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AMERICANALMANAC (Lynn Jenkins) - Shakira pledges to rebuild schools in earthquake-ravaged Colombia after surprise visit to Chocó Tue Aug 18 18:41:09 2026

Colombian superstar Shakira traveled to one of her country's poorest and hardest-hit provinces after a deadly 7.4 magnitude earthquake and committed to building at least ten new schools, backing the pledge with more than a million dollars in secured funding. The 49-year-old Grammy winner arrived unannounced Monday in Quibdó, the capital of Chocó province in […] The post Shakira pledges to rebuild schools in earthquake-ravaged Colombia after surprise visit to Chocó appeared first on American Almanac .

Colombian superstar Shakira traveled to one of her country's poorest and hardest-hit provinces after a deadly 7.4 magnitude earthquake and committed to building at least ten new schools, backing the pledge with more than a million dollars in secured funding. The 49-year-old Grammy winner arrived unannounced Monday in Quibdó, the capital of Chocó province in western Colombia, where she toured damaged school buildings, embraced students, and announced a concrete reconstruction plan backed by her own Fundación Pies Descalzos and the Howard G. Buffett Foundation. The August 10 earthquake killed at least 287 people, destroyed more than 26,000 dwellings, and left a region already defined by deep poverty struggling to account for its missing.…Open

AMERICANALMANAC (Alan Benson) - WNBA admits security was wrong to force fans to cover pro-women's-sports shirts at Atlanta game Tue Aug 18 18:41:05 2026

A mother and daughter who paid $1,000 apiece for courtside seats at an Indiana Fever game in Atlanta say WNBA security ordered them to hide their XX-XY Athletics shirts or leave the arena, and the league now concedes the whole thing never should have happened. Kasey and Annie Thomason were sitting three rows from the […] The post WNBA admits security was wrong to force fans to cover pro-women's-sports shirts at Atlanta game appeared first on American Almanac .

A mother and daughter who paid $1,000 apiece for courtside seats at an Indiana Fever game in Atlanta say WNBA security ordered them to hide their XX-XY Athletics shirts or leave the arena, and the league now concedes the whole thing never should have happened. Kasey and Annie Thomason were sitting three rows from the court at State Farm Arena on Sunday when, roughly halfway through overtime, a security guard pulled them aside. Someone in the stands, the guard explained, was "offended" by their shirts, apparel from XX-XY Athletics, a brand that promotes female-only competition. The Thomasons were handed Atlanta Dream, themed shirts and given a choice: cover up or get out. The ESPN broadcast captured the change in real time. With two and a…Open

AMERICANALMANAC (Charles McAdams) - Tropical Storm Lala kills one, leaves more than 100,000 without power across Hawaii Tue Aug 18 18:41:04 2026

A 90-year-old woman is dead, roughly 104,000 customers have no electricity, and entire communities on Hawaii's Big Island sit cut off by mud and debris after Tropical Storm Lala tore across the island chain, exposing, once again, how vulnerable America's most isolated state remains when nature strikes. The woman, whose name has not been released, […] The post Tropical Storm Lala kills one, leaves more than 100,000 without power across Hawaii appeared first on American Almanac .

A 90-year-old woman is dead, roughly 104,000 customers have no electricity, and entire communities on Hawaii's Big Island sit cut off by mud and debris after Tropical Storm Lala tore across the island chain, exposing, once again, how vulnerable America's most isolated state remains when nature strikes. The woman, whose name has not been released, had been reported missing in Naalehu, a small town near the southern tip of the Big Island. Crews found her dead Monday , making her the storm's first confirmed fatality. Gov. Josh Green, who flew over and then walked through the devastated southern coast that same day, acknowledged the loss but said the toll could have been far worse. Lala weakened from a hurricane to a tropical storm Sunday…Open

AMERICANALMANAC (Alan Benson) - Vin Diesel honors Paul Walker with tearful tribute at 'Fast and Furious' 25th anniversary screening Tue Aug 18 18:41:04 2026

Vin Diesel returned to the same Los Angeles theater where "The Fast and the Furious" premiered in 2001 and delivered a nearly eight-minute tribute to his late co-star Paul Walker, a moment that left the franchise star visibly fighting back tears. The screening took place Monday night at the Director's Village Theater in Los Angeles, […] The post Vin Diesel honors Paul Walker with tearful tribute at 'Fast and Furious' 25th anniversary screening appeared first on American Almanac .

Vin Diesel returned to the same Los Angeles theater where "The Fast and the Furious" premiered in 2001 and delivered a nearly eight-minute tribute to his late co-star Paul Walker, a moment that left the franchise star visibly fighting back tears. The screening took place Monday night at the Director's Village Theater in Los Angeles, the exact venue where the original film debuted a quarter-century ago. Diesel took the stage alongside producer Neil H. Moritz and co-stars Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez to introduce the film. But it was Diesel's extended, emotional speech that defined the evening. Cars from the original movie lined the front of the theater. Tyrese Gibson, who joined the franchise in 2003's "2 Fast 2 Furious," sat in…Open

AMERICANALMANAC (Sadie Smith) - Howie Mandel admits on podcast to paying for sexual services at massage parlors during 48-year marriage Tue Aug 18 18:41:03 2026

Howie Mandel, the 70-year-old comedian and "America's Got Talent" judge, told listeners of his own podcast that he has paid for sexual services at massage parlors, while his wife of nearly five decades sat at home. Mandel made the admission during an August 11 episode of "Howie Mandel Does Stuff," the podcast he cohosts with […] The post Howie Mandel admits on podcast to paying for sexual services at massage parlors during 48-year marriage appeared first on American Almanac .

Howie Mandel, the 70-year-old comedian and "America's Got Talent" judge, told listeners of his own podcast that he has paid for sexual services at massage parlors, while his wife of nearly five decades sat at home. Mandel made the admission during an August 11 episode of "Howie Mandel Does Stuff," the podcast he cohosts with his daughter Jackelyn Shultz. The guest that day was digital creator Camilla Araujo, host of "The Clock It Podcast." What followed was an exchange that left Araujo visibly stunned and Shultz asking whether her mother would be upset. Mandel married Terry Soil in 1980. The couple share three children, daughters Jackie and Riley, and son Alex. When Araujo pressed him on whether he was still in the marriage, Mandel did not…Open

AMERICANALMANAC (Charles McAdams) - Alexa PenaVega grieves three fellow child stars lost to addiction, illness, and life on the streets Tue Aug 18 18:41:02 2026

Actress Alexa PenaVega mourned the deaths of Hayden Panettiere, Michelle Trachtenberg, and Daveigh Chase in a single Instagram post, three women she grew up alongside on the Disney Channel, all gone before 40. PenaVega, now 37 and best known for the "Spy Kids" franchise, published the tribute on Tuesday. It arrived two days after Panettiere's […] The post Alexa PenaVega grieves three fellow child stars lost to addiction, illness, and life on the streets appeared first on American Almanac .

Actress Alexa PenaVega mourned the deaths of Hayden Panettiere, Michelle Trachtenberg, and Daveigh Chase in a single Instagram post, three women she grew up alongside on the Disney Channel, all gone before 40. PenaVega, now 37 and best known for the "Spy Kids" franchise, published the tribute on Tuesday. It arrived two days after Panettiere's father confirmed his daughter's death to Page Six , and weeks after Chase died on the streets of Los Angeles. Trachtenberg had already been dead since February 2025. Three former Disney Channel stars, three separate tragedies, all compressed into a few months of loss for the people who knew them. PenaVega did not soften the weight of the moment. She wrote plainly about what it meant to grow up in an…Open

AMERICANALMANAC (Alan Benson) - Rachel Cusk's new novel draws an unmistakable portrait of Natalie Portman — without her consent Tue Aug 18 18:41:02 2026

Author Rachel Cusk's upcoming novel "Life of M" maps so closely onto Natalie Portman's biography that sources say the actress finds the whole affair "annoying", and insists the two women were never close friends. The book, a slim 100-page work scheduled for release August 25, centers on a character called M: a former child star […] The post Rachel Cusk's new novel draws an unmistakable portrait of Natalie Portman — without her consent appeared first on American Almanac .

Author Rachel Cusk's upcoming novel "Life of M" maps so closely onto Natalie Portman's biography that sources say the actress finds the whole affair "annoying", and insists the two women were never close friends. The book, a slim 100-page work scheduled for release August 25, centers on a character called M: a former child star living in Paris who once trained alongside "starved and chain-smoking ballerinas" for a film about ballet, endured the sexualization of her early career, and watched her marriage collapse. Every detail tracks with Portman's public life, her Oscar-winning turn in "Black Swan," her childhood debut in "Léon: The Professional" at age 12, and her March 2024 divorce from ballet dancer Benjamin Millepied after 11 years of…Open

YOUTUBE (NewsNation) - ACLU asks SCOTUS to decide if the Ten Commandments should be in Texas schools | NewsNation Tue Aug 18 18:36:12 2026

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Texas law requires the Ten Commandments be displayed in classrooms in public schools, but Texas families and the ACLU disagree and want the Supreme Court to weigh in. NewsNation’s Xavier Walton has the details.

YOUTUBE (NewsNation) - Former Playboy Playmate says Maxwell threatened her after Epstein assaulted her | NewsNation Tue Aug 18 18:36:11 2026

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In a wide-ranging interview, former Playboy Playmate Audra Christiansen says Jeffrey Epstein assaulted her in 2004, and that she faced threats from Ghislaine Maxwell. NewsNation’s Diana Falzone breaks down her exclusive interview.

YOUTUBE (NewsNation) - Did Ossoff go too far in his attacks against Trump? Debate with Chris Hahn and Batya Ungar-Sargon Tue Aug 18 18:36:10 2026

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After Rep. Jon Ossoff called out President Trump for his dependency on his aide Natalie Harp, many on the right have called his comments sexist. Since then, Trump and Ossoff have traded personal attacks back and forth. Chris Hahn and NewsNation’s Batya Ungar-Sargon debate whether Ossoff’s comments went too far and where the line is between personal and political attacks. "Prove It with Batya!" puts the hottest takes to the test as Batya Ungar-Sargon and guests from across the political spectrum make their case LIVE in a debate driven by facts (not just feelings). Viewers of the live stream join in with questions, data, and real-life experiences from across America, before casting their vote on who was able to "Prove It!" better.