TikTok Deal Transfers U.S. Control to Trump Allies, Oracle Named Security Partner

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Lead: TikTok and its Chinese parent, ByteDance, have reached binding agreements to form a new U.S. joint venture that will be majority‑owned by American investors, officials and media reported. The transaction, slated to close on Jan. 22, would allow TikTok to continue operating in the United States after a law threatened a ban unless ByteDance … Read more

5 takeaways from the Justice Department’s Epstein files release

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On Friday, December 19, 2025, the Justice Department released thousands of documents tied to Jeffrey Epstein after Congress forced compliance with a new disclosure law. The initial batch is incomplete, heavily redacted in places and inconsistent in others, and DOJ said additional material will be published in the coming weeks. Early reviews show no single … Read more

Gisele Bündchen Marries Joaquim Valente in Surfside, Florida, Three Years After Tom Brady Divorce

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Lead Model Gisele Bündchen and Jiu-Jitsu instructor Joaquim Valente were married on Dec. 3 in Surfside, Florida, according to marriage records reviewed by PEOPLE. The ceremony came after the couple, who began dating in 2023, welcomed a son in February 2025. Bündchen, 45, was previously married to NFL quarterback Tom Brady for 13 years; the … Read more

What’s really going on with flu this winter?

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Summary: This winter’s flu season in the UK has prompted intense media attention after a mutated H3N2 virus — labeled subclade-K — emerged in June and became dominant, and the season began earlier than usual. Scientists say the mutations gave the virus a modest advantage, roughly 5–10% greater ability to evade prior immunity, but not … Read more

AirPods Pro 3 back on sale at record low $199

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Lead: Apple’s AirPods Pro 3, released in September, have returned to sale at a new all-time-low price of $199. The discount undercuts what the buds sold for over Black Friday and Cyber Monday and applies to many U.S. retailers. The model, powered by Apple’s H2 chip, has been praised for improved battery life, stronger noise … Read more

Nintendo May Reverse Switch 2 Game‑Key Card Policy After Backlash

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Nintendo publishers and players are in the middle of a fast-moving dispute over Switch 2 “Game‑Key Cards,” physical cards that trigger digital downloads rather than carrying game data. Recently, publisher Inin Games said its upcoming R‑Type Dimensions III will be distributed on a true cartridge in the US and Europe after a production-cost reassessment, a … Read more

Switch 2 pub backs off Game Key Cards after leaking lower-cost cartridge options – Ars Technica

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Lead Publisher Inin Games reversed course on using data-free “Game Key Cards” for the retail Switch 2 release of R-Type Dimensions III after Nintendo revealed two new, smaller Switch 2 cartridge sizes. The change lets Inin swap the planned download-only cards for full physical cartridges while limiting the retail price increase to €10 (about $13) … Read more

Duffer Brothers Say Final ‘Stranger Things’ Episodes Deliver What Viewers Want

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Lead: At a Paley Museum screening in New York City on Thursday night, creators Matt and Ross Duffer joined cast members to show and discuss Volume 1 of Stranger Things Season 5. The gathering focused on how the show’s final run pairs large-scale visual spectacle with intimate character moments. The Duffers said their aim in … Read more

Taiwan attacker planned assault that killed 3 and injured 11, authorities say

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Lead: Taiwanese authorities say a 27-year-old man carried out a planned knife-and-smoke-grenade rampage across Taipei on Friday, December 19, 2025, killing three people and wounding 11. Officials say the suspect, identified as Chang Wen, set fires at multiple sites, deployed smoke grenades near a major metro station and in a department store, and died after … Read more

Anthony Joshua dismantles Jake Paul in sixth-round knockout on Netflix

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Lead On Friday, former two-time unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua dominated and stopped Jake Paul in a one-sided bout streamed live on Netflix, dropping Paul four times before a sixth-round knockout. Joshua, listed at 6-foot-6 with an 82-inch reach, entered the fight as an overwhelming BetMGM favorite and used his size and power to good … Read more

Is Bowen Yang Really Leaving SNL?

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Bowen Yang is reported to be departing Saturday Night Live midseason after eight years with the program. Multiple entertainment outlets say this Saturday’s episode — hosted by Ariana Grande with Cher as the musical guest — is slated to be his final SNL appearance. Yang first joined the show as a writer in 2018 and … Read more

S&P 500 Logs Second Straight Gain as AI Trade Rebounds

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U.S. equities finished the week on a constructive note Friday as major indexes closed higher following renewed buying in AI-linked stocks. The S&P 500 rose 0.88% to 6,834.50, the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.31% to 23,307.62, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 183.04 points to 48,134.89. Strength in names tied to artificial intelligence and several … Read more

Gisele Bündchen marries Joaquim Valente in Surfside three years after Tom Brady divorce

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Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bündchen, 45, married Joaquim Valente in a private ceremony at their Surfside, Florida home after a marriage license issued on December 1 and a wedding two days later on December 3. The union follows the couple’s public life together since 2023 and the birth of their first child, a son, on February … Read more

Joshua times attack, stops Paul with sixth-round KO

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On Dec. 20, 2025, at Miami’s Kaseya Center, former two-time unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua (29-4, 26 KOs) ended Jake Paul’s (12-2) latest crossover experiment with a sixth-round knockout. The scheduled eight-round bout ended at 1:31 of Round 6 after Joshua forced four knockdowns over the course of the fight. Paul spent much of the … Read more