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SAG Awards nominate ‘Barbie,’ ‘Oppenheimer,’ snub DiCaprio

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The 30th Screen Actors Guild Awards on Wednesday heaped nominations on “Oppenheimer,” “Barbie” and “American Fiction,” while snubbing Leonardo DiCaprio for best male actor. As they were at the Golden Globes, Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” were again the lead nominees. Each film

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For IRS, backlogs and identity theft problems remain, but there is ‘cautious optimism’ watchdog says

By FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS is still too slow to process amended tax returns, answer taxpayer phone calls and resolve identity theft cases, according to an independent watchdog within the agency. The organization sent a report to Congress Wednesday that says while there is “cautious optimism” for the agency, the

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Regulators approve new bitcoin funds in move that could spur more investment in the digital currency

By KEN SWEET AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The Securities and Exchange Commission has reluctantly approved trading of the first exchange-traded funds that hold bitcoin. But the agency said Wednesday that it is still deeply skeptical about cryptocurrencies and did not approve or endorse bitcoin in its decision. An exchange traded fund, or

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Air Arabia resumes flights to Afghanistan after halting them 2 years ago as Taliban captured Kabul

ISLAMABAD (AP) — The Taliban government in Afghanistan has confirmed the resumption of Air Arabia flights to Kabul’s international airport, two years after service stopped following the collapse of the Western-backed government. Afghanistan’s Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation says there will be one daily flight between Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, and Kabul. All international

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Greece accuses multinationals of ‘greedflation,’ expands price controls to baby formula

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece’s center-right government has announced price controls on baby formula, accusing multinational suppliers of “greedflation” by imposing unjustifiably high prices on the country’s consumers. A 7% profit cap on formula will take effect in March and follows a series of similar initiatives over the past two years for basic items. Inflation

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Music streams hit 4 trillion in 2023. Country and global acts — and Taylor Swift — fueled the growth

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Listened to more music last year? You’re not alone. Luminate’s year-end report finds that the global music industry surpassed 4 trillion streams in 2023. That’s a new single-year record. Global streams are also up 34% from last year, reflective of an increasingly international music marketplace.

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Biden’s education chief to talk with Dartmouth students about Islamophobia, antisemitism

By MICHAEL CASEY Associated Press HANOVER, N.H. (AP) — President Joe Biden’s education chief plans to meet Wednesday with students at Dartmouth College to discuss antisemitism and Islamophobia on college campuses amid the the Israel-Hamas war. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona will hold a roundtable including Jewish and Muslim students as part of recently launched Dartmouth

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X Corp. has slashed 30% of trust and safety staff, an Australian online safety watchdog says

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia’s online safety watchdog says the owner of the social media platform formerly known as Twitter has slashed its global trust and safety staff by 30% including an 80% reduction in the number of safety engineers since billionaire Elon Musk took over in 2022. Australia’s eSafety Commission

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For 2024, some simple lifestyle changes can improve your little piece of the planet

By LEANNE ITALIE AP Lifestyles Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The fight against climate change requires the mass cooperation of industries, companies, governments and communities around the globe. But individuals have a role to play, too. In New Year’s resolution season, there are lots of small, easily achievable ways to lead more climate-friendly lives. Start

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Hundreds of UK postal workers wrongly accused of fraud will have their convictions overturned

By SYLVIA HUI Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak says he will introduce measures to overturn the convictions of more than 900 post office branch managers who were wrongly accused of theft or fraud because of a faulty computer system. Hundreds of postmasters were wrongly convicted of stealing between 1999 and

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Japan’s nuclear safety agency orders power plant operator to study the impact of Jan. 1 quake

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s nuclear safety regulators have told the operator of a nuclear power plant in the area hit by a powerful New Year’s Day quake to study its potential impact. The Nuclear Regulation Authority asked for further investigation even though initial assessments showed its cooling systems and ability

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