Paramount Chairman David Ellison’s latest offer to buy Warner Bros. Discovery contained a twist:
Should Paramount, backed by tech billionaire Larry Ellison, pull off the purchase, Warner Bros. Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav could stay on to help lead the combined enterprise.
“They’re sweetening the pot,” Paul Hardart, a professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, said of the Ellison family. “It just shows all the little arrows in their quiver they’re using to try to push this deal.”
David Ellison’ unexpected olive branch to Zaslav was contained in a letter this month to Warner Bros. Discovery’s board that offered $58 billion in cash and stock for the entire company. The move underscores the family’s determination to win the entertainment company that includes HBO, CNN and Warner Bros. film and television studios — and an obstacle in their path.
After hustling for decades to get to the big stage, Zaslav, 65, isn’t ready to relinquish the reins. He’s eager to prove critics wrong and complete a turnaround after three painful years of setbacks and cost cuts to reduce the company’s mountain of debt.
Warner Bros. Discovery board members, including Zaslav, have unanimously voted to reject Paramount’s three bids, viewing them as too low and not in the best interest of shareholders, according to two people close to the company who were not authorized to comment.
The board supports Zaslav’s desire to forge ahead with a planned split of the company next spring. But it also has opened the auction to other potential suitors, which is expected to lead to the firm changing hands for the third time in a decade.
Representatives of Zaslav, Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount declined to comment.
David Ellison’s audacious offer is being guaranteed by his father, Larry Ellison, the world’s second richest man with a net worth that exceeds $340 billion. The Ellisons’ proposal includes paying 80% cash to Warner shareholders and the rest in stock, according to two people familiar with the matter who weren’t authorized to comment. The most recent offer was $23.50 a share.
The Ellisons began their campaign last month, just weeks after David Ellison’s Skydance Media, along with RedBird Capital Partners, picked up the keys to Paramount, which includes CBS, MTV, Nickelodeon and the Melrose Avenue film studio, which has been depleted by decades of underinvestment.
The proposed addition of the more vibrant Warner Bros. would give the Ellisons an unparalleled entertainment portfolio with DC Comics including Superman, “Top Gun,” Scooby-Doo, Harry Potter, “The Matrix” and “The Gilded Age.”
The family would control streaming services HBO Max and Paramount+, nearly three dozen cable channels, including HGTV, Food Network and TBS, and two legacy news operations — CNN and CBS News.
It would also accelerate the trend of uber billionaires, including Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and SpaceX’s Elon Musk, of owning prominent news, entertainment and social media platforms. Larry Ellison also is part of a U.S.-based consortium lined up by President Trump to buy TikTok from its Chinese owners.
“If a trade deal with China is imminent, and TikTok would be aligned, then it would create a new media colossus, the likes of which we haven’t seen,” said veteran executive Jonathan Miller, chief executive of the investment firm Integrated Media Co.
Paramount is in talks to merge with Warner Bros. Discovery.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times; Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
The drama is unfolding as Paramount on Wednesday slashed 1,000 workers in the first round of cuts since Ellison took over. A second wave of layoffs — affecting another 1,000 workers — is expected in the coming weeks, helping fulfill a promise made to Wall Street by Ellison and Redbird to reduce expenses by more than $2 billion.
Combining with Warner Bros. would bring more layoffs, analysts said, and a potential hollowing out of a historic studio.
“Merger after merger in the media industry has harmed workers, diminished competition and free speech, and wasted hundreds of billions of dollars better invested in organic growth,” the Writers Guild of America West, said last week in a statement in opposition to the proposed unification. “Combining Warner Bros. with Paramount or another major studio or streamer would be a disaster for writers, for consumers, and for competition.”
Critics point to a long list of media merger misfires, including the disastrous AOL Time Warner merger a quarter century ago. Some critics contend Walt Disney Co.’s $71-billion purchase of much of Rupert Murdoch’s entertainment holdings didn’t live up to expectations, and AT&T whiffed its $85-billion deal for Time Warner, handing it to Zaslav’s Discovery four years later for $43 billion.
The New York native, a descendant of Jewish immigrants from Poland and Ukraine, had spent 16 years running the Discovery cable channel group, a respectable business, but one that lacked Hollywood flash.
Zaslav grew up on the fringe of New York City, in Ramapo, N.Y., where he’d been a promising tennis player who proudly wore his athletic gear to middle school. Tennis was his identity — until he started getting beat by players he used to whip.
Zaslav’s coach sat him down, bluntly saying he wasn’t putting in the work.
“I vowed that day I would never be outworked again,” Zaslav said during a 2023 commencement address to Boston University graduates. Underlings have long marveled at his indefatigable work ethic.
The speech was meant to be his triumphant return to his alma mater. Zaslav had finally made it to Hollywood, where he was now holding court in an exquisite corner office that had belonged to studio founder Jack Warner.
Zaslav had big plans to turn around Warner Bros. But, in Boston, he suffered a beatdown.
The Writers Guild of America had just gone on strike against his and other Hollywood studios. Protesters heckled Zaslav. Students booed. A plane flew overhead, waving a banner that read: “David Zaslav Pay Your Writers.”
He had assumed control a year earlier, in April 2022, just as Wall Street soured on media companies that were spending wildly to build streaming services to compete with Netflix.
Zaslav inherited a venture bleeding billions of dollars to get into streaming. The merger itself saddled the company with $55 billion of debt. Warner’s stock plummeted.
He and his team spent the first few years slashing divisions, canceling TV programs and contracts, and shelving movies. To further reduce expenses, the company laid off thousands of workers. Hollywood soon viewed Zaslav with derision.
It didn’t help that Zaslav has long been one of the most handsomely compensated executives in America.
There were high-profile stumbles, including jettisoning staff of the tiny Turner Classic Movies channel and an ill-conceived rebrand of its streamer to “Max” before changing the name back to HBO Max.
“The Warner Bros. Discovery merger was a well-intended failure,” Hardart said. “The cable subscriber base shrank at a faster rate than most people had forecast. … Thousands have lost their jobs, the HBO brand has been reimagined and reimagined, films have been mothballed and the future of the Warner Bros. studio is today uncertain.”
Warner Bros. Discovery paid down $20 billion in debt, but $35 billion remains. The debt load has nearly suffocated the company, making it a vulnerable target.
“There was a lot of fixing that David Zaslav and his team had to do,” Bank of America media analyst Jessica Reif Ehrlich said in a recent interview. “It’s been three years of incredibly heavy lifting — but that’s pretty much done now.”
In a note to investors last week, Ehrlich wrote Warner’s strong franchises, including DC Comics, and its voluminous library make it “an extremely attractive potential acquisition target,” one that could fetch $30 a share. Her firm carries a “buy” rating on the stock.
Warner Bros. Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav and AT&T Chief Executive John Stankey shake hands on May 17, 2021, in New York City.
(Preston Bradford / Discovery)
Last summer, Zaslav announced plans to split the company in two halves.
Zaslav would run Warner Bros., which would consist of the Burbank studios, HBO and the HBO Max streaming service. Longtime lieutenant Gunnar Wiedenfels would helm Discovery Global, made up of the firm’s international businesses and basic cable channels, which face an uncertain future in the streaming era.
Those who know Zaslav believe he’s working to stave off the Ellison takeover, in part, because he wants the chance to bring the company back to its glory, which would ultimately make it more valuable for its investors and prospective buyers.
For Warner management, that’s part of the rub. The Ellisons showed up just as the company was displaying signs of a turnaround, including a hot streak by Warner Bros. that includes “A Minecraft Movie,” Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners,” James Gunn’s “Superman,” Formula One adventure “F1: The Movie,” and horror flick “Weapons.”
Larry, from left, Megan and David Ellison attend the premiere of Paramount Pictures’ “Terminator Genisys” at Dolby Theatre on June 28, 2015.
(Lester Cohen / WireImage)
Ellison’s bidding was designed to thwart Warner’s planned corporate breakup.
For now, analysts said, Zaslav and the Warner board’s current strategy is solid because they have effectively driven up the stock price, which has doubled to $21 a share since the Ellison’s interest became known in mid-September.
“They are doing the right thing,” Hardart said. “In any sale, you try to beat the bushes and get as many people interested. But at some point the board is going to have to make a decision.”
Added one investor: “They’ve gotten Paramount-Skydance to bid against itself, and that only goes so far.”
Analysts expect Philadelphia giant Comcast, owner of NBCUniversal, and potentially Netflix, Apple or Amazon to take a look at the company’s studio, library and streaming assets.
But many see the Ellison’s Skydance as having the edge.
Paramount, in its recent letter to the Warner board, argued that it was the best and most logical buyer.
“What Skydance offers WBD, in many ways, is what it offered Paramount: The ability to be aggressive and push all aspects of the business in a way that most people or companies that have less capital just can’t do,” Miller said. “They are deploying real capital, and they are being the most aggressive folks in the industry right now.”
Reality TV star and social media influencer Kim Kardashian made a bombshell admission about the future of her career in the spotlight as she revealed she is planning a new path
23:32, 24 Oct 2025Updated 23:32, 24 Oct 2025
Kim Kardashian revealed when she will change careers(Image: PA)
Kim Kardashian has revealed exactly when she will give up her famous life in a bombshell admission. The reality TV queen, 45, has been entertaining fans for years thanks to her shows alongside her famous family.
However, it seems Kim may be ready to take a step back from the limelight. Away from the spotlight, Kim has been busy working on her law career and is currently awaiting the results of her California bar exam.
She has expressed her interest in becoming a lawyer, having already completed a six-year legal apprentice programme. Her hard work has even inspired her acting career as she stars in new series All’s Fair on Disney+.
Kim promoted her acting debut on the Graham Norton Show on Friday night, where she made a surprise admission. Host Graham asked: “You are very nearly qualified aren’t you?”
She replied: “Yes, I am. I took the bar exam in July and I get the results a few days after our premiere. So in two weeks. Everyone please pray for me. I worked really, really hard on this.”
Fellow guest Bryan Cranston asked Kim: “Was this something you always wanted to do? Are you going to actually practice law?” In a surprise admission, Kim revealed: “I hope to practice law. Maybe in like 10 years, I will give up being Kim K and be a lawyer. A trial lawyer. That’s what I really want.”
Kim’s dad Robert Kardashian defended OJ Simpson at his trial when she was 14-years-old. She revealed she was invited by her dad to go to court for one session as he said it was “a piece of history”.
Kim decided to make her health scare public on the season seven premiere of The Kardashians while speaking with sister Kourtney Kardashian. “They found a little aneurysm,” Kim said, before a visibly shocked Kourtney placed her hand over her chest and replied: “Whoa.”
The episode showed Kim at a medical facility and being rolled into an MRI machine as images of her brain appeared on a monitor. In a later scene, the mother-of-four became tearful on the phone, as she asked: “Why the f**k is this happening?”
According to the NHS, an aneurysm is a ballooning of a blood vessel in the brain. If it ruptures, it can lead to severe internal bleeding and be life-threatening.
Small aneurysms that have not ruptured are usually monitored with regular check-ups rather than immediate surgery. Kim has long dealt with autoimmune conditions, including psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
In 2022, she revealed that a rapid 16-pound weight loss to fit Marilyn Monroe’s gown at the Met Gala triggered a psoriasis flare that led to arthritis. She has discussed the psychological toll of her marriage to West on her new series, describing feelings similar to “Stockholm Syndrome,” – a condition where victims form attachments to their abuser.
Kim admitted: “I’m happy it’s over,” but she added: “People think that I have the luxury of walking away. My ex will be in my life no matter what. We have four kids together.”
Kim and Kanye were married from 2014 until 2022 and share four children together – North, 12, Saint, 9, Chicago, 7, and Psalm, 6.
DALLAS — Adrian Kempe scored 37 seconds into overtime and the Kings beat Dallas 3-2 on Thursday night, handing the slumping Stars their fourth consecutive loss. It was the second game in a row in which Kempe scored the winning overtime goal.
Darcy Kuemper made 29 saves, and former Stars Corey Perry and Cody Ceci also scored as the Kings won in regulation for the first time this season.
Wyatt Johnston and Jason Robertson scored power-play goals for the Stars, and Johnston also had an assist. Jake Oettinger stopped 22 shots.
Kempe scored from the slot on a pass from Quinton Byfield on the Kings’ only rush of overtime. It was Byfield’s second assist of the game.
The Stars have dropped four straight before New Year’s for the first time since Oct. 25-Nov. 2, 2021.
The 40-year-old Perry, who played for Dallas in 2019-20, knocked home a rebound at the crease for the game’s first goal late in the first period 22 seconds into a 35-second five-on-three power play.
Only 1:29 after Robertson tied the score 1-1 early in the second period, Ceci put the Kings back ahead with a slap shot redirected off the stick of Dallas’ Mavrik Bourque. Ceci was acquired by Dallas last February from San Jose and left for L.A. in free agency last summer.
Johnston’s team-high fifth goal of the season tied the score 2-2 early in the third period.
The Kings had a deflection goal by Alex Laferriere midway through the second disallowed after a video review determined his stick was too high.
A Social Security dollar simply isn’t what it used to be.
For most retirees, Social Security is more than just a monthly deposit into their bank accounts. It represents a financial lifeline that helps them make ends meet.
In 2023, Social Security lifted more than 22 million people out of poverty, according to an analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), and 16.3 million of these recipients were aged 65 and over. If Social Security didn’t exist, the CBPP estimates the poverty rate for adults aged 65 and up would jump nearly fourfold, from 10.1% (with existing payouts) to 37.3%.
Meanwhile, 24 years of annual surveys from Gallup show that 80% to 90% of aged beneficiaries lean on their payouts in some capacity to cover their expenses.
For retirees, few announcements have more bearing than the annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) reveal in October. Though Social Security payouts are on track to do something that hasn’t been witnessed in almost 30 years, next year’s “raise” appears set to give retirees the short end of the stick, yet again!
Image source: Getty Images.
What is Social Security’s COLA and why might the 2026 reveal be delayed?
The fabled “COLA” you’ve probably been hearing and reading about over the last couple of weeks is the tool the Social Security Administration (SSA) has on its proverbial toolbelt to keep benefits aligned with inflation.
Hypothetically, if a large basket of goods and services that retirees regularly purchase increases in cost by 2% from one year to the next, Social Security benefits would also need to climb by 2%. Otherwise, these folks would see their buying power decline. Social Security’s COLA attempts to mirror the inflationary pressures that program recipients are facing so they don’t lose purchasing power.
This near-annual raise is based on changes to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), which has measured price changes for Social Security since 1975. It has more than 200 individually weighted categories, which allows the CPI-W to be chiseled down to a single figure at the end of each month. These readings can be compared to the prior-year period to determine if prices are collectively rising (inflation) or declining (deflation).
What makes the COLA calculation unique is that only CPI-W readings from July, August, and September (the third quarter) are used to determine the upcoming year’s raise. If the average third-quarter CPI-W reading in the current year is higher than the comparable period last year, prices, as a whole, have risen, and so will Social Security checks in the upcoming year.
The catch with Social Security’s 2026 COLA is that its expected reveal on Oct. 15 may be delayed. The September inflation report is the final puzzle piece needed to calculate the program’s cost-of-living adjustment. However, most economic data releases are delayed during a federal government shutdown, which, in turn, can postpone the Oct. 15 COLA announcement set for 8:30 a.m. ET.
A higher prevailing rate of inflation in recent years has led to beefier annual COLAs. U.S. Inflation Rate data by YCharts.
A first-of-its-century raise is eventually headed retirees’ way
Once the SSA does have the necessary data to calculate and reveal the 2026 COLA, it’s a virtual certainty that beneficiaries will witness history being made.
Over the last four years, Social Security recipients — retired workers, workers with disabilities, and survivor beneficiaries — have enjoyed above-average cost-of-living adjustments. From 2022 through 2025, their Social Security checks grew by 5.9%, 8.7%, 3.2%, and 2.5%, respectively. To put these figures into some sort of context, the average COLA increase over the last 16 years was 2.3%.
Based on two independent estimates that were updated following the release of the August inflation report, a fifth-consecutive year above this 16-year average is expected.
Nonpartisan senior advocacy association The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) has pegged their 2026 COLA forecast at 2.7%, while independent Social Security and Medicare policy analyst Mary Johnson is calling for a slightly higher boost of 2.8%. These two forecasts would imply a roughly $54 to $56 per-month increase in the average retired-worker benefit in the new year.
More importantly, a 2.7% or 2.8% COLA would result in an event that hasn’t been witnessed in almost three decades. From 1988 through 1997, Social Security COLAs vacillated between 2.6% and 5.4%. If the 2026 COLA comes in at 2.5% or above, which looks like a virtual certainty based on independent estimates, it would mark the first time in 29 years that benefits will have risen by at least 2.5% for five consecutive years.
Image source: Getty Images.
The purchasing power of a Social Security dollar isn’t what it used to be
Unfortunately, this potentially history-making moment won’t be fully felt or enjoyed by aged beneficiaries. Though nominal payouts have notably climbed in recent years, the painful reality is that the buying power of Social Security income simply isn’t what it once was.
For example, you might be surprised to learn that the CPI-W isn’t doing retirees any favors. While this index is designed to mirror the inflationary pressures that Social Security’s retired workers are contending with, it has built-in flaws that keep this from happening.
The CPI-W is an index that tracks the cost pressures faced by “urban wage earners and clerical workers,” who, in many cases, are workers under the age of 62. By comparison, 87% of Social Security beneficiaries are 62 and above, as of December 2024.
Aged beneficiaries spend their money differently than workers under the age of 62. Specifically, retirees spend a higher percentage of their budget on medical care services and shelter than younger folks. Even though seniors make up 87% of all Social Security recipients, the CPI-W doesn’t account for the added importance of shelter and medical-care service costs in the COLA calculation.
Furthermore, the trailing-12-month inflation rate for shelter and medical care services has pretty consistently been higher than the annual COLAs beneficiaries have received. According to TSCL, this disparity has played a role in reducing the buying power of Social Security income by 20% from 2010 to 2024. A 2.7% or 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment isn’t going to offset or halt this decline in purchasing power.
To make matters worse, dual enrollees — those receiving Social Security income who are also enrolled in traditional Medicare — are expected to see sizable COLA offsets due to a projected double-digit percentage increase in the Part B premium in 2026.
Part B is the portion of Medicare responsible for outpatient services, and the premium for Part B is commonly deducted from a Social Security recipient’s monthly benefit. An estimate from the 2025 Medicare Trustees Report calls for an 11.5% jump in the Part B premium to $206.20 next year. For lifetime low earners, this increase might gobble up every cent of their projected 2026 COLA.
Regardless of whether or not Social Security’s 2026 COLA is delayed, it’ll mark another year where retirees get the short end of the stick.
Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins’ new ITV show Win Win is set to make history this weekend as one lucky winner will walk away with the biggest prize in British TV history
ITV’s Win Win set to award record-breaking £1.5 million prize package(Image: PA)
One lucky winner is to clinch the biggest prize in British quiz-show history on Saturday night – courtesy of Mel and Sue’s big new ITV show Win Win.
The many rewards, built up over the weeks as players traded their prizes for a chance to be in the final, comprise £1million in cash plus two cars, two luxury holidays, a new kitchen, a trip to Australia to see The Ashes, a trip to Monaco to watch Formula E, Take That tickets with a meet and greet and a tech bundle comprising 16 items including a MacBook Air, smart TV and Sony Playstation 5.
And the winner of the grand final, which has not yet been filmed, could be a contestant who started off by playing along at home then went on to land themselves a spot in the studio.
This weekend’s final will see one person take away the whole lot. Over the weeks, contestants have been trading the prizes they have won for a place on the final’s Millionaire’s Row, which is how the extra prizes have been added to the £1m jackpot.
And every time a player in the studio got offered the chance to trade, one viewer at home also won a spot on Millionaire’s Row.
A total of 19 people have made it to the final – either by trading a prize in studio, or by winning the spot from home – and on Saturday they will go head-to-head in a bid to win it all.
Presenter Sue Perkins told the Mirror : “Saturday’s show really is going to be a night like no other. The prizes are phenomenal – Ashes tickets, holidays, cars, a brand-new kitchen, and a cuddly toy. No, there’s no cuddly toy, but there is ONE MILLION POUNDS.”
She added: “The thrilling thing, of course, is that all of this is going to be won by one person, and that person might even be a viewer turned contestant, who simply signed up, joined in from their sofa and got the surprise of their life.”
Co-host Mel Geidroyc agreed: “Imagine winning £1m and then someone saying, ‘Oh, don’t forget you’ve also won a holiday, a car, tickets to the Ashes, Take That tickets…’ and on and on it goes. The fact it could be a viewer-turned-contestant adds another incredible layer of drama. It’s the finale to end all finales.”
The collective prize pot amounts to around £1.5million, putting it on a par with the prize won on Ant and Dec’s former gameshow Red or Black? in 2012.
One insider said: “The beauty of Win Win is that you don’t have to be a contender for Mastermind to walk away with the prizes. The questions are ones that normal people can answer. It’s a quiz for all comers.”
The largest prize previously won on a UK TV show was when Graham Fletcher walked away with the jackpot after spinning a roulette wheel and correctly guessing it would land on black. But the gambling show Red or Black? came in for criticism for being based on luck rather than skill, and it was axed after two runs.
The multiple prizes being offered on Mel & Sue’s Win Win amount to far more than has been traditionally offered on Saturday night shows. On Bullseye, which had its heyday with host Jim Bowen in the 1980s, the top prizes were often a car, a caravan or a holiday with the smaller rewards likely to be a slow cooker, hi-fi stereo, exercise bike or portable cassette player.
Similarly, on the BBC ’s Generation Game during the same era, the biggest prizes could include a mink coat, luggage, a holiday or a car while the lesser items on the conveyor belt being fondue sets, kettles and toasters – along with the famous cuddly toy.
– Win Win with People’s Postcode Lottery, Saturday, 7.35pm on ITV1 and ITVX )MUST)
The Prize List
£1million cash
BMW 1 Series (worth over £32,000)
Volkswagen T-Roc SUV (worth over £32,000)
Orlando Holiday with £5,000 spending money
Maldives – 5-star all-inclusive holiday
New Wren Kitchen (worth over £15,000)
Formula E – VIP trip to Monaco to watch E Prix, plus £1,000 spending money
The Ashes – Trip to Australia to see The Ashes, with New Year in Sydney and £1,000 spending money
Take That – Circus Tour tickets with meet and greet with the band, 5-star hotel and £1,000 spending money
Tech Bundle – 16 items including MacBook Air, Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, 65″ 4k Smart TV & Sony Playstation 5 Pro
Uefa explained its ruling executive committee had “reluctantly taken the decision to approve, on an exceptional basis” the requests from Spain and Italy, citing a lack of rules to prevent the games being switched.
But Euro chiefs pledged to work with Fifa to “uphold the integrity of domestic competitions and the close bond between clubs, their supporters and local communities”.
Ceferin said: “League matches should be played on home soil.
“While it is regrettable to have to let these two games go ahead, this decision is exceptional and shall not be seen as setting a precedent.
“Our commitment is clear – to protect the integrity of national leagues and ensure that football remains anchored in its home environment.”
Prem chief Richard Masters has emphasised his total opposition to the prospect of English games being played overseas.
However, that policy could change if 14 of the 20 top flight clubs voted to explore the option.
Fan group Football Supporters Europe said: “We regret the decision to allow the requests but all 55 national associations have committed not to make further requests for domestic matches abroad without first consulting UEFA.
Trabzonspor Want to Sign Andre Onana Permanently After Impressive Loan Spell
“The onus is now on FIFA to plug this regulatory gap. We welcome UEFA’s commitment to work with FIFA to ensure that future rules uphold the integrity of domestic competitions.”
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Ceferin doesn’t want more European domestic games played in foreign countriesCredit: Shutterstock Editorial
The conjurers have decided to stay put at Hollywood’s Magic Castle.
In a membership vote of the Academy of Magical Arts that concluded Monday, members say that about 92% of those voting endorsed a reorganization plan designed to give control over the castle’s operations and revenue to a company owned by Magic Castle landlord Randy Pitchford.
As part of the deal, AMA members can continue to use the castle as their clubhouse. The AMA, a nonprofit group, would continue to promote magic, running educational efforts and awards programs.
If the magicians had voted no, they would have needed to find a new venue at the expiration of their lease on Dec. 31, 2028.
Members said they received results by email from the academy Tuesday morning, with tallies showing a 1,038-89 vote to approve changes to AMA bylaws and a 1,043-84 vote to approve changes to AMA articles of incorporation. The vote “will provide a strong foundation for the future of the Academy of Magical Arts,” wrote Christopher Grant, president of the AMA board of directors, in an email to members. The Magic Castle remains open daily and leaders have vowed a swift transition to new management.
Leaders of the AMA and Magic Castle Enterprises — the Pitchford-owned company taking over operations — declined to comment on the results. An AMA spokesperson said “the AMA and MCE treat membership proceedings as private club matters and therefore refrain from public comment on internal processes.”
The AMA’s membership was recently put at 4,664, suggesting that most academy members didn’t vote.
In the run-up to voting, some members said they were not being told enough about what the AMA gets out of the deal. Several academy members said that moving from their historic home could deeply damage the AMA.
“We’ve given up a significant portion of self-governance for an undefined and indefinite occupancy,” said Ralph Shelton, a longtime AMA member and attorney who opposed the proposal.
Soon after reporting vote totals on Tuesday morning, AMA leadership sent another missive saying that veteran Magic Castle general manager Hervé Lévy was leaving his position, effective Tuesday. Lévy was not immediately available for comment.
The Magic Castle opened in 1963.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
The Magic Castle, a 1909 Edwardian-style mansion, opened in 1963 as a clubhouse and performance venue for the Academy of Magical Arts, a nonprofit group founded by the Larsen family. The membership vote, conducted Sept. 8 through 29, follows several dramatic changes for Pitchford, the Magic Castle and the Academy of Magical Arts.
Despite trouble in 2020, when the pandemic shut it down and a Times investigation detailed allegations of sexual harassment and racism, the mansion reopened in 2021 amid a leadership overhaul.
Pitchford, 54, is a longtime academy member, having married his wife, Kristy Pitchford, in the castle in 1997. His Texas-based company, Gearbox Entertainment, created the popular Borderlands video game franchise. When he bought the Magic Castle building in 2022, he inherited a lease that allows the AMA to remain at the castle through December 2028. Rather than negotiating to extend that pact, Pitchford and his team MCE have been working on plans for a dramatic reorganization.
With the changes, Pitchford’s MCE is to gain control of castle operations, including its restaurant, bar, gift shop and valet parking. Also, MCE will get to nominate two members to the AMA board, which will shrink from nine members to five.
Some members expressed faith in Pitchford’s long history with the Magic Castle and noted that two members of academy’s pioneering Larsen family hold key positions with MCE. During the voting period, longtime AMA member Christopher Hart, who serves as chair of the academy’s board of trustees, said, “I think [Pitchford] has tried to do everything in his power to preserve the nature of this iconic place.”
Of all the finger-pointing and recriminations that come with the current federal government shutdown, one of the most striking elements is that the Trump administration blames it on Democratic support for granting taxpayer-funded healthcare coverage to undocumented immigrants. The White House has called out California specifically, saying the state exploits a legal “loophole” to pay for that coverage with federal dollars, and other states have followed suit.
“California utilized an egregious loophole — since employed by several other states — to draw down federal matching funds used to provide Medicaid benefits for illegal immigrants,” the White House said in a policy memo released Wednesday as a budget stalemate forced a shutdown of the U.S. government.
The administration said that the Working Families Tax Cut Act, which goes into effect in October 2026, closes the loophole by prohibiting the use of taxpayer money to provide healthcare coverage to undocumented immigrants and other noncitizens.
In the memo, the White House accused congressional Democrats of wanting to repeal those policy reforms as a condition to keep the government running.
Izzy Gardon, a spokeswoman for Gov. Gavin Newsom, said there’s nothing to the administration’s underlying assertion that California and other states have found some sort of loophole that enables them to funnel Medicaid money to noncitizens.
“This is false — CA does not do this,” Gardon said in a one-line email to the L.A. Times.
Healthcare policy experts agree. California is not exploiting a “loophole,” said Adriana Ramos-Yamamoto, a senior policy analyst at the California Budget & Policy Center, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that studies inequality.
“The state is making lawful, transparent budget choices to invest in health coverage with its own dollars,” Ramos-Yamamoto said in a statement to The Times. “These investments improve health outcomes, strengthen communities, and lower health care costs in the long run.”
At issue is Section 71117 of the Republican-backed “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” which imposes nearly $1 trillion in reductions to federal Medicaid healthcare spending for low-income Americans over the next 10 years. The provision allows states “to finance the non-federal share of Medicaid spending through multiple sources, including state general funds, healthcare related taxes (or ‘provider taxes’), and local government funds,” as long as taxes on healthcare providers are imposed uniformly so as not to unfairly burden providers of Medicaid services.
The bottom line, analysts said, is the administration is citing a problem with the law that doesn’t seem to exist, at least not in California.
“The so-called California loophole references a provision in the law that ends a waiver of the uniformity requirements for provider taxes — this provision has nothing to do with using federal funds to pay for care for undocumented immigrants,” said Jennifer Tolbert, a healthcare expert at the nonprofit healthcare research, polling and news organization KFF.
“But the White House makes the claim that California uses the money they get from the provider tax to pay for care for undocumented immigrants,” Tolbert said.
Fact-checking the administration’s claim is all the more difficult because there are no official data on how states spend money collected from provider taxes, Alice Burns, another KFF analyst, added. What’s more, California is among several states that offer some level of Medicaid coverage to all immigrants regardless of status. And because California cannot be federally reimbursed for healthcare spending on people who are not in the country legally, those expenses must be covered at the state level.
The White House memo goes on to claim that if Democrats were to succeed at repealing the provisions in the Working Families Tax Act, the federal government would have to spend an additional $34.6 billion in taxpayer money “that would continue to primarily be abused by California to fund healthcare for illegal immigrants.”
This assertion also misconstrues the facts, according to KFF.
“What we do know is that the $35 billion in savings that is referenced in the White House Fact Sheet refers to the federal government’s estimated savings … resulting from states making changes to their provider tax systems,” KFF spokesperson Tammie Smith said. That is, the projected savings aren’t connected to healthcare for immigrants living in the U.S. illegally.
Political squabbling aside, California’s approach to medical coverage for low-income, undocumented immigrants is set to undergo a major shift thanks to provisions in the 2025-26 state budget that the Democrat-led legislature and Newsom approved in June.
Starting on Jan. 1, adults “who do not have Satisfactory Immigration Status (SIS)” will no longer be able to enroll in Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid program, according to the state’s Department of Health Care Services webpage. Those who already have this coverage can keep it and continue to renew their enrollment. And starting on July 1, Medi-Cal enrollees who are age 19-59, undocumented and not pregnant will have to pay a $30 monthly premium to keep their coverage.
“In light of the militarized mass immigration raids and arrests causing fear and chaos across California, we are disappointed that the governor and the leadership in the Legislature chose to adopt a state budget that makes our communities even more vulnerable,” Masih Fouladi, the center’s executive director said at the time.
Everyone in California who qualifies for Medi-Cal will still be eligible to receive emergency medical and dental care, no matter their immigration status.
Weekly insights and analysis on the latest developments in military technology, strategy, and foreign policy.
Reports indicate that the United States has agreed to provide Ukraine with targeting intelligence for its long-range strikes against Russian energy infrastructure. For many months now, Ukraine has been waging a campaign to degrade Russia’s oil and natural gas infrastructure, depriving it of critical resources for its offensive in Ukraine as well as revenue from energy exports.
According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, which cites unnamed U.S. administration officials, and another report from Reuters, the new policy is being adopted ahead of a possible transfer of longer-range and harder-hitting weapons that can be used against the same kinds of targets, and potentially others deep in Russia.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during a bilateral meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the UN headquarters on September 23, 2025, in New York City. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Chip Somodevilla
The officials who spoke to the WSJ reportedly said that President Donald Trump had recently signed off on the sharing of intelligence for the Ukrainian strikes, although the caveat that only attacks on energy infrastructure are covered is significant. Targeting data will be provided to Kyiv by U.S. intelligence agencies as well as the Pentagon. Meanwhile, U.S. officials are said to be pushing NATO allies to do the same.
This would be the first time, officially at least, that the Trump administration provides Ukraine with this kind of intelligence for its long-range strikes.
Videos showing purported Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries in March 2024, involving long-range one-way attack drones:
#BREAKING: Explosions and fire at the Novokuibyshevsk Refinery in Samara Oblast of Russia, in what appears to be yet another Ukrainian drone strike on Russian oil infrastructure.
— Status-6 (Military & Conflict News) (@Archer83Able) March 23, 2024
The hope is that the new U.S.-supplied intelligence will make these raids more destructive.
At the same time, a Ukrainian delegation has arrived in Washington this week to work on a new agreement with the Trump administration that would see Kyiv sharing its drone technology with the United States, in exchange for a so-far undecided compensation, perhaps in the form of additional arms.
As to what might come next in terms of longer-range and more powerful weapons, should the United States agree to provide them, there is already much speculation that the Tomahawk land-attack cruise missile might be included. The prospect of Ukraine getting its hands on the Tomahawk, which can strike targets at a range of almost 1,000 miles, carrying a 1,000-pound unitary warhead, has already caused some alarm among pro-Kremlin military bloggers, as seen in the video below.
A Telegram channel considered to be run by Russian propagandist Dugin:
“Apparently, the situation with the war will soon become even more acute. I’m talking about Tomahawk missiles. It is no coincidence that air raid drills were held today in Russian cities. Everyone should know… pic.twitter.com/yaNSkibRot
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed that he had requested Tomahawks from Trump, after which U.S. Vice President JD Vance said that the United States was considering Ukraine’s request.
However, there is no guarantee that the Tomahawk transfer to Ukraine will be approved. As it stands, these highly accurate — and expensive — cruise missiles have only ever been exported to a handful of countries, and only in ship- and submarine-launched form.
A Tomahawk cruise missile fired from an Australian warship, moments before impacting its target. U.S. Navy U.S. Navy
The same officials explained that the Tomahawk was just one option being discussed, with others including the Barracuda, from Anduril. This is described by the company as an “expendable autonomous air vehicle,” but is essentially a low-cost, highly modular, air-breathing precision standoff munition. The Barracuda-500, for example, has a maximum range of 500 miles and carries a payload of up to 100 pounds. Currently, it is exclusively for air-launched applications, but it is built to be adapted to ground launch as well.
“Other American-made ground- and air-launched missiles that have ranges of around 500 miles” are also being considered, the officials said.
The Anduril Barracuda-500M. Anduril
Washington has already approved the transfer to Ukraine of thousands of Extended Range Attack Munitions (ERAM). These are another new and relatively low-cost standoff missile, although it’s unclear whether Kyiv will be able to use the new weapon to strike targets deep within Russia. Previously, unnamed U.S. officials suggested that such targets are off-limits for American-made weapons, at least for the U.S.-donated Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS).
The ERAMs, which have a range between 150-280 miles and are stated to be air-launched, at least initially, may well have already begun to arrive in Ukraine. The first lot of 840 ERAMs is split between two designs, produced by CoAspire and Zone 5 Technologies, respectively. These are to be delivered by the end of October 2026.
As for the aforementioned ATACMS, Trump halted new deliveries of this ballistic missile, first provided to Ukraine under the Biden administration. There are also now tight controls on Ukrainian ATACMS use, with each strike requiring approval from Washington. At least some requests to use them against targets in Russia have been turned down, although the weapon has seen notable use in the Kursk region, adjacent to the Ukrainian border.
Even without the delivery of additional types of U.S.-made long-range missiles and the approval to use them against targets deep in Russia, the additional intelligence will be very useful to Ukraine. Pinpointing the weakest links in Russia’s energy infrastructure is especially critical if Ukraine continues to rely on lower yield, less capable weapons, like one-way attack drones, instead of advanced cruise missiles that pack heavy warheads.
There remains the possibility that long-range weapons might be provided by Ukraine’s non-U.S. allies.
A Taurus air-launched cruise missile. MBDA A Taurus air-launched cruise missile. (MBDA photo)
“Ukraine needs assistance in three key areas of confronting Russian aggression: air defenses, the ability to hold the front line, and the ability to strike deep into Russia,” explained Brig. Gen. Joachim Kaschke, responsible for German military aid to Ukraine. “When the Ukrainian defenders are facing a numerically superior adversary, they have to take the fight beyond the front lines,” he added.
Previously, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy have provided Ukraine with Storm Shadow and the similair SCALP-EG air-launched cruise missiles, which have seen extensive use.
Kyiv has used a wide variety of homegrown long-range one-way attack drones to attack Russian energy infrastructure.
It also has available the Long Neptune, an extended-range version of the land-attack version of the Neptune anti-ship missile. Ukraine famously used Neptune missiles to sink the Russian Navy’s Slava class cruiser Moskva in 2022 and reportedly began developing a new land-attack version in 2023. The numbers of these weapons is said to be very limited though.
A first official look at Ukraine’s other operational land attack cruise missile; the Long Neptune.
The Neptune LACM reportedly has a range of roughly 1000km, and has already seen combat this year. pic.twitter.com/cPHJ5sjZlu
Zelensky has said the range of the Long Neptune is in the region of 620 miles and that it has already been tested in combat.
More relevant for these kinds of strikes is the locally produced Flamingo ground-launched long-range cruise missile, unveiled in August. This weapon has a reported range of 1,864 miles and a powerful 2,535-pound warhead, making it a much farther-reaching and more destructive weapon than any missile or one-way-attack drone available to Ukraine now. Just as significantly, Ukraine is hoping to ramp up manufacturing capacity to build seven Flamingos every day by October of this year, though there are questions about how realistic any expanded production goals might be.
Launch of a Flamingo cruise missile. via Ukrainska Pravda via Ukrainska Pravda
While there have been questions about the survivability of one-way attack drones and the very large and relatively crude Flamingo cruise missile, at the very least, they provide an additional headache for Russia’s hard-pressed air defenses, and it’s clear that a significant proportion of these attacks result in damage to energy infrastructure.
Remarkably clear footage of a Ukrainian attack drone flying untouched through Russian ground fire over Krasnodar Krai this morning, eventually slamming directly into Rosneft’s Tuapse refinery and detonating. pic.twitter.com/7p2U7l53Nr
Interestingly, it appears that Russia has been stepping up its own attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure in recent weeks. This may well signal the start of a new winter offensive, repeating Russian tactics of previous years.
Russia is intensifying its strike campaign against Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
Footage below shows strikes on 330kV & 110kV electrical substations in the town of Slavutych, Kyiv Oblast, northern Ukraine.
— Status-6 (Military & Conflict News) (@Archer83Able) October 2, 2025
The new intelligence-sharing policy and the possibility of new long-range missiles being cleared for transfer to Kyiv appear to indicate a changing approach from the Trump administration.
After he took office in January, Trump made efforts to broker a ceasefire. However, despite offering Russian President Vladimir Putin economic and commercial incentives, this hasn’t gained traction, and a series of meetings between Russian and U.S. leaders have not had any success.
Now, Trump is taking a new and harder line with Putin.
Last week, Trump took to social media to declare, for the first time, that he considers it possible that Ukraine retakes all of its territory that was lost to Russia. He also called upon NATO allies in Europe to shoot down Russian aircraft if they enter alliance airspace.
A photo released by the Swedish Ministry of Defense showing one of the Russian MiG-31 Foxhound interceptors that violated Estonian airspace last month. Swedish Air Force
It seems that, with an eye on the battlefield situation, where Russia continues to make only slow progress, Trump is now turning up the heat on Putin, something that we have discussed in detail in the past.
Of course, approving the delivery of additional long-range weapons would be an even bolder action.
Already, Kremlin officials are talking about the possibility of Tomahawks arriving in Ukraine.
“The question remains: Who can launch these missiles, even if they end up on Kyiv regime territory?” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier this week. “Can only Ukrainians launch them, or will the American military do so? Who is assigning the targeting to these missiles? This requires a very thorough analysis.”
Whatever decision Washington makes on the long-range weapons, the expanded intelligence-sharing with Kyiv underscores the fact that the United States is willing to provide more support for Ukraine, including its direct strikes deep inside Russia aimed at Moscow’s prized energy production capabilities. It may well also suggest that Trump sees this as the next step in pressuring Russia to sit at the negotiation table.
FAMILIES can now receive a cut of £56million in energy bill support from a ‘Big Six’ supplier.
From today, OVO Energy is handing out free electric blankets as one of its ways to help customers with rising energy bills.
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OVO Energy is offering free support to help combat soaring energy bills
The supplier runs the extra support service for users all year round, but is now increasing the amount of aid it’s giving out ahead of the wintermonths.
Since 2022,OVO has given £190million in aid, including heated blankets, smart sockets, and efficiency kits, helping 42,000 customers last year.
The latest £56million package includes free energy-saving products and direct financial support.
And it’s not just electric blankets that you could bag for free.
read more on energy bills
OVO is also giving away mattress toppers and home efficiency kits to struggling households as part of the scheme.
Customers could also receive a wide range of energy-saving measures installed through ECO4 – from loft insulation to a new boiler, or even high-end tech like heat pumps.
Eligible customers could get a whole package installed, all for free.
Financial support including Direct Debit reductions, emergency credit top-ups, and extended repayment plans are also being offered.
To check your entitlement, visit ovoenergy.com/extra-support.
Ovo is separately campaigning for the introduction of a social tariff to protect vulnerable customers from high energy prices and combat fuel poverty across the UK.
David Buttress, chief executive of OVO, said: “We’re providing support to those who need it most by working together with ourcharitypartners and committing our largest ever customer support package.”
“But this isn’t a long term solution.
“We need to make the energy system work better for everyone.
“That starts with targeted support in the form of a social tariff – no one can be, or no one needs to be left behind.”
What is the Energy Company Obligation scheme?
LOW-income and vulnerable families can get help improving the energy-efficiency of their homes through the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme.
Under the ECO scheme, suppliers have a legal obligation to implement energy-saving measures in your home if you’re experiencing fuel poverty.
Help is offered on a case-by-case basis, but it can mean having a new boiler fitted, or loft or cavity wall insulation put in, often for free.
The cost of buying a new boiler and install is around £2,500, while loft insulation costs around £725 to install and cavity wall insulation in a mid-terrace house will set you back £1,800, according to Checkatrade.
Measures can also include the installation of heat pumps, smart thermostats and even solar panels.
These government schemes target low-income, vulnerable, and fuel-poor homes and can significantly reduce heating bills by up to £485 annually.
The ECO first launched in January 2013 and has been extended four times.
ECO4 applies to any help issued between April 1, 2022, and covers a four-year period until March 31, 2026.
You only qualify for the ECO under certain circumstances, for example if you claim certain benefits and live in private housing.
The list of benefits that could qualify you for the scheme is:
Child tax credit
Working tax credit
Universal Credit
Pension credit
Income support
income-based Jobseeker’s allowance (JSA)
income-related employment and support allowance (ESA)
Child benefit
Housing benefit
You could also be eligible if you living in social housing.
In addition to this, households also need to be living in properties with an energy efficiency rating of D-G if they own it, or E-G if they are renting from a private landlord.
To check you’re eligible and apply, you’ll need to contact your energy supplier.
What other grants are available?
There are several other ways households can boost their home’s energy efficiency and save money through a variety of grants.
From insulation and boiler upgrades to modifications for disabled residents, financial assistance can cover a substantial portion of your home improvement costs.
Some grants may even cover up to £50,000 worth of home improvements.
To qualify, you must have an energy performance certificate rating of D or lower.
You could be in line for essential upgrades to your home, including roof, loft or cavity wall insulation – which could cut your annual energy bill by £100s.
Check whether you meet the eligibility criteria by visiting gov.uk/apply-great-british-insulation-scheme.
Boiler upgrade scheme – £7,500
Through the boiler upgrade scheme, you could get a grant to cover part of the cost of replacing fossil fuel heating systems with a heat pump or biomass boiler.
You can get one grant per property, towards help with the following:
£7,500 towards an air source heat pump
£7,500 towards a ground source heat pump (including water source heat pumps and those on shared ground loops)
£5,000 towards a biomass boiler
To qualify for this scheme you must own the property you are looking to upgrade.
You must find an MCS-certified installer to claim the grant on your behalf.
MCS is the certification scheme for energy-efficiency product installers.
You can find the nearest ones to you by visiting www.mcscertified.com/find-an-installer, but it is worth shopping for a few quotes.
Home upgrade grant – £1,000s
The home upgrade grant provides funding for various energy efficiency measures for homes that are not connected to the gas grid, often in rural or semi-rural areas.
To be eligible, you must own and live in the property you’re applying for and not use a mains gas boiler as your home’s main heating system.
You’ll also need an performance certificate (EPC) rating of D, E, F or G – if you do not know your home’s EPC you can find it out when you apply.
You’ll usually need to have a household income of £36,000 a year or less.
If you’re eligible, your local council will arrange a home survey to see how your home could be made more energy efficient.
They might suggest improvements like installing wall, loft and underfloor insulation, air source heat pumps, electric radiators
Find out more by visiting gov.uk/apply-home-upgrade-grant.
What energy bill help is available?
There’s a number of different ways to get help paying your energy bills if you’re struggling to get by.
If you fall into debt, you can always approach your supplier to see if they can put you on a repayment plan before putting you on a prepayment meter.
This involves paying off what you owe in instalments over a set period.
If your supplier offers you a repayment plan you don’t think you can afford, speak to them again to see if you can negotiate a better deal.
Watch as wicket-keeper Richa Ghosh makes an excellent catch to dismiss Kavisha Dilhari and give India their fifth wicket against Sri Lanka at the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup.
North Korean Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Kim Son Gyong spoke during the General Debate of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly at United Nations headquarters on Monday. Photo by Sarah Yenesel/EPA
Sept. 30 (UPI) — A senior North Korean diplomat vowed that Pyongyang would “never give up” its nuclear weapons in a rare address to the United Nations General Assembly on Monday.
Speaking during the General Debate, Vice Foreign Minister Kim Son Gyong said that imposing denuclearization on the North is “tantamount to demanding it to surrender sovereignty and right to existence.”
His appearance before the General Assembly marked the first time Pyongyang has sent a senior diplomat since 2018.
“We will never give up nuclear, which is our state law, national policy and sovereign power as well as the right to existence,” Kim said. “Under any circumstances, we will never walk away from this position.”
The North passed a law declaring itself a nuclear-armed state in 2022. Leader Kim Jong Un called the decision “irreversible” and later amended the country’s constitution to enshrine the permanent growth of Pyongyang’s nuclear arsenal.
The vice minister told the attendees that the North’s nuclear arsenal was a necessary “war deterrent” against mounting threats by the United States and its allies.
“In order to permanently maintain this state of balance and ensure everlasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, we have stipulated nuclear in our constitution as a sacred and absolute thing that can never be touched upon and tampered with,” he said.
Kim added that the North was open to engagement with “countries that respect and take friendly approaches towards it.”
His speech comes as both Washington and Seoul have expressed hope to engage with North Korea.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who held a pair of high-profile summits with Kim Jong Un during his first term in office, has suggested on several occasions that he would meet with the North Korean leader again.
Kim Jong Un appeared to open the door to restarting diplomacy with the United States last week, saying he has “fond memories” of Trump but warning that denuclearization was off the table.
“If the United States abandons its vain obsession with denuclearization, acknowledges reality and desires genuine peaceful coexistence with us, there is no reason why we should not sit down with the United States,” Kim said.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, meanwhile, has made efforts to reduce tensions between the two Koreas since he took office in June, with conciliatory gestures such as removing propaganda loudspeakers from border areas.
In his debut address to the General Assembly last week, Lee unveiled a peace initiative that sought engagement and normalization with the North while offering a “phased solution” to nuclear disarmament that would start with a weapons development freeze.
After Vice Minister Kim’s U.N. address, Seoul’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday reaffirmed its ultimate goal of denuclearization.
“Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula is a consistent goal of the international community, including South Korea and the United States,” a ministry spokesperson said at a press briefing.
Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov has warned NATO and the European Union that “any aggression against my country will be met with a decisive response”.
Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York on Saturday, Lavrov insisted that Moscow had no plans to attack the West, but that it was prepared to act if provoked.
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His comments came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy blamed Russia for recent drone and plane incursions in Europe.
“Russia is testing their ability to defend themselves and trying to influence societies so people begin to ask: ‘If we can’t protect ourselves, why should we keep supporting Ukraine?’. This is intended to reduce assistance to Ukraine, especially ahead of winter,” he wrote on X.
Moscow continues to deny violating Polish airspace with drones, and Estonian airspace with fighter jets, this month. It also says it played no role in the rogue drones spotted near airports in Denmark this week, which forced several airports to shut temporarily.
‘Some hopes’ for US-brokered peace
In his UN speech, Lavrov hit out at accusations from the West, blaming it for scaremongering about the possibility of a “third world war”.
“Russia is being accused of almost planning to attack NATO and EU countries. President [Vladimir] Putin has repeatedly debunked these provocations,” he said.
But Lavrov also insisted that his country still had “some hopes” for ceasefire talks with the United States over Moscow’s war in Ukraine, just days after US President Donald Trump appeared to align himself more closely with Kyiv by saying it could recapture all of the Ukrainian territory seized by Russia.
Trump’s comments, which were made after he met Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the UNGA, marked a significant change in tone. Previously, the US president had said that Kyiv needed to make concessions, arguing that it would never reclaim occupied territory seized by Russia since 2014.
Despite Trump’s statement on Tuesday, Lavrov still expressed a belief in the role of the US as a potential mediator.
“We have some hopes for the continuation of the Russian-American dialogue, especially after the summit in Alaska,” he told delegates at the UN headquarters on Saturday.
The Russian foreign minister suggested that the Trump administration wanted to “realistically resolve the Ukrainian crisis”.
“Russia and the US bear a special responsibility for the state of affairs in the world and for avoiding risks that could plunge humanity into a new war,” he added.
More villages taken in Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk regions
Lavrov’s appearance at the UN followed claims by Russia on Saturday that it had captured three more villages in eastern Ukraine.
The Russian army said in a statement that it had taken the villages of Derylove and Maiske in the Donetsk region, and the settlement of Stepove in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
Meanwhile, Ukraine said it had launched a successful drone attack against an oil pumping facility in Russia’s Chuvashia region.
“The SBU [Ukrainian security service] continues to impose sanctions on the Russian oil sector, which brings the aggressor country excess profits that go to the war against Ukraine,” a Ukrainian official told Reuters.
An overnight Russian barrage killed one person and wounded 12 in Ukraine’s southeastern Kherson region, and damaged railways in the neighbouring Odesa region, according to the Ukrainian authorities.
As Kyiv attempts to improve its air defences to stop Russian missile and drone attacks, Zelenskyy said on Saturday that a Ukrainian delegation would head to the US for weapons talks in late September or early October.
Ukraine’s president added that his country had received a US-made Patriot air defence system from Israel a month ago, with two more expected to arrive later this year.
On Saturday, both Russia and Ukraine blamed each other for a four-day blackout at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. Although outages are common, it is the longest so far in the war.
The plant’s six reactors have been off since Moscow seized it shortly after its full-scale invasion in February 2022. However, the facility still needs power to keep its cooling and safety systems operating to prevent its reactors from melting.
Ticketmaster will have to give music fans more advance information about ticket prices, after complaints about Oasis’s reunion tour last year.
The Competition and Markets Authority says the company has agreed to tell fans 24 hours in advance if a tiered pricing system is being used, as it was for Oasis standing tickets, and give more information about ticket prices during online queues.
Platinum tickets sold for almost two and a half times the standard the price, but Ticketmaster did not explain to consumers that they came without extra benefits.
Fans expressed outrage over allegations that Ticketmaster used “dynamic pricing” – where ticket prices rise and fall according to demand – prompting the CMA to launch an investigation into the sale.
However the CMA said it had “not found evidence” that algorithmic pricing had been used to adjust the price of tickets in real time.
As a result of the investigation, Ticketmaster will have to provide more information about prices during online queues, helping fans anticipate how much they might have to pay.
It will also have to use accurate labelling, to ensure they “do not give the impression that one ticket is better than another when that is not the case,” the CMA said.
The company will also have to regularly report to the CMA over the next two years to ensure it is adhering to the new compliance.
Tesla has faced plenty of adversity in 2025, but is it finally time to give up on its long-term ambitions?
“Elon has reached peak Tesla(TSLA 7.21%) sales, and he knows it,” said Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars, according to Automotive News. “I predict minimal investment in his current product, except in the area of self-driving tech.”
Peak Tesla? You know what they say: When it rains, it pours, and investors have been in the middle of a thunderstorm all year. Tesla has hit a number of speed bumps, including backlash facing Elon Musk and his political tour, declining sales and profits, the end of the $7,500 federal tax credit and disappearing zero-emission credit sales, mounting lawsuits, increased competition from advanced and affordable Chinese vehicles — you name it, it probably went against Tesla’s favor.
So, is it finally time to give up on Tesla?
Not so fast
There’s no question Tesla is in a transition period of sorts, evolving from the electric vehicle (EV) maker investors knew and loved into a robotaxi operator offering ride-hailing services at low prices — and potentially a robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) company to boot.
Right now, Tesla’s focus has zeroed in on a couple of different developments. First, the Cybercab is set for production in 2026, and Musk has previously said it will serve the robotaxi fleet and go on sale with a sub-$30,000 price tag at retail. It’s a dedicated two-door autonomous vehicle that allegedly won’t have human controls, such as steering wheel or foot pedals, per the company at its 2024 unveiling.
Tesla’s Cybercab. Image source: Tesla.
That said, Tesla has made a habit of overpromising and underdelivering, which has set up a healthy amount of skepticism. “I have to think that autonomy is further away than a lot of people expect,” said Sam Fiorani, vice president of global forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions, according to Automotive News. “By 2030, you’re still going to have a steering wheel and a driver. Even in Teslas.”
Tesla’s primary goal with the Cybercab is simply to create a robotaxi with the lowest cost per mile of operation — a simple idea that will be easier said than done. Through efficiency, slower acceleration, and lower top speed, among other factors, Tesla hopes to achieve a target cost of under $0.30 per mile of operation.
What else is in store?
Aside from the Cybercab, Tesla still has other developments to focus on in the near term. These developments include a plan to address affordability by launching a stripped-down Model Y crossover during the fourth quarter, which could help offset the expiration of the $7,500 federal EV tax credit.
It’s not quite a new Tesla model with a sticker price around $25,000, as has been promised in the past, but shifting plans to modify current models for affordability rather than create a new nameplate was likely the right move — Tesla needs to be more competitive on price, and quickly.
Tesla is also planning a second-generation Roadster, which was first promised to be in production as long ago as 2020, but is now expected within the next couple of years. Last, and perhaps least, Tesla is opening a factory next year dedicated to its often-forgotten Semi tractor trailer.
What it all means
While investors might have raised an eyebrow at that staggering announcement Tesla dropped on the market about a new compensation agreement for Elon Musk, potentially worth up to $1 trillion, the truth is that Tesla needs the best version of Elon Musk over the next decade. Tesla faces slowing sales in key markets, consumer backlash in the U.S. and Europe, and intense competition in China that has swallowed foreign automakers whole amid a brutal price war.
Tesla has its work cut out for it, no doubt. But if Musk can refocus his priorities on Tesla, even if it costs the company in compensation, it could position the EV maker to evolve more over the next decade than anyone imagined possible — think robotaxi services, robotics, and AI.
We could be watching the beginning of a slow-motion train wreck, or the beginning of one of the best investments in our lifetime. Because the latter is still possible, it’s not yet time to give up on Tesla.
Great Britain took a big step towards next year’s Davis Cup qualifiers as Cameron Norrie and Arthur Fery both won to give them a 2-0 lead over Poland.
World number 34 Norrie survived a scare against world number 545 Tomasz Berkieta to win his nation’s opening World Group 1 match 7-6 (11-9) 6-4 in Gdynia, Poland.
Fery, ranked 227 in the world, then battled to a 6-4 6-2 victory over Olaf Pieczkowski, ranked 484.
The 23-year-old was making his Davis Cup debut after British number three Jacob Fearnley pulled out with a rib injury.
Britain need one more win on Saturday to reach February’s first round and therefore have a shot at winning the title in 2026.
The world’s number one doubles pair, Lloyd Glasspool and Julian Cash, will make their debut in Saturday’s doubles, which will be followed by two reverse singles.
AFTER a lifetime spent trying to keep her curly locks in check, Hilary Freeman, 53, from London, sees if the new Airwrap makes styling them fuss-free.
When I was 12 and puberty kicked in, my previously smooth curls turned, almost overnight, into an uncontrollable mop of frizz.
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Hilary Freeman, 53, from London, sees if the new Airwrap makes styling curly locks them fuss-freeCredit: Lorna Roach
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Hilary after using the £579 Dyson toolCredit: Lorna Roach
Ever since, I’ve spent thousands on styling products and tools, for a daily battle to tame my locks.
My hair is like candy floss: fine in texture, soft and big. Humidity and rain are its mortal enemies.
Yes, I am that woman you see with an umbrella in the slightest drizzle.
That’s because the merest hint of moisture turns me into Art Garfunkel. Or worse, Phil Spector.
Like them, I have what some affectionately call a “Jewfro”.
As a teen, I begged my mother to allow me to have my hair chemically straightened.
The foul-smelling treatment, in effect a reverse perm — this was well before the days of Brazilian blow dries — didn’t work, and just damaged my locks, making them even more frizzy.
In the Nineties, when poker-straight locks became almost compulsory, I bought hair straighteners.
But I didn’t have the patience or expertise to use them properly.
I ended up with a half-straight, half-curly do — and a second- degree burn on my neck.
Watch the moment woman leaves passengers stunned as she dyes her hair on the TRAIN, and insists she’s ‘not embarrassed’ about it either
Since then, I’ve avoided trying new gadgets, partly out of fear of damaging my hair and partly because, as a mum with a busy job as a writer, I simply don’t have the time.
Instead, I’ve resigned myself to wearing my hair long and curly.
I tend to half diffuse it and half air-dry it, depending on the time I have.
Over the years, hair dye to stem the ever-increasing tide of grey has conspired with my changing hormones to alter my curl pattern from tight curls to looser ones.
But the frizz has remained.
Bushy mess
Mousses and gels keep my hair defined for a day or so, but the curls quickly drop out and become lank and fluffy.
On a good day, it falls into ringlets; on a bad one, it’s a bushy mess.
Curly hair has a mind of its own, you see.
So, I was keen to test the brand new Dyson Airwrap Co-anda 2x.
The latest version of this heated styler, the Curly and Coily model (there’s also a Straight/Wavy one), promises effortless, long-lasting, sleek waves.
Like all Dyson products, it looks and feels a quality, luxury item.
But, at £579, I’ll admit, I am expecting some sort of miracle.
Could it work for me, or is it just a lot of hot air?
According to Dyson, the Co-anda 2x has twice as many attachments as its predecessor and can be used to dry, curl, wave, straighten, smooth and volumise your hair.
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Like all Dyson products, it looks and feels a quality, luxury itemCredit: Dyson
These attachments, they say, are “intelligent” — I wonder if they can help with Wordle.
The Airwrap claims to provide “supercharged styling with a stronger Coanda airflow”.
It is 30 per cent more powerful than the previous model, has two times the air pressure and — most intriguingly — senses movement, automatically wrapping your hair and adapting heat, airflow and timings to your hair type, via the MyDyson app.
Faced with a box of attachments, I have no idea where to start.
Setting up the app is simple, after answering some questions on it my device is tailored to my hair type.
However, as a novice, I find navigating the app confusing.
Its video guides — I counted 37 ways to style your curly hair — are helpful but I can’t figure out how to watch tutorials while holding my switched-on Airwrap.
It doesn’t help that the Bluetooth keeps disconnecting.
The power cord is also surprisingly short, meaning I have to sit right next to the plug socket.
On the plus side, the motor is extremely powerful.
I’m impressed with how the barrel curl attachment intuitively collects the right amount of hair — as if slurping noodles.
‘Friends say I look glam’
And I’m reassured that once the Airwrap reaches a certain heat, it starts to cool, so it dries my hair but doesn’t burn it.
I also like the fact there’s a diffuser attachment among the options, so I can choose whether I want to dry my hair curly, wavy or straight with just one device.
But I do find the Airwrap heavier than my usual hairdryer.
Holding it in one position for any length of time made my arm ache.
But it’s much easier than holding both a brush and a dryer.
The results speak for themselves. My hair feels so smooth and light that I can’t help swishing it around. The colour also looks more refined and glossy.
While people usually compliment my hair, now they’re commenting on my overall look.
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Hilary Freeman demonstrates the new Dyson Air WrapCredit: Lorna Roach
Everyone says I look “glamorous” and “airbrushed” — not words they’ve used before. I can see I appear more tidy and professional, and less boho. However, I do think my usual curly style makes me look more youthful.
The night after my trial, I barely sleep for worrying I’ll ruin my new do.
But I wake to find it almost as smooth as before.
By the end of the day, my hair is starting to frizz at the edges and some rogue curls are appearing.
I decide to wash it again, and try the diffuser option, so I can compare it with my own high street dryer.
When I link the Airwrap up to the app, it automatically sets it to the right heat and speed settings for the diffuser attachment.
It dries quickly and efficiently, creating nice curls and achieving better root volume than my own model. It’s a good diffuser.
But I can’t say the result is £600 better.
The Airwrap Co-anda 2x is not for novices. If I’m honest, I would probably only use the diffuser option unless I have a special event, and a day off.
It is a big investment and not a must-have.
But as an alternative to professional blowouts, it’s a great option.
CUTTING THE HAIR COSTS
LILY ENGLAND DELUXE HOT BRUSH, £32.99
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The Lily England Heated Dryer is perfect for giving your hair a quick zhuzhCredit: supplied
WHILE it can’t dry and style simultaneously like the Airwrap, it is perfect for giving your hair a quick zhuzh, and its simple design is easy to get the hang of.
The large barrel is ideal for adding volume and lifting hair.
BELLISSIMA ITALIA AIR WONDER 8-IN-1 HAIR STYLER, £129.99
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This budget styler curls, volumises and wavesCredit: supplied
WITH eight attachment heads, this budget styler curls, volumises and waves.
Hit its coolshot button after styling to lock in your look for longer.
Also doubles up as a traditional hairdryer.
REVLON ONE-STEP BLOW-DRY MULTI STYLER 3-IN-1 TOOL, £80
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Revlon One-Step Blow-Dry Multi Styler takes hair from wet to perfectly styledCredit: supplied
HAILED as the ultimate Dyson dupe, this takes hair from wet to perfectly styled.
Has a curling wand, an oval brush for volumised locks and a concentrator head for drying your roots.
