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Sean Salai

Sean Salai is the general assignment/culture reporter for The Washington Times. A former National desk intern and Metro clerk at The Washington Times, he also has served as a City Hall reporter at the Boca Raton News and as a special contributor at America Media. He can be reached at ssalai@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Sean Salai

Parents challenge books in record numbers, American Library Association report says

Parents challenged books in school libraries and classrooms in record numbers for the second straight year, with one highly contentious work on LGBTQ identity bearing the brunt of conservatives' wrath.

April 25, 2023

Rising oil prices drive support for nuclear energy to decade high: Gallup

Rising oil prices have increased support for nuclear energy to its highest level in a decade of Gallup polling.

April 25, 2023

FDA approves first ‘smart crib’ for babies

The Food and Drug Administration has approved the first "smart bassinet" whose manufacturer says it reduces safety risks for infants through automated rocking that keeps them flat on their backs.

April 21, 2023

Gen Z dumps smartphones for dumbphones to escape screen addiction

At age 17, Davida Rimm-Kaufman gave up her smartphone to finish high school with a so-called dumbphone, worried that an "extreme addiction" to social media was making her stressed and sad.

April 21, 2023

George Floyd’s death a pivotal point in ‘cancel culture,’ campus speech censure started to spike

The 2020 murder of George Floyd sparked a dramatic increase in efforts to punish college professors, scholars and speakers for "controversial speech" with petitions, sanctions and firings, according to a free speech advocacy group.

April 20, 2023

Authorities see surge in fake ‘swatting’ calls about college shootings

Nearly two dozen colleges have reported fake active shooter calls in recent weeks, with 10 such incidents reported April 13.

April 20, 2023

Colleges push 3-year degrees as enrollments fall, costs rise

A small number of colleges are experimenting with three-year baccalaureate programs as an alternative to traditional four-year degrees amid rising tuition and declining enrollment.

April 20, 2023

33.8 million adults in U.S. lacked dependable access to food, water in 2021, CDC says

About 33.8 million U.S. adults lacked consistent, dependable access to adequate food and water in 2021, according to federal data released Thursday.

April 20, 2023

Therapists warn against ‘learned helplessness’ of COVID isolation

Mental health experts are warning that the prolonged isolation of pandemic lockdowns has prompted many Americans to adopt a coping strategy frequently used by drug and alcohol abusers.

April 20, 2023

D.C. air gets an ‘F’ from American Lung Association

An annual report card from the American Lung Association gives the air quality in the Washington-Baltimore-Arlington area an "F" grade for smog and says soot also worsened.

April 19, 2023

Symposium focuses on obstacles for Black athletes on college scholarships

Former collegiate athletic stars discussed Tuesday the struggles many Black scholarship athletes in Division I college basketball and football face in graduating with a degree.

April 18, 2023

Anti-inflammatory steroid effective in severe COVID cases: Study

COVID-19 patients who took the anti-inflammatory steroid dexamethasone while hooked up to oxygen at a hospital had "significantly reduced" odds of dying there or going into hospice care, a study has found.

April 17, 2023

ChatGPT safe from cheating, contend ed tech firms; teachers have doubts

Two leading education technology companies have released products claiming to make the artificial intelligence tool ChatGPT safe from academic dishonesty -- but teachers are not so sure.

April 14, 2023

Utah first, New York last in economists’ ranking of business-friendly states

Utah ranked as the best state for businesses for the 16th straight year in an annual conservative economic forecast this week, with New York ranking dead last.

April 14, 2023

Conservative students sue to end Texas State University speech code

Three conservative students have sued Texas State University in federal court, claiming a campus speech code suppresses their freedom to dissent on topics ranging from transgender athletes to affirmative action.

April 14, 2023

COVID-19 burnout prompts exodus of nurses from workforce

More than 100,000 registered nurses have quit during the past two years due to COVID-related burnout, and one-fifth of the rest plan to leave by 2027, according to an industry survey released Thursday.

April 13, 2023

Wives catching up with husbands as breadwinners: Survey

Wives are catching up to husbands as the primary breadwinners in marriages but men still have the edge in most households, the Pew Research Center reported Thursday.

April 13, 2023

Suicides jumped in 2021 after two-year decline, CDC reports

The national suicide rate jumped in 2021 after declining the previous two years and the final count fell just shy of a two-decade high, according to government figures released Thursday.

April 13, 2023

More than four in 10 ‘unequivocally’ not planning to buy electric cars, Gallup finds

A second national poll in two days has found significant resistance among American consumers to the big switch from gas to electric-powered cars and trucks in their driveways.

April 12, 2023