Cities across the globe wrap up 2024, ring in new year with celebrations
Fox News is ringing in the new year with live updates on celebrations across the globe. Major cities wrapped up their preparations to ring in the new year on Tuesday, and New York City was heightening security while preparing to kick of 2025 for the United States.
New York City’s Times Square rang in the new year with its annual ball drop and revelers braving the cold weather and rain.
Earlier in the evening, people who had stood in line for hours moved through an array of security checks, and then rested up for the night of performances and cheering ahead, with some even laying on the pavement.
This year’s celebration included musical performances by TLC, Jonas Brothers, Rita Ora and Sophie Ellis-Bextor.
“It’s the biggest party in the world. There’s no other place to celebrate New Year’s than Times Square,” Tommy Onolfo of Long Island, who started attending regularly 8 years ago, told The Associated Press.
The organization managing Times Square has tested its famous ball drop and inspected 2025 numerals, lights and thousands of crystals as part of a tradition going back more than a century.
It will be the last time New York City will ring in the new year with the crystal ball, to be replaced next year with a new digital ball.
The NYPD said it was heightening security throughout the city as more than one million people were planning to attend the celebration.
"Despite the rain, NYPD officers continue to remain vigilant & ensure the safety of all New Yorkers & New Year’s Eve event attendees tonight in the heart of NYC," police wrote in a post on X.
President-elect Trump held a New Year's Eve celebration at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday night, which included several of his closest associates.
Guests included Elon Musk, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Marla Maples, who was married to Trump from 1993 to 1999. JD Vance, Trump's running mate, was also in attendance with his wife Usha.
Tiffany Trump and her husband Michael Boulos were also seen at the event, along with Lara and Eric Trump.
When asked what he most looks forward to in the new year, Trump replied that he predicts 2025 will be "a great year."
"We’re going to do fantastic as a country," the Republican said. "People aren’t respecting us as much, and they will be."
Fox News' Matt Finn contributed to this report.
A montage of the biggest events in 2024 aired on "The Story" on Tuesday, recapping a year filled with unforgettable political moments.
The montage included host Martha MacCallum's coverage of the year's most significant political events, ranging from the July 13 assassination attempt against President-elect Trump to the presidential debates.
MacCallum also anchored coverage of the 2024 presidential race in November, along with Fox News host Bret Baier.
"A year of truly extraordinary political moments with Martha," guest host Jonathan Hunt said after the montage aired.
NYSE trader Peter Tuchman spoke about the state of the stock market and his 2025 predictions on Tuesday's episode of "Your World."
Tuchman, who is known as "The Einstein of Wall Street" and has decades of trading experience, emphasized the uniquity of the market in what he described as a "post-COVID world."
"It's hard for me to predict that after, what an extraordinary year," he conceded. "This was not an easy year. We had so much going on between interest rates and inflation."
"Obviously, we had two major wars going on around the nation, around the world, you know, involving oil to a commodity that affects markets," Tuchman added. "We obviously had a lot of the polarity around the election and we came through it trading at record highs across the board."
Tuchman also doubted reports that the stock market would fare poorly under the incoming Trump administration.
"He plays hardball," the trader said. "But I don't think he's going to dismantle it... he's being given handed an extraordinary market this that we've never seen anything like it over these years."
On Tuesday's episode of "The Five," Fox News Channel co-hosts reacted to the thousands of people lining up for the New Year's Eve ball drop in Manhattan.
While some co-hosts expressed disdain for the idea of standing in Times Square for a full day, co-host Katie Pavlich said she admired the dedicated tourists.
"I admire these people for actually dedicating themselves...they're ready to ring in the new year," she said. "They're committed. They have their gear like us in here."
"But it's kind of fun to see people from foreign countries doing this. I think it's great. And, you know, the only worst place to be in Times Square is the day after," she joked. "Like, don't go there tomorrow."
Later in the segment, the group discussed New Year's resolutions, and Dr. Nicole Saphier explained why she does not participate in yearly resolutions.
"I don't like resolutions because it puts a lot of pressure on you," she explained. "Just like I don't like trends and fads because they're usually short-lived."
Saphier explained that she prefers making daily resolutions instead of annual ones.
"This is just going to sound silly, but I really just do try [to make resolutions] every day of the year. Like, what can I be doing?" she described. "And I don't put pressure on myself or something big because we all know by the end of January, probably gonna forget about it."
Ret. NYPD inspector Paul Mauro offered advice for tourists attending New Year's Eve celebrations in New York City on the Tuesday episode of "Your World."
Mauro explained that most crime that takes place in Times Square is property crime as opposed to violent crime, but that it still warrants special attention.
"A lot of that is property crime, but that's something that you do want to be cognizant of if you're out there today," Mauro said. "It's a prime event, but things like pickpocketing, you want to be cognizant of that."
The retired inspector advised that tourists should always stick together when using public transit, and should remain aware of their surroundings.
"If you're on the subway, stick together," Mauro said. "Don't be looking at your phone. Stay alert when the trains are pulling in. Those are things that the police concern themselves with every year."
"I don't really think this year's event is going to be that different," he added. "[The] police department's been doing this a long time. They know how to run this event."
For the last time before the New Year, the stunning colors of the aurora borealis might be visible for those who live in the northern border of America.
Solar storms, a result of two bursts of plasma hurtling towards Earth, may bring the Northern Lights into view early this week, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
"A flurry of activity occurred the weekend of 28-29 December as active regions and (sun) spot groups became unstable," the NOAA'S Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) reported.
Read the full article about the Northern Lights by Sydney Borchers
A blackout in Puerto Rico left nearly 1.3 million clients in the dark on Tuesday as the U.S. territory began preparations to celebrate New Year’s Eve, and according to officials, it may take up to two days to restore power.
The Associated Press reported that power went dark at dawn, sending the entire island into silence when electrical appliances and air conditioners were cut off before generators from those who could afford them turned on.
Luma Energy, a private company that oversees the transmission and distribution of electricity, said nearly 90% of 1.47 million clients in Puerto Rico were left in the dark.
Read the full article about Puerto Rico by Greg Wehner
Nearly everyone is familiar with the "ball drop" in Times Square in Manhattan each year on New Year's Eve — the event draws thousands of people to New York City, while millions more across the country watch the spectacle on TV channels and streaming platforms.
But plenty of other, smaller yet no less festive celebrations are taking place with giant versions of foods "dropped" to help ring in and celebrate the New Year — including potatoes in Idaho, tacos in Tucson, Arizona, and cheese in various cities in Wisconsin.
Here's a close look at four other food-focused events around the nation.
Click here to read the full article about food drops by Christine Rousselle
Chinese President Xi Jinping rang in the New Year with a national address from Beijing on Tuesday.
Xi notably asserted that "no one can stop" the reunification of Taiwan with China. Xi's government has routinely made threats to forcibly take over the self-governed island.
"The people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are one family. No one can sever our family bonds, and no one can stop the historical trend of national reunification," Xi said in a speech televised on China's state broadcaster CCTV.
Russians are celebrating New Year's Eve in Moscow on Tuesday as Russian President Vladimir Putin gave his end-of-year address.
"And now, on the threshold of the new year, we are thinking about the future. We are confident that everything will be fine, we will only move forward. We know for sure that the absolute value for us was, is and will be the fate of Russia, the well-being of its citizens," Putin said.
Sydney, Australia was among the first major cities to ring in 2025 on Tuesday, celebrating the New Year with a massive firework show.
More than a quarter of the world has entered 2025 as of press time.
More than one million people crowded around the Sydney Harbor for the event, which featured a number of musical performances, including British pop star Robbie Williams.
Retired NYPD Lt. Darrin Porcher joined 'America's Newsroom' on Tuesday to analyze the NYPD operating in a "heightened threat environment" on New Year's Eve.
Porcher detailed that police could be using sniper teams, drones, K-9 units and other teams to keep an eye out for security threats. He said police are on particularly high alert for "lone wolf" attacks, but he is confident the celebration will go off "without a hitch, as it has for years on end."
"The NYPD has been doing this for years," Porcher said, before highlighting a key consent agreement that helps cops operate on the big night.
"The NYPD has a consent agreement with the commercial properties in that particular area," Porcher said, referring to Times Square. "That allows the NYPD to log-in to those commercial cameras, not just the NYPD cameras."
Porcher said that a "lone wolf" attack is the threat he would be most worried about at an event like the Times Square party. He also said "radioactive materials" or a "dirty bomb" are also concerns that the NYPD would monitor for.
Several political figures on both sides of the aisle increased their profile in 2024 and are primed to become key voices in their respective parties in 2025 and beyond.
Democrats suffered a major blow in 2024, in a year that saw President Biden bow out of the political race and be replaced by VP Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who lost both the Electoral College and popular vote in November. Going forward, several Democrats are expected to fill that leadership void heading into the midterms.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro
Shapiro was widely considered to be the strongest vice presidential candidate to join the Harris ticket this summer, and Harris received criticism for her decision to select Walz instead. Shapiro, viewed as a moderate by some, has been governor of the state since January 2023 and will face a re-election test in 2026 before any potential 2028 run.
Pennsylvania’s 19 electoral votes make it a key state in presidential elections, making Shapiro’s position as governor of that state an appealing attribute for any presidential candidate.
"Probably the biggest winner on election night," Mike Manzo of Triad Strategies told ABC 27 last month. "If 2026 turns out to be a bad midterm for the Republicans, (Shapiro’s) sitting on the top of the ticket for in Pennsylvania. You know, so if he runs away with that the following January, he’s in Iowa."
House Rep. Pat Ryan
Ryan, who represents New York’s 18th Congressional District, was considered one of the most vulnerable incumbents heading into the November election but defeated his Republican challenger by 14 points in a swing district.
Since the election, Ryan has been one of the most outspoken Democrats on the subject of what went wrong for his party in November.
"First and foremost, if you're using the words ‘moderate’ or ‘progressive’ you're missing the whole f***ing point," Ryan wrote on X. "It's not ideological. It's about who fights for the people vs. who further empowers and enables the elites."
"Most importantly, I told folks exactly who it was that was ripping them off, and I grounded it locally. It's the billionaires and big corporations making record-breaking profits while the rest of us struggle."
Ryan wrote, "It's not enough to throw these seemingly disparate policies at people. We must articulate a unifying principle, and clearly tell folks who’s at fault. For me, it was Freedom. and Patriotism. And the fault lies with the same elites, in both parties, who've run this country for far too long."
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Andrew Mark Miller
Immigration and border security were two issues that dominated news coverage and political debate in 2024, likely helping to decide the presidential election, as both candidates sought to present themselves as the best to tackle a historic border crisis and the consequences of the crisis were felt across the country.
In January, the U.S. remained in the throes of a migrant crisis that had exploded in 2021 and continued to roil the country throughout 2022 and 2023. In December 2023, encounters at the southern border hit a new record with more than 250,000 encounters in a single month.
It was a month that saw top Cabinet officials head to Mexico to attempt to persuade Mexican officials to do more to stop the flood of migrants heading north. As the presidential race, as well as congressional races, got into full swing in the early months of 2024, it became clear that the issue was likely to dominate the news cycle. Then-candidate Donald Trump promised to launch a mass deportation operation if elected, while President Biden touted a sharp drop in encounters since the beginning of the year as he also signed an executive order limiting asylum entries in June.
Border deal on the table?
A potential breakthrough emerged in February when Republicans and Democrats announced a border security bill in the Senate. The package gained the support of the Biden administration but quickly drew opposition from conservatives as well as some liberal Democrats.
The bill included increased funding for border agencies as well as an emergency authority to shut down entries at the southern border when encounters exceed a rolling seven-day average of 5,000 encounters. It would also expedite work permits for migrants and tighten asylum screening language.
Conservatives said the bill would codify high-border encounters, but the Biden administration and both the Biden and Harris campaigns would cite the bill as a bipartisan solution to the crisis that former President Donald Trump was rejecting for political purposes.
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Adam Shaw
As 2024 comes to an end, there are lots of moments in the world of sports to reflect on after 365 days, and many of them are great.
However, controversy was also seen throughout the days and months.
Let's take a look at some of 2024's biggest controversial moments in sports, starting in Paris at the Olympic Games.
Imane Khelif wins gold medal in Paris
The most-Googled athlete of the year was at the center of controversy at the Paris Olympics, as Algeria’s Imane Khelif became the gold medalist in her weight class for boxing, despite questions about gender eligibility.
Khelif was disqualified from the 2023 International Boxing Association World Championships after IBA president Umar Kremlev said the boxer had "XY chromosomes," which are associated with biological males.
However, the IOC defended Khelif, as well as Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting, who also won gold in a different women’s weight class despite related outrage.
"These two athletes were the victims of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA," the IOC said. "Towards the end of the IBA World Championships in 2023, they were suddenly disqualified without any due process."
Khelif went on to never lose a single round in Paris on her way to gold. One boxer, Angela Carini, even forfeited against Khelif in Paris, saying that "one punch hurt too much."
Caitlin Clark roughed up during historic rookie season
Clark made WNBA history in her first season as part of the Indiana Fever, while headlining a rookie class that changed the landscape of women's sports, let alone women's basketball.
But this rookie season to remember didn't come without its own controversy, especially when she was playing.
Clark was a part of national headlines after the Chicago Sky's Chennedy Carter checked her down on the court early in the season, which was deemed a Flagrant-1 foul.
It wasn't a necessary physical play, hence the foul call, but it became much more than that as talk shows and media outlets began discussing whether players are being too harsh on Clark, who had taken a beating on the court with some hard fouls prior to that as well. Race was also brought up as part of the discussions.
Clark would endure more moments of physicality, including from fellow rookie Angel Reese, who whacked her in the head during a layup attempt. However, both Reese and Clark agreed it had just been a basketball play that didn't work out at that moment.
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Scott Thompson
CBS News correspondent Jan Crawford said the most underreported story in 2024 was concerns around President Biden's age, which came to a tipping point after members of his own party forced him to withdraw from the campaign.
"That would be, to me, Joe Biden's obvious cognitive decline that became undeniable in a televised debate," Crawford said on "Face the Nation," the CBS Sunday show. "Unquestioned."
Reports from The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and other outlets have revealed that some advisers close to the president have been concerned about Biden's health since the early days of his administration. The White House frequently dismissed questions about his abilities and even called videos that appeared to show Biden confused or out of step "cheap fakes."
"We should have much more forcefully questioned whether he was fit for office for another four years," Crawford continued, arguing that the added media pressure "could have led to a primary for the Democrats."
"We should have much more forcefully questioned whether he was fit for office for another four years," Crawford continued, arguing that the added media pressure "could have led to a primary for the Democrats."
"It could have changed the scope of the entire election," she said. "Yet still, incredibly, we read in The Washington Post, that his advisers are saying that he regrets that he dropped out of the race, that he thinks he could have beaten Trump, and I think that is either delusional or they're gaslighting him."
Biden said that he was "feeling terrible" on the night of the debate with Trump in June, telling ABC News host George Stephanopoulos that more serious concerns over his cognitive health should not have been believed in a post-debate interview.
"I was feeling terrible," Biden said. "Matter of fact, the docs with me, I asked if they did a COVID test because they were trying to figure out what's wrong. They did a test to see whether or not I had some infection, you know, a virus. I didn't. Just had a really bad cold."
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Jeffrey Clark
Some big-name companies and their CEOs have parted ways this year.
The departures have come in industries ranging from aerospace and fitness to apparel and tech, among others.
The Boeing, Nike, Peloton, WeightWatchers, Nike and Intel are among companies with CEO exits in 2024.
David Calhoun
Calhoun revealed in March that he had plans to stop serving as Boeing’s CEO, just over four years after he first took on the position.
"I have been considering for some time, in discussion with our board of directors, the right time for a CEO transition at Boeing," he said in a message to employees at the time. "I want to share with you that I have decided this will be my last year as CEO of our great company, and I have notified the board of that decision."
He said Boeing would "remain squarely focused on completing the work we have done together to return our company to stability after the extraordinary challenges of the past five years, with safety and quality at the forefront of everything that we do" during the transition.
The company has been working to recover from headwinds stemming from a pair of 737 MAX 8 crashes several years ago and, more recently, a Boeing 737 MAX plane’s door plug panel detaching mid-flight in January.
Kelly Ortberg had led the aerospace company since the late summer. His first day as CEO was Aug. 8.
Barry McCarthy
Barry McCarthy stopped being Peloton’s CEO in May, prompting the fitness company to tap Karen Boone and Chris Bruzzo as interim Co-CEOs while it looked for a permanent successor.
Following a surge in business during the pandemic, Peloton battled to remain relevant as people returned to traditional gym workouts when social distancing restrictions eased. To combat the declining sales, it deployed various efforts to cut costs and expand its customer base.
Ford executive Peter Stern will take over as CEO at the beginning of January, Peloton said in October. Bruzzo stepped down from his interim CEO role in early November, with Boone continuing to run the company in the meantime.
Peloton is known for its exercise bikes, treadmills and rowing machines.
Sima Sistani
Sistani exited WW International in late September, marking the end to her 2.5-year stint as CEO.
At the same time, WeightWatchers named Tara Comonte its interim CEO. The company said she was taking on the job "at a time when the Company is focused on improving its operational and financial performance while continuing to build on its product innovation and solutions for members."
The company has been around since 1963. It has long offered weight-loss and weight-management programs and, more recently, has delved into access to weight-loss medications.
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox Business' Aislinn Murphy
People looked up a slew of financial topics on Investopedia over the course of the year, with searches for some emerging as particularly popular.
Ten topics stood out as the ones that Investopedia readers searched for the most in 2024, the finance-focused site reported earlier in the month.
Investopedia editor-in-chief Caleb Silver discussed the findings of the "2024 Investopedia Terms of the Year" during a recent appearance on "The Claman Countdown."
"We look every day, we look every week and we look throughout the year at what people are searching for, what trends, terms or topics," he explained to host Liz Claman.
Inflation ranked No. 1 for the year, according to Investopedia.
"That was top of mind for everybody in this year, and it actually bled through into the election," Silver said. "It wasn’t just the fact that people were noticing that the growth rate was slower, but things didn’t feel cheaper to them."
The Consumer Price Index rose 0.3% month-over-month and 2.7% year-over-year in November, the month with the most-recently available data, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Second-place on Investopedia’s annual list was "tariffs."
Silver linked that topic’s appearance on the ranking to the presidential election.
"So you were making a choice for a lot of people. ‘I’m not comfortable with the fact that prices are still high. On the flip side, we know tariffs will come our way if they elect President Trump into office.’ That’s what happened," he explained. "Tariffs is trending very hard right now."
The No. 3 and No. 4 spots went to "Nvidia" and "stock split," respectively.
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Aislinn Murphy
It’s nearly time for the world-renowned Times Square ball drop to ring in the New Year of 2025.
Each year, over a million people gather together in Times Square to witness the coveted moment with their own eyes.
Along with them, billions tune in to ring in the New Year from the comfort and warmth of their own homes.
The dazzling crystal ball that sits high above Times Square begins its 60-second descent at 11:59 p.m.
This short but monumental moment is made possible by the work of many.
So how does the Times Square ball get its sparkle?
Waterford Crystal, a glass-making brand established in Ireland in 1783, has been hands-on with the Times Square ball since 2000.
Times Square has witnessed the evolution of seven distinct ball designs since 1907.
From the inaugural wooden ball to dazzling crystals introducing the new millennium, every iteration represents a fusion of innovation and tradition, encapsulating the spirit of each passing era in a shimmering spectacle that captivates the world.
In 2022, ahead of the New Year celebration, Waterford Crystal master artisan Tom Brennan gave Fox News Digital some keen insight on what goes into the annual installation at the top of One Times Square, where artisans and architects piece together the glittering globe.
This is an excerpt from an article by Angelica Stabile and Ashlyn Messier
Jamestown president Michael Phillips discussed new tech for next year’s crystal ball in Times Square and more on New Year’s Eve on ‘Fox & Friends.’
Phillips says next year's crystal ball will be more "digitally interactive" than recent years. He added that starting in fall 2025, the One Times Square building will be open to the public "after 75 years of being empty."
The current ball will go on display in the lower floors of the building, Phillips said.
New Year's Eve is associated with celebrations of all kinds, including fancy dinners featuring champagne and caviar.
Yet many New Year's Eve traditions are actually centered on simple, tasty foods that are said to bring luck for the New Year ahead — and are more accessible to most of us.
Here are three New Year's Eve food traditions from around the world that people swear will bring them luck.
Black-eyed peas
In the Southern part of the United States, black-eyed peas are a staple of New Year's Eve cuisine for many Americans.
Black-eyed peas are said to "bring in the New Year with hope, prosperity and good fortune," Bobby Ford, owner of Bobby Q's Jus Like Mama's, told Fox News Digital.
Bobby Q's Jus Like Mama's is a soul food restaurant on Long Island.
"These peas are also seen as a symbol of spiritual abundance — and with their nutritional value, as a way to promote health and well-being for the year ahead," he said.
Black-eyed peas, native to West Africa, were brought to the United States by enslaved Africans, said Ford.
Legend has it that women hid the peas in their hair.
"This act ensured they could grow familiar food in a new land, preserving a piece of their culture and sustenance," he said.
12 grapes
The tradition of eating 12 grapes at midnight on New Year's Eve began in Spain in the 19th century. It spread throughout other Spanish-speaking countries, says the website Food Republic.
In recent years, videos about the custom have gone viral on TikTok, with a video that was shared in 2023 by Kroger, the grocery store chain, receiving over 6 million views.
"Did you know eating 12 grapes on the New Year brings you good luck?" asked Kroger's TikTok.
The TikTok video went on to note that "as the clock strikes midnight, you eat them one at a time with each chime. If you can finish them before the chime ends, you will have good luck throughout the year."
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Christine Rousselle
America has celebrated the coming of the New Year by dropping a nearly 12,000-pound crystal ball on top of a building in Times Square nearly every year for over 100 years. Here's how the tradition started.
The first ball ball dropped in Times Square in 1907, this one made just of wood and iron.
But the tradition traces its roots to the New York Times, which moved its offices to the One Times Square building in 1904. At that time, Times Square was instead known as Longacre Square. The newspaper's then-owner, Aloph Ochs, petitioned to have the square renamed to its current name, according to the Times Square District Management Association.
"Ochs spared no expense to ensure a party for the ages. An all-day street festival culminated in a fireworks display set off from the base of the tower, and at midnight the joyful sound of cheering, rattles and noisemakers from the over 200,000 attendees could be heard, it was said, from as far away as Croton-on-Hudson, thirty miles north along the Hudson River," the association says.
The city banned the fireworks display soon after the event, triggering Ochs to turn instead to a massive wood and iron ball that would descend from the Times building's flag poll at precisely midnight, marking the transition from 1907 to 1908.
The tradition has held every year since, aside from 1942 and 1943, when World War II blackout orders prevented lighting in the city.
There has been a growing trend at legacy media organizations where progressive staffers ignite a war with their employers over an editorial position that does not align with their own.
Among the most memorable clashes in recent years include the social media revolt by New York Times staffers over the infamous Tom Cotton op-ed in 2020 and the open attacks by CNN employees over the network's Trump town hall in 2023.
In 2024, that trend exploded across multiple news outlets. These were the biggest newsroom revolts of the year:
NBC's hiring (and firing) of Ronna McDaniel
NBC News was engulfed in a firestorm fueled by its own staffers after the network announced in March it had hired former Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel as a contributor.
The practice of major news organizations hiring ex-lawmakers, government officials and political insiders has existed for decades and has largely been non-controversial. But a chorus of NBC talent, particularly from its liberal cable arm MSNBC, publicly disavowed McDaniel's hiring, citing her alleged actions in trying to block the certification of Michigan's election results in 2020.
"We weren’t asked our opinion of the hiring, but if we were, we would have strongly objected to it for several reasons including, but not limited to, as lawyers might say, Ms. McDaniel’s role in Donald Trump’s fake elector scheme and her pressuring election officials to not certify election results while Donald Trump was on the phone," MSNBC's Joe Scarborough said on "Morning Joe."
Rachel Maddow, MSNBC's biggest star, blasted NBC's "inexplicable" decision to hire McDaniel and expressed hope that the network would reverse its decision.
CBS News' internal uproar over the Dokoupil-Coates interview
In October, the left-wing staff at CBS News lashed out at their colleague, "CBS Mornings" co-host Tony Dokoupil, over his tough but civil interview exchange with progressive author Ta-Nehisi Coates.
Dokoupil, who is Jewish and has children living in Israel, grilled Coates, whose new book "The Message" is harshly critical of Israel and has been rebuked by the Jewish state's defenders for its shallow analysis of a complicated conflict.
"The content of that section would not be out of place in the backpack of an extremist," Dokoupil told Coates about one portion about his trip to Israel and the Palestinian territories, asking him "Why leave out so much" and "What is it that so particularly offends you about the existence of a Jewish state that is a Jewish safe place?"
CBS leadership reassured offended staff members that following a review, they concluded that the interview did not meet the company’s "editorial standards," the Free Press reported, which obtained audio of the staff meeting.
While a source familiar with the matter told Fox News Digital that Dokoupil would not be punished over the interview, he was forced to meet with the network’s in-house Race and Culture Unit following complaints. According to The New York Times, the conversation "focused on Mr. Dokoupil’s tone of voice, phrasing and body language" during the interview.
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News Joseph Wulfsohn
Fox News' Chanley Painter reported alongside the nearly 12,000 pound crystal ball as the NYPD prepares security for 1 million New Year's Eve onlookers in New York City on Tuesday.
Painter reported from the roof of the One Times Square building, which holds the crystal ball for the celebration. The ball will descend roughly 70 feet over 60 seconds as New York City marks the final minute of the year later Tuesday.
Chanley said there were already people arriving to Times Square to claim prime spots as early as 6 a.m. Tuesday morning.
The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said Monday it continues to operate under a "heightened threat environment" ahead of the Times Square New Year's Eve celebration.
More than a million visitors are expected in Times Square on Tuesday to attend the 120th tradition of watching the ball drop on the stroke of the New Year.
This year, the NYPD’s class of more than 600 new recruits will work their first detail Tuesday night. At a press conference about security preparations on Monday, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said there are no credible threats to the Times Square event at this time, but the department has been operating in a "heightened threat environment" since the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in Israel.
New York City has seen mass demonstrations against Israel, including the encampments, anti-semitic rallying cries and clashes with police seen at Columbia University and New York University earlier this year.
"We remain vigilant," Tisch told reporters. "The public can expect to see a tremendous amount of police resources deployed throughout the area and across the city. That includes members of some of our elite specialized units, including our emergency services unit, who will be strategically deployed throughout the area on rooftops. Our K-9 teams, who will patrol with bomb sniffing dogs. Our aviation unit will be in the skies scanning the event and the surrounding areas with special attention to the bridges and other landmarks. And of course, our drones will be deployed overhead to monitor the crowds in real time and watch for any suspicious or unusual activity."
Last year, the NYPD had about four drone teams inside the "bow tie" and "frozen area" around Times Square for New Year's Eve. That will increase to six drone teams – four inside the bow tie and two on the outer perimeter – this year, NYPD Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry said, adding that mobile drone teams will also operate around Manhattan and the rest of the city and monitor activity over the water as well.
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Danielle Wallace
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