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UK government intervenes in potential takeover of Telegraph newspaper by Abu Dhabi-backed fund

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s government said Thursday it has asked media and market competition officials to look into a potential Abu Dhabi-backed takeover of The Telegraph newspaper. Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer said she issued a “public interest intervention notice” after considering the possible impact of the offer by the investment fund RedBird IMI to the previous owners of The Telegraph and The Spectator magazine to repay debts owed by them. RedBird IMI — a joint venture between RedBird Capital and Abu Dhabi’s International Media Investments, and led by former CNN chief Jeff Zucker — said earlier this month it agreed to provide loans to Britain’s Barclay family and ensure the family’s debts, worth some 1 billion pounds ($1.25 billion), are paid.The Barclay family owned the right-leaning newspaper and magazine before they were put into receivership. The family also previously owned London’s luxurious Ritz Hotel before selling it in 2020.RedBird IMI has said it would provide a...

Hockey Canada says almost 1,900 maltreatment complaints received in 2022-23

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

Hockey Canada says a new independent third-party complaint mechanism received information on almost 1,900 potential cases of maltreatment during its first season.The data is contained in the national sport organization’s latest report on the issue — which covers abuse, discrimination and harassment — released Thursday as part of its numbers-based push to address the problem across the game.Hockey Canada says of the 1,872 complaints made during the 2022-23 season, 187 were accepted and fully processed, while more than 1,400 didn’t meet the threshold of severity to move forward and were redirected to provincial or territorial members for assessment.Put differently, that’s an average of nearly one complaint per 200 players across the country.Of the accepted complaints, the report entitled “Tracking Maltreatment in Sanctioned Hockey” showed that 50.3 per cent involved bullying and harassment, followed by sexual maltreatment (19.8 per cent), physical abuse (...

The RNC’s rules for the 2024 convention don’t address what would happen if Donald Trump is convicted

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The Republican National Committee’s rules for next year’s nominating contest and convention were released this week without addressing a question the GOP could well face next summer: Can the party’s delegates vote for a different candidate if the presumptive nominee is convicted of a felony?Former President Donald Trump is under four criminal indictments that will proceed through the GOP primary season, an overlap of legal and political calendars with no precedent in American politics. Fifteen states and American Samoa hold their GOP primaries on March 5, known as Super Tuesday, which is also the day after his first trial is scheduled to begin in Washington on charges that he unlawfully sought to overturn the 2020 election.Trump is dominating the Republican field and may secure much of the support he needs by Super Tuesday, by which time almost half of delegates who select the nominee at the GOP convention will have been awarded. Even if he were to ...

Bubba Wallace hit by depression following best friend Ryan Blaney’s NASCAR championship

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — It was 3:42 a.m. in North Carolina as Bubba Wallace’s best friend celebrated winning his first NASCAR championship across the country in Arizona. Wallace could have stuck around and partied with Ryan Blaney, but he instead flew directly home to sit alone in the dark. Wallace was wallowing in disappointment despite having just finished his own career-best season. He took to social media with a note titled “Life” and tried to explain his emotions and why he’d flown home for five hours in silence. “Sitting here on the couch questioning everything,” he posted. “You would think your bud winning the championship would bring that joy and excitement back. Sadly it did not.“It’s the helpless feeling that really kicks ya,” Wallace continued. “My wife can see that I’m off but I don’t have the what or the why that I’m feeling this way to allow her to help me. To my peeps out there staring at a blank wall, I’m with you. Tomo...

Time to table online harms bill, experts, advocates, researchers say in open letter

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

OTTAWA — An open letter from experts the government convened last year to provide advice on legislating against online harms is urging Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to table legislation. The letter published today calls on the federal government to urgently bring forward a bill to address “harms posed by digital platforms,” especially behaviour and content that can affect children. Emily Laidlaw, a law professor at the University of Calgary who was a co-chair of the government’s advisory group, helped organize the letter, and says it is “time to push” for the bill.The letter, signed by more than 50 experts and advocates as of this morning, says two years of federal consultations produced “wide-ranging consensus” that platforms should be held responsible for their services and any harms that result. Calls for action have increased as the Israel-Hamas war leads to more antisemitism and Islamophobia online, and as police highlight online safety...

North Carolina trial judges block election board changes made by Republican legislature

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina trial judges on Thursday blocked portions of a new law that would transfer Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s authority to pick election board members to the Republican-dominated General Assembly.Following a 90-minute hearing, the three state judges agreed unanimously to issue a preliminary injunction sought by Cooper. His lawyers argued that the alterations to the State Board of Elections and county boards in all 100 counties need to be stopped now or his directive in the state constitution to “take care that the laws be faithfully executed” will be harmed irreparably. The Republican legislative leaders whom Cooper has sued can appeal the decision to the state Court of Appeals. The outcome of the injunction request and Cooper’s broader litigation on the law, which was enacted just last month, could affect how the 2024 elections are administered in the ninth-largest U.S. state, where races for president and governor are likely to be closely contes...

Planetarium, rainforest on Ontario Science Centre’s wish list for new site

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

A large planetarium and an outdoor adventure park are among a variety of features the Ontario Science Centre would like to see in a new location at Ontario Place – though there is not currently enough space with the new building’s much smaller footprint.Infrastructure Ontario released a “business case” Wednesday that the government is using to justify moving the science centre from its current east Toronto location to the downtown Ontario Place.The analysis says moving the attraction rather than renovating the existing site would save the province about $250 million over 50 years, largely because the new building would be about half the size of the current space.The business case says the approximately 275,000-square-foot size of the planned new building at Ontario Place is the “smallest possible” size to contain all core programming identified by the Ontario Science Centre.Within the appendices of the business case is a wish list of sorts from the Onta...

Hamilton school locked down for second straight day for ‘weapon’ probe

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

Bernie Custis Public Secondary School in Hamilton is under lockdown for the second straight day as police say they are searching the school for an outstanding suspect connected to a previous incident.Nearby Prince of Wales Elementary School has also been placed under a hold and secure.Bernie Custis was first placed on lockdown on Wednesday after reports of an armed person on the premises.Following Wednesday’s investigation a 15-year-old student was arrested and charged with possessing cocaine and fentanyl, as well as being in possession of proceeds of crime under $5,000.Police were first called to the school on King Street East at around 11 a.m. Wednesday.Upon arrival, investigators said a person suspected of carrying a weapon was seen leaving the school in a vehicle, which was later located at a nearby gas station.Five occupants in the car were taken into custody as police searched for a firearm which they were led to believe was in a bag within the school.

Bills linebacker Von Miller facing arrest for assaulting a pregnant person, Dallas police say

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

DALLAS (AP) — Police in Dallas have issued an arrest warrant for Buffalo Bills linebacker Von Miller for allegedly assaulting a pregnant person.According to police, a preliminary investigation of a “major disturbance” at a home on Wednesday determined that Miller, 34, and the victim got into a verbal argument and the suspect assaulted the victim, who is pregnant. They said Miller left the scene before they arrived.The victim was treated for minor injuries and an arrest warrant was issued for Miller.The Bills, who have a bye this week, issued a statement Thursday acknowledging that they are aware of the incident and “are in the process of gathering more information.”The team said it would have no further comment at this point.Miller, selected No. 2 overall by the Denver Broncos in the 2011 NFL draft, is an eight-time Pro Bowl selection and three-time first-team All-Pro selection.Miller, who starred at Texas A&M and was a two-time first-team All-American, has played on two Super B...

University of Minnesota Duluth senior defensive lineman dies of genetic heart condition

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:07:59 GMT

DULUTH, Minn. (AP) — Reed Ryan, a senior defensive lineman at the University of Minnesota Duluth, has died of a genetic heart condition, his family says. Ryan, who was 22, died Tuesday at a Duluth hospital. His obituary said he went into cardiac arrest one week earlier following a football team workout in the weight room. Until then, no one knew about the heart condition. His obituary said he was “doing what he loved” and had “lived life to the fullest in his short years.” His pursuits included running an online vintage store.Ryan graduated from Waunakee High School in 2019 and was the State of Wisconsin Defensive Player of the Year. He started out at North Dakota State University, before coming to the University of Minnesota Duluth this year. During the season, he recorded seven tackles and assisted with an eighth. “He helped bring out the best in others with his positive attitude, infectious smile, and genuine care for the people around him,” head football coach Curt Wiese said in...