Things To Do In SW Florida

By CHRISTINE FERNANDO

CHICAGO (AP) — The social media platform X has made a change to its AI chatbot after five secretaries of state warned it was spreading election misinformation.

Top election officials from Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Washington sent a letter this month to Elon Musk complaining that the platform’s AI chatbot, Grok, produced false information about state ballot deadlines shortly after President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race.

The secretaries of state requested that the chatbot instead direct users who ask election-related questions to CanIVote.org, a voting information website run by the National Association of Secretaries of State.

Before listing responses to election-related questions, the chatbot now says, “For accurate and up-to-date information about the 2024 U.S. Elections, please visit Vote.gov.”

Both websites are “trustworthy resources that can connect voters with their local election officials,” the five secretaries of state said in a shared statement. read more

By DAVID KOENIG, AP Business Writer

Many children have gone back to school in the U.S., and the days are getting shorter, but there is still one more excuse to use the swimsuits and beach towels before packing them up: Labor Day.

Airports, highways, beaches and theme parks are expected to be packed for the long holiday weekend as a lot Americans mark the unofficial end of summer the same way they celebrated the season’s unofficial start: by traveling.

The Transportation Security Administration anticipates screening more than 17 million people between Thursday and next Wednesday — a record for the Labor Day period.

AAA says bookings for domestic travel are running 9% higher than last year for the holiday weekend, while international trips are down 4%.

American Airlines plans to have its largest Labor Day weekend operation ever and expects a 14% increase in passengers compared to last year.

If you are traveling to get a last blast of summer, here is a rundown of what you need to know. read more

By Joe Yerardi | NerdWallet

About 43 million Americans hold federal student loan debt and, for some, paying off that debt can be a burden. Many borrowers have access to programs that can pause or reduce their payments, but a new survey finds some borrowers may be forgoing the proper channels and stopping repayment entirely in hopes of student loan forgiveness.

Nearly one in three (31%) student loan borrowers have slowed the repayment of their loan(s) because they hope to see their loans reduced or forgiven by the federal government, according to a recent NerdWallet survey conducted online by The Harris Poll among more than 600 U.S. adults who currently have student loans. And nearly one in four (23%) have stopped their student loan payments altogether for the same reason.

Notably, the survey didn’t ask whether borrowers who slowed or stopped their repayments did so after entering into forbearance or deferment plans. Further, student loan delinquencies have remained largely unchanged since the COVID-19 payment pause ended last October, according to data from the New York Fed. This is likely due to a one-year “on-ramp” grace period set to expire Sept. 30, during which the Department of Education is not reporting any borrowers who miss payments as delinquent. read more