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Can New York’s mayor speak Mandarin? No, but with AI he’s making robocalls in different languages

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York City Mayor Eric Adams has been using artificial intelligence to make robocalls that contort his own voice into several languages he doesn’t actually speak, posing new ethical questions about the government’s use of the rapidly evolving technology. The mayor told reporters about the robocalls on Monday and said they’ve gone out in languages such as Mandarin and Yiddish to promote city hiring events. They haven’t included any disclosure that he only speaks English or that the calls were generated using AI.“People stop me on the street all the time and say, ‘I didn’t know you speak Mandarin, you know?’” said Adams, a Democrat. “The robocalls that we’re using, we’re using different languages to speak directly to the diversity of New Yorkers.”The calls come as regulators struggle to get a handle on how best to ethically and legally navigate the use of artificial intelligence, where deepfake videos or audio can make it appear that anyon...

Live updates | Intense Israeli bombardments strike Gaza as the war rages on

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

Palestinians wait to cross into Egypt at the Rafah border crossing in the Gaza Strip, on Monday, Oct.16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)(AP/Fatima Shbair) Palestinians wait to cross into Egypt at the Rafah border crossing in the Gaza Strip, on Monday, Oct.16, 2023. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)(AP/Fatima Shbair) Palestinians described intense bombardments early Tuesday near two towns in southern Gaza, where Israel had ordered civilians to seek refuge. Hamas’ military wing said a separate attack on a refugee camp in central Gaza killed a top Hamas commander. Thousands of people trying to escape Gaza are gathered in Rafah, which has the territory’s only border crossing to Egypt. Mediators are pressing for an agreeme...

Gaza Health Ministry says over 200 Palestinians killed in hospital explosion it claims was caused by Israeli airstrike

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Gaza Health Ministry says over 200 Palestinians killed in hospital explosion it claims was caused by Israeli airstrike.Source

Cowboys win while finally playing a close game, but status as contenders still murky

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys were in the victory formation after a pair of game-sealing plays from the defense.The quarterback took that moment to remind teammates of a rarity in a strange start to their season. They finally played something that usually happens long before Week 6 in the NFL: a one-score game.What the 20-17 victory at the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night means for the Cowboys as contenders remains to be seen.Regardless, it was the answer they sought after the worst loss of Prescott’s eight seasons, 42-10 at San Francisco in a rematch with the team that knocked Dallas out of the playoffs the past two years.A game that was tied three times before Brandon Aubrey’s go-ahead field goal with 2:19 remaining came after the Cowboys enjoyed a 95-point differential combined in their first three wins. The other loss for Dallas (4-2), which is headed into its open week, was 28-16 at Arizona.“That’s actually what I told the offense when...

Wyndham rejects $8 billion unsolicited buyout offer after Choice Hotels goes public with its bid

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts rejected an unsolicited $8 billion buyout offer from Choice Hotels, a smaller chain that went public Tuesday with its bid after negotiations broke down. Wyndham, which runs Days Inn, La Quinta, Ramada and a host of other brands, on Tuesday called the proposal “opportunistic” and said that it undervalues its growth potential. The offer was rejected unanimously by its board, the company said. “Choice’s offer is underwhelming, highly conditional and subject to significant business, regulatory and execution risk,” Wyndham Chairman Stephen Holmes said in a prepared statement. “Choice has been unwilling or unable to address our concerns.” Wyndham has engaged Choice and its advisors multiple times to explore the risks of a potential deal, Holmes said, but decided it would likely take more than a year to determine what would be required to clear antitrust review. Choice Hotels International said it went public with its bid after six months of n...

Stretch of I-25 to remain closed for days as debris from train derailment is cleared

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

The main north-south highway in Colorado is expected to remain closed for several more days as crews clear piles of coal and other debris after a weekend train derailment and bridge collapse, authorities said Tuesday.Federal investigators approved cleanup work after largely completing their evidence collection where the BNSF coal train derailed onto Interstate 25 north of Pueblo, Colorado, killing a truck driver.There is no reason believe the derailment was sabotage, said Sarah Taylor Sulick, of the National Transportation Safety Board.The bridge, built in 1958, collapsed when 30 cars from the train derailed Sunday afternoon, the NTSB said. The 60-year-old driver of a semitrailer truck that was passing beneath the bridge was killed.Officials said the derailment caused the bridge collapse but have not said what caused the derailment.A preliminary report from investigators is due in several weeks.“They will be pulling maintenance records. They’ll be interviewing people involved. They’...

Want to buy a house in Denver? Here's how much you need earn to afford one

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA/NEXSTAR) — Buying a house in the U.S. isn't cheap, and according to a report from Redfin, it is now harder than ever to afford one — even in Denver.Sky-high mortgage rates and rising home prices have made it more difficult than ever, especially for first-time home buyers, Redfin said in the report, which was released Tuesday.The average rate on the benchmark 30-year home loan rose to 7.57% from 7.49% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said earlier this month. It's the highest level in more than two decades.To afford a median-priced U.S. home now, Redfin said buyers must earn $114,627, up 15% ($15,285) from a year ago and up more than 50% since the start of the pandemic. The real estate website said a typical household earns about $40,000 less than that. This is the wealthiest person in Colorado, new Forbes report shows "Hourly wages have risen in 2023, but not nearly as fast as the income necessary to afford a home is rising: The average U.S. hourly wage has i...

Colorado woman lands in Israel after first attack, Projects Dynamo helps get her home

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- Tuesday marks the 10th day since the Hamas attacks on Israel, and Americans are still working to get out of the region.Some U.S. citizens are getting help from Project Dynamo to return home.Corrine Mille, a Sedalia resident, has been to Israel four times and wanted to take a friend who had never been. But this time was different.“We got there on October 7, three hours after the first missile hit. Tel Aviv we landed. The airport was a ghost town. There were shelter signs everywhere,” said Miller. They made their way to the north to hopefully escape the conflict.“[We thought] let's just wait it out and see what happens. We didn't want to abort the trip immediately,” said Miller.After all, she had planned this two-week trip for 10 months.“Three hours before we landed the spreadsheet was annihilated.”However, they were not immune to the sirens and missile attacks. Soon enough she got a Gome Front Command notification on her phone telling her there was "rocket and missil...

Georgia deputy shoots, kills man who spent 16 years in a South Florida prison on wrongful conviction

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

KINGSLAND, Ga. (AP) — A Black man who spent more than 16 years imprisoned in Florida on a wrongful conviction was fatally shot Monday by a sheriff’s deputy in Georgia during a traffic stop, authorities said.The Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which is reviewing the shooting, identified the man as Leonard Allen Cure, 53.Cure had been represented in his exoneration case by the Innocence Project of Florida. The group’s executive director, Seth Miller, said he was devastated by news of the death, which he heard from Cure’s family.“I can only imagine what it’s like to know your son is innocent and watch him be sentenced to life in prison, to be exonerated and … then be told that once he’s been freed, he’s been shot dead,” Miller said.The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said a Camden County deputy pulled over Cure as he drove along Interstate 95 near the Georgia-Florida line. He got out of the car at the deputy’s request and cooperated at first but became violent after he was told ...

Prosecutors seeking to recharge Actor Alec Baldwin in fatal shooting on movie set

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 18:55:07 GMT

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Special prosecutors said Tuesday they are seeking to recharge actor Alec Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie in New Mexico two years ago.New Mexico-based prosecutors Kari Morrissey and Jason Lewis said they’ll present evidence grand jury within the next two months, noting that “additional facts” have come to light in the October 2021 fatal shooting on the set of “Rust” during filming on the outskirts of Santa Fe.Baldwin, a coproducer of the film, was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal on the film’s set outside Santa Fe when the gun went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza.Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer — but not the trigger — and the gun fired.Special prosecutors in April initially dismissed an involuntary manslaughter charge against Baldwin, saying at the time that they were informed the gun might have been modified before the ...