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Author R.F. Kuang says she wanted ‘Yellowface’ to feel like ‘an anxiety attack’

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

When Athena Liu, a bright Asian American literary star suddenly dies after choking on a pancake, her friend June Hayward sees a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. June, a White woman who admires and envies Liu in equal measures, swipes Athena’s latest manuscript and sets out to claim it as her own.“Yellowface,” the new literary thriller from R.F. Kuang, is an unusual page-turner, using the theft of a historical novel about Chinese laborers to fuel plot twists that revolve around publishing, marketing and social media. The story builds suspense while exploring ideas about artistic ethics, cultural appropriation, and the way the book world and the American marketplace fetishize the exotic while also trying to whitewash it.Kuang, who was born in China but came here at age four, shares some autobiographical elements with Athena: She’s just turned 27 but is already on her fifth novel – and her previous one, “Babel,” was an acclaimed best-seller – and she too has had to overcome preconceived...

Bay Area loses longtime women’s tennis event as WTA moves to Washington D.C.

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

After a nearly continuous run of over 50 years, the Bay Area will no longer have a major women’s tennis tournament.The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) announced on Thursday that the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic is moving from San Jose to Washington D.C.The move brings an end to an iconic part of women’s tennis history, as the Bay Area’s event was the first U.S.-based event held on the groundbreaking Virginia Slims tour in 1971. Billie Jean King won the initial event and became a three-time champion.It’s been held every year but two (1978, 2020) since then, making it the oldest and longest-running women’s-only tennis event in the world. Other major tennis names to win multiple Bay Area tournaments include Chris Evert (three times), Martina Navratilova (five times), Kim Clijsters (four times).And that’s also true for the biggest names in the sport, the Williams sisters of Serena (three times) and Venus (twice). But perhaps most noteworthy is that a then-14-year-old Ven...

Oakland's White Horse Bar celebrates 90-year LGBTQ+ legacy

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

OAKLAND, Calif. (KRON) -- One of the oldest continuously operating LGBTQ+ bars in the country is located in Oakland. The White Horse Bar just celebrated its 90th anniversary last month.The bar has a new owner who hopes to continue to build its legacy."It was a safe place then, it's a safe place now," said owner Patty Dingle.The White Horse on Telegraph Avenue in Oakland poured its first drink in 1933. Since then, it's continued to be safe haven for those in the LGBTQ+ community."From what I read it's never been raided," Dingle said. More Pride Month stories Police raids targeted gay and lesbian bars in the Bay Area starting in the 1950s. In the early '60s, police shut down nearly half the gay bars -- but the White Horse stayed open.It would be another 30 years before new owner Dingle would discover the LGBTQ+ sanctuary."I used to come here, in the '90s on Thursday nights," said Dingle. "This place has brought back a lot of great memories for me. When I first came out this was the ...

Is Bluesky Billionaire-Proof?

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

For someone who hasn’t been on Twitter since it became a safe space for the far right under Elon Musk’s leadership, the new invite-only social media network Bluesky can feel like a nostalgic breath of fresh air. The vibes are great. A lot of old communities from Twitter that never quite made the jump to Mastodon — a harder-to-use federated social network — have shown up in Bluesky.Like Mastodon, Bluesky is an open-source, decentralized social network. Unlike Mastodon, which is notoriously confusing for the uninitiated, it’s simple to get started on Bluesky. The user interface is clean and familiar to people accustomed to modern commercial apps. Bluesky embraces user control over their timelines, both in terms of algorithmic choice — the Mastodon project is hostile to algorithms — and customizable content moderation.There are other fundamental differences between the two projects. While Mastodon is a scrappy nonprofit, Bluesky PBLLC is a for-profit startup. And while Mastodon is a vi...

FBI Reopens Case Around Julian Assange, Despite Australian Pressure to End Prosecution

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

The FBI has reopened an investigation into Australian journalist Julian Assange, according to front-page reporting from the Sydney Morning Herald. The news that the FBI is taking fresh investigative steps came as a surprise to Assange’s legal team, given that the U.S. filed charges against the WikiLeaks founder more than three years ago and is involved in an ongoing extradition process from a maximum security prison in the United Kingdom so that he can stand trial in the United States. Biden is now picking a fight with Australia (after offending them by cancelling a trip there over the debt ceiling) by re-opening a case against Australian journalist Julian Assange even as the country calls for his repatriation pic.twitter.com/P2tDMe7uRk— Ryan Grim (@ryangrim) June 1, 2023Assange is charged under the Espionage Act with obtaining, possessing, and publishing classified information that exposed U.S. war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan, crimes that themselves have gone unpunish...

Infielder Alec Bohm put on injured list by Phillies with strained hamstring

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Infielder Alec Bohm, the Philadelphia Phillies’ RBIs leader, was put on the 10-day injured list Thursday because a a strained left hamstring.Philadelphia made the move retroactive to Wednesday. The Phillies selected the contract of infielder Drew Ellis from Triple-A Lehigh Valley and cleared a spot on the 40-man roster by designating outfielder Cal Stevenson for assignment.“Very mild, but we want to take care of it and knock it out,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said.Bohm missed Sunday’s game at Atlanta because of the same issue. Philadelphia was off Monday, and Bohm aggravated the injury while fielding a slow roller in Tuesday’s series opener against the Mets.He is hitting .265 with six homers and 37 RBIs. Bohm has made 32 starts at third and 17 at first.Thomson said Ellis will play first base against left-handed starters. Washington southpaw MacKenzie Gore is scheduled to face the Phillies on Saturday.Ellis, 27, played for Arizona and Seattle duri...

Once a risky pick, Porter turning in big rewards for Nuggets team making 1st NBA Finals

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

DENVER (AP) — All those smooth-looking, long-range jumpers Michael Porter Jr. hits have definitely been a reward for Denver.Easy to forget just how much of a risk he was early on for the Nuggets.They rolled the dice at No. 14 in the 2018 draft on a 6-foot-10 forward with a balky back to go with a tremendous set of skills. He’s gone through three back procedures since college and missed basically two of his five NBA seasons, but still showed enough flashes of talent to earn a max extension.Without taking that gamble on Porter, the Nuggets might not be here, starting their first NBA Finals on Thursday night against Miami. He’s become their X factor — the third part of a hard-to-contain trio that also includes Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.“It’s just cool looking back on the journey,” said Porter, who turns 25 on June 29. “You try not to spend too much time looking back right now, just stay focused on getting this ring. But you’ve got to take moments to just look back...

Un médico de urgencias desapareció tras salir del trabajo en Missouri. Nueve días después, un kayakista encontró su cuerpo en Arkansas

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

(CNN) — John Forsyth, médico de urgencias, envió un mensaje de texto a su prometida la madrugada del 21 de mayo. Le dijo que acababa de terminar su turno de noche en el hospital y que la vería en un rato.Después dejó de responder a los mensajes de forma abrupta, según su hermano, Richard Forsyth. Y esa fue la última vez que sus seres queridos supieron de él.Las imágenes de vigilancia de ese día mostraban al médico caminando hacia su furgoneta cámper, la casa rodante, fuera del hospital de Cassville, Missouri, según su hermano. Los investigadores dijeron a la familia que encontraron su Infiniti sin cerrar en un parque cercano. Dentro del vehículo estaban sus dos teléfonos celulares, su cartera, su pasaporte, su carné de conducir, su maletín de trabajo y las llaves de su auto y de su cámper, según Richard Forsyth.Para la familia, era señal de que algo iba muy mal. Forsyth nunca iba a ninguna parte sin sus teléfonos por si recibía llamadas sobre sus pacientes, dijo su hermano.La...

MATCHDAY: Fiorentina looking to end Serie A season with a win ahead of European final

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

A look at what’s happening in European soccer on Friday:ITALYFiorentina will be looking to end its Serie A season with a win to boost its confidence going into next week’s Europa Conference League final. Fiorentina visits Sassuolo at the start of the final round of Italian league matches. Sassuolo, which is 13th, has little to play for but pride and is winless in its last five matches. Victory for Fiorentina could also give it a chance to qualify for next season’s Europa Conference League if Juventus is excluded from European competition by UEFA. Fiorentina plays Premier League team West Ham in the final of this season’s Europa Conference League on Wednesday.___More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsSource

Watch: Preview of hopeful NBA Finals drone show

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 21:52:29 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- A practice run of a drone show over Metropolitan State University of Denver got Coloradans excited for the NBA Finals.The Denver Nuggets have made it to the NBA Finals for the first time ever, with games beginning Thursday night. ‘You’re on’: Denver Mayor Michael Hancock accepts NBA Finals wager from Miami’s mayor Late Wednesday night, a drone show company, Hire UAV Pro, did a test run over the athletic complex at MSU near Ball Arena.They used drones to illuminate visuals in the sky, which outlined a Jokic jersey followed by "the real MVP," and rotated the images for all to see.The drone show company connected with MSU through alumni that were hired on the team. The director of media relations at the school, Tim Carroll, said the drone show company reached out to the university about using their space for a practice run."It's a way for his company to kind of do a tribute, to get people excited about the Nuggets playoff run into the finals here," Carroll said.He s...