Category Archives: WPTF News

Video shows dolphin calf birth and first breath at Chicago zoo. Mom’s friend helped

Video shows dolphin calf birth and first breath at Chicago zoo. Mom’s friend helped

CHICAGO (AP) — A bottlenose dolphin at the Brookfield Zoo Chicago gave birth to a calf early Saturday morning with the help of a fellow mom. Video of the birth inside the Illinois aquarium shows the 35-pound calf ejected into the water and sprint to the surface for its first breath, under the watchful eye of the other, older female bottlenose dolphin. A staff veterinarian says that kind of help during a birth reflects dolphin practice in the wild. Brookfield Zoo Chicago is celebrating the first birth from its dolphin group in over a decade. It will close part of the aquatic area while the new calf bonds with its mom and the group. The calf will be named this summer.… Continue Reading

Sovereignty beats Journalism to win the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga

Sovereignty beats Journalism to win the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. (AP) — Sovereignty bested Journalism in a Kentucky Derby rematch to win the 157th Belmont Stakes, the second hosted at Saratoga. Sovereignty and jockey Junior Alvarado traversed the field of eight on a fast Saratoga track after downpours throughout the morning and early afternoon dried up before post time. Journalism was second and Baeza was third — the same 1-2-3 as the Kentucky Derby. Sovereignty led off the first leg of the Triple Crown by winning the Derby in early May. The Bill Mott-trained colt also edged Journalism in that race.… Continue Reading

Walmart’s army of bakery decorators take the cake when it comes to hourly store pay

Walmart’s army of bakery decorators take the cake when it comes to hourly store pay

NEW YORK (AP) — The school graduation season is the busiest time of year for the Walmart workers who hand-decorate cakes per customers’ orders. The cakes and optional fillings come pre-baked and frozen from suppliers, but the nation’s largest retailer holds a big slice of the American custom cake market. The company says one out of four cakes sold in the U.S. comes from Walmart, and that its workers will collectively decorate more than 1 million cakes during May and June. The discount retail chain’s 6,200-strong army of icing artisans are Walmart’s highest paid hourly workers, excluding store managers. Detractors on social media have accused the decorators of stealing ideas and undercutting professional cake artists with inexpensive products.… Continue Reading

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ ex-girlfriend resumes testimony about his sexual interests

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ ex-girlfriend resumes testimony about his sexual interests

NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs’ recent ex-girlfriend is back on the witness stand after testifying about how she endured drug-fueled sex marathons right up until the hip-hop titan’s arrest in September. The woman is using the pseudonym “Jane” at Combs’ sex trafficking trial in New York as she testifies for a second day Friday. Combs has pleaded not guilty to running his business empire as a racketeering enterprise that enabled the abuse of women. Jane testified that Combs had control over her life including paying her rent and pressured her into sexual encounters with other men, despite her telling him she didn’t want to.… Continue Reading

What’s next for influencer Livvy Dunne after college gymnastics career? ‘Everything,’ she says

What’s next for influencer Livvy Dunne after college gymnastics career? ‘Everything,’ she says

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — With her college gymnastics days behind her, influencer and Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Livvy Dunne is moving on with life — but that doesn’t mean she’ll be far from the public eye. Dunne has more than 13 million followers on social media, and she created a multimillion-dollar personal brand while competing as a gymnast at LSU. Now she’s trying to help other female athletes do the same, helping to educate them about name, image and likeness deals and personal branding. Asked about her future, Dunne told The Associated Press, “What’s next? Everything.”… Continue Reading

Hiring in the US slows, yet employers added a solid 139,000 jobs in May

Hiring in the US slows, yet employers added a solid 139,000 jobs in May

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers slowed hiring last month, but still added a solid 139,000 jobs amid uncertainty over Trump’s trade wars. The Department of Labor said Friday that hiring fell from a revised 147,000 in April. The unemployment rate stayed at 4.2%. Trump’s aggressive and unpredictable policies – especially his sweeping taxes on imports – have muddied the outlook for the economy and the job market and raised fears that the American economy could be headed toward recession. But so far the damage hasn’t shown up clearly in government economic data.… Continue Reading

NC By Train celebrates major milestones of Piedmont and Carolinian service

NC By Train celebrates major milestones of Piedmont and Carolinian service

RALEIGH, N.C. (WPTF) — NC By Train is celebrating two major milestones—30 years of Piedmont Service and 35 years of the Carolinian—with a special event at Raleigh Union Station and a 30% discount on tickets. NCDOT Rail Division Director Jason Orthner says both lines have transformed travel across North Carolina, with ridership growing by 55% since 2019. As expansion plans look to connect even more cities like Asheville and Wilmington, officials say the future of rail travel in the state is on the right track. … Continue Reading

North Carolina governor forms council to recommend cannabis regulations

North Carolina governor forms council to recommend cannabis regulations

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein says he wants a council he’s created to recommend cannabis sales regulations to protect young people and provide a structure for an industry where products from otherwise lawful hemp are unregulated. The Democratic governor signed an executive order this week creating the panel. North Carolina is among a small number of states whose laws prohibit marijuana for both medicinal use or adult recreational use. The General Assembly would have to enact any law legalizing marijuana. Preliminary recommendations are due next March. Stein says there’s currently a “Wild West” market in which products being sold contain intoxicating levels of what’s known as THC.… Continue Reading

What to know about the much-anticipated Nintendo Switch 2 on launch day

What to know about the much-anticipated Nintendo Switch 2 on launch day

NEW YORK (AP) — The Nintendo Switch 2 finally hit store shelves on Thursday, eight years after the initial release of Japanese video-game maker Nintendo’s popular video-game console. Even with a hefty $450 price tag, fans around the world, from Japan to the U.S., lined up outside stores to pick-up pre-orders or have a chance to buy the device. The release ends months of anticipation that included pre-order hiccups and fears that tariffs would delay the release of the Switch 2. Nintendo said it expects to sell 15 million Switch 2 consoles for the fiscal year through March 2026.… Continue Reading

Bryson DeChambeau is back to competing, preparing for US Open title defense after ‘fun side quests’

Bryson DeChambeau is back to competing, preparing for US Open title defense after ‘fun side quests’

GAINESVILLE, Va. (AP) — As much as Bryson DeChambeau loves to practice and compete, the U.S. Open champion also appreciates the limited LIV Golf schedule that gives him time to pursue other interests. DeChambeau arrived at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club for LIV Golf Virginia after a busy few days that included a round of golf with President Donald Trump and some short-game practice on the South Lawn of the White House. Now the big-hitting YouTube star turns his attention to the 54-hole LIV event that starts Friday at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club. Next week at Oakmont, he will try to win his third U.S. Open.… Continue Reading

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