Brian Kolfage

Brian Kolfage is a veteran of the United States Air Force and the founder of the organization We Build the Wall, which has started the construction of a privately funded barrier on the U.S.–Mexico border, after raising more than $25 million through GoFundMe donations. Kolfage is a triple amputee, suffering injuries while serving in Iraq with the U.S. Air Force.
In December 2018, Kolfage initiated a fundraising campaign for U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed Mexico–United States barrier on GoFundMe under the organizational title of "We Build the Wall, Inc." Over the 2019 Memorial Day weekend, the organization constructed a "weathered steel" bollard fence near El Paso on private land adjoining the US-Mexico border using $6–8 million of the donated funds. The organization ultimately raised $25 million, much of it from online crowdfunding, and claimed that it planned to construct further barriers on private lands adjoining the border in Texas and California.
In August 2020, Kolfage was indicted, along with Steve Bannon and two other co-defendants, on federal charges of defrauding hundreds of thousands to "We Build the Wall" donors by diverting money that was raised to personal use. Federal prosecutors said that despite "repeatedly assuring donors" that Kolfage would not be paid, the defendants engaged in a schemed to pass $350,000 to Kolfage, "which he used to fund his lavish lifestyle." Kolfage was separately indicted in May 2021 on federal charges of defrauding the IRS and filing false tax returns.
Military service and education.
Kolfage was deployed to Kuwait in 2003 and 2004, where he served in the Air Force Security Forces. In 2004, he volunteered to go to Iraq, but was not chosen. Another volunteer backed out at the last minute, and Kolfage went to Iraq as an air-cargo inspector. He was injured in Balad, on September 10, 2004, when he left his quarters for a drink of water and a rocket landed three feet away. He lost both legs, as well as his right hand and part of his right forearm.
Kolfage received a Purple Heart after being injured, and recovered in Walter Reed Medical Center until July 2005. After his injury he began to speak publicly about his experience and recovery, and filmed a campaign ad for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in 2011. He was invited as Giffords's special guest to President Obama's State of the Union address in 2012.
Kolfage enrolled in the University of Arizona in 2009, and graduated from its School of Architecture in 2014.
Causes.
We Build the Wall, Inc..
In December 2018, Kolfage started an attempt to raise $1 billion via GoFundMe for the construction of a border wall between the United States and Mexico. Kolfage said the target figure was achievable, adding "This won't be easy, but it's our duty as citizens." In an email to the "Washington Post", Kolfage stated that he began the fundraiser as "political games from both parties" have been holding back funding for the wall. Within three days, over $9 million had been raised.
In January 2019, Kolfage posted a message to the GoFundMe page that he had decided that raising money through a nonprofit would be more successful. A new 501(c)4 non-profit was created and called We Build The Wall Inc. through which Kolfage planned to have segments of the wall privately constructed through negotiations with landowners along the border. Funding was passed through an LLC operated by Timothy Shea of Castle Rock, Colorado. The organization saw prominent politicians such as former Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach and Donald Trump advisor Steve Bannon take on leading roles. It began construction on a section of the proposed wall.
Kobach's involvement with the "We Build the Wall" 501(c)(4) organization raised concerns, as the fundraising and campaign mailing lists it was accumulating were prohibited from coordinating with his U.S. Senate campaign.
On July 23, 2019, Kansas Senate President Susan Wagle of Wichita filed the paperwork with the Federal Elections Commission necessary to run in the race for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the retiring Senator Pat Roberts. She criticized Kobach's employment in his controversial privately financed and constructed scheme to build the southern border wall. Wagle supports the building of a federally designed, bid, and funded wall while saying Kobach's group undermines federal involvement. "We don’t need some rogue organization going out and building the wall."
On August 1, 2019, Kobach sent out a campaign fundraiser using both the corporate name and email list of "Wall" donors. Common Cause Vice President for policy and litigation Paul S. Ryan said, "At a minimum, this Kobach for Senate fundraising solicitation email appears to violate the 'paid for by' disclaimer requirement" for official campaign communications. Ryan highlighted the requirement that mandates disclosure of the financial sponsors who originate official political communications. Kobach's email might be legal if his campaign paid fair market value for use of the list. If that were the case, a "paid for by" disclaimer would be required but was not present in the solicitation. Ryan said, "If the Kobach committee did not pay fair market value for the cost of disseminating this email, then the committee has arguably committed the more serious campaign finance law violation of receiving a corporate contribution in the form of a coordinated expenditure." We Build The Wall is legally prohibited from financing federal political campaigns in any fashion. Besides the concerns raised about Kolfage himself, a week prior to the mailer, right-wing anti-immigrant, "Wall" board member and former congressman Tom Tancredo sat on the stage alongside Kobach and endorsed him in a New Mexico rally pushing the Wall.
America First Medical.
In February 2020, Kolfage started medical-equipment company America First Medical amid growing alarm about COVID-19-related personal-protective-equipment (PPE) shortages. He told Reuters News Service he would broker large-volume sales of N95 masks, and collect up to three percent of every total sale. AFM's masks, Kolfage said, would come from N95 stockpiles he'd found around the world. He did not explain where the alleged stockpiles were located, nor how he found them.
In March 2020, Kolfage ordered a total of 25 million masks for America First Medical from MAMS Global Trading House (a manufacturer and distributor of power tools and safety equipment based in Dubai). The first order was for 10 million masks, for a total of $1.5 million. According to documents detailing the transaction, AFM agreed to wire half of the money ($750,000) up front, and the rest when the masks were delivered.
The deal was not successfully concluded. MAMS' CEO said before the company received payment, Kolfage disputed the transaction with his bank and reported the company as fraudulent to Dubai police. Kolfage also asked his bank to place the $750,000 in his personal account instead of the AFM account. The bank denied the request.
The AFM bank account was seized in mid-2020, when Kolfage was indicted in connection with the "We Build The Wall" enterprise.
Federal criminal charges.
On August 20, 2020, Kolfage was indicted and arrested along with Steve Bannon and two other co-defendants (Andrew Badolato and Timothy Shea) on charges of defrauding donors to build a border wall along the Mexico–U.S. border and funneling the money for their own personal use; the case is pending in New York federal court. While Donald Trump issued a pardon to Bannon in the final hours of his presidency (before the case could come to trial), Trump did not pardon Kolfage or the other two indicted defendants. Because Bannon was pardoned, his ability to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination could be curtailed, meaning that Bannon could be called as a witness against his three former co-defendants, including Kolfage.
In early May 2021, Kolfage was separately indicted by a grand jury in federal court in Pensacola, Florida on charges of fraud and filing false tax returns. The indictment charges Kolfage with knowingly underreporting his income to the IRS—specifically, by claiming an income of $63,000 in his 2019 tax return while failing to report more than $350,000 deposited into his personal bank account from "We Build the Wall" contributors and other sources."
Websites, fundraising campaigns.
By 2013, Kolfage began to spread conspiracy theories on social media; in a Faceook post, he referred to President Barack Obama as "a halfbreed."
In 2015, Kolfage ramped up his online presence with conservative-leaning websites. Many of the sites he either owned or was associated with were heavily promoted on Facebook and featured so-called clickbait articles: Freedom Daily; Keep America First; Right Wing News; Trump Republic; and VeteranAF. He also began writing articles for website The Blaze. Kolfage repeatedly denied owning Freedom Daily, but NBC News reported in 2019 that "former employees and competitors, most of whom asked for anonymity out of fear of retribution, provided company emails, employment documents and company checks that show Kolfage’s home address as Freedom Daily's corporate business address."
In addition to his Facebook pages and websites, Kolfage also ran many online fundraising campaigns. Through his border-wall campaign, Kolfage claimed to have amassed 3.5 million email addresses as well as phone numbers and names, a formidable asset in support of pro-Trump efforts. In 2019, NBC News reported that "according to former employees and public records including website archives, Nevada business registrations, and property records, Kolfage has repeatedly created GoFundMe campaigns and published inflammatory fake news articles, pushing them both from websites that he sought to hide behind shell companies and false identities, in part to harvest email addresses" which were "then used to push people back to Kolfage’s websites, to sell a brand of coffee he owns, or to be stockpiled for future use by conservative campaigns." During the 2020 political campaigns, Kolfage reportedly offered his list to a Republican fundraising consultant, proposing to keep half of any revenue the list generated.
Social media activity and Facebook suspensions.
In October 2018, all of Kolfage's Facebook news pages - as well as his "Military Grade Coffee" page - were taken down as part of Facebook's purge of spam and "inauthentic activity" sites. Facebook cited Kolfage's creation of multiple fake accounts and posting of "ad farms" links.
Kolfage has frequently used social media to personally attack detractors and promote misinformation against those he perceives as opponents, including progressives, fellow veterans, and former conservative allies. Kolfage's vilification of his critics on social media has led to his followers targeting the critics with invective, harassment, and death threats. After a Catholic priest of the La Lomita Chapel (a historic Catholic site whose land was threatened by the wall) opposed the project, Kolfage smeared him as a promoter of "human trafficking and abuse of women and children." Other social media targets of Kolfage included the National Butterfly Center, which is located adjacent to a border fence constructed in the Rio Grande Valley. In 2019, Kolfage posted 30 tweets attacking the butterfly center, attacking it as "left-wing thugs with a sham butterfly agenda" and accusing the center of supporting "illegal immigration and sex trafficking of women and children." At other points, Kolfage lashed out at the International Boundary and Water Commission and the mayor of Sunland Park, New Mexico, blaming the latter for moving too slowly to grant border-wall permits. In one case, Kolfage's activities on social media activity forced him to issue (in 2015) a formal apology as part of a settlement of civil litigation in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona over alleged disparagement.
Kolfage closed his Twitter feed after he was indicted on federal charges, but in September 2020, he re-launched his account to promote his claim that the criminal prosecution against him is a politically motivated "witch hunt." Kolfage's social media rants prompted federal prosecutors to complain that Kolfage's statements had "the potential to taint a future jury pool." A federal judge issued a warning to Kolfage but declined to issue a gag order.
Personal life.
He met his first wife, Paige (née Grounds), while her father was stationed in Hawaii. When Paige's family was transferred to Texas, Kolfage followed and enlisted in the US Air Force; he lived with Paige's grandparents while completing basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. During his time at Goodfellow, he met his current wife, Ashley (née Goetz). Brian and Paige married in 2004 at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, during his recovery from his military-service injuries. In 2011, Kolfage married Ashley.
Kolfage lives in Miramar Beach, Florida.


List of newspapers in Samoa

This is a list of newspapers in Samoa.


Confluence of Sound


Media Responsibility New Zealand

Media Responsibility is taking ownership and being accountable for the broadcasting or publishing of material. Broadcasting and publishing is bound by law to meet specified criterion designed to protect the rights of individuals and society as a whole. There are usually separate criterion governing media aimed towards children and young people. These criterion are defined by law and vary from country to country.
In New Zealand any one can make a complaint about a publication or broadcast in New Zealand that they believe does not comply with the criterion. Different criterion apply to TV/ Radio programmes, a newspaper article, privacy issues, an advertisement in any media, and any Human Rights issue, including discrimination and bias.
The Broadcasting Standards Authority handles complaints from members of the public about TV and Radio Programmes, and also breaches of Privacy by a broadcast or publication in any media. The Office of Film and Literature Classification handles complaints about Movies, Films, videos and literature. The Press Council website offers a complaints service for any article published in a newspaper that is not an advertisement. All advertising complaints in New Zealand are processed through the Advertising Standards Authority regardless of the media in which they were published or broadcast.
All Human Rights issues and complaints, regardless of media can be raised with the Human Rights Commission in New Zealand. The Human Rights Commission will uphold complaints where discrimination or bias has been shown in media reporting. Discrimination issues include those relating to race, ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion and other issues.


Henry Pollack (geophysicist)

Henry Pollack is an American emeritus professor of geophysics at the University of Michigan. Pollack received his A.B. from Cornell University in 1958 and Ph.D in 1963 from the University of Michigan. He is also an advisor to the National Science Foundation and an author (along with 2000 other people) of a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change which was awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize with Al Gore. Pollack has conducted scientific research on all seven continents and has traveled regularly to Antarctica.
In 2010, Pollack wrote the book A World Without Ice which provides an analysis of climate change science. In 2003, he wrote "Uncertain Science ... Uncertain World".


New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters

The New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters (NZART) is a non-profit organisation of amateur radio enthusiasts in New Zealand. It represents New Zealand amateur radio operators nationally and internationally. NZART is a founding member of the International Amateur Radio Union. It is an association of individual members, however those members are encouraged to form local branches.
Membership of NZART is voluntary; it is estimated that approximately 35% of New Zealand's licensed amateur radio operators belong. Members are represented by Councillors to the NZART Council, the executive body tasked with the business management of the association.
Governance.
The NZART Council includes twelve executives. Three of these are the NZART President, Vice-President, and Immediate Past President. Regional councillors are elected to represent different geographic regions of New Zealand: three from the Northern District, three from the Central District, two from the Midland District, and one from the Southern District. The number of Councillors in each district is roughly representative of the number of licensed amateurs that they are directly accountable to in their respective geographic areas.
The NZART Council works with an appointed NZART Business Manager. The Business Manager is employed by NZART (30 hrs per week), and in 2020 an Office Assistant was employed (20 hrs per week). Both are tasked with the day-to-day business operations of the association, including manning their office, and providing administrative duties to AREC, located in Upper Hutt, near Wellington.
Additional officers reporting directly to NZART Council include the National Director Amateur Radio Emergency Communications, The Engineering Licensing Group (ELG) and the Administration Liaison Officer (ALO), who is charged with liaison with the Radio Spectrum Management Group of the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE).
Relations with the New Zealand Government.
The NZART has performed an advocacy function, commenting on policy and planning initiatives proposed by the New Zealand government in the areas of radio licences, spectrum allocations for broadband wireless, and the future of digital communication. The Association also contributed to the creation of EMF exposure standards in their role as member of the NZ RF Standard Committee.
In 2006, the Ministry of Economic Development's Radio Spectrum Management division was assisted by NZART and the local Coastguard Boating Education Service in the creation of an update to the Spectrum Management and Registration Technology (SMART) which allowed people to search online for radio operator information including callsigns. In 2008, it was noted that there were some discrepancies between the SMART system and the callsign book produced by NZART.
Publications and services.
The official journal of the NZART is 'Break-In', a bi-monthly publication containing articles of interest to the amateur radio community. Also, an annual publication known as the "Call Book" provides an index of licensed amateurs in New Zealand by call sign, providing addresses for the purpose of contact acknowledgement (QSL), as well as much other information useful to the New Zealand radio enthusiast. Other publications include "Ham Shacks, Brass Pounders and Rag Chewers", a history of amateur radio in New Zealand, published in 1997 with assistance from the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs Historical Branch.
In 1980, NZART collaborated with author Jumbo Godfrey ZL1HV to produce a "Basic radio training manual: a study course for the amateur radio operators".
The Association provides some educational services, such as providing demonstrative lectures on electromagnetic wave theory. Another service offered by the Association is to provide trained personnel and radio communications systems to Amateur Radio Emergency Communications, a group which liaises with the New Zealand Police and Civil Defense services in emergency situations.
Break-In.
The official journal of the NZART is 'Break-In', and is published bimonthly. The publication is a requirement of the NZART Constitution The term break-in refers to a system in CW whereby the transmitting station can hear the other station’s signal during “key up” periods.
A total of six issues a year are produced, with the first January/February distributed within the first week of February, and so on.
The close off dates for articles/advertising are year-on-year:
10 January for January/February issue.
10 March for March/April issue.
20 April for May/June issue. (produced to coincide with the AGM over Queens Birthday Weekend)
10 July for July/August issue.
10 September for September/October issue.
10 November for November/December issue.
Each issue normally contains Technical and General articles of interest to amateur radio operators. Sometimes the articles are of a more general nature with some flavour of radio mixed into the article.
In addition, each issue contains a number of columns from various authors covering activities from AREC, Contests, Digitalmodes, DX, Satellites, SOTA, Youth Report and more.
As the official journal "Break-In" contains information about the association, important news and announcements, AGM news and Remits plus the Annual Accounts. As a magazine it has a wealth of information with many members having copies going back to the very first issue produced in January 1928.
Call Book.
"Call Book" is annual publication that provides an index of all licensed amateurs in New Zealand by call sign, providing addresses for the purpose of contact acknowledgement (QSL), as well as much other information useful to the New Zealand radio enthusiast, such as a series of Repeater/Beacon Maps for both VHF and UHF repeaters based around New Zealand. This eighty page stapled publication is included free with membership of NZART, bundled with the November-December issue of "Break-In". Although produced as a paper publication, electronic versions have also been produced on CD-ROM, with the last version produced in this format in 2017. The membership decide each year at the AGM on the format to be produced.
Branches.
Branches of NZART are generally radio clubs and related organisations, and are found across the country. The Branches facilitate the representation of individual members at a national level through the NZART National Conference. Most radio clubs are individually incorporated and operate on a day-to-day basis independently of the NZART.The number following the branch name is their NZART branch number.
Numerous branches experienced membership decline (possibly proportionate to a national decline), and have been reduced to a status of "recess" for several years.
History.
The New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters formed on 16 August 1926. In the same year, Gordon Smithson (Z1AF) made the first NZART broadcast. The first publication of "Break-in", the NZART journal, was in 1928. In 1929 NZART became a more powerful organisation, joining the International Amateur Radio Union and successfully lobbying the New Zealand Government for a reduction in the compulsory licensing fees.
In 1934 the Association became an incorporated society and in 1982 their membership numbers reached a high of 4,397. The first NZART written submission to the New Zealand government was in 1989 and related to the proposed "Radicommunications Bill". In 1998 the Association established the Radioscience Education Trust. NZART is registered as a charity in 2017.
Presidential Terms.
Forty five radio amateurs have led NZART as president.


Elektor - elettronica - scienza tecnica e diletto


Online advertising in China

Online advertising in China benefited from the soaring value of China’s internet media. The market size of China’s online advertising industry in 2009 reached 20.61 billion Chinese yuan, up 21.2% from 2008. Search engine, portals, networks, videos, online communities, and vertical site advertising are the six main categories in China's online advertising. Among these, search engine advertising is one of the most preferred forms.
Internet users.
According to Internet World Stats, China's online shopping population reached 8% of the total Chinese population in 2009, and the number of internet users in China reached 485 million in June 2011. They spend 1 billion hours online each day and the number will double to 2 billion by 2015. China's online shopping population is estimated to increase to 19% of the total population by 2012.
Search Engine Advertising.
The key players in China's search engine advertising are Tencent, Soso, Baidu, Sogou, Google, Bing and Yahoo! China. After Google decided to pull its search engine out of the Chinese market in early 2010, Tencent became the top choice for search engine advertising in China. Tencent's advertising platform is in Chinese.
Video advertising.
There are several companies that provide video advertising services in China.
Advertising content is shown before video or during pause. Leading companies in the video advertising industry include Tencent Video, YouKu/TuDou (merged), PPS.tv and Funshion.


The Lorax (TV special)

The Lorax is a musical Dr. Seuss animated short produced by DePatie–Freleng Enterprises which first aired as a television special on CBS on February 14, 1972. The special was written by Theodor Geisel, based on his 1971 book of the same name.
Plot.
One night, a young boy living in a polluted, grim ghost town wanders down 'The Street of the Lifted Lorax.' Along the dark street, he comes to the residence of a man named The Once-ler, a man in dark green-colored gloves whose face is never seen. He takes up an audience with the boy, and begins to explain the tale regarding the Lorax.
The land once thrived with Truffula trees when the Once-ler first came to the area in a horse-drawn cart. Living among the foliage were the brown Bar-ba-Loots, who ate Truffula fruit from the local trees. In the nearby pond lived the Humming Fish, and the Swomee Swans flew overhead. The trees amazed the Once-ler with their texture and scent, and he soon built a small shop in the area. After cutting down a Truffula tree, the Lorax popped out of its stump. The Lorax claims to speak for the trees, and demanded to know what the Once-ler was doing. The Once-ler explained that he was using the Truffula tree's tufts to make something called a "Thneed... a fine something that all people need." He insisted that he was only cutting one tree down and causing no harm, but when the Thneed sold quickly, the Once-ler began cutting down Truffula trees "en masse" to make more Thneeds. (It is also noted that the Truffula tree grows extremely slowly—ten years before the seed even becomes a sapling and at least ten years after that to grow to maturity—making farming the tree impractical.) Soon, he called his relatives to help him grow his thriving business into a boomtown. As the Lorax protested against the Once-ler's actions, a bulldozer picked up the Truffula tree where he stood and the Lorax was thrown into a truck with the Truffula tree and caught in an assembly line.
Some time later, at a major celebration, everybody reminisced about how Thneeds, Inc. started and how famous the Once-ler had become and how it had diversified, showing "Once-ler Cones", "Once-ler Burgers", a "Once-lermobile" and a blimp advertising Thneeds, then a stone with the word "Thneed" carved in it. Shortly after Thneeds, Inc. had produced its millionth product, the Lorax got out of the box and, despite his protests, fell back into the box to be shipped off with more finished Thneeds. All the while, the air was becoming increasingly polluted and darker as the industrialization progressed, the countless accumulated garbage was being dumped in rivers, and the few remaining Truffula trees were wilting.
The Lorax continued to fight the Once-Ler. By this point the Lorax had to send the starving Brown Bar-ba-loots out of the area in search of food. After this, the Once-ler had his first bout with a guilty conscience; he justified his doubts by remarking "But if I didn't do them, then someone else would." The Lorax then protested that the smog was suffocating the Swomee Swans, preventing them from singing, and thus the Lorax also had to send them away. The Once-ler protested that closing the factory would put countless employees out of work; the Lorax conceded that he had no answer to that. Finally, the pond that was home to the Humming Fish was filled with viscous toxic waste clogging the fish's gills and rivaling Lake Erie; they too were sent away over dry land. Confronted by the Lorax, the Once-ler appeared to be ready to act, until his secretary announced that the company's stock had shot upward. The elated Once-ler flipped from empathy to defiance, vowing to ramp up production even further—until at that moment, with the sound of an ax, the last remaining tree was cut down. With no raw materials, the factory was forced to close anyway, and the Once-ler's relatives all sadly departed. The Lorax glared at the Once-ler before he lifted himself by the seat of his pants, and disappeared through a tiny hole in the smog. On the spot where the Lorax last stood sits a small pile of rocks, with a word carved into one: "Unless."
The tale then switches back to the Once-ler talking to the boy, who is given the last Truffula seed by the Once-ler, encouraging the boy to help revitalize the long-dead trees by growing a brand new forest, with the possibility that the Lorax and all of his friends may then come back. The final scene shows the hole in the smog has grown larger, a sign of hope as the special ends.
Home media.
"The Lorax" was released on VHS in 1994 as part of a CBS Video four-tape package called "Dr. Seuss Sing-Along Classics".
In 2003, Universal Studios Family Productions got the rights to the original 1972 TV special, and Universal released "The Lorax" on DVD under its home video label, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, with newly-remastered picture and sound.
To tie-in with the 40th anniversary of the special and the release of film "The Lorax", Warner Home Video released the special on a deluxe edition DVD and Blu-ray on February 14, 2012.
Reception.
"The Lorax" received the Critics Award from the International Animated Cartoon Festival (Zagreb, 1972) and the Silver Media from the International Film and Television Festival (New York, 1972).


Television sign-off routines in the United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, television closedowns originally took place frequently during the daytime, and sometimes only for a few hours at a time. This was due initially to Government-imposed restrictions on daytime broadcasting hours, and later, budgetary constrictions. The eventual relaxation of these rules meant that afternoon closedowns ceased permanently on the ITV network in October 1972. The BBC took a long time to abandon the practice, and did not commence a full daytime service until the autumn of 1986.
A full night-time closedown sequence on British television might typically contain information about the following day's schedule, perhaps a weather forecast and/or a news update, possibly a Public Information Film and finally, a look at the station clock and the national anthem.


Access Television Network

Access Television Network (ATN) was a company based in Coral Gables, Florida, that mainly carried paid programming for 300 cable television systems with a peak reach of 35 million households. It was generally broadcast by cable systems on existing channels during the early morning hours when no regular programming was scheduled. In late 2002, ATN expanded with the purchase of the Product Information Network (PIN), a similar 24-hour cable infomercial network.
However, after incidents where ATN/PIN paid programming (often unknown to the customer where it was coming from) was laid over several NBA and NHL playoff games which went into multiple overtimes in the graveyard slot on their networks, earning heavy customer complaints to providers about the arrangement (along with networks such as Animal Planet beginning to carry a 24/7 schedule which would be pre-empted by the practice), networks cracked down on the practice of their own programming being overlaid by their carriage partners, and began to enforce their networks in future contracts as being carried as-is full-time, severely affecting the ATN/PIN business model. After that ATN began to be carried individually as its own channel on most systems, but was either completely ignored or immediately deleted by cable customers on their channel map who saw no original programming on its channel.
History.
ATN was founded by William Bernard in 1993 in Irvine, California. It had over 200 shareholders which included a venture capital firm Spectrum Equity Investors and the Hearst Family Fund. ATN bought out Spectrum Equity with a loan through Wells Fargo Foothill. This loan was in turn purchased by Gladstone Capital who is the current largest debt holder of ATN.
In early 2012 ATN ceased operations as it could no longer generate sufficient revenues to pay its affiliates and satellite transponder obligations. George Henry filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy for Pacific Media Direct LLC on July 13, 2012.


New Zealand Media and Entertainment

New Zealand Media and Entertainment (abbreviated NZME) is a New Zealand newspaper, radio and digital media business. It was launched in 2014 as the formal merger of the New Zealand division of APN News & Media and The Radio Network, part of the Australian Radio Network. It operates 32 newspapers, 9 radio networks and several websites in twenty-five markets across the country, and reaches over 3 million people.
NZME brands include flagship national newspaper "The New Zealand Herald", regional newspapers "Bay of Plenty Times", "Rotorua Daily Post" and "Northern Advocate", deals website "GrabOne", and New Zealand's "iHeartRadio". Its radio division operates radio networks Newstalk ZB, The Hits, ZM, Radio Hauraki, Flava, Coast, Gold and Gold AM on radio frequencies around the country and through the iHeartRadio digital listening website and mobile app.
History.
NZME was formed in September 2014 through the merger of the New Zealand division of APN News & Media and The Radio Network, part of the Australian Radio Network. The launch of the business fueled speculation APN News and Media could be planning to fully separate its New Zealand operations, or issue an initial public offering for up to 60 percent of its New Zealand assets on the NZX. Fairfax Media declined to confirm speculation in "The Australian Financial Review" that it could buy some or all of those assets.
In 2016, NZME and Stuff Ltd. proposed merging their operations in New Zealand, with Stuff's Australian parent company Fairfax Media receiving a 41% stake in the combine business plus $55 million cash. On 2 May 2017, the Commerce Commission declined to approve the proposed merger. The two companies appealed the Commissions' decision at the Wellington High Court, which upheld the commission's decision on 18 December 2017. In June 2018, the companies appealed the commission's decision at the New Zealand Court of Appeal, which rejected their merger bid on 25 September 2018. In October 2018, NZME and Stuff abandoned their first merger attempt.
In November 2019, NZME confirmed that it had entered into negotiations with Stuff's new Australian owners, Nine Entertainment, to purchase Stuff. As part of the second merger proposal, NZME proposed a "Kiwishare" arrangement that would ringfence Stuff's editorial operations and protect local journalism.
On 14 April 2020, NZME announced that they were laying off 15% of their workforce (roughly 200 jobs) as a result of the economic fallout caused by the coronavirus pandemic. On 11 May, NZME tried to purchase rival media company Stuff, a subsidiary of the Australian company Nine Entertainment, for NZ$1 under the pretext of saving jobs during the pandemic. In response, Nine Entertainment terminated further negotiations with NZME. In response, NZME filed an emergency junction at the Auckland High Court to force Nine Entertainment back into negotiations. On 19 May, the Auckland High Court ruled against NZME's bid for an interim injunction against Nine Entertainment.
Publishing.
The publishing division of NZME reaches an estimated 2.1 million people each week by print, desktop computer and mobile. It includes national "New Zealand Herald" titles, six other daily newspapers, 23 non-daily newspapers and over 20 websites, mobile sites and apps.
New Zealand Herald.
"The New Zealand Herald" is the flagship title of NZME and is the daily newspaper of Auckland. It has the largest circulation of any newspaper in New Zealand, peaking at over 200,000 copies in 2006, with numbers down to 162,181 by December 2012. Auckland is its main delivery area, but it is also delivered to much of the north of the North Island including Northland, Waikato and King Country.
The Herald's main book publications include "New Zealand Herald", "Weekend Herald" and "Herald on Sunday". Its supplements include "Be Well" on Monday, "Travel" on Tuesday, "Viva", "Driven" and "Herald Homes" on Wednesday, "TimeOut" on Thursday, "Canvas" on Saturday, and "Spy" on Sunday.
Regional newspapers.
NZME publishes "The Northern Advocate" and "The Northland Age" in Northland. It is the dominant print media outlet in the Bay of Plenty, where it publishes "Bay of Plenty Times", "Bay News", "Katikati Advertiser", "Te Puke Times", "Coastal News" and "Waihi Leader".
In Rotorua and Waikato it publishes "Rotorua Daily Post", "Hamilton News", "Country News", "Taupo Weekender" and "Turangi Chronicle". In Hawke's Bay it publishes "Hawke's Bay Today", "CHB Mail" and "Dannevirke Evening News".
Joint publications.
NZME co-owns the "Chinese New Zealand Herald". In 2019, it was reported that the website and content of the "Chinese New Zealand Herald" is under the operational and editorial control of the state-run China News Service, controlled by Chinese Communist Party's United Front Work Department and subject to state censorship and government propaganda.
Radio.
NZME Radio began as The Radio Network in 1996 when the commercial radio activities of Radio New Zealand were divested by the fourth National government as part of the Ruthanasia free market economic policies of that government. Radio New Zealand Commercial, which included talk networks Newstalk ZB and Radio Sport and music networks Classic Hits and ZM, became privately owned and was renamed The Radio Network. In 2014, it became part of NZME and was rebranded again as NZME Radio.
The majority of the programming on stations is networked from the main studios on Graham Street in Auckland Central. However, Newstalk ZB run local programmes in Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch and Dunedin. Mix has a local breakfast show in Nelson and The Hits run local breakfast and morning programmes. Auckland station Mix 98.2 was relaunched in 2014, based on stations previously known as Radio i, Easy Listening i, Viva and Easy Mix. Privately owned Gore station Hokonui Gold is operated by NZME under a long-term lease contract.
History.
Publicly owned Radio New Zealand Commercial became privately owned The Radio Network in 1996, and later that year it also purchased Prospect Media Limited and its eleven Auckland and Hamilton stations. The brands of Auckland's Radio Hauraki and Easy Listening i were retained and launched as nationwide networks, while Hamilton's Easy Listening i, Auckland's The Breeze on 91, Hamilton's The Breeze on 89.8 and the other stations were converted to the former Radio New Zealand brands.
The company was bought out by a syndicate that included United States radio company Clear Channel Communications and publisher Wilson & Horton. Wilson & Horton was then purchased by Ireland-based media conglomerate Independent News & Media, and on-sold to Independent's Australian subsidiary APN. The Radio Network became an APN and Clear Channel networked commercial radio joint venture, like the Australian Radio Network already was, and as a result The Radio Network became part of the Australian Radio Network.
Radio Network House in Christchurch was damaged in the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake beyond repair. The building became infamous for being the first New Zealand demolition by implosion in August 2012. The implosion was conducted by US specialists and went without problems, providing reassurance for contractors planning to carry out similar operations.
Community Radio Network.
The Radio Network previously ran a group of provincial radio stations known as the Community Radio Network. Established in June 1998, the network retained the local names and live breakfast shows of each station but began broadcasting a network feed from Taupo for other times of the day. The line-up included Mark Bramley (10a - 2p), Aaron Gillions, Scott Armstrong and Brian Gentill (2p - 7p), and Peter Gosney, Corey K and Duncan Allen (7p - 12a). Other voices heard on the network included Geoff Bargas, Rebecca Ali, Nadine Christiansen, Sarah McMullan, Chris Auer, Marke Dickson and Paul Frost.
On 1 December 2000 CRN stations joined the Classic Hits programme fed from Cook Street Auckland, also operated by TRN. Where the station had both an FM and AM frequency the FM frequency was usually used to broadcast a localised version of Classic Hits while the AM frequency was used to broadcast Newstalk ZB. Two stations, Radio Waitomo 1ZW and King Country Radio, have closed down. Others continue to operate as The Hits stations, including Tokoroa's Radio Forestland, Taupo's Lakeland FM, Gisborne's 2ZG, Masterton's Radio Wairarapa and Wanganui's River City FM. It also included South Island stations Radio Marlborough in Blenheim, Scenicland FM on the West Coast, 3ZE in Ashburton, Radio Caroline in Timaru and Radio Waitaki in Oamaru.
Current networks.
The NZME radio networks are the result of the re-branding of the Community Radio Network and several further years of brand consolidation. In 2004, Cool Blue 96.1FM in Auckland became the first Flava station and Jammin' Oldies in Hawke's Bay became the first Coast station. Original stations of The Breeze in Auckland and Hamilton, 2QQ in Palmerston North and The Planet 97FM in Nelson became ZM. Classic Rock 96FM in Hawke's Bay was replaced with Radio Hauraki. The station once known as Easy Listening i has subsequently been rebranded as Viva FM, Easy Mix, Mix 98.2 and now Gold (on 105.4FM).
In 2014, the entire Classic Hits network was rebranded as The Hits. Newstalk ZB and The Hits now reach 25 markets, and ZM and Gold AM reach 19 markets. Radio Hauraki reaches 16, Coast reaches 12, and Flava reaches 8.


Australian News Channel

Australian News Channel is an Australian privately held subsidiary of News Corp Australia which owns media properties operating in Australia and New Zealand.
The company owns news broadcasting channel Sky News Australia, its sister channels Sky News Extra and Sky News Weather Channel, New Zealand News Channel (which operates Sky News New Zealand) as well as international streaming service Australia Channel.
History.
Origins.
Australian News Channel Pty Ltd (ANC), was founded in 1996 when Sky News Australia was launched. It was owned by British Sky Broadcasting, Seven Media Group and Publishing and Broadcasting Limited.
In 2013, ANC granted 20 million in funding to Sky News Australia to be used over three years.
In 2014, ANC partnered with Globecast to launch an international streaming service Australia Channel, which broadcasts five channels to subscribers outside Australia. It was launched after ANC bid to operate the Australian Government funded Australia Network contract, before the tender was controversially scrapped.
Until 2015, Sky News was responsible for producing New Zealand's "Prime News – First at 5:30" from Sydney, hosted by Eric Young with filming taking place in Prime's Albany studios. It lost the contract to MediaWorks and subsequently ceased broadcasting a local New Zealand bulletin.
With the carriage deal between Australian News Channel and dominant subscription television platform Foxtel due to expire in 2017, reported as either February or December, media speculation increased that News Corp Australia, which co-owns Foxtel, would attempt to acquire a majority stake in the company. On 26 February 2015 it was reported that News Corp Australia launched an A$25 million bid for full ownership of Australian News Channel.
In June 2015, it was reported that ANC's stakeholders had rejected a News Corp takeover offer of A$20 million, with the owners wanting a minimum of A$50 million. Following a breakdown in a News Corp buyout, further reports suggested Nine Entertainment could sell its stake to a joint arrangement between Seven West Media and News Corp.
Acquisition by News Corp.
The entire company was acquired by News Corp Australia in December 2016. In December 2017, it was reported that News Corp and Telstra were in a carriage dispute over the price Foxtel pays to carry Sky News channels after the existing deal expired at the end of the calendar year, worth over A$30 million per year. News Corp was requesting an increase to the Sky News carriage fee, which has not been raised for more than a decade, while Foxtel co-owner Telstra was opposed. A new deal was agreed upon and transmission was not interrupted.


Leonardo Bercovici

Leonardo Bercovici (January 4, 1908, Brooklyn, New York, USA – November 22, 1995, Los Angeles, California, USA) was an American screenwriter, film director and producer.
Blacklisting and aftermath.
Bercovici was called to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee and blacklisted. He was named by Edward Dmytryk and Richard Collins. On May 16, 1951, swore he was not a member of the Communist Party, but invoked his fifth amendment right to incriminate himself when he was asked whether he had been a member in the past. He moved to Europe and worked in the European film industry until about 1958, when it was announced he would write the Tyrone Power film "Two Against Tomorrow", but Power's death ended the project.
Personal life.
Bercovici was married to Frances Ellis; she died in an apparent suicide on May 23, 1951, while Bercovici was being investigated for Communist activities.
Bercovici married Swedish stage and film actress Märta Torén in June 1952; she died in 1957. They had one daughter, Kristina.
His son Eric Bercovici became a screenwriter and producer, as did Bercovici's grandson Luca Bercovici.


Michael DeGroote

Michael G. DeGroote, OC (born 1933) is a Canadian businessman and philanthropist from Hamilton, Ontario who currently resides in Bermuda. Aside from his business career, he is best known as a major private donor to local educational institutions such as McMaster University, McMaster University Medical School and Hillfield Strathallan College.
Early life.
DeGroote was born in Belgium to Flemish parents and immigrated to Canada with his parents when he was 14 years old. He left school in Grade 9 to help his family by working in the tobacco fields near Tillsonburg, Ontario.
Business career.
In 1959 he purchased Laidlaw Transport Ltd., a small trucking company based in Hagersville, Ontario. Under his direction, Laidlaw expanded past trucking by entering the solid waste and school bus industries. By the mid 1970s Laidlaw was a large and successful business, and DeGroote had personally become wealthy enough that he was able to purchase the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League. He was the last owner of the Tiger Cats to make profit from the team.
In March 1988, DeGroote sold his Laidlaw shares to Canadian Pacific; in return, he received a combination of cash and CP shares worth $499 million.
In 1990, he retired to Bermuda. However, controversy followed him after his departure: in December 1990, he resigned as a Laidlaw director, and in August 1992, Laidlaw paid $7.65 million to settle a class action lawsuit which had alleged that Laidlaw's corporate officers had "misrepresented the financial condition of Laidlaw." DeGroote also paid $23 million to the Ontario Securities Commission to settle a claim regarding insider trading of Laidlaw stock.
Though still residing in Bermuda, DeGroote has been involved in a number of business ventures since his retirement, such as Republic Waste, AutoNation, NRX Global Inc and Century Business Services.
Awards and philanthropy.
In 1990, DeGroote was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.
In 1992, he made a major donation to McMaster University which funded the construction of a new business school, which was subsequently renamed the Michael G. DeGroote School of Business. The same year, he received an honorary degree from McMaster.
In 2003, he donated $105 million to McMaster, which funded a number of medical research centres as well as a building, the "Michael G. DeGroote Centre for Learning and Discovery" (commonly abbreviated as MDCL to avoid confusion with the DeGroote School of Business). In addition, the McMaster School of Medicine was renamed to the "Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine at McMaster" in 2004.
In 2009, he donated $10.5 million to Hillfield Strathallan College, which added to existing funds for the planned campus restructuring and the new Senior School building which will bear his name. DeGroote was made an honorary member of Hillfield Strathallan's 2009 graduating class.
In 2014, at the McMaster University Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine graduation ceremony, Michael took the stage to announce a gift of $50 million. The gift will support increased focus on national and international health leadership, including developing stronger ties with McMaster's DeGroote School of Business as well as partnerships that focus on biomedical advances. Additionally, a new fund will be created to seed the very best medical research within the Faculty of Health Sciences.


Mahpach

Mahpach (Hebrew מַהְפַּ֤ך, with variant English spellings) is a common cantillation mark found in the Torah, Haftarah, and other books of the Hebrew Bible. It is part of the Katan group, and it frequently begins the group. The symbol for the Mahpach is <.
Mahpach is always followed by a Pashta. This is because Mahpach is a conjunctive, showing a connection with the word that follows. When the Mahpach is found, the < is placed under the syllable that is most heavily stressed. The variant Yetiv trope uses the same < symbol as the Mahpach, but does not have a Pashta that follows.
Mahpach is found in the Torah 3042 times.
The Hebrew word מַהְפַּ֤ך translates into English to "reversal". The original symbol looked more like a sideways U than a V (to represent going forward then turning back around), but this was changed because it was easier for printers to print, as modern keyboards have the < symbols.
Melody.
The Mahpach is sung on a high note until the final syllable, which is lower.