telephone calls

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FCC Outlaws AI-Generated Voices in Robocalls

Steep fines await those who attempt to use the technology to manipulate voters, scam people

(Newser) - The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday outlawed robocalls that contain voices generated by artificial intelligence, a decision that sends a clear message that exploiting the technology to scam people and mislead voters won't be tolerated. The unanimous ruling targets robocalls made with AI voice-cloning tools under the Telephone Consumer...

That Rotary Phone in the Forest Can Ease Your Grief

After Army vet created a 'wind phone' for a local park, they're now popping up everywhere

(Newser) - At the end of 2020, Corey Dembeck heard the awful news that the 4-year-old daughter of a friend had suddenly died after a bout with strep led to sepsis. The US Army veteran and former photojournalist wanted to do something immediate for the family of little Joelle Sylvester, so he...

Firm Hit With Robocalls Suit: 'Americans Are Sick and Tired'

Attorneys general team up in complaint against Avid Telecom, accused of making 7.5B robocalls

(Newser) - Attorneys general across the US joined in a lawsuit against a telecommunications company accused of making more than 7.5 billion robocalls to people on the National Do Not Call Registry. The 141-page lawsuit was filed Tuesday in US District Court in Phoenix against Avid Telecom, owner Michael Lansky, and...

This Guy Pranked Alex Jones, and Jones Isn't Happy
This Guy Pranked Alex Jones,
and Jones Isn't Happy
in case you missed it

This Guy Pranked Alex Jones, and Jones Isn't Happy

Chris James says he pretended he was Tucker Carlson using AI, will air call on Monday

(Newser) - If you love prank phone calls, you have something to look forward to on Monday. That's when Chris James, a self-proclaimed "little prankster" from Canada, says he'll be releasing the gag call he made to conspiracy theorist Alex Jones this week, a call that Jones has admitted...

Damar Hamlin Surprises Team With FaceTime Call

'Love you boys,' he said in exchange with rest of the Buffalo Bills on Friday

(Newser) - Damar Hamlin is now breathing on his own , without help from a ventilator. Now, what the Buffalo News frames as "another huge step" out of Cincinnati, where the Buffalo Bills player has been hospitalized since Monday night, when he suffered cardiac arrest and collapsed while playing against the Bengals...

Tech Bigwig Was on Call on How to Contest Trump's Loss

Sean Hannity, Lindsey Graham also said to be on call with ex-Oracle CEO Larry Ellison

(Newser) - Larry Ellison recently popped up on Forbes' "10 Richest People in the World" list, but that's not why he's making headlines this week. The Washington Post is reporting on a "previously unknown dimension" of the efforts to contest former President Trump's loss in the 2020...

Lawmaker in Lucio Call: 'You're Going to Wake Up on Thursday'

Phone call released between Jeff Leach, Texas mother of 14 after stay of execution announced

(Newser) - One of the Texas lawmakers working hard behind the scenes to stop the execution of Melissa Lucio was the one who got to tell her about her stay on Monday, just two days before the 53-year-old mother of 14 was to be put to death, and KXAN now has audio...

Final Text Revealed From Family Who Died on Trail

From Jonathan Gerrish's phone: 'can you help us. ... No water or ver [over] heating with baby'

(Newser) - Update: More is now known about the final hours of a California family who perished on a hike near Yosemite over the summer, thanks to dad Jonathan Gerrish's cellphone, reports CNN . Per the Mariposa County Sheriff's Office , some of the last things that Gerrish, wife Ellen Chung, and...

Trump Interview With NPR Has Abrupt End

Former president hangs up as he was being grilled on his false claims of election fraud

(Newser) - NPR Morning Edition host Steven Inskeep nabbed an interview with former President Trump on Tuesday—after six years of trying. "It was scheduled for 15 minutes, but lasted just over nine," NPR reports, noting Trump—who hurled insults at Republican senators, including Mitch McConnell—ended the conversation abruptly...

Ex-Ozy Editor: 'Amazed That It Took So Long' for Firm to Crash

Eugene Robinson also says he suspects CEO Carlos Watson was behind fake phone call

(Newser) - If you thought talk about Ozy Media was over, steel yourself. The digital media firm caught up in the convoluted wake of a fraudulent phone call and other controversies is making headlines again. A former Ozy editor now says he suspects the person on the other end of that fake...

Ronan Farrow's New Target: Andrew Cuomo
Ronan Farrow: Phone Call
by Cuomo Raises Legal Issues
the rundown

Ronan Farrow: Phone Call by Cuomo Raises Legal Issues

Governor called White House in 2014 to complain about a federal prosecutor

(Newser) - The potential trouble for Andrew Cuomo keeps mounting . The latest arrives via an investigative piece about the New York governor by Ronan Farrow in the New Yorker . Farrow doesn't recount more allegations of sexual harassment, however. Instead, he reports that Cuomo made a highly improper, possibly illegal call to...

State Makes Prison Phone Calls on the House

Connecticut is the first state to remove the barrier to families keeping in contact

(Newser) - Connecticut has gone from charging some of the highest rates in the nation for prison phone calls to providing them free of charge. A vendor with the state contract has been charging as much as $5 for a 15-minute call, WTNH reports. Inmates, including juveniles, will now be entitled to...

Report: Trump-McCarthy Call Showed Reticence on Rioters

GOP lawmakers detail 'shouting match' between ex-president, Kevin McCarthy during Capitol attack

(Newser) - "Tomorrow just got a lot more interesting." That was Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse's take Friday night about former President Trump's impeachment trial on Saturday, which will be continuing in the wake of a new report of a Jan. 6 interaction between Trump and House Minority Leader...

What Pro-Trump Outlets Say About His Phone Call

He 'acted properly,' declares Newsmax

(Newser) - After the Washington Post came out with its scoop about President Trump's phone call to Georgia election officials, critics accused him of running afoul of the law. But Trump's supporters see things much differently. Two examples of positive coverage:
  • Newsmax notes that the Post, referring to Trump's
...

Sasse Slams Trump on Call: A GOP 'Bloodbath' Is Coming

Neb. senator didn't hold back in chat with constituents: 'I've never been on the Trump train'

(Newser) - Sen. Ben Sasse had a conference call with 17,000 constituents this week, and probably not unexpectedly, the subject of President Trump came up. What may have been unexpected, however, is what the New York Times calls a "dire nine-minute indictment" by the Nebraska senator on the president. In...

What's It Like Having Elon's Old Number? She Can Tell You

25-year-old Lyndsay Tucker was reassigned Musk's former number by AT&T

(Newser) - Anyone trying to give Elon Musk a call shouldn't be surprised if they end up speaking to a 25-year-old Sephora worker instead. Her name is Lyndsay Tucker, and she was by chance given a phone number by AT&T a few years ago that used to belong to none...

White House Changes Trump Phone-Call Rules

Now fewer people will be allowed to listen in

(Newser) - President Trump's phone calls with foreign leaders just got a little more private, CNN reports. According to White House officials, the approved-listener list has fallen to a handful of top administration officials appointed by Trump. Seems national security adviser Robert O'Brien gets to approve the list and listen...

He Was Angry at His Phone Company. Then, a 'Tipping Point'

71-year-old Akitoshi Okamoto arrested after KDDI says he made 24K phone calls to them

(Newser) - Customer service hotlines exist in part so that customers can air grievances, and one elderly man in Japan apparently took advantage of that. CNN reports 71-year-old Akitoshi Okamoto was arrested Nov. 26 on suspicion of fraudulent obstruction of business after allegedly making 24,000 phone calls over a two-and-a-half-year period...

Trump Wants to Read the Ukraine Transcript to the US

President tells 'Washington Examiner' he might read Ukraine call transcript aloud on live TV

(Newser) - As impeachment proceedings rumble on, President Trump says he'll keep fighting back against allegations that his phone call with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky was inappropriate. And as part of his strategy, he's mulling using T-shirts and what Fox News calls an "FDR-esque" tactic. On Thursday, the Washington ...

Trump's Ukraine Expert: WH Transcript Was Missing Parts

Sources: Alexander Vindman said he tried to get "Burisma," Trump's mention of Biden tapes back in

(Newser) - Democrats said Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman's more than 10 hours of testimony Tuesday on Capitol Hill in the Trump impeachment inquiry was "extremely disturbing," and key among the details was his description of the July 25 phone call between President Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, as...

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