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Column: The Hollywood writers’ strike is over. What happens now?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

By Nina Metz, Chicago TribuneNow that the strike by the Writers Guild of America, which began in May, appears to be over, what happens now?The WGA’s nearly 12,000 members have until Oct. 9 to ratify the contract. Here are some of the details, as outlined on the WGA website:Baseline minimum wages will go up 5% once the contract is ratified. They will go up an additional 4% in the spring of 2024 and 3.5% the following year.Artificial intelligence was a major sticking point and here’s what both sides agreed to: “AI can’t write or rewrite literary material, and AI-generated material will not be considered source material under the (contract), meaning that AI-generated material can’t be used to undermine a writer’s credit or separated rights.”There will be a new viewership-based streaming pay bonus applied to TV shows and movies “that are viewed by 20% or more of the service’s domestic subscribers in the first 90 days of release.”That also means streamers have agreed to provide to the WG...

UMass senior DT Billy Wooden making his last season count

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

UMass coach Don Brown has dealt with a host of problem areas in the first half of the season but the interior defensive line isn’t one of them.Defensive tackle Billy Wooden has been a bulwark in the Minutemen’s front seven with the capacity to stop the run and get after the passer.Brown will be counting on Wooden again when the Minutemen (1-4) host Arkansas State (2-2, 1-0) of the Sun Belt Conference on Saturday (3:30) at McGuirk Stadium. ASU beat UMass 35-33 last season.Wooden held down one of the few positions that Brown wasn’t urgently looking to upgrade in the transfer portal during the off season. He appeared in nine games last season and recorded 16 solo tackles, 20 assisted tackles with 5.5 TFL’s and a forced fumble.“The good thing with Billy is that we are kind of finally getting the really healthy Billy Wooden,” said Brown. “Last year was a year removed off his ACL injury so obviously there was a period of time where you have to get comfortable, get your strength back and b...

BC secondary hits the reset button for Virginia

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

The Boston College secondary and pass rush were exploited by explosive pass plays in last Saturday’s 56-28 loss at Louisville.BC has lost consecutive ACC matches to No. 5 Florida State and Louisville, two of the four undefeated first-place teams in a realigned league. The Eagles (0-2, 1-4) have their best opportunity to notch an ACC win when they host Virginia (0-1, 0-4) on Saturday afternoon (2) at Alumni Stadium.Louisville quarterback Jack Plummer completed 18-of-21 passes for 388 yards that averaged out to 21.5 yards per catch. Louisville had six receivers with catches of 27 yards or more that included touchdown strikes of 45, 42, 75 and 55 yards.Those numbers were especially disconcerting to BC head coach Jeff Hafley, who built his coaching portfolio as a defensive coordinator and defensive backfield instructor.“It is going back to what we do, our defense is built to eliminate explosives,” said Hafley. “We normally play the free safety in the middle of the field and he needs to ...

Hot Property: Acreage a highlight of Wayland Colonial

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

We’re not sure what the correlation is between circular drives and a just-right, special home, but if 29 Adams Lane in Wayland is any indication, we may be onto something here.Located in the highly sought-after Claypit Hill neighborhood, the Colonial residence offers an idyllic retreat on nearly two acres of beautifully landscaped grounds, hugged by a tall treeline.Upon entering through the front door, you’ll be immediately captivated by the impressive living room, featuring a stunning wood-burning fireplace. The home’s heart, a bright and sunlit kitchen with an exposed brick wall for that extra dash of character, seamlessly connects to an open-concept dining room. This space not only invites gatherings but also offers splendid views of the expansive backyard’s natural beauty.For those who work from home, the first-floor office/den with custom-built bookshelves provides an ideal workspace. Upstairs, four generously sized bedrooms provide a cozy haven. The primary suite, ...

Dutch police say 3 people are killed in shootings at a university hospital and home in Rotterdam

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

By MIKE CORDER (Associated Press)THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A lone gunman wearing a bulletproof vest opened fire in an apartment and a hospital in the Dutch port city of Rotterdam on Thursday, killing three people, including a 14-year-old girl, police said.The shooting sent patients and medics fleeing the Erasmus Medical Center in downtown Rotterdam, including some who were wheeled out of the building in beds. Others barricaded themselves into rooms and stuck hand-written signs to windows to show their location.Police Chief Fred Westerbeke told reporters that the shooter was a 32-year-old student from Rotterdam. He was arrested at the hospital carrying a firearm. His identity was not released, and the motive for the shootings was still under investigation.He first shot and killed a 39-year-old woman and seriously injured her 14-year-old daughter at an apartment close to where the suspect lived, Police Chief Fred Westerbeke said. Police said the girl later died of her injur...

Emails at centre of court martial for Lt.-Gen. Whelan are under publication ban

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

OTTAWA — The military judge presiding over a court martial for Lt.-Gen. Steve Whelan has decided the emails at the centre of the case will not be made public during the trial unless they are allowed as evidence.Cmdr. Martin Pelletier said his ruling is an imperfect one, but noted he found himself in a challenging situation. “There come times in the judiciary when you have to fly by the seat of your pants, and this is one of the cases,” Pelletier said as he read his decision Thursday afternoon. Military prosecutors want to enter into evidence 10 packages of email correspondence between Whelan and the complainant in the case, who has been testifying this week. The defence is planning to argue that the emails are not relevant to the charge.Whelan has pleaded not guilty to one charge of conduct to the prejudice of good order and discipline for improperly changing a performance review, while a second charge relating to sexual misconduct has been dropped.The second charge stem...

Quebecer shot after allegedly threatening Trudeau, Legault facing weapons charge

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

SCOTSTOWN, Que. — A Quebec man who was shot by police Wednesday as they investigated threats against Premier François Legault and Prime Minster Justin Trudeau is facing a weapons charge.The provincial prosecution service said Thursday that Germain Lemay made a court appearance to face a charge of possession of a weapon for dangerous purpose.Quebec’s police watchdog is investigating the shooting, which left the suspect in hospital in stable condition.The agency, known as the Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes, says the shooting by a provincial police tactical team occurred during an attempted arrest early Wednesday at a home in Scotstown, Que., about 180 kilometres east of Montreal.According to the BEI, an officer who was looking through a window shot the suspect when he saw him point a gun toward the door where officers were entering.Montreal police confirmed late Wednesday that the suspect had allegedly made threats against Legault and Trudeau.Legault’s office said in a ...

Senior Toronto officer admits to helping mentees cheat in promotion interviews

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

A high-ranking Toronto police officer pleaded guilty before a disciplinary tribunal after admitting she helped her mentees cheat in a promotional interview process she helped oversee.Supt. Stacy Clarke, the first Black woman to hold the rank in the service’s history, pleaded guilty to seven counts under the Police Services Act, including three counts each of breach of confidence and discreditable conduct.An agreed statement of facts indicates Clarke, while a member of promotional interview panels in 2021, took pictures of questions and answer rubrics and sent them to six of her mentees who were seeking promotions to sergeant.It says she also met with one of her mentees, a close family friend, over three days at her home where she held a mock interview and posed questions sometimes stripped word-for-word from those asked during panels the previous week.She then sat on that officer’s promotional interview panel and did not disclose their friendship or mentor-mentee relatio...

TikTok videos promoting steroid use have millions of views, says report criticized by the company

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — TikTok has become a key marketing channel for vendors promoting steroids and other bodybuilding drugs to millions of the app’s users, according to a report released Thursday that the social media company disputes.In the study, the nonprofit Center for Countering Digital Hate says popular videos encouraging use of the products for aesthetic or athletic gain are being posted by influencers who often downplay the risks associated with them. It follows a warning issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in April about performance-enhancing drugs being marketed to teenagers and young adults on social media platforms.“They’re being marketed to young men by influencers who are deliberately saying, ‘If you want to be like Captain America, you’ve got to take these drugs’,” CCDH founder and CEO Imran Ahmed said. The findings from the study show TikTok videos — under certain hashtags — promoting what researchers called “steroid-like drugs” have racked up more than 5...

Group monitoring RCMP response to mass shooting inquiry needs public’s help: chair

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:20 GMT

HALIFAX — The head of the committee overseeing how governments and the RCMP are responding to the Nova Scotia mass shooting inquiry says the public will play a key role in ensuring the inquiry’s recommendations do not gather dust.Linda Lee Oland, chair of the independent Progress Monitoring Committee, told a news conference today that the 16-member group does not have a “stick” to force the Mounties and government officials to do the right thing.Instead, the retired Nova Scotia judge says the committee’s annual reports will provide a yardstick for the public to measure how much progress has been made.Oland says the committee, appointed by the federal and Nova Scotia governments, recently met for the first time, holding two days of discussions that were sometimes emotional.In all, the federal-provincial public inquiry issued 130 recommendations, mostly aimed at improving public safety, reforming the national police force and addressing the root causes of gende...