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After parade shooting, GoFundMe says it seeks to verify donations amid scam risks

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(NEW YORK) — After a gunman killed seven people and wounded dozens more at an Independence Day parade outside Chicago on Monday, thousands turned to the online platform GoFundMe to donate money to the victims — the latest example of the public gathering online to fundraise after a tragedy.

While websites like GoFundMe have made such philanthropy increasingly easy, there can be risks.

Highland Park, Illinois, Mayor Nancy Rotering warned the community about potential fundraising scams in a Tuesday morning news conference. By then GoFundMe had already established a specialized hub with links to fundraisers it said it had verified.

Donors had raised millions across 11 different pages as of Wednesday, the website showed. Comments poured in offering well-wishes; some hoped for more gun reform. At least one donor said they were sending care from as far away as Australia.

“As a parent trying to enjoy the little things in life with my own kids, I am deeply saddened that this is where we are now in our world, having to fear a street parade. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of you,” said a comment from a user named Joanna Castello.

One fund will support the family of a couple killed in the shooting. Irina and Kevin McCarthy’s 2-year-old son, Aiden, was found alone in the aftermath. He was later reunited with his grandparents, according to a Highland Park city manager.

As of Thursday morning, the fundraiser for the slain couple had drawn almost $3 million, more than six times its initial goal of $500,000 — with more than 50,000 individual donations.

Many donors directly addressed the couple’s orphaned son in their messages.

One GoFundMe donor identified as Lauren Cohen wrote: “Aiden, I am so sorry for your unimaginable and tragic loss. We are all looking out for you and are heartbroken for you, your family and all of the victims of this tragedy. Sending love.”

The parade shooting “hub” is not the first instance when GoFundMe has been used in the wake of a mass shooting.

Following the Uvalde, Texas, elementary school massacre in May and disasters including West Coast wildfires and the 2021 Surfside Condo collapse in Florida, GoFundMe has continued to establish so-called “crisis hubs,” according to a Medium post the company shared last year.

When news reports of a crisis arise, GoFundMe said it directs a team that monitors related fundraisers, according to the post. The company works with newsrooms, government officials and law enforcement during the verification process.

Some funds are held by the platform until payment information is confirmed — even if the fundraiser is verified, the Medium post shows.

GoFundMe does not always deem unverified fundraisers fraudulent. They can still accumulate donations, according to the post. But organizers cannot withdraw funds from pages that have not been vetted.

A GoFundMe spokesperson told ABC News Wednesday that the platform requires details such as government ID, banking information and addresses when verifying pages. GoFundMe guarantees a full donation refund in cases of fraud, the spokesperson said.

Donors can also directly report pages to GoFundMe for investigation and contact organizers with questions on the site if they want to know more before donating, the spokesperson said.

Kevin Scally, chief relationship officer for the nonprofit evaluator Charity Navigator, told ABC News that fraudulent activity often takes place outside platforms like GoFundMe. Scally said scammers are more likely to target people through look-alike fake webpages and direct, personal appeals.

Scally said GoFundMe has made great strides in fraud protection, citing the policy of validating users before allowing them to withdraw funds. Still, he urged prospective donors to do their research.

“It’s typically best to do some due diligence and make sure that, if you are supporting an organization or you’re supporting a personal fundraiser, you’re doing that through a verified, valid means,” he said.

‘The Godfather’ star James Caan dead at 82

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

James Caan, the actor who was perhaps best known for his iconic role as Sonny Corleone in The Godfather, has died. He was 82.

A tweet from Caan’s account on Thursday read, “It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of Jimmy on the evening of July 6. The family appreciates the outpouring of love and heartfelt condolences and asks that you continue to respect their privacy during this difficult time.”

Bronx, NY native Caan got his start in theater before switching to TV, where he had roles in popular series like The Untouchables, Route 66 and Dr. Kildare. After making his movie debut in 1963 with an uncredited cameo in Irma la Douce, he worked steadily, but none of his movies were very successful.

In 1971, Caan starred in the hit TV movie Brian’s Song, earning an Emmy nomination. In 1972, his former college classmate Francis Ford Coppola, who’d previously cast Caan in his 1969 film The Rain People, tapped him to play Sonny Corleone in The Godfather, which earned Caan Oscar and Golden Globe nominations. He also appeared briefly in the sequel, The Godfather Part II.

In the years that followed, Caan, now a box-office success, starred in hits like Funny Lady, Rollerball, A Bridge Too Far, Thief and Chapter Two, but famously turned down roles in now-classic movies like including M*A*S*H, The French Connection, Apocalypse Now, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Blade Runner, Superman and Kramer vs. Kramer.

For most of the ’80s, Caan stopped acting for a variety of personal reasons, but he returned to the screen in the ’90s with Misery, Honeymoon in Vegas and Wes Anderson‘s directorial debut, Bottle Rocket. He continued to work in TV and movies, most famously in Elf, as Will Ferrell’s estranged father. In 2012, he guest-starred in his son Scott Caan‘s CBS series Hawaii Five-0.

This fall, Caan was to have started filming Coppola’s Megalopolis.

John Legend drops sweet new music video for “Honey” ft. Muni Long

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

John Legend dropped the music video for “Honey” Thursday, the Muni Long-assisted track and second single from his forthcoming album.

Picking up where the house party-themed video for “Dope” left off, the new visual sees Legend passed out on the floor, dreaming about the dance party that took place the night prior. Surrounded by bees and honeycomb walls, the 12-time Grammy winner throws it to Long, who’s sitting in a honey-filled bathtub and delivers a sultry performance of her singing verse.

“ACTING!” Legend said on Instagram last week, sharing a preview of the video and teasing its Facebook release.

Though Legend and Long have previously worked together as songwriters, the new song and video mark their first collaboration as recording artists.

Both “Honey” and “Dope” will appear on Legend’s eighth studio album, which will follow the 2020 LP, Bigger Love. Featuring hit singles “Conversations in the Dark,” “Bigger” and “Actions,” Bigger Love earned Legend the Grammy for Best R&B Album at the 63rd annual show.

“I’m so thrilled to be releasing new music,” Legend said in a previous press release. “The past year or so has been so exciting for me creatively. I have been writing and collaborating with some of the most talented people in music, and we have some great new material to share with the world.”

The 1975 releases new song “Part of the Band” & details ‘Being Funny in a Foreign Language’ album

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

The next era of The 1975 has officially begun.

The U.K. outfit has premiered a new song called “Part of the Band.” It’s the first preview of the group’s upcoming album, Being Funny in a Foreign Language, due out October 14.

You can listen to “Part of the Band” now via digital outlets. Its accompanying video will premiere on YouTube at 2 p.m. ET.

The news comes after The 1975 deactivated all of their social media platforms — a stunt they’ve pulled numerous times leading up to album announcements. They then returned to social media in June by simply teasing, “Your new album. Your new era. Your old friends.”

Being Funny in a Foreign Language is the fifth 1975 album and the follow-up to 2020’s Notes on a Conditional Form. Here’s the track list:

“The 1975”
“Happiness”
“Looking for Somebody (To Love)”
“Part of the band”
“Oh Caroline”
“I’m in Love with You”
“All I Need to Hear”
“Wintering”
“Human too”
“About You”
“When We Are Together”

Three Days Grace re-ties Shinedown’s ’Billboard’ Mainstream Rock Airplay chart record

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: Three Days Grace and Shinedown are tied for the most #1 singles in the history of Billboard‘s Mainstream Rock Airplay chart.

The Canadian rockers have earned their 17th lead on Mainstream Rock Airplay with their latest single, “Lifetime,” once again matching the total set by Brent Smith and company.

For those who haven’t been following along, TDG and Shinedown’s battle for Mainstream Rock Airplay chart supremacy has been one for the ages. TDG first set the record for most #1s in 2018 with 14, surpassing a mark long held by Van Halen. Shinedown eventually caught up in 2020, when both them and TDG each had 15 #1s, and then took sole possession of the record later that year with their 16th lead.

TDG then ended up tying Shinedown in February of this year with “So Called Life,” but Shinedown soon retook the record just a month later with “Planet Zero,” extending their total to 17. Now, with “Lifetime,” TDG is tied with Shinedown for the third time in two years.

“Lifetime” is the current single off Three Days Grace’s new album, Explosions, which was released in May.

Ex-Pink Floyd star Roger Waters launches This Is Not a Drill Tour; introduces new song, “The Bar”

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Former Pink Floyd singer/bassist Roger Waters kicked off his long-delayed This Is Not a Drill Tour of North America last night at the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh.

As seen in fan-posted videos and photos, Waters and his band performed in the round on a rectangular stage that featured massive video walls.

In pre-tour announcements, Waters hinted that the shows would feature plenty of the pointed social and political commentary he’s known for, and that was the case. As the concert began, a message ran across the screen notifying the crowd, “If you’re one of those ‘I love Pink Floyd but I can’t stand Roger’s politics’ people, you might do well to f*** off to the bar right now.”

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette also reports the video screens bombarded the audience with provocative messages, film clips and images that focused on issues, including the evils of war, racial injustice, corporate greed, political corruption, gun violence and reproductive, trans and Palestinian rights. At one point, Waters fired a fake automatic rifle at the crowd.

Waters’ two-set show featured over 20 songs and included multiple-song segments from Pink Floyd’s classic 1970s albums The Wall, Wish You Were Here and The Dark Side of the Moon. In the middle of his first set, Roger introduced a brand-new tune called “The Bar,” which he reprised later in the concert.

Waters also played two songs from his most recent solo album, 2017’s Is This the Life We Really Want?: the title track and “Déjà Vu.”

Roger’s backing band features guitarists Jonathan Wilson and Dave Kilminster, keyboardist/guitarist Jon Carin, bassist Gus Seyffert, keyboardist Robert Walter, drummer Joey Waronker, sax player Seamus Blake, and backing vocalists Shanay Johnson and Amanda Belair.

Here’s the show’s full set list:

Set 1
“Comfortably Numb” (Acoustic)
“The Happiest Days of Our Lives”
“Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2”
“Another Brick in the Wall, Part 3”
“The Powers That Be”
“The Bravery of Being Out of Range”
“The Bar” (New song)
“Have a Cigar”
“Wish You Were Here”
“Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts VI-IX)”
“Sheep”

Set 2
“In the Flesh”
“Run Like Hell”
“Déjà Vu”
“Is This the Life We Really Want?”
“Money”
“Us and Them”
“Any Colour You Like”
“Brain Damage”
“Eclipse”
“Two Suns in the Sunset”
“The Bar” (Reprise)
“Outside the Wall”

Texas immigration initiative ‘Operation Lone Star’ being probed for potential federal civil rights violations

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON)– The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating Texas’ “Operation Lone Star” border security initiative for potential civil rights violations, according to a letter obtained by ABC News.

The operation, a Texas Department of Public Safety program, targets migrants coming across the U.S.-Mexico border. It was rolled out by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in March 2021 to curb migrant traffic into the state.

The DOJ is seeking information to determine whether Texas DPS is in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

“The Department is seeking this information after receiving information indicating that DPS may be discriminating on the basis of race and/or national origin in its activities related to Operation Lone Star by targeting certain individuals for arrests for misdemeanor trespass violations and traffic stops based on their perceived or actual race or national origin,” reads the letter dated May 16 and sent by the Justice Department’s Federal Coordination and Compliance Section Chief Christine Stoneman.

A Texas DPS spokesperson said the department is complying with all federal civil rights inquiries. Texas DPS is a recipient of both DOJ and Department of Homeland Security funding, per the letter.

The news of the DOJ probe comes a week after 53 migrants, who were being smuggled across the U.S.-Mexico border, were found dead in a sweltering tractor-trailer in San Antonio.

Through Operation Lone Star, Abbott has deployed around 10,000 DPS officers and soldiers from the Texas National Guard to the border to assist with the arrest of migrants.

Immigration lawyers and rights groups have sounded the alarm over the program, which they say has ramped up arrests of migrants on allegedly spurious trespassing charges. Many arrestees have been detained for weeks at a time. Some have not been given adequate resources to obtain legal representation.

In interviews with ABC News, current and former national guardsmen also spoke out about low morale and even several suicides among the troops deployed at the border, citing issues with payment, unstable housing conditions and a lack of proper training. One national guardsman assigned to the operation died while trying to save drowning migrants.

In response to the DOJ probe, Abbott’s press secretary, Renae Eze, slammed President Biden’s “open border policies” and accused the administration of “attacking the only state taking unprecedented actions to do the federal government’s job.”

“It’s time for President Biden to fulfill his oath of office and secure our southern border,” she said in a statement.

Texas has allocated more than $4 billion of Texas taxpayer money for border security, including building the state’s own border wall and erecting other “strategic barriers,” according to Eze.

She added that the program has resulted in more than 274,000 migrant apprehensions, more than 16,900 criminal arrests, including smugglers and human traffickers, more than 22,000 turn backs and the seizure of millions of lethal fentanyl doses.

A Justice Department spokesperson did not return ABC News’ request for comment.

The Texas Tribune and ProPublica were the first to report news about the investigation based on emails the outlets obtained. ABC News has not obtained those emails.

After Johnson resignation, Biden says US-UK ‘special relationship’ remains ‘strong’

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

(WASHINGTON) — In a new statement following the resignation of U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, President Joe Biden on Thursday stressed “the special relationship” between the U.S. and U.K. “remains strong and enduring.”

Biden did not mention Johnson by name or his resignation explicitly, but underscored that the U.S. will continue to work with the U.K. government on critical issues, including the war in Ukraine — an issue Biden and Johnson have worked closely on together.

“The United Kingdom and the United States are the closest of friends and Allies, and the special relationship between our people remains strong and enduring,” Biden said in the statement. “I look forward to continuing our close cooperation with the government of the United Kingdom, as well as our Allies and partners around the world, on a range of important priorities. That includes maintaining a strong and united approach to supporting the people of Ukraine as they defend themselves against Putin’s brutal war on their democracy, and holding Russia accountable for its actions

Nevertheless, Johnson’s resignation could complicate Biden’s goal to strengthen the Western alliance in the face of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.

The two spoke on the issue during a call in April, and “affirmed their commitment to continue providing security and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine in the face of ongoing atrocities by Russia,” according to a White House readout of the conversation.

The two leaders then met in June at a summit of G-7 countries, where they both urged nations to remain united against Russia amid its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. The conflict, entering its fifth month, has roiled global energy markets.

In his remarks Thursday announcing his resignation, Johnson cited Britain’s support of Ukraine as a top achievement.

“I’m immensely proud of the achievements of this government, from getting Brexit done to settling our relations with the continent for over half a century … and, in the last few months, leading the West in standing up to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s aggression in Ukraine,” he said.

“And let me say now, to the people of Ukraine, that I know that we in the U.K. will continue to back your fight for freedom for as long as it takes,” he added.

The White House on Wednesday declined to comment on the political drama surrounding Johnson, but press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the United States’ “partnership with the United Kingdom continued to be strong.”

ABC News’ Alexandra Hutzler contributed to this report.

“Let justice be done, ’til the heavens fall”: AMC releases trailer to final six episodes of ‘Better Call Saul’

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

On Thursday, AMC dropped the trailer for the six-episode swan song of Better Call Saul.

The moody, black-and-white snippet, set to Fred Neil‘s “Little Bit of Rain,” is more of a celebration of the Emmy-winning Breaking Bad prequel series. It gives fans a long, last look at shooting locations from the show, including a courtroom, exteriors and interiors of characters’ homes, Saul’s office and, of course, Gus Fring’s chicken joint, Los Pollos Hermanos.

The sequence ends on the series’ already-struck set, and the lights are turned off.

The teaser ends with a color shot of Bob Odenkirk in his character Jimmy McGill’s walk-in closet, holding to his bare chest a yellow shirt, as seen on his eventual alter-ego, Saul Goodman. “Let justice be done, ’til the heavens fall,” he’s heard saying in the voiceover.

The sixth and final season returns on Monday, July 11 at 9 p.m. ET on AMC and AMC+.

Axl Rose shares health update after Guns N’ Roses canceled show: “Seems good so far”

July 7, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Earlier this week, Guns N’ Roses postponed a scheduled show in Glasgow, Scotland due to an unspecified “illness” and “medical advice.” Now, frontman Axl Rose has revealed he’s been battling vocal issues.

In a statement posted to Twitter Thursday, the “Welcome to the Jungle” rocker says, “I’d like to thank everyone [for] their well wishes! It’s greatly appreciated!”

Rose — who, in keeping with his band’s branding, replaces the word “and” every time with “n'” and “are” or “our” with “r” — adds that he’s “been following [doctor’s] orders, getting rest, working [with] a vocal coach n’ sorting out r sound issues.”

“Seems good so far,” he adds. “Thanks again [for] everyone’s concern! At the end of the day it’s about giving u the fans the best of rselves n’ the best time we can give u n’ that’s all I, the band n’ crew r focused on.”

GN’R plans to return to the stage Friday, July 8 in Munich, Germany.

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