NEW YORK (AP) – Longtime media executive Jeff Shell is leaving Paramount, in a move that arrives amid a messy legal battle and the Skydance-owned company’s ongoing efforts to take over Hollywood rival Warner Bros. Discovery.

WASHINGTON (AP) – The American economy, slowed by last fall’s 43-day government shutdown, grew at a sluggish 0.5% annual pace from October through December, the Commerce Department reported Thursday in downgrade of its previous estimate.

WASHINGTON (AP) – A federal appeals court on Wednesday refused to block the Pentagon from blacklisting artificial intelligence laboratory Anthropic in a decision that differed from the conclusions reached in another judge’s ruling on the same issues.

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Iran war is darkening the outlook for the world economy – whether or not a fragile ceasefire holds, the head of the International Monetary Fund warned Thursday. Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said the fund will downgrade its forecast for the world economy next week.

A new reality is setting in for travelers worldwide: rising fees, fewer flight options and difficult decisions about whether a trip is worth the cost. The culprit is volatile oil and jet fuel prices, which have spiked sharply since the war in the Middle East began and fighting near the narrow Strait of Hormuz created a chokepoint for global oil supplies.

WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. applications for unemployment benefits rose last week before Iran, Israel and the U.S. announced a two-week ceasefire deal that injected a degree of optimism into a still-clouded global economic picture.

RAINELLE, W.Va. (AP) – Every month, Rebecca Michalski takes a deep breath before opening her electric bill. She lives on a fixed income, and heating her small house this winter has been staggering: Her February charge was $940.08 – more than her check.

Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad: