Air traffic at Newark Liberty International Airport was disrupted Wednesday evening after a JetBlue Airbus A320 experienced an engine failure during takeoff and returned to the airport, prompting an emergency evacuation. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, the aircraft returned to Newark as a precaution. The aircraft came to a stop on a taxiway at approximately 5:55 p.m., where passengers and crew evacuated using emergency slides. Following the incident, airport operations were temporarily impacted. The FAA confirmed it will investigate the engine failure and associated smoke reports to determine the cause of the incident.

February 19, 2026 15:30 UTC

This week, the L.A. Times has announced their 46th annual Book Prizes. Among the honorees and finalists are a wide range of authors, literary advocates, and books across an array of genres. Winners will be announced Friday, April 17 at USC’s Bovard Auditorium, right before the 31st annual a prologue to the 31st annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, which runs April 18-19. Among the announced winners are Amy Tan, who will receive the Robert Kirsch Award for lifetime achievement. The Christopher Isherwood Prize for Autobiographical Prose will be awarded to Adam Ross for his book Playworld.

February 19, 2026 15:28 UTC

Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani and Sports Minister Andrea Abodi urged the International Paralympic Committee to reconsider its stance due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, saying it contradicted the Olympic spirit. An IPC spokesman said later the organisation was in talks with the Italian government over the participation of the Russian and Belarusian paralympians. WINTER PARALYMPICS START ON MARCH 6Russia's embassy in Italy said it was unacceptable to target athletes with disabilities. An Italian ministerial source denied a report in newspaper La Repubblica suggesting that Tajani might move to block visas for Russians. "The Italian authorities would not take any action to block visas for athletes or their entourage if their participation was confirmed," the source said.

February 19, 2026 15:10 UTC

Either way, you’re upset and don’t understand how someone who you’re so close with could hurt you so deeply. AdvertisementHowever, if you do decide to end a relationship, Francis said there are two words you should always keep in mind as you’re doing it. “The shortcut that I always give is ‘clear and kind’ — be as clear as you can, be as kind as you can,” she explained. We are sensitive — but we’re not fragile in that way, and we’re actually owed the respect of clarity. And so [be] clear and kind.”Francis added that being “clear and kind” is actually a gift for the person you’re leaving.

February 19, 2026 15:08 UTC

Journalism Under PressureBehind the scenes, real journalism faces real resistance. We keep reporting anyway. Member support protects our independence and keeps tough stories in the light. Join today to help defend a free press. Already a member?

February 19, 2026 15:02 UTC





Journalism Under PressureBehind the scenes, real journalism faces real resistance. We keep reporting anyway. Member support protects our independence and keeps tough stories in the light. Join today to help defend a free press. Already a member?

February 19, 2026 15:02 UTC

None of it has convinced President Donald Trump to drop his tacit approval of the invasion. The escalation coincided with the cutoff of new U.S. military aid to Ukraine under Trump. Last June, in response to a Ukrainian attack on a Russian airfield, Trump again sided with Russia. Putin continued the attacks throughout the entire period, after which Trump claimed Putin had honored his pledge. To this day, Trump continues to call the investigation into that election interference a “hoax” that has also unfairly impugned Putin’s good name.

February 19, 2026 15:02 UTC

A claim that NFL star Sam Darnold, quarterback of 2026 Super Bowl champions the Seattle Seahawks, owed more in California state taxes than he earned by winning the big game circulated online in mid-February 2026. According to the NFL, Darnold signed a three-year contract with the Seahawks in 2025, valued at $100.5 million. Esiason broke it down as such:For winning the Super Bowl, the winning team, each player gets $178,000. In other words, the Super Bowl isn't a part of their salary… So each spends seven days in the state of California. Therefore, the $249,000 Darnold allegedly owes California was not just for the Super Bowl itself, but every working visit made to California during the season.

February 19, 2026 14:46 UTC

UN officials say several thousand civilians were killed in the RSF takeover of El Fasher, the Sudanese army’s only remaining stronghold in the Darfur. Only 40% of the city’s 260,000 residents managed to flee the onslaught alive, thousands of whom were wounded, the officials said. The RSF and their allied Arab militias, known as Janjaweed, overran El Fasher on Oct. 26 and rampaged through the city. Under the convention, a genocide determination could be made even if only one of the five were met. The RSF has been supported by the United Arab Emirates over the course of the war, according to UN experts and rights groups.

February 19, 2026 14:41 UTC

Bhattacharya will stay on as head of the NIH and will also serve as the head of the CDC until President Donald Trump can appoint a permanent leader. Prior to joining the Trump administration, Bhattacharya worked as a health economist and professor at Stanford University Medical School. As head of the NIH, Bhattacharya has seen pushback from hundreds of staffers. In June, some NIH scientists published what they called the Bethesda Declaration, named for the location of the NIH. As the head of the NIH, Bhattacharya has spoken extensively about restoring American’s faith in the federal government’s approach to health and science.

February 19, 2026 14:23 UTC

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, looks round as he leaves after attending the Easter Matins Service at St. George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, England, April 20, 2025. via Associated PressAndrew Mountbatten-Windsor has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, according to reports. AdvertisementUS Congress released as huge dossier of information about the dead paedophile Jeffrey Epstein at the end of last month. AdvertisementThames Valley Police said in a statement: “As part of the investigation, we have today arrested a man in his sixties from Norfolk on suspicion of misconduct in public office and are carrying out searches at addresses in Berkshire and Norfolk. “We will not be naming the arrested man, as per national guidance. Advertisement“It should be noted that ‘misconduct in a public office’ has a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

February 19, 2026 14:21 UTC

The 2020 election’s contribution to humanity’s history of gullibility continues through Sidney Powell, a former Trump post-election lawyer. Five days after the election, she appeared on Fox News to say there had been “massive and coordinated” malfeasance to “delegitimize and destroy” Trump votes, and “manufacture” votes for Joe Biden. The Trump administration has offered no intelligible national security rationale for Gabbard’s Georgia grandstanding. They examined all 187 counts in the 64 court challenges filed in multiple states by Trump and his supporters. In Arizona, the most exhaustively scrutinized state, a private firm selected by Trump’s advocates confirmed Trump’s loss, finding 99 additional Biden votes and 261 fewer Trump votes.

February 19, 2026 14:21 UTC

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday testified before a jury for the first time about accusations that social media, including Instagram, harm children’s mental health. The outcome of her lawsuit could affect the hundreds of other cases by families who say their own children have been harmed or even died because of social media. Meta, for its part, denies the accusations and says it’s implemented numerous measures to safeguard young users. Later, Lanier showed an email that he said was sent by a Meta employee to Zuckerberg. Rodriguez was the first of more than 1,500 individuals to file a civil case against the social media platforms; her suit’s outcome could depend in part on how the jury in Kaley’s suit decides.

February 19, 2026 14:12 UTC

U.S. District Court Makes Its Ruling - OutKickBad movies— Nick S. asks:Have you ever walked out of a movie theater due to a bad film? And thankfully, Mrs. Screencaps doesn't care about seeing romantic comedies which saves us unnecessary trips to the movie theater. Robert Duvall. In this movie, Duvall is the prototypical bad youth coach so focused on winning he trades his own grandson, complaining the kid is just a "benchwarmer." — Chris in Nebraska wants to share memories:Wanted to piggyback off of John in Milford, MI's email about Robert Duvall.

February 19, 2026 14:07 UTC

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, center, attends the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace on Thursday. “Virtually everyone is the head of a country other than Gianni, but he’s the head of soccer. Later in his remarks, the president announced that FIFA would be pledging over $75 million for “soccer-related” projects in Gaza. “I think they saw that I got screwed by Norway, and they said, ‘let’s give him a peace prize,’” Trump added. President, we’ll unite the world here this summer during the World Cup, but if we truly want to unite the world, we need peace,” Infantino said during his own remarks.

February 19, 2026 14:03 UTC