The longest-serving state senator in North Dakota history has been indicted on federal charges related to child pornography.

Ray Holmberg, a Republican who resigned last spring, was charged in an indictment unsealed Monday with travel with the intent to engage in illicit sexual activity and receipt of child pornography after investigators showed he traded scores of text messages with a convicted sex offender, reported KFGO-TV.

#notadragqueen

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has used a system called Giant Oak Search Technology (GOST) to help the agency scrutinize social media posts, determine if they are “derogatory” to the U.S., and then use that information as part of immigration enforcement, according to a new cache of documents reviewed by 404 Media.

The Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) would censor the internet and would make government officials the arbiters of what young people can see online. It will likely lead to age verification, handing more power, and private data, to third-party identity verification companies like Clear or ID.me. The government should not have the power to decide what topics are "safe" online for young people, and to force services to remove and block access to anything that might be considered unsafe for children. This isn’t safety—it’s censorship.

The hard sell of ultra-processed foods in developing countries as being ‘good for you’ gives children a taste for sugar and salt that could have lasting effects on their health

The world just had the hottest week on record, according to preliminary data. It follows the hottest June on record, with unprecedented sea surface temperatures and record low Antarctic sea ice extent.

Oil and gas companies in West Texas released hundreds of tons of toxic gases into the air last week as a record-breaking heatwave drove pressure inside pipelines and compressors to dangerously high levels.

One company, Targa Resources, vented more than 500,000 pounds of toxins into the air during 17 reported events over a week-long period of extreme heat.

Throughout the recent record-breaking and deadly heat wave that affected millions across Texas and other parts of the Southwest, major TV networks largely failed to report on the links between climate change and the extreme heat. Over a two-week period from June 15-29, an analysis by Media Matters found: Only 5% of the 310 segments and weathercasts about the heat wave across national TV news mentioned climate change. Major cable news networks – CNN, Fox News Channel, and MSNBC – aired 187 segments or weathercasts about the heat wave, but only 8 mentioned climate change. MSNBC mentioned the connection between the extreme heat and climate change 5 times and CNN mentioned it 3. Corporate broadcast networks – ABC, CBS, and NBC – aired a combined 123 segments or weathercasts that discussed the heat wave, but only 7 mentioned climate change. ABC led the way with 5 mentions, while CBS and NBC each mentioned the connection between extreme heat and climate change once.