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Meta threatens to block news in California if journalism proposal passes

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

(The Hill) - Facebook parent company Meta is threatening to remove news content on its platforms Instagram and Facebook in California if the state legislature passes a new proposal that would make tech companies pay publishers for news content. “If the Journalism Preservation Act passes, we will be forced to remove news from Facebook and Instagram rather than pay into a slush fund that primarily benefits big, out-of-state media companies under the guise of aiding California publishers,” reads a statement posted to Twitter by Meta spokesperson Andy Stone.Meta’s statement says the California bill, which is now before the state Assembly, “fails to recognize that publishers and broadcasters put their content on our platform themselves and that substantial consolidation in California’s local news industry came over 15 years ago, well before Facebook was widely used.”The bill would require covered platforms to pay a "journalism usage fee" for content from local outlets — and require publi...

How to prepare to start paying back your student loans when the freeze ends this summer

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A three-year pause on student loan payments will end this summer regardless of how the Supreme Court rules on the White House plan to forgive billions of dollars in student loan debt.If Congress approves a debt ceiling deal negotiated by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden, payments will resume in late August, ending any lingering hope of a further extension of the pause that started during the COVID pandemic. Even if the deal falls through, payments will resume 60 days after the Supreme Court decision.That ruling is expected sometime before the end of June. No matter what the justices decide, more than 40 million borrowers will have to start paying back their loans by the end of the summer at the latest.Here's what to know to get ready to start paying back loans:HOW SHOULD I PREPARE FOR STUDENT LOANS PAYMENTS TO RESTART?Betsy Mayotte, President of the Institute of Student Loan Advisors, encourages people not to make any paym...

Rain chances creep up first weekend of June

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- As the calendar flips to June today, the forecast looks (and feels!) very much how it should this time of year.Morning clouds will partially clear to a mix of afternoon sun and clouds. High temperatures will warm to seasonal normals with all of Central Texas in the upper 70s to low 80s today.By late Friday, a little excitement in the forecast. A few isolated storms will make a run at the Hill Country late Friday night (9 p.m. - 11 p.m.), and although most stay dry, this will mark the beginning of better rain chances to come.A few isolated storms/showers possible in the Hill Country late Friday night BLOG: Summer forecast released: When do 100º days begin A weakening high pressure system will open the door for a few disturbances to roll in our direction this weekend into next week. Several rounds of scattered showers and storms are possible with rainfall totals generally ranging between 0.25"-1.5" between today and next week. INVESTIGATION: LCRA didn't plan for c...

Activists protest rezoning Borden Dairy site near 183 and Colorado River

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – Activists gathered in east Austin Wednesday to demand more studies be done before Austin City Council allows a local real estate company to transform the current home of the Borden Dairy Plant near U.S. Highway 183 and the Colorado River. According to our partners at the Austin Business Journal, Endeavor Real Estate Group, known for The Domain and Saltillo, wants permission rezone the 21-acre site off Levander Loop in order to construct 1,400 residential units, more than 400,000 square feet of offices, more than 100,000 square feet of retail space and a 220-room hotel.ABJ reported Endeavor wants to change the property's zoning from industrial to mixed-use with a height limit of 120 feet, which would allow buildings of 10 stories or more. The Austin Planning Commission voted March 28 in favor of the change. Council will consider that change Thursday. The activists, including the social justice group PODER and Colorado River Conservancy, said Wednesday they are not aga...

Troy community preserving gravestones at Old Mount Ida Cemetery

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) - Led by two Troy residents, preservation efforts are underway to repair the gravestones and monuments at Old Mount Ida Cemetery. With help from Grave Stone Matters, the community is showing their support in more ways than one.Led by Alysia Hamilton and Cameron Smith, two Troy residents who live near the New Mount Ida Cemetery, the group would perform some clean up on their own but wanted to do more. They teamed up with the Sons of Union Veterans to get a grant to commission Joe Ferrannini from Grave Stone Matters to help repair and preserve the Old and New Mount Ida Cemetery. Capital Region cemetery literally cemented in New York history For the last 15 years, Ferrannini has been working with towns, historical societies, and cemetery associations to conserve their historic gravestones and monuments. He describes his job as "my dream hobby that turned into a career."Ferrannini will spend 15 days repairing a portion of the gravestones at Old Mount Ida Cemetery a...

98.3 TRY Social Dilemma: Should People Sing Along At a Musical Play?

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Today's 98.3 TRY Social Dilemma is about how to behave in the audience at a musical. Here's the email:Hi Jaime, last week I went to Proctors to see "Ain't Too Proud", a show about the Temptations, with my sister. Behind us were two couples. They talked fairly often during the show, and one of the ladies sang many of the Temptations' tunes fairly loudly. We found this rather distracting and wanted to hear the performers on stage, not her. After this went on for a while, we shushed her. This made her mad, I guess, because she then said, much louder than a whisper, "Did they just shush me?!?" I nodded that yes, we had, but didn't say anything to avoid adding to the noise.  During the intermission, I tried to reason with the woman about her singing. I told her that I understood that she was there to have fun, as we all were, and asked if she could just sing more quietly so that we would not have trouble hearing the performers on stage. She referred to the show a...

CDTA hosting job fair in Albany

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) is hosting a job fair on Thursday from noon to 6 p.m. at 110 Watervliet Avenue in Albany. Candidates can explore current open positions with more information online. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Those attending will get to test drive a 40-foot bus, tour the maintenance garage, and see the facility's state-of-the-art training equipment to prepare technicians. The CDTA is looking to hire open positions for bus operators and maintenance positions. Attendees will also learn about weekly attendance bonuses, benefits, and more.

Ask Amy: A woman is torn between heart, head, and horse

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

Dear Amy: In college in Montana, I majored in equine studies. After trying for four years, I finally got into an extremely competitive internship working with thoroughbreds in Kentucky. I started right after graduation.During my junior year I met my boyfriend, “Alex.” We have now been together for over three years. I can’t imagine my life without him.Alex started law school when I started the internship. I absolutely loved the internship, even though I was working 12-hour days. But I still cried most days and held onto one of his sweatshirts every night.When the internship ended, I got a job with a poultry company back in Montana. A year and a half later, I have not stopped talking about or thinking about Kentucky.My boyfriend is from Indiana and wants to return to his hometown after graduation, where he will have a client base and connections.Kentucky is completely out of the picture for him, but I would love to go back. Neither one of us wants to deliver an ultimatum, but he said ...

WHO records over 1,000 attacks on Ukraine healthcare during war

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday (30 May) it had recorded 1,004 attacks on healthcare in Ukraine during the Russian invasion, the highest number recorded by the organisation in any conflict."The 1,004 WHO-verified attacks over the past 15 months of full-scale war have claimed at least 101 lives, including both health workers and patients, and injured many more," it said in an emailed statement.Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine over 15 months ago, starting the largest war in Europe since World War Two. Hostilities have killed thousands of civilians and displaced millions, according to UN figures.The WHO said it recorded 896 attacks on health facilities, 121 on transport, 72 on personnel and 17 on warehouses in Ukraine during the war.

Russia official says Ukraine shelling of border town injures four

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:24 GMT

Ukrainian forces shelled a Russian town close to the border for the third time in a week, injuring four people, damaging buildings and setting vehicles on fire, the governor of the region said on Wednesday (31 May).Two people were hospitalized as a result of the artillery strike on Shebekino, Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on the Telegram messaging app.The shelling smashed windows and damaged roofs of an eight-storey apartment building, four homes and a school, among others, he said.Gladkov said on Monday that two industrial facilities in the town had been hit. On Saturday, he said he had come under artillery fire when trying to enter the town, which is only about 7 km (4.5 miles) north of the border with Ukraine.Belgorod, which borders Ukraine's Kharkiv region, has increasingly come under attack from Ukrainian forces in recent months.There was no immediate response from Ukraine to the latest shelling but it almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks in Russi...