may spark some deja vu. Sony announced back in March 2021 that it planned to take the PS3, Vita and PlayStation Portable marketplaces offline that summer. The move would have caused some 2,000 digital-only games to become unavailable for new purchasers, according to a VGC analysis at the time. Fans complained loudly. By April 2021, Sony walked back the PS3 and Vita shop closures, with then PlayStation boss Jim Ryan saying “it’s clear that we made the wrong decision here.” This time around, Sony is giving a longer notice period in most regions. The closure of those stores is still likely to cut off access to new purchases of digital-only PS3 and Vita games. The current PlayStation 5 marketplace sells PS5 and PS4 games, as well as a selection of PS1 and PS2 games. It does not sell PS3 games, because games for that platform can’t run on the system (some are offered via a PlayStation Plus streaming option). Vita games also aren’t sold via PS5. Sony says digitally purchased PS3 and Vita games will be downloadable after the stores’ shutdowns “for the foreseeable future.” Sony’s move contrasts with Microsoft’s Xbox platform, which continues to sell and support games from all four Xbox console generations. But it puts it in line with Nintendo, which disabled purchases in the marketplace for its Wii console (a contemporary of the PS3) in 2019. Nintendo discontinued purchases in the online shop for its 3DS portable (a contemporary of the Vita) in 2023. The big questions about Sony’s 2028 post-disc era Will Microsoft follow suit, ending support for new disc-based games on Xbox platforms and therefore all game consoles, too? Whether Microsoft does or not, will third-parties that can no longer release games on discs for PlayStation, simply ditch the disc options across the board? Given the GTA VI no-disc experiment launching this November, will more game publishers decide to forgo disc-based offerings even in 2027? How will no-disc PS5/6 games be packaged and sold in brick-and-mortar retail stores? What becomes of game sharing in an all-digital era? Will Sony modify its current set-up, which currently allows some sharing of digital games across a pair of consoles, to allow more casual lending? (See for example, Nintendo’s year-old system of letting players lend a digital game to another player in a “family group” for up to 14 days.) Will there be a version of a PS6 with a disc drive? Or will a drive be offered as an add-on? And how will gamers who want to retain access to PS4/PS5 disc-based games react to whichever configurations Sony chooses to offer? What will the final disc-based PlayStation game be?
Three Steelers with the most to prove in training camp
These Steelers have an important few weeks in Latrobe ahead of them.
7 things fantasy football players — and fans, too — should know about the Steelers’ offense
Believe it or not, Steelers training camp is only four weeks away. That means fantasy football season is right around the corner, too. One of the Post-Gazette’s...
KC council wants to crack down on unlicensed businesses that lead to violence
A city law change is being considered weeks after a shooting at an unregistered nightclub.
Addison Barger Will Be Out Longer
The start of another series, and all I’m thinking is ‘don’t be swept’. That stuff about Addison Barger being back soon? Not so much. He has a ‘stress reaction in his back’. I guess that means stress fracture, but he’ll be shut down for two more weeks. So let’s hope that he might be back […]
Netflix and Superheroes Are Having a Rough Stretch on Streaming....
(Welcome to my weekly streaming ratings report, the single best guide to what’s popular in streaming TV and what isn’t. I’m the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a former streaming executive who now analyzes business strategy in the entertainment industry. If you were forwarded this email, please subscribe to get these insights each week.) I have a quick prediction before we start today’s article: You might see this data in future news articles. Not my specific charts or analysis, but the core trend I’ve been monitoring—Netflix is having a lackluster Q2—will become inescapable. Often, folks want to know “What does the data say?” Well, that’s what it says. I haven’t seen this analysis hit the trades really yet, but I have a feeling some other outlets are going to start making this case soon. Remember, you read it here first. You probably have read about the problems facing superhero films at the box office this weekend. Well, this week, I explore whether superheroes are dying on TV as well! And the data says: definitely maybe! We have a lot to cover in today’s Streaming Ratings Report, which covers the two weeks of 18-May and 25-May. Today, I’m just looking at TV, like Netflix’s disappointing Q2, superhero shows underwhelming, a few TV shows dropping off the charts, The Pitt finally ending its epic run on the viewership charts (and whether “view counts” change its status as one of the biggest shows of all time), all the flops, bombs and misses, and a whole lot more. Tomorrow, I’ve got a great rundown of the film side of things. Let’s dive right in! (Reminder: The streaming ratings report focuses on the U.S. market and compiles data from Nielsen’s weekly top ten viewership ranks, Luminate’s Top Ten Data, Showlabs, TV Time trend data, Samba TV household viewership, company datecdotes, Netflix hours viewed data, Google Trends, and IMDb to determine the most popular content. While most data points are current, Nielsen’s data covers the weeks of May 18th to May 31st, 2026. You can find a link to my terminology here.) Subscribe Television - Netflix’s Q2 Slump Continues Having analyzed streaming ratings for going on half a decade, I have learned to trust my gut, but I’m always relieved when I can find actual data to back it up. For example, after a string of very popular shows like Stranger Things, Bridgerton, The Lincoln Lawyer and The Night Agent came out, week after week, in January and February, my gut wondered if Netflix had enough new and returning TV shows to sustain them throughout the year. Since then, Netflix’s post-March slate of shows has not impressed me. This week seemed to feature a potential new hit, but then, like a classic Duffer Bros. TV show, there was a twist. I speak of The Boroughs, Netflix’s latest (and last) Duffer Bros. produced show. The pitch is “Stranger Things with older actors”. And it topped the Nielsen charts: With just two weeks of viewership, The Boroughs would have been a top 25 debut show last year: But here’s the twist: Netflix has already cancelled The Boroughs! What happened? Likely a few things. First, the show didn’t do as well globally as it did in the US. As What’s on Netflix showed, it lagged behind several other shows that got cancelled. Second, its completion rate was likely low; after an initial burst of interest, it quickly dropped off on the Samba TV and Luminate charts. Third, the Duffer Bros. left Netflix for Paramount, and that may have factored into Netflix’s decision here. (Though I tend to believe that if a show is doing well, Netflix would have kept greenlighting seasons.) Still, just because I can explain why Netflix may have cancelled this show doesn’t mean I’m justifying it. In particular, as I’ve noted before, Netflix is losing a lot of their bigger shows as they reach their natural ends, and they need to replace those shows. This show had the hallmarks of a big new genre show, and it’s their biggest hit of the last few months (in the US at least), but now it’s done. Netflix’s other show this week—The Four Seasons, the second season of the “hit” show from last year—definitely disappointed. Its sophomore season had about half the viewership of the first, only 12.7 million hours. It also only had a two week run on Samba TV, and its numbers were all down on Luminate too. In other words, even with two successes, the Q2 slump for Netflix looks real: I could add to the list of disappointments: Both Lord of the Files and Man on Fire had short runs on the Nielsen charts. Running Point’s sophomore season also opened to about half its viewership, similar to The Four Seasons. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder’s second season—see below—didn’t even make any of the three viewership charts I track, unlike the first season. Netflix is absolutely having a dismal second three months of 2026. If this Nielsen data is any indication, and I think it is, I think this will show up in Netflix’s engagement report, and maybe even their financial outcomes. And the rest of June doesn’t look much better. We have two hit shows coming back—Sweet Magnolias, one of their quietest big shows, and Avatar: The Last Airbender, a big hit for them in 2024—but the other big swings are limited series crime thrillers i.e. no future season potential. Like I said above, sometimes when I uncover a juicy nugget like this, other outlets end up writing very similar articles mimicking the data without credit. We’ll see if that happens this time! Share Television - The State of Superhero Shows on Streaming When I first heard the pitch for Spider-Noir—a Sony TV show on Prime Video that binge-released eight episodes first on MGM+ then on Prime Video two days later—I had my doubts. It’s a live-action Spider-Man show set in the 1930s, starring Nicholas Cage, based on a cameo of a character in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. No, seriously, that’s the pitch. That could either go terrifically well or horribly wrong. Great because, Spider-Man. He’s the biggest superhero we have. I’ve seen tracking numbers that put the new _Spider-Man: Brand New Da_y as the blockbuster of the year and initial pre-sales back that up. And yet this Spider-Noir pitch feels very esoteric. (Also, the eight-episode binge release feels very “Amazon copying Netflix” again.) So what’s the data say? And what does this say about the future of superhero shows?
Rumour: State of Decay 3 Dev Also Facing Xbox Axe, Just Weeks After Game Was Revealed for PS5
Looking for a buyer
Mets Player Meter: Position Players, June 15-28
A quick review of how the Mets’ position players fared over the past couple weeks.
Few details known on Mitch McConnell’s health 2 weeks after hospitalization
Two weeks ago, Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell was admitted to the hospital. Few details about his condition are publicly known.
Supreme Court to review the legality of mass voter purges in the weeks before an election
The Supreme Court will review the legality of mass voters purges in the final weeks before an election, as part of a larger case the justices are taking up examining the methods Arizona uses to keep non-citizens off the voter rolls.
Add Lynn Bartels to Colorado’s roll call of legends
A few weeks after the Rocky Mountain News shut its doors forever in 2009, more than 600 Republicans gathered for the state party’s annual Centennial Dinner. Lamenting the historic significance of the loss of one of Colorado’s great daily newspapers, the state chairman noted the presence that evening of former Rocky political reporter Lynn Bartels […]
49ers News: Three weeks until rookies report
Your daily San Francisco 49ers news for Monday, June 29th, 2026
Efzimfotase alfa demonstrated improvements in bone health in treatment-naïve pediatric patients with hypophosphatasia achieving median difference of 1.67 vs placebo in RGI-C Score at week 25 in MULBERRY Phase III trial
Positive results from the MULBERRY Phase III trial showed that efzimfotase alfa (ALXN1850), an investigational enzyme replacement therapy, demonstrated a statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvement in bone health in children (2 to
I spent weeks thinking my Pixel's camera lens was smeared before discovering the real culprit
I can finally take good pictures again!
Major PS5 Feature Down for the Last 2 Weeks, Sony Silent
A widely used PS5 feature has been down for the last two weeks on both the console and the PS App, and there's no sign of a fix.
Johns Hopkins Layoffs Reach Carey Business School As Federal Cuts Deepen
JHU is shedding about 110 jobs, Carey School included, just 6 weeks after Carey banked a $50 million gift.
After trying a Google TV projector, I may never buy another TV ever again
After spending a few weeks with a Google TV projector, I think I may be done buying actual TVs for good. Here's what changed.
This Week's 10 Must-Read Stories on Women in Politics: Title IX Anniversary, AI's Anti-Women Bias and Ranked-Choice Voting Victories
Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation is a weekly compilation of stories about women’s representation in politics, on boards, in sports and entertainment, in judicial offices and in the private sector in the U.S. and around the world—with a little gardening and goodwill mixed in for refreshment! Published every Friday. —This week marked the 54th anniversary of Title IX. —As the Taliban approaches the five-year mark of its return to power this August, a rare protest in western Afghanistan last week laid bare both the brutality of its rule and the resilience of those living under it. —A woman will replace Eric Swalwell in California … but for not two more months. —A study of 133 AI systems found that 44 percent demonstrated gender bias, and more than a quarter showed both gender and racial bias. ... and more.
Live Results: Louisiana midterm primary runoffs
Louisiana Republicans will nominate a candidate for U.S. Senate in a primary runoff Saturday, six weeks after denying Republican U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy a shot at a third term.
North Dakota State Fair 2026: Food, Entertainment, Pride of Dakota Festival, Contests, and More
MINOT, ND (KXNET) — There are now three weeks until this year’s North Dakota State Fair kicks off, and the Fair is including America’s 250th birthday. The fair is an official partner of…
Lucky the Bull Gets a Transformation
A local artist has been working for weeks on restoring a historic landmark that will soon be making a public appearance.
Following IAM Union Advocacy, Kansas PERB Orders Count of Timely Cast Ballots in KU Health System Pharmacy Technician Union Election
KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Following weeks of advocacy from the IAM Union, Pharmacy Technicians, elected officials and community supporters, the Kansas Public Employee Relations Board (PERB) has ruled that 37 previously uncounted ballots will be included in the final tally of the recent union representation election involving Pharmacy Technicians at the University of Kansas (KU)
Merck KGaA bolsters life sciences business with $11.3B Bio-Techne buy
The deal comes a matter of weeks after Kai Beckmann was promoted to CEO at Merck and signalled his intent to broaden the company's scope for M&A.
Comcast's Sky Reaches Terms to Acquire ITV's Media & Entertainment Unit for $2 Billion
The deal, which includes ITV's linear channels and ITVX streaming platform, could be announced in the next two weeks, according to Reuters
Comcast’s Sky Reaches Terms to Acquire ITV’s Media & Entertainment Unit for $2 Billion
The deal, which includes ITV's linear channels and ITVX streaming platform, could be announced in the next two weeks, according to Reuters
Comcast's Sky to Buy ITV's Media and Entertainment Unit for $2.1 Billion
Comcast-owned Sky Group has reportedly agreed to acquire the media and entertainment business unit of U.K.-based ITV for $2.1 billion. The deal is expected to be officially announced in two weeks. Satellite operator Sky will absorb ITV’s broadcast network, linear free-to-air channels, and the ITVX subscription streaming service with 900,000 paid subscribers and 16.4 million … Continue reading "Comcast’s Sky to Buy ITV’s Media and Entertainment Unit for $2.1 Billion"
Upstate NY youth sports coach accused of sending indecent material to children through Snapchat
The 21-year-old faces six charges after allegedly sending inappropriate content to two minors over several weeks.
What Has Andy Burnham, Britain's Likely Next Prime Minister, Said About Trump?
If Burnham’s planned leadership bid remains unchallenged, he could replace Starmer in a matter of weeks and it will likely fall on him to heal the rift between Washington and Westminster.
'Rangers close to re-signing McCrorie'
Rangers are closing in on a deal to bring 28-year-old versatile Scotland-capped defender Ross McCrorie back to Ibrox from Bristol City. Rangers Review) Rangers are preparing to submit a formal offer for 22-year-old Dundee centre-back Luke Graham in the coming weeks. Football Insider) Head coach Steven Pressley says Dundee have received "plenty of phone calls" about Luke Graham this summer, but there has been no firm offers for the centre-half who trained with the senior Scotland squad before the World Cup.
Dodgers Unleashing Shohei Ohtani Despite Recent Injury Concerns
The Dodgers will allow star Shohei Ohtani to hit and pitch on Wednesday vs. the Twins despite a run of complications over the last few weeks.
Putnam Science Academy will close amid financial crisis
Putnam Science Academy will not open in the fall, just weeks after school leaders said the private school would reopen despite a financial crisis.
Roku May Help Fox Avoid Aggregeddon
(Welcome to the “Most Important Story of the Week”, my bi-weekly strategy column analyzing the most important (but often not buzziest) news story of the last two weeks. I’m the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a former streaming executive who now analyzes business strategy in the entertainment industry. Please subscribe.) Scrolling through links over the last week, I stumbled across this fun headline: Wow. Formula 1 (the sport, not the docu-series) is the perfect “dog not barking”. As a reminder, each week in my Streaming Ratings Report, I call out the shows that miss every viewership chart. I dub them “dogs not barking”—like the Sherlock Holmes mystery—because without any data, we forget they even exist. This is in contrast to something like, say, a film flop—cough The Mandalorian and Grogu cough—where even underperforming at the box office is widely discussed here, there and everywhere. In the US, Formula 1 is now in “no public viewership data, so not discussed” territory. After moving to Apple TV from its former home of ESPN, basically no one talks about it. Apple did publish an initial, unsourced, unsubstantiated, (dare I say unserious) datecdote claiming more folks are watching Formula 1 on Apple than ESPN, but we haven’t gotten any updates since. This stands in contrast to when the sport streamed on ESPN, and ESPN PR provided weekly viewership figures. Formula 1 was, at best, a niche sport in America—averaging 1.3 million viewers in the Big Data Plus era—but now it’s basically anonymous. (And yeah, after moving to Apple, I very, very, very much doubt its ratings increased.) Unfortunately, that story isn’t quite big enough to warrant a section in today’s “Most Important Story of the Week” column, but I wanted to call it out, because otherwise, no one else will! Certainly, no one will write articles about the silence/ratings decline, unlike when they wrote breathless articles connecting the rise in viewership to Netflix’s Drive to Survive, including Reuters just last month. (This is a topic I’ve tried to provide a moderate/nuanced/non-hyped take since 2022.) Anyway, on to this week’s issue. I was a bit worried I didn’t have a juicy topic, then the Murdochs went out and did their Murdoch thing: buying Roku. So that’s the story of the week, and it happens to touch on quite a few themes of the streaming wars and the disruption therein. I’ll cover that, plus why more consolidation in Hollywood media looks likely, more good news on the Hollywood labor front, whether we’ll see an uptick in production in Los Angeles, some Broadway and theme park news, cellphone prices going up in the third world (and possibly everywhere), and more. Subscribe Most Important Story of the Week - Another Big Media & Entertainment Merger The story of the week is clearly Fox is buying Roku for $22 billion. I read a lot of good strategy takes on why Fox bought this streaming TV device maker—and I’ll have mine below—but what fascinates me more is how this deal connects to quite a few themes of the streaming wars, linking to everything from the pace of M&A to “aggregeddon” to Netflix’s recent M&A actions/inactions to the shift to advertising from pure play streaming and more. The only topic I can’t really connect it to is my old theory, “never bet against Rupert Murdoch” because he isn’t the one who did this deal; his son Lachlan inked it. (Do I think he provided advice, even at his 95 years of age? Sure.) That plus I have one additional piece of strategy for all entertainment players, inspired by this deal. So let’s dive into all those topics, starting with why I like this deal. Roku is a Great M&A Buy
Google TV Streamer update adds Google Home Speaker support, more
Following the rollout two weeks ago, Google has shared what’s new in the latest Google TV Streamer update.
DOJ charges 455 defendants with healthcare fraud worth $6.5B
The indictments took place over the last two weeks in 45 states and U.S. territories.