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Millions could lose internet as funds for federal program run out, FCC says [Video]
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Millions could lose internet as funds for federal program run out, FCC says [Video]

The Affordable Connectivity Program, a federal initiative that has been a digital lifeline for approximately 23 million American households, is nearing its end.The program, a benefit introduced during the 2021 pandemic era, has exhausted its funds. This has raised concerns among digital advocates about the potential widening of the nation’s digital divide.”The path we’re on right now is we’re gonna be returning to a place where kids are doing their homework in parking lots, folks can’t access their telehealth,” said Angela Siefer, executive director of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance.The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has indicated that enrollees may receive a reduced benefit in May. By June, unless Congress intervenes, there will be no benefits at all. The White House announced on Monday that it will continue to urge Congress for a renewal of the program. In the meantime, it is encouraging service providers to offer assistance.”We announced earlier this month that we are encouraging providers to take steps to keep their consumers connected at this crucial time by offering low-cost, no costs plans,” said Karine Jean-Pierre, White House press secretary.Siefer advises users of the Affordable Connectivity Program to consult with their internet service providers about these lower-cost options. “If an individual or household had utilized one of those low-cost offers prior to the pandemic, they should definitely check and see what that low-cost offer is now. It may not be exactly the same as it was,” Siefer said.The National Digital Inclusion Alliance also suggests exploring the FCC’s Lifeline Program. This program offers discounts on phone and broadband services from participating providers.

Prosecutors at hush money trial zero in on the details [Video]
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Prosecutors at hush money trial zero in on the details [Video]

The first week of testimony at Donald Trump’s hush money trial was the scene-setter for jurors: Manhattan prosecutors portrayed what they say was an illegal scheme to influence the 2016 presidential campaign by burying negative stories. Now prosecutors are working on filling in the details of how they believe Trump and his allies pulled it off.Court resumes Tuesday with Gary Farro, a banker who helped Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen open accounts, including one that Cohen used to buy the silence of porn performer Stormy Daniels. She alleged a 2006 sexual encounter with Trump, which he denies.For his part, the former president and presumptive Republican nominee has been campaigning in his off-hours, but is required to be in court when it is in session, four days a week.Jurors so far have heard from two other witnesses. Trumps former longtime executive assistant, Rhona Graff, recounted that she recalled once seeing Daniels at Trump’s office suite in Trump Tower and figured the performer was a potential contestant for one of Trumps Apprentice-brand shows. Former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker laid out how he agreed to serve as the Trump campaign’s eyes and ears by helping to squelch unflattering rumors and claims about Trump and women.Through detailed testimony on email exchanges, business transactions and bank accounts, prosecutors are forming the foundation of their argument that Trump is guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with the hush money payments. The prosecution is leading up to crucial testimony from Cohen himself, who went to federal prison after pleading guilty to campaign finance violations and other crimes. Trump has denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty.It’s not clear when Cohen will take the stand; the trial is expected to go on another month or more. And with every moment Trump is in court as the first of his four criminal trials plays out, he’s growing increasingly frustrated while the November election moves ever closer.Our countrys going to hell and we sit here day after day after day, which is their plan, because they think they might be able to eke out an election,” Trump declared last week in the courthouse hallway.Also this week, Judge Juan M. Merchan may decide on prosecutors’ request to fine Trump for what they say were violations of a gag order that bars him from making public statements about witnesses, jurors and some others connected to the case. The judge also has set a hearing Thursday on another batch of alleged gag order violations.Prosecutors used Pecker, Trump’s longtime friend, to detail a catch and kill arrangement in which he collected seamy stories about the candidate so the National Enquirer or Trump’s associates could buy and bury the claims. Pecker described how he paid $180,000 to scoop up and sit on stories from a doorman and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. He didn’t involve himself in the Daniels payout, he said. He testified for parts of four days.Trump says all the stories were false. His attorneys used cross-examination to suggest Trump was really engaged in an effort to protect his name and his family not to influence the outcome of the presidential election.Farro first took the stand Friday. While a senior managing director at First Republic Bank, he was assigned to work with Trump’s lawyer for about three years, in part because of his ability to handle individuals who may be a little challenging,” Farro said, adding that he didn’t find Cohen difficult.Farro detailed to jurors the process of helping Cohen create accounts for two limited liability companies corporate-speak for a business account that protects the person behind the account from liability, debt and other issues. Farro testified that Cohen indicated the companies, Resolution Consultants LLC and Essential Consultants LLC, would be involved in real estate consulting.Prosecutors showed jurors emails in which Cohen describes the opening of the Resolution Consultants account as an important matter.Cohen acknowledged when he pleaded guilty to federal charges in 2018 that it had been formed to send money to American Media, Inc., the Enquirer publisher. It was meant as a payback for their purchase of McDougal’s story. But the deal never went through.Farro said that since the account was never funded, it was never technically opened. Instead, Cohen pivoted to starting up the Essential Consultants account, which he later used to pay Daniels $130,000.When asked whether Cohen seemed anxious to get the bank accounts set up, Farro testified: Every time Michael Cohen spoke to me, he gave a sense of urgency.Farro told the 12-person panel that the banks policy prohibited doing business with entities tied to adult entertainment, including pornography and strip clubs. Trumps lawyers have not yet had a chance to cross-examine Farro.___ Long reported from Washington.

TikTok’s parent company says it has no plans to sell platform as US ban looms [Video]
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TikTok’s parent company says it has no plans to sell platform as US ban looms [Video]

TikToks Chinese parent company ByteDance said Thursday that it has no plans to sell the social media platform, its first official response on the fraught issue since President Joe Biden signed a bill that could lead to a nationwide ban of the wildly popular app.Foreign media reports that ByteDance is exploring the sale of TikTok are untrue, the Beijing-based company said in a statement on Toutiao, a news aggregation app that it owns and is popular in mainland China.ByteDance doesnt have any plan to sell TikTok, it said.The statement was in direct response to an article by the Information on Thursday that said Bytedance was exploring scenarios for selling TikToks U.S. business without the algorithm that recommends videos to TikTok users.In the statement, Bytedance attached screenshots of the Informations report, which cited three people with knowledge of deliberations.Until now Beijing-based ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok and a host of other apps, had remained quiet on this weeks legislation in the U.S. pushing for a forced sale. Chinese authorities have also been muted since the bill was signed into law despite Beijing previously making clear it would oppose any such measure.Congress passed the bill this week as part of a wide-ranging foreign aid package to support Israel and Ukraine. It was approved by the House on Saturday, and by the Senate on Tuesday.The legislation poses the most serious risk to TikTok since U.S. officials began raising concerns about the app in 2020. Under what is now U.S. law, TikTok is forced to find a new owner within months or be banned from the United States entirely, its biggest market with 170 million users.On Wednesday, TikToks CEO Shou Chew said the company would fight in the courts to stay online in the U.S.Rest assured, we arent going anywhere, he said in a video posted on the app.The Chinese government has previously said it strongly opposes a forced sale of TikTok, and has the legal ability to do so. It views TikToks technology as highly valuable and has taken steps since 2020 to ensure it can veto any sale by ByteDance.TikToks algorithms, which keep users glued to the app, are believed to be key to its success. The algorithms give recommendations based on users behavior, thus pushing videos they want to watch.U.S. lawmakers have long been concerned about Beijings influence over the app. In particular, they worry that TikTok could share data with the Chinese government or manipulate content displayed on its platform. So far, theres little evidence to support these concerns.But as a China-based company, ByteDance is subject to a myriad of national intelligence, data security and cybersecurity laws.In 2018, China amended its National Intelligence Law, which requires any organization or citizen to support, assist and cooperate with national intelligence work. That means ByteDance is legally bound to help with gathering intelligence.As a result, a number of countries have banned officials from downloading TikTok onto their phones, but the U.S. law is one of the most sweeping measures taken so far. India banned TikTok entirely in 2020.

National kitten crisis overwhelming local rescues and shelters [Video]
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National kitten crisis overwhelming local rescues and shelters [Video]

Were in a kitten crisis according to the Humane Society of America.This year, theyre warning of a longer and more strenuous kitten season, which several local organizations say is already at our doorstep.Its a perfect storm of factors that play into this crisis, with two of the biggest being the economy and climate change.Theres no quick fix, but there are ways to alleviate the strain its taking on your local rescue shelter. Deb Lawrence started “A Place for Grace” around the same time that she noticed the influx of kittens was getting harder to keep up with. “Usually, we have a break from October, middle of November, to January or February, and we havent stopped. Weve been getting kittens regularly,” said Lawrence.Lawrence estimated shes averaging $19,000 to $25,000 in medical bills each year. Whatevers not covered by donations comes out of her pockets, but Lawrence continued on to say that if she doesnt do it, then hundreds of kittens and cats would be left to die in the same place they were dumped.She added, “I’m getting calls of two or three times a day to take in kittens, taking all the cats that are being surrendered. I know that Franklin County Animal Rescue is dealing with the same thing.”Vet bills are just one piece of this puzzle. The pet food aisle at the grocery store hit by inflation, renters no pet policies but what brought us to this mess in the first place was warmer winters leading to increasingly longer kitten seasons.So, what can we do since fixing climate change isnt realistic?”It is so important that people spay and neuter their cats so that they don’t continue to have this perpetual kitten season effect,” said Christen Trayah, who is the animal care manager for the Humane Society of Chittenden County. Trayah said the Humane Society is anticipating their kitten intake to ramp up in the coming weeks, but luckily, their program is a huge part of the reason why theyre not concerned for it: “We do have a community pet clinic and we’re able to assist with spay and neuter.”If you dont have a feline friend and arent able to adopt one, donate and it doesnt have to be money; cat food, litter, blankets, paper towels, the list is long.Lawrence said any donations are a huge help to make sure she and other rescues are able to do their jobs.

Bradford home to first federally funded EV charging station in Vermont [Video]
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Bradford home to first federally funded EV charging station in Vermont [Video]

Tuesday officially marks the opening of the first federally funded charging infrastructure in Vermont under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program, or NEVI. Bradford is the first site out of many planned ones in Vermont. The state will receive $21.2 million during a five-year period for the buildout. The Green Mountain State is the sixth state in the nation to have chargers installed under the program.The NEVI program and the bipartisan infrastructure law is bringing $21 million to the Agency of Transportation for the buildout of these type of heavy chargers, said Secretary Joe Flynn, of the VT Agency of Transportation. And so this is really the beginning of the fast charging network.Located in Bradford’s Denny Park on Main Street, the four new chargers can simultaneously charge 180 kilowatts per hour, which will get drivers back on the roads efficiently.The new stations complement two existing fast chargers and a single AC level 2 charger. The placement of the plugs was no accident, according to Secretary Lindsay Kurrle, of the VT Agency of Commerce & Community Development.This charging location is also beneficial to the Bradford business community, she said. EV drivers passing through town, traveling along Interstate 91 or who live nearby can walk into town and spend money at the delis, restaurants and stores while they plug in to recharge.The chargers were installed by Norwich Technologies, which will also oversee the maintenance for the next five years. Bradford will not be the only town to see this infrastructure; chargers will be installed in all 14 counties throughout the state.We’re celebrating this because charging stations need not just be in places like Brattleboro right at the state line or up in Burlington, said Vermont Democratic Rep. Becca Balint. We need them at stops all along the way to make it possible for us to transition off of combustion engines.The NEVI program dictates that fast chargers be installed every 50 miles of highway around the country. The private sector is putting out chargers right now, but the public sector investment is to make sure that we get covered, said Shailen Bhatt, the Federal Highway Administrator. So, if you drive from Boston to Seattle, you’re going to be able to charge all the way across on our interstates and also in local communities.Companies are invited to apply to the AOT to help with the buildout. The deadline is the end of May. The businesses must be qualified to design, build, own, operate, and maintain NEVI-compliant charging stations.

As National Work Zone Awareness Week begins, Burlington businesses urge customers to shop downtown [Video]
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As National Work Zone Awareness Week begins, Burlington businesses urge customers to shop downtown [Video]

Its National Work Zone Awareness Week, an annual spring campaign to encourage drivers to use extra caution around construction zones. Spring is the start of construction season, but some communities throughout Vermont and Northern New York have had crews get an early start on some projects this year. Crews in Burlington are nearly four months into work on the Great Streets Project, making improvements to roads, sidewalks, bike paths and the city’s stormwater drainage system.In all, construction is estimated to take two and a half years and cost $30 million. Burlington resident Michael Williams tells NBC5 the cost of construction isnt the only price being paid. Williams has lived in Burlington for more than 30 years. Hes the owner of a community staple: Kountry Kart Deli.The deli is located on Main Street, right along the path of one major construction zone. Since the work started, Williams has watched business drop significantly. “We’re down probably 20, 25%, Williams said. We desperately need everyone to come out and fight these little traffic patterns to come down to support us because it is going to be a long two and a half years.” Williams said road closures, detours and even fewer parking spaces have deterred many people from traveling to downtown Burlington, and local businesses are feeling the impact.”If it’s not convenient for somebody to come, then they’re not going to come, Williams said. But Williams, like many in Burlington, agree much of the work is necessary. Anna Ziglar said she hopes the construction restores Burlington to the place she moved to five years ago. “I just hope that we can get back to a flourishing downtown Burlington that I feel like it once was, Ziglar said. In the meantime, Williams said businesses will need the extra support from anyone who can get downtown. I just hope that Burlington can come back because it really breaks my heart hearing from everybody that I talked to that they don’t come downtown, he said. I mean my business is downtown, I need you to come downtown to support me or I wont be here a 37th year.”Click here for information on current construction projects, road closures and detours in Burlington.

iPhone sales are plunging. Heres why [Video]
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iPhone sales are plunging. Heres why [Video]

Apple’s smartphone sales tumbled a stunning 10% last quarter, according to market research firm IDC. The main cause: iPhone sales in China fell sharply.The company has lost momentum in China as nationalism, a rough economy and increased competition have hurt Apple over the past several months.”It’s a steep drop for Apple, but if you think of where we have been in the past four years, Apple has probably been the most resilient brand, overcoming supply chain issues and macro challenges, more than other brands,” said Nabila Popal, research director at IDC, told CNN.Samsung had been the top smartphone manufacturer for the past 12 years. Apple took the crown last year but only for one quarter. Samsung took the top spot back in the first quarter of 2024, IDC reported.”It’s also very significant that Samsung is back at the top,” Popal said. “This year, we are expecting Android to grow at twice the pace of iOS.” (Android is the operating system used by Samsung systems, while iPhones use iOS.)That’s because Android had a strong decline over the past few years, so it has more room to grow now. Both Apple and Samsung did not respond to a request for comment.Overall, IDC said global smartphone shipments increased 7.8% year over year to about 289 million devices in the first quarter of 2024, indicating the smartphone market is reemerging after two years of macroeconomic challenge.Samsung occupied about 20.8% of market share (or 60.1 million shipments) during the quarter, followed by Apple with 17.3% (50.1 million shipments). Chinese manufacturer Xiaomi made up 14.1% (40.8 million shipments).In December, Apple overtook Samsung as the highest performer in the smartphone category, ending Samsungs 12-year run at the top, with 20% market share (compared to Samsungs 19.4% market share).Although IDC said in its latest report that it expects Apple and Samsung to maintain their hold on the market, the resurgence of Huawei and other companies in China, including Xiaomi and OPPO/OnePlus, will likely continue. Chinese consumers who once would have considered Apple are now turning to national brands in China.China remains an important market for Apple as it is the largest market behind the US. The company continues to offer discounts in China to help boost sales. Last year, Huaweis popular Mate 60 smartphone made headlines when the US government sought more information about the Pro model, which included a sophisticated processor. Its debut shocked industry experts who questioned how the company could make such a chip following sweeping efforts by the United States to restrict Chinas access to foreign chip technology because of perceived national security concerns.Popal also noted Apple has not articulated a strong message about artificial intelligence, at a time when many tech companies are doubling down on related strategies and features.”We’re hoping to hear some messaging around this at its June developer conference,” she said. “We’re hopeful if they do provide something for the consumers they should gain more interest that theyve seen challenges with.”Samsung, however, has already gone all in on AI. For its most recent flagship Galaxy S24 lineup, which was announced in January, the company emphasized bringing AI advancements to its messaging, photos and games.”As the overall smartphone market recovers this year, with a strong focus on AI, Samsung is in good position to grow further this year,” she added.