Author: DispatchTimes News Desk

An experienced motorcyclist who died after crashing on the Western Highway in Victoria has been identified as Ballarat rider Peter ‘Tiki’ Mason. The 71-year-old artist was riding near Trawalla Road in Trawalla, west of Melbourne, shortly before 12.50pm on Sunday when he reportedly struck a pothole and lost control of his motorcycle. He died at the scene. Police said the precise circumstances of the crash had yet to be established and would be investigated. However, friends and local riders have blamed the condition of the road, sharing photographs of potholes across Victoria’s highways. Dave Turner, a close friend, paid tribute…

The new season of 60 Minutes opened on Sunday with a familiar blend of conflict, accountability journalism and sport, despite sweeping changes to the programme’s leadership and correspondent line-up under CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss. Ross Douthat joined the cast in place of Scott Pelley, while the programme adopted more polished visual production. Its redesigned stopwatch and sleek screens replaced the traditional “book” graphics that had appeared behind correspondents. But the content remained recognisable to long-standing viewers. Norah O’Donnell interviewed an Air Force colonel who described being rescued after he was shot down over Iran, while Lesley Stahl investigated intermediaries…

Sydney Sweeney’s dating history has come under renewed scrutiny following the end of her long-term relationship with Jonathan Davino and her reported romance with Scooter Braun. The 29-year-old Euphoria actress spent much of her twenties with Davino, to whom she was engaged for several years before the couple split in 2025. Sweeney has since been linked with Braun, and their relationship has reportedly become more serious over the past year. Only a small number of Sweeney’s relationships have been publicly confirmed, while several other romances have remained the subject of speculation. Among them was speculation involving her Anyone But You…

A 40-year-old woman in Jefferson County, Pennsylvania, has died from complications associated with measles, local authorities said, bringing the state’s reported total for measles-related deaths this year to three. Jefferson County coroner Greg Furlong said the woman died on Saturday 12 September. Her identity has not been released, and officials have not confirmed her vaccination status. Furlong described the death as measles-related and said no further information about the case would be made public. Jefferson County is a rural area about 80 miles north-east of Pittsburgh. The two previous deaths reported in Pennsylvania this year involved infants who were too…

Former Strathfield mayor Matthew Blackmore has told a corruption inquiry that a handshake agreement over the council’s leadership was followed by a breakdown in relations with fellow Labor councillors Sharangan Maheswaran and Karen Pensabene. Giving evidence to the Independent Commission Against Corruption, Blackmore said the trio had agreed he would serve as mayor for the first year of the council term before a Labor councillor, most likely Pensabene, took over for the remainder. Blackmore ultimately did not honour the arrangement. When counsel assisting, Hugo Wilesmith, asked whether he had intended to keep the agreement, Blackmore replied: “No.” He agreed that…

The brother of Hayden Panettiere’s former boyfriend Brian Hickerson has spoken out after being arrested for disorderly conduct following a disturbance at a restaurant in Greenville, South Carolina. Zach Hickerson said tensions had risen because of “misconceptions” and rumours surrounding the actress’s death, after an eyewitness alleged that the brothers had been heckled by other diners. “This is the problem with y’all putting stuff on the Internet: People fill in their own holes and then they want to attack people for no reason,” Zach said after being released from custody. He added: “It’s just super-frustrating all that we’ve been through…

Meryl Streep and Emily Blunt reunited in New York this week at an auction showcasing clothing from The Devil Wears Prada 2. The actors attended the event at Christie’s on Thursday, alongside co-star Caleb Hearon, Anna Wintour, CFDA chief executive Steven Kolb and designer Thom Browne. Hearon plays one of Streep’s assistants in the sequel, while Wintour appears in the film as herself. The auction’s proceeds will support the Committee to Protect Journalists and the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Several pieces from the film remain available to bid for online until Tuesday September 15. Among the items are…

New York City health officials have ordered 10 cooling towers in the South Bronx to be drained, cleaned and disinfected after preliminary testing found Legionella bacteria in the systems amid a cluster of Legionnaires’ disease. The order covers cooling towers in the Melrose and Morrisania neighbourhoods, within ZIP codes 10451 and 10456. Nine people have been diagnosed, three of whom remain in hospital, while one person has died. Health inspectors detected Legionella DNA in 10 of 24 cooling towers tested in the area. However, polymerase chain reaction testing cannot establish whether the bacteria are alive, so officials are carrying out…

Calls to slow the development of artificial intelligence by three of the sector’s most prominent figures have exposed a growing conflict between safety concerns and the financial system supporting the industry. Dario Amodei, chief executive of Anthropic, has warned that AI is beginning to build the next generation of models, raising the prospect of systems whose capabilities could soon be beyond human understanding or control. His proposal to “pace” development was joined by OpenAI chief Sam Altman and SpaceX founder Elon Musk. The unusual alignment between the leaders of Anthropic, OpenAI and SpaceX has not been matched by the major…

The Do the Right Thing charity, working in partnership with police departments across the United States, has recognised students for their achievements and helped underprivileged young people pursue their ambitions. Its Palm Springs chapter awarded 95 scholarships, honouring students for the good work they have done. The initiative is intended to support underprivileged students in achieving their dreams while helping police departments build relationships with local children.