Investors cheered the blockbuster November jobs report. US stocks surged Friday morning as solid payroll and wage gains and an unemployment rate that remains at a half-century low eased fears that trade tensions are hurting the US economy. The Dow gained more than 250 points, or about 0.9%, in early trading and all 30 Dow…… MORE
Social media companies are feeling their way in the dark, and sometimes fumbling their way through new efforts to fight misinformation on their platforms as they roll out rules that are meant to increase transparency. These efforts include labeling state-funded and state-controlled media — news organizations that are wholly or in part managed or funded…… MORE
Most Christmas sweaters are made of plastic and are likely to contribute to plastic pollution in the world’s oceans, an environmental charity has warned. Hubbub, a UK charity, found that 95% of the 108 sweaters it analyzed — taken from 11 high-street and online retailers — were fully or partially made from plastic materials. Acrylic…… MORE
Kylie Rae Harris, a rising country star who died in a car wreck in September, was drunk and speeding at the time of the crash that killed her and a teenage driver in New Mexico, police said. The singer had a blood alcohol level that was more than three times the legal limit and was…… MORE
UPS employee Frank Ordonez was killed Thursday after armed robbery suspects hijacked the UPS truck he was driving and led police on a chase that ended in a fatal shootout in Broward County, Florida, his brother said. Ordonez, a 27-year-old father of two young girls, was “outgoing and happy,” his brother, Roy Ordonez, told CNN.…… MORE
Elizabeth Warren‘s presidential campaign on Friday released the results of the senator’s most recent annual physical exam, as well as a letter from her doctor that said Warren is a “very healthy 70 year old woman” with no medical conditions that would prevent her from serving as president. Warren’s latest physical was conducted on January…… MORE
Congress is once again running right up to the brink of a government shutdown. There is cautious optimism, but still work to be done. Progress has been made but the largest outstanding issues still stand. Everyone involved wants an agreement, but those same lawmakers and administration officials are still haggling over issues — large and…… MORE
A gunman opened fire at Naval Air Station Pensacola on Friday, killing at least two people and injuring several others, according to authorities. The shooting is over, the Escambia County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office said, and the shooter is dead. Baptist Health Care received at least five patients from the shooting, according to spokeswoman Kathy Bowers,…… MORE
US employers added 266,000 jobs in November, up from 156,000 added in October, the Labor Department reported Friday. The gains include auto workers who returned to work after a six-week strike at General Motors. The US unemployment rate fell slightly to 3.5%. That matches a 50-year low also reached in September of this year. The…… MORE
Kids today sometimes get a bad rap — they’re on their phones too much, they don’t respect their elders, they’re entitled. And just like many broad generalizations, these don’t always fit. The four young people below are disproving negative stereotypes about Generation Z. Their selfless work helping others will be featured on “Young Wonders: A…… MORE
