FCC chair threatens to throttle news broadcasts over ‘hoaxes’ about Iran war pred 8 urami in 8 minutami Brendan Carr posts that he may cancel spectrum permits of ‘mainstream news’ outlets for ‘misleading’ coverageThe Trump administration’s communications licensing tsar fired a warning shot over the US broadcasting industry Saturday, threatening to cancel the spectrum permits of broadcasters pushing what he termed “hoaxes and news distortions”.Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chair Brendan Carr posted on social media that broadcasters running “fake news – have a chance now to correct course before their license renewals come up. The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their licenses if they do not.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Murder arrest after 18-day-old baby falls from central London property pred 9 urami in 16 minutami Met police says woman, 43, was detained after newborn girl in Westminster taken to hospital and pronounced deadA woman has been arrested on suspicion of murder after an 18-day-old baby girl fell from a property in central London.The Metropolitan police said officers attended Horseferry Road in Westminster after reports on Saturday morning that a baby had fallen from a residential property. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Queensland arts minister ignored recommendation that new theatre be named after poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal pred 10 urami in 21 minutami Exclusive: Queensland Performing Arts Centre board nominated Oodgeroo as their preferred name for the theatre in 2024, but it was not one of the four options put to public vote by the LNPGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA Queensland government minister intervened to ensure a new theatre would not be named after Aboriginal poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal, overriding the theatre’s board, according to documents obtained under right to information laws.The late artist’s name is also set to be stripped from a state electorate, in draft electoral boundaries released by the state’s redistribution commission this week. The LNP lobbied for the change. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Australia’s pornography age-verification: a victory for advocates or a gateway to ‘darker corners of the internet’ pred 10 urami in 21 minutami As users turn to VPNs to access pornography, experts warn collection of information creates a ‘honeytrap’ for bad actors Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastWhen porn sites began blocking Australians from access, it also meant X began age-checking users before they could look at adult content on the social media site.But it asked some users to send a video selfie every time they wanted to look at a single picture or video. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK faces ‘seismic moment’ as nationalists target election wins, says John Swinney pred 10 urami in 59 minutami SNP leader hails prospect of success for parties in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland that want to break up unionThe UK is facing an “absolutely seismic moment”, John Swinney has said, with the prospect of the election of first ministers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in May who are all committed to the break-up of the union.Speaking at the Scottish National party’s campaign conference ahead of the Scottish parliament elections, the first minister told delegates: “For people watching around the world, there could be no clearer sign that Westminster’s time is up.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
New York lawyer linked to Trump pardon charged with attempted extortion pred 11 urami in 5 minutami Joshua Nass, of alleged $600,000 extortion plot, played role in pardon of man convicted of failing to pay $40m in taxesA New York lobbyist and attorney connected to a presidential pardon issued by Donald Trump in November has been charged with attempting to extort a former client and the client’s son over an alleged $500,000 debt.Joshua Nass, 34, was arrested on Friday after being charged in federal court in Brooklyn with attempted Hobbs Act extortion. US justice department prosecutors contend that Nass threatened a client for payment that he claimed he was owed for his services. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Reform UK government would replace top civil servants with those ‘more like to implement party’s priorities’ pred 11 urami in 21 minutami Exclusive: Senior party figures conclude outsiders or existing senior staff deemed more suitable should take over from current permanent secretariesA Reform UK government would expect to dismiss the top civil servant in every government department and replace them with people seen as more likely to implement the party’s priorities, the Guardian has learned.Senior Reform figures have concluded that the current crop of permanent secretaries, the lead civil servant in each department, are not up to the necessary standard. Some would be replaced by outsiders, and others by existing officials viewed as more suitable. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Duke and Duchess of Sussex hit back at ‘deranged’ author’s claims in new book pred 11 urami in 27 minutami Royal couple criticise Tom Bower’s ‘fixation’ on them and describe released extracts as ‘conspiracy and melodrama’ The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have launched a scathing attack on a “deranged” author whose new book claims Queen Camilla once told a friend: “Meghan’s brainwashed Harry.”The royal couple hit out at Tom Bower, the author of Betrayal: Power, Deceit and the Fight for the Future of the Royal Family, criticising his “fixation” on the pair. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Jürgen Habermas, German philosopher and sociologist, dies aged 96 pred 12 urami in 24 minutami Habermas’ political consensus-building theory argued formation of public opinion vital for democracies to surviveThe influential German philosopher and sociologist Jürgen Habermas has died at the age of 96, his publisher has said.Habermas, a towering figure in the intellectual history of postwar Germany, is best known for his theory of political consensus-building. Widely considered one of most influential philosophers of the 20th century, he also helped to shape the discourse around European integration and the formation of the EU. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Five arrested in Cuba after protest at local Communist party office pred 12 urami in 39 minutami Rare action began peacefully but ‘degenerated into vandalism’ according to state-run newspaperFive people have been arrested in Cuba for acts of “vandalism” after a small group of protesters broke into a provincial office of the Cuban Communist party and set fire to computers and furniture.The incident, which also affected a pharmacy and another shop, took place in the town of Moron, a little more than 300 miles (500km) east of Havana. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
