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Why the all-new Corvette Z06 is breaking barriers

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(PITTSBURGH) — Tadge Juechter has spent nearly 30 years perfecting every generation of the Corvette. With the Z06, the latest Corvette to roll off the assembly line in Kentucky, he and his team of engineers are breaking new ground.

The sports car’s naturally-aspirated, flat-plane crankshaft V8 engine produces 670 horses, a feat neither Juechter nor his team believed was possible.

“Every design element centered around maximizing horsepower and track performance,” Juechter, Corvette’s executive chief engineer, told ABC News from Pittsburgh International Raceway, where journalists were test driving the car.

The Z06 races from 0-60 mph in 2.7 seconds. With the Z07 performance package, the time drops to 2.6 seconds.

“This car is more powerful than the last generation,” he went on. “When we started the project it was a bit of a gut check. We weren’t sure we could match the output of the supercharged small block [engine]. We pushed as much as we could.”

Enthusiasts and gearheads have been anxiously awaiting the Z06’s arrival. The track-focused sports car, with an 8,600-rpm redline and top speed of 195 mph, is the sole General Motors vehicle to be built with the all-new 5.5L LT6 engine.

It will also likely be the last. In April, Chevrolet posted a teaser clip of an electrified Corvette in camouflage, drifting and dancing on an ice track.

GM President Mark Reuss confirmed in a LinkedIn post that the Detroit automaker was currently developing a hybrid version of its storied sports car. A fully electric Corvette was in the works too, Reuss said.

The Corvette community has been “amazingly supportive” of the brand’s electrified direction, Juechter said, adding that some owners may need more convincing.

“There are people who have said, ‘That’s not for me, hope you sell internal combustion engines forever,'” he explained.

Tyson Jominy, vice president of data and analytics at J.D. Power, has a stern message for the doubters: electrification will make the Corvette even better than it is today.

“The things you can do with electrification far exceeds ICEs in almost every capacity. I don’t think that’s up for debate,” he told ABC News. “I recognize that not everyone thinks that way and it may take a long time for Corvette buyers to come around.”

The anti-electrification attitude in enthusiast circles may help explain why Porsche and Chevrolet have posted record sales of the 911 and Corvette in the last two years. According to J.D. Power, the midsize sports car segment now accounts for 0.5% of the U.S. auto market, up from 0.3% pre-pandemic.

Jominy expects eager buyers to pay well above the Z06’s MSRP of $103,500. Options and performance packages can push the price to $170,000.

“The Z06 is the spiritual center of Chevy and such an important vehicle,” he said. “Chevy is not building a lot of these. I expect demand to be extraordinarily high.”

John Pearley Huffman, senior editor at Road & Track, said the aural and tactical satisfaction of the Z06 can’t be matched in a hybrid or electric Corvette.

“It’s not just raw acceleration, you can feel the gears grinding in your hands,” he said. “It’s stinky rotten fast … and may be the last, great mechanical Corvette and the most satisfying to drive in the artistic sense. This is a quantum leap for Corvette.”

For the die-hards who will repent the end of Corvette’s famed V8 powerplant, Pearley Huffman said that would be a mistake.

“You have to embrace the future. Going electric doesn’t mean these cars and naturally aspirated engines will go away,” he noted. “They’ll be artifacts of the time. An electrified Corvette is still something to look forward to.”

Ivan Drury, director of insights at car-shopping service Edmunds, remembers the backlash when Chevrolet debuted the eighth-generation Stingray in 2019. The engine now sat behind the driver and the manual transmission option was gone.

“There was a lot of talk about alienation but there has been so much demand for a product that was very polarizing,” he told ABC News. “The C8 Stingray has shattered sales records.”

Drury expects even non-Corvette fans to seek out this Z06, one of the last sports cars on the market with a naturally aspirated engine.

“People are nostalgic about what’s going on in the industry. The Z06 will be seen as an investment,” he said, adding, “The car will become a museum piece. I want to see it alive, living and breathing on the tarmac.”

Brian Baker, the director of collections and education at the National Corvette Museum and a former GM engineer, said Corvette devotees can view the Z06 up close at the museum, including every Z06 produced since 1963, when Chevrolet introduced the nameplate. The museum, a 501(c), is raffling off a 2023 Z06 on Dec. 15.

Baker said his blood curdled the first time he heard the Z06’s engine being revved.

“It was like the hounds of hell being released,” he told ABC News. “The engine has a very different sound … more akin to what European exotics use. It’s a remarkable advancement for Corvette.”

As for Corvette going electric, Baker said longtime customers have to embrace the future.

“Corvette is not sitting still,” he said. “While we preserve the heritage, it’s a moving, living brand. We are moving into the 21st century.”

Workers at the Bowling Green Assembly plant, where 1.1 million Corvettes have been built since 1981, are busy filling the “flood of orders” for the Z06, Juechter said. Chevrolet capped production this year to meet unprecedented demand following the Z06’s reveal.

“The reaction from our customer base has been astonishing,” Juechter said. “Dealers have hoards of people wanting to get a place in line for this car.”

Even the harshest of critics — the car aficionados who revere Italian and German supercar performance — will be impressed with this Z06, Juechter said.

“The big picture was to emulate the soul of Ferrari but match Porche’s clinical speed,” he said. “This is the most aggressive aero we’ve ever done. But the Z06 is still a street car.”

Juechter pointed to the reaction of a Formula One driver who lapped the Z06 in Pittsburgh last month.

“He gave me a hug when he got out of the car,” he said. “The proof is in the pudding when you drive it.”

Migrants in Italy face uncertainty after far-right prime minister’s win

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — Giorgia Meloni, leader of Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy), will become the first female prime minister in Italy’s history.

Her election last month will move the country to the far right for the first time since Benito Mussolini’s fall during World War II. The Brothers of Italy, which was founded by Meloni, is a national-conservative populist party that opposes undocumented immigration, according to its website.

Meloni’s victory now means uncertainty for those who migrated to Italy.

When Baryali Waiz, a refugee in Italy, heard the results of the general election, he said he was worried.

“What happens when voters can’t find work? They blame migrants,” Waiz told ABC News.

As of August, Italy’s unemployment rate stood at 8.1%, the third highest in the European Union after Spain and Greece.

Clamping down on immigration was a key part of Meloni’s campaign. Though she softened her rhetoric before the election, Meloni pledged stricter border controls and proposed establishing European Union-managed centers to analyze asylum applications.

There are about five million foreign-born residents in Italy, making up less than 9% of the country’s total population of 59.2 million, according to the country’s most recent census data. Poll results from 2018 concluded that 35% of Italians believe immigration was one of the most important issues facing their country, an increase of 17 percentage points from 2014.

Meloni has called for a “naval blockade” at sea to prevent “illegal departures” to Italy. She opposed “Ius Scholae,” a bill proposing citizenship rights for students under 12 who immigrate to Italy for their education. Meloni has referred to pro-immigration measures as part of a left-wing conspiracy to “replace Italians with immigrants.” During a speech in January 2017, she called immigration to Italy “ethnic substitution.”

Waiz, 30, has lived in Rome since he was 16. He attended Italian high school and studied political science at John Cabot University. Originally from Kabul, Afghanistan, Waiz said he’s grown accustomed to anti-immigration sentiment in Italy, which he said has become more normalized since Meloni came onto the political scene.

“She’s using the weak points of the Italian people — religion and hate,” Waiz said.

Branding herself as a Catholic mother during her campaign, Meloni’s victory in Sunday’s general election coincided with the Catholic Church’s World Day of Migrants and Refugees. Meloni capitalized on preexisting fears regarding the declining birth rate in Italy, which remains at 1.2 children per woman.

“Meloni’s anti-immigration views are always framed into Italian identity, centering on family and markers of religion,” said Andrew Geddes, director of the Migration Policy Center at the European University Institute in Florence. “Foreigners and outsiders may not fit with that identity.”

Meloni’s rhetoric is seldom about the contributions of migrants, who deliver services in the Italian economy, Geddes said.

European bureaucracy will temper Meloni’s ability to enact anti-immigration measures, Geddes noted. For instance, her idea of naval blockades would, in practice, force migrant boats to dock in Spain or Malta, creating tension within the EU. Over the last four decades, the average life of a coalition in Italy has only been 18 months, Geddes said.

Though it’s unlikely Meloni will radically alter a complex system of immigration rules, her direction will accelerate major societal transformations, said Alberto Alemanno, a professor of European Union Law at HEC Paris.

Born in the northwestern Italian city of Torino, Alemanno returned to Italy for the past week, where the social cohesion with immigrant communities is “eroding,” he said.

“[Meloni] makes racism and xenophobia mainstream, which is negative for Italy’s investment in European multilateral relations,” Alemanno said. Her governance will also make it more difficult for nonprofits and legal firms to aid immigrants in Italy, he argued.

Restrictive policies in Italy’s legal framework will be an uphill battle for asylum seekers, said Pietro Derossi, head of the Global Mobility & Immigration team at Lexia Avvocati, a legal organization in Milan. Migrants fleeing from poverty, persecution or war will be adversely impacted by Meloni’s election, Derossi said.

One of Derossi’s clients, Igor Makushinksy, is a Ukrainian citizen. Since Makushinksy entered Italy before Feb. 24, he is ineligible for temporary protection for Ukrainians. Neither Makushinksy nor his wife and newborn daughter have been able to find permanent residency. His family cannot benefit from medical and social assistance without documentation.

“We have three EU countries in which the far right is dominating now,” Makushinksy told ABC News. “It scares me.”

Reba McEntire will make Madison Square Garden debut on new leg of tour

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Reba McEntire is keeping the fun going with the extension of her Reba: Live in Concert tour.

After launching the tour in November 2021 with several sold-out shows throughout 2022, the country legend has added 14 new dates in 2023, including her debut headlining show at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

The new leg takes Reba to arenas across the U.S. in March and April, beginning in Jacksonville, FL on March 9 and wrapping up on April 15 at MSG. Terri Clark and gospel group The Isaacs will open for her along the way.

“I’m just having so much fun out the road that we’ve decided to add more dates and continue the fun on in to 2023,” Reba shares on social media.

Tickets for the new shows go on sale October 7. Reba will embark on the previously announced fall leg of the tour on October 13 in Lafayette, LA.

Lindsey Buckingham cancels European tour “due to ongoing health issues”

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Lindsey Buckingham has scrapped the remainder of his current European tour for medical reasons.

A statement on his Instagram feed reads, “Due to ongoing health issues, Lindsey Buckingham is regrettably having to cancel the remaining shows on his current European tour. Refunds will be available from the point of purchase. Lindsey sends his deepest apologies to all his fans who were planning to attend and hopes to return to Europe in the future.”

It’s not clear what those health issues are. Buckingham, 73, was originally supposed to do the shows in question earlier this year, but they were postponed after he and some of his touring party got COVID-19.

In 2019, the former Fleetwood Mac guitarist had a heart attack and underwent triple-bypass surgery. That procedure required the insertion of a breathing tube that damaged his vocal cords, but luckily, it was only temporary.

Buckingham’s tour was in support of his 2021 self-titled solo album.

Dozens of deaths reported after Hurricane Ian slams into Florida, four dead in North Carolina

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — At least 81 people in Florida have died due to Hurricane Ian, according to local officials.

Four additional people were also reported dead due to the storm in North Carolina, the governor’s office said.

The Category 4 storm slammed into Florida’s southwest coast Wednesday afternoon, causing catastrophic damage, fierce winds and dangerous, record-breaking storm surges.

The deaths span multiple counties in Florida, including 42 in Lee County, 23 in Charlotte County, five in Volusia County, three each in Collier and Sarasota counties, two in Manatee County, and one each in Hillsborough, Lake and Hendry counties, ABC News has determined based on information from the Florida Medical Examiners Commission and inquiries with local officials and authorities.

The death toll from the catastrophic storm has been rising amid ongoing search and rescue missions.

Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said that upward of 700 people were rescued in the devastated county.

“It’s what a heavy heart that I say that number,” Marceno, whose county is home to hard-hit Fort Myers and the barrier island Sanibel, said in video posted to Facebook.

The causes of the deaths in Florida were primarily drownings, as well as two vehicle accidents and a roofing accident, officials said.

It is unclear whether the state’s figure overlaps with ABC News’ analysis.

The state confirms deaths by reviewing medical examiner records, which can take some time.

The confirmed deaths from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement occurred in Lake, Sarasota, Manatee, Volusia and Collier counties between Sept. 27 and 30. The victims ranged in age from 22 to 91. One, a 68-year-old woman, drowned after being swept into the ocean by a wave on Sept. 29, the department said.

The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office was among the first to publicly announce a fatality from Ian. A 72-year-old man in Deltona died after attempting to drain his pool during the storm, the office said Thursday.

The man, who was not publicly identified, “disappeared” after heading outside, the sheriff’s office said. Deputies found him unresponsive in a canal behind the home and he was pronounced dead at a local hospital, the sheriff’s office said.

The storm made landfall again on Friday in South Carolina, which has reported no deaths due to the storm so far, Gov. Henry McMaster said Saturday.

Though in neighboring North Carolina, four storm-related deaths have been reported, Gov. Roy Cooper said in a statement Saturday. Three involved vehicle accidents on Friday, with the victims ranging in age from 22 to 25. Additionally, a 65-year-old man died Saturday from carbon monoxide poisoning after running a generator in his closed garage while the power was out.

Emergency response was largely halted Wednesday as the storm slammed Florida with high winds and heavy rain. Search and rescue efforts were underway throughout the state Thursday.

Florida Rep. Kathy Castor, who represents the Tampa Bay area, called the situation a “major catastrophe.”

“I’m afraid we’re going to be dealing with a larger loss of life than we anticipated,” she said on “ABC News Live” Thursday.

Florida Sen. Rick Scott told “Good Morning America” Thursday morning there were “thousands of rescue efforts going on right now.”

“We’ve got great sheriff’s departments, police departments, fire departments, state rescue teams. They’re working hard. But there’s a lot of people that need help right now,” he said.

He expressed concern for the state’s many low-lying areas.

“The water kills and I’m just — I’m scared to death of, you know, what’s happened here and I hope everybody stays safe,” he said.

President Joe Biden spoke with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday morning, telling DeSantis that FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell will travel to Florida on Friday to check in on response efforts.

Sheriff Marceno told “Good Morning America” Thursday that they had thousands of 911 calls that they were currently answering.

“We still cannot access many of the people that are in need,” Marceno said. “It’s a real, real rough road ahead.”

ABC News’ Jay O’Brien, Ahmad Hemmingway, Benjamin Stein and Will Gretsky contributed to this report.

Arctic Monkeys announce 2023 US tour supporting upcoming album, ‘The Car’

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Arctic Monkeys have announced a 2023 U.S. headlining tour supporting their upcoming album, The Car.

The late summer outing launches August 25 in Minneapolis and will wrap up September 29 in Los Angeles. Tickets go on sale this Friday, October 7 at 10 a.m. local time. You can register for the Ticketmaster Verified Fan presale now through Tuesday, October 4, at 10 a.m. ET.

For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit ArcticMonkeys.com.

The Car, the seventh Arctic Monkeys album and first since 2018’s Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, will be released October 21. It includes the previously released songs “There’d Better Be a Mirrorball” and “Body Paint.”

Touring Out Loud: Ed Sheeran unveils slew of North American tour dates

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Ed Sheeran‘s North American fans woke up to the long-awaited news that he’s finally bringing his Mathematics Tour — stylized as + – = ÷ x Tour — across the pond.

The Grammy winner made the welcome announcement that he’s finally touring the U.S. and Canada on Monday after a nearly 5-year wait. The North American trek commences on May 6 with a pitstop in Arlington, Texas.

There, Ed will trek across the continent for nearly two dozen dates and hit other major cities such as Detroit, Nashville, Minneapolis, Seattle, Toronto and more.

The “Shape of You” hitmaker wraps his tour on September 23, 2023 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.

Ed also unveiled a slew of tour openers, who will assist him on certain dates of his North American trek; all shows will feature two openers. Khalid will open for Ed for a majority of his tour dates but will be unable to perform during his final three performances.

Others opening for Ed include Russ, Dylan, Rosa Linn, Cat Burns and Maisie Peters.

Tickets for the multi-date tour will go on sale on Ticketmaster next Friday, October 14 at 10 a.m. local time — but there are a few ways fans can get their hands on tickets a little earlier.

First is by registering with Ticketmaster via its #VerifiedFan system now through Sunday, October 9 at 10 p.m. ET. That opens the door to an exclusive pre-sale on Wednesday, October 12 at 10 a.m. ET that closes the following day at 10 p.m. ET.

American Express card members can also cut the line that Wednesday as part of the company’s American Express’ Member Week.

The Mathematics Tour supports Ed’s latest album Equals (stylized as “=”) that features the hit songs “Shivers” “Bad Habits” and more.

Supreme Court upholds bump stock ban in big win for gun safety advocates

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected two appeals by gun owners seeking to overturn the federal government’s ban on the sale of bump stocks — devices that allow a semiautomatic firearm to shoot more than one shot with a single pull of the trigger.

The court did not elaborate on its decision, which is a significant victory for gun safety advocates and government efforts to regulate dangerous weapons.

After the Las Vegas shooting massacre in 2017, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives revised federal regulations to define bump stocks as machine guns under a 1986 law that bans machine guns.

Several pro-gun groups challenged the rules over what they argued was mischaracterization of the devices.

The ban makes possession of a bump stock a felony subject to up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. More than 500,000 Americans who previously purchased a bump stock will be required to turn it in or destroy it, gun advocacy groups have said.

The rejected cases are Aphosian v. Garland, and Gun Owners of America v. Garland.

Kim Kardashian settles with SEC after being charged in crypto-selling promotion

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Kim Kardashian is as famous for her business savvy as for her celebrity, but she’s just settled with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for her part in improperly promoting a cryptocurrency asset.

The Kardashians star has settled with the government watchdog for “$1.26 million in penalties, disgorgement, and interest,” according to an SEC statement, and also has agreed to “cooperate with the Commission’s ongoing investigation” into her promotion of EthereumMax.

The SEC charged that Kim promoted the cryptocurrency to her 278 million social media followers without disclosing that she was paid $250,000 to do so, which is a violation of the “anti-touting” provision of federal securities laws.

“This case is a reminder that, when celebrities or influencers endorse investment opportunities…it doesn’t mean that those investment products are right for all investors,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler in the SEC statement. “Ms. Kardashian’s case also serves as a reminder to celebrities and others that the law requires them to disclose to the public when and how much they are paid to promote investing in securities.”

Also as part of the settlement, Kardashian agreed to not promote any crypto securities for three years.

For her part, Kim’s lawyer noted in a statement that she “was pleased to have resolved this matter with the SEC.”

“Kardashian fully cooperated with the SEC from the very beginning and she remains willing to do whatever she can to assist the SEC in this matter,” the statement continued. “She wanted to get this matter behind her to avoid a protracted dispute. The agreement she reached with the SEC allows her to do that so that she can move forward with her many different business pursuits.”

Bono to launch worldwide ‘Stories of Surrender’ book tour in November

October 3, 2022 by WDNY Radio

U2‘s Bono will support his forthcoming memoir with a 14-city world tour that kicks off November in New York City.

Bono’s memoir Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story will be released November 1. The first date of the tour is November 2 at New York’s Beacon Theatre. He’ll then visit Boston, Toronto, Chicago, Nashville, San Francisco and Los Angeles before heading overseas for appearances in the U.K., Ireland, Germany and France, and wrapping things up in Madrid, Spain on November 28.

The tour is described as “an evening of words, music and some mischief,” which means Bono won’t only be talking about his life, he’ll be singing about it too. In a statement, he says, “I miss being on stage and the closeness of U2’s audience. In these shows, I’ve got some stories to sing, and some songs to tell.”

He adds, “Plus, I want to have some fun presenting my ME-moir, Surrender, which is really more of a WE-moir, if I think of all the people who helped me get from there to here.”

Tickets for the book tour go on sale this Friday, October 7 at 10 a.m. local time via Ticketmaster, and each ticket comes with a copy of Bono’s book. There’s a two-ticket limit per person.

Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story has 40 chapters, each named after a U2 song. They tell Bono’s story from his days as a child growing up in Dublin, to the loss of his mother when he was 14, to the founding of U2 and their rise to global stardom. It also covers Bono’s activism, working to fight AIDS and extreme poverty. The singer’s also created 40 original drawings for the book.

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