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AP Trending SummaryBrief at 6:04 p.m. ESTWorld junior roundup: Finland bounces back with 3-1 win over GermanyWASHINGTON - A U.S. federal appeals court on Friday upheld a law requiring Chinese-based ByteDance to divest its popular short video app TikTok in the United States by early next year or face a ban. The decision is a win for the Justice Department and opponents of the Chinese-owned app and a devastating blow to ByteDance. The ruling now increases the possibility of an unprecedented ban in just six weeks on a social media app used by 170 million Americans. The ruling is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court. Free speech advocates immediately criticized the decision. The American Civil Liberties Union said it sets a "flawed and dangerous precedent." "Banning TikTok blatantly violates the First Amendment rights of millions of Americans who use this app to express themselves and communicate with people around the world,” said Patrick Toomey, deputy director of the ACLU's National Security Project. But the appeals court said the law “was the culmination of extensive, bipartisan action by the Congress and by successive presidents. It was carefully crafted to deal only with control by a foreign adversary, and it was part of a broader effort to counter a well-substantiated national security threat posed by the PRC (People's Republic of China)." U.S. appeals court Judges Sri Srinivasan, Neomi Rao and Douglas Ginsburg considered the legal challenges brought by TikTok and users against the law that gives ByteDance until Jan. 19 to sell or divest TikTok's U.S. assets or face a ban. The decision -- unless the Supreme Court reverses it -- puts TikTok's fate in the hands of first President Joe Biden on whether to grant a 90-day extension of the Jan. 19 deadline to force a sale and then President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20. But it's not clear whether ByteDance could meet the heavy burden to show it had made significant progress toward a divestiture needed to trigger the extension. Trump, who unsuccessfully tried to ban TikTok during his first term in 2020, said before the November presidential election he would not allow the TikTok ban. TikTok said it expected the Supreme Court would reverse the appeals court decision on First Amendment grounds. "The Supreme Court has an established historical record of protecting Americans' right to free speech, and we expect they will do just that on this important constitutional issue," TikTok said in a statement, adding the law will result "in outright censorship of the American people." The Justice Department did not have an immediate comment on the decision. The decision upholds the law giving the U.S. government sweeping powers to ban other foreign-owned apps that could raise concerns about collection of Americans' data. In 2020, Trump also tried to ban Tencent-owned WeChat, but was blocked by the courts. Shares of Meta Platforms, which competes against TikTok in online ads, hit an intraday record high following the ruling, last up over 3%. Google parent Alphabet, whose YouTube video platform also competes with TikTok, was up over 1% following the ruling. TikTok ban looms The court acknowledged its decision would lead to TikTok's ban on Jan. 19 without an extension from Biden. "Consequently, TikTok's millions of users will need to find alternative media of communication," the court said, which was because of China's "hybrid commercial threat to U.S. national security, not to the U.S. Government, which engaged with TikTok through a multi-year process in an effort to find an alternative solution." The opinion was written by Ginsburg, an appointee of President Ronald Reagan, and joined by Rao, who was named to the bench by Trump, and Srinivasan, an appointee of President Barack Obama. The Justice Department says under Chinese ownership, TikTok poses a serious national security threat because of its access to vast personal data of Americans, asserting China can covertly manipulate information that Americans consume via TikTok. U.S. officials have also warned TikTok's management is beholden to the Chinese government, which could compel the company to share the data of its American users. TikTok has denied it has or ever would share U.S. user data, accusing American lawmakers in the lawsuit of advancing "speculative" concerns. TikTok and ByteDance argue the law is unconstitutional and violates Americans' free speech rights. They call it "a radical departure from this country's tradition of championing an open Internet." ByteDance, backed by Sequoia Capital, Susquehanna International Group, KKR & Co KKR.N, and General Atlantic, among others, was valued at $268 billion in December 2023 when it offered to buy back around $5 billion worth of shares from investors, Reuters reported then. The law prohibits app stores like Apple and Alphabet's Google from offering TikTok and bars internet hosting services from supporting TikTok unless ByteDance divests TikTok by the deadline. Apple and Google did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In a concurring opinion, Srinivasan acknowledged the decision will have major impacts, noting "170 million Americans use TikTok to create and view all sorts of free expression and engage with one another and the world. And yet, in part precisely because of the platform’s expansive reach, Congress and multiple Presidents determined that divesting it from (China's) control is essential to protect our national security." He added that "Because the record reflects that Congress's decision was considered, consistent with longstanding regulatory practice, and devoid of an institutional aim to suppress particular messages or ideas, we are not in a position to set it aside." — ReutersNone
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Tweet Facebook Mail New South Wales is braced for another day of blackout warnings and scorching temperatures as the pre-summer heatwave peaks. A heatwave warning is in place for most of the NSW coast, with temperatures in Sydney expected to hit 39 degrees today and 34 in the CBD. The Australian Energy Market Operator previously issued blackout warnings, saying energy reserves were limited as millions turned on the air-conditioning. READ MORE: Lurking weather system could become Australia's first tropical cyclone A heatwave is prompting fears of blackouts. (Windy) There were several power outages in Sydney yesterday, but Ausgrid said they were not believed to be heat-related. Energy expert Tony Wood from the Grattan Institute said there were several factors in play that left Australia's most populous state facing blackout risks in November. He said climate change meant Sydney was seeing weather conditions more typical of January or February in November, while the ageing energy grid required ever-more maintenance. READ MORE: Cass woke up vomiting as soon as the heatwave rolled in Sydneysiders flock to beaches and waterways as heatwave rolls in View Gallery "We have not been getting on with has to be done," he told Today. "What has to be done to ensure that we do have a transition to an energy system, which has exactly all the features that we all want and need, and we're not there yet." He said it was unlikely Australia would experience massive state-wide blackouts, but that these troubles would continue until the transition was closer to complete. NSW can expect some relief from the heat later this week, with temperatures forecast to drop slightly to 30 tomorrow and then to a top in the mid-20s for Friday and the weekend. Rain is also forecast, with showers on Thursday moving to heavier falls on Friday and Saturday. DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP : Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play .OTTAWA - After being blanked 4-0 by host Canada the night before, Finland bounced back with a gritty 3-1 win over Germany during Friday’s second day of competition at the World Junior Hockey Championship in Ottawa. Emil Pieniniemi, Arttu Alasiurua and Jesse Kiiskinen scored for Finland, which outshot the winless German crew 43-32. Clemens Sager scored for Germany, which lost 10-4 to the defending champion United States on Boxing Day. Finland led 1-0 after the first period and 2-1 heading into the third. Germany’s goaltender Linus Vieillard stopped 40 of 42 shots directed at him, while Petteri Rimpinen stopped 31 of 32 shots for Finland. Both teams play their next games Sunday when Finland plays the U.S. and Germany faces Canada. Earlier on Friday, Slovakia bounced back from a 5-2 opening-day loss to Sweden to edge Switzerland 2-1. Jan Chovan’s goal with 3:18 left in the third period snapped a 1-1 deadlock and lifted Slovakia to the victory. Daniel Jencko also scored for Slovakia. Eric Schneller scored for winless Switzerland, which lost 5-1 on Thursday to Czechia. Both teams had 29 shots on goal. Both teams play again Sunday when Slovakia faces Czechia and Switzerland plays Sweden. In later games Friday, Sweden will square off with Kazakhstan, while Canada will face Latvia. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 27, 2024. Read more on the World Junior Hockey Championship at thestar.com
NoneBiden weighing pardons for people who could be targeted by Trump: sourcesCARSON, Calif. (AP) — The LA Galaxy and the New York Red Bulls have been Major League Soccer mainstays since the league's inaugural season in 1996, signing glamorous players and regularly competing for championships through years of success and setbacks in a league that's perpetually improving and expanding. Yet just a year ago, both of these clubs appeared to be a very long way from the stage they'll share Saturday in the MLS Cup Final . The Galaxy were one of MLS’ worst teams after a season of internal turmoil and public fan dissent, while the Red Bulls were merely a steady mediocrity seeking yet another coach to chart a new direction. A year later, these MLS founders are meeting in the league's first Cup final between teams from North America's two biggest markets. “Two original clubs being able to put themselves in this situation, I think it’s great,” Galaxy coach Greg Vanney said. “To see two clubs that have been at it as long as this league has been around be here, I think it’s a special moment. Couldn’t be two more different and contrasting styles as well, which could make for an interesting game, and I would imagine a high-intensity game.” Everything changed in 2024 after a dismal decade for the Galaxy , who are favored to cap their transformation by winning their team's record sixth MLS championship with a roster that's dramatically different from its past few groups — albeit with one massive injury absence in the final. The transformation of the Red Bulls happened only in the postseason, when a team that hadn't won a playoff game since 2017 suddenly turned into world-beaters under rookie coach Sandro Schwarz. New York struggled through the final three months of league play with only two wins before posting road playoff victories over defending champ Columbus , archrival New York City FC and conference finalist Orlando to storm into the Cup final. “We know about the history (of our club), and we know tomorrow will define what that could mean,” Schwarz said Friday. “To feel the pressure for tomorrow, it’s necessary, because it’s a final, and without pressure it’s not possible to bring the best quality on the field.” The Red Bulls have never won an MLS Cup, only reaching the championship match once before. What's more, they've somehow never won a Cup in any tournament, although they’ve collected three Supporters’ Shields for MLS' best regular-season record. The Galaxy’s trophy case is large and loaded, and those five MLS Cups are on the top shelf. But not much of that team success happened in the past decade for the club that famously brought David Beckham, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Robbie Keane, Steven Gerrard and many other international stars to Hollywood. In fact, this season has ended a grim era for the Galaxy, who haven't lost all year at their frequently renamed home stadium — which was the site of protests and boycotts just a year ago. The club's fans were tired of LA's steady underachievement and ineptitude in the front office run by team president Chris Klein, who was fired in May 2023. One year ago Thursday, the Galaxy hired Will Kuntz, a longtime Los Angeles FC executive who engineered his new club's roster transformation, most dramatically by landing new designated players Gabriel Pec and Joseph Paintsil — two international talents that LAFC also had in its sights. “I give Will and the group up there a ton of credit,” Vanney said. “It’s one thing to have players you like, and it’s a whole other thing to get them here and get them to connect with your group.” Pec and Paintsil combined for 32 goals and 27 assists while boosting the incumbent talents of striker Dejan Joveljic and Riqui Puig, the gifted Barcelona product who runs the offense from the midfield. The Galaxy clicked in the postseason, scoring a jaw-dropping 16 goals in four matches. Puig has been the Galaxy's most important player all season, but he won't be in the MLS Cup Final after tearing a knee ligament late in last week's conference final victory over Seattle . The loss of Puig — who somehow kept playing on his injured knee, and even delivered the game-winning pass to Joveljic — makes the Galaxy even more difficult to anticipate. “He played a lot in the regular season, so it was not so easy to analyze all these games now without him,” Schwarz said. “But the main focus is to analyze what we need to do, because it’s not clear now how they’re playing without him.” The Galaxy could give some of Puig's responsibilities to Marco Reus, the longtime Dortmund standout who joined LA in August. Reus is nursing a hamstring injury, but Vanney expects him to play. AP soccer: https://apnews.com/soccer
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Laura Benanti is not a fan of former Broadway costar Zachary Levi — and she doesn’t care who knows it. “I never liked him,” Benanti, 45, said of Levi, 44, during an appearance on the Wednesday, December 4, episode of the “ That’s a Gay Ass Podcast .” “Everyone was like, ‘He’s so great!’ And I was like, ‘No, he’s not,'” she recalled. “He’s sucking up all the f—ing energy in this room.” Benanti further claimed that Levi wanted to “mansplain everybody’s part to them” while they were members of the same cast. The actress alleged Levi tried to get their She Loves Me castmates to have dance parties before each show, which she never enjoyed. (Benanti played Amalia Balash in the 2016 production while Levi portrayed Georg Nowach.) “He really sucked everybody in with his, like, dance party energy. Like, ‘We’re doing a dance party at half-hour,’” Benanti remembered. “I was like, ‘Good luck. Have fun.’” Benanti’s comments came after Levi made headlines in September when he claimed that their late She Loves Me costar Gavin Creel ’s death earlier this year was caused by the COVID-19 vaccine. “To use his memory for his political agenda and to watch him try to make himself cry until he had one single tear, which he did not wipe away, I was like, ‘F— you forever,’” Benanti said on Wednesday, referring to Levi’s comments about Creel. Us Weekly confirmed in September that Creel died at the age of 48 . The Tony Award winner’s cause of his death was metastatic melanotic peripheral nerve sheath sarcoma. Creel was diagnosed with the very rare form of cancer in July, a mere two months prior to his passing. According to Mayo Clinic, Malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors are a form of cancer that starts in the spinal cord and spreads throughout the body via nerves. Following his death, Levi conducted an Instagram Live where he made controversial statements about Creel. “I know that this is going to offend some people and make some people mad, and I wish it didn’t,” Levi said at the time via Just Jared , calling Creel one of the “healthiest” people he knew. Levi then claimed that the COVID vaccination led to Creel’s death. “I, without a shadow of a doubt, I believe that Gavin Creel would be alive right now — right f—ing now — he would still be alive if that stuff didn’t get put into his body,” he concluded. You have successfully subscribed. By signing up, I agree to the Terms and Privacy Policy and to receive emails from Us Weekly Check our latest news in Google News Check our latest news in Apple News Like Benanti, many people responded with outrage over Levi’s statement, including Broadway star Norbert Leo Butz . “So incredibly disappointed you would politicize Gavin’s death. Really tried to give you the benefit here. Made it halfway through, which was hard as hell,” Butz, 57, replied in the comments section. “But [I] was utterly heartbroken, as he would have been, that you felt the need to use his life and legacy to promote this awful platform💔.” Benanti, meanwhile, honored Creel’s legacy in a touching social media post in September. “Anyone who has ever met Gavin remembers a moment (or many) when he made them feel seen and special,” she wrote . “A moment (or many) when they basked in his reflected glow. A moment (or many) when that glow made its way into their hearts and remained there forever. Gavin was the brightest light in any room. Long may he shine.”Cows and pigs produce a large share of planet-warming methane. A new tax is part of a plan to clean that up. Denmark, known for its inventive restaurants and elegant design studios, is about to become known for something more basic: the world’s first belch and manure tax. That’s because there are five times as many pigs and cows in Denmark as there are people. Nearly two-thirds of its land is taken up by farming. And agriculture is becoming its largest share of climate pollution, putting lawmakers under intense public pressure to reduce it. So now, Denmark’s unlikely coalition Government, made up of three parties from across the political spectrum, has agreed to tax the planet-heating methane emissions that all those animals expel through their poop, farts and burps. The measure, under negotiation for years, was passed by the Danish Parliament this month, making it the only such climate levy on livestock in the world. “I think it’s good,” said Rasmus Angelsnes, 31, who was shopping for dinner in Copenhagen one recent afternoon. “It’s kind of a nudge to make different choices, maybe more climate-friendly choices.”Boxing Day Test LIVE updates: Series on the line as Aussies chase wickets as day three begins against India
hile sales of electric vehicles surge in China, adoption of more environmentally friendly vehicles is stumbling in the United States and Europe as carmakers and governments struggle to meet years-old promises about affordability and charging stations. Adding to those headwinds: an incoming new U.S. president who has disparaged government support for electric vehicles. China is the exception. Driven by government subsidies and mandates, vehicles with electric motors, including plug-in hybrids that combine electric and fossil fuel motors, topped 50% of sales in the month of July. Concerns about range, charging infrastructure and higher prices are sore points among both electric car enthusiasts and skeptics in Europe and the U.S. Solar panels power charging at Detlef Mueller-Salis’ home in Mainz, Germany, so he thought he was all set to go electric. But range concerns, charging times and confusing charging payment methods proved frustrating. So after four years, he and his wife sold their Porsche Taycan and Fiat 500 electrics and bought a BMW 5-Series and a Volkswagen Polo, both internal combustion. The smaller Fiat could run about 136 miles on a charge in summer and 112 in winter, he said, against the manufacturer’s specification of 198 miles. Constantly checking the battery before quick trips to visit grandchildren and elderly parents grew annoying. So did going on vacation with payment cards from five charging plans. The Porsche took 30 minutes to charge instead of the 22 minutes advertised, not a huge difference but “not what the company promised,” said Mueller-Salis, who is retired from a logistics company. Driving fast on the autobahn reduced range so that “you paid for it with charging time.” Both retirees in their 70s, Ken and Roxanne Honeycutt mainly drive their used Kia Soul around their town near Oakland, California. They charge the EV, with a range of about 111 miles, in their garage and don’t rely much on public infrastructure. But for longer trips they have to plan fast-charging stops ahead of time. “We wanted to try it,” Roxanne said of the EV. “Sometimes we found that the charging stations don’t always work, they’re broken down, so that gives you a little bit of anxiety if you know, OK, I need to charge.” On one cold, rainy January day, the Soul’s range dropped faster than expected, so they had to stop twice to charge. Another time, they hit multiple nonfunctioning chargers — even in California, where EV adoption leads the rest of the country. Their range dropped to 13 miles. “We’re used to having a gas station on every corner, 24 hours a day,” Roxanne said, adding they still like the vehicle. Electric cars aren’t going away. They are essential for planet-warming carbon emissions reductions governments agreed to under the 2015 Paris climate agreement. Electrified vehicle sales will reach 17 million this year, or one car in five sold globally, according to the International Energy Agency. That includes plug-in hybrids that combine electric with internal combustion motors. But about 60% of those sales are in China. In Europe, sales of electric-only cars fell 5.8% in January-September from a year earlier, while their market share fell to 13% from 14%. Pure EVs accounted for 8% of overall U.S. vehicle sales in October. So, the market is growing, but sales slowed. They’re not plunging, but they’re not yet growing fast enough to meet climate goals. Higher prices matter. A Volkswagen ID. 3 hatchback costs about $42,090, compared to the similar-sized Volkswagen Golf fuel engine version at $29,136, according to the ADAC auto association. U.S. EV prices have fallen significantly since 2022, but the average price in October for a new one, $56,902, still exceeded the average $48,623 for a new vehicle. Cost remains an issue for the more mainstream American consumers EV makers hope to target, according to a recent poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago. Uncertainty over purchase subsidies also complicates price comparisons. EV sales plunged in Germany early this year after the government abruptly canceled the purchase premium of roughly $7,100 for cars up to $42,000 and about $4,700 for cars up to about $68,000. ADAC says that means most internal combustion models are a better deal over a car’s lifetime. Conservative political parties and the industry are now questioning the EU’s goal of eliminating most fuel engine vehicles by 2035, a decision that’s up for review in 2026. The European Auto Manufacturers’ Association is urging that carbon dioxide limits, which carmakers must meet by 2026 or face heavy fines, be relaxed. Some carmakers have pushed back electrification plans. Republican President-elect Donald Trump vowed to end what he called the Democratic Biden administration’s EV “mandate,” though he softened his anti-EV stance as his ties with Tesla CEO Elon Musk grew closer. Automakers are not required to sell EVs under the Environmental Protection Agency’s greenhouse gas emissions standards regulating tailpipe pollution, though they need EVs to make up at least 56% of their total sales to meet the ambitious standards for cutting emissions. Trump may also eliminate critical EV tax credits. Even if fewer buyers choose EVs, tax credits or not, auto companies show no intention of fully retreating from the transition away from gas-burning cars and trucks. China’s auto market, the world’s largest, was transformed by billions of dollars in subsidies, with EV sales reaching 25.8% of the 13.5 million vehicles sold in January-August, according to the China Passenger Car Association. The government is encouraging car buyers to go electric, and many are buying EVs or plug-in hybrids under an economic stimulus program. The phasing out of earlier subsidies in 2022 unleashed a fierce price war, toppling some weaker automakers. Some Chinese EVs sell for less than $20,000 in their home market. The government push encouraged many start-ups that took the Tesla model and ran with it. They simplified car designs to cut costs and filled interiors with gadgetry appealing to a smartphone-savvy generation. Photographer Wu Cong sat inside his $23,000 Hongqi E-QM5 as it recharged in Beijing. He travels often for work, racking up 50,000 miles in the past two years. The EV saves him about $7 in fuel costs for every 62 miles, he said, which would add up to $5,600 over two years. The sedan’s navigation system reminds him to recharge after driving a distance of his choosing. “It will tell you if there are charging stations ahead and if anyone is using them,” he said. Beijing tech worker Shang Wenting said her family hardly uses its gasoline-powered car anymore except for on long trips, preferring a sapphire Tesla Model Y that cost about $37,000. During a weekly trip to a charging station 10 minutes from her home, Shang said the Tesla is cheaper to drive and she loves its “smart features,” like an energy recovery system that means she can press on the accelerator less. “It feels like switching from an old phone to a smartphone,” she said. Get local news delivered to your inbox!Stampede Killings: FG Must Compensate Affected Families – Falana
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