Trump administration labels Australia’s media bargaining laws ‘foreign extortion’

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Albanese defends plan forcing Meta, Google and TikTok to make deals with Australian news publishers through a levy

The Trump administration has described Australia’s moves to make big tech companies pay for news online as “extortion” but Anthony Albanese defended the plan by saying it was about protecting and rewarding media outlets for the work they produce.

Labor’s plan to encourage Meta, Google and TikTok to make deals with Australian news publishers, or face a 2.25% levy, is likely to be supported by the Coalition and Greens in parliament. But a bigger problem may be the ire of Donald Trump, who has strongly opposed extra regulation being imposed on US-based tech companies. A major tech industry lobby group on Wednesday urged the White House to consider retaliatory trade measures.

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Babies exposed to air pollution during pregnancy take longer to learn to speak, research finds – The Guardian

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  1. Babies exposed to air pollution during pregnancy take longer to learn to speak, research finds  The Guardian
  2. Air pollution in early pregnancy linked to delayed speech development in babies: study  Anadolu Ajansı
  3. Newborn Metabolomics Links Prenatal Pollution to Autism  Bioengineer.org
  4. Air pollution exposure in the womb linked to worse language and motor development  Medical Xpress
  5. Air pollution in early pregnancy linked to lower language scores  AirQualityNews
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Lost copy of seventh-century poem in Old English discovered at Rome library

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Dublin scholars find 1,200-year-old manuscript of Caedmon’s Hymn composed by Northumbrian cattle herder

A lost copy of a poem composed in the seventh century by a Northumbrian cattle herder – the earliest surviving poem in the English language – has been discovered in Rome.

Scholars from Trinity College Dublin (TCD) uncovered the manuscript that contains Caedmon’s Hymn at the National Central Library of Rome.

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The Real Threat to Taiwan – Foreign Affairs

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  1. The Real Threat to Taiwan  Foreign Affairs
  2. Taiwan’s Political Polarization Is Playing Into China’s Hands  Council on Foreign Relations
  3. Xi softens his Taiwan messaging, setting a potential trap for Trump in Beijing  Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS)
  4. The KMT-CPC Meeting: Architecture of peace and global stability in a changing world  Friends of Socialist China
  5. China’s abandoned plan to invade Taiwan after entering the Korean War  Milwaukee Independent
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Last year was hot. Next year will be even hotter. – politico.eu

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  1. Last year was hot. Next year will be even hotter.  politico.eu
  2. Nordic heatwave part of record year that saw temperatures scorch most of Europe, report finds  The Guardian
  3. 'Dangerously high' temperatures as Europe named world's fastest warming continent  Sky News
  4. Europe named ‘fastest-warming continent’ in latest climate change report  Al Jazeera
  5. Greenland ice sheet and Europe’s glaciers shrink further, scientists say  Financial Times
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Australia reports lower-than-expected first-quarter inflation — but price growth hits 2-year high – CNBC

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  1. Australia reports lower-than-expected first-quarter inflation — but price growth hits 2-year high  CNBC
  2. AUD/USD Outlook: Inflation shifts RBA bets, but tech earnings drive the Aussie  FOREX.com
  3. ASX falls for seventh day after CPI spike firms May rate rise bets  AFR
  4. Inflation jumps to 4.6% in Australia as Iran war fuel shock begins to bite  The Guardian
  5. Inflation details may give RBA pause for thought on interest rates  Australian Broadcasting Corporation
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Kim Jong Un praises troops who ‘self-blasted’ to avoid capture by Ukraine – BBC

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  1. Kim Jong Un praises troops who 'self-blasted' to avoid capture by Ukraine  BBC
  2. Kim Jong Un Confirms Soldier ‘Self-Blasting’ Policy in Ukraine  Bloomberg.com
  3. Kim praises North Korean soldiers who blew themselves up to evade Ukraine capture  The Guardian
  4. Russia, North Korea agree 'long-term' military cooperation  DW.com
  5. North Korea Is Honoring Some Of Its Soldiers Killed In The Ukraine War. But What About The Rest?  Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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Fears of resurgence in Somali piracy after three vessels hijacked in a week – The Guardian

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  1. Fears of resurgence in Somali piracy after three vessels hijacked in a week  The Guardian
  2. Somalia piracy: Another vessel seized as threat level increased  BBC
  3. Pirates on the prowl again off Somalia’s coast  Financial Times
  4. 'Efforts under way for release of Pakistani crew held in tanker hijacking'  Pakistan Today
  5. Tanker 500NM At Sea Reports Approach as Surge in Somali Pirates Grows  The Maritime Executive
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Hezbollah drone strikes target Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon – The Guardian

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  1. Hezbollah drone strikes target Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon  The Guardian
  2. Lebanon’s PM slams Israel’s ‘war crimes’ as attack kills 3 rescue workers  Al Jazeera
  3. Israel and Hezbollah Trade Strikes in Lebanon, as Iran Talks Remain on Hold  The New York Times
  4. Israeli strikes kill 14 in Lebanon amid ongoing ceasefire  BBC
  5. Opinion | Israel’s new “buffer zone” in Lebanon is a huge gift to Hezbollah  MS NOW
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Israeli contractor killed, son wounded by Hezbollah drone in southern Lebanon – The Times of Israel

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  1. Israeli contractor killed, son wounded by Hezbollah drone in southern Lebanon  The Times of Israel
  2. IDF: Engineering contractor killed by Hezbollah drone explosion in south Lebanon  Haaretz
  3. Amer Hujirat, Defense Ministry civilian contractor, killed in Hezbollah drone attack in Lebanon  The Jerusalem Post
  4. Weaker than a spider’s web: Hezbollah’s fiber thread traps the Merkava  thecradle.co
  5. IDF races to counter Hezbollah's growing drone threat  www.israelhayom.com
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Canada’s deficit lower than expected thanks to higher oil prices – BBC

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  1. Canada's deficit lower than expected thanks to higher oil prices  BBC
  2. Prime Minister Mark Carney Says Canada’s Economy Is Expected to Grow and Deficit to Fall  The New York Times
  3. The upside-down world of Liberal budgets  The Globe and Mail
  4. Canada Shows Improved Bottom Line on Economic Resilience, Higher Energy Prices  WSJ
  5. Mark Carney shares blueprint for domestic strength amid global chaos  Politico
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Indian billionaire heir offers to save 80 of Pablo Escobar’s ‘cocaine hippos’ from Colombian cull – CNN

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  1. Indian billionaire heir offers to save 80 of Pablo Escobar’s ‘cocaine hippos’ from Colombian cull  CNN
  2. Indian billionaire’s son offers to house Pablo Escobar’s hippos at his private zoo  The Guardian
  3. Colombia To Kill Dozens of Escobar’s ‘Cocaine Hippos’—Here’s Why  Yahoo
  4. I’ll save Escobar’s ‘narco-hippos’ from execution, says billionaire’s son  The Times
  5. Indian billionaire's son offers to save Escobar's hippos  BBC
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