Culture

Billy Joel Says 1989 Hit 'We Didn't Start the Fire' Is One of His Least Favorite Songs

Billy Joel has called his 1989 hit "We Didn't Start the Fire" one of his least favorite songs, telling Howard Stern in 2010 that "I don’t think it’s much of a melody... To be honest, it’s really not much of a song.

Sports

Nottingham Forest must beat Ferencvaros to secure Europa League last-16 — how to watch

Nottingham Forest host Ferencvaros on 29 Jan 2026 in a must-win Europa League group game — kick-off is listed as 15:00 EST and 20:00 GMT — Forest need a win to guarantee progression while Ferencvaros have already qualified for the knockout phase. English-language live streams and broadcasts include Paramount+ (USA)

World

Chinese man who filmed Xinjiang detention footage granted US asylum

A US immigration judge granted asylum to a Chinese national, Guan Heng, on Wednesday in Napanoch, New York, saying he had a "well founded fear" of persecution if returned to China after exposing alleged human rights abuses against Uyghurs in Xinjiang. Guan applied for asylum after arriving in

Culture

Lamar Odom enters 30-day rehab after Jan. 17 DUI arrest in Las Vegas

Lamar Odom has checked into rehab after he was arrested for DUI earlier this month, his manager Gina Rodriguez told Page Six. The retired NBA athlete made the "personal decision" to enter a 30-day treatment program at iRely Recovery to "reset and focus on his health."

Culture

Atom Zombie Smasher gets surprise 15th‑anniversary update on Steam

Atom Zombie Smasher, Blendo’s 15-year-old zombie tower‑defense/top‑down rescue sim, received a surprise 15th‑anniversary update on Steam, PC Gamer reports. PC Gamer says the patch won’t radically remake the game but instead adds “a horde of little changes,” stopping short of a full overhaul. The

Sports

Newcastle draw 1-1 with PSG in Paris, both drop into Champions League playoffs

On a chilly night in Paris Newcastle drew 1-1 with Paris Saint-Germain in the final Champions League group game, leaving both teams outside the automatic qualification slots; Eddie Howe’s side finished 12th overall and will enter the knockout playoffs in the last two weeks of February, and PSG will

Culture

Dispatch Episode 1 ('Pivot'): Key choices and whether you should kiss Blonde Blazer

Published Jan 28, 2026, Episode 1 ('Pivot') is the first chapter of Dispatch. You play Robert Robertson, the third-generation Mecha Man, who retires and is recruited to the Superhero Dispatch Network (SDN) to mentor heroes-in-training. The episode opens with a choice to drop the Soothing Goon or pull

Politics

Man Border Patrol Agents Were Seeking After Minneapolis Shooting Remains at Large

Federal officials said Border Patrol agents were searching for an Ecuadorean named Jose Huerta-Chuma when they fatally shot Alex Pretti on a Minneapolis sidewalk during a Saturday operation, and as of Jan. 28, 2026, Mr. Huerta-Chuma remained at large, DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said. At least eight federal agents in

Culture

Tim Cain says he worked 70+ hour weeks on original Fallout because they loved it

Fallout co-creator Tim Cain said in a video on his official YouTube channel that he and his team at Interplay regularly worked more than 70 hours a week while making the original Fallout. Cain described a typical day as waking around 6am, feeding his cat, then arriving at the office

Culture

The Guardian Cryptic crossword No 29,916 — across clues

The Guardian's Cryptic crossword No 29,916: across clues. 1 across. Don’t be cruel to old comedian, simple at heart. 2 letters, 4 letters and 2 letters. 5 across. Duck as light motorcycle loses one wheel? 6 letters. 6 across. 9 across. Leave secretly, ramp unavailable. 5

Tech

Leaked bug report reveals Google’s Aluminium OS merging Android and ChromeOS

A leaked Google bug report has revealed early details of Aluminium OS, the company’s planned merge of Android and ChromeOS, and the platform is expected to arrive sometime this year (2026), according to published reports. The bug report, originally spotted by 9to5Google after a Telegram tip from a user

Culture

BabyTuber thumbnails: a playful antidote to YouTube’s clickbait style

A new thumbnail trend dubbed “BabyTuber” is catching on after an artist who goes by Jamie on Bluesky shared one earlier this week titled “Why I’m Switching.” The image shows an infant furrowing its brow while pondering upgrading from toy blocks to a bead maze. The Kotaku piece frames

Crypto

Bitcoin Traders Eye $93,500 Liquidation Zone After Fed Pauses Rate Cut

Bitcoin staged a quick rally to $90,600 on Wednesday, but the gains evaporated after the US Federal Reserve decided not to cut interest rates. Data and analysts are flagging a potential move to $93,500, which has been identified as a key liquidation zone. Trader Mark Cullen highlighted the

Culture

Wonder Man on Disney+ packed with MCU Easter eggs tying Roxxon, Slattery and Doorman

Wonder Man premiered on Disney+ on January 27, 2026, starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Simon Williams and featuring Ben Kingsley returning as Trevor Slattery. Across its eight-episode run, the series is full of Marvel Cinematic Universe and pop-culture Easter eggs that tie it into franchise history and Los Angeles film

Health

Erin Oudshoorn announces death of daughter Lulu after rare epilepsy struggle

Influencer Erin Oudshoorn announced on Instagram Jan. 27 that her daughter Lulu has died, writing, "It is with the most painful, shattered heart to share that our darling Lulu passed away peacefully in our arms yesterday, surrounded and profoundly loved on by all of her extended family." She

Politics

Rubio Says Venezuela Will Submit Monthly Budget; Funds Held First in Qatari Account

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, that Venezuela’s interim government has agreed to submit a monthly "budget" to the Trump administration, which will release money from an account funded by the sale of Venezuelan oil and initially

Science

Robotics, AI and launch opportunities highlight research aboard International Space Station

Robotics and artificial intelligence were back on the research schedule Wednesday aboard the International Space Station, where Expedition 74 crew members ran student robotics challenges, conducted Earth observations and performed life-support maintenance. NASA said the earliest opportunity for the SpaceX Crew-12 launch to the station is 6 a.m. EST

Crypto

Fidelity to launch FIDD stablecoin on Ethereum as US rules clear

Fidelity Investments said on Wednesday it will launch a stablecoin called the Fidelity Digital Dollar (FIDD) on Ethereum, with the token expected to become available on exchanges in the coming weeks for institutional and retail investors. The firm said FIDD will be fully backed by reserves and will be issued

Crypto

Fed pauses rates; weak dollar shapes Bitcoin and crypto outlook

The US Federal Reserve voted to leave interest rates unchanged on Wednesday, a decision that was widely anticipated by investors. The Federal Open Market Committee held the federal funds rate in a range of 3.5% to 3.75%, marking the first pause since July. The FOMC cautioned that inflation

Culture

Marcel ranks Steven Spielberg’s five greatest films — Schindler’s List is No. 1

Writer Marcel published a list on Jan. 28, 2026, ranking what he calls the five greatest Steven Spielberg movie masterpieces, placing Schindler’s List at No. 1. At No. 1, Schindler’s List is described as Spielberg’s most mature and personal project, a black-and-white dramatization of Oskar Schindler’s

Sports

Panathinaikos vs Roma (Jan 29): kick-off time, TV channels and how to stream

Panathinaikos host Roma in a Europa League group-stage match on 29 Jan 2026, kicking off at 15:00 EST / 20:00 GMT; Roma need a win to secure progress while Panathinaikos have already qualified for the knockout phase. English-language coverage includes Paramount+ in the USA, TNT Sports in the UK,

Business

USS John F. Kennedy sails for builder sea trials as delivery set for March 2027

The US Navy's next Ford-class aircraft carrier, USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79), launched out of Huntington Ingalls Industries' Newport News shipyard on Wednesday and has begun shipbuilder sea trials, a major milestone before Navy delivery. Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) is overseeing the trials so its Newport News

Tech

South Korea enacts ‘world-first’ AI law requiring watermarks and risk tests

South Korea has launched what is being billed as the most comprehensive set of AI laws anywhere in the world after an AI basic act took effect on Thursday last week, a move the government says is central to its bid to become a leading global AI power. The law

Crypto

Meta, Microsoft ramp AI spending; bitcoin miners pivot to host AI workloads

Meta and Microsoft — in fourth-quarter results and 2026 outlooks released Wednesday evening — signaled continued heavy AI investment, with Meta forecasting 2026 capital spending of $115–$135 billion, well above consensus, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella saying, “We are only at the beginning phases of AI diffusion.” Shares of bitcoin mining

Sports

Cooper Flagg goes No. 1 as NBA sets 2026 Castrol Rising Stars rosters

The NBA’s 2026 Castrol Rising Stars rosters are set for All-Star Weekend in Los Angeles: Cooper Flagg of the Dallas Mavericks went No. 1, Kon Knueppel of the Charlotte Hornets No. 2, and VJ Edgecomb of the Philadelphia 76ers No. 3. The mini-tournament is scheduled for Friday, February 13