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Former Anaheim mayor pleads guilty to federal corruption charges

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

The former mayor of Anaheim has agreed to plead guilty to multiple federal felony charges including obstruction of justice, wire fraud, and making false statements to the FBI and the FAA, officials announced Wednesday.Harry Sidhu, 66, pleaded guilty to charges involving corruption and leaking confidential city information during the sale of Angel Stadium to the Los Angeles Angels Major League Baseball club in 2018, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.Elected to office in 2018, Sidhu resigned from his mayoral position in May 2022 while being investigated by federal officials in relation to the stadium deal.Sidhu also admitted to cheating California tax authorities and making false statements to the Federal Aviation Administration regarding the purchase of a helicopter, officials said.While negotiating the Angel Stadium sale, Sidhu became a member of the city’s negotiating team. While on the team, he provided confidential city information to the Angels representatives to ensure th...

Mastering K-Pop Public Relations: the Enigma and Bridging the Gap

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

The captivating allure of K-Pop, the South Korean-born global sensation, has sparked a vital inquiry: How can the realm of K-Pop navigate the intricate world of public relations (PR), and why does this challenge often leave PR agencies struggling to meet expectations?This perpetual mystery continues to perplex major K-Pop forces as they endeavor to catapult their artists into international stardom, especially on the revered stages of the United States. In the unforgiving domain of entertainment, where the journey to fame is relentless, crafting a finely-tuned PR strategy has become an absolute necessity in the quest for global dominance by K-Pop talents.The landscape of K-Pop PR resembles a complex mosaic, demanding a delicate fusion of cultural finesse, innovative storytelling, and adept media maneuvering. A central hurdle involves harmonizing the vibrant tapestry of South Korean culture with the kaleidoscope of worldwide sensitivities. Effective PR campaigns must capture the essen...

Stripling struggles and a Kapler decision backfires in latest SF Giants loss. Now a huge road trip looms

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO – After scoring just 18 runs and earning just two wins in six games at their China Basin ballpark, maybe it’s a good time for the San Francisco Giants to hit the road – even if they are set to face two of the National League’s best teams.Right-hander Ross Stripling struggled and the Giants were unable to find a timely hit – with a key decision backfiring — in a 6-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday as they closed out a challenging six-game homestand with a 2-4 record.San Francisco, which has lost four consecutive series and is dangerously close to falling out of a playoff spot, now starts a six-game road trip on Friday with a three-game set with the MLB-leading Atlanta Braves. That’s followed by three games with the Philadelphia Phillies, who lead the NL Wild Card race.It’s all the Giants can look forward to after an at-times humbling six-game homestand in which they lost three games by five or more runs, including a 9-3 thrashing by the American Leag...

Oakland man free on bail in earlier shooting charged with murder near same retirement center

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

OAKLAND — A 34-year-old Oakland man has been charged with murder in a deadly shooting near the Northgate Retirement Center, barely a month after an Alameda County judge warned him not to pick up a gun, due to his suspected involvement in an earlier shooting outside the building.Amadi Monroe is accused of killing Jerald Larnell Clark II shortly after 9 p.m. on Aug. 8 on the 500 block of 25th Street in Oakland, just around the block from the retirement center in Oakland’s Koreatown Northgate district, according to court documents.Monroe was arrested three days after the killing at a relative’s apartment inside the center and charged with murder and possession of a firearm by a felon, along with numerous sentencing enhancements, court documents show. One such enhancement claims he fired the fatal shot from a vehicle.He remained held Wednesday at the Santa Rita Jail without bail.The killing came just weeks after Alameda County Superior Court Judge Thomas Nixon while lo...

Cruise car drives into San Francisco construction site

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- A troubling traffic incident caused by a driverless Cruise car happened again on Wednesday -- this time at a construction site on Mission Street.A witness recorded video of the Cruise car driving past hazard signs reading "road closed" and a construction worker holding a "stop" sign. Video uploaded on X shows the car driving through the construction site, slowly veering onto the wrong side of the yellow line, and "bricking" with its hazard lights on. Two San Francisco Police Department officers followed the car.The witness wrote on Twitter, "Watched a self-driving car freeze in a Mission Street intersection this morning. Then (the car) eventually abandon its otherwise safe left turn to drive into a construction site on the wrong side of the road. Police resources then get spent figuring out what the hell to do about it."Cruise and Waymo's driverless cars are "baffled" by construction sites, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency officials told KRON4.Wh...

Starbucks no longer offering disposable cups at these North Bay locations

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

(KRON) -- You may want to bring your reusable Starbucks cup the next time you get coffee. Starting Tuesday, 12 Starbucks locations in Napa and Petaluma will prepare drinks in either a personal cup or a reusable "Borrow A Cup," a company spokesperson said in an email. The coffee chain said it is expanding its "100% reusables model" by testing this program out.The program will be tested out in Petaluma and Napa from Aug. 14 until Oct. 22. Last year, Starbucks announced it plans to further reduce single-use cups by 2025. Starbucks says it wants to cut landfill waste in half by 2030. Starbucks moving away from single-use coffee cups, introducing a more communal model What if you forget to bring your reusable cup?The Starbucks barista will give you your beverage in a reusable borrowed cup for both hot and cold drinks. The company says when you are done with the drink, you scan and return it to a participating store's return bin. It is professionally washed and meant to be used again. S...

2 Bay Area cities have most costly commutes in US: study

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

(KRON) -- Some companies are making their employees return to in-person work after working from home became common during the COVID-19 pandemic. For many workers in the Bay Area, that is bad news. According to a new study from the Chamber of Commerce, the two cities with the most costly commutes in the United States are in the Bay Area. 4-year-old girl killed, parents injured in crash near Oracle Park, driver arrested Over a year, it costs San Francisco commuters $12,650.56 on average to get to and from work. The second-priciest city is Fremont, which costs its commuters $12,048.32 per year. The study says the average round-trip commute for someone living in San Francisco is 58.4 minutes daily. In Fremont, that number is 55.2 minutes. Based on the median hourly wage in those cities, it costs San Francisco commuters $48.66 per day to get to and from work, and $46.34 for Fremont commuters. Washington D.C., Jersey City and New York City rounded out the list's top five. Other Bay Are...

Maryland firefighters, doctors and engineers on their way to Hawaii to help

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

Members of Maryland Task Force prepares to travel to Hawaii. (Courtesy Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service) Members of Maryland Task Force prepares to travel to Hawaii. (Courtesy Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service) Maryland’s premier urban search and rescue team is bound for Hawaii to join the massive recovery effort from the wildfires on Maui.Maryland Task Force 1 has been tapped by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to assist teams that are working to get the community back on its feet after wildfires a week ago killed more than 100 people and devastated the historic town of Lahaina.“We’re rostering in about 70 people, 50 from Montgomery County Fire and Rescue and then ...

U.S. women’s national team coach Vlatko Andonovski has resigned after early exit from World Cup, AP source says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

SYDNEY (AP) — U.S. women’s national team coach Vlatko Andonovski has resigned after early exit from World Cup, AP source says.Source

The Hunt: The coup in Niger is hampering counterterrorism efforts in West Africa

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:37:11 GMT

In this week’s episode of “The Hunt with WTOP national security correspondent J.J. Green,” Dr. Hans-Jakob Schindler, senior director at the Counter Extremism Project, said terror groups are definitely trying to take advantage of the instability. toggle audio on and off change volume download audio What needs to be done to not empower terrorist groups? $(function () { $('.wtop-audio-container .fa-play').on('click', function(){ var audio_filename = $('div.wtop-audio-file').data("mp3-url"); ga('send', 'event', 'Audio', 'play', audio_filename); }); }); SIGN UP TODAY for J.J. Green’s new national security newsl...