Entertainment Firms Oak View, Legends Face DOJ Antitrust Probe
The US Justice Department has been investigating whether live entertainment companies Oak View Group LLC and Legends colluded over bidding to develop a large arena in Texas, according to people familiar with the matter.
The criminal antitrust probe is focused on whether the companies illegally coordinated on the bidding to develop and operate the Moody Center, a $338 million arena at the University of Texas at Austin, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing a confidential investigation. Oak View ultimately won the contract in 2018 and the venue opened in 2022. Legends isn't involved in the project.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
32 minutes ago
- New York Times
Ranking the No. 1 recruits of the 21st century: Travis Hunter or Vince Young for the top spot?
Ask any college football coach and — even with the transfer portal dominating this era of the sport — odds are high they'll tell you that high school recruiting is still a critical component of the job. A five-star prospect can change a program's trajectory. The ability to identify and evaluate talent will never go out of style. Advertisement The 2000s have given us plenty of star power on the recruiting trail. From generational talents at quarterback to some of the best skill players we've ever seen — hello, Travis Hunter — the nation's No. 1 prospects have often emerged as superstars. But recruiting rankings aren't foolproof. Several top prospects over the years have struggled. With that in mind, we're ranking the 25 No. 1-ranked recruits of the 2000s as The Athletic continues its look back on the last two-plus decades of college football. A couple of notes about our process: • The rankings are from the 247Sports Composite. • The modern recruiting era dates to 2002 — the first year Rivals released a ranking — but we'll start in 2000 to get the full scope of this century of college football. • Only a player's college career was taken into account, not what he did (or did not do) in the NFL. • Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (Class of 2024) and Texas quarterback Arch Manning (Class of 2023) are both ranked, but Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood is not. Underwood, a true freshman, won't play his first collegiate snap until later this year. Got it? Let's dive in. See you in the comments. Young was the first prospect to receive a perfect 1.0000 recruiting rating, and he certainly lived up to that billing. The former Texas quarterback finished his career with 6,040 passing yards and 3,127 rushing yards. He'll forever be remembered for leading the Longhorns to an epic victory in the 2005 national championship game against USC, when he threw for 267 yards and rushed for 200. Hunter was a star on both sides of the ball, playing cornerback and wide receiver at the highest level for Jackson State and Colorado. In addition to winning the Heisman Trophy, Hunter also won the Chuck Bednarik Award (given to the nation's top defender) and the Biletnikoff Award (given to the nation's most outstanding receiver). There may never be another player like him. Even as a ninth grader, the former Clemson quarterback was touted as college football's next star, and Lawrence played the part perfectly. As a true freshman, he led coach Dabo Swinney and the Tigers to one of the most impressive national championships of the modern era when Clemson beat Nick Saban's Alabama team 44-16. In three seasons at Clemson, Lawrence finished with 10,098 passing yards and became the first player in program history to go No. 1 in the NFL Draft. Advertisement Peterson was a star from Day 1 and rushed for 1,925 yards as a true freshman in 2004 — still a single-season record at Oklahoma. His 4,045 career rushing yards rank fourth in program history, and his six 200-yard games are tied for second. Sticking with dominant running backs, Fournette is up there with the best of the best. The New Orleans native became the fastest player in LSU history to reach both 2,000 and 3,000 career rushing yards, and, in 2015, he became the first SEC player since 1949 to lead the nation in rushing. He earned consensus first-team All-America honors that season, rushing for 1,953 yards on a 6.5-yard average. Clowney was a difference-maker right away, recording 12 tackles for loss and eight sacks as a freshman. He was even better as a sophomore, setting school records with 23.5 tackles for loss and 13 sacks. Clowney routinely wreaked havoc for three seasons en route to becoming the top pick in the 2014 NFL Draft. Smith played 800 (!) snaps as a true freshman offensive lineman at Alabama. As a junior in 2008, he allowed only one sack and won the Outland Trophy, given to the nation's best interior lineman. He was the No. 6 pick by the Bengals in the 2009 NFL Draft. With his career still going, Smith is a tough one to rank, but if he plays anything like he did as a true freshman, he'll go down as one of the best receivers in college football history. Last season, on Ohio State's national championship-winning team, the Freshman All-American caught 76 passes for a ridiculous 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns. JEREMIAH SMITH ARE YOU KIDDING?! 🤯 📺 Peacock | @OhioStateFB — NBC Sports (@NBCSports) September 29, 2024 Ewers joined Young as the only two quarterbacks of the modern era to earn a perfect 1.0000 rating. After reclassifying to the Class of 2021, he spent just one season at Ohio State before transferring home to Texas. In Austin, Ewers led the Longhorns to two College Football Playoff appearances while throwing for 9,000-plus yards as the program's most productive quarterback since Colt McCoy. Advertisement In three seasons at FSU, the Tallahassee native recorded 200 tackles, including 21 for loss and seven sacks, and earned first-team All-America honors in 2004. Sims won two ACC championships with the Seminoles. The first No. 1 recruit of the century, Williams played fullback for the Hurricanes in his freshman season before switching to linebacker as a sophomore in 2001. That decision paid off. He had 51 tackles during the Hurricanes' 2001 undefeated national championship season and finished with 108 a year later as a junior. He is now in the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame. A consensus All-American in 2003, Jones is one of the Virginia Tech all-time greats. His 3,475 career rushing yards rank second in program history, and his 1,647 yards as a junior in 2003 are the third-most in a single season. Bowers was one of Dabo Swinney's earliest stars. A unanimous All-American in 2010, the South Carolina native won the Nagurski Trophy, given to college football's top defender, and the Ted Hendricks Award, given to the nation's top defensive end. The ACC may not be known for its offensive linemen, but Monroe was an elite performer at Virginia. A three-year starter, he earned first-team All-ACC honors and second-team All-America honors in 2008. He also was voted as the best blocker in the ACC by the league's head coaches, winning the Jacobs Blocking Trophy. Barkley had the tough task of quarterbacking the Trojans when the program was hammered with NCAA sanctions following Pete Carroll's departure. His senior season fell flat when USC lost six games after being ranked No. 1 in the preseason. But give him credit for posting big numbers during a difficult time — he's the program's all-time leader in passing yards (12,327) and TD passes (116). Gary's career with the Wolverines was solid — 34 games, 21 starts, 136 tackles, 25 TFLs and 10.5 sacks as a two-time first-team All-Big Ten performer — but his production never quite matched expectations. It was his potential, not necessarily his results, that led the Green Bay Packers to select him with the No. 12 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. Advertisement Smith was a major piece of Georgia's defense during its 2022 national championship run before going down with a season-ending injury in the eighth game. He started 14 games in 2021 as a junior and recorded 56 tackles, including nine for loss, and finished his career with 114 tackles, 22 TFLs, 11.5 sacks and, most importantly, two national championships. Nkemdiche, one of five five-star prospects in Ole Miss' 2013 class, was a Freshman All-America selection in 2013 and earned first-team All-SEC and second-team All-America honors as a junior in 2015. He ended his career with 92 tackles, including 17 for loss and six sacks. Bresee had a standout freshman year, becoming the second player in Clemson history to win ACC defensive rookie of the year honors. But he tore his ACL four games into the 2021 season, cutting short his sophomore year. He bounced back in 2022 to earn second-team All-ACC honors. He finished his career with 50 tackles, 15 TFLs and nine sacks. McKnight was a dominant force on the ground for the Trojans, finishing with 2,213 rushing yards in three seasons, including 1,000-plus in his final year. His 6.38 career yards per carry are second-best in school history behind Reggie Bush. Last week, the Allstate Sugar Bowl's New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame announced that McKnight, a New Orleans native who was shot and killed in 2016, will be inducted in its 2025 class. Phillips is one of the more fascinating recruits in recent memory. He played in seven games as a freshman and four games as a sophomore at UCLA before he medically retired from football. However, he transferred to Miami in 2019, sat out the following season and starred for the Hurricanes in 2020 with 45 tackles, 15.5 TFLs and eight sacks. He earned All-America honors and was picked with the No. 18 pick by the Miami Dolphins in the 2021 NFL Draft. Powell is still the highest-rated Florida recruit of the modern era and likely would have had a better career had injuries not taken their toll. The California native started 21 games from 2010-13 but tore his ACL in April 2012, then reinjured his knee and missed the season. He returned in 2013 and finished his career with 79 tackles, 19 TFLs and 11 sacks before becoming a fifth-round NFL Draft pick. Powell died of an unknown cause in December 2024. Manning is a tricky one. He's given us glimpses of what he's capable of, but he hasn't played enough to back up his recruiting ranking … yet. If he plays like we think he will this season, he'll shoot up this list. Advertisement Thompson played meaningful snaps for the Bulldogs as a freshman and was Georgia's most productive interior lineman as a sophomore with 56 tackles, 9.5 TFLs and five sacks. But he had a medical issue before the 2017 season and finished the season with just 38 tackles. He declared for the NFL Draft following his junior season and became the only No. 1 overall recruit of the modern era to go undrafted. Green-Beckham was among the most electric recruits of the modern era. He appeared to be on the verge of stardom, catching 59 passes for 883 yards and 12 touchdowns as a sophomore at Missouri. But he was dismissed from the team in April 2014, transferred to Oklahoma — where he had to sit out for a year — and declared for the NFL Draft before ever playing for the Sooners. (Photos of Travis Hunter, Vince Young: Nick Tre Smith, Richard Mackson / Imagn Images)
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Palm Beach Police: 'SIM swap' scam tried to steal more than $200,000 from Palm Beacher
Two Westlake residents have been arrested by Palm Beach Police, who say the pair executed an elaborate financial fraud known as "SIM swapping" that attempted to steal more than $200,000 from a Palm Beach resident. And the scheme could extend far beyond the island, police said. The pair were taken into custody May 28, Palm Beach Police spokesman Capt. Will Rothrock said. A 29-year-old woman faces charges of organized fraud and fraudulent use of personal information of a person age 60 or older, and a 31-year-old man was arrested on a charge of fraudulent use of personal information, according to arrest reports. Both remained at the Palm Beach County Jail on May 29. The woman was held without bond, and a Palm Beach County judge ordered that she have no contact with the Palm Beach resident or the man arrested in the case, according to court records. She also cannot have any devices that can access the internet, and she is not allowed to use the phone except to contact her attorney, court records show. The man's bond amount was set at $350,000, and he also cannot use or have any devices that connect to the internet, court records show. He was directed not to contact the Palm Beach resident or the woman, and while in jail, he cannot use the phone except to contact an attorney, according to court records. If he makes bond, he will be on in-home arrest with a GPS monitor, records show. On April 10, a Palm Beach resident called police to say someone had fraudulently accessed his AT&T and bank accounts, and had tried to transfer money and login to several websites, according to an arrest report. The Palm Beach resident said he received a call on April 8 from someone who said they were with AT&T, and that he needed to validate his phone numbers using a code sent to him via text message, an arrest report said. About 20 minutes after that phone call, phone numbers connected to the resident's AT&T account stopped working, police said. The scam is known as "SIM swapping" or "SIM hijacking," according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Internet Crime Complaint Center, also called the IC3. Fraudsters will gain control of a person's phone number and then use it to access their banking and other financial and personal accounts, the agency said. The resident provided the code that he received to the person, but later discovered that the code was used to forward his phone number to a different provider, Verizon, police said. By giving that code to the person who said they were from AT&T, he allowed them to complete the final step to move all three of the phone numbers on his account to the other carrier, police wrote in the arrest report. In 2024, there were 982 complaints of SIM swapping with a total reported loss of $25,983,946, the IC3 said in its annual report. The previous year, 1,075 SIM swapping complaints were made with a reported loss of $48,798,103, according to the IC3. Once the phone numbers were transferred, someone tried to withdraw money and make a wire transfer from the Palm Beach resident's bank account, police said. Someone also successfully took over one of the man's email accounts. Transactions made through the resident's accounts included $2,300 sent via Zelle to a St. Petersburg resident, $77.97 spent at a Circle K in The Acreage, $1,500 in ATM withdrawals, and a $215 Venmo payment, an arrest report said. There was also a $4,006.08 payment made to designer clothing retailer Farfetch U.K., along with Airbnb charges of $2,341.79 and $660, an arrest report said. Because the resident was concerned that his Apple account had been compromised, he used the "Find My" feature on his iPhone, which can be used to locate devices connected to an Apple account, police said. The resident saw an unknown iPhone on Liberty Lane in Westlake and told police that he has never been to that address and has no connections there. A Palm Beach Police detective later drove by that address several times and saw two vehicles, a 2022 black Cadillac Escalade and 2024 gray BMW SUV, parked there. Both vehicles were registered to the 31-year-old man, whose driver's license lists an address in North Lauderdale but who police learned was staying at the house in Westlake with the 29-year-old woman, who shares registration on the BMW SUV. Palm Beach Police detectives discovered that the ATM withdrawals from the resident's account were made at a bank in The Acreage, about 2 miles from the house in Westlake, an arrest report said. On April 9, the Palm Beach resident received a request to wire transfer $138,237, which was unsuccessful, police said. That same day, there was another request for a wire transfer for $82,469. The banker in that case confirmed the wire with who he believed to be the account holder, and the transfer was initiated, police said. However, once the resident received an email to confirm the transfer, he called the bank's fraud team and was able to secure the money, but it could take up to three months to get that money back, the arrest report said. Both wire transfer requests were made to a Pompano Beach resident, police said. The resident hired a private investigator who recovered photos taken by the Liberty Lane-located iPhone after someone took over the resident's Apple account, police said. Data for seven photos show all were taken at that home in Westlake, according to the arrest report. On May 7, a Palm Beach Police detective talked with a person in Las Vegas, Nevada, who had been the victim of a similar scheme and had reported the crime to the FBI. That person gave police about 50 images someone took after gaining control of his Apple account, and officers found data that connected the photos back to the Westlake address. The images provided by the person in Nevada also included photos of driver's licenses, passports, bank account numbers, emails and more, an arrest report said. When Palm Beach Police and the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office searched the Westlake home on a warrant on May 5, they found the 29-year-old woman and 31-year-old man, along with a Louis Vuitton backpack, three iPhones, two pairs of sunglasses and a yellow notebook with "Work $" written on it, the arrest report said. Inside the notebook, officers said they found bank account details, Social Security numbers, addresses, names and more personal details about more than 50 people in Florida and across the United States. Officers also said they found electronic devices and a ledger that contained the Palm Beach resident's personal information. They also took $15,243 in cash from the woman's bedroom, the arrest report said. Detectives determined that once the couple gained access to a person's phone line, they could "circumvent two-factor authentication and gain access to victims' financial accounts, resulting in substantial unauthorized wire transfers and fraudulent transactions," the arrest report said. Palm Beach has cautioned residents to be wary of potential scams. "Most of these cases nationally go unsolved," Rothrock said. "The work and tenacity that our detectives put into this to follow the leads to the end and bring a successful conclusion are noteworthy." He added that the department is grateful for PBSO's help in the investigation, including to serve the search warrant. "Finding local perpetrators was a rarity and did make the investigation coordination smoother," Rothrock said. Those who believe they may have been victims of the scam should call the Palm Beach Police Department's non-emergency number at 561-838-5454, he said. This story was updated to add new information. Kristina Webb is a reporter for Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at kwebb@ Subscribe today to support our journalism. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach 'SIM swap' scam could extend across U.S., police say
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
BarEhud Barak: Israel Must Back Trump's Gaza Deal
U.S. President Donald Trump greets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he arrives at the White House on April 7, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Credit - Alex Wong—Getty Images In the coming few days, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will face a defining choice between a politically motivated "war of deception" in Gaza and a deal to release all hostages while ending the war. He must choose between his extreme-right ministers—Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich—or aligning with Donald Trump. There is no symmetry here. Accepting a hostage deal, ending the war, and working with Trump and free world leaders, won't be effortless. Any choice requires detailed negotiations and compromises. But this path is far superior to any realistic alternative. Based on the achievements of the Israel Defense Forces—including damage to Hamas, weakening Hezbollah, destroying Syria's military arsenal during Assad's collapse, and demonstrating Israel's capability to strike deep into Iran—Israeli leadership could, from a position of strength, pursue releasing all hostages simultaneously, halt this senseless war, end the humanitarian crisis, and uproot Hamas from power. This would enable Israel, though belatedly, to join Trump's vision of a New Middle East, including normalization with Saudi Arabia, regional deployment to tackle the Iranian challenge, and participation in the trade corridor project from India through the Gulf to Europe. Choosing a "war of deception" instead—where misleading propaganda presents political warfare as serving Israel's security—would be a grave mistake. It's highly doubtful that continuing the war could produce results different from previous Gaza rounds over the past 20 months. But it would certainly constitute a death sentence for some or most living hostages and deepen the diplomatic tsunami and International Criminal Court claims Israel already faces. This approach might make sense if it could achieve "total victory" over Hamas, but that won't happen. When this new war inevitably halts—under diplomatic pressure, humanitarian crisis, battlefield events, or domestic political developments—we would find ourselves in precisely the same situation as today. To understand, examine recent history. The October 7th barbaric attack created a compelling imperative for Israel to ensure Hamas could never again reign over Gaza or threaten Israel from there. The question was how to achieve this goal. Since Ben-Gurion, Israel has followed four strategic maxims: wars should be aggressive, fought on enemy territory, ended quickly to translate battlefield results into diplomatic and political realities while maintaining international legitimacy, and—extremely important—never lose the moral high ground. That's how we won in 1967 in six days and 1973 in three weeks. Netanyahu has betrayed almost all these principles. Read More: The Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Was Never Going to Last Another strategic maxim, from Clausewitz to Kissinger, holds that war must have a clearly defined, operationally feasible political purpose. As the Roman saying goes: "If you don't know which port you want to reach, no wind will take you there." This maxim was deliberately ignored. Netanyahu has blocked any discussion of this issue since October 7th, 2023. It was clear to any serious observer that Hamas suffered major military blows daily, losing most weapons systems and leadership figures since October 7th. However, since any Hamas group or individual can easily "disappear" within minutes, hiding among the Strip's 2 million civilians and emerging from tunnels or building windows to attack Israelis, their absolute elimination remains a Sisyphean task. Even after 58 years in the West Bank, we never fully eliminated Hamas' presence in Jenin or Tulkarm. The only way to ensure Hamas cannot reign over Gaza and threaten Israel is by replacing it with another governing entity legitimate to the international community, Arab neighbors like Egypt, UAE, and Saudi Arabia, and Palestinians themselves. Practically, this means a temporary inter-Arab force backed by the Arab League, potentially supported by UN Security Council resolution, funded by Saudi Arabia and UAE, with a technocratic government overseeing Palestinian bureaucracy and a new, non-Hamas security body trained by the inter-Arab force under U.S. supervision. Israel would present only two conditions: no Hamas military branch member could participate in the new entity's organs, and the IDF, initially deployed to the Strip's perimeter, would withdraw to the border only after all pre-agreed security benchmarks are met. This plan, easily implementable a year ago, and appearing to save Gaza and Gazans from further destruction, is harder now, because it could be interpreted as saving Israel from sinking into Gazan mud. But the plan remains viable despite the Israeli government's refusal to consider it. Since this is the only practical "day after" plan, there's no sense sacrificing hostages' lives or endangering Israeli troops in pointless warfare. Who can look into the eyes of future bereaved parents, newly widowed spouses, new orphans, disabled and traumatized soldiers, and claim with clear conscience that everything was done to prevent loss, or that it had justification? As long as Israel rejects hostage release and war's end, the risk increases of international initiatives, including Arab neighbors calling for Israel boycotts and steps toward recognition of a Palestinian state by European countries—many of them stable friends of Israel. Read More: I Am a Former Hamas Hostage. Here's My Message to Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu Permanent occupation of the Gaza Strip, population transfer of 2 million Palestinians, and Israeli resettlement on the that land are base and delusional visions that would backfire and accelerate confrontation with the world. Why is Netanyahu, an intelligent, experienced, savvy politician, failing? The answer isn't simple. Netanyahu has ruled since 2015 through an alliance with ultra-Orthodox parties who don't serve in the army and care only about sectoral needs, and since January 2023 added ultra-right zealots believing Gaza resettlement and Palestinian transfer are heavenly orders. He's caught in a dilemma: 80% of the public sees him as primarily responsible for the country's worst day, 60% believe he should resign. A heavy majority perceives his judicial reform, initiated immediately after January 2023 elections, as a "judicial coup d'état"—an attempt to castrate the legislative branch and demolish Supreme Court independence. Many believe the aim of his blatant attack on democracy is to escape his bribery, fraud, and breach of trust court case. For him, any pause in the war—even 60 days, certainly longer—would immediately bring reckoning and accountability: accelerated court proceedings; demands for national inquiry committee investigating October 7th, and events before, during and after; coalition meltdown; and probable disgraced ejection from public life. I believe Netanyahu genuinely wants all hostages home. But when this clashes with immediate threats to his political survival, he prefers leaving them in Gaza. He has already torpedoed several hostage deal opportunities, and seems to be doing it once again over the weekend, by resisting U.S. guarantee to Hamas for an end to the war in exchange for release of all hostages and entering, together with the Trump Administration, into Trump's New Middle East Order (to include the replacement of Hamas, described above). Netanyahu sticks to his eternal war in order to avoid a pause in fighting, which might lead to the end of his political career. This behavior is unacceptable to Israel and Israelis. We are, as former Supreme Court President Aharon Barak wrote years ago, 'defending democracy' that "should be capable of defending itself against those who try to use the very freedoms and tools it provides to destroy it from within." We're led by someone who lost his strategic and moral compass, dragging the nation into war motivated by personal political interests against our security and common future. Israel urgently needs new, sober leadership with clear realistic vision and self-confidence—leadership capable of reading our people's soul, understanding partners' and rivals' minds, and above all, having courage to make decisions and power to implement them. The world will pass judgment. But the burden of bringing Israel back on track is ours—Israeli citizens. I believe we will overcome. This war will end soon, and Israel's worst ever government will be replaced by a responsible, effective one. A long path of repair must follow. Contact us at letters@
