ATLANTA — A federal hearing on a challenge to Georgia's voting machines was interrupted Friday when someone began posting video and symbols during the live Zoom session, including images from the Sept. 11 attacks, a swastika and pornography. Before the interruption, there were roughly 100 people signed in as participants...
A Zoom Thanksgiving? Summer Could Give Way To a Bleaker Fall
As the Summer of COVID draws to a close, many experts fear an even bleaker fall and suggest that American families should start planning for Thanksgiving by Zoom. Because of the many uncertainties, public health scientists say it’s easier to forecast the weather on Thanksgiving Day than to predict how...
Racist Taunt Shows Up on Computer Screens in Madera South Class
Anitra Jones' son was attending one of his Madera South classes Wednesday morning when a chat box suddenly surfaced on his screen, with a hateful and racist message repeated 40 times. Jones said it's not the first time one of her children, who are African American, was hit by racist...
Fresno Unified Teachers Want to Know: What’s the Distance Learning Plan?
Fresno Unified officials say the distance learning program provided to its 74,000 students starting just three weeks from now will be markedly different than the one in the final two months of the past school year. But details about what school will look like while students are learning virtually are...
Official Resigns After Throwing Cat During Online Meeting
VALLEJO — A planning commissioner of Vallejo, California, has resigned after throwing his pet cat and apparently drinking a beer during a Zoom meeting between city officials that was made public, according to a newspaper report. During the April 20 teleconference of the city's Planning Commission, Chris Platzer announced, “I’d like to...
‘SNL’ Returns for Work-At-Home Version With Host Tom Hanks
NEW YORK — “Saturday Night Live” tried its first “quarantine version" of the comedy show, with Tom Hanks, one of the first celebrities to disclose he had the coronavirus, Coldplay singer Chris Martin and the comedy show's entire cast phoning in with jokes from home. After being gone for more than...
Hackers’ New Target During Pandemic: Video Conference Calls
WASHINGTON — Ceri Weber had just begun to defend her dissertation when the chaos began: Echoes and voices interrupted her. Someone parroted her words. Then Britney Spears music came on, and someone told Weber to shut up. Someone threatened to rape her. Hackers had targeted the meeting on the video...