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Americans fault news media for dividing nation: AP-NORC poll

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — When it comes to the news media and the impact it’s having on democracy and political polarization in the United States, Americans are likelier to say it’s doing more harm than good.Nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults say the news media is increasing political polarization in this country, and just under half say they have little to no trust in the media’s ability to report the news fairly and accurately, according to a new survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights.The poll, released before World Press Freedom Day on Wednesday, shows Americans have significant concerns about misinformation — and the role played by the media itself along with politicians and social media companies in spreading it — but that many are also concerned about growing threats to journalists’ safety.“The news riles people up,” said 53-year-old Barbara Jordan, a Democrat from Hutchinson, Kansas. ...

Aerosmith announces farewell tour starting in September

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Aerosmith will be touring a city near you for the last time to celebrate the rock band’s 50-plus years together.The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band announced Monday the dates for their farewell tour called “Peace Out” starting Sept. 2 in Philadelphia. The 40-date run of shows, which includes a stop in the band’s hometown of Boston on New Year’s Eve, will end Jan. 26 in Montreal.“I think it’s about time,” guitarist Joe Perry said. Perry said the group, with frontman Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer and guitarist Brad Whitford, learned from the staging and production from their recent Las Vegas residency shows.Perry believes the time to say goodbye is now, especially with every founding band member over the age of 70. Tyler, 75, is the oldest in the group.“It’s kind of a chance to celebrate the 50 years we’ve been out here,” Perry said. “You never know how much longer everybody’s going to be healthy to do this. … It’s been a while sinc...

World’s workers rally on May Day; France braces for protests

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — People squeezed by inflation and demanding economic justice took to the streets of cities across Asia and Europe to mark May Day on Monday, in a global outpouring of worker discontent not seen since before the COVID-19 pandemic sent the world into lockdowns.French unions pushed the president to scrap a higher retirement age. South Koreans pleaded for higher wages. Spanish lawyers demanded the right to take days off. Migrant domestic workers in Lebanon marched in a country plunged in economic crisis.While May Day is marked around the world on May 1 as a celebration of labor rights, Monday’s rallies tapped into broader frustrations at the state of today’s world. Climate activists spraypainted a Louis Vuitton museum in Paris, and protesters in Germany demonstrated against violence targeting women and LGBTQ+ people.Celebrations were forced indoors in Pakistan and tinged with political tensions in Turkey, as both countries face high-stakes elections. Russia̵...

Black Protestant church still vital despite attendance drop

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The wide empty spaces in pews between parishioners at a Sunday service at Zion Baptist Church in South Carolina’s capital highlight a post-pandemic reality common among many Black Protestant churches nationwide.At its heyday in the 1960s, more than 1,500 parishioners filled every seat at Zion. But membership at the historic church — a crucial meeting point for many during the Civil Rights Movement — dwindled over recent decades.The trend has been accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which infected and killed Black Americans at a disproportionate rate. Zion’s attendance dropped from 300 parishioners before the outbreak to 125 now.Founded in 1865, Zion still has a choir capable of beautiful singing, but it also shrunk by more than half. The stomping of feet and the call-and-response of the leader and congregation have dimmed from what they were before the pandemic.“It saddens my heart,” said Calvernetta Williams, who has worshipped at Zion for 40 years. “The pas...

Liz Weston: Audit your credit cards for greater savings

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

Credit card rewards help our family save money on groceries, gas and other necessities. We also use rewards for airline tickets, hotel rooms and airport lounge access.We’re in good company. Most Americans have at least one rewards card, and nearly half of rewards cardholders are using their perks to help offset rising inflation, according to a 2022 Wells Fargo survey.But a recent review of our cards revealed that some are no longer worth their annual fees or have been eclipsed by better offerings.Credit card fees, reward rates and benefits change all the time. So do the ways we spend our money, which means a card that used to be a good fit may no longer work as well. Given all that, it’s not surprising that fewer than one-third of credit card users feel that they’re making the most of their rewards cards, according to J.D. Power’s 2022 U.S. Credit Card Satisfaction Study.An annual review of our credit cards helps ensure we’re getting properly rewarded.CREATE A REWARDS TRACKERFirst, ...

Aerosmith announces final farewell tour starting in September

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Aerosmith will be touring a city near you for the last time to celebrate the rock band's 50-plus years together.The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band announced Monday the dates for their farewell tour called “Peace Out” starting Sept. 2 in Philadelphia. The 40-date run of shows, which includes a stop in the band’s hometown of Boston on New Year’s Eve, will end Jan. 26 in Montreal.“I think it’s about time,” guitarist Joe Perry said.Tom Hamilton, from left, Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, John Douglas and Brad Whitford of Aerosmith, perform on Sept. 8, 2022, at Fenway Park in Boston. Aerosmith will be touring a city near you for the last time to celebrate their 50-plus years of being together. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band announced Monday, May 1, 2023 the dates for their farewell tour called “Peace Out” starting Sept. 2 in Philadelphia. (Photo by Winslow Townson/Invision/AP, file)Perry said the group, with frontman Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey ...

Monday Forecast: Cloudy with rain and gusty winds

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

Monday: Cloudy, 80% rain showers, windy, WNW 15-20 G35. High: 44Chicago Weather | Tom Skilling and the WGN Weather Center's Forecast (wgntv.com)Monday Night: Cloudy, chance for rain, windy, NW 15-20 G35. Low: 38Chicago Area Radar | WGN TVTuesday: Mainly cloudy, 20% rain, breezy, NW 15-20 G30. High: 48Weather Blog | Chicago | WGN TV7DAY wgntv.com/weather

Bad to worse: Student misbehavior rises further since return of in-person classes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

(The Hill) -- Student behavioral problems that spiked with the return of in-person learning after the coronavirus pandemic are getting even worse, educators say.Seventy percent of teachers, principals and district leaders said in a recent EdWeek Research Center survey that students are misbehaving more now than in 2019, up from 66 percent in December 2021. One-third in the new poll said students are misbehaving "a lot more."Experts say the culture shock and whiplash from the extended period of remote classes is only one of the psychological and academic factors behind the problem.More than 200,000 students have lost a parent to COVID-19, and several states reported an increase in youth suicide during the pandemic. Scholastically, the Nation's Report Card 2022 found students had lost decades of learning.“I think one of the things that we really talk to school leaders about is, you know, really understanding that you cannot push your way through. If a student is not emotionally a...

Why are more Americans going to therapy?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

(The Hill) -- The number of Americans seeking mental health treatment is almost twice as high as it was two decades ago — reflecting a historic recent decline in mental health but also an increase in virtual care access and a positive trend of destigmatization.In 2004, just 13 percent of adults said they had visited a therapist, psychiatrist or other mental health professional within the past year, according to Gallup polling. In 2022, that number was up to 23 percent. While the shift began before COVID-19 arrived, the pandemic drove a new surge in demand for care, particularly among young adults. The share of Americans aged 18 to 44 who had received mental health treatment like medication, counseling or therapy over the past 12 months jumped from 18.5 percent to more than 23 percent between 2019 and 2021, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show. “Without a doubt, shortly after the pande...

APD: Car found in Lady Bird Lake overnight

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:12:45 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A dive team will be out at Lady Bird Lake Monday morning to try to figure out how a car ended up in the water overnight, according to Austin Police. The Austin Police Department said around 2 a.m. Monday, it received a call of gunshots near the Festival Beach Boat Ramp. When officers arrived, they found a car in the water, APD said. APD said first responders didn’t find anyone hurt when they arrived, but it’s unclear if anyone is in the car in the water.Police are hoping to get a closer look at the car once the sun is up and a dive team is deployed.