Author: Reporter

Crews have begun work to remove the large yellow “Black Lives Matter” painted on the street one block from the White House. DC Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the change in March in response to partisan pressure from MAGA extremists and right-wing Republicans in Congress. The work is expected to take about six weeks and the words will be replaced by an unspecified set of city-sponsored murals. The painting of those words was an act of government-sponsored defiance during President Donald Trump’s first term. The removal amounts to a public acknowledgment of just how vulnerable the District of Columbia is...

As movie theaters worked to entice Americans back into seats after COVID-19 lockdowns and labor strikes, the industry marketed blockbuster films like “Wicked” and the dueling releases of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” as no less than cultural events. But when certain movies become “events” unto themselves, sometimes different behavior accompanies them. During the theatrical run of “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour” last fall, fans danced and belted lyrics in the theaters, sharing their glee on social media. Last year, fans at early screenings of “Wicked” did the same, to the chagrin of other moviegoers. One video of a woman dressed...

Russell Hedrick, a North Carolina farmer, flies drones to spray fertilizers on his corn, soybean, and wheat fields at a fraction of what it would cost him to use a conventional ground spreader. As a volunteer rescuer, Hedrick uses thermal drones to search for people trapped by mudslides and cargo drones to send water and baby formula to those who are stranded — something he did after Hurricane Helene. Now he is fretting that one day he will have to ground his drone fleet. Most commercial drones sold in the United States, including those used by Hedrick, are made...

He wears a black bodysuit and a white mask, speaks in an electronically altered squeaky voice, and makes creepiness his signature mode of art. Uketsu, whose name literally translates to “rain hole,” both words that he loves, is Japan’s latest YouTube star and million-selling mystery writer. And he is beginning to take on the global stage. His knack for making everyone “feel uneasy” is the reason for his success, he told foreign journalists in Tokyo in January. His debut book “Strange Pictures” came out in 30 nations, including in English in the U.S. in January. It sold 1.5 million...

Many U.S. adults believe the federal government is overspending — but polling also shows that many Americans, including Republicans, think the country is spending too little on major government programs such as Social Security. The polls from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research suggest that as President Donald Trump and adviser Elon Musk push for extensive cuts throughout the federal government, slashing funding for humanitarian aid and turning their attention to the Department of Education and the military, Americans may not agree with where Trump and Musk’s cuts should ultimately fall. About two-thirds of Americans say the...