“Media giant Fox is buying streaming firm Roku in a deal the companies say will create the third largest player in US TV by share of viewing. Fox’s move is being seen as a bet that combining streaming with its news and sport offering will leave it in a strong position as TV audiences move online. The offer of $160 per share, made up of cash and stock, values Roku at $22bn (£16bn). ‘This is a defining moment for Fox, and a natural extension of the deliberate and focused strategy we have been executing for nearly a decade,’ said Fox chief executive Lachlan Murdoch. ‘In 2019, we reoriented the company around live news and sports. In 2020, we acquired Tubi and under our stewardship it has become one of the most successful businesses in streaming.'” [editor’s note: As a long-time Roku device owner/subscriber, I hope Fox doesn’t ruin the service – TLK] (06/15/26)
“Four tons of invasive Burmese pythons were removed from South Florida ecosystems during the latest breeding season, setting a record for the Conservancy of Southwest Florida. The achievement marks a new milestone in the fight against the giant snakes, which are considered one of the greatest threats to the Everglades ecosystem because of their ability to prey on mammals, birds and other native wildlife. The Conservancy said it removed more python biomass this season than at any point since launching its research and removal program in 2013. … the team captured 177 invasive Burmese pythons with a combined weight of 8,080 pounds.” (06/14/26)
“A group of Democratic senators and one Republican, as well as two Democratic House committees, sent letters Monday to the National Science Foundation asking it to reverse course on its plan to dismantle a sprawling ocean monitoring network, with House lawmakers going further and accusing the agency of acting illegally. The Ocean Observatories Initiative is a network of more than 900 ocean sensors built at a cost of $386 million. Over the last decade it has tracked ocean circulation, marine ecosystems, climate change and extreme weather, producing data freely available to the public and informing more than 500 scientific publications. The project was slated to run another 15 to 20 years. The National Science Foundation had directed the removal of most of the system’s instruments from waters off Oregon, Washington, Alaska, North Carolina and Greenland by 2027 — a decision scientists said came with no warning and no scientific review.” (06/15/26)
“An Oslo district court has sentenced Marius Borg Hoiby, the stepson of Norway’s Crown Prince Haakon, to four years in prison for rape and other crimes. Hoiby, 29, became part of the royal family when his mother, Mette-Marit, married Haakon in 2001. The court convicted Hoiby of two counts of rape as well as domestic violence against his former partner Nora Haukland and narcotics offences. He was acquitted on two separate rape counts with judges finding insufficient proof that the encounters were nonconsensual. One of the rapes he was convicted of took place in the basement of the crown prince’s official Skaugum residence. While denying the rape charges, Hoiby had pleaded guilty to domestic abuse and transporting 3.5kg (7.7lb) of marijuana in 2020.” (06/15/26)
“Four people were killed while the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra monastery, a symbol of Ukrainian spiritual and cultural history, caught fire, in the heaviest Russian air attack on the Ukrainian capital in two weeks, authorities said on Monday. The fresh strikes came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday he had spoken to U.S. President Donald Trump and discussed efforts to achieve an end to the more than four-year conflict, ahead of a G7 meeting in France this week. … Four emergency service rescuers and one municipal official were killed and at least another five injured after a second Russian strike hit Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Telegram, with three people, including a child, wounded in Sumy, according to social media posts by local authorities.” (06/15/26)
“Iran and the United States have agreed to a memorandum of understanding to end more than 100 days of war, with Tehran saying the agreement includes Lebanon, which has been under intense Israeli attacks since March 2. Mediated by Pakistan and Qatar, the deal will be formally signed in the Swiss city of Geneva on Friday. … According to the Iranian news agency Mehr, the draft agreement contains 14 points. It includes: A permanent and immediate cessation of hostilities on all fronts, including Lebanon; the complete lifting of the naval blockade within 30 days; a US commitment to withdraw its forces from around Iran; and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The draft also mentions the suspension of sanctions on oil sales, reaching a final agreement on nuclear issues within 60 days of signing the deal, and the release of $24bn in frozen Iranian assets during the 60-day negotiation period.” (06/15/26)
“A first-of-its-kind law in New York could force 3D printers sold for homes and business to come equipped with technology blocking them from making guns. The new requirement, also under consideration in California, attempts to thwart the latest technique for producing untraceable ‘ghost guns’ that have turned up in crimes. … A New York law signed last month and a bill in the California Legislature both would direct panels of experts to come up with standards for firearm blueprint detection algorithms. The technology would analyze every design submitted for 3D printing, compare it to a digital library of firearm parts and reject those that are similar.” [editor’s note: If the idea wasn’t so irredeemably evil, it would be kind of funny to watch them fantasize about their ability to implement it – TLK] (06/14/26)
“Voters in Switzerland on Sunday cast ballots to decide the fate of a proposal to cap the Alpine nation’s population at 10 million by 2050. Preliminary projections by national broadcaster SRF have indicated that the proposal has been rejected by some 55% as against 45% in favor. Under Switzerland’s direct democracy system, referendums are mostly binding in their effect. The proposal has been put forward by the Swiss People’s Party (SVP), which has the most seats in the Swiss parliament. Currently, Switzerland has a population of 9.1 million.” (06/14/26)
“Bitcoin climbed to its highest level in nearly two weeks after the US and Iran reached a deal to end hostilities and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, removing the energy-supply fear that had weighed on markets for months. The token traded around $65,844 on Monday, up 2.1% over 24 hours, after touching a low near $63,722 in the early hours of Asian trading before the deal news broke, per CoinDesk data. The move puts bitcoin about 9% above the sub-$60,000 low it hit last week, its weakest level since October 2024.” (06/15/26)
“Brian Rauch has felt the squeeze of higher gas prices on his 30-mile (50-km) drives from his home in rural Stevensville, Montana, to the doctor’s office. He has also noticed food prices going up and, as an Air Force veteran, sees little rationale for the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. These are among the reasons the 42-year-old increasingly disapproves of the performance of President Donald Trump, the man he voted for in the last three presidential elections, putting him among a growing portion of rural Americans disappointed by his leadership in Washington. Trump’s approval rating among rural Americans dropped in June to a new low of 50%, according to the June 3-8 Reuters/Ipsos poll. That compares with 60% approval in February 2025 shortly after Trump took office. Rural disapproval of Trump’s performance meanwhile rose to 48% from 34% in February 2025, according to the poll of 4,531 U.S. adults nationwide.” (06/14/26)
