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Daily Deal: Rosetta Stone All Languages

1 year 11 months ago
Embark on the journey of language learning with the Rosetta Stone lifetime subscription for all languages. Trusted by top-tier organizations like NASA, Calvin Klein, and TripAdvisor, Rosetta Stone has been the go-to software for language learning for the past 27 years. With its immersive and intuitive training method, you might be reading, writing, and speaking […]
Gretchen Heckmann

Missouri and Kansas governors commit to #DisagreeBetter

1 year 11 months ago
Republican Missouri Governor Mike Parson and Democratic Kansas Governor Laura Kelly have joined the National Governors Association's Disagree Better initiative. The governors recently met over Kansas City BBQ to discuss areas of agreement and how to handle disagreements constructively.
Joe Millitzer

Appeals Court Sides With Author Sued Over ProPublica Article

1 year 11 months ago

ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they’re published.

A New York state appeals court has handed freelance journalist William D. Cohan a legal victory, affirming the dismissal of a defamation lawsuit filed against him by the subject of an article published by ProPublica. Ruling with unusual dispatch — the court issued its opinion on Oct. 31, only three weeks after oral arguments — it declared that the article “flatly contradicts the existence of actual malice,” the standard of proof that a public figure must meet to win a libel suit. “The plaintiff failed to show,” the opinion stated, “that his claims had a substantial basis in law.”

The plaintiff, Jide Zeitlin, sued Cohan in 2021, claiming that he was defamed by the article, “The Bizarre Fall of the CEO of Coach and Kate Spade’s Parent Company.” The article examined Zeitlin’s rise from being the son of a Nigerian maid to a Goldman Sachs partner and Fortune 500 CEO, and then his downfall, as allegations of an extramarital affair with a woman he photographed contributed to his resignation from Tapestry, the corporation that owns Coach and other brands.

In its four-page opinion, the appeals court credited the fact that Cohan cited Zeitlin’s denials in the article, provided links to original documents so that readers could judge for themselves and relied on a “host of other sources whose reliability plaintiff does not challenge.” As the opinion put it, “plaintiff’s allegations of actual malice rest largely on his own statements.”

“We are extremely gratified by this victory,” said Jeremy Kutner, ProPublica’s general counsel. “The court immediately recognized that the article was balanced and deeply reported, rejecting Zeitlin’s claims just three weeks after it heard the case.”

ProPublica was represented by Jay Ward Brown and Emmy Parsons of Ballard Spahr LLP.

by ProPublica

RiverBender Blog: Going Green, Staying Lazy

1 year 11 months ago
Call me a hippie, but I’m scared of climate change. Not only am I scared of climate change, but I’m also on the lookout for ways to solve it. I know this is a little ambitious — yes, me, a 23-year-old journalist with no scientific background and the lowest-effort recycling pile possible, will fix an age-old problem single-handedly. Well, no, probably not. But I can at least try to minimize my impact. Whether you’re worried about climate change or not, we can all agree that it’s a good idea to take care of the Earth as much as we can. So over the past several months, I’ve tried to be more intentional with my consumption and look for sustainable options where possible: my project to Save the World™, to varying degrees of success thus far. First, I want to acknowledge that sustainability is expensive and often requires space, time and money that not everyone has. I’m lucky that I have access to space, a little bit of extra time,

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Republicans fail yet again to pass spending bills

1 year 11 months ago
Three weeks ago, Rep. Mike Johnson wrote a letter to his fellow Republicans saying that he was sure they could pass all 12 outstanding appropriations bills by.......this week. In the event, Republicans have passed zero appropriations bills. The reason for this is the usual one: Hard-right members of the Freedom Caucus have stalled any progress ...continue reading "Republicans fail yet again to pass spending bills"
Kevin Drum

Mike and Karen Roberts To Serve As Chairs: Tree Of Lights Campaign Kicks Off Nov. 17

1 year 11 months ago
ALTON – The Salvation Army Tree of Lights campaign will kick off at 6 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, during the Alton Main Street Tree Lighting ceremony. The event takes place at Lincoln Douglas Square and includes free trolley rides, a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus, caroling, hot cocoa and cookies. A new addition to the festivities will be the Red Kettle bounce house. For those unable to attend the Tree Lighting in person, portions of the event will be streaming live in a cooperative effort between Riverbender.com and WBGZ Radio. Mike Roberts and C.J. Nasello of Our Daily Show! will host the broadcast. Salvation Army Madison County Corps Advisory Council Chairman Kevin Botterbush announced earlier this year that local Meteorologist Mike Roberts and his wife Karen will chair this year’s campaign. “Our goal is to raise $217,000 through the red kettle campaign,” the Roberts said. “We are humbly asking for gifts - the gift of time and the gift of financial

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