Dominion Voting sues Fox for $1.6B over 2020 election claims  —  WASHINGTON (AP) — Dominion Voting Systems on Friday filed a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against Fox News, arguing the cable news giant falsely claimed in an effort to boost faltering ratings that the voting company had rigged the 2020 election.

The Presidential Press Conference in the Biden Era Is as Awful as Ever  —  Under Trump, we had to listen.  But now?  There must be a better way.  —  Sometimes the big moments in our politics meet the very low expectations we have for them.  Joe Biden's first Presidential press conference, on Thursday, was one of them.

The Jolt: Image of lawmaker's arrest spoils victory lap on election law  —  By Patricia Murphy - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Greg Bluestein - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Tia Mitchell - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution  —  Talk about mixed messages.

Trump Complains Government Is ‘Persecuting’ Capitol Rioters  —  One of the most dangerous, long-lasting changes effected by Donald Trump is the rightward extension of the Republican coalition.  A wide array of far-right militias and cults was either created or inspired to join the Republican Party …

Larry McMurtry, Novelist of the American West, Dies at 84  —  In “Lonesome Dove,” “The Last Picture Show” and dozens more novels and screenplays, he offered unromantic depictions of a long mythologized region.  —  Larry McMurtry, a prolific novelist and screenwriter who demythologized …

Far-Right Extremists Move From ‘Stop the Steal’ to Stop the Vaccine  —  Extremist organizations are now bashing the safety and efficacy of coronavirus vaccines in an effort to try to undermine the government.  —  Adherents of far-right groups who cluster online have turned repeatedly …

MAGA World says Biden's lost it.  Republican senators disagree.  —  For former President Donald Trump's GOP allies, President Joe Biden's recent stumble on the Air Force One stairs was a sign of bigger problems.  But Republican senators who've met with Biden say the 78-year-old president is just fine …

Media Startups Axios and the Athletic Discuss Merger, Eyeing SPAC Deal  —  Deal would be part of plan to create larger company with a portfolio of digital-media publishers  —  Sports-media outlet the Athletic is in merger talks with news startup Axios, according to people familiar with the matter …

Suez Canal blockage is delaying an estimated $400 million an hour in goods  — Lloyd's List calculates blockage is costing $400 million an hour.  — Lloyd's values the canal's westbound traffic at roughly $5.1 billion a day, and eastbound traffic at around $4.5 billion a day.

LAPD detains, then releases, Los Angeles Times reporter covering unrest in Echo Park  —  Los Angeles Times reporter James Queally was briefly detained by the Los Angeles Police Department as he was covering a protest in Echo Park on Thursday evening.  —  Protesters were also detained by police …

Trump CDC Director Robert Redfield says COVID-19 ‘most likely’ came from Wuhan lab  —  The former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revealed he believes COVID-19 originated through an accidental escape from a Wuhan lab and hinted that this occurred following gain …

Republicans know their war on voting is racist — so they're barely bothering to defend it  —  Republicans don't need substantive arguments against voting rights because they know they have the filibuster  —  This week, Congress finally started work in earnest on the topic of voting rights.

For 50 Years, I Was Denied the Story of My Birth  —  All adoptees deserve better.  —  Mr. Inskeep, a co-host of NPR's “Morning Edition” and “Up First,” is an adoptee and an adoptive father.  —  In 1968, a woman appeared for an interview at the Children's Bureau, an adoption agency in Indianapolis.

Taiwan reports largest ever incursion by Chinese air force  —  TAIPEI (Reuters) - Twenty Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan's air defence identification zone on Friday, in the largest incursion yet reported by the island's defence ministry and marking a dramatic escalation of tension across the Taiwan Strait.

Yellow Journalism Turns Blue  —  Ron Johnson is under attack from a press that's abandoned honesty and fairness.  —  “Yellow journalism” means a sensationalized press.  Perhaps it is time to introduce “blue journalism”—the new media practice of abandoning standards to work seamlessly with the progressive left against any opposition.

“I'm Afraid to Open Twitter”: Next-Level Harassment of Female Journalists Is Putting News Outlets to the Test  —  Newsrooms that once preached “don't feed the trolls” are being forced to grapple with a daily deluge of smears.  “Even the most open-minded media organizations are still run …

Mitt Romney receives John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award … Republican Sen. Mitt Romney is the recipient of this year's John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for his vote to convict former President Donald Trump during his first impeachment trial “and his consistent and courageous defense of democracy.”

It's time to stop feeling sorry for restaurants  —  One of the saddest business stories that came out of the 2020 pandemic was the impact that mandated shutdowns had on the restaurant industry.  News reports across the country covered frustrated business owners who were forced to comply …

White House nixed Deb Haaland's Southwest-themed party over Covid concerns  —  The White House recently ordered that a 50-person, Southwest-themed indoor party the Interior Department was planning to celebrate Secretary Deb Haaland's confirmation be canceled after senior administration officials …

Scoop: AOC's private audience with Ron Klain  —  White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain met quietly with Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jamaal Bowman and other progressive lawmakers this week to discuss the filibuster, minimum wage and other issues, people familiar with the matter told Axios.

POLITICO Playbook: The most important sentence from Biden's presser  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  “It's a matter of timing.”  —  If there were a one-sentence takeaway from President JOE BIDEN'S first press conference, that may be it.  —  Over and over in the East Room, the president …

Hugo Boss' Xinjiang comments spark accusations of hypocrisy online  —  Chinese subsidiary's social media post appears to contradict German fashion brand's corporate buying policy Japanese homeware brand Muji also accused of double standards as Beijing's dispute with Western countries hots …