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Musk says Twitter has lost nearly 50 percent of ad revenue, struggling with a 'heavy debt load' 

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

(The Hill) – The financial woes for Twitter appear to be continuing as owner Elon Musk announced the platform is experiencing a nearly 50 percent drop in advertising revenue as it struggles with heavy debt load.  “We’re still negative cash flow, due to ~50% drop in advertising revenue plus heavy debt load. Need to reach positive cash flow before we have the luxury of anything else,” Twitter owner Musk wrote in a tweet Saturday.  Musk, who also serves as CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, acquired Twitter last fall in a $44 billion deal. He served as the social media platform’s CEO before stepping down last month and serving as executive chair and chief technology officer.  Since taking over the company in October, the billionaire made a series of controversial choices, including mass layoffs, firing top executives and launching the Twitter Blue program, which requires users to pay a monthly subscription for the verification check. Musk also pulled back on various...

California's Death Valley reaches 128 degrees

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

Long the hottest place on Earth, Death Valley put a sizzling exclamation point Sunday on a record warm summer that is baking nearly the entire globe by flirting with some of the hottest temperatures ever recorded, meteorologists said.Temperatures in Death Valley, which runs along part of central California's border with Nevada, reached 128 degrees Fahrenheit (53.33 degrees Celsius) on Sunday at the aptly named Furnace Creek, the National Weather Service said.The hottest temperature ever record was 134 F (56.67 C) in July 1913 at Furnace Creek, said Randy Ceverny of the World Meteorological Organization, the body recognized as keeper of world records. Temperatures at or above 130 F (54.44 degrees C) have only been recorded on Earth a handful of times, mostly in Death Valley. ‘Historically strong’ El Niño possible: What it means for winter “With global warming, such temperatures are becoming more and more likely to occur,” Ceverny, the World Meteorological Organi...

City of Austin releases proposed budget for 2023-2024

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- City of Austin Interim City Manager Jesús Garza released his proposed budget for the upcoming fiscal year on Sunday, which forecasts a combined projected increase of 2% in local fees for the typical ratepayer.In his message included in the budget, Garza said the budget is "Back to Basics." "The FY 2023-24 Budget we are proposing is Back to Basics in the sense that we are refocusing on the core services our residents need and expect," Garza said. "To ignite and foster a Back to Basics culture, I moved quickly to evaluate and fundamentally shift the organizational structure of the City. We went beyond an organizational chart – we carefully and critically assessed issues that represent our most significant community challenges, like emergency response, capital project delivery, homelessness and affordability, defining the City’s role, as well as the roles of partner organizations."He said that the $5.5 billion budget also targets the city council's priorities of "affor...

Historic July heatwave intensifies further

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- After recording Austin's hottest Jul. 16 on record Sunday afternoon, we are forecasting a full work week of record high temperatures and the longest-ever stretch of extreme heat in Austin.High temperatures in Austin climbed to 106° at Camp Mabry on Sunday, beating the previous record high of 105° set most recently in 2009.One of the strongest heat domes ever observed is positioned over Las Vegas, NV, sending Death Valley, CA temperatures over 125° on Sunday -- close to the global all-time record of 130°. As this historic heat dome heads eastward and centers itself more directly over Texas this week, we are forecasting a full work week of record high temperatures in Austin and the longest-ever stretch of 105°+ temperatures.Austin's forecast high temperatures this weekSunday was Austin's 7th-consecutive day at or above 105°. We will likely extend the stretch to 12 consecutive days this week, beating the previous record of 9 consecutive days from 1924.Fortunately, the ...

7/16/23: Heat & Humidity will Continue

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

Latest Forecast Update from Meteorologist Rob Lindenmuth:What a hot and sticky afternoon today with highs in the low to mid 80s and plenty of humidity. A few scattered showers and storms are likely this evening before skies turn partly clear. Another hot and humid day is expected for Monday afternoon.We look to see a brief wedge of highs pressure build in for Monday. This will bring us a dry and hot day, but the humidity sticks around and we will be dealing with smoke from wildfires that continue to burn up in Canada. An Air Quality Alert has been issued for the area as the air quality is expected to not be so great through the day on Monday.We will continue to be in this very unsettled weather pattern, no day looks like complete washouts, but we will watch the parade of systems rotating around an upper level low over Hudson Bay. These systems will bring chances for storms almost every day next week.Futurecast shows that Monday will start out on the dry side with partly sunny skies....

Flaherty wins 4th straight start and Cardinals beat Nationals 8-4

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Jack Flaherty won a fourth straight start for the first time in two years, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat Washington 8-4 on Sunday to open the second half by taking two of three from the Nationals.Paul Goldschmidt hit a two-run homer and Nolan Gorman had three hits and two RBIs for St. Louis.Flaherty (7-5) allowed three runs, three hits and three walks in six innings with seven strikeouts. He had not won four starts in a row since an 8-0 stretch from April 7 to May 19, 2021.His hot streak this year followed a slump in which he went 0-1 over four starts.Chris Stratton pitched a perfect seventh and Kyle Leahy relieved after a 38-minute rain delay. Leahy got one out and JoJo Romero the final five.Nationals All-Star Josiah Gray (6-8) gave up four runs and 10 hits in five innings.Keibert Ruiz homered in the second, ending Flaherty's 13 2/3 innings scoreless streak.Run-scoring singles by Andrew Knizner, Brendan Donovan and Lars Nootbaar in the fourth built a 3-1 lead fo...

Missouri-born sharks arrive at SEA LIFE Kansas City, and you can help name them

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Three new Bonnethead sharks arrived at SEA LIFE Kansas City this week from Missouri's Wonders of Wildlife, where they were born."They're actually the only sharks that we know of to eat vegetation. That's why our friends at Wonders of Wildlife in Springfield, Missouri, fed them rabbit food to make sure that they grow happy and healthy," Guest Experience Supervisor Lauren Szala said.The adult father and his two 11-month-old sons will live inside the shark sanctuary at SEA LIFE, giving families an up-close look at the endangered species."His favorite show is Finding Nemo, so we're here for sharks, and we're here for Crash the Turtle," one visitor said. Thousands without power in north St. Louis County after storms Visitors can also learn about conservation efforts and see the Summer of Sharks experience through August 31."There are things we can do to help, like choose reusable water bottles and straws, recycle the plastic you do use and help keep litter out of the...

Mexican journalist who survived 2019 assassination attempt killed near Acapulco; adds to growing list of slain reporters

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Another journalist was killed in Mexico on Saturday, adding to a growing list of reporters who have lost their lives amid an intensifying drug war in the country, authorities and a press freedom organization said.Nelson Matus was shot to death on the fringes of Acapulco in southwestern Mexico, officials and Article 19 confirmed. Matus had been the director of a local news organization, Lo Real de Guerrero, which covered the intensifying violence in the Mexican state of Guerrero. He had already survived an assassination attempt in 2019, according to Article 19. Local authorities said they were investigating the killing.Matus’ death comes just a week after the grisly killing of another journalist in western Mexico, something the Committee to Protect Journalists said “underscores the crisis of deadly violence and impunity that continues to plague the Mexican press.”Marta Durán, a Mexican journalist, reads a statement during a protest to demand justice after the murd...

Oakland A’s let another close game slip away as losing skid hits seven straight

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

OAKLAND – Oakland’s top starter JP Sears went six and 1/3rd innings, the top prospects Tyler Soderstrom and Zack Gelof both had hits and designated hitter Jordan Diaz mashed a home run and had two RBIs. And yet, the A’s, a team known for futility, still found another unique and painful way to lose a baseball game on Sunday afternoon. The Twins still earned the series sweep 5-4 thanks to another poor showing by A’s relief pitching.The A’s led for six innings while starter JP Sears struck out seven and kept Minnesota’s offense under control, aside from home runs by Christian Vasquez and Alex Kirilloff in the fifth inning. But after Sears began to falter, manager Mark Kotsay asked San Jose native Lucas Erceg to preserve a one-run lead. As it has done so many times this season, the bullpen collapsed in a high-pressure situation. Kirilloff cleared the bases with a three-RBI double to give Minnesota a 5-3 lead, and the Twins’ bullpen took care of business afterward to stay ato...

Milpitas man charged with insider trading relating to the results of Pfizer’s trial for Paxlovid

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:17:39 GMT

A 45-year-old Milpitas man was one of two individuals charged last month with insider trading relating to clinical trial results for the COVID-19 drug Paxlovid, officials said.On June 29, Atul Bhiwapurkar was arrested and charged with two counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, according to the United States Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of New York. Each count of securities fraud carries a maximum sentence of 20 years and a count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.On Nov. 4, Amit Dagar of Hillsborough, New Jersey — the other person charged in the case — learned that a Pfizer trial of Paxlovid had produced positive results. Dagar was an employee of Pfizer and managed data analysis for clinical drug trials. The results of the trial were supposed to remain private until the company announced them on Nov. 5, but according to the indictment, Dagar purchased ...