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By Associated Press LOS ANGELES — For nearly two decades, Phil Donahue was virtually the only TV talk show host to roam his audience with microphone and make them an essential part of his show. His huge cultural influence — especially with the women who tended to watch television during the day in his era

By Kirsten Stokes Kids headed back into the classroom this week, many carrying carefully chosen and must-have supplies ready for the new year ahead. Many of those items have their roots in the inventions of a St. Joseph native whose pioneering creations have impacted the educational experiences of students across states and generations. Jon Wyant,

By Metro Creative Tobacco may not seem as popular as it once was, but the World Health Organization notes that 1.3 billion individuals across globe can be characterized as tobacco users. That means roughly 17% of the global population uses tobacco. If it seems as though fewer people are smoking cigarettes, that’s not an incorrect

By Metro Creative Healthy snacks are a great way to quell hunger pangs without feeling guilty. The following recipe for “Cauliflower Popcorn” from Bob Blumer’s “Surreal Gourmet Bites” (Chronicle Books) is a sweet-tasting alternative to unhealthy snacks. Cauliflower Popcorn Yields 12 bites 1 head cauliflower 4 tablespoons olive oil 1 tablespoon salt (or, for a

By Associated Press KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Michael Lorenzen pitched seven shutout innings, MJ Melendez homered and the Kansas City Royals beat the Los Angeles Angels 3-0 on Wednesday for their sixth win in seven games. The Royals spoiled the season debut of Johnny Cueto (0-1), a 17-year veteran who helped Kansas City win the

By Associated Press BOSTON | Attorneys for Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are seeking to remove the judge overseeing the protracted legal battle over Tsarnaev’s death sentence. Tsarnaev’s lawyers said during a hearing in federal court in Boston on Wednesday that U.S. District Court Judge George O’Toole should be recused from the case, pointing to

By Associated Press LOS ANGELES | An attorney for Hunter Biden accused prosecutors Wednesday of wanting to introduce salacious details about partying and spending by President Joe Biden’s son to smear his character in front of jurors at his upcoming trial on federal tax charges. During a lengthy hearing in Los Angeles federal court, Hunter

By Associated Press OAKLAND, Calif. — Al Attles, a Hall of Famer who coached the 1975 NBA champion Warriors and spent more than six decades with the organization as a player, general manager and most recently team ambassador, has died. He was 87. The Warriors announced Wednesday that Attles died in his East Bay home

By Associated Press GUATEMALA CITY — Guatemalan police on Wednesday arrested seven Guatemalans accused of having smuggled 53 migrants from Mexico and Central America who died of asphyxiation in 2022 in Texas after being abandoned in a tractor trailer in the scorching summer heat. They were the latest arrests after years of investigation into one

By Associated Press CASTLE ROCK, Colo. — Scottie Scheffler could easily have chosen to sit out the BMW Championship to boost his chances of capping off his sensational season with the FedEx Cup. Barring a victory by Xander Schauffele at Castle Pines, Scheffler is assured of being the No. 1 seed who starts the Tour

By Associated Press MEREDITH, N.H. — A company that sent deceptive calls to New Hampshire voters using artificial intelligence to mimic President Joe Biden’s voice agreed Wednesday to pay a $1 million fine, federal regulators said. Lingo Telecom, the voice service provider that transmitted the robocalls, agreed to the settlement to resolve enforcement action taken

By Associated Press CLAYTON, Mo. — A Missouri death row inmate on Wednesday dropped his innocence claim and entered a new no-contest plea in an agreement that calls for a revised sentence of life in prison without parole. But the Missouri Attorney General’s Office opposes the new consent judgment and will appeal in an effort

By Associated Press PORTICELLO, Sicily — Divers searching the wreck of a superyacht that sank off Sicily found the bodies of five passengers Wednesday, leaving one still missing as questions intensified about why the vessel sank so quickly when a nearby sailboat remained largely unscathed. Rescue crews brought four body bags ashore at Porticello. Salvatore

By Associated Press CAIRO — Key mediator Egypt expressed skepticism Wednesday about the proposal meant to bridge gaps in cease-fire talks between Israel and Hamas as more details emerged a day before negotiations were expected to resume in Cairo. The challenges around the so-called bridging proposal appeared to undermine the optimism for an imminent agreement

By Associated Press MOSCOW — Moscow came under one of the largest attacks by Ukrainian drones since the start of fighting in 2022, Russian authorities reported Wednesday, saying they destroyed all of those headed toward the country’s capital. The attacks came as Ukrainian forces continue to push into Russia’s western Kursk region. In the past

By Associated Press ASHEBORO, N.C. — At his first outdoor rally since last month’s attempted assassination, Donald Trump spoke from behind bulletproof glass Wednesday in North Carolina at an event focused on national security. On politics, he called his predecessor Barack Obama “nasty” for his comments the night before at the Democratic National Convention. Trump

By Associated Press CHICAGO — Vice presidential nominee Tim Walz and former President Bill Clinton are headlining the Democratic National Convention’s third day on Wednesday, as the party hopes to build on the momentum that Kamala Harris has brought since joining the race a month ago. Walz, the Minnesota governor who has become known among

By Associated Press NEW YORK — U.S. stocks ticked higher Wednesday after more big companies delivered profit reports that topped analysts’ expectations. The S&P 500 rose 0.4% a day after breaking an eight-day winning streak, its longest of the year. The index is back to within 0.8% of its all-time high set last month. The

By Associated Press WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy added 818,000 fewer jobs from April 2023 through March this year than were originally reported, the government said Wednesday. The revised total adds to evidence that the job market has been steadily slowing and likely reinforces the Federal Reserve’s plan to start cutting interest rates soon. The

By Associated Press TORONTO — Canada’s two major freight railroads could halt their trains Thursday if they can’t agree to renewed contracts with the union representing their engineers, conductors and dispatchers. Canada’s government is watching closely and may intervene to prevent widespread damage to the economy. Both Canadian National and CPKC have been gradually shutting

By Associated Press WASHINGTON — Most Federal Reserve officials agreed last month that they would likely cut their benchmark interest rate at their next meeting in September as long as inflation continued to cool. The minutes of the Fed’s July 30-31 meeting, released Wednesday, said the “vast majority” of policymakers “observed that, if the data

By Associated Press NEW YORK — It’s not just you. The word “demure” is being used to describe just about everything online these days. It all started earlier this month, when TikTok creator Jools Lebron posted a video that would soon take social media by storm. The hair and makeup she’s wearing to work? Very

By Associated Press NEW YORK — The four stars who helped shape the new musical “Swept Away” — John Gallagher Jr., Stark Sands, Adrian Blake Enscoe and Wayne Duvall — will steer the nautical tale to the commercial waves of Broadway. The tale about four men stranded in the Atlantic Ocean after a 19th-century shipwreck