ADVERTISEMENT

AP Afternoon Wire

Advancing the Power of Facts

Policy changes, but facts endure. AP delivers accurate, fact-based journalism to keep the world informed in every administration. Support independent reporting today. Donate.

Good afternoon and welcome to your afternoon news update from AP. Today, coal miners with black lung say the government is suffocating the “working man”; Cornell University agrees to pay $60 million in a deal with the Trump administration to restore its federal funding; and musician Shaggy recounts how he started his relief mission to Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa.

UP FIRST

Randy Lawrence, president of the Kanawha County Black Lung Association, stands outside his home wearing supplemental oxygen for black lung disease near Cabin Creek, W.Va., in October. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Deep in Trump country, coal miners with black lung say government is suffocating the ‘working man’

Lisa Emery loves to talk about her “boys.” With each word, the respiratory therapist’s face softens and shines with pride. But keep her talking, and it doesn’t take long for that passion to switch to hurt. She knows the names, ages, families and the intimate stories of each one’s scarred lungs. She worries about a whole community of West Virginia coal miners — including a growing number in their 30s and 40s — who come to her for help while getting sicker and sicker from what used to be considered an old-timer’s disease: black lung. Read more.

TOP STORIES

Cornell University to pay $60M in deal with Trump administration to restore federal funding

Cornell University has agreed to pay $60 million and accept the Trump administration’s interpretation of civil rights laws in order to restore federal funding and end investigations into the Ivy League school. Read more.

Shaggy recounts his relief mission to Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa and shares how you can help

As Hurricane Melissa intensified to a Category 5 storm pointing right at Jamaica, Shaggy knew he had to help, he just wasn’t sure how. So he asked ChatGPT. “I don’t know anything about relief and how to prepare for a storm,” the Grammy-winning reggae musician said. “I went to ChatGPT and looked at what we would need in a storm and we just bought that. Luckily, that’s exactly what they needed.” Read more.

ADVERTISEMENT

IN OTHER NEWS

This combination of photos show Jack Antonoff, left, Kendrick Lamar, center, and Lady Gaga. (AP Photo)

2026 Grammys: Kendrick Lamar leads the nominations, followed by Lady Gaga, Jack Antonoff and Cirkut

1999 NATO bombing site: Serbia passes a special bill enabling Trump’s son-in-law to build luxury complex

Indonesia: Multiple explosions shake a mosque in an Indonesian high school and injure 54

Sports betting probe: NCAA revokes eligibility of 6 more college basketball players

At the 6-month mark: Pope Leo finds his footing and starts charting his own path and style

The Maine one: A lesser-known Farmers’ Almanac will fold after 2 centuries

WATCH: In South Carolina, friends' project helps urban wetland thrive

TRENDING

Fans dance to "Jump Around," during the game between Wisconsin and Ohio State, in October in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) 

How Garth Brooks, The Killers and Tom Petty became stars of college football Saturdays

Pep bands and fight songs still have their place, but now fans of some of the most prominent college football programs have embraced the stadium anthem. Rock, country, hip hop, electronic dance music ... different genres can work at different places. Perhaps the most famous of these traditions is House of Pain’s “Jump Around” at Wisconsin, now in its third decade of inspiring Badgers fans to leap up and down.