All results / Stories / Free Press wire reports
Rapper DMX remains on life support
Supporters and family of the rapper DMX chanted his name and offered prayers Monday outside the New York hospital where he remains on life support.
Pivotal church versus state legal battle urged to proceed in high court
Missouri officials and a church embroiled in a closely watched dispute over public money going to religious entities urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to decide the case despite a pivotal policy change by the state’s Republican governor.
Falwell urges students to pack pistols
Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr. has urged students to carry concealed weapons on campus to counter any possible armed attack, saying that “we could end those Muslims before they walk in.” “Let’s teach them a lesson if they ever show up here,” Mr. Falwell told students at the private Christian school Dec. 4. His remarks make him the first president of a Virginia college or university to urge students to arm themselves and put him among the first in the country to do so.
Walmart, Target quit Thanksgiving shopping cold turkey; Black Friday still looms in the air
Forget about rushing out this year on Thanksgiving Day to get a jump on Christmas shopping. Target is joining Walmart in closing its stores Thanksgiving Day, ending a decade-long tradition of jumpstarting Black Friday door buster sales.
Lochte loses sponsors after Olympic embarrassment
U.S. swimmer Ryan Lochte lost the last of his four major sponsors, Japanese mattress maker Airweave, days after he admitted to exaggerating his story about being robbed at gunpoint in Rio during the Olympics. The incident embarrassed the host city, angered the local police and government and dominated news coverage of South America’s first Olympics, leading the U.S. Olympic Committee to issue an apology.
Officials launch probe into B.B. King’s death
Nevada officials said Monday they would conduct a homicide investigation into the death earlier this month of legendary musician B.B. King, after two of his daughters leveled accusations that the blues great was murdered. The Clark County, Nev., coroner’s office said in a post on Twitter that it had taken jurisdiction over Mr. King’s body, and autopsy results would take a minimum of six to eight weeks.
Fidelity launches teen accounts
Looking to draw in the next generation of investors, Fidelity Investments is launching a new type of account for teenagers to save, spend and invest their money.
Basquiat work sells for record $110.5M
A little-seen painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat that sold for $19,000 in 1984 soared to an astounding $110.5 million at Sotheby’s auction of contemporary art last week.
Harris team blindsided by Vogue cover
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris has landed on the cover of the February issue of Vogue magazine, but her team says there’s a problem: The photo of the country’s soon-to-be No. 2 leader isn’t what both sides agreed upon, her team says.
‘Straight’ No.1 for second week
“Straight Outta Compton” continues to connect with movie audiences. It is the No. 1 movie in North America for the second week.
Oprah’s O magazine to end monthly print editions after 20 years
O, The Oprah Magazine is ending its regular monthly print editions with the December issue after 20 years of publication.
Probe finds Trump illegally used foundation as ‘a checkbook’ for his campaign, business
President Trump’s charitable foundation reached a deal Tuesday to go out of business, even as the president continues to fight allegations he misused its assets to resolve business disputes and boost his run for the White House.
Rhiannon Giddens, Taj Mahal and others join ‘Event for the Environment
Fiddler Rhiannon Giddens, a founding member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, bluesman Taj Mahal and more than 200 musical artists will perform next month as part of an online fundraiser for the environment that will be shown on YouTube.
Rev. Jackson in rehab; wife out of ICU
The Rev. Jesse Jackson’s wife has been moved from intensive care back into a regular room at the Chicago hospital where she is being treated for COVID-19, her family said in a statement on Monday.
Trial in ‘Operation Varsity Blues’ college admissions scandal gets underway
The first full trial in the college admissions bribery scandal opened Monday with defense attorneys seeking to portray the two parents accused of buying their childrens’ way into school as victims of a con man who believed their payments were legitimate donations.
Vice President Kamala Harris tests positive for COVID-19
Vice President Kamala Harris tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, the White House announced, underscoring the persistence of the highly contagious virus even as the United States eases restrictions in a bid to return to pre-pandemic normalcy.
Malcolm X bio wins National Book Award
Tamara Payne and her late father Les Payne’s Malcolm X biography, “The Dead Are Arising,” has won the National Book Award for nonfiction.
Charlottesville removes Confederate statues that sparked bloodshed
Cheers erupted last Saturday as a Confederate statue that towered for nearly a century over downtown Charlottesville was carted away by truck from the place where it had become a flashpoint for racist protests and deadly violence.
Backlash supreme
Demonstrations around the country continue as President Trump names U.S. Supreme Court nominee, bans Muslims from U.S.
Just two weeks have passed since his inauguration, and despite a torrent of action, disruption, protests and lawsuits, President Trump has been on a tear to keep campaign promises, uplifting his legions of supporters and dismaying his legions of opponents.
Vanderbilt launches James Lawson Institute or the Research and Study of Nonviolent Movements
Vanderbilt University announced the launch of the James Lawson Institute for the Research and Study of Nonviolent Movements, honoring the 92-year-old influential activist who taught nonviolence to protesters during the civil rights struggles last century.
