A 102-year-old woman from New York, who set a world record as a runner only seven years ago, has published a memoir documenting the achievements and tribulations of her challenging life. Ida Keeling’s newly published book is titled Can’t Nothing Bring Me Down. VOA’s Zlatica Hoke has more. …

A Chinese company that manufactured Ivanka Trump shoes and has been accused of serious labor abuses is being celebrated in a blockbuster propaganda film for extending China’s influence around the globe.   The state-backed documentary “Amazing China” portrays the Huajian Group as a beneficent force spreading prosperity — in this …

Women’s sports leagues are banding together with a new initiative, SheIS. Eight leagues, including the WNBA, U.S. Tennis Association, Women’s Pro Fastpitch League and Canadian Women’s Hockey, will try to help each other increase resources, viewership and attendance. “Each commissioner has agreed to come to one another’s events,” WNBA President …

Kenya has banned a new film by the celebrated Kenyan director Wanuri Kahiu saying it violates Kenyan law and morals. Her new film, “Rafiki,” is a coming-of-age tale of two girls falling in love, inspired by an award-winning short story by a Ugandan author. In May, the film will become the first feature-length …

American actress Ashley Judd on Monday filed a defamation and sexual harassment lawsuit against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, alleging that he damaged her career after she refused his sexual advances. The civil lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in Santa Monica, alleges that Weinstein caused Judd to lose a …

Screaming fans greeted former boy band ‘NSync on Monday just like it was the turn of the last century as the group that helped catapult Justin Timberlake to stardom was honored with their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Timberlake reunited with Lance Bass, JC Chasez, Joey Fatone …

For the first time since 1943, there’s a notable risk that no Nobel Prize in literature will be awarded this year.   And that’s not because the world’s authors, poets, essayists and other writers have been found wanting.   The painful, though not unprecedented possibility arises from sex abuse and …

The revelation that “The Crown” star Claire Foy was paid less than her male co-star caused a royal scandal last month as the latest example of sexism in the entertainment industry. Now the award-winning actor will reportedly receive back pay for her performance as Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, as the makers …

It’s inevitable that a new recording by Chris Cornell would take on an added poignancy following his suicide last year. Yet there’s an extra chill that comes in listening to his contribution to a recently-released collection of Johnny Cash’s writings set to music.   In taking on a Cash poem …

Jhoon Rhee, the grand master who introduced the Korean martial art of taekwondo to the United States, died Monday at 86. Taekwondo is notable for its kicks delivered through high-speed jumps and spins. Rhee, a 10th-degree black belt grand master, came to the U.S. from Korea in the 1950s and …

Walt Disney Co. will create live sports, news and entertainment programming specifically for Twitter Inc’s social network, a move to attract online viewers and advertising revenue through digital video. Comcast Corp. networks including NBC and MSNBC, Viacom Inc’s Comedy Central, MTV and BET, and others also are developing content for …

“Gargantuan” might be an appropriate word to kick off this year’s Scripps National Spelling Bee. The competition will be super-sized because of a new wild-card program that provided a path to the bee for kids who didn’t qualify by conventional means and were willing to pay their own way. Scripps …

“Whenever I was with her, I was open. I could talk … my sexuality does not define who I am.”  These words are from a new book, “She Called Me Woman: Nigeria’s Queer Women Speak.” The new book, released this week, is a collection of interviews with two dozen women. …

The Smithsonian Craft Show is wrapping up this weekend, highlighting works from artists across the United States. From Washington, VOA’s Jill Craig has more. …

If President Donald Trump isn’t comfortable being the target of jokes, comedian Michelle Wolf gave him and others plenty of reasons to squirm Saturday night. “It’s 2018 and I’m a woman, so you cannot shut me up,” Wolf cracked, “unless you have Michael Cohen wire me $130,000.” No, Trump’s personal …

Fats Domino was a New Orleans musical legend when he died last year, so it’s only fitting that he and his music receive a special send-off this year during the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Organizers on Saturday marked the occasion with a jazz funeral as well as a …

The Arts and Crafts movement began in Britain and flourished in Europe at the turn of the 19th century. It stood for traditional crafts and against mass-produced goods that were popular in the United States at the time. But Americans too joined the movement and established the Roycroft Campus, which …

Filmfest DC is celebrating its 32nd year in the nation’s capital, by showcasing 80 films from 45 different countries to a politically savvy international audience. But the festival provides more than just entertainment. Over the years, the festival has become a cultural and economic force for a city known around …

When the 71st Cannes Film Festival opens in France next month, the jury will include a Burundian songwriter and singer who by her own admission, has nothing to do with films. “It was a big surprise for me. First of all, I have no connection with that world of cinema. …

For the latest beauty and makeup trends, those in the know are ditching fashion magazines and logging on to social media. YouTube and Instagram influencers are redefining beauty standards. And as Tina Trinh reports, the industry is taking notice. …

We’re locking down the five most popular songs in the Billboard Hot 100 Pop Singles chart, for the week ending April 28, 2018. For the second straight week, we welcome a Hot Shot Debut … this time at No. 1. Number 5: BlocBoy JB Featuring Drake “Look Alive” BlocBoy JB …

Mamma Mia! The members of ABBA announced Friday that they have recorded new material for the first time in 35 years. The Swedish pop supergroup said it had recorded two new songs, including one titled “I Still Have Faith in You.” The news was announced in an Instagram statement from …

Participants at the Cannes Film Festival will be given fliers warning “Proper Behavior Required” as part of an anti-sexual harassment campaign at the May 8-19 event. The top women’s rights official for the French government announced Friday that she reached a deal with Cannes organizers for the campaign. It will …

She had traveled to Alabama all the way from California to be here for this moment. She had managed to stay dry in a torrential downpour that would have forced many others away. Had somehow beat the odds, got in line early, and secured one of the sold-out opening day …

For the latest beauty and makeup trends, those in the know are ditching fashion magazines and logging onto social media. YouTube and Instagram influencers are redefining beauty standards. And as Tina Trinh reports, the industry is taking notice. …