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Republicans are more willing than Democrats to spread fake news—particularly during times of greater "political polarization," or competition between the parties—because they want to win more. That is the conclusion of a study, published in the Journal of Marketing , by marketing researchers Xiajing Zhu and Connie Pechmann, a professor at the University of California , Irvine. Zhu is a Ph.D. candidate in marketing at the university. They found that Republicans respond to political competition more aggressively, communicating information that is likely untrue, if not definitively false, to boost their side. "Although Republicans may understand the content is very likely false, they are willing to spread it because they strongly value their party winning over the competition," Zhu said in a statement. "Democrats do not value winning nearly as strongly. They place more value on equity and inclusion, seeing the world in a fundamentally different way than Republicans," she said. Zhu and her colleagues came to their conclusion after a series of studies—the first two of which focused on fact-checked statements by U.S. public figures made in the news media and on social media between 2007 and 2022. Statements were sourced via the fact-checking website PolitiFact, which allows journalists to rate each statement on a six-point scale ranging from "true or accurate" to "pants on fire." The team's analysis indicated that at times when competition between the parties was heightened in the news, Republicans were 21 percent more likely to communicate misinformation than their Democrat counterparts were. The difference was reduced to just 9 percent during periods of low political polarization. To verify these findings, the team next conducted three online surveys in which participants—who identified explicitly as Democrat or Republican —were first placed in either a highly politically polarized or a low-polarization scenario. This was achieved by presenting the subjects with real quotes from existing Democratic and Republican Senate leaders that framed the relationship between the two parties as competitive and oppositional or cooperative and bipartisan. Next, each respondent was presented with misinformation about the other party. For example, conservative subjects were shown posts such as "A Democratic Senator is under investigation for helping Russian billionaires" and "Democratic Senators are deliberately creating the global food shortage." Liberal participants, on the other hand, were given posts like "A Republican Senator is under investigation for helping Russian billionaires" and "Republican Senators are deliberately creating the global food shortage." Finally, the subjects were asked, "How likely are you to make a Facebook post like these?" They were also asked if such a post would make their party stronger, better or more motivated. The results indicated that when political polarization was high, Republicans were significantly more willing to communicate misinformation to gain an advantage over the opposition party than Democrats were. In their final study, the researchers analyzed the speeches made by U.S. presidents of both parties between 1929 and 2023, spanning the period from the 31st president, Herbert Hoover, to the 46th, Joe Biden . The team found that during times of political polarization (such as during election periods), Republican presidents were more likely to speak in partisan terms—using terms such as "we" and "us"—than Democrat leaders were. "We acknowledge that the use of first-person plural (e.g., 'we') in speeches could sometimes refer to the U.S. citizenry as a whole rather than a partisan ingroup (Democrats or Republicans)," Zhu and Pechmann write in their paper. "But the U.S. citizenry is arguably another ingroup. Thus, it appears that conservatives are motivated to attain ingroup dominance given polarization, and liberals less so, possibly regardless of the ingroup," they said. "Republicans react to political polarization by putting out partisan misinformation," Pechmann said. "This can have a deleterious effect on the state of democratic institutions and processes." For example, the two researchers said, following misinformation on election fraud in the 2020 presidential election, 400 restrictive voting bills were introduced in 47 state legislatures. "Worse, 14 states passed restrictive voting bills that, for instance, shortened the mail-in voting period, eliminated election day registration and/or reduced ballot dropbox access," the researchers wrote. "These changes have decreased voter turnout and engagement, particularly among minority voters." The researchers have some suggestions for how the harmful effects of misinformation might be combated. Trying to dampen political polarization in the news and on social media would be an obvious approach—although an impractical one, the two say, given how polarization has marketplace benefits in boosting audience sizes, engagement and political donations. Alternatively, they suggest, more money might be invested in fact-checking. At present, this is a service largely performed by volunteer organizations with minimal resources. Greater support could allow fact-checkers to concentrate their efforts during periods of heightened political polarization, such as around elections. "Media literacy education can also be used to combat misinformation," the researchers wrote in their paper. At present, 18 states have introduced mandatory media literacy education to help students identify misinformation. It is estimated that 84 percent of U.S. adults support the introduction of media literacy into school curricula—even though only 38 percent of said adults had received such education themselves. "With polarization rising globally," the researchers conclude in their paper, "we hope our insights will help nations, communities and individuals better prepare for the effects on misinformation spread to preserve truth, trust and democracy." Do you have a tip on a science story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about misinformation? Let us know via science@newsweek.com . Reference Zhu, X., & Pechmann, C. (2025). Political Polarization Triggers Conservatives' Misinformation Spread to Attain Ingroup Dominance. Journal of Marketing , 89 (1), 39–55. https://doi.org/10.1177/00222429241264997By Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald (TNS) MIAMI — As her students finished their online exam, Arlet Lara got up to make a cafe con leche . Her 16-year-old son found her on the kitchen floor. First, he called Dad in a panic. Then 911. “I had a stroke and my life made a 180-degree turn,” Lara told the Miami Herald, recalling the medical scare she experienced in May 2020 in the early months of the COVID pandemic. “The stroke affected my left side of the body,” the North Miami woman and former high school math teacher said. Lara, an avid runner and gym goer, couldn’t even walk. “It was hard,” the 50-year-old mom said. After years of rehabilitation therapy and a foot surgery, Lara can walk again. But she still struggles with moving. This summer, she became the first patient in South Florida to get an implant of a new and only FDA-approved nerve stimulation device designed to help ischemic stroke survivors regain movement in their arms and hands. This first procedure was at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami. Lara’s rehab was at at the Christine E. Lynn Rehabilitation Center for The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, part of a partnership between Jackson Health System and UHealth. Every year, thousands in the United States have a stroke , with one occurring every 40 seconds, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The majority of strokes are ischemic, often caused by blood clots that obstruct blood flow to the brain. For survivors, most of whom are left with some level of disability, the Vivistim Paired VNS System, the device implanted in Lara’s chest, could be a game changer in recovery, said Dr. Robert Starke, a UHealth neurosurgeon and interventional neuroradiologist. He also serves as co-director of endovascular neurosurgery at Jackson Memorial Hospital, part of Miami-Dade’s public hospital system. The Vivistim Paired VNS System is a small pacemaker-like device implanted in the upper chest and neck area. Patients can go home the same day. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the stroke rehabilitation system in 2021 to be used alongside post-ischemic stroke rehabilitation therapy to treat moderate to severe mobility issues in hands and arms. Lara’s occupational therapist can activate the device during rehabilitation sessions to electrically stimulate the vagus nerve, which runs from the brain down to the abdomen and regulates various parts of the body’s nervous system. The electrical stimulation rewires the brain to improve a stroke survivor’s ability to move their arms and hands. Lara also has a magnet she can use to activate the device when she wants to practice at home. Her therapy consists of repetitive tasks, including coloring, pinching cubes and grabbing and releasing cylindrical shapes. After several weeks of rehabilitation therapy with the device, Lara has seen improvement. “Little by little, I’m noticing that my hand is getting stronger. I am already able to brush my teeth with the left hand,” she told the Miami Herald in September. Since then, Lara has finished the initial six-week Vivitism therapy program, and is continuing to use the device in her rehabilitation therapy. She continues to improve and can now eat better with her left hand and can brush her hair with less difficulty, according to her occupational therapist, Neil Batungbakal. Lara learned about the device through an online group for stroke survivors and contacted the company to inquire. She then connected them with her Jackson medical team. Now a year later, the device is available to Jackson patients. So far, four patients have received the implant at Jackson. Starke sees the device as an opportunity to help bring survivors one step closer to regaining full mobility. Strokes are a leading cause of disability worldwide. While most stroke survivors can usually recover some function through treatment and rehabilitation, they tend to hit a “major plateau” after the first six months of recovery, he said. Vivistim, when paired with rehabilitation therapy, could change that. Jackson Health said results of a clinical trial published in the peer-reviewed medical journal The Lancet in 2021 showed that the device, “when paired with high-repetition, task-specific occupational or physical therapy, helps generate two to three times more hand and arm function for stroke survivors than rehabilitation therapy alone.” The device has even shown to benefit patients 20 years from their original stroke, according to Starke. “So now a lot of these patients that had strokes 10-15 years ago that thought that they would never be able to use their arm in any sort of real functional way are now able to have a real meaningful function, which is pretty tremendous,” Starke said. Vivistim’s vagus-nerve stimulation technology was developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas’ Texas Biomedical Device Center and is being sold commercially by Austin-based MicroTransponder, a company started by university graduates. Similar devices are used to treat epilepsy and depression . For Lara, the device is a new tool to help her recovery journey. “Everything becomes a challenge so we are working with small things every day because I want to get back as many functions as possible,” Lara said. Patients interested in Vivistim should speak with their doctor to check their eligibility. The FDA said patients should make sure to discuss any prior medical history, including concurrent forms of brain stimulation, current diathermy treatment, previous brain surgery, depression, respiratory diseases and disorders such as asthma, and cardiac abnormalities. “Adverse events included but were not limited to dysphonia (difficulty speaking), bruising, falling, general hoarseness, general pain, hoarseness after surgery, low mood, muscle pain, fracture, headache, rash, dizziness, throat irritation, urinary tract infection and fatigue,” the FDA said. MicroTransponder says the device is “covered by Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance with prior authorization on a case-by-case basis.” To learn more about the device, visit vivistim.com. ©2024 Miami Herald. Visit at miamiherald.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.Luigi Nicholas Mangione, the suspect in the fatal shooting of a healthcare executive in New York City, apparently was living a charmed life: the grandson of a wealthy real estate developer, valedictorian of his elite Baltimore prep school and with degrees from one of the nation’s top private universities. Friends at an exclusive co-living space at the edge of touristy Waikiki in Hawaii where the 26-year-old Mangione once lived widely considered him a “great guy,” and pictures on his social media accounts show a fit, smiling, handsome young man on beaches and at parties. Now, investigators in New York and Pennsylvania are working to piece together why Mangione may have diverged from this path to make the violent and radical decision to gun down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a brazen attack on a Manhattan street. The killing sparked widespread discussions about corporate greed, unfairness in the medical insurance industry and even inspired folk-hero sentiment toward his killer. But Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro sharply refuted that perception after Mangione’s arrest on Monday when a customer at a McDonald’s restaurant in Pennsylvania spotted Mangione eating and noticed he resembled the shooting suspect in security-camera photos released by New York police. “In some dark corners, this killer is being hailed as a hero. Hear me on this, he is no hero,” Shapiro said. “The real hero in this story is the person who called 911 at McDonald’s this morning.” Mangione’s family and upbringing Mangione comes from a prominent Maryland family. His grandfather, Nick Mangione, who died in 2008, was a successful real estate developer. One of his best-known projects was Turf Valley Resort, a sprawling luxury retreat and conference center outside Baltimore that he purchased in 1978. The Mangione family also purchased Hayfields Country Club north of Baltimore in 1986. On Monday, Baltimore County police officers blocked off an entrance to the property, which public records link to Luigi Mangione’s parents. Reporters and photographers gathered outside the entrance. The father of 10 children, Nick Mangione prepared his five sons — including Luigi Mangione’s father, Louis Mangione — to help manage the family business, according to a 2003 Washington Post report. Nick Mangione had 37 grandchildren, including Luigi, according to the grandfather’s obituary. Luigi Mangione’s grandparents donated to charities through the Mangione Family Foundation, according to a statement from Loyola University commemorating Nick Mangione’s wife’s death in 2023. They donated to various causes, including Catholic organizations, colleges and the arts. One of Luigi Mangione’s cousins is Republican Maryland state legislator Nino Mangione, a spokesman for the lawmaker’s office confirmed. “Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest,” Mangione’s family said in a statement posted on social media by Nino Mangione. “We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved.” Mangione’s education and work history Mangione, who was valedictorian of his elite Maryland prep school, earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in computer science in 2020 from the University of Pennsylvania, a university spokesman told The Associated Press. He learned to code in high school and helped start a club at Penn for people interested in gaming and game design, according to a 2018 story in Penn Today, a campus publication. His social media posts suggest he belonged to the fraternity Phi Kappa Psi. They also show him taking part in a 2019 program at Stanford University, and in photos with family and friends at the Jersey Shore and in Hawaii, San Diego, Puerto Rico, and other destinations. The Gilman School, from which Mangione graduated in 2016, is one of Baltimore’s elite prep schools. The children of some of the city’s wealthiest and most prominent residents, including Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr., have attended the school. Its alumni include sportswriter Frank Deford and former Arizona Gov. Fife Symington. In his valedictory speech, Luigi Mangione described his classmates’ “incredible courage to explore the unknown and try new things.” Mangione took a software programming internship after high school at Maryland-based video game studio Firaxis, where he fixed bugs on the hit strategy game Civilization 6, according to a LinkedIn profile. Firaxis’ parent company, Take-Two Interactive, said it would not comment on former employees. He more recently worked at the car-buying website TrueCar, but has not worked there since 2023, the head of the Santa Monica, California-based company confirmed to the AP. Time in Hawaii and reports of back pain From January to June 2022, Mangione lived at Surfbreak, a “co-living” space at the edge of touristy Waikiki in Honolulu. Like other residents of the shared penthouse catering to remote workers, Mangione underwent a background check, said Josiah Ryan, a spokesperson for owner and founder R.J. Martin. “Luigi was just widely considered to be a great guy. There were no complaints,” Ryan said. “There was no sign that might point to these alleged crimes they’re saying he committed.” At Surfbreak, Martin learned Mangione had severe back pain from childhood that interfered with many aspects of his life, including surfing, Ryan said. “He went surfing with R.J. once but it didn’t work out because of his back,” Ryan said, but noted that Mangione and Martin often went together to a rock-climbing gym. Mangione left Surfbreak to get surgery on the mainland, Ryan said, then later returned to Honolulu and rented an apartment. An image posted to a social media account linked to Mangione showed what appeared to be an X-ray of a metal rod and multiple screws inserted into someone’s lower spine. Martin stopped hearing from Mangione six months to a year ago. An X account linked to Mangione includes recent posts about the negative impact of smartphones on children; healthy eating and exercise habits; psychological theories; and a quote from Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti about the dangers of becoming “well-adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” Police report a darker turn Mangione likely was motivated by his anger at what he called “parasitic” health insurance companies and a disdain for corporate greed, according to a law enforcement bulletin obtained by AP. He wrote that the U.S. has the most expensive healthcare system in the world and that the profits of major corporations continue to rise while “our life expectancy” does not, according to the bulletin, based on a review of the suspect’s handwritten notes and social media posts. He appeared to view the targeted killing of the UnitedHealthcare CEO as a symbolic takedown, asserting in his note that he is the “first to face it with such brutal honesty,” the bulletin said. Mangione called “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski a “political revolutionary” and may have found inspiration from the man who carried out a series of bombings while railing against modern society and technology, the document said. Associated Press reporters Lea Skene in Baltimore; Jennifer Sinco Kelleher in Honolulu; Maryclaire Dale in Philadelphia; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; and Michael Kunzelman in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.None
Albertsons stock hits 52-week low at $17.27 amid market shifts
South Carolina State wins 72-62 over IU IndianapolisBy Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald (TNS) MIAMI — As her students finished their online exam, Arlet Lara got up to make a cafe con leche . Her 16-year-old son found her on the kitchen floor. First, he called Dad in a panic. Then 911. “I had a stroke and my life made a 180-degree turn,” Lara told the Miami Herald, recalling the medical scare she experienced in May 2020 in the early months of the COVID pandemic. “The stroke affected my left side of the body,” the North Miami woman and former high school math teacher said. Lara, an avid runner and gym goer, couldn’t even walk. “It was hard,” the 50-year-old mom said. After years of rehabilitation therapy and a foot surgery, Lara can walk again. But she still struggles with moving. This summer, she became the first patient in South Florida to get an implant of a new and only FDA-approved nerve stimulation device designed to help ischemic stroke survivors regain movement in their arms and hands. This first procedure was at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami. Lara’s rehab was at at the Christine E. Lynn Rehabilitation Center for The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, part of a partnership between Jackson Health System and UHealth. Every year, thousands in the United States have a stroke , with one occurring every 40 seconds, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The majority of strokes are ischemic, often caused by blood clots that obstruct blood flow to the brain. For survivors, most of whom are left with some level of disability, the Vivistim Paired VNS System, the device implanted in Lara’s chest, could be a game changer in recovery, said Dr. Robert Starke, a UHealth neurosurgeon and interventional neuroradiologist. He also serves as co-director of endovascular neurosurgery at Jackson Memorial Hospital, part of Miami-Dade’s public hospital system. Arlet Lara, the first patient in South Florida to get an FDA-approved nerve stimulation implant, right, runs into her rehabilitation neurology physician Dr. Gemayaret Alvarez, before her physical therapy appointment on Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, at Lynn Rehabilitation Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital. The implant is designed to help stroke survivors regain function in their arms. (Alie Skowronski/Miami Herald/TNS) Arlet Lara, the first patient in South Florida to get an FDA-approved nerve stimulation implant designed to help stroke survivors regain function in their arms, goes through exercises while her therapist activates the device during her physical therapy appointment on Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, at Lynn Rehabilitation Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital. The activation works as positive reinforcement to her muscles when she completes the exercise correctly. (Alie Skowronski/Miami Herald/TNS) Arlet Lara, the first patient in South Florida to get an FDA-approved nerve stimulation implant, does an exercise while Neil Batungbakal, rehabilitation therapist, activates the implant with the black trigger during her physical therapy appointment on Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, at Lynn Rehabilitation Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital. The implant is designed to help stroke survivors regain function in their arms. The activation works as positive reinforcement to her muscles when she completes the exercise correctly. (Alie Skowronski/Miami Herald/TNS) Arlet Lara, the first patient in South Florida to get an FDA- approved nerve stimulation implant, does an exercise while Neil Batungbakal, rehabilitation therapist, activates the implant with the black trigger during her physical therapy appointment on Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, at Lynn Rehabilitation Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital. Arlet Lara, the first patient in South Florida to get an FDA-approved nerve stimulation implant, right, runs into her rehabilitation neurology physician Dr. Gemayaret Alvarez, before her physical therapy appointment on Monday, Sept. 9, 2024, at Lynn Rehabilitation Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital. The implant is designed to help stroke survivors regain function in their arms. (Alie Skowronski/Miami Herald/TNS) The Vivistim Paired VNS System is a small pacemaker-like device implanted in the upper chest and neck area. Patients can go home the same day. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the stroke rehabilitation system in 2021 to be used alongside post-ischemic stroke rehabilitation therapy to treat moderate to severe mobility issues in hands and arms. Lara’s occupational therapist can activate the device during rehabilitation sessions to electrically stimulate the vagus nerve, which runs from the brain down to the abdomen and regulates various parts of the body’s nervous system. The electrical stimulation rewires the brain to improve a stroke survivor’s ability to move their arms and hands. Lara also has a magnet she can use to activate the device when she wants to practice at home. Her therapy consists of repetitive tasks, including coloring, pinching cubes and grabbing and releasing cylindrical shapes. After several weeks of rehabilitation therapy with the device, Lara has seen improvement. “Little by little, I’m noticing that my hand is getting stronger. I am already able to brush my teeth with the left hand,” she told the Miami Herald in September. Since then, Lara has finished the initial six-week Vivitism therapy program, and is continuing to use the device in her rehabilitation therapy. She continues to improve and can now eat better with her left hand and can brush her hair with less difficulty, according to her occupational therapist, Neil Batungbakal. Lara learned about the device through an online group for stroke survivors and contacted the company to inquire. She then connected them with her Jackson medical team. Now a year later, the device is available to Jackson patients. So far, four patients have received the implant at Jackson. Starke sees the device as an opportunity to help bring survivors one step closer to regaining full mobility. Strokes are a leading cause of disability worldwide. While most stroke survivors can usually recover some function through treatment and rehabilitation, they tend to hit a “major plateau” after the first six months of recovery, he said. Vivistim, when paired with rehabilitation therapy, could change that. Jackson Health said results of a clinical trial published in the peer-reviewed medical journal The Lancet in 2021 showed that the device, “when paired with high-repetition, task-specific occupational or physical therapy, helps generate two to three times more hand and arm function for stroke survivors than rehabilitation therapy alone.” The device has even shown to benefit patients 20 years from their original stroke, according to Starke. “So now a lot of these patients that had strokes 10-15 years ago that thought that they would never be able to use their arm in any sort of real functional way are now able to have a real meaningful function, which is pretty tremendous,” Starke said. Vivistim’s vagus-nerve stimulation technology was developed by researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas’ Texas Biomedical Device Center and is being sold commercially by Austin-based MicroTransponder, a company started by university graduates. Similar devices are used to treat epilepsy and depression . For Lara, the device is a new tool to help her recovery journey. “Everything becomes a challenge so we are working with small things every day because I want to get back as many functions as possible,” Lara said. Patients interested in Vivistim should speak with their doctor to check their eligibility. The FDA said patients should make sure to discuss any prior medical history, including concurrent forms of brain stimulation, current diathermy treatment, previous brain surgery, depression, respiratory diseases and disorders such as asthma, and cardiac abnormalities. “Adverse events included but were not limited to dysphonia (difficulty speaking), bruising, falling, general hoarseness, general pain, hoarseness after surgery, low mood, muscle pain, fracture, headache, rash, dizziness, throat irritation, urinary tract infection and fatigue,” the FDA said. MicroTransponder says the device is “covered by Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance with prior authorization on a case-by-case basis.” To learn more about the device, visit vivistim.com. ©2024 Miami Herald. Visit at miamiherald.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
BERKELEY, Calif. , Dec. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Bamboo Technology , a mental health technology innovation company, is announcing its participation in Batch 19 of the prestigious UC Berkeley Skydeck IPP Program for startup acceleration. The company's HereHear AI therapist solution will be the key focus of the program, driven by the vision of revolutionizing mental health with AI-powered virtual solutions. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.A stroke changed a teacher’s life. How a new electrical device is helping her moveJay-Z was accused earlier this week in a civil lawsuit of raping a 13-year-old girl at an MTV afterparty back in 2000 with Sean "P Diddy" Combs. The anonymous accuser filed a lawsuit saying the incident went down after she driven to an MTV Video Music Awards afterparty. The woman's lawyer, Tony Buzbee, claimed to TMZ that she is thinking about filing a police report to press charges against Jay-Z, after hitting him with the civil suit. Mystery female celebrity 'watched Jay Z rape girl, 13, with Diddy', lawsuit claims P Diddy's limo driver's sick boast to girl, 13, before she was allegedly 'raped by Jay Z' In a statement to the outlet, Buzbee "said he's not ruling out filing rape charges against" the Empire State of Mind rapper with New York police. "What happens next is up to my client. It’s her case and what she decides to do you will find out in due course," the attorney said. There is no statute of limitations for victims to file a a rape complaint in New York. Buzbee had filed the civil suit on behalf of his client, with the Roc-a-Fella Records founder slamming the allegations and posted a lengthy statement on social media. On the Roc Nation X social media page, he slammed the allegations and Buzbee himself. "My lawyer received a blackmail attempt, called a demand letter, from a 'lawyer' named Tony Buzbee. What he had calculated was the nature of these allegations and the public scrutiny would make me want to settle," the memo read. "No sir, it had the opposite effect! It made me want to expose you for the fraud you are in a VERY public fashion. So no, I will not give you ONE RED PENNY!" "These allegations are so heinous in nature that I implore you to file a criminal complaint, not a civil one! Whomever would commit such a crime against a minor should be locked away, would you not agree?" Jay added. "These alleged victims would deserve real justice if that were the case." "This lawyer, who I have done a bit of research on, seems to have a pattern of these types of theatrics!" the statement continued. "I have no idea how you have come to be such a deplorable human Mr Buzbee, but I promise you I have seen your kind many times over. I'm more than prepared to deal with your type. You claim to be a marine?! Marines are known for their valour, you have neither honor nor dignity." Buzbee even responded to the tirade, posting on X: "Regarding the Jay Z case and his efforts to silence my clients: Mr. Carter previously denied being the one who sued me and my firm. "He filed his frivolous case under a pseudonym. What he fails to say in his recent statement is my firm sent his lawyer a demand letter on behalf of an alleged victim and that victim never demanded a penny from him. Instead, she only sought a confidential mediation. "Since I sent the letter on her behalf, Mr. Carter has not only sued me, but he has tried to bully and harass me and this plaintiff. His conduct has had the opposite impact. She is emboldened. I'm very proud of her resolve." He added: "As far as the allegations in the complaint filed, we will let the filing speak for itself and will litigate the facts in court, not in the media."
Stock Radar: Awfis Space, IOB, HG Infra, Saakshi Medtech, NTPC Green Energy, Asahi India Glass in focus on... - Moneycontrol
( ) stock zoomed on the news that the company will be taken private by Mubadala Capital, an asset manager based in Abu Dhabi. Will the deal actually go through, or might it face government scrutiny? advisor Jim Gillies shares his take. Prefer to read? There’s a transcript below. Transcript Nicholas Sciple: I’m Motley Fool Canada senior analyst Nick Sciple, and this is the “Five-Minute Major,” here to make you a smarter investor in about five minutes. Today we’re discussing CI Financial’s CAD$12.1 billion enterprise value deal to go private. My guest today is lead advisor, Jim Gillies. Jim, thanks for joining me. Jim Gillies: Thanks for the invite and the discussion, Nick. Nick: Jim, we’ve got a big deal to discuss today. On Monday, November 25, Canadian wealth management giant CI Financial announced it had agreed to go private at $32 per share in an all-cash deal to be acquired by Abu Dhabi-based Mubadala Capital. Jim, you’ve been following CI Financial for some time. What did you make of the deal? Jim Gillies: Yeah, I’ve been following for a while. I’ve owned it for two decades on and off myself and recommended in a couple of Foolish newsletters. I was unsurprised that something happened, and yet surprised that it was this definitive. What I’d actually been expecting is, over the past few years, CI has been really diligently and somewhat aggressively, frankly, building up a U.S. wealth management arm that they call Corient. In fact, about a year and a half ago — a year and four months ago — the same Abu Dhabi-based investors were at least partially involved with CI taking on an investment in the U.S. wealth management business called Corient. They took in a billion dollar U.S. stake, in part funded by the Abu Dhabi investment authority, as well as Bain Capital, the state of Wisconsin (for some reason, anyway, that was a little odd). But Abu Dhabi was invested. It was involved there. At the time, you’d take a billion-dollar investment for a 20% stake in a sub area of the business. It was a little weird because the entire market cap of CI at the time was about CAD$2.6 billion. The enterprise value — so cash or the market cap plus net debt — was CAD$5.7 billion. And here was an investment in Corien that valued just Corian at US$ 5 billion. So this was one reason why we had it in a couple services. What I was expecting to come down the pipe in the next couple of years was the the U.S. IPO of Corien. That may, in fact, happen in the next couple years. But I was not expecting that the Abu Dhabi investors, Mubadala Capital, would move to buy the whole thing. That did genuinely surprise me. Nick: Yeah, Jim, this is the biggest investment I can remember of a Middle East investor in Canada. Any chance that impacts closing the deal? Given that this entire Canadian business is being taken private, or, on the other hand, do you think we could see more of these deals of large Middle East investment companies becoming involved in the Canadian market? Jim: Well, I’m not sure of Middle Eastern, but I’m going to go just general foreign takeovers, or maybe foreign takeovers that aren’t U.S. companies. But you know, I look back to 2010; Australian giant BHP Billiton was trying to take over Potash Corp. of Canada, which had previously been the largest company in Canada. The government of the day blocked it. Said it wouldn’t be a net benefit to the country. And why, that’s interesting to me today is: Yes, I think this deal could fall through, but it won’t be because the people involved somehow don’t want it to be. I mean, the insiders are rolling some equity. The chairman, Bill Holland, is rolling some equity. Everybody’s praising the detail of the deal in the press release today. One of the subheadings in the deal press release made me pause, and this comes ahead of any of the transaction details or the board recommendation. There is a section about a third or even a quarter of the way through the press release. The title is “Benefits to Canada.” This, to me, sounds like the people involved here are expecting the Canadian government to take a look at this as a potential foreign takeover similar to BHP proposing to take over Potash and going, “No.” I think they are worried that the Canadian government might prevent this. And so they’re trying to get out ahead and not detail the potential benefits to shareholders, but benefits to the country. And they talk about maintaining leadership, maintaining jobs, maintaining headquarters, and most importantly maintaining CI’s philanthropic support of charitable organizations across Canada. I thought that was interesting, and yes, I think it could signal that they are at least worried the deal will fall through. Nick: And we’ll see where things go from here. This may not be the last episode in this transaction, but in the near term, shares of CI Financial are up significantly today. So it’s certainly a happy day for shareholders. Jim, thanks for joining us for this edition of the “Five-Minute Major.” Hope folks will join us again next time. Jim: Thank you.
Yes, an Italian village is offering $1 homes to Americans following the election
TORONTO (AP) — The Utah Hockey Club said players were forced to walk to their game against the Maple Leafs after their bus got stuck in Toronto traffic Sunday night. The team posted a video on social media of team members walking to Scotiabank Arena, with player Maveric Lamoureux saying the bus was “not moving at all.” Several city streets had been closed during the day for the annual Santa Claus parade. The Maple Leafs earned their fourth consecutive win by defeating Utah 3-2. The viral incident prompted Ontario Premier Doug Ford to call the congestion “embarrassing” and “unacceptable,” highlighting his government’s plan to address the city’s gridlock through bike lane legislation. It wasn’t the first time a Toronto visitor had to ditch their vehicle to make it to an event on time. In June, former One Direction band member Niall Horan had to walk through traffic to get to his concert at Scotiabank Arena. AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Brand AKD defies marketing theory to win
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