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☆ Lizzo Denies Allegations in Former Dancers’ Lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | More About Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Lizzo on Thursday denied allegations made against her this week by three former dancers who said she created a hostile work environment while performing concerts during the Grammy-winning singer’s Special Tour this year. The three dancers said they had been “exposed to an overtly sexual atmosphere that permeated their workplace,” in a lawsuit filed on Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court. The lawsuit described several episodes that lawyers for the dancers said amounted to sexual harassment and weight shaming. “Usually I choose not to respond to false allegations but these are as unbelievable as they sound and too outrageous to not be addressed,” Lizzo said in a statement posted on social media. The lawsuit says Ms. Davis and Ms. Williams were fired in the spring of 2023.

Persons: ” Lizzo, Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams, Davis, Williams Organizations: Los Angeles Superior Court, Lizzo, Amazon Prime Locations: Los Angeles, ”

Bailey Point Investment filed a lawsuit in February accusing Ms. Wright of encroaching on its property. The company said that a satellite, shed and screened porch trespassed on its land and “significantly delayed and hindered” development. A lawyer for Bailey Point Investment, Helen Bacon Hester, did not respond to requests for comment. Ms. Graves estimated that she has spent $6,000 to cover the costs of responding to the developer’s complaints and to hire a lawyer. The family created a GoFundMe to help pay for the legal battle and property taxes.

Persons: Ms, Wright, Helen Bacon Hester, Wright’s, Charise Graves, Graves, Snoop Dogg, Irving Organizations: Investment, Bailey Point Investment Locations: Bailey, Florida

☆ American Fugitive Who Faked His Death Can Be Extradited, Scottish Court Rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | More About Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Nicholas Rossi, a convicted sex offender who faked his own death and later surfaced in Glasgow, can be extradited to the United States from Scotland to face sexual assault charges in Utah, a court ruled on Wednesday. Mr. Rossi, 36, traveled from the United States to Ireland or Britain in 2017, leaving behind allegations of rape and domestic violence, according to the decision by Sheriff Norman McFadyen in Edinburgh Sheriff Court. Mr. Rossi has used several aliases over the years, including Nicholas Alahverdian, the name he was using when he faked his death in Rhode Island in 2020. He identified himself as Arthur Knight, an Irishman who had never been to the United States, during court hearings in Scotland after his arrest there in December 2021. Sheriff McFadyen said in his 21-page decision that the evidence Mr. Rossi provided about himself in his defense could not be trusted unless it was independently supported.

Persons: Nicholas Rossi, Mr, Rossi, Sheriff Norman McFadyen, Nicholas Alahverdian, Arthur Knight, Sheriff McFadyen Organizations: Sheriff, Edinburgh Sheriff Court Locations: Glasgow, United States, Scotland, Utah, Ireland, Britain, Edinburgh Sheriff, Rhode Island

☆ Family of Henrietta Lacks Settles with Biotech Company That Used Her Cells
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | More About Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The family of Henrietta Lacks, the Black woman whose cancer cells were taken without consent and used to pioneer numerous medical discoveries, reached a settlement on Monday with a biotechnology company that had used the cells. Lacks, who died decades ago, accused the company, Thermo Fisher Scientific, of selling the cells and trying to secure intellectual property rights on the products the cells were used to help develop without compensating the family or seeking their permission or approval. The terms of the settlement are confidential, lawyers for both parties said in a statement. Thermo Fisher, a Massachusetts-based biotechnology company, and the legal team for Ms. Lacks’s family released identical statements announcing the settlement. “The parties are pleased that they were able to find a way to resolve this matter outside of Court and will have no further comment,” the statements said.

Persons: Henrietta Lacks, Lacks’s Locations: Massachusetts

In a dramatic scene, a construction crane atop a high-rise building in Midtown Manhattan burst into flames and partially collapsed onto the street on Wednesday morning, injuring 11 people, officials said. The fire began just before 7:30 a.m. in the engine compartment of the crane, 45 stories above the street at 550 10th Avenue, officials from the fire and buildings department said. A crane operator who had been working in the machine’s cabin, lifting 16 tons of concrete, saw the fire and tried but failed to put it out with a hand extinguisher before fleeing to safety. As the top part of the crane — and its 16-ton load — fell, it struck a neighboring building at 555 10th Avenue.

Locations: Midtown Manhattan

☆ TikTok Introduces Text-Only Posts
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | More About Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The feature allows users to post without the background visuals, such as videos and photos, for which TikTok is known. There did not appear to be a separate name for the text post feature. Some people would create their own text-only posts by sharing screenshots of text-focused content from outside of TikTok, including from other social media apps and text message conversations. The TikTok text posts can be customized the same way that video and photo posts are, using music, background colors and stickers. Text posts can be up to 1,000 characters long, a TikTok spokesperson said in an email.

Locations: TikTok, United States

☆ Mystery Object Is Found on Remote Beach in Western Australia
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | More About Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A remote beach in a part of Western Australia known for its rock lobsters and wildflowers has become home to a hulking metallic mystery object and the police officers guarding it. The Western Australia Police Force asked people on Monday not to draw conclusions about the origins of the cylindrical object while it was being investigated. But in news reports and on social media, people speculated that it could be from a military or commercial airplane, or even a spacecraft. The mystery object appears to be metal, has cables or wires hanging from the top and is at least two meters, or about 6 feet 6 inches, tall, according to local news reports. A civilian reported the object to the police on Sunday after it was found near Green Head, a coastal town of fewer than 300 people about 155 miles north of Perth that is known for its fishing and sea lions.

Organizations: Western Australia Police Force Locations: Western Australia, Green, Perth

☆ The Brief, Dry Life of Burger King's All-Cheese ‘Burger’
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | More About Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Social media’s latest fast food fascination has a simple formula: one sesame burger bun plus 20 slices of American cheese. This invention from Burger King Thailand has no sauce, pickle or vegetable adornments. Nor does it have a patty. By many accounts, the cheese is often not even grilled or melted. In an email, it described the Real Cheeseburger as a “limited-time offer.”

Persons: ” Organizations: Burger King Locations: Burger, Burger King Thailand

☆ Some South Koreans Just Became Younger Overnight
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The three systems for counting age have confused and inconvenienced South Koreans in all kinds of situations including health recommendations, labor disputes and social hierarchy. Background: The other counting methods are a deeply rooted custom. The new official age-counting method has been used for most legal and official purposes in South Korea since the 1960s. Suh Chan S., a sociology professor at Chung-Ang University in Seoul, told The New York Times last year that while China and Taiwan used similar age-counting methods, South Korea stood alone in officially recognizing them. It remains to be seen whether the other age-counting methods will be abandoned altogether.

Persons: ”, Suh Chan Organizations: Chung, Ang University, New York Times Locations: South Korea, Seoul, China, Taiwan

☆ U.S. Pedestrian Deaths Are at Highest Level in 41 Years, Report Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In recent years, other comparable developed countries have done more to reduce pedestrian, cyclist and motorcyclist deaths, researchers say. Those safety measures have included lowering speed limits, building more protected bike lanes and requiring vehicle design safety measures that better protect people outside of a vehicle. The report’s analysis of pedestrian deaths in 2021 used data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is not directly comparable to the state data sets because they use different criteria for pedestrian deaths. Some states, for example, may include deaths that occurred 30 days after the crash in their count, while the federal government numbers do not. The federal data included specific information about crashes, such as light conditions, driving speeds and road types.

Persons: ”, Angie Schmitt Organizations: National, Traffic Safety Administration Locations: America, United States

☆ Human Remains Found in Area Where Actor Julian Sands Went Missing
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The authorities in Southern California recovered human remains on Saturday near the mountain where search crews have been looking for the British actor Julian Sands, who was reported missing in January. The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement that it had been contacted around 10 a.m. local time on Saturday by hikers who had found human remains in the Mount Baldy wilderness, which is more than 40 miles northeast of Los Angeles. The remains were brought to the coroner’s office and were expected to be identified this week, the department said. Dangerous conditions, including a series of severe storms in the winter and lingering ice and snow in June, have complicated search efforts for Mr. Sands.

Persons: Julian Sands, Sands Organizations: San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department Locations: Southern California, British, San Bernardino County, Mount Baldy, Los Angeles

☆ Weather Warnings Can Save Lives. Here’s What Makes Them Effective.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Severe weather can happen any day of the year. If you are in its path, you’ll probably get a warning in the form of a shrill alarm on your cellphone or text scrolling across the TV screen. But what actually causes people to respond to these warnings? Here’s how it works and how you might convince your uncle, for instance, that he really does need to evacuate ahead of the next hurricane. This means it is important for a warning to be more specific than, for example, saying that a tornado is headed toward Eastern Tennessee.

Persons: Kathleen Sherman, Morris Organizations: Mississippi State University Locations: Eastern Tennessee

☆ 23 Shot, 1 Fatally, at a Juneteenth Celebration in Illinois
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | Emma Bubola | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

At least one person was killed and 22 others wounded in a shooting just after midnight Sunday at a large Juneteenth celebration in a strip mall parking lot in Willowbrook, Ill., southwest of Chicago, officials said. Deputies from the DuPage County Sheriff’s Office heard gunfire around 12:30 a.m. and “responded to an area where a large gathering of people was happening,” said Eric Swanson, the deputy chief of the sheriff’s office, at a news conference on Sunday. He said that some victims took themselves to hospitals and others were transported by emergency medical workers. Chief Swanson said the motive behind the shooting was unclear. It was also not clear what types of firearms were used.

Persons: “, ”, Eric Swanson, Swanson Organizations: DuPage County Sheriff’s Locations: Willowbrook, Ill, Chicago, DuPage County

☆ Holmes Says She Can’t Afford $250 Payments to Theranos Victims
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Lawyers for the disgraced entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes said this week that she would be unable to afford to pay $250 each month to victims of her failed-blood testing start-up, Theranos, after leaving prison. Ms. Holmes, 39, began an 11-year, three-month prison sentence in Texas in May after she was found guilty last year of four counts of wire fraud and conspiracy for defrauding investors about her company’s technology and business dealings. Last month, a federal judge in California ordered Ms. Holmes and her former business partner, Ramesh Balwani, to pay $452 million in restitution to investors who were defrauded, including the media mogul Rupert Murdoch. Federal prosecutors asked the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California last week to correct “clerical errors” in court records. One of the suggested corrections would require Ms. Holmes, as part of her restitution, to pay either $250 or at least 10 percent of her earnings, whichever is greater, each month after she is released from prison.

Persons: Elizabeth Holmes, Holmes, Ramesh Balwani, Rupert Murdoch Organizations: U.S, Northern, Northern District of Locations: Texas, California, Northern District, Northern District of California

☆ Starbucks Is Under Scrutiny Over Removal of Pride Decorations
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Remy Tumin | Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A union representing hundreds of Starbucks stores said this week that workers in 21 states were told by their managers not to decorate for Pride Month, the annual L.G.B.T.Q. celebration, a claim that the company said represented “outlier” decisions by local leaders that did not reflect corporate policy. In Manhattan, no Pride decorations could be seen at several Starbucks stores in Chelsea and Greenwich Village, including the one just a block from the Stonewall Inn, a landmark of gay culture and history. One partner, as Starbucks refers to employees, was told by a manager that hanging a rainbow flag might make customers uncomfortable. Others said they were told that if they hung a Pride flag the store could be asked to show equal representation for others, including the Proud Boys, the far-right hate group.

Organizations: Pride Month, Greenwich, Stonewall, Pride Locations: New York City, Manhattan, Chelsea, Wisconsin , Ohio, Virginia

☆ Fire Causes Overpass Collapse and Closes Part of I-95 in Philadelphia
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-11 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Part of Interstate 95 in northeast Philadelphia was shut down in both directions on Sunday morning after a vehicle fire caused part of the highway to collapse, officials said. The fire was under Route I-95 near the Cottman Avenue exit, Sarah Peterson, a spokeswoman for the city of Philadelphia, said in an email. “The fire is under control, and city and state agencies are responding to address impacts to residents in the area and travelers affected by the road closure,” she said. Dominick Mireles, director of the Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management, said at a news conference on Sunday morning that the recovery would require “heavy construction.”

Persons: Sarah Peterson, ”, Dominick Mireles Organizations: Philadelphia Office, Emergency Management Locations: Philadelphia

☆ Spotify to Lay Off 200 Employees in Podcast Strategy Shift
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Spotify, the audio streaming platform, said on Monday that it planned to lay off about 200 people, including workers at the popular podcast studios Gimlet Media and Parcast. The 2 percent cut to the company’s work force is part of a “strategic realignment” of the podcast division, Sahar Elhabashi, the head of podcasts at Spotify, said in a memo to Spotify employees on Monday. Since early 2019, the number of podcast shows on Spotify has grown to more than five million from about 200,000, Ms. Elhabashi said in a revised version of the memo that Spotify posted on its website. That period was a boom era for the podcasting industry, with media companies making large investments to expand their offerings. This flurry of spending has cooled in the last year, with companies cutting podcast jobs and curbing budgets.

Persons: Sahar Elhabashi, Elhabashi Organizations: Spotify, Gimlet Media Locations: Stockholm

☆ Man Missing in Iowa Building Collapse Is Found Dead
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | Livia Albeck-Ripka | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The body of one of three men missing after the partial collapse of an apartment building in Davenport, Iowa, has been recovered a week after a section of the six-story structure collapsed, a spokeswoman for the city said on Sunday. The spokeswoman, Sarah Ott, said in an email that the body of Branden Colvin Sr., 42, was found on Saturday. He is the first person confirmed to have died in the collapse. Two other men — Ryan Hitchcock, 51, and Daniel Prien, 60 — are still missing since part of the building came crashing down on May 28. The city government said in a statement on Thursday that it believed there was “high probability” that the three men could have been “home at the time of the collapse” and that “their apartments were located in the collapse zone.”

Persons: Sarah Ott, Branden Colvin Sr, — Ryan Hitchcock, Daniel Prien Locations: Davenport , Iowa

☆ Explosion-Like Noise Heard Across D.C. Area Was a Sonic Boom, Officials Say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | Livia Albeck-Ripka | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A loud noise that was heard across much of the Washington, D.C., area on Sunday afternoon, including in the suburbs of Virginia and Maryland, was caused by a sonic boom from an authorized Defense Department flight, the Annapolis Office of Emergency Management said. It was not immediately clear where the flight originated, what its purpose was or which branch of the military was operating it. A little after 3 p.m. on Sunday, people said on social media that they had heard a loud boom in Washington, D.C., and in Maryland and Northern Virginia. Many said the noise sounded like an explosion, and some said the boom was so strong that it shook their homes. There was another incident involving an aircraft in the vicinity of the Washington metropolitan area on Sunday, though it was not immediately clear that the two events were related.

Organizations: D.C, Department, Annapolis Office, Emergency Management, Twitter, Washington , D.C, Pentagon Locations: Washington, Virginia, Maryland, Annapolis, Washington ,, Northern Virginia

☆ Hundreds Were Mistakenly Told They Might Have Cancer, Test Company Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A company that developed a blood test that detects dozens of types of cancer has acknowledged that about 400 of its customers were mistakenly told last month that they might have the disease. The company, Grail, said in an emailed statement on Sunday that a vendor it works with had sent hundreds of letters with incorrect test results because of a “software configuration issue” that has since been resolved. The letters went to customers who had recently purchased Grail’s Galleri test, which uses a blood draw to detect a cancer signal shared by 50 types of cancer and is available only by prescription. The problem was not caused by inaccurate test results, Grail said. More than half of the people who received the letter in error had not yet had their blood drawn for the test, the company said.

Persons: Grail

☆ Pentagon Forbids Drag Events on Bases After Republican Criticism
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The Defense Department said on Thursday that it would not host drag shows at U.S. military installations after Republican politicians complained about events scheduled on bases to celebrate Pride Month. Sabrina Singh, deputy press secretary for the department, said in a statement that “drag events” were not a “suitable use” of the department’s resources. The statement did not say how the Pentagon defines a drag event. Drag shows, which have entered the mainstream in recent years, are often a kind of variety performance in which gender assumptions are challenged through dress and makeup, dance and song. Under the department’s ethics regulations, Ms. Singh said “certain criteria must be met for persons or organizations acting in nonfederal capacity” to use the department’s facilities and equipment.

Persons: Sabrina Singh, Singh Organizations: Defense, U.S, Pride, Pentagon

On Monday morning, hours after part of a century-old apartment building crumbled onto a downtown street, officials in Davenport, Iowa, said they were not aware of anyone still trapped in the rubble. Demolition, they said, was “expected to commence” the next day. But by nightfall on Memorial Day, it was clear that Davenport leaders had badly miscalculated: After protesters gathered at the site, rescue crews found a resident inside the building and pulled her to safety. “The immediate question I know people are asking is, ‘How did she get there? And why wasn’t she found earlier?’” Mayor Mike Matson said Tuesday as officials acknowledged that more people remained missing.

Persons: Mike Matson, “, ” Organizations: Fire Department, Davenport Locations: Davenport , Iowa

☆ 2 Are Dead in Suspected Meningitis Outbreak Linked to Surgeries in Mexico
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Two people in the United States have died with probable cases of fungal meningitis and more than 200 others are at risk after an outbreak of the infection among patients who had surgery in Matamoros, Mexico, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday. The people at risk traveled from the United States to the Mexican clinics for surgical procedures that included liposuction, Brazilian butt lifts and breast augmentation. said that as of Friday two people had died who had been classified as having probable cases of fungal meningitis. There were 11 more probable cases of the infection, based on spinal tap results, and 14 suspected cases, based on symptoms consistent with meningitis, the C.D.C. Health authorities in the United States and Mexico have asked the World Health Organization to issue an emergency declaration in response to the outbreak.

☆ Bioré and Influencer Apologize After School Shooting Ad
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The skin care brand Bioré apologized this week after facing criticisms that a paid social media post advertising its products at once trivialized and exploited the issue of gun violence in America. An influencer and graduate of Michigan State University, Cecilee Max-Brown, had posted a TikTok sponsored by Bioré in which she talked about how a shooting on campus in February affected her mental health along with stressors like her post-college career, narrating over videos that show her alternating between exercising, resting and using skin care products. The video was quickly taken down on Friday, less than 24 hours after it was posted, after social media users said it was insensitive and remarked on the startling contrast between the video’s upbeat nature and focus on skin care, and the tragedy it touched on. Ms. Max-Brown said the Michigan State shooting in February had caused her to have anxiety attacks and filled her with “terror” on campus. Three students were killed in the shooting and five others were wounded.

☆ 30 Tons of Explosive Chemicals Lost During Rail Shipment
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Amanda Holpuch | Joshua Needelman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

About 60,000 pounds of ammonium nitrate, a chemical used as a fertilizer and in explosives, went missing on a rail shipment from Wyoming to California in April and has still not been found, officials said. Dyno Nobel, an explosive manufacturing company, notified the federal government of the loss and said in a statement that it was investigating what happened during the nearly two-week journey. The company said the rail car with the material was sealed when it left a manufacturing site in Cheyenne, Wyo., and the seals “were still intact” when it arrived in Saltdale, Calif.“The initial assessment is that a leak through the bottom gate on the rail car may have developed in transit,” the statement said.

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