VOL. 45 | NO. 40 | Friday, October 1, 2021
RICHARD COURTNEY: REALTY CHECK
Veteran and award-winning sports writer Joe Biddle often led his columns with “Random Ruminations while wondering whatever happened to (insert formerly famous celebrity here).” While lacking his talent, there are times when randomness needs to fall onto the printed page and, with apologies to Joe, I shall ruminate.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Average long-term mortgage rates rose jumped this week as the benchmark 30-year loan edged over 3%.
TENNESSEE TITANS
It can be hard for a 6-7, 310-pound man to be humbled. But that is exactly what happened to Titans left tackle Taylor Lewan as he recalls the debacle of the season opener when he gave up three sacks to Chandler Jones of Arizona.
Mission accomplished as far as getting a leg up in the AFC South race. By virtue of their victory at home against the Colts Sunday, the Titans have established themselves as the clear early favorite in an AFC South that is severely lacking currently.
The Titans head to New York with a 2-1 mark to face the lowly New York Jets, who are still looking for their first win of the season. Here are the keys to a Titans victory Sunday in the Big Apple.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Wide receivers Julio Jones and A.J. Brown are among six Titans who won't play Sunday against the New York Jets.
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Titans already have a second replacement kicker on the roster with the first on injured reserve, and now they have a second punter.
UT SPORTS
It was a long shot for Tennessee to secure the first SEC victory of the Josh Heupel era against Florida in The Swamp.
BRIEFS
A new economic report from Middle Tennessee State University shows the state’s housing market continues to show signs of a recovery from the impact of COVID-19.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
The fully redesigned 2022 Honda Civic, which is now at dealerships, will certainly be of interest for many small-sedan shoppers. After all, the Civic has been one of the most popular cars sold in America for decades.
BUSINESS BOOK REVIEW
Now, lookit here. There’s something you need to know, eyes forward and listen, keep an open mind and a shut mouth and pay attention.
CAREER CORNER
Working from an office used to be normal. But that time is so far in the past that it would be naive to think we will ever go back to our former state.
PERSONAL FINANCE
Whether you call it “The Great Resignation,” “The Great Reshuffle” or just high time for a change, millions of American workers are looking for new jobs – and some have already quit the ones they have. Better pay isn’t necessarily the motivator, labor experts say. Many people are seeking greater flexibility, the ability to work remotely or other nonfinancial benefits.
MILLENNIAL MONEY
When was the last time you made a sound decision while wiping away tears? Or shaking in fury? Or sweating with stress?
SPORTS
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Rick Byrd, who retired in 2019 after leading Belmont to eight NCAA Tournament appearances, will receive the John R. Wooden Legends of Coaching award.
EDUCATION
The Biden administration is moving to relax the rules for a student loan forgiveness program that has been criticized for its notoriously complex requirements — a change that could offer debt relief to thousands of teachers, social workers, military members and other public servants.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department is poised to sue government contractors and other companies who receive U.S. government grants if they fail to report breaches of their cyber systems, the department's No. 2 official said Wednesday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments about the government's ability to keep what it says are state secrets from a man who was tortured by the CIA following 9/11 and is now held at the Guantanamo Bay detention center.
AUTO INDUSTRY
WARREN, Mich. (AP) — General Motors plans to cash in as the world switches from combustion engines to battery power, promising to double its annual revenue by 2030 with an array of new electric vehicles, profitable gas-powered cars and trucks, and services such as an electronic driving system that can handle most tasks on the road.
REAL ESTATE
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Chandra Dobbs was stunned when the constable showed up on her doorstep with a fat packet of eviction papers. She thought she had more time.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is trying to prevent evictions from public housing for nonpayment of rent, seeking to shore up protections following the end of the nationwide eviction moratorium.
ENVIRONMENT
WASHINGTON (AP) — In the latest reversal of a Trump-era environmental rollback, President Joe Biden is restoring federal regulations guiding environmental reviews of major infrastructure projects such as highways and pipelines. The reviews were scaled back by the Trump administration in a bid to fast-track the projects.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California has been a leader in restricting offshore oil drilling since the infamous 1969 Santa Barbara spill that sparked the modern environmental movement, and the latest spill off Huntington Beach is prompting fresh calls for an end to such drilling.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — An anchored cargo ship in the Pacific is not a fixed point — it's different than parking a car. Even then, with a multi-ton anchor and brawny steel chains resting on the seabed, the massive vessels can move from shifting winds, ocean currents and tides.
BENICIA, Calif. (AP) — The machine Ted Bowman helped design can make water out of the air, and in parched California, some homeowners are already buying the pricey devices.
MEDIA
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — An Australian review of defamation laws will likely examine whether platforms such as Facebook should be liable for users' defamatory posts, the communications minister said on Wednesday.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Donna Weiner looks at Medicare's prescription drug program from two different points of view.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
PHOENIX (AP) — Eight days into the school year, all five of Amber Cessac's daughters, ages 4 to 10, had tested positive for COVID-19.
MOSCOW (AP) — Russia's daily coronavirus death toll surpassed 900 on Wednesday for the first time in the pandemic, a record that comes amid the country's low vaccination rate and the government's reluctance to impose tough restrictions to control new cases.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Stocks are closing slightly higher on Wall Street Wednesday as investors shook off a bout of volatility after nearly a week of high volatility.
NEW YORK (AP) — Running out of time to get its products on store shelves ahead of the holidays, the Basic Fun toy company made an unprecedented decision: It's leaving one-third of its iconic Tonka Mighty Dump Trucks destined for the U.S. in China.
LONDON (AP) — Amazon on Wednesday opened its first general store outside the United States in a mall in Britain, selling the online retailer's most popular products including books, toys, games and consumer electronics.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Saudi Arabia's oil company Aramco reached a $2 trillion valuation as it hit near record levels Wednesday during trading hours.
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union on Wednesday urged member countries to provide relief funds to consumers and small businesses hit hardest by rising gas and electricity prices, as criticism mounts that the bloc's climate change fighting policies are fueling the problem.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
ZURICH (AP) — President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are expected to hold a virtual working meeting before year's end, according to a senior Biden administration official.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden enlisted top business leaders Wednesday to push for immediately suspending the federal debt limit, saying the approaching Oct. 18 deadlines creates the risk of a historic default that would be like a "meteor" that could crush the economy and financial markets.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats' push for a 10-year, $3.5 trillion package of social and environmental initiatives has reached a turning point, with the president repeatedly conceding that the measure will be considerably smaller and pivotal lawmakers flashing potential signs of flexibility.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Some politicians think they've found a silver bullet for the impasse over the debt limit, except the bullet is made of platinum: Mint a $1 trillion coin, token of all tokens, and use it to flood the treasury with cash and drive Republicans crazy.
WASHINGTON (AP) — To get around Republican obstruction, President Joe Biden said Tuesday that Democrats are considering a change to the Senate's filibuster rules in order to quickly approve lifting the nation's debt limit and avoid what would be a devastating credit default.
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 28
PREDATORS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Nashville assistant coach Todd Richards is recovering from a heart attack.
STATEWIDE
Gov. Bill Lee today unveiled the state’s next standard license plate chosen by Tennesseans through a statewide vote.
RELIGION
A top committee of the Southern Baptist Convention agreed Tuesday to open up legally protected records to investigators who will look into how it handled, or mishandled, cases of sexual abuse within the nation's largest Protestant denomination over the past two decades.
TOURISM
ONEIDA (AP) — Crews have begun working on two projects in the Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area along the border of Tennessee and Kentucky.
COURTS
Facebook is asking a federal court to dismiss a revised complaint against it by the Federal Trade Commission, arguing that the agency has not provided enough evidence to show that the company is a monopoly.
AUTO INDUSTRY
WARREN, Mich. (AP) — General Motors says it's building a huge new electric vehicle battery lab in Michigan where scientists will work on chemistry to cut costs 60% over current vehicles and allow people to travel 500 to 600 miles (800 to 965 kilometers) per charge.
ENVIRONMENT
WASHINGTON (AP) — Much of the world is unprepared for the floods, hurricanes and droughts expected to worsen with climate change and urgently needs better warning systems to avert water-related disasters, according to a report by the United Nations' weather agency.
MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that "the hysteria" engulfing European energy markets has been driven by insufficient investment in energy industries, arguing that the world needs a smoother transition to green energy technologies.
BERLIN (AP) — A major shipping industry group said Tuesday that its members will aim for "net-zero" carbon emissions by 2050, following a commitment to the same goal by the world's airline industry a day earlier.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Dr. Francis S. Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health for 12 years, said Tuesday he is stepping down, capping a career in which he directed crucial research into the human genome and the fight against serious diseases like cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes and COVID-19.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration reversed a ban on abortion referrals by family planning clinics, lifting a Trump-era restriction as political and legal battles over abortion grow sharper from Texas to the U.S. Supreme Court.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
WASHINGTON (AP) — Johnson & Johnson asked the Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday to allow extra shots of its COVID-19 vaccine as the U.S. government moves toward expanding its booster campaign to millions more vaccinated Americans.
LONDON (AP) — AstraZeneca, the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker that developed one of the first COVID-19 vaccines, has asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to authorize the emergency use of an antibody treatment to prevent the disease.
WASHINGTON (AP) — With just weeks remaining before federal workers must be vaccinated against COVID-19, the federal government on Monday outlined procedures for employees to request medical or religious exemptions from President Joe Biden's mandate.
DALLAS (AP) — Southwest Airlines on Monday became the latest U.S. airline to require its employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
WASHINGTON (AP) — All civilians who work for the Defense Department and the military services must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 by Nov. 22, under new guidelines released Monday.
MOSCOW (AP) — Coronavirus deaths in Russia hit a record for the third time this month on Tuesday, and new infections once again exceeded 25,000 a day — a surge that comes as vaccination rates in the country remain stagnantly low and the government shuns imposing tough restrictions to stem the spread.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Stocks are closing with solid gains on Wall Street Tuesday, erasing most of the previous day's losses.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Work at all of the Kellogg Company's U.S. cereal plants came to a halt Tuesday as roughly 1,400 workers went on strike, but it wasn't immediately clear how much the supply of Frosted Flakes or any of the company's other iconic brands would be disrupted.
SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — The U.S. services sector, where most Americans work, grew again in September even as supply chain troubles persisted.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the International Monetary Fund says the agency is trimming its forecast for global growth this year.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the International Monetary Fund says the agency is trimming its forecast for global growth this year.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. trade deficit increased to a record $73.3 billion in August as a small gain in exports was swamped by a much larger increase in imports.
WASHINGTON (AP) — An independent investigator will look into whether Federal Reserve officials broke the law with financial trades last year that have come under congressional scrutiny and sharp criticism from outside the central bank.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Calls grew Monday for an end to the financial secrecy that has allowed many of the world's richest and most powerful people to hide their wealth from tax collectors.
Film and television production in North America is in jeopardy of coming to a standstill after its behind-the-scenes workers overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike for the first time in its 128-year history.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The International Monetary Fund said Monday its board of directors has been briefed by attorneys from the law firm whose investigation found that current IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and other officials pressured World Bank employees to alter data affecting the business rankings of China and other nations.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — A former Facebook data scientist told Congress on Tuesday that the social network giant's products harm children and fuel polarization in the U.S., adding that its executives refuse to change because they elevate profits over safety. And she said responsibility for that lies right at the top, with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is shifting strategy to sell his ambitious social spending plans by traveling outside Washington and courting moderate Democrats who are key to hopes for any deal.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Merrick Garland on Monday directed federal authorities to hold strategy sessions in the next 30 days with law enforcement to address the increasing threats targeting school board members, teachers and other employees in the nation's public schools.
MONDAY, OCTOBER 4
UT SPORTS
KNOXVILLE (AP) — Hendon Hooker has played well enough to finally earn the starting quarterback job at Tennessee.
TENNESSEE TITANS
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee Titans are banged up, can't protect their quarterback and just lost to a previously winless team.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — It seemed just about every time Ryan Tannehill dropped back to throw, there was another New York Jets defender in his face.
NASHVILLE SC
HARRISON, N.J. (AP) — Joe Willis made three saves to help Nashville tie New York City FC 0-0 on Sunday in a match between two of the Eastern Conference's top teams.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee officials say they are receiving more than $116,000 in federal funding to address the mental health needs of victims of deadly flooding in August.
As Congress considered a massive COVID-19 relief package earlier this year, hundreds of mayors from across the U.S. pleaded for "immediate action" on billions of dollars targeted to shore up their finances and revive their communities.
REGION
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky's bourbon industry is signaling that it's increasingly bullish on its future after reaching new production heights despite the COVID-19 pandemic and trade disputes in key overseas markets.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Monday affirmed a lower court ruling that said District of Columbia residents are not entitled to voting representation in the House of Representatives.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Monday said it would not get involved in a lawsuit over a disputed Pentagon cloud computing contract, a decision that follows the contract's cancellation earlier this year.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court returned to the courtroom Monday for the start of a momentous new term, after a nearly 19-month absence because of the coronavirus pandemic.
REAL ESTATE
The Treasury Department on Monday announced plans to start reallocating the billions of dollars in federal rental assistance in a bid to get more money into the hands of tenants facing eviction.
AUTO INDUSTRY
LONDON (AP) — Swedish automaker Volvo said Monday it plans to raise at least 25 billion kroner ($2.9 billion) by selling shares to fund its electric vehicle transformation strategy.
ENVIRONMENT
MANCHESTER, England (AP) — All Britain's electricity will come from renewable sources by 2035, the governing Conservatives announced Monday, saying the move would help end the country's reliance on imported fuel.
MEDIA
NEW YORK (AP) — The CEO of Ozy Media on Monday said it had been "premature" to shut down and that he wants the media company to keep operating.
RELIGION
VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis and dozens of religious leaders on Monday signed a joint appeal to governments to commit to ambitious targets at the upcoming U.N. climate conference, while promising to do their own part to lead their faithful into more sustainable behavior.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
LONDON (AP) — Simplified international travel rules took effect Monday in the U.K., easing quarantine and testing requirements for fully vaccinated travelers from more than 50 countries, and the Conservative government vowed it will seek to regularly expand the rules to more nations.
NEW YORK (AP) — New York City teachers and other school staff members are supposed to be vaccinated against COVID-19 when the bell rings Monday morning, in one of the first school district mandates in the country requiring employees to be inoculated against the coronavirus.
MOSCOW (AP) — Russia on Sunday reported a record daily death toll from COVID-19, the fifth time in a week that deaths have hit a new high.
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand's government acknowledged Monday what most other countries did long ago: It can no longer completely get rid of the coronavirus.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Stocks are closing lower Monday as big technology companies such as Apple and Microsoft take losses.
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Oil prices jumped Monday after OPEC and allied oil producing countries stayed with their gradual approach to restoring output slashed during the pandemic, agreeing to add only 400,000 barrels per day in November.
MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Britain's Brexit minister threatened Monday to trigger a contentious break clause in the U.K.'s divorce deal with the European Union — a move that would send the U.K.'s already chilly relations with its huge neighbor into a deep freeze.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden urged Republican senators to "get out of the way" and let Democrats suspend the nation's debt limit, hoping to keep the U.S. government from bumping dangerously close to a credit default as Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell refuses to lend his party's help.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Most people in the U.S. want to see Afghans who worked with Americans offered resettlement in the United States, a new poll shows, confirming support across political divides for former military translators and others struggling to escape Taliban rule.
WASHINGTON (AP) — It's one of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's favorite sayings, a guidepost for Democrats in trying times: "Our diversity is our strength. Our unity is our power."
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 1
STATE GOVERNMENT
NASHVILLE (AP) — The top two leaders of Tennessee's General Assembly announced Friday that they are working to address legislation regarding COVID-19 topics during the upcoming legislative session that will be held later this month.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Republican Gov. Bill Lee is calling the General Assembly back to the Capitol to address funding, buildout and oversight of a $5.6 billion campus where Ford Motor Co. plans to build electric F-Series pickup trucks at the Memphis Regional Megasite industrial complex.
RELIGION
NASHVILLE (AP) — A top Southern Baptist Convention committee is facing mounting pressure from within the denomination to move forward without further delay an investigation into how it handled sexual abuse allegations.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Justice Brett Kavanaugh tested positive for COVID-19 despite being vaccinated, the Supreme Court said Friday. The court said the 54-year-old justice has no symptoms.
MEMPHIS (AP) — A jury on Thursday convicted a Tennessee state senator charged with using federal grant money awarded to a health care school she operated on her wedding, a political campaign event and other personal expenses.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Scarlett Johansson and the Walt Disney Co. on Thursday settled her lawsuit over the streaming release of "Black Widow," bringing a swift end to what had begun as the first major fight between a studio and star over recent changes in rollout plans for films.
REAL ESTATE
A revamped U.S. flood insurance program going into effect this month will charge rates the federal government says better reflect a home's risk, a change that could mean higher premiums for coastal mansions and -- for the first time -- reduced rates for others.
MEDIA
Nineteen-year-old Gigi Painter hopes Facebook's planned "Instagram Kids" never becomes a reality.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — In a normal month before the pandemic, Con Paulos' Chevy dealership in Jerome, Idaho, sold around 40 new vehicles. In September, it was only six. Now he's got nothing new in stock, and every car, truck or SUV on order has been sold.
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Shareholders in Daimler AG, maker of Mercedes-Benz luxury cars, on Friday approved the spinoff of the company's truck division, a move intended to let the world's largest maker of trucks react faster to change and focus on the new low-emission technologies transforming the automotive industry.
Foxconn Technology Group, the world's largest electronics maker, has a deal to buy a huge auto assembly plant in Ohio from startup electric truck maker Lordstown Motors, the companies announced Thursday.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration on Thursday put final touches on consumer protections against so-called "surprise" medical bills. The ban on charges that hit insured patients at some of life's most vulnerable moments is on track to take effect Jan. 1, officials said.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
For months, Maria Cristina was hesitant about getting a COVID-19 vaccine. Her fears came from social media, where she heard ample amounts of misinformation about what was in the vaccine and what it could do to her.
WASHINGTON (AP) — In a potential leap forward in the global fight against the pandemic, drugmaker Merck said Friday that its experimental pill for people sick with COVID-19 reduced hospitalizations and deaths by half.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Stocks rebounded on Wall Street Friday but still ended with their worst weekly decline since February.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. manufacturing growth accelerated last month to the highest level since May despite global supply chain disruptions.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumer spending accelerated in August amide a surge in COVID-19 cases, even as soaring demand and snarled supply chains kept inflation high.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation has reached new highs in the United States and Europe as rising energy prices and supply bottlenecks restrain an economic recovery from the pandemic in both economies.
BRUSSELS (AP) — A round of free trade talks between the European Union and Australia has been postponed by one month in the wake of a dispute over the Australian government's decision to cancel a multibillion-euro French submarine deal, EU and Australian officials said Friday.
Marc Lasry, the hedge-fund billionaire and Milwaukee Bucks co-owner who was named chairman of embattled media organization Ozy earlier this month, has resigned from its board.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden traveled to Capitol Hill Friday to meet with lawmakers on their home ground as Democrats strained to rescue a scaled-back version of his $3.5 trillion government overhaul and salvage a related public works bill after days of frantic negotiations resulted in no deal.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden's popularity has slumped after a slew of challenges in recent weeks at home and abroad for the leader who pledged to bring the country together and restore competence in government, according to a new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Blasting a $3.5 trillion social spending bill that Democrats hope to salvage, House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy asserted the legislation would break President Joe Biden's campaign promise not to tax Americans who earn less than $400,000 a year. That's technically accurate yet also misleading.
WASHINGTON (AP) — With only hours to spare, President Joe Biden signed legislation to avoid a partial federal shutdown and keep the government funded through Dec. 3. Congress had passed the bill earlier Thursday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A bitterly divided Senate late Thursday approved President Joe Biden's choice to oversee vast government-owned lands in the West, despite Republican complaints that she is an "eco-terrorist.''
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate narrowly approved President Joe Biden's pick to run the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Thursday, giving the bureau a director who is likely to embrace an aggressive "watchdog" role, similar to how the agency operated under former President Barack Obama.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30
TENNESSEE TITANS
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — The New York Giants have signed tackle Isaiah Wilson to their practice squad, giving the former first-round draft pick another chance to overcome off-the-field issues and make it in the NFL.
VANDERBILT SPORTS
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Vanderbilt Commodores and UConn Huskies are both working through rebuilding efforts and adversity while trying to win games.
NASHVILLE SC
NASHVILLE (AP) — Orlando City picked up an own goal off a corner kick in extra time in a 2-2 draw with Nashville on Wednesday night.
STATE GOVERNMENT
DICKSON (AP) — Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said Thursday that he will extend an executive order that lets families opt their children out of school mask mandates to prevent the spread of COVID-19, despite federal court rulings that have blocked the policy in three counties.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee officials say they are increasing the reimbursement rate the state pays child care providers on behalf of families who need help shouldering the cost of care.
EAST TENNESSEE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson plans to relocate its headquarters from Massachusetts to gun-friendlier Tennessee in a $125 million investment expected to create 750 jobs, officials announced Thursday.
EDUCATION
NASHVILLE (AP) — Fisk University is launching three new academic programs next fall, according to a news release from the historically Black university.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Thursday added five new cases to its calendar for the term that begins next week, among them a challenge to federal election law brought by Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A lawsuit accuses the Catholic Diocese of Nashville of failing to protect a minor child from sexual abuse by an employee at a Murfreesboro church.
REAL ESTATE
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Soaring home prices have pushed up average homeowner equity growth to the highest level in more than a decade, though recent signs of a cooling U.S. housing market point to more moderate gains in the second half of the year.
AUTO INDUSTRY
NASHVILLE (AP) — Ford's blockbuster announcement this week that it would build four sprawling new factories in Kentucky and Tennessee by 2025 and hire nearly 11,000 workers raised a big unanswered question: Just how good will those jobs be?
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hundreds of clinics pushing unproven stem cell procedures caught a big break from the U.S. government in 2017: They would have three years to show that their questionable treatments were safe and worked before regulators started cracking down.
MEDIA
WASHINGTON (AP) — Political adversaries in Congress are united in outrage against Facebook for privately compiling information that its Instagram photo-sharing service appears to grievously harm some teens, especially girls, while publicly downplaying the popular platform's negative impact.
ENVIRONMENT
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Droughts that cause leaves to turn brown and wither before they can reach peak color. Heat waves prompting leaves to fall before autumn even arrives. Extreme weather events like hurricanes that strip trees of their leaves altogether.
TECHNOLOGY
A tracking tag that some units in the U.S. military are using to keep control of guns could let even low-tech enemies detect troops on the battlefield, an ongoing Associated Press investigation has found.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Virgin Galactic said Wednesday that the Federal Aviation Administration has cleared it to resume launches after an investigation into why its spaceship veered off course while descending during a July flight with founder Richard Branson aboard.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
CHICAGO (AP) — When Democrats passed President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, Republicans called it liberal "pet projects" disguised as pandemic aid.
A survey of Americans on President Joe Biden's plan to require most workers to get either vaccinated or regularly tested for COVID-19 finds a deep and familiar divide: Democrats are overwhelmingly for it, while most Republicans are against it.
AT&T has become one of the largest employers in the U.S. to mandate vaccines for a significant number of frontline workers.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — More than a year after U.S. health care workers on the front lines against COVID-19 were saluted as heroes with nightly clapping from windows and balconies, some are being issued panic buttons in case of assault and ditching their scrubs before going out in public for fear of harassment.
Am I fully vaccinated without a COVID-19 vaccine booster? Yes, people who got a two-dose vaccine or the single-dose Johnson & Johnson shot are considered fully vaccinated — even without a booster.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Stocks are closing out September with their worst monthly loss since the beginning of the pandemic.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Thursday that current high levels of inflation are likely to fade next year and won't prevent the Fed from pushing toward its goal of full employment.
NEW YORK (AP) — Brace for a rude surprise on your winter heating bills.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose for the third straight week, a sign that the highly contagious delta variant may be slowing a recovery in the job market.
Shortages of power, computer chips and other parts, soaring shipping costs and shutdowns of factories to battle the pandemic are taking a toll on Asian economies.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States and the European Union agreed Wednesday to carry on the work of 10 expert-level panels to explore and recommend solutions to a variety of trade disputes and challenges.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy expanded at a 6.7% annual pace from April through June, the Commerce Department said Thursday, slightly upgrading its estimate of last quarter's growth in the face of a resurgence of COVID-19 in the form of the delta variant.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Facing bipartisan criticism over its approach to immigration, the Biden administration on Thursday announced new rules that require authorities to only pursue migrants who recently crossed into the country without permission or are deemed to pose a threat to public safety.
WASHINGTON (AP) — With President Joe Biden's government overhaul at risk, Democrats confronted high-stakes trouble Thursday as a promised vote on the first piece, a slimmer $1 trillion public works bill, faltered amid stalled talks on his more ambitious package.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress took a big step toward avoiding a partial federal shutdown on Thursday when the Senate passed a bill to keep the government funded through Dec. 3. The House was expected to follow suit shortly.
WASHINGTON (AP) — In their fight over trillions of dollars, their paramount policy goals and perhaps their political fate, this isn't helping: Democratic progressives and centrists say they don't trust each other. They're tossing around words like "stupid" and "insanity" and they're drawing lines in the sand.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats are debating how to divide up what could be a smaller serving of health care spending in President Joe Biden's domestic policy bill, pitting the needs of older adults who can't afford their dentures against the plight of uninsured low-income people in the South.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A House committee investigating the violent Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection has subpoenaed 11 officials who helped plan rallies in support of former President Donald Trump ahead of the attack, including the massive event on the day of the siege at which the president told his supporters to "fight like hell."