The Washington Times AI News Desk

The perfect March Madness bracket? The odds are basically zero

Every March, tens of millions of Americans fill out NCAA Tournament brackets with a quiet, familiar belief: This could be the year.

March 18, 2026

Oscars ratings slide 9% to four-year low as awards season struggles

Hollywood's biggest night drew its smallest audience in four years Sunday, as viewership for the 98th Academy Awards fell to 17.9 million -- a 9% decline from last year's post-pandemic high -- according to Nielsen data released Tuesday.

March 18, 2026

Former ‘Price Is Right’ model says she was fired for refusing to defend Bob Barker

A former model on "The Price Is Right" is breaking her silence, alleging she was pushed off the long-running game show in 1995 because she refused to publicly defend host Bob Barker amid a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by a fellow model.

March 18, 2026

Kohl’s CEO rules out further store closures, says most locations remain profitable

Kohl's Corp. CEO Michael Bender said the department store chain has no plans to shutter additional locations this year, offering a measure of reassurance to shoppers and employees after the retailer closed 27 stores in 2025.

March 18, 2026

Culture Wire: ‘Dune: Part Three’ trailer releases, Kiki Shepard dead at 74 and more

The first teaser for "Dune: Part Three" drops, new "Spider-Man" movie starts its marketing campaign, and more.

March 17, 2026

Encyclopedia Britannica, Merriam-Webster sue OpenAI over ‘Massive Copyright Infringement’

Encyclopedia Britannica and its Merriam-Webster subsidiary filed suit against OpenAI on Friday, accusing the artificial intelligence giant of unlawfully copying nearly 100,000 copyrighted articles to train its GPT large language models.

March 17, 2026

N.Y. attorney charged with hiring enforcer to extort former client’s son for $500K

A New York attorney has been federally charged with attempted extortion after allegedly hiring an individual to threaten and assault a former client's son in an effort to collect a $500,000 debt he claimed he was owed.

March 17, 2026

FDA probes multistate E. coli outbreak tied to RAW FARM raw cheddar cheese

Federal health officials are investigating a multistate E. coli outbreak tied to RAW FARM-brand raw cheddar cheese -- and the company has declined a federal recommendation to remove its products from the market.

March 17, 2026

SpaceX crosses 10,000-satellite threshold, owning two-thirds of all active satellites in orbit

SpaceX hit a landmark milestone in the early hours of Tuesday morning, pushing its Starlink internet constellation past 10,000 simultaneously active satellites, a figure that would have seemed fantastical just a decade ago.

March 17, 2026

Ex-LASD deputy sentenced to 63 months for extortion, sham arrest plot

A former Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputy and helicopter pilot was sentenced to 63 months in federal prison for helping a self-styled cryptocurrency businessman extort a rival and arrange the sham drug-possession arrest of another adversary in 2021, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

March 17, 2026

Meteor rattles northeast Ohio on St. Patrick’s Day: What to know

A loud boom that rattled homes across northeast Ohio on Tuesday morning was likely caused by a meteor, according to the National Weather Service, though some details about the event remain under investigation.

March 17, 2026

Kid Rock fires back at Conan O’Brien over Oscars joke, touts ‘Freedom 250’ tour

Kid Rock pushed back against a jab Conan O'Brien made at his expense during the 98th Academy Awards, calling the comedian's quip subpar while using the moment to promote his upcoming summer tour.

March 17, 2026

Which ex-president told Trump he wished he’d struck Iran?

A mystery is swirling around the Oval Office: Which former president secretly told Donald Trump he wished he'd launched military strikes against Iran?

March 17, 2026

Who is Joe Kent, the counterterrorism chief who just quit over the Iran war?

Joe Kent spent two decades hunting terrorists as a Green Beret and CIA operative before becoming one of the Trump administration's most controversial intelligence figures -- and the highest-ranking administration official to resign over the Iran war.

March 17, 2026

St. Patrick’s Day 2026: Best food and drink deals to celebrate the holiday

St. Patrick's Day falls on Tuesday, and restaurants and chains across the country are marking the occasion with discounts, freebies and limited-time menu items.

March 17, 2026

St. Patrick’s Day: What to know about the holiday’s history and traditions

Every March 17, cities across America, and the world, turn green. Parades fill the streets, the Chicago River gets dyed emerald, and millions raise a glass in honor of Irish heritage. But the holiday's origins are far quieter than the celebration it has become.

March 17, 2026

Apple announces AirPods Max 2: Here’s what the experts are saying

Apple Inc. on Monday announced the AirPods Max 2, the first major hardware update to its flagship over-ear headphones since their December 2020 debut.

March 16, 2026

Los Angeles GasBuddy listing shows $8.71 regular price as war pushes fuel costs higher

A GasBuddy listing showed regular gasoline priced at $8.71 per gallon at a Chevron station at 901 N. Alameda St. in Los Angeles, a price that dwarfs what drivers are paying at most nearby stations and what Washington-area motorists are seeing at the pump.

March 16, 2026

Tornado aftermath: What to do if your home is damaged, and how to get help

After a tornado damages a home, the dangers do not end when the storm passes. Unstable walls, gas leaks, downed utilities, and carbon monoxide from generators or cooking equipment can turn the first hours of cleanup into a second emergency, according to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the American Red Cross.

March 16, 2026

Tornado survival: Studies identify the best places in your home to take shelter

When a tornado warning sounds, where you are standing and what surrounds you may matter more than almost anything else. A body of peer-reviewed research on tornado injuries, survivor behavior, and housing vulnerability offers a clearer picture of what actually keeps people alive when a violent storm arrives.

March 16, 2026