TALLAHASSEE (CBS) Governor DeSantis signs AI and vape bills Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed 28 bills, including a measure requiring disclaimers on certain political ads created using artificial intelligence and a bill about regulation of vape products.
ESTERO Gold Star Golf Tournament honors fallen veteran Behind each putt and swing of a golf club at the Gold Star Golf Tournament is someone who knew John Wirka Junior.
NEW YORK (AP) How TikTok grew from a fun app for teens into a potential national security threat If it feels like TikTok has been around forever, that’s probably because it has, at least if you’re measuring via internet time. What’s now in question is whether it will be around much longer and, if so, in what form?
FORT MYERS Man wanted for armed robbery at Fort Myers convenience store Crime Stoppers is asking the public for help identifying an armed robber who held up a convenience store Saturday morning.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Rifles, inappropriate texts and Donut shop debacle This week’s segment of WINK Neighborhood Watch features a scary mall trip, an inappropriate coach, and a Dunkin Donuts assault.
The Weather Authority: Sunny Saturday with a nice breeze; fire danger increases Warm temperatures for your Saturday with a nice breeze into the afternoon.
NORTH NAPLES Senior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior night Aubrey Rogers senior pitcher and infielder McKenzie Vargas was surprised by her Air Force cousin for Senior Night.
BONITA SPRINGS Police: 15-year-old injured after accidentally shot in the leg Lee County deputies say the teen was accidentally shot in the leg.
PUNTA GORDA Exclusive: Brother and best friend of accused pedophile priest speak out Riley’s brother reached out to WINK on Friday, saying people aren’t getting the full story.
IMMOKALEE Caught on video: Huge gator crosses Immokalee neighborhood Fridays in Florida are for gators
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society raises concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
TALLAHASSEE (CBS) Governor DeSantis signs AI and vape bills Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed 28 bills, including a measure requiring disclaimers on certain political ads created using artificial intelligence and a bill about regulation of vape products.
ESTERO Gold Star Golf Tournament honors fallen veteran Behind each putt and swing of a golf club at the Gold Star Golf Tournament is someone who knew John Wirka Junior.
NEW YORK (AP) How TikTok grew from a fun app for teens into a potential national security threat If it feels like TikTok has been around forever, that’s probably because it has, at least if you’re measuring via internet time. What’s now in question is whether it will be around much longer and, if so, in what form?
FORT MYERS Man wanted for armed robbery at Fort Myers convenience store Crime Stoppers is asking the public for help identifying an armed robber who held up a convenience store Saturday morning.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Rifles, inappropriate texts and Donut shop debacle This week’s segment of WINK Neighborhood Watch features a scary mall trip, an inappropriate coach, and a Dunkin Donuts assault.
The Weather Authority: Sunny Saturday with a nice breeze; fire danger increases Warm temperatures for your Saturday with a nice breeze into the afternoon.
NORTH NAPLES Senior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior night Aubrey Rogers senior pitcher and infielder McKenzie Vargas was surprised by her Air Force cousin for Senior Night.
BONITA SPRINGS Police: 15-year-old injured after accidentally shot in the leg Lee County deputies say the teen was accidentally shot in the leg.
PUNTA GORDA Exclusive: Brother and best friend of accused pedophile priest speak out Riley’s brother reached out to WINK on Friday, saying people aren’t getting the full story.
IMMOKALEE Caught on video: Huge gator crosses Immokalee neighborhood Fridays in Florida are for gators
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society raises concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
MGN BOISE, Idaho (AP) – Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl says he walked off his base in Afghanistan to cause a crisis that would catch the attention of military brass. He wanted to warn them about what he believed were serious problems with leadership in his unit. And he wanted to prove himself as a real-life action hero, like someone out of a movie. Bergdahl hasn’t spoken publicly about his decision or his subsequent five-year imprisonment by the Taliban and the prisoner swap that secured his return to the United States. But over the past several months he spoke extensively with screenwriter Mark Boal, who shared about 25 hours of the recorded interviews with Sarah Koenig for her popular podcast, “Serial.” “As a private first-class, nobody is going to listen to me,” Bergdahl says in the first episode of the podcast, released Thursday. “No one is going to take me serious that an investigation needs to be put underway.” Bergdahl, of Hailey, Idaho, was charged in March with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. He faces up to life in prison, though an Army officer has recommended that Bergdahl’s case be moved to a special misdemeanor-level military court. His attorney Eugene Fidell says politicians and would-be politicians have been using Bergdahl as a talking point to push their own agendas for months, a situation he described as creating “gale-force political winds.” The more the public can hear Bergdahl’s own words, the better, Fidell told The Associated Press. “Some of the information that is going to come out is inevitably not going to be what we would have preferred in a perfect universe, but net-net, we’ll take it and allow people in our democratic society to form their own opinions,” Fidell said. In the episode, Bergdahl says he wanted to expose the “leadership failure” he experienced in Afghanistan. The episode does not elaborate on what that failure was, but he says he believed at the time his disappearance and his plan to reappear at another location would give him access to top officials. After leaving the base after midnight, he worries about the reception he’ll get once he reappears, and decides to try to get information on who was planting bombs in the area. That information will help smooth things over with angry military officials, he figures. Sarah Koenig, the host and executive producer of “Serial,” describes Bergdahl as a “radical, idiosyncratic” man in the episode. She says Bergdahl shipped his personal items home, bought local attire and pulled out $300 in U.S. dollars and Afghanis ahead of leaving the base. Bergdahl acknowledges his motives weren’t entirely idealistic. “I was trying to prove to myself, I was trying to prove to the world, to anybody who used to know me … I was capable of being what I appeared to be,” Bergdahl says. “Doing what I did was me saying I am like Jason Bourne. I had this fantastic idea that I was going to prove to the world I was the real thing.” He says after the sun came up, a group of men on motorcycles captured him as he walked through nearby flatland desert. He also discusses the psychological torment of being held captive for years. “It’s like how do I explain to a person that just standing in an empty dark room hurts?” Bergdahl recounts. “It’s like well, a person asked me, ‘Why does it hurt? Does your body hurt?’ Yes, your body hurts but it’s more than that. It’s mental, like, almost confused. … I would wake up not even remembering what I was.” He adds: “It’s like you’re standing there, screaming in your mind.” ___ Serial Podcast: https://serialpodcast.org