Photos from the Critics Choice Awards
January 4, 2026
SANTA MONICA, Calif. SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) — Celebrities attended the Critics Choice Awards on Sunday as Hollywood gathered to
SANTA MONICA, Calif. SANTA MONICA, Calif. (AP) — Celebrities attended the Critics Choice Awards on Sunday as Hollywood gathered to
LOS ANGELES By JAE C. HONGAssociated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — In an empty lot in Altadena, California, the ground
Aaron Rodgers threw a go-ahead touchdown pass to Calvin Austin III with 55 seconds left, and the Steelers beat the Ravens 26-24 on Sunday night when Baltimore’s Tyler Loop missed a 44-yard field goal as time expired, giving Pittsburgh the AFC North title. Pittsburgh will host Houston in the opening round of the playoffs on Monday, Jan. 12, following an electric fourth quarter that saw four lead changes, including three in the final four minutes. Lamar Jackson connected with Isaiah Likely for a 28-yard gain that put the Ravens within Loop’s range. But the rookie’s kick never had a chance.
One of the first police officers to respond to the 2022 school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, goes on trial Monday on charges that he failed to protect children during the attack, when authorities waited more than an hour to confront the gunman. Adrian Gonzales, a former Uvalde schools officer, faces 29 counts of child abandonment or endangerment in a rare prosecution of an officer accused of not doing more to stop a crime and protect lives. The attack by a teenage gunman killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary and was one of deadliest school shootings in U.S. history.
It’s been a year of heartbreak and chronic worry since the most destructive wildfires in the Los Angeles area’s history scorched neighborhoods and displaced tens of thousands of people. The two blazes that ignited during fierce winds on Jan. 7, 2025, killed 30 people and destroyed nearly 17,000 structures, including homes, schools, businesses and places of worship. Rebuilding will take years. People whose homes were left standing are still living with the hazards, including new trauma for those afraid of what still lurks inside. A crowdsourced data effort by Altadena residents has found many homes still standing remain unsafe.
RAPID CITY, S.D. – Two men are in custody following an armed robbery at a local business on Mount Rushmore
The Atlanta Falcons have fired coach Raheem Morris and general manager Terry Fontenot. The team announced the moves hours after completing its its second straight 8-9 finish under Morris and eighth consecutive losing season. Morris said after Sunday’s win over the New Orleans Saints that he expected to return for a third season. Instead, his 16-18 record was not enough for him to keep his job after the year began with optimism that the Falcons would reach the playoffs for the first time since 2017. Owner Arthur Blank said in a statement that he has “great personal affinity” for Morris and Fontenot but he believes a change is needed.
Chicago Blackhawks prospect Anton Frondell scored in the eighth round of a shootout to give Sweden a 4-3 victory over Finland on Sunday night in the world junior hockey semifinals. Canada faced Czechia in the second semifinal. The final is Friday night. The Swedes avenged a 4-3 overtime loss to Finland in the semifinals last year in Ottawa, Ontario. Sweden won its lone title in 1981 and 2012. It last appeared in the title game in 2024, falling 6-2 to United States on home ice in Gothenburg. Frondell put a wrist shot through goalie Petteri Rimpinen’s pads to end the tiebreaker. Sweden survived a power play in the 10-minute 3-on-3 overtime after Viggo Bjork was called for slashing with 2:03 left.
The Denver Broncos secured the AFC’s top playoff seed with a 19-3 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. Ja’Quan McMillian’s 45-yard interception return for a touchdown fueled the victory. Wil Lutz was 4 for 4 field goals, helping the Broncos tie their franchise record for most wins in a season with 14. They earned their first No. 1 playoff seed since 2015. Broncos quarterback Bo Nix struggled but tied Russell Wilson’s record of 24 wins in his first two NFL seasons. The Chargers rested key players including QB Justin Herbert as they prepare for the wild-card round.
After taking the first snap, Josh Allen headed to the sideline and joined the 70,000-plus fans to watch backup Mitch Trubisky throw four touchdown passes as the Buffalo Bills bid a likely farewell to their long-time home with a 35-8 rout of the New York Jets. Gabe Davis caught two touchdown passes and Ty Johnson scored a touchdown rushing and receiving in an outing the playoff-bound Bills rested a majority of their starters. The win coupled with the Los Angeles Chargers’ loss at Denver, led to Buffalo moving up one spot in clinching the No. 6 seed. The Bills will travel to play AFC South champion Jacksonville in the wild-card round next weekend.
Colorado captain Gabriel Landeskog suffers an injury during the Avalanche’s game in Florida on Sunday night. He lost his footing, fell, and crashed into the goalpost, needing assistance off the ice. Landeskog, who helped the Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in 2022, missed nearly three years with a right knee injury before returning for last season’s playoffs. On Sunday, it was his left knee that appeared to buckle. He has played in all 41 games this season, contributing to the team’s historic start. There’s no immediate word on the severity of his injury.
A day after the ouster of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump is renewing his calls for an American takeover of the Danish territory of Greenland. Meanwhile, his top diplomat on Sunday declared the communist government in Cuba is “in a lot of trouble.” The comments from Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio underscore the administration is serious about taking a more expansive U.S. role in the Western Hemisphere. With thinly veiled threats in the aftermath of the Venezuela operation, Trump is rattling hemispheric friends and foes alike, spurring a pointed question around the globe: Who’s next?
Dee Alford’s red-zone interception stopped a potential go-ahead drive by New Orleans, and the Atlanta Falcons beat the Saints 19-17 to give the NFC South title to the Carolina Panthers. By closing the season with four consecutive wins, the Falcons finished in a three-way tie with Carolina and Tampa Bay for first place in the NFC South. The Panthers won the tiebreaker between the three 8-9 teams with the best record within the division. The Falcons completed a season sweep of the Saints, who had their four-game winning streak end.
Rapid City, SD – Dozens of local residents gathered outside City Hall at the intersection of Omaha and 6th Street
Trevor Lawrence threw three touchdown passes, breaking the franchise’s single-season record for total scores, and the Jacksonville Jaguars won the AFC South and earned a home playoff game with a 41-7 drubbing of Tennessee. It was most lopsided outcome in series history. The Jaguars (13-4) clinched their third division title in nine years, swept the Titans (3-14) for the third time in four seasons and topped a dozen wins for just the second time in the team’s 31-year history. Titans rookie Cam Ward injured his throwing shoulder early and spent most of the game on the sideline in a sling.
The Cleveland Browns’ Myles Garrett has set the NFL’s single-season sack record during Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Garrett sacked Joe Burrow for a 6-yard loss, surpassing the previous record of 22 1/2 sacks shared by Michael Strahan and T.J. Watt. The sack came with 5:09 remaining in the fourth quarter. Garrett’s teammates celebrated his 23rd sack, despite Cincinnati’s attempt to go no-huddle. Over his nine-year career, Garrett has sacked 51 players, with Burrow being his most frequent target. The NFL began officially counting sacks in 1982.
Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun are returning from lengthy injury absences Sunday in Brooklyn, bringing good news to a Denver team desperate for healthy bodies after the loss of Nikola Jokic. Coach David Adelman said both players showed improvements in recent days and would test themselves during warmups. The Nuggets then said both players were available. Gordon has missed the last 19 games with a strained right hamstring. The starting forward hasn’t played since a brief appearance on Nov. 21. Braun started the first 11 games of the season before spraining his left ankle. He hasn’t played since Nov. 12.
Leonardo DiCaprio emphasizes the importance of creating cinema over content at the Palm Springs Film Festival’s 37th annual International Film Awards. The intimate A-list award show on Saturday night kicks off Hollywood’s whirlwind award season, honoring some of the film industry’s most anticipated award contenders. Notable peers at the event in Palm Springs, California, included Miley Cyrus, Timothée Chalamet, Kate Hudson and Michael B. Jordan. Recipients and presenters made long, heartfelt speeches at the non-televised event. Many of the stars will travel to Los Angeles for the Critic’s Choice Awards on Sunday.
Miami defensive lineman Rueben Bain Jr. surprised everyone with a halftime speech during the Hurricanes’ win over Ohio State in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal. Bain’s words echoed a famous speech by Ed Reed in 2001, inspiring his teammates to victory. Miami beat Ohio State 24-14 and moved into the CFP semifinal against Mississippi. Coach Mario Cristobal is balancing honoring past legends while focusing on the current team. Miami’s history, with stars like Michael Irvin and Ray Lewis, continues to inspire players. The legacy of “The U” motivates the team to strive for greatness.
Justin Jefferson has finally passed the 1,000-yard mark, in the last game of the season for the Minnesota Vikings. Jefferson hit the milestone on his fifth catch on Sunday against the rival Green Bay Packers after a simple hitch route he turned into a 17-yard gain. The four-time Pro Bowl wide receiver has reached 1,000 yards in each of his six NFL seasons. The only other players in league history to do so were Randy Moss and Mike Evans. Jefferson already has the most receiving yardage all time over a player’s first six years.
SPEARFISH, S.D. – The Sturgis Scooper Girls Wrestling team captured the Spearfish Invite title on Saturday. Sturgis finished on top
UNDATED – South Dakota Prep Basketball Scoreboard from Saturday, January 3: BOYS PREP BASKETBALL= Bismarck, N.D. 92, T F Riggs
Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward left the team’s season finale at Jacksonville after landing on his right shoulder during a touchdown run. Ward was slow to get up following linebacker Foye Oluokun’s tackle that drove him into the ground and ended up getting checked out in the team’s medical tent. But he left there and walked into a nearby tunnel opposite the team’s locker room, presumably to get taken to the onsite X-ray machine at Everbank Stadium. Journeyman backup Brandon Allen, a sixth-round draft pick by Jacksonville in 2016, replaced Ward on the next possession. It was the first snaps Ward has missed this season.
Hollywood kicked off 2026 with “Avatar: Fire and Ash” atop the box office for the third straight week and with hopes for a blockbuster-filled year after a disappointing 2025. In three weeks of release, “Fire and Ash” has cleared $1 billion worldwide. The third chapter in James Cameron’s Pandora epic collected $40 million over its third weekend in North American theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday. But over the holiday week, it wasn’t just about the weekend ticket sales. The whole week was a lucrative one for Hollywood, with most schools still out. What drove ticket sales, beyond “Avatar”? Sydney Sweeney, Timothée Chalamet and “Zootopia 2.”
President Donald Trump’s military intervention in Venezuela is testing his ability to hold the Republican coalition together. Concerns have emerged even as many Republicans initially backed the mission to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. Trump’s comments about the U.S. “running” Venezuela have raised fears that he’s abandoning his “America First” philosophy. Outgoing Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has criticized this approach, as has moderate Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick. Despite Trump’s dominance in the GOP, his grip has faced challenges. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is suggesting the U.S. wouldn’t manage Venezuela daily, but concerns remain about the fallout from Washington’s intervention.
A.J. Dybantsa led No. 10 BYU to an 83-73 victory over Kansas State in his Big 12 debut on Saturday. Despite facing tough defense and committing seven turnovers, Dybantsa scored 24 points in the Cougars’ first true road game of the season. The freshman, a potential top NBA draft pick, was frustrated at times, but he also showed why he is such a coveted prospect. The Cougars have won 10 straight games since their only loss in November. Dybantsa’s performance will continue to be crucial as BYU navigates Big 12 play.
(BOISE, Idaho)—Blake Bennett and Ryan Chyzowski scored twice as the Rapid City Rush (14-14-1) used a four-goal third period to run past the
The New York jail holding Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is a facility so troubled, some judges have refused to send people there even as it has housed such famous inmates as music stars R. Kelly and Sean “Diddy” Combs. The Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn opened as a jail in the early 1990s. It currently houses about 1,300 inmates. The lockup is located next to a shopping mall in a waterfront industrial area. It has been described as a “hell on earth” and an “ongoing tragedy.” The federal Bureau of Prisons says it has worked to improve conditions, however.
ROCKERVILLE, S.D. – Multiple emergency agencies from across the Black Hills battled a fully involved structure fire near Rapid City
The economy in 2025 was filled with contradictions, as growth was healthy while hiring slowed, inflation stayed elevated and unemployment rose. Last year’s odd outcomes raise a host of questions for the upcoming year: Will a growing economy eventually boost the sluggish job market? Or are last year’s weak job gains a sign of a stumbling economy that could get worse? Many economists are modestly optimistic that growth will continue in 2026 and hiring will follow.
Lutheran Social Services has an office in downtown Sioux Falls. The organization handles refugee resettlement for South Dakota. (Photo by
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Five years after the Capitol riot, some of the police officers who fought off the rioters that day say they’re still struggling with what happened. And that’s especially the case since Donald Trump was elected to a second term last year and pardoned about 1,500 people who’d been convicted for their actions at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Several police officers who fought the rioters said in Associated Press interviews that the hardest thing to deal with has been that many people are playing down the violence from that day, or they’re ignoring it or claiming it didn’t happen. That’s despite a massive collection of video and photographic evidence documenting the violence.
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