Latest news with #JeanneCooper
Sydney Morning Herald
30-04-2025
- Sydney Morning Herald
Brisbane just outranked Paris on this list. Have the rules been rigged in our favour?
From a marketing perspective, Brisbane's reputation is doing well right now. Travellers from interstate and overseas – that is, those who aren't tapped into local politics or housing and infrastructure anxieties – might think the Queensland capital has become one of the greatest destinations in the world, thanks in part to our inclusion on a string of internationally renowned lists. It started in March 2023 when Time magazine named Brisbane among the 50 most extraordinary destinations to explore on its 'World's Greatest Places' list. While subjective and highly dependent on how many 'greatest places' one has visited, it was, nonetheless, a cause for celebration. Six months later, international travel guide Frommer's included Brisbane as a top spot to visit, with travel writer Jeanne Cooper stating: 'Brisbane's reputation as a generic Aussie backwater is over. It belongs to the world now.' For anyone exhausted by the 'big country town' label (which has always felt like a thin disguise for calling us a big bunch of bogans), there was a collective sigh of agreement. We are certainly not a generic Aussie backwater. Loading Then we got an honorable mention from the New York Times, which named Brisbane one of the 52 places to go in 2024. The publication deemed the city worthy of a visit thanks to the Queen's Wharf precinct, the Calile Hotel in Fortitude Valley, and restaurants such as Agnes and Vertigo. For the most part, it all checks out. Brisbane is an exciting, happening place worthy of discovery. Keep the lists coming. At least that's what I would have said, before Brisbane was included on a list that made me question whether this is all one big PR conspiracy.
The Age
30-04-2025
- The Age
Brisbane just outranked Paris on this list. Have the rules been rigged in our favour?
From a marketing perspective, Brisbane's reputation is doing well right now. Travellers from interstate and overseas – that is, those who aren't tapped into local politics or housing and infrastructure anxieties – might think the Queensland capital has become one of the greatest destinations in the world, thanks in part to our inclusion on a string of internationally renowned lists. It started in March 2023 when Time magazine named Brisbane among the 50 most extraordinary destinations to explore on its 'World's Greatest Places' list. While subjective and highly dependent on how many 'greatest places' one has visited, it was, nonetheless, a cause for celebration. Six months later, international travel guide Frommer's included Brisbane as a top spot to visit, with travel writer Jeanne Cooper stating: 'Brisbane's reputation as a generic Aussie backwater is over. It belongs to the world now.' For anyone exhausted by the 'big country town' label (which has always felt like a thin disguise for calling us a big bunch of bogans), there was a collective sigh of agreement. We are certainly not a generic Aussie backwater. Loading Then we got an honorable mention from the New York Times, which named Brisbane one of the 52 places to go in 2024. The publication deemed the city worthy of a visit thanks to the Queen's Wharf precinct, the Calile Hotel in Fortitude Valley, and restaurants such as Agnes and Vertigo. For the most part, it all checks out. Brisbane is an exciting, happening place worthy of discovery. Keep the lists coming. At least that's what I would have said, before Brisbane was included on a list that made me question whether this is all one big PR conspiracy.
CBS News
09-04-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Heads of Foodbank of Southern California accused of misusing funds for personal financial gain
California officials sued the Foodbank of Southern California , alleging that the nonprofit and a dozen of its leaders misused state and federal funds for their own gain, including home renovations, a Tesla and a church billboard. The Long Beach-based food bank closed last October after the Department of Social Services investigated allegations against the nonprofit's former CEO, Jeanne Cooper. "The Foodbank of Southern California has fully investigated the allegations involving former CEO, Jeanne Cooper, both through internal and external investigations," current CEO Brian Weaver, who is also named in the lawsuit, said last October. "When these allegations were first brought to the attention of our board, we took them extremely seriously and immediately conducted an internal investigation, suspending Ms. Cooper pending the outcome." The Foodbank of Southern California, which opened in 1975, serves low-income neighborhoods across Los Angeles County, including Compton, San Pedro, Antelope Valley and North Long Beach. According to the nonprofit's website, it earned awards for its "sound fiscal management and commitment to accountability and transparency." However, for at least the last decade, the leaders of the nonprofit have diverted roughly $11 million of state and federal funds. "Unbeknownst to the Department, for at least the last decade, the Foodbank's officers, directors, and vendors worked together to divert millions of dollars of state and federal funds away from these most vulnerable communities, into their own pockets," state attorneys wrote in their complaint against the nonprofit. The lawsuit named 12 members of the Foodbank's board, including Cooper, Weaver, Alice "Sweet Alice" Harris and Michael Barrett. Cooper's spouse Lamarr Ramsey was also named as a defendant. However, he never worked for the nonprofit, according to the legal complaint.
