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Efforts to deceive are a top concern for election officials heading into 2024

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Efforts to deceive the public about voting and elections remain a top concern for state election officials as they dig into preparations for the 2024 election.Misinformation and the emergence of generative artificial intelligence tools to create false and misleading content were cited in interviews with several secretaries of state gathered recently for their national conference. Colorado among best states for EV and hybrid adoption Other top concerns were staffing and the loss of experienced leaders overseeing elections at the local level. The officials were gathered in Washington for the annual summer conference of the National Association of Secretaries of State.“The cliché here is true,” said Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon, a Democrat. “You hope for the best, but plan for the worst. So, we’re planning for the worst, which is that multiple communications channels will be filled with false and misleading information.”AI concerns Colorado election off...

Video shows man stealing 2 guitars worth $2K each from Fort Lauderdale music store

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

The owner of a music store in Fort Lauderdale hopes clear surveillance video will help police catch the man who grabbed two pricey guitars during business hours and took off.Ken Katz, the owner of Music Arts Enterprises, spoke with 7News on Saturday about the theft.“Blatantly, brazenly just ran out the front,” he said.Surveillance video captured the subject as he took the guitars moments after he walked into the store, located along the 3300 block of Davie Boulevard, at around 5 p.m., Monday.Katz said the thief picked two of his most expensive instruments.“He came into this room first and looked at price tags and proceeded to rob by price,” he said.The price tag: about $2,000 each.“And the people that we deal with are just the best people,” said Katz. “I hate to see something like this happen and take the wind out of the sails of the people who work here.”After the thief ran out, Katz said, he hopped into a dark colored sedan with tint...

Investigation underway after 3 people stabbed near Mass Ave. & Melnea Cass

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

Boston police are investigating a triple stabbing near Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard on Saturday morning, officials said.Officers responding to a reported stabbing around noon found two people injured, including one suffering from life-threatening injuries, according to Boston police.Another victim walked to the hospital.No additional information was immediately available.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWs on-air and online for the latest details.

Methuen, Dedham win Northeast 7v7 North regional titles

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

EXETER, N.H. — Methuen came into Saturday’s Northeast 7v7 North regional as a wanted team. With regional wins in each of the last two years, the Rangers were not sneaking up on anyone.Would the Rangers have enough firepower to do it again? Why, of course they would.Methuen beat Central (R.I.) in the open division final at Exeter High School to grab the program’s third straight Northeast 7v7 regional title. The Rangers will have a chance to compete for the New England title.Dedham won the small school crown.“I think we have a depth of skill kids,” Methuen coach Tom Ryan said. “That’s what you need. It’s so hot. If you have a lot of depth at the skill positions, you’ve got a chance. If you don’t, the heat will get you. And, having a great quarterback helps, too.”That great quarterback was rising senior Drew Eason. He was tremendous, and is poised for a big year. He picked apart a good Central team in the final, with accuracy ...

BOOK: Yankees Aaron Judge’s quest to break Roger Maris’ home run record was pursuit of history

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

You didn’t have to be a Yankees fan to appreciate history being made last summer.Even those misguided souls who hate the Bronx Bombers were invested. As it became apparent that Aaron Judge could break Roger Maris’ American League home run record, the baseball world focused on the outfielder’s quest.On Oct. 4, Judge hit a slider and made the record books. Bryan Hoch details this journey in “62: Aaron Judge, the New York Yankees, and the Pursuit of Greatness.”There’s deep reporting here and an appreciation for the sport’s history. Sometimes this is so detailed that it defines insider baseball. Few true fans, though, would pass on learning more. What comes through is a portrait of a focused, honorable man.It’s not as if Yankees fans just noticed Judge last season. The powerful outfielder carries himself with grace and always puts the team first. In 2017, he slammed 52 home runs, earning the title of Rookie of the Year.Last season, though,...

Column: Like the weather in Chicago, the Cubs’ ‘buy or sell’ mode can change by the minute

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

As one of baseball’s most prominent in-between teams, the sub-.500 Chicago Cubs have teetered between being buyers and sellers as the Aug. 1 trade deadline nears.With a team that alternates between dominant stretches and periods during which they look like they’ll never win again, Cubs President Jed Hoyer faces enormous pressure deciding which way to go.Buy? Sell? Stand pat?Hoyer has been asked the same question for more than a month now. “I don’t want this to be a day-to-day assessment-type thing,” Hoyer said Friday. “It’s baseball.”Hoyer is absolutely correct. Obviously, a better way to approach the question of whether to buy or sell and the trade deadline would be an inning-by-inning assessment-type thing.So here’s our inning-by-inning analysis of what Hoyer should do, based on Saturday’s 10-4 victory against the Boston Red Sox at Wrigley Field.First inning: Marcus Stroman, the Cubs’ best trading chip, skates throu...

Leominster’s Lavender Darcangelo earns golden buzzer on America’s Got Talent

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

LEOMINSTER – Tears of joy streamed down Lavender Darcangelo’s face after America’s Got Talent judge Heidi Klum hit the golden buzzer in response to the talented young woman’s incredibly moving performance.Fitchburg resident Lavender Darcangelo, seen here with dad Wil Darcangelo, wowed the judges and audience during her performance on the America’s Got Talent auditions episode that aired on July 11. (COURTESY TRAE PATTON/NBC)All four judges and the entire audience gave Lavender a standing ovation during the auditions episode that aired this past Tuesday after she closed the show by singing “Out Here on My Own” by Irene Cara from the musical “Fame,” a song with uplifting lyrics that match the 27-year-old phenom’s positive attitude.The blind and autistic vocalist and disability advocate is a Fitchburg native who lives in Leominster and said onstage she dreams of building “a school where the classes are based off of what kids are naturally curious at, so a school I would have thri...

Fargo police don’t yet have a motive for the shooting that killed 1 officer and injured 2

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

FARGO, N.D. (AP) — A gunman opened fire on police and firefighters “for no known reason” as they responded to a traffic crash in North Dakota, killing one officer and wounding two others before another officer killed him, Fargo’s police chief said Saturday. Chief David Zibolski said officer Jake Wallin, a military veteran, was killed in the shooting Friday afternoon. Two other officers, Andrew Dotas and Tyler Hawes, were wounded. A fourth officer, Zach Robinson, shot and killed the suspect, Zibolski said.A 25-year-old woman was also injured, but authorities did not say who shot her. The gunman did not hit any firefighters, Zibolski said, but a fire truck was struck by gunfire. Zibolski identified the suspect as Mohamad Barakat, 37, of Fargo, but provided few details about him or the shooting, citing officials’ desire to protect the investigation. He said he was confident authorities would eventually determine the motive.“The first thing we always want to know in a situation like thi...

More than 8,000 Quebec households still without power following severe storm

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

MONTREAL — Power outages persist in the Montreal area 48 hours after severe thunderstorms ripped through southern Quebec, downing trees, snapping poles and breaking wires.Hydro-Québec reports more than 8,100 customers are still without power as of Saturday afternoon, down from more than 20,000 earlier in the day and a Thursday evening peak of more than 300,000.There are 182 ongoing outages, down from more than 500 Saturday morning, with most remaining blackouts in Montreal and the regions to its north and south. The utility company said Saturday morning that work to repair the electricity network in some isolated areas could last until the beginning of next week.Around 400 Hydro-Québec teams were in the field working to restore electricity to affected areas Saturday.Thursday’s storm also caused localized flooding in Montreal, where a city spokesperson said some neighbourhoods received a month’s worth of rain in less than two hours.This report by The Canadian Press was fi...

Yellen is visiting India yet again to promote closer ties and tackle global economic problems

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:50 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — On the heels of a trip to Beijing, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is back in India for the third time in nine months, this time to meet finance ministers from the Group of 20 nations about global economic challenges like the increased threat of debt defaults facing low-income countries.Yellen will use her time in Gandhinagar to try to foster warming relations between the U.S. and India. She also plans a stop in Hanoi, Vietnam, to address supply chain reliability, clean energy transition and other matters of economic resilience.Yellen’s goals for her time in India: press for debt restructuring in developing countries in economic distress, push to modernize global development banks to make them more climate-focused and deepen the ever-growing U.S.-India relationship.Yellen’s frequent stops in the country signal the importance of that relationship at a time of of tensions with China. India’s longstanding relationship with Russia also will loom as the Kreml...