All posts tagged: Kansas

NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs Get Into Micro-comedy, Really

NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs Get Into Micro-comedy, Really

Published by Daniella Wilson

The vertical video gold rush has pulled in one of the biggest players in traditional media — the NFL. Or at least, one of its marquee franchises. The Kansas City Chiefs are diving into the micro-series realm with a comedy called El Offseason. The Spanish-language show will follow the misadventures of four (fictional) team employees whose offseason months spiral into chaos. The team says the nine-episode series will combine elements of sketch comedy with the wild plot twists of a telenovela. El Offseason is set to premiere June 12 in the United States, Mexico and Spain. As part of the NFL’s global markets program, the Chiefs have marketing rights in the latter two countries (along with several other franchises), hence the Spanish-language effort. A trailer for the series is below. “This is exactly the kind of storytelling opportunity the offseason creates,” said Lauren Denowitz, vp brand marketing and fan engagement for the team. “When the games stop, the connection matters even more. El Offseason lets us show up for our fans in a way that feels …

University of Kansas improves detection of PFAS in drinking water

University of Kansas improves detection of PFAS in drinking water

Published by skeptic

Researchers at the University of Kansas have developed a new technique that could significantly improve the detection of PFAS in drinking water, offering a faster and more affordable alternative to existing laboratory methods. The study, published in the scientific journal PLOS Water, outlines a testing approach capable of identifying ultra-low concentrations of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of synthetic chemicals increasingly linked to serious health concerns. The method is designed to help laboratories meet stricter drinking water standards while reducing testing times and operational costs. The researchers reported that their system can reduce sample preparation times from several hours to minutes while maintaining the sensitivity required to detect PFAS at levels regulated by US authorities. The advance could make widespread monitoring more practical for water utilities and testing facilities facing growing regulatory pressure. Growing concerns over PFAS in drinking water PFAS, often referred to as “forever chemicals,” have been widely used for decades in products such as non-stick cookware, stain-resistant fabrics, waterproof coatings and firefighting foams. Their chemical structure makes them highly resistant …

Judge Blocks Kansas Ban on Gender-Transition Treatment for Minors

Judge Blocks Kansas Ban on Gender-Transition Treatment for Minors

Published by Sam Flores

NEW YORK, May 16 (Reuters) – A Kansas judge ⁠has ⁠temporarily blocked a law banning ⁠gender-transition treatments for minors in the state.   State District Judge ​Carl Folsom III granted an injunction requested by the parents of two teenagers who ‌want to continue gender-transition treatment ‌with medicines. Folsom’s decision halts the enforcement of a recently approved state ⁠law that ⁠banned such treatments. In a ruling Friday, the judge sided with ​the teens’ parents who sued to halt the law, saying they had the right to make decisions regarding the health of their children, according to court documents and ​a statement from the American Civil Liberties Union, which is representing the plaintiffs. “This ⁠is ⁠an enormous relief to ⁠our clients ​and families across the state of Kansas,” ACLU attorney Harper Seldin said in ​a statement.  Kansas Attorney General ⁠Kris W. Kobach plans to appeal the decision, according to local media reports. If Folsom’s injunction is upheld, it would last for the duration of the lawsuit.  Kobach, a Republican, called the ruling “a stark example of judicial activism,” …

A Judge Is Protecting Youth Gender Care in Kansas While a Settlement in Texas Attacks It

A Judge Is Protecting Youth Gender Care in Kansas While a Settlement in Texas Attacks It

Published by Sam Flores

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas judge on Friday protected access to gender-affirming care for transgender minors as the nation’s largest children’s hospital moved to restrict such care in Texas, buckling under pressure from the Trump administration. Texas Children’s Hospital, based in Houston, said in a statement that it had agreed to a legal settlement “to protect our resources from endless and costly litigation.” The hospital, which serves more than 1 million patients a year, stopped providing hormone treatments for transgender children and teens in 2022, a year before the state banned such care, but still faced a yearslong investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office. Paxton and the Trump administration said the hospital would pay Texas $10 million and would be required to open what he called a “detransition clinic” to “reverse the damage” from gender-affirming care, which he’s described as child abuse. Most major medical groups say access to gender-affirming care as important for people with gender dysphoria. Transgender teens, parents and providers have described it …

World Cup comes to Kansas City thanks to its ‘Midwestern pioneering spirit,’ organizers say

World Cup comes to Kansas City thanks to its ‘Midwestern pioneering spirit,’ organizers say

Published by Sam Flores

It might be the smallest U.S. city to host the FIFA World Cup this summer, but Kansas City organizers are hoping to be considered the mightiest by fans who will be arriving in the Midwest to celebrate the biggest single-sport tournament in the world. Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content. The opportunity to be home to the World Cup arose after Kansas City’s steady work to create the infrastructure that makes it the “soccer capital of America,” host committee CEO Pam Kramer told NBC News. Hosting the tournament could help define Kansas City, a population of just over 500,000, in people’s minds as a global leader in the sports industry. “I think there is this Midwestern pioneering spirit — we don’t wait for other people to do things. We just kind of lock arms and get it done together,” Kramer said. “But it’s all about coming together around a big idea. So when you think about great sports moments, we want them to know that we …

Two years after schism, a United Methodist scholar pens a road map for growth

Two years after schism, a United Methodist scholar pens a road map for growth

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — This week marks two years since the United Methodist Church voted to remove the last barriers to full equality of LGBTQ+ members. The removal of those punitive measures came in the wake of a schism that saw the departure of more than 7,600 congregations, or about a quarter of U.S.-based Methodist churches. Now comes the postmortem. Lovett Weems Jr., retired director of the Lewis Center for Church Leadership at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C., has penned an analysis of the forces that led to the schism and how the denomination might recover. A lifelong United Methodist who has studied available data, Weems suggests a practical way forward for its 4 million U.S. members. He begins the book — released by Abingdon Press in March — on a note of mourning. He will be buried next to his parents in the church cemetery of the Mississippi congregation where he grew up. But that church has disaffiliated and is no longer United Methodist. Weems is convinced most United Methodists might have been able to …

Kansas last sent a Democrat to the Senate in 1932. A megachurch pastor aims to change that.

Kansas last sent a Democrat to the Senate in 1932. A megachurch pastor aims to change that.

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — Thirty-six years ago, the Rev. Adam Hamilton co-founded a church with a handful of people in a funeral home chapel. Now, that congregation is the largest United Methodist church in the nation, and Hamilton is setting his sights on a new venue: the United States Congress. Hamilton, 61, announced his run for U.S. Senate on Thursday morning (April 30) in a press conference in Prairie Village, the suburban city he was raised in. Describing himself as an “independent-minded Democrat,” he emphasized his church’s community building and charity work and said his decades in ministry prepared him to be a bridge-builder in Congress. “In a world that feels more and more divided, I’ve had the privilege of being a pastor for 36 years of a church that’s roughly equally divided between Republicans, Democrats and independents,” said Hamilton at the press conference. “Our people love each other precisely because of their differences.” With over 24,000 members and nine locations in the Kansas City area, Resurrection, A United Methodist Church has earned a reputation for its …

Bryson Tiller Bolts Kansas for Rival Missouri After a Breakout Freshman Season

Bryson Tiller Bolts Kansas for Rival Missouri After a Breakout Freshman Season

Published by Sam Flores

Bryson Tiller is leaving Kansas for bitter rival Missouri after a promising and productive freshman season with the Jayhawks. The 6-foot-11 forward arrived in Lawrence before the spring semester in 2025 and redshirted before playing last season, when Tiller was a regular in the starting lineup. He averaged 7.9 points and 6.1 rebounds, and one of his best games for Kansas came against the Tigers, when he had 13 points, five rebounds and five blocks in an 80-60 rout at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Missouri has been active in the transfer portal, landing Tennessee forward Jaylen Carey and Providence forward Jamier Jones. Tiller visited the Tigers on Sunday and made the decision to join coach Dennis Gates over interest from Michigan, Georgia Tech, NC State, Arizona and others. He visited Miami but canceled a planned visit to Arizona. Kansas already lost another big man, Flory Bidunga, who decided to transfer to Louisville. Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Photos You Should …

Kansas City Officials Are Proposing 0M in Stadium Bonds to Keep MLB’s Royals in Missouri

Kansas City Officials Are Proposing $600M in Stadium Bonds to Keep MLB’s Royals in Missouri

Published by Sam Flores

Kansas City, Missouri, would issue $600 million in bonds for a new downtown stadium for Major League Baseball’s Royals under a proposal officials are pursuing months after Kansas lured professional football’s Chiefs over the state line with a massive stadium subsidy. Mayor Quinton Lucas and nine of 12 City Council members introduced a proposed ordinance Thursday to allow the city manager to negotiate with the Royals over a new stadium near the city’s historic Union Station and its World War I museum, about 6 miles northwest of the Royals’ current Kauffman Stadium. The city expects the new stadium to cost $1.9 billion, and Missouri last year enacted a law allowing the state to cover half, or $950 million. If Kansas City issued its bonds, the Royals would need $350 million in private funds. Kauffman Stadium sits beside the Chiefs’ Arrowhead Stadium in the Truman Sports Complex, owned by Jackson County, Missouri, and home to both teams since 1973. Their stadium leases expire in 2031, and in April 2024, county voters rejected extending a tax that …