A second Vatican study commission has determined that women should not be ordained as deacons, dealing another setback to Catholic women who hope one day to be able to preside at weddings, baptisms and funerals. (Winfield, AP News)
Read MoreThe measure is meant to protect children from the pressures and risks of social media, a mounting global concern. Big platforms including Snapchat, X, Facebook, Meta, TikTok, Threads and YouTube are set to or have already begun freezing or deactivating affected accounts. (Javaid, The Washington Post)
Read MoreAccording to a newly released survey from AARP, adults aged 45 and older are lonelier than ever. The association surveyed around 3,300 Americans in August and found that 40% of them reported feeling lonely, a five percentage point increase from the last time the survey was conducted in 2018, and the first time the survey was conducted, in 2010. (Perez, USA Today)
Read MoreThe caveat is that most of us cannot afford the particular beauty we are watching here. Most of us can’t simply uproot our life, quit our jobs and move to a carefully curated farmhouse in the country. For many of the gawkers and voyeurs, this is pure fantasy, a kind of calming, momentary escape. (Roiphe, The Wall Street Journal)
Read MoreRosé and Mars’ “APT.” dominated across several charts, ranking at No. 1 on the top global music tally, Shazam, global radio and lyrics charts. The peppy tune, which was released in October 2024, was a runaway hit for both artists, continuing to pick up nominations for song and record of the year for the 2026 Grammy Awards. (Horowitz, Variety)
Read MoreYouTube celebrated its 20th birthday this year, and while a lot has changed over the years, one thing has stayed consistent: Pop culture continues to be defined by the ways creators and fans use video. This is especially evident in the end-of-year Trending Topics, Top Creators, Top Songs, Top Songs on Shorts, and Top Podcasts lists in the U.S. (Buxton, YouTube)
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