Wednesday marked one year since the Nashville community was devastated by what was the deadliest kindergarten through 12th grade school shooting in 2023. On March 27‚ 2023‚ an armed intruder shot through a glass door and entered The Covenant School in Green Hills‚ leading to the deaths of three children and three adults. The victims included Evelyn Diekhaus‚ William Kinney and Hallie Scruggs‚ all age 9‚ and Mike Hill‚ 61‚ Cynthia Peak‚ 61‚ and Dr. Katherine Koonce‚ 60.

Disney has dropped its lawsuits against a special district backed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis that revoked the corporation’s self-governing status in the state‚ multiple outlets reported on Wednesday. DeSantis signed legislation in February 2023 replacing Disney’s Reedy Creek Improvement District with the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District‚ setting off nearly a years-long legal battle between the two entities. Disney has decided to drop the pending litigation on Wednesday‚ resulting...

An English doctor named Edward Jenner took incredible risks to try to rid his world of smallpox. Because of his efforts and the efforts of scientists like him‚ the only thing between deadly diseases like the ones below and extinction are people who refuse to vaccinate their kids. Don't be that parent.Unfortunately‚ because of the misinformation from the anti-vaccination movement‚ some of these diseases have trended up in a really bad way over the past several years.Wellness involves a lot of personal choices and the tradeoff between personal liberty and shared public good. Measles is the starkest example. There were about 61 cases of measles in all of 2012‚ but in just the first seven months of 2014‚ there have been nearly 600.As this chart shows‚ vaccinations are not like taxes rates or even freedom of speech. The impact of one's personal health choices can have a significant impact on the population around them‚ in their communities and even on a national level. It makes that trade-off all the more complicated and one not easily distilled into one convenient political or religious ideology. Obviously‚ the topic of vaccinations has become immensely more complicated since the onset of COVID-19 in 2020. But history teaches us valuable lessons and information is power. No matter how you feel about vaccines today‚ this chart is a reminder that medical science can be used for incredible good. Without breakthrough vaccinations in the past‚ many of us would likely not be here to have the debate about our personal choices now and into the future. This article originally appeared on 11.21.14 and this infographic is based on data from 2012.

Yale University and the University of Idaho could not be more different. Ivy League vs. state school. East Coast vs. Pacific Northwest. City vs. farm town. But in the first two rounds of the NCAA basketball tournament‚ extenuating circumstances brought them together as one‚ with the Bulldogs and the Vandals becoming the "Vandogs" for a weekend. When Yale made it to the March Madness tournament‚ members of the school's pep band had already committed to other travel plans during spring break. They couldn't gather enough members to make the trek across the country to Spokane‚ Washington‚ so the Yale Bulldogs were left without their fight song unless other arrangements could be made. When University of Idaho athletic band director Spencer Martin got wind of the need less than a week before Yale's game against Auburn‚ he sent out a message to his band members asking if anyone would be interested in stepping in. The response was a wave of immediate yeses‚ so Martin got to work arranging instruments and the students dedicated themselves to learning Yale's fight song and other traditional Yale pep songs.Idaho band members even reached out to Yale band members via social media to get tips and asked the spirit squad for suggestions for making their "Vandogs" performance the best it could be. Yale also sent spirit gear with the big yellow Y for Yale for them to wear. “Everyone was really enthusiastic about covering for the Yale students who couldn’t make it‚” Martin told the Yale Daily News. “Universities help universities‚ and bands help bands.”That genuine act of sportsmanship and camaraderie touched people across the nation‚ much to the delight of the students. “'Look Mom‚ I’m on ESPN‚’” Martin told The Spokesman-Review‚ quoting his students. “You’re a farm kid in the middle of a farm town. How often do you get that? Never.”And people loved seeing it as well."Kudos to the University of Idaho band! Band kids are the greatest!" wrote one commenter."Awesome job Idaho..this is a perfect example of true sportsmanship!!" shared another."This is such a great show of collegiate athletics and why they are important! Well done!" shared another.It's hard not to catch the energy of the tournament‚ as the Vandogs found out."It was awesome watching them play‚" Idaho grad student Cody Barrick‚ who plays the tenor saxophone‚ told ESPN. "We were right on our feet with everyone else at the end there cheering them on for sure."And as it turned out‚ the pep in Yale's step did seem to be extra "on" during that first game. The Bulldogs went into the tournament as an underdog‚ with #4 Auburn being their first competitor‚ but they pulled off a dramatic upset that moved them to the next round. So not only did Idaho's band play for them that first Friday game‚ but they also drove the 90 miles to Spokane again the following Sunday night for Yale's second round game against San Diego State. The Bulldogs were eliminated from the tournament in that game‚ but memories were made for life. And Martin says the Vandals would do it anytime‚ for any school‚ a testament to the program.“If you choose the Vandal band‚ you know that it’s going to come through‚” he told the Spokesman-Review. “It always has. That’s the tradition. There was no doubt that we would come through for them.”

As more details of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore emerge‚ it's becoming more apparent how much worse this catastrophe could have been. Just minutes before 1:30am on March 26‚ shortly after leaving port in Baltimore Harbor‚ a cargo ship named Dali lost power and control of its steering‚ sending it careening into a structural pillar on Key Bridge. The crew of the Dali issued a mayday call at 1:26am to alert authorities of the power failure‚ giving responders crucial moments to prepare for a potential collision. Just 90 seconds later‚ the ship hit a pylon‚ triggering a total collapse of the 1.6-mile bridge into the Patapsco River.Dispatch audio of those moments shows the calm professionalism and quick actions that limited the loss of life in an unexpected situation where every second counted.In the recording of the conversation‚ we can hear authorities and responders quickly putting out a call to stop traffic onto the bridge and assessing what construction crew might be working on the bridge. No one knew that the entire bridge was going to collapse into the harbor‚ only that a possibility for collision was present. As one officer plans to drive onto the bridge to alert the construction workers‚ a voice announces‚ "The whole bridge just fell down. Start‚ start whoever‚ everybody ... the whole bridge just collapsed."Listen:It had to have been surreal to witness the bridge collapsing in its entirety. In the initial news reports it was unclear how much warning had been received‚ and at first it was feared that passengers traveling across the bridge may have fallen into the water. But as we gained a clearer picture of the moments before the accident‚ it's clear that the everyday workers in the harbor and the first responders who were nearby to receive instruction did everything they could‚ and their calm professionalism and quick actions saved lives. As we go about our daily lives‚ it's easy to forget that there are countless workers who are chugging away behind the scenes to keep things running smoothly. Our systems of transportation‚ our supply chains‚ the safety of our roads and bridges—all of these things require people to be on the job‚ doing what needs to be done‚ establishing‚ maintaining and following protocols that keep all the moving parts harmonized. When it's done well‚ we don't even notice it—their work becomes invisible. But when something goes wrong‚ when a wrench gets thrown into the system—like a massive‚ unsteerable cargo ship about to crash into a bridge—we see how valuable those systems are and how regulation and oversight of such systems is so important. 2/ Police dispatched with just a few crisp phrases\u2014ship has lost steering‚ close the bridge to traffic\u2014and race to do just that.\n\nNo time for confusion. No time for \u2026 \u2018What do you mean‚ close the bridge? Who says?\u2019\n\n4 minutes‚ alert to collapse.\n\nBridge successfully closed\u2026\n\n\u2014>; — (@) As Charles Fishman pointed out on X‚ "A system worked—a government system. All those people just ordinary frontline workers in anonymous‚ sometimes invisible jobs. Maritime radio operators. Police/fire dispatchers. Bridge police &; state police. All working 11p to 7a o’night shift.""All day‚ every day—that happens &; we don’t see it‚" he added. Of course‚ the construction crew members who lost their lives‚ along with the two crew who were rescued from the water‚ will be remembered as biggest loss as the daunting bridge rebuilding process gets underway. The Key Bridge collapse is an unfathomable tragedy‚ but one that could have been even more tragic had it not been for the systems and people working as they're supposed to. Kudos to those life-saving heroes.

In the second half hour of CBS Mornings on Wednesday‚ they aired a long segment on the massive influx of illegal immigration‚ but there was no mention of Biden causing it. The president was only mentioned at the end‚ as immigration reporter Camilo Montoya-Galvez claimed “The last immigration law passed by Congress was in 1990.” That’s strange. The left-leaning Migration Policy Institute has a timeline of major immigration laws and lists ten laws passed since 1990. Nancy Chen began the report by noting federal judges “decided to continue a block on the controversial SB 4 border law in Texas‚” but “Texas has actually seen a big drop in attempted crossings. Instead‚ one of the busiest sections for illegal arrivals now is a remote area of Southwest Arizona.” That’s where CBS sent its young reporter‚ who noted there’s a new record in migrant deaths (none of them Biden’s fault). The death count went from 300 in Fiscal Year 2019 to 895 in Fiscal Year 2022. CAMILO MONTOYA-GALVEZ: In its latest public count‚ Border Patrol documented a record 895 migrant deaths in one year‚ including 142 in this sector alone. This makeshift encampment behind me can be a lifeline for migrants crossing this treacherous terrain here along the Arizona border. You can see migrants behind me getting food‚ water‚ and basic necessities here before being transferred over to Border Patrol agents. In just five months‚ the Tucson sector recorded over 300‚000 migrant apprehensions‚ more than any other section of the border. BENJAMIN SALCIDO: Here's the border fence here. This is the Sasabe Port of Entry. MONTOYA-GALVEZ: Border Patrol agents like Benjamin Salcido  largely act as first responders. SALCIDO: We're not in the business of losing lives. Any life that we can spare‚ whether it be a fellow agent or a migrant in distress. To save a life‚ that's part of the job. TV reporters love this "migrants crossing treacherous terrain" spin‚ putting the empathy with the poor illegal immigrants just looking for a better life‚ and the border enforcers are supposed to be "first responders" instead. Notice the lack of Biden when the CBS reporter asked what's driving the border crisis?  MONTOYA-GALVEZ: What is driving this unprecedented flow of people to the US? JASON OWENS (US Border Patrol chief): Everything that comes across our border illicitly is under the control and dictation of the cartels and the smugglers. MONTOYA-GALVEZ: In an exclusive interview‚ Border Patrol Chief Jason Owens said his agency is on track to record two million migrant apprehensions for the third consecutive fiscal year. In the interview‚ Owens wouldn't commit to the notion that Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's energetic enforcement efforts are driving down crossings and "migrant apprehensions" in Texas:  MONTOYA-GALVEZ: We have seen a sharp increase in migrant crossings in Arizona and California‚ and the numbers in Texas have remained low compared to last year. Governor Abbott has credited his policies‚ the razor wire‚ the arrests‚ the busing of migrants to cities for that geographic shift‚ if you will. Is that accurate? OWENS: Hard to say. Could it have had some impact? Sure. Is it the one panacea that`s corrected the problem? I don't think that's a fair statement. Now here's the weird part: when you turn to the Owens interview as featured on CBSNews.com‚ Owens sounds much tougher on illegal immigration! he calls it a "national security threat" and talks tough about punishing illegal immigration. They wouldn't put that on the TV! 

There appeared to be a new chapter in the saga of investigative reporter Catherine Herridge‚ on Wednesday‚ regarding her next landing spot. According to The New York Post‚ the award-winning journalist was in talks with Elon Musk’s social media platform‚ X. The news came not long after Musk soured on former CNN host Don Lemon and cut off their business arraignment following a contentious and rude interview. The Post’s Alexandra Steigrad reported that Herridge “met with X CEO Linda Yaccarino at The Jefferson Hotel in Washington‚ DC earlier this month‚ according to a source with knowledge.” She also noted that the talks were very much in the early stages‚ but there seemed to be interest in her building out a major investigative unit: The talks have been described as “preliminary.” A potential deal could see Herridge — known for her aggressive reporting on the Hunter Biden laptop scandal — helm an investigative unit that she could help put together‚ according to a source close to the situation. “We are in discussions with many content creators who are interested in joining X in various ways. Catherine Herridge is a great journalist who strongly supports free speech‚” X said in a statement‚ declining to comment further. In February‚ a Washington D.C.-based federal district court found her in contempt for refusing to disclose the name of a source central to a defamation suit. Last year‚ Musk offered to take up the cases and fund law suits against woke companies that targeted employees for what they posted on the site. Now‚ the case against Herridge did involve her past reporting with Fox News‚ and the network was also covering her legal fees in the case. But perhaps X also saw an opportunity with Herridge to double down on their support for the First Amendment and support real journalism. An anonymous source told The Post “that the Herridge had run into ‘internal roadblocks’ on her reporting of Biden’s laptop from top brass at CBS.” Which could have played a role in her ultimately being fired during a wave of mass playoffs at the third-place broadcast network that had been described as a “bloodbath.” But‚ as The Post noted: “joining X could give the journalist freedom to pursue a variety of stories” she otherwise couldn’t if she remained at CBS or a major news outlet.

Communist Chinese government-tied TikTok censored videos of women exposing the health risks of hormonal contraceptives after apparently receiving pressure from a leftist legacy media outlet. The Washington Post released a now-infamous report attempting to discredit women speaking out about many of the well-known side effects listed on the blanket-sized warning label that comes with oral contraceptives. In its report‚ The Post highlighted the fact that TikTok had censored some of the people it had reached out to for the piece‚ including The Daily Wire commentator Brett Cooper who hosts The Comments Section and TikTok influencer Nicole Bendayan. The newspaper took credit for the part it played in the removal of multiple videos. The Post identified one censored video as being a clip from Cooper’s May 2023 appearance on the Iced Coffee Hour podcast. In the censored video‚ Cooper highlighted contraception’s worrying impact on weight gain‚ fertility‚ regular hormone function and romantic attraction. The Post itself reported on the Pill users’ increased risk for cervical cancer in 1977‚ something it neglected to remind users of in its more recent reporting on the issue. The clip of Cooper garnered 219‚000 likes “before TikTok removed it following The Post’s inquiry‚” The Post reported. Links to the TikTok video now bring up the message‚ “Video currently unavailable” or “This page isn’t available.” The app does not provide any further explanation. Cooper posted on X (formerly Twitter) on March 24‚ “What’s ironic is that [The Post] reached out to me for a comment‚ and they asked WHY my video was removed and no longer available. Shocker... was because of them.” She included a screenshot of The Post’s admission about the censorship following a Post inquiry. The Post bragged that TikTok removed five videos critical of contraception after the leftist legacy outlet demanded to know how the app “prevents the spread of misinformation.” A TikTok spokesperson claimed to the Post that the videos had “inaccurate‚ misleading or false content that may cause significant harm to individuals or society.” TikTok did not respond to a request for comment from MRC Free Speech America at the time of publication. Another individual that TikTok censored was Nicole Bendayan‚ whose video explaining why she got off contraception went viral until censorship silenced it‚ according to The Post. TikTok has a track record of anti-American bias and censorship and is currently in danger of being banned due to congressional legislation. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) owns a board seat and maintains a financial stake in TikTok’s parent company ByteDance. Censorship occurring after leftist media outlets or researchers put pressure on Big Tech appears to be a rising trend‚ something addressed in a recent "60 Minutes" segment. The Post’s whole piece aggressively defended contraception‚ bewailed the fact that some women are turning away from it‚ and blamed “right-wing” so=-called “misinformation” for that. “Search for ‘birth control’ on TikTok or Instagram and a cascade of misleading videos vilifying hormonal contraception appear‚” The Post bemoaned. “Young women blaming their weight gain on the pill. Right-wing commentators claiming that some birth control can lead to infertility. Testimonials complaining of depression and anxiety.” Such evidence used to be mainstream. In fact‚ the National Institutes of Health (NIH) documents substantial evidence of serious side effects from taking hormonal “birth control”‚ including some of the very effects The Post scoffs at. The study published on NIH also listed serious potential long-term side effects from contraception including cancer‚ multiple sclerosis‚ weight gain and suicidal desires.  Conservatives are under attack. Contact TikTok via email at communitymanager@tiktok.com and demand Big Tech be held to account to mirror the First Amendment while providing transparency‚ clarity on hate speech and equal footing for conservatives. If you have been censored‚ contact us at the Media Research Center contact form‚ and help us hold Big Tech accountable.

Rumor has it that Americans across the country will feel the effects of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridges’s collapse for quite some time. Officials claim that it will take years for the bridge to be rebuilt‚ which will have dire effects not only on importation and exportation but also jobs‚ as “the Port of Baltimore creates over 15‚300 jobs‚” and “over 140‚000 jobs [are] linked to the activity at the port.” For those who don’t know‚ the Port of Baltimore is the nation’s “leading import/export site for cars and trucks‚” so Americans waiting for a car to come in from overseas are in for a rude awakening‚ as the time of delivery is expected to increase exponentially. But it’s not just the automobile industry that will be impacted. Last year alone‚ “A record 52.3 million tons of foreign cargo” was transported through the Port of Baltimore‚ but now the port has been entirely shut down due the bridge’s collapse that has left the only shipping lane blocked. “An expert on property damage cases in the shipping industry told the New York Post that ‘the collapse will have a major impact on shipping and traffic routes on the East coast for the foreseeable future.’” While many will hear these reports and fear what this means for the country‚ all Glenn Beck hears is a bunch of unnecessary doomsday-ing. “Have we forgotten who we are? Have we forgotten what we’ve done?” he asks‚ calling attention to the spirit of America‚ which is “so potent and so vibrant that it has scaled towering mountains.” America has “constructed marvels of engineering” and “buildings that scraped the sky‚” he encourages. In 1930‚ “The Great Depression had its icy grip on us. It was a time when everybody felt the flickering candle in the vast darkness ... yet it was in this crucible of adversity that Americans did great things. The Empire State Building rose. It wasn’t just a structure of steel and stone; it was a beacon of hope and American resilience and ingenuity‚” says Glenn. “In a record-shattering one year and 45 days‚ an army of workers ... transformed this audacious vision into a towering reality.” So‚ what does the Empire State Building — a marvel that was constructed at a “feverish pace” and “defied the laws of time physics” — have to do with Baltimore’s bridge? According to Glenn‚ everything. The Empire State Building and other man-made marvels “are not merely historical footnotes. They are blazing torches illuminating our path forward. They remind us ... that when we are faced with adversity‚ we don’t just endure it. We overcome it. We don’t wait for history to chart our course. We write it with the sweat of our brow and the strength of our backs‚” he says. “That’s who we are.” To hear more of Glenn's encouraging message‚ watch the clip below. Want more from Glenn Beck?To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling‚ thought-provoking analysis‚ and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos‚ subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America‚ defend the Constitution‚ and live the American dream.

Video game writers accused of injecting diversity‚ equity‚ and inclusion narratives in mainstream titles have blamed backlash from their projects on the "far-right."The company‚ called Sweet Baby Inc.‚ has dominated headlines in tech circles after a community of gamers formed a group to point out which projects the company has worked on.The gripe among video game players has been that Sweet Baby Inc. painfully adds DEI storylines into popular games like Spider-Man 2 and God of War Ragnarok.At the same time‚ cofounder David Bedard has declared that backlash from the gaming community is part of a far-right harassment campaign."For the past 4 months‚ my company (Sweet Baby Inc) has been targeted by a far-right harassment campaign / conspiracy theory‚" Bedard wrote on LinkedIn. "This is a tough situation for me‚ my co-founder Kim Belair‚ our entire team‚ and our collaborators. More than the frustrations caused by the harassment‚ and the precautions we’re putting in place as a result of that‚ the toughness comes from the fact that this entire campaign is based on misinformation. Misinformation so wild and left-field (or right-field‚ I guess) that it’s impossible to even engage with it to combat it‚" Bedard added.The misinformation‚ the company has alleged‚ comes in the form of claims that Sweet Baby Inc.'s predominant work is pushing DEI narratives. Cofounder Belair argued that "people can’t imagine that we might do anything else but DEI. ... They can’t imagine that we’re just talented writers.""We spoke with press to clear things up about exactly what we do‚ and how we do it‚" Bedard continued‚ as first reported by That Park Place. "Adding our voices to this conversation felt necessary‚ because what is happening to us is something that has happened before in this industry‚ and will happen again. It happens to not just us‚ but also to countless other devs‚ players‚ journalists‚ and creators." Sweet Baby Inc Co-Founder‚ David B\u00e9dard speaks out on LinkedIn post. \n\nI would love for the opportunity to interview them on their processes and mission. — (@) This consistent position is a peculiar one for the self-described "inclusion-focused narrative and consultation company." The company's site notes that its consultation process includes a "multitude of perspectives" while bringing in "diverse voices to solve diverse problems." Its website also states that the company provides "Cultural Consultation‚ Sensitivity And Inclusivity Reading‚ Risk and Opportunities Assessment‚ and more."In addition to boasting that it can "assemble and lead" teams of "new and marginalized voices‚" the company also provides resources for "new and marginalized talent" with the potential to "change [the] industry if given the proper support."While individual cases of misconduct toward the company are likely present‚ and of course inexcusable if elevating to illegal harassment‚ the overall sentiment from the gaming community is that they simply don't like DEI-infused video games.The company has even seen criticisms from X owner Elon Musk and recent UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland."Sweet Baby Inc is an evil blight on the gaming industry. All they do is make games terrible and try to cancel people. They cannot go broke soon enough!" Musk stated. "Sean why aren't you in the UFC game"\nYears later being a top contender\n"Wow your stats are so low"\n\nWell you guys‚ the video game industry is leftist cesspool. I am the definition of what these people hate....\n\nBUT! I I take it as a compliment:) thanks. — (@) "Check in on your marginalized colleagues‚ and friends in this industry‚" Bedard said. "Make sure they're okay. Let them know that they are loved‚ that they are appreciated‚ that they are welcome and that they are talented. Tell them you're not going to let this kind of hate push them out of this industry. Tell them that things like this won't scare all of their community away — that they are protected‚ and that they have a place here‚ now more than ever‚" he concluded.Bedard later edited his post to note that he had locked the comments section due to the presence of a "hate mob."Sweet Baby Inc. and its employees have declined several requests for comments on a range of issues related to the ongoing topic.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!