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Heisman Watch: Penix loses ground and Nix holds steady while Williams’ candidacy collapses

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

Welcome to our weekly look at the Pac-12’s leading Heisman Trophy candidates via an assessment of the top players in the conference. Consider this one Heisman voter’s view of the landscape. The rankings are based on individual performance, value to the team and quality of competition. And yes, we consider defensive players.Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. became the latest victim of a time-tested reality of the Heisman Trophy race: Weeks of progress can vanish in three arduous hours.Penix finally overtook USC quarterback Caleb Williams as the betting frontrunner last week, only to be overtaken himself this week following a poor showing in UW’s surprisingly narrow victory over Arizona State.Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who threw four touchdowns in the Wolverines’ 49-0 victory over Michigan State, is the new leader based on odds released Monday by BetMGM.McCarthy is +240 to win the award, meaning a $100 bet would pay $240. (The implied probability of a +240 ...

Eisa Davis brings ‘Bulrusher’ home to Berkeley Rep

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

For Eisa Davis, to have her play “Bulrusher” come to Berkeley Repertory Theatre is like coming home.Davis is a Berkeley native and Berkeley High alum who now lives in Brooklyn. Her mother is a civil rights lawyer, and her aunt is prominent activist and scholar Angela Davis.She also has a long history with Berkeley Rep, co-starring in the rock musical “Passing Strange” from its world premiere at the company through its hit Broadway run that was made into a Spike Lee film. As a playwright, she participated in the theater’s Ground Floor summer residency new play development program and contributed an audio play to its “Place/Settings” series during the pandemic shutdown.“Of course, we would go to see Berkeley Rep shows when we were kids,” Davis says. “And I worked there as a telemarketer. Oh god, I was a terrible telemarketer. It was right as we were graduating high school.”“Bulrusher” has deep local roots of its own. It’s set in Mendocino Country in the 1950s and suffused with t...

California and 32 other states sue Meta for harming young people’s mental health, collecting data on children

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

By BARBARA ORTUTAY | AP Technology WriterA group of 33 states including California and New York are suing Meta Platforms Inc. for harming young people’s mental health and contributing the youth mental health crisis by knowingly designing features on Instagram and Facebook that addict children to its platforms.The lawsuit filed in federal court in California also claims that Meta routinely collects data on children under 13 without their parents’ consent, in violation of federal law.“Kids and teenagers are suffering from record levels of poor mental health and social media companies like Meta are to blame,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James. “Meta has profited from children’s pain by intentionally designing its platforms with manipulative features that make children addicted to their platforms while lowering their self-esteem.”The broad-ranging suit is the result of an investigation led by a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from California, Florida, Ke...

California sues Meta for harming children's mental health

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

(AP) -- A group of 33 states, including California and New York, are suing Meta Platforms Inc. for harming young people’s mental health and contributing to the youth mental health crisis by knowingly designing features on Instagram and Facebook that addict children to its platforms.The lawsuit filed in federal court in California also claims that Meta routinely collects data on children under 13 without their parents' consent, in violation of federal law.“Kids and teenagers are suffering from record levels of poor mental health and social media companies like Meta are to blame,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James. “Meta has profited from children’s pain by intentionally designing its platforms with manipulative features that make children addicted to their platforms while lowering their self-esteem."The broad-ranging suit is the result of an investigation led by a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from California, Florida, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Jer...

CHP seeks community help with hit-and-run crash

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

(KRON) – The California Highway Patrol is seeking public help to assist with a major injury hit-and-run crash occurring on Monday from 3:00 a.m. to 7:47 a.m. on I-580 westbound, just east of I-680, in Pleasanton. Suspected robbery crew arrested in Daly City CHP Golden Gate Communication Center began receiving reports of a Hispanic man lying down on the asphalt shoulder adjacent to the concrete wall on I-580 westbound, east of I-680 at approximately 7:47 a.m. According to CHP,  Dublin Area Units located a man lying on the right shoulder with major injuries at 7:57 a.m.There were initial reports that a pedestrian wearing a black sweater was walking in the lanes of traffic on I-580, west of Hopyard Road at approximately 2:58 a.m., according to the CHP.According to CHP,  the crash was determined to be a solo vehicle versus pedestrian hit-and-run, with the driver fleeing the scene in a westerly direction of I-580. Dublin Area Units were unable to locate any pedestrians in the area...

Members of Congress Make New Push to Free Julian Assange

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

A bipartisan duo in Congress has launched a fresh effort to push President Joe Biden to drop the Department of Justice’s extradition request against Julian Assange and to stop prosecutorial proceedings against him.Reps. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., are asking their colleagues in the House to sign on to a letter to the Biden administration by Thursday, noting that opposing Assange’s prosecution is important not only for press freedom, but also to maintain credibility on the global stage. McGovern, a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus who co-chairs the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission in Congress, told The Intercept that the charges against Assange are part of an alarming global trend of increasing attacks against the press, including in the U.S. “The bottom line is that journalism is not a crime,” he wrote in a statement. “The work reporters do is about transparency, trust, and speaking truth to power. When they are unjustly targeted, we a...

Stock market today: Wall Street rises after corporate profits top forecasts and oil prices sink more

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is ticking higher Tuesday after Verizon, General Electric and other big companies reported fatter profits for the summer than expected.The S&P 500 was 0.2% higher in midday trading and on track to break a five-day losing streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 95 points, or 0.3%, as of 12:30 p.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.3% higher.Verizon jumped 8.7% after saying it increased its number of broadband subscribers by 20% and earned more than analysts expected during the summer.General Electric rallied 6.4% after delivering better-than-expected earnings and raising its profit forecast for the year. Coca-Cola rose 2.6% after it said growth in Mexico, India and other markets helped drive it to better profit during the summer than analysts expected.The pace is picking up for companies to report their results for the summer, with more than 30% of companies in the S&P 500 on the schedule for this week. The broad hope is for S&am...

New-look Rutgers is hoping to get back to the NCAA Tournament after missing a bid with a late slide

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — Steve Pikiell is entering his eighth basketball season at Rutgers and this one could be very different.Change is the watchword for the Scarlet Knights. The roster is almost unrecognizable, the style of play is uncertain, and so is what’s in store for the program heading into another Big Ten season.“We’re really excited. We’ve added some newcomers. We jumped in the portal and got some really good players. We have a freshman class that I think is very, very good,” Pikiell said. “We’re just looking forward to another great year.”Last season had the potential to be a great year with the Scarlet Knights on the verge of a third straight NCAA berth with a 16-7 record. They went 3-7 down the stretch and missed the show with a 19-15 record, including 10-10 in the Big Ten. They got an NIT bid and lost to Hofstra in the first round.While center Cliff Omoruyi and forward Mawot Mag are back up front, guards Paul Mulcahy and Cam Spencer have transferred and two-time ...

No. 2 Duke and No. 13 Miami headline the ACC men’s basketball title chase

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

Duke spent much of its first season under Jon Scheyer building to another Atlantic Coast Conference title. Yet it was Miami that outlasted the rest of the league in March for the program’s first trip to the Final Four.They are the ACC headliners to start the 2023-24 season, with the second-ranked Blue Devils eager to live up to projections as a national title contender and the 13th-ranked Hurricanes aiming for a third straight deep postseason run.For Duke, that means relying on preseason Associated Press All-American Kyle Filipowski inside and a strong NBA draft prospect in Tyrese Proctor among four returning starters to go with another top recruiting class. Scheyer, in his first full season as Mike Krzyzewski’s successor, led Duke to the program’s league-record 22nd ACC Tournament title before falling to Tennessee in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.“We have a core group returning,” Scheyer said. “You see our freshmen can really help us and can really play....

Forced labor concerns prompt US lawmakers to demand ban on seafood from two Chinese provinces

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 12:00:53 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A group of U.S. lawmakers wants the Biden administration to ban seafood processed in two Chinese provinces from entering the U.S. market because of concerns about rights abuses. They also say that Chinese facilities using forced labor should be banned from doing business with American companies.The request was sent Tuesday by the chairs of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China to the Department of Homeland Security. The commission is a congressional group charged with monitoring China’s compliance with international human rights standards.It’s the latest effort by U.S. lawmakers to restrict imports of Chinese goods on the grounds of rights abuse, a move that is certain to irk Beijing at a time of tensions over trade and other issues.The commission cited investigations by the nonprofit journalist organization The Outlaw Ocean Project that revealed human rights abuses on China’s fishing fleet and the forced labor of ethnic Uyghurs from the north...