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| Good morning, Daily Briefing readers! NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says Russia appears to still be building up troops on Ukraine's borders, despite its claims to be moving troops away from the area. In weather news, buckle up, because a multi-hazard storm is heading to a large swath of the United States. And, Los Angeles, it's party time! Jubilant celebrations will hit the streets as the Rams and fans celebrate winning Super Bowl 56. |
| It's Jane and Steve with Wednesday's news. |
| ⚖️ The families of nine victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre agreed Tuesday to a $73 million settlement against Remington Arms, the maker of the gun used in the deadly 2012 shooting. |
 | | As part of the settlement, Remington has also agreed to allow the families to release documents they obtained during the lawsuit. | | USA TODAY | |
| 🔴 Prince Andrew and his accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre have reached an out-of-court settlement for an undisclosed sum in the sex abuse lawsuit she filed against him. The "settlement in principle" still has to be approved by the judge. |
| 🏅 Winter Olympics live updates: Alex Hall wins gold in slopestyle; U.S. men's hockey team eliminated. Follow all the action happening in Beijing Wednesday. |
| 🌏 "Superionic state": The structure of Earth's core could be unlike any other state of matter, researchers have found. |
| 🔵 Bob Saget's family filed a lawsuit against Florida officials to block the release of records related to the "Full House" actor's death investigation, according to court documents. |
| 📰 Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin lost her libel lawsuit against the New York Times. The judge Palin and her attorneys did not show that the Times published a 2017 editorial out of malice. |
| 📚 "His work was wonderful. His heart was even better": Journalist and political satirist P.J. O'Rourke died Tuesday from complications of lung cancer at the age of 74. |
 | | P.J. O'Rourke in 2015 in New York City | | Getty Images photo; USA TODAY graphic | |
| 🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, weather and climate reporter Doyle Rice speaks about the historic "megadrought" in the West. You can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker. |
| Here's what's happening today: |
US, world watches as NATO says Russia continuing to build troops near Ukraine |
| Russia appears to be continuing with its military build-up on Ukraine's borders despite claiming it is moving troops away from the area, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday, ahead of a defense ministers meeting in Brussels whose attendees include Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. Stoltenberg said there were no visible signs Wednesday of "de-escalation on the ground," a day after Moscow asserted it was moving some troops and weapons back to bases after the completion of military drills. Stoltenberg added that Russia has "always moved forces back and forth." The United States and its allies said they needed evidence of the troop movements and that the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine still loomed. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday his nation is ready for talks with the U.S., does not want war and would rely on negotiations in its efforts to eliminate any chance that Ukraine could one day join NATO — his key demand. President Joe Biden delivered his first comments about the situation in Ukraine to the American people Tuesday saying, "We are ready with diplomacy." |
 | | Verified President Joe Biden delivered his first comments about the situation in Ukraine directly to the American people on Tuesday. | | USA TODAY | |
Big storm to wallop U.S. with snow, floods, possible tornadoes |
| Buckle up: A large-scale, multi-hazard storm will make life wet and miserable for the central, southern and eastern U.S. Wednesday through Friday morning. Heavy snow, drenching rain with potential flooding and severe thunderstorms with possible tornadoes are all on tap, the National Weather Service said. Snow is likely Wednesday and into Thursday all the way from northern Texas to northern New England, AccuWeather said. The Weather Service said the greatest chance for disruptive snow extends from south-central Kansas through central Missouri, northern Illinois and into central Michigan. Slippery, potentially dangerous travel and school delays or cancellations are possible in Kansas City, St. Louis and Chicago, where up to half a foot of snow is possible. |
Just for subscribers: |
| 🔵 Missiles, military drills and NATO: How diplomacy could defuse a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine. |
| ⚖️ Sandy Hook families and Remington reached a "historic" settlement. What's next for similar cases? |
| ⛸ As Kamila Valieva takes the ice at the Beijing Olympics, an American skater upstages her where it matters| Opinion. |
| 🗣 "It's a free-for-all": Joe Rogan. Whoopi. Awkwafina. Chappelle. None was canceled. Is this a new cultural detente? |
| 🏡 "An intergeneration issue": Why the rising Black home ownership gap will only continue to grow. |
| These articles are for USA TODAY subscribers. You can sign up here. Here is all of our subscriber content. |
Mixed bag for Team USA at the Winter Olympics |
| There was good news and bad news to start the day for Team USA Wednesday at the 2022 Beijing Winter Games. On the positive side, Team USA freeskiers kept their Olympic medal streak going in men's slopestyle, winning both gold and silver . Alex Hall shot to the top of the leaderboard with an outstanding first run, and it stood up throughout the competition to earn him the gold. Nick Goepper took home the silver and now has three medals in the freeski discipline. In not-so-great news, the U.S. men's hockey team lost to Slovakia in a shootout in the quarterfinals after blowing a late 2-1 lead, ensuring the team will not go home with a medal. The U.S. women's hockey team will again face Canada for the gold medal (NBC, 11:05 p.m. ET). Team USA is the defending Olympic champion after beating Canada at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games, but Canada is the favorite this time around and has already beat the U.S. once in group play. |
Newsmakers in their own words: Ex-CNN exec fires back after memo goes public |
 | | Allison Gollust in January 2013 | | Associated Press file photo; USA TODAY Life graphic | |
| Allison Gollust, a former CNN executive, resigned following an investigation into "issues associated with Chris Cuomo and former Governor Andrew Cuomo," according to a company memo obtained by USA TODAY. |
| WarnerMedia chief Jason Kilar said in a memo to staff Tuesday that a third-party investigation found Gollust – along with the network's former chief Jeff Zucker and ousted CNN anchor Chris Cuomo – violated company policies. |
| The departure of Gollust follows the disclosure of a sexual relationship between her and Zucker, which was previously cited as the cause of the CNN chief's ouster on Feb. 2. |
| Gollust fired back in a statement to USA TODAY, noting that she leaves "with my head held high." |
Parents of previously missing New York girl due back in court |
| The biological parents of 6-year-old Paislee Shultis, who was missing for two years before being found in a "small, cold, and wet" secret room Monday in the town of Saugerties, eastern New York, are due back in court Wednesday. Kimberly Cooper and Kirk Shultis Jr. were arrested Monday, along with Kirk Shultis Sr., who owns the house where Paislee was found by police with his wife. Cooper, 33, was charged with second-degree custodial interference and endangering the welfare of a child, both misdemeanors. She was also wanted on an arrest warrant issued through Ulster County Family Court, police said. Shultis Jr., 32, and Shultis Sr., 57, were both charged with first-degree custodial interference, a felony, and endangering the welfare of a child. Police said the investigation is ongoing and more arrests are pending. |
Also on Wednesday: |
| 🔵 California to lift its indoor mask mandate, with some exceptions: The nation's largest state will end its indoor masking requirement for vaccinated people Wednesday , but masks still are the rule for schoolchildren, state health officials said. Unvaccinated people still will be required to be masked indoors, and everyone — vaccinated or not — will have to wear masks in higher-risk areas like public transit and nursing homes and other congregate living facilities, officials said. |
| 🌕 There's still time to see the "snow" moon: Although February's full moon, known as the "snow" moon, rose on Tuesday night, there's another chance for sky gazers to get a glimpse on Wednesday. The moon will still be visible Wednesday evening, particularly on the East Coast and in the South, which are forecast to have clear skies. Head here to see why it's called the "snow" moon. |
Rams to celebrate Super Bowl win |
| Neither the Los Angeles Dodgers nor the Lakers were able to hold a celebratory parade after they won championships in 2020 due to the pandemic, but the Rams will get to treat their fans to a day of partying Wednesday after winning Super Bowl 56. The event will start at the Shrine Auditorium and conclude with a rally outside the Coliseum, where the Rams played from 2016-2019. This is the Rams' first Super Bowl in Los Angeles after winning one in St. Louis, so fans in Southern California have never experienced a Super Bowl celebration like this. The parade is expected to kick off around 11 a.m. PT. . |
 | | Fireworks are see in in the sky in downtown Los Angeles after the Los Angeles Rams won the Super Bowl LVI against Cincinnati Bengals | | APU GOMES/AFP | |
ICYMI: Some of our top stories yesterday |
| 🏈 The Super Bowl halftime show was a rude awakening for "old people." See the best memes. |
| 💊 Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva says her positive drug test was due to her grandfather's medication. |
| ✈️ "Avoid travel to these destinations": Federal health officials are warning U.S. travelers to avoid more than 135 locations due to COVID-19. |
| 🐦 Hundreds of blackbirds were seen on video falling from the sky in Mexico and hitting the pavement. Some died on impact. |
📸 Photo of the day: The agony of defeat for Team USA at the Winter Olympics 📸 |
 | | From left to right, the U.S. men's hockey team members Aaron Ness, Steven Kampfer and Kenny Agostino react after a heartbreaking quarterfinal loss to Slovakia following a shootout at the Beijing Winter Olympics on Wednesday. | | Peter Casey, USA TODAY Sports | |
| The United States men's hockey team's heartbreak at the Winter Olympics continued Wednesday with a shootout loss in the quarterfinals of the tournament to Slovakia. For a third consecutive Winter Games, the American men will leave without a medal. |
| How Team USA lost the game will hurt for a long time. The Americans led 2-1 with less than a minute to go, but saw the Slovakians tie the game in the final minute. The game eventually went to a shootout, where the U.S. missed on all five of its attempts. |
| The U.S. players were crestfallen – especially considering this will likely be the only chance many of them will have to play in the Olympics. (NHL players were slated to take part in these Games until the league's COVID-19 issues forced them to pull out.) |
| Head here to see faces of triumph and defeat at the Winter Olympics and click here to see some of the best photos from the 2022 Beijing Games. |
| Contributing: The Associated Press |
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