Author: Reporter

Foreign hackers did not change vote totals or otherwise compromise the integrity of federal elections last year in the United States, according to a declassified U.S. government report made public. The report does identify multiple instances in which hackers linked to Iran, China, and Russia connected to election infrastructure, scanned state government websites and copied voter information. But it said there is no evidence that any of the cyber activity had any impact on the election or on the vote totals. “We have no evidence that any detected activity prevented voting, changed votes, or disrupted the ability to tally...

M-I-C-K-E-Y will soon belong to you and me. With several asterisks, qualifications and caveats, Mickey Mouse in his earliest form will be the leader of the band of characters, films, and books that will become public domain as the year turns to 2024. In a moment many close observers thought might never come, at least one version of the quintessential piece of intellectual property and perhaps the most iconic character in American pop culture will be free from Disney’s copyright as his first screen release, the 1928 short “Steamboat Willie,” featuring both Mickey and Minnie Mouse, becomes available for...

Child poverty in the United States more than doubled and median household income declined last year when coronavirus pandemic-era government benefits expired and inflation kept rising, according to figures released in late September by the U.S. Census Bureau. At the same time, the official poverty rate for Black Americans dropped to its lowest level on record, and income inequality declined for the first time since 2007, when looking at pre-tax income, due to income declines in the middle and top income brackets. However, income inequality increased when using after-tax income, another result of the end of pandemic-era tax credits,...

An estimated 17 million households reported problems finding enough food in 2022, a sharp jump from 2021 when boosted government aid helped ease the pandemic-induced economic shutdown. A Department of Agriculture report, released in October, painted a sobering picture of post-pandemic hardship with “statistically significant” increases in food insecurity across multiple categories. Using a representative survey sample of roughly 32,000 American households the report said 12.8% (17 million households) reported occasional problems affording enough food — up from 10.2% (13.5 million households) in 2021 and 10.5% (13.8 million households) in 2020. That was up from 10.2% (13.5 million households)...