Apple to disable blood-oxygen feature on premium watches sold in US as part of patent dispute
Apple says it will disable a blood-oxygen monitoring feature on its two most popular watches in the U.S. beginning Thursday to comply with a court-ordered revival of a sales ban stemming from a patent dispute.
MLS and Apple announce all-access docuseries chronicling 2024 season
Apple TV and Major League Soccer are expanding their collaboration, announcing Thursday that the looming MLS season will be chronicled in a new all-access docuseries similar to the ones that have given fans a deep, different look at golf, auto racing and tennis in recent months.
Twitter-turned-X CEO Linda Yaccarino working to win back brands on Elon Musk's platform
The new CEO of the company formerly known as Twitter says sheโs spent much of the past eight weeks trying to get big brands back to advertising on the social media platform thatโs been in upheaval since it was bought last year by Elon Musk.
Miami Beach struggles with spring break violence, big crowds
For the third year in a row, Miami Beach finds itself struggling with spring break violence, including two fatal shootings and unruly crowds, despite a massive police presence and activities designed to give people alternatives to drinking and roaming the streets.
EU regulator OKs plan to increase monkeypox vaccine supplies
The European Medicines Agency said a smaller dose of the monkeypox vaccine appears to still be effective and can be used to stretch the current supply by five times, echoing a recommendation made earlier this month by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Miamiโs South Beach confronts disastrous spring break
Crime crackdown in Miami Beach has some wondering if Black visitors are being targetedMIAMI BEACH, Fla. โ Floridaโs famed South Beach is desperately seeking a new image. The situation got so out of hand that Miami Beach Police brought in SWAT teams to disperse pepper bullets and called in law enforcement officers from at least four other agencies. AdโWe definitely want people to come and have fun," Miami Beach Commissioner Ricky Arriola said Monday. Miami Beach took less proactive measures under Republican Gov. โ-This story has been corrected to show that New Orleans officials, not Edwards, closed Bourbon Street during Mardi Gras.
Miami's South Beach confronts disastrous spring break
People in a mostly maskless crowd walk down Ocean Drive in Miami Beach, Florida's famed South Beach, Monday, March 22, 2021. A party-ending curfew is in effect in Miami Beach, imposed after fights, gunfire, property destruction and dangerous stampedes broke out among huge crowds of people. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)MIAMI BEACH, Fla. โ Floridaโs famed South Beach is desperately seeking a new image. AdโWe definitely want people to come and have fun," Miami Beach Commissioner Ricky Arriola said Monday. Miami Beach took less proactive measures under Republican Gov.
Miami Beach curfew aims to shut down Spring Break partying
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. โ A party-ending curfew imposed after fights, gunfire, property destruction and dangerous stampedes broke out among huge crowds of people in Miami Beach could extend through the end of spring break. AdMiami Beach Police said more than 1,000 people have been arrested this spring break season, with about 80 guns seized. The iconic Clevelander South Beach bar next door had to suspend all food and beverage operations. But Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber rejected the claim that anyone has been targeted for their race. They pointed to the handful of arrests in Fort Lauderdale, which has raised its hotel rates and promoted a โfamily friendlyโ spring break.
Police chief says Miami partying โcouldnโt go on any longerโ
A military style vehicle was seen rolling down the palm-tree lined Ocean Drive as outnumbered Miami Beach police officers struggled to disperse the raucous crowds Saturday. โWe couldnโt go on any longer,โ Clements said during Sunday's meeting, defending the cityโs curfew. Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber said he has trouble sleeping at night, worried about the out-of-control parties. Miami tourism officials say billions of dollars were lost when the pandemic first erupted last year, canceling spring break and forcing beach closures across the Sunshine State. AdAt the same time, local officials banned alcohol from the beach, along with all alcohol sales after 10 p.m. in an effort to curb partying.
US employment costs rise modestly in fourth quarter
Total U.S. workers compensation rose 0.7% in the October-December quarter, an increase over the previous two quarters, the Labor Department said Friday. For the year, wages and benefits grew 2.5%, with wages and salaries up 2.6% and benefits, which include Social Security, grew 2.3%. Wages and salaries grew 0.9% in the final quarter of 2020 while benefits rose 0.6%. Compensation costs for private industry workers rose 0.5% in the quarter and 2.6% in 2020. Economists say moderate gains in wages and salaries, which make up 70% of employment costs, are generally not threatening to trigger inflationary pressure.
Job openings down in most industries, while layoffs spike
Layoffs spiked in November compared with the previous month and the number of job openings slipped, a sign the job market has stalled as the resurgent coronavirus has forced new shutdowns of restaurants and bars and discouraged consumer spending. While the layoffs were concentrated among restaurants, bars and hotels, the slowdown in job postings was widespread across most industries, showing a reluctance by businesses to hire more people amid a pandemic fueled recession. Layoffs, however, soared 17.6% to 1.9 million, driven mostly by job cuts at restaurants, bars and hotels, which more than doubled. Tuesdayโs report, known as the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS, adds more details about hiring and firing by businesses and government agencies. Last week, job postings website Indeed said that while companies listed more jobs in December, the pace had slowed from previous months.
US loses 140,000 jobs, first monthly drop since spring
Walcott had to furlough four employees at his restaurant, just before Christmas, after New York state stopped allowing indoor dining. Still, the nation has nearly 10 million fewer jobs than it did before the pandemic sent it into a deep recession nearly a year ago, having recovered just 56% of the jobs lost in the spring. Most other industries added jobs in December, with manufacturers, construction companies, and higher-paying professional services such as architecture, engineering and accounting hiring more workers. Fridayโs monthly jobs report, the last of Donald Trumpโs presidency, shows that the nation has 3 million fewer jobs than it did four years earlier. Still, Trump had pledged to create 25 million jobs in four years.
Final weeks of historic hurricane season bring new storms
Tropical Storm Eta is parked off the western coast of Cuba, dumping rain. Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Theta โ which formed overnight and broke a record as the 29th named Atlantic storm of the season โ is chugging east toward Europe on the cusp of hurricane status. The system now has a 70% chance of becoming the 30th named storm. Never before have three named storms been twirling at the same time this late in the year, Klotzbach said. The overall message is that everyone in the area should pay attention to Eta, Brennan said.
Already flooded, South Florida braces for Eta's wrath
A couple walks along the beach during a downpour, Sunday, Nov. 8, 2020, on Miami Beach, Florida's famed South Beach. A strengthening Tropical Storm Eta cut across Cuba on Sunday, and forecasters say it's likely to be a hurricane before hitting the Florida Keys Sunday night or Monday. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Tropical Storm Eta floods already drenched Florida cities
A strengthening Tropical Storm Eta cut across Cuba on Sunday, and forecasters say it's likely to be a hurricane before hitting the Florida Keys Sunday night or Monday. Eta made landfall in the Florida Keys and posed a serious threat across South Florida, which was already drenched from more than 14 inches (35 centimeters) of rain last month. โNever seen this, never, not this deep,โ said Anthony Lyas, who has lived in his now-waterlogged Fort Lauderdale neighborhood since 1996. Eta was not done yet with Cuba, just 90 miles (140 kilometers) south of Florida, where the storm continued to swell rivers and flood coastal zones. ___Associated Press writers Cody Jackson in Fort Lauderdale, Tamara Lush in St. Petersburg, and Haleluya Hadero in Atlanta contributed to this report.
Eta strikes Florida Keys; expected to become hurricane
A strengthening Tropical Storm Eta cut across Cuba on Sunday, and forecasters say it's likely to be a hurricane before hitting the Florida Keys Sunday night or Monday. The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami declared hurricane and storm surge warnings for the Keys from Ocean Reef to the Dry Tortugas, including Florida Bay. Several shelters also opened in Miami and the Florida Keys for residents in mobile homes and low lying areas. On Sunday night, authorities in Lauderhill, Florida, responded to a report of a car that had driven into a canal. South Florida started emptying ports and a small number of shelters opened in Miami and the Florida Keys for residents in mobile homes and low-lying areas.
Glamorous Miami club caught in power struggle over the virus
LIV owner David Grutman poses for a photograph at the nightclub, Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020, in Miami Beach, Fla. LIV, one of Miami's most glamorous, star-studded nightclubs sits empty and quiet these days, a casualty of both the coronavirus outbreak and a power struggle between state and local government over how to contain the scourge. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
In Miami Beach, live theater returns โ in vacant storefronts
NEW YORK โ This fall, the seven deadly sins will be found all along an iconic Miami Beach thoroughfare โ but they'll be socially distanced, thankfully. โThis pandemic has shown in stark light the fragility of our world,โ said Miami New Drama Artistic Director Michel Hausmann. The Miami City Ballet recently took over a vacant storefront. The move by Miami New Drama is just the latest attempt by theatermakers to offer their art to the public despite the ongoing pandemic, which has stuttered traditional theater venues. The Public Theater in New York City has turned to audio plays, while the Vineyard Theatre plans digital and outdoor productions.
Art Basel cancels annual Miami event due to virus
FILE - In this Dec. 4, 2019, file photo, a sculpture by artist Jane Alexander with the Stevenson Gallery is shown during Art Basel Miami Beach, in Miami Beach, Fla. According to a statement released Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2020, the Art Basel fair, known for glamorous parties and celebrity sightings, is cancelling its annual Miami event amid the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)MIAMI The high-brow Art Basel fair, known for glamorous parties and celebrity sightings, on Wednesday announced the cancellation of this year's Miami event amid the coronavirus pandemic. The prestigious December art fair draws collectors, socialites and celebrities from around the world. In December, the fair plans to unveil Online Viewing Rooms that will be open to the galleries accepted to this year's Miami fair.
Florida sheriff bans masks for deputies with some exceptions
Florida added at least 276 fatalities to its coronavirus death toll on Tuesday, a new state record. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. A central Florida sheriff says his deputies wont be allowed to wear face masks except under some conditions, and neither will visitors to the sheriffs office. Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods said in an email to staff that he had weighed both sides of the issue amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. On Wednesday, Florida reported 213 new coronavirus deaths. At the sheriffs office, masks wont be allowed so that visitors can be easily identified and there is clear communication, the sheriff said.
Virus testing in the US is dropping, even as deaths mount
Widespread testing is considered essential to containing the outbreak as the U.S. approaches a mammoth 5 million confirmed infections and more than 156,000 deaths out of over 700,000 worldwide. Jessica Moore of rural Newberry, South Carolina, said that after a private lab lost her COVID-19 test results in mid-July, she had to get re-tested at a pop-up site organized by the state. A number of companies are studying COVID-19 antigen tests in which you spit on a specially coated strip of paper, and if you are infected, it changes color. But the approach faces resistance in Washington, where federal regulators have required at least 80% accuracy for new COVID-19 tests. To date, the Food and Drug Administration has allowed only two COVID-19 antigen tests to enter the market.
The Latest: Australian state reports 357 new cases, 5 deaths
(AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)MELBOURNE, Australia Five more Victoria residents died from COVID-19 as the Australian state recorded 357 new cases in the past 24 hours. The deaths take Victoria state toll to 61 and the national figure to 145. The mayors orders came as the Louisiana Department of Health reported more than 2,000 new confirmed coronavirus cases, for a total of 103,734. The Oregon Health Authority said Friday the newly recorded deaths raise the states toll for the pandemic to 282. The authority also said there were 396 new confirmed or suspected cases of COVID-19, bringing Oregon's case total to more than 16,100.
US holiday weekend adds to virus worries as case counts grow
The Fourth of July holiday weekend began Saturday with some sobering numbers in the Sunshine State: Florida logged a record number of people testing positive for the coronavirus. Officials and health authorities warned people to take precautions or simply stay home on Independence Day, as confirmed cases are climbing in 40 states. Florida reported 11,445 confirmed infections on Saturday, bringing the statewide total to more than 190,000. Im really, really worried about the Fourth of July," said Dr. Don Williamson, a former state health officer who now heads the Alabama Hospital Association. Officials in South Florida including in Miami-Dade County and the Florida Keys closed beaches through the weekend.