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Former Aspen Times editor sues newspaper over his firing in wake of billionaire’s defamation case

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

The former top editor at The Aspen Times this week sued the newspaper and its parent companies, alleging he was wrongfully terminated after he published previously spiked stories soon after taking the job.Andrew Travers, in a complaint filed Tuesday in Pitkin County District Court, alleges West Virginia-based Ogden Newspapers lied when leadership promised him editorial freedom to publish news and opinion stories on a controversial property at the base of Aspen Mountain and the billionaire real estate tycoon who purchased it.“This is about accountability,” Travers said in an interview Wednesday. “Going to court and affirming my legal rights is a way to deter them from doing this to other journalists in other communities.”The lawsuit names The Aspen Times, Ogden and Swift Communications, a Nevada publisher bought by Ogden in 2021. An Ogden representative did not respond Wednesday to requests for comment.Travers took the editor-in-chief job in June 2022 amid a t...

Adaptation: Arts Calendar October 5-11

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

A dark musical comedy about adaptation and truth (and lip syncing), an appreciation of a feminist touchstone at 50, paintings of reverence for trees, surrealism about life with wild animals, Oaxaca’s modern and traditional musical tapestry, art for community uplift, pumpkins invade the night garden, short attention span photography appreciation, a new play about the spirit of Boyle Heights, navigating the art world, radiating colonization, celebrating indigeneity, putting poetry back in schools, absurdist activism for the planet.Edgar Arceneaux: Boney Manilli at REDCAT (Photo by Bailey Holiver)Thursday, October 5Edgar Arceneaux: Boney Manilli at REDCAT. A dark musical comedy in the shape of a pop music video, a puppet show, and a burial ceremony, written and directed by interdisciplinary artist Edgar Arceneaux. “Edgar,” a visual artist overwhelmed by feelings of inadequacy, frustration, and self-loathing, is unable to complete his play on the infamous pop music duo, Milli Vanilli. H...

PG&E customers can expect brief relief this month from soaring bills

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

OAKLAND — PG&E customers can expect some brief relief from their soaring monthly utility bills during October when a regular credit is included in their regular statement this month.The discount arrives in the form of a climate credit that is provided to customers twice a year, according to a web post from the state Public Utilities Commission.“The climate credit provides ratepayers with their share of the benefits of California’s Cap-and-Trade Program,” the state PUC said in the web post.The credits are applied to the bills during February and March, as well as in October. Residential customers of investor-owned utilities such as PG&E receive the credits.For PG&E, the credit this month is the same as it was during the February-March period, $38.39.By comparison, however, PG&E customers who receive combined electricity and gas services from the power company were paying an average of $240.73 a month for their utility costs.This means the credit amou...

Biden cancels an additional $9B in student loan debt

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

By Nikki Carvajal and Katie Lobosco | CNNThe Biden administration has approved debt relief for an additional 125,000 student loan borrowers, totaling $9 billion in forgiveness, the White House said Wednesday.The announcement comes just days after federal student loan payments restarted after a three-plus year pause.Though the Supreme Court struck down President Joe Biden’s hallmark student loan forgiveness program, which promised up to $20,000 in debt relief for low- and middle-income borrowers, the administration has continued to find other ways to provide debt relief.The cancellations announced Wednesday come through three different existing debt relief programs that have been plagued with problems in the past. The White House is conducting what it calls “fixes” to a “broken student loan system.”An additional 53,000 borrowers will receive debt cancellation under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which wipes away remaining student loan debt after qualifying public sector...

The top eight most expensive home sales in Hayward, reported the week of Sep. 18

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

A house that sold for $1.2 million tops the list of the most expensive residential real estate sales in Hayward in the past week.In total, eight residential real estate sales were recorded in the area during the past week, with an average price of $799,000, $617 per square foot.The prices in the list below concern real estate sales where the title was recorded during the week of Sep. 18 even if the property may have been sold earlier.8. $550,000, condominium in the 25600 block of University CourtThe property in the 25600 block of University Court in Hayward has new owners. The price was $550,000. The condominium was built in 1981 and has a living area of 1,250 square feet. The price per square foot is $440. The condominium features two bedrooms and two bathrooms.7. $575,000, single-family home in the 500 block of Paradise Blvd.A sale has been finalized for the single-family residence in the 500 block of Paradise Blvd. in Hayward. The price was $575,000 and the new owners took over t...

San Jose Sharks reward first round draft pick after strong summer

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

SAN JOSE – Quentin Musty might be headed back to Sudbury of the Ontario Hockey League soon but not without a contract from the San Jose Sharks.The Sharks announced Wednesday that they’ve signed Musty, one of their two first-round draft picks from earlier this year, to a standard entry-level contract. For 18-year-olds like Musty, those contracts are three years in length.Per PuckPedia, Musty’s contract is worth $855,000 at the NHL level, and $82,500 at the AHL level. It includes a $95,000 signing bonus carries and a salary cap hit of $950,000.Musty, drafted 26th overall by the Sharks in June, enjoyed a strong development camp in July and also played well at the Rookie Faceoff event in Las Vegas last month. He was injured on the first day of the Sharks’ main training camp on Sept. 21, but recently returned to practice and was able to play in Tuesday night’s preseason game in Las Vegas, a 2-0 San Jose win.“Very, very impressed. I thought he had a lot of poise and played at ...

One favorite for SF Giants’ manager post comes off the table

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

When Gabe Kapler was fired on Friday, it was hard not to think back to his last pregame session with reporters Wednesday afternoon. Or more so, who was performing the same task in the opposite dugout around the same time.It was Bob Melvin, whose tenure in San Diego seemed to be on the skids but, conversely, had emerged as an early favorite as Kapler’s successor. A long track record as a major-league manager, a previous working relationship with Farhan Zaidi and Bay Area roots made Melvin an obvious candidate — if his time with the Padres was up.That proved not to be the case.In his season-ending press conference Wednesday, Padres general manager A.J. Preller confirmed Melvin would return for 2024, despite a reported rift in their relationship and a disappointing 2023 season.“Bob is our manager, and he’s going to be our manager going forward,” Preller said of Melvin, who has one year left on his contract.Related ArticlesSan Francisco Giants | SF Gia...

Bay Area arts: 11 great events and shows to catch this weekend

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

From Fleet Week and Litquake to an opera based on a classic Steinbeck novel and the return of the Steinway Society, there is a lot to see and do this weekend in the Bay Area. Here is a partial roundup.Fleet Week is backGiven that Congress seemed bound and determined to ruin this beloved Bay Area event this year, it seems only right that we rejoice in Fleet Week’s arrival, safe from a federal government shutdown that only a few days ago appeared all but certain. But that’s all Tall Ships under the bridge now, and we are free to enjoy this annual tribute to those who serve in America’s armed forces, particularly the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.The event, running through Monday, takes on added meaning with the passing late last week of U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who helped launch Fleet week 41 years ago when she was San Francisco mayor. Fleet Week events, nearly all of which are free, range from eye-popping displays of power to more poignant celebrations of the importance of re...

Los Angeles teen launches app to connect aging foster youth with adult mentors

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

At just 17 years old, Layla Tehranchi has a lot on her plate. She's a senior at an all-girls high school in Brentwood, co-founder of a nonprofit organization and now she can add the title of tech entrepreneur onto her growing list of accomplishments.In August, Tehranchi launched FosterBuddy, an app that connects emancipated teens and foster youth aging out of the system with mentors and professionals who are interested in making a lasting difference in the lives of those in need.For Tehranchi, it all started with a dream, or rather, a lack of one.During an event hosted by her nonprofit, Coco's Angels, Layla had a life-changing conversation with a foster teen who was aging out of the system."I asked him in just casual conversation, what his dream was, essentially what his dream was for life," Tehranchi said. "And he told me he had none."Delara and Layla Tehranchi, co-founders of Coco's Angels, pose for a photo at an event for the nonprofit in this undated photo. (Coco’s Angels)She st...

Ron DeSantis’ campaign will move more staff to Iowa in his latest bet on the first caucuses

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:11 GMT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign said Wednesday it will move about a third of its staff to Iowa, underscoring the do-or-die importance the Florida governor is placing on the leadoff caucuses.The development, a little more than three months before Iowa Republicans launch the 2024 nominating calendar, comes as DeSantis seeks to visit all of the state’s 99 counties in an effort to outmaneuver former President Donald Trump. So far, Trump is dominating in Iowa and nationally while DeSantis has seen his national support slip substantially from its high point earlier this year.DeSantis’ team also said they intended to report raising $15 million during the third quarter of 2023.Sending about a third of the 56 Tallahassee-based staff to Iowa gives DeSantis by far the biggest organizational footprint in Iowa, where he has had four staff. However, DeSantis’ organizational work in Iowa has been carried out by a super PAC supporting him, which h...