A’s release renderings of new Las Vegas domed stadium that resembles famous Sydney Opera House
LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Oakland Athletics and their design teams released renderings Tuesday of the club’s planned $1.5 billion stadium in Las Vegas that show five overlapping layers with a similar look to the famous Sydney Opera House. The A’s hope to move into that 33,000-seat domed stadium in 2028. A glass window beyond the outfield provides an outdoor feel with views of the Las Vegas Strip. Also included is an 18,000-square-foot video board, which would be the largest in Major League Baseball, and layered roof resembling the Sydney Opera House.
Liberty University will pay $14 million, the largest fine ever levied under the federal Clery Act
The U.S. Department of Education says Liberty University has agreed to pay an unprecedented $14 million fine after the large Christian school in Virginia failed to disclose information about crimes on campus. Those crimes included sexual assault. Liberty marketed itself as having one of the safest campuses. The fine is by far the largest under the Clery Act., a federal law that requires universities to collect crime data and notify students of threats. Before Tuesday, the largest Clery Act fine was $4.5 million against Michigan State. That matter involved campus doctor Larry Nassar, who had molested elite gymnasts and other female athletes.
Booth where Tony Soprano may – or may not – have been whacked sells for a cool $82K to mystery buyer
BLOOMFIELD, N.J. (AP) — The New Jersey ice cream parlor booth where Tony Soprano may or may not have been whacked has sold for more than $82,000. An anonymous buyer won an online auction Monday night for the piece of memorabilia that occupies an outsize role in the lore of the award-winning HBO series. That’s particularly because it was where the “Sopranos” crime boss was sitting when the series ended by cutting to black, outraging many viewers and claiming a place in TV history. Ron Stark, co-owner of Holsten’s in Bloomfield, says the money will go toward renovating the dining area of the shop that opened in 1939.
Fire chief in Texas city hit hard by wildfires dies while fighting a house fire
Authorities say a Texas fire chief whose small town was among the hardest hit last week by historic blazes sweeping across the Panhandle died while fighting a house fire. An official said that the house fire that Fritch Fire Chief Zeb Smith responded to Tuesday morning wasn’t caused by a wildfire, but added that the 40-year-old had been battling the wildfires for over a week. An autopsy has been ordered to determine his cause of death. Firefighters are still trying to extinguish wildfires that have been burning across the Panhandle, which includes the largest wildfire in Texas history.
V-J Day ‘Kiss’ photo stays on display as VA head reverses department memo that would’ve banned it
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Veterans Affairs secretary is reversing a department memo that aimed to ban VA displays of the iconic “V-J Day in Times Square” photograph showing a Navy sailor kissing a strange woman on the streets of New York at the end of World War II. VA Secretary Denis McDonough acted Tuesday hours after a copy of a memo from a VA undersecretary requesting the photo’s removal from VA health facilities was shared on social media. The memo said the removal was sought because the photo “depicts a non-consensual act” and is inconsistent with the department’s sexual harassment policy. McDonough has tweeted out a copy of the image and says “we will keep it in VA facilities.”
Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and Threads logins restored after widespread outage
A technical issue had caused widespread login issues for more than an hour across Meta’s Facebook, Instagram, Threads and Messenger platforms on Tuesday. Andy Stone, Meta’s head communications, acknowledged the issues on X, formerly known as Twitter, and said the company “resolved the issue as quickly as possible for everyone who was impacted, and we apologize for any inconvenience.”
Caitlin Clark’s record-setting game draws top women’s basketball regular-season TV rating since 1999
Fox Sports says Caitlin Clark’s record-setting game for Iowa against Ohio State on Sunday attracted more than 4 million television viewers at its peak and was the most watched women’s regular-season basketball game since 1999. Clark scored 35 points and passed Pete Maravich as the NCAA Division I overall career scoring leader during the Hawkeyes’ 93-83 win. Average viewership was 3.39 million and reached a high of 4.42 million late in the second half. Clark set the record with two free throws just before halftime. The game attracted more eyeballs than the Golden State Warriors-Boston Celtics game on ABC.
What is a whale native to the North Pacific doing off New England? Climate change could be the key
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Scientists have confirmed the presence of a whale off New England that went extinct in the Atlantic Ocean two centuries ago. They say it’s an exciting discovery, but one that illustrates the impact of climate change on sea life. Researchers with the New England Aquarium in Boston found the gray whale while flying 30 miles south of Nantucket, Massachusetts, on Friday. Gray whales typically live in the northern Pacific Ocean. But there have been five observations of the animal in Atlantic and Mediterranean waters in the last 15 years. The Northwest Passage has lacked ice in the summertime in recent years, thereby allowing whales to go from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic.
Homes near St. Louis County creek are being tested after radioactive contamination found in yards
ST. LOUIS (AP) — A federal agency is examining soil beneath homes in a small suburban St. Louis subdivision to determine if residents are living atop Cold War era nuclear contamination. But activists say the testing needs to be far more widespread. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has begun testing six properties that sit near Coldwater Creek, a meandering waterway contaminated after nuclear waste was dumped there in the 1960s. Corps officials do not believe any other homes in the area need to be tested. Activists with Just Moms STL, a group that for decades has advocated for cleanup of nuclear waste sites, disagree, noting that the creek runs for several miles, with many homes backing up to it.
Dodge muscle cars live on with new versions of the Charger powered by electricity or gasoline
DETROIT (AP) — America’s muscle car culture is adapting to the new world of electric vehicles, but the gasoline-powered high-performance road beasts will be around for at least a few more years. Dodge on Tuesday unveiled two battery-powered versions of the Charger muscle car that will still roar like a big V8 engine but not emit pollution from the tailpipe. However the Stellantis performance brand will keep selling a gas-powered Charger as well, with a six-cylinder engine instead of the big Hemi V8. Both will be built on Stellantis’ global large vehicle underpinnings. The Windsor, Ontario, factory that will manufacture them will be able to flex between gasoline and electric depending on consumer demand. The flexibility will let Stellantis hedge its bets if electric vehicle sales take off or slow.