Latest news with #DavidCook
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Fort Worth area state senator announces retirement; House member seeks seat
Shorlty after Texas Sen. Brian Birdwell announced Monday that he will not seek re-election in 2026, state Rep. David Cook said he would run for the seat. Birdwell, a Granbury Republican representing Senate District 22 since 2010, thanked Jesus, his wife Mel, his constituents and his staff members for their support throughout his four terms. 'It has been the high honor of my life, on par with commanding United States soldiers, to serve my fellow Texans for over 15 years,' Birdwell stated in a X post. Cook, 53, is a Mansfield Republican serving his third term for House District 96. He ran for House speaker before this past legislative session. In his announcement, he thanked Birdwell for his service, calling him 'the personification of a servant leader.' 'While we've accomplished a great deal, there's more work to be done!' Cook stated in the news release. 'I look forward to hitting the campaign trail to earn the support of the people of Texas Senate District 22.' Other officials also showed their appreciation for Birdwell, including Tarrant County Judge Tim O'Hare. Some of Cook's priorities include securing the border, lowering property taxes and supporting public schools, among others, according to his website. Birdwell, 63, will finish the remainder of his term, which will end in January 2027. The next Texas Senate election is in November 2026. Senate District 22 represents the counties of Bosque, Comanche, Eastland, Erath, Falls, Hamilton, Hill, Hood, McLennan and Somervell, as well as parts of Ellis and Tarrant counties.
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Texas Sen. Birdwell announces retirement, Rep. Cook to run for seat
AUSTIN (Nexstar) — State Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, announced Monday that he will not seek reelection to the Texas Senate. Shortly after, State Rep. David Cook, R-Mansfield, announced he would run for the seat. Birdwell has served as a senator from Senate District 22 since 2010 after a career serving in the military. He was injured in the Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the Pentagon and awarded a Purple Heart for his injuries. In a statement posted to X, Birdwell thanked those who worked alongside him and listed the accomplishments he is most proud of from his tenure in the Senate. 'In my time in the Senate, we affirmed that Texas is a sanctuary for the unborn, expanded Second Amendment freedoms, banned woke insanity such as [Environmental, Social and Governance] and DEl, protected religious liberty, provided historic property tax relief, imposed transparency on several government agencies and prevented significant amounts of bad legislation from reaching the Senate floor,' Birdwell wrote. Cook is running to succeed Birdwell after having served in the Texas House since 2021 as a representative from House District 96, based south of Arlington and Fort Worth. He ran for Speaker of the House in 2025, but was defeated by Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock. In a statement, Cook said he is running to address 'challenges' that SD-22 may face. 'Over the years, we've faced a wave of growth and change, bringing both opportunities and challenges that continue to impact our way of life. These realities don't stop at district lines. They affect communities across SD-22 in much the same way,' Cook wrote. SD-22 is heavily Republican, as Birdwell won reelection in 2022 with no Democratic opponent. The primary election will be held March 3, 2026, with the general election on Nov. 3, 2026. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
GOP state Sen. Brian Birdwell says he won't seek reelection
State Sen. Brian Birdwell, a Granbury Republican who's represented parts of Central and North Texas since 2010, said Monday he did not plan to seek reelection to his seat in the upper chamber. 'It has been the high honor of my life, on par with commanding United States soldiers, to serve my fellow Texans for over 15 years,' Birdwell, a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel, said in a letter addressed to his district. 'As I conclude the mission the Lord has given me over these past 15 years, I do so with a sense of gratitude at all we have accomplished.' Birdwell highlighted numerous bills that lawmakers passed during his time in the Senate, like those that expanded access to firearms, restricted abortions and cut property taxes. He also commended instances when lawmakers 'prevented significant amounts of bad legislation from reaching the Senate floor' and noted the state's clampdown along the U.S.-Mexico border during the Biden administration. Soon after Birdwell announced his retirement, state Rep. David Cook, R-Mansfield, announced he would run for the now-open Senate District 22. Cook, who is serving his third term in the lower chamber, recently waged an unsuccessful bid for House speaker, during which he vowed to strip power from Democrats and emerged as the consensus pick of the chamber's rightmost faction. In announcing his Senate run, Cook called Birdwell "the personification of a servant leader." "Over the years, we've faced a wave of growth and change, bringing both opportunities and challenges that continue to impact our way of life," Cook said in a statement. "These realities don't stop at district lines. They affect communities across SD 22 in much the same way. I am stepping forward because these challenges require experience, follow-through, and the time necessary to commit fully to the work ahead." Birdwell's announcement is the latest shake-up to the 31-member state Senate. Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, said last week he would not seek reelection to his East Texas seat. Former Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, stepped down from his post two weeks ago for an appointment in the state Comptroller's office; he also announced a campaign to be the next leader of the office. Big news: 20 more speakers join the TribFest lineup! New additions include Margaret Spellings, former U.S. secretary of education and CEO of the Bipartisan Policy Center; Michael Curry, former presiding bishop and primate of The Episcopal Church; Beto O'Rourke, former U.S. Representative, D-El Paso; Joe Lonsdale, entrepreneur, founder and managing partner at 8VC; and Katie Phang, journalist and trial lawyer. Get tickets. TribFest 2025 is presented by JPMorganChase.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The ‘American Idol' Who Left the Mormon Church to Live His Best Gay Life
David Archuleta is finally in his sexual era, and it's hard to argue with his reasoning. 'I'm 34 years old now. It's about damn time that I let myself be flirty,' the pop star and former American Idol contestant tells The Daily Beast's Obsessed over Zoom. Archuleta first appeared on American Idol in 2008 at age 16, placing as a runner-up to David Cook. He won audiences over with his smooth, crisp vocals and boyish good looks. Since his first hit single 'Crush' in 2008, Archuleta has released eight albums, but this year finds him embracing a whole identity in his music: He's being himself, he's being gay, and he's being sexy. There's a freedom and joy you can hear in his music ever since Archuleta publicly came out in 2021. His latest music, including 'Crème Brulée' and 'Can I Call You,' off his forthcoming EP, Earthly Delights (releasing Aug. 15 alongside his upcoming tour) is lively, exciting, and gloriously queer. It took Archuleta these last 17 years to find himself. His experience on American Idol shaped the start of his career, and not necessarily in the way he wanted. 'Suddenly, a whole fan base is constructed for you. They want you to be a certain thing—they wanted me to be the teenage heartthrob,' Archuleta says. 'I never considered myself a teenage heartthrob. That's just how I was portrayed. That's how they wanted me to be seen. I tried to fill in that role as best as I could. But it wasn't who I wanted to be.' Though he knew he didn't fit into that producer-constructed mold, Archuleta's religious background made his self-discovery a challenging process: 'I grew up in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Like most religions, they have a pretty strong stance against homosexuality.' The weight of the word 'homosexual' weighed heavily on him. 'When you hear that word, you just think, 'If you're gay, you're automatically gonna be seen as some whore or pervert who's addicted to sex.' And I didn't want to be that,' he says. As time passed, it became more difficult for Archuleta to ignore his feelings. 'I realized that just because you fall in love with someone of the same sex doesn't mean you're suddenly some disgusting, evil, vile creature,' he says. 'You can still live your life normally, just like everyone else does. It's just that who you're in love with happens to be someone of the same sex.' When he turned 30, he decided to come out publicly: 'I figured out that coming out was a step worth taking. It was scary, but it's been worth it.' Growing up in the public eye, Archuleta found people were always prying into his private life. Since American Idol portrayed him as a heartthrob, people were especially interested in who he was dating. And Mormons, as Archuleta says, were particularly keen on knowing who he was going to marry: 'People literally come up to me in the grocery store asking if I'm dating anybody. The Mormon thing to do is ask, 'Who are you going to marry?' And I'm just like, 'I don't even know who you are!'' After he came out, he noticed a shift in people's attitudes toward him. 'When I said I was going to start dating guys, suddenly, all the Mormons were like 'Why don't you just keep that to yourself?'' Archuleta says. '[They] wouldn't leave me alone! It's so ironic that you obsess over who I'm dating, and then when I come out as queer, it shifts to, 'I don't get why gay people are so obsessed with talking about who they bring into the bedroom.' Who said I was bringing anybody into my bedroom?' Archuleta made the hard decision to leave the Mormon church in 2022, though it's a decision he doesn't regret. At first, it was especially hard, as he didn't have the support of the person who meant the most to him: his mother. 'Initially, my mom couldn't accept my sexuality,' Archuleta says. 'The people whom you care the most about in your life, you're gonna really care what they think. My mom is one of those people for me. I was always known as the good boy. I adapted a lot of my behavior and how I acted to be the good boy my mom wanted me to be.' The challenging time, he says, made him stronger: 'When you realize your life could upset them, it's scary. Now I've gotten to a place where I don't care. It was surprisingly liberating for me to be able to say, 'I don't need you to accept me, because I'm accepting myself, and that's the most important thing.'' Ultimately, Archuleta's mother came around and left the church with her son. 'I had to go against what she wanted for me to get there. It's not about your parents accepting you. It's about you accepting yourself and finding that love for you,' he says. 'I hope people know not everybody's parents accept them or the choices they make, and that's okay. My mom didn't either. What I needed was to be honest and live my truth, and do what was right for me.' That feeling of liberation is evident in his music. 'Crème Brulée,' in particular, isn't just a dreamy earworm. It is Archuleta ecstatically celebrating his queerness. The synth-laden track is cheeky, breezy, and it sounds like he's having the most fun he's had in years. It's one of the queer songs of the summer. 'I've started writing just kind of in this new place that's post-American Idol, post-religious life,' Archuleta says. 'Crème Brulée' has fans giddily declaring him a gay icon, though it's a title he's hesitant to claim: 'I'm not trying to be a gay icon or anything—I just want to be telling my message, sharing my experiences, and telling my story. I'm exploring my queer identity now and leaning into that. Earthly Delights is indulging in the stuff that I was always told growing up religiously, that I should never, ever dare even think of.' Embracing a new, sexier side is something Archuleta loves. 'Part of being a human being is being sexual,' he says. 'You forget that in religion because they villainize it so much. We all exist because humans are sexual beings! For some reason, we act like it's the worst thing in the world. It's literally in the book that you believe in, so I don't know why y'all be tripping.' 'Crème Brulée' finds Archuleta playing with some edgy and playful double entendres. In the song, he sings, for example, 'Snap me like a photo,' a not-so-subtle hint at what goes on behind closed doors. 'Before, I was always so worried about what was appropriate and being obedient. Now I can have fun and be silly in this way,' he says. While Archuleta received some pushback from people surprised by his new direction, he saw it as a chance to assert himself: 'I'm the boss, and I'm giving myself permission to sing this. It's been free and it's been liberating,' Archuleta says. That free spirit extends to his social media. On Archuleta's popular TikTok, he sometimes surprises fans with videos that talk about covering up hickeys, or even hinting at his preferred sexual positions. 'It was so taboo for me before,' Archuleta says, 'but not taboo for a lot of people. It's refreshing to feel so loose and relaxed, and not be so uptight about things.' 'I grew up on a reality TV show. That's how I was raised, to share and be exposed, whether I wanted it or not, and for people to connect with me on that level,' Archuleta says. He only asks one thing of his audience: 'I'm in a new phase. Let me be and let me live my life and share my journey as I see fit.' This summer, Archuleta performed at Pride events across America, including DC World Pride earlier this month alongside such artists as Troye Sivan and Cynthia Erivo. 'It was really great to celebrate,' he says. And Archuleta also recognizes that it's more vital than ever to be performing loudly and proudly as a queer artist. 'Being queer isn't easy,' he says. 'We're not a majority, but we will always be a constant in society. No matter what ethnicity, no matter what part of the world, no matter what, we will always be there. We didn't choose to be this way—we came into the world like this. Hopefully, everyone will be able to live without having to fear of other people think of us or how people treat us. We will continue to celebrate and make ourselves known.'
Associated Press
23-06-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
The Training Data Project Wins Prestigious ICEAA 2025 Best Paper Award for Work on AI Data Labeling and Risk Reduction
06/23/2025, Washington, D.C // PRODIGY: Feature Story // David Cook, Co-Founder of The Training Data Project (Source: The Training Data Project) The Training Data Project, a company focused on quantifying AI value and pioneering data labeling standards, has been awarded the 2025 Best Paper honor by the International Cost Estimating and Analysis Association (ICEAA) in the Management, EVM, Software & Agile category. The winning paper, 'Enabling Measurable Success in DoD AI Programs from Acquisition to Operations,' highlights the central role that training data and data labeling play in AI performance, accountability, and long-term program value. The paper, co-authored by The Training Data Project co-founder David Cook, was selected from a competitive field of government and industry contributors. It outlines a practical methodology for quantifying the value and risk associated with AI systems in Department of Defense programs, beginning not at deployment, but at the foundation: the training data pipeline. 'It's an incredible honor to be recognized by the ICEAA, especially at a conference of cost estimators, a community I've never formally belonged to,' said Cook. 'But that's also the point. As AI continues to expand, its financial and operational value depends on something often overlooked: the integrity of the data we feed into it.' At the core of The Training Data Project's mission is the belief that nothing moves in AI without quality data. Data labeling, the process of annotating and identifying data points to 'teach' AI models what to pay attention to, is the bridge between raw inputs and intelligent outcomes. When done incorrectly, the results can be not just ineffective, but dangerous. 'Bad training data is worse than no training data,' Cook added. 'Mistakes made early in the labeling process don't just vanish. They cascade. They replicate through the system like compound interest, and by the time you spot the failure, the only option might be to start over.' To train an AI to recognize a stop sign, for example, it's not enough to feed it thousands of perfectly clear images. The model must also be exposed to a wide range of real-world variations including poor lighting, partial obstructions, weather damage, unusual angles, and visual interference. The more representative and well-labeled the training data, the better the AI can generalize and respond accurately in unpredictable, real-life conditions. 'Training data is not optional, it is foundational,' said Cook. 'Its importance spans all forms of AI. For Large Language Models, which depend on scale, diversity, and structure to function, it is absolutely crucial. Without standards and measurable quality in training data, organizations invite unquantifiable risk across the entire AI pipeline. Value in AI begins with value in the data.' Founded in 2023 by Cook and CEO Noami DeVore, The Training Data Project helps government and enterprise organizations navigate the complex intersection of data labeling, AI governance, and risk reduction. The company's mission is structured around a framework it calls TRUST: Transparent, Reachable, Unbiased, Standards-based, and Traceable data practices. Its work spans three primary pillars: defining quality and standards for training data, sharing best practices for cost-effective curation, and developing open source tools that support responsible AI deployment. From military applications to commercial AI systems, The Training Data Project offers a clear warning and a hopeful path forward. If organizations commit to data quality at the outset, they can unlock both innovation and measurable value while avoiding costly downstream failures. Media Contact: Name - Noami DeVore Email - [email protected]
