Thursday briefing: Vice took millions from Saudi Arabia – but has its deal backfired?

In today’s newsletter: As the upstart media company faces bankruptcy, it has developed strong ties with the country, leaving some to question what compromises companies are willing to make to do business

Sign up here for our daily newsletter, First Edition

It’s hard to put into words the transformation that Saudi Arabia has undergone in the past six years.

Mohammed bin Salman, commonly referred to as MBS, was appointed the crown prince in 2017 and is now the de facto ruler of the kingdom. There have been notable reforms under his new regime. Women are allowed to drive; the guardian system – under which men have legal powers over women – has been relaxed; and cinemas reopened after 35 years.

Continue reading...

CEO regrets her firm took on Facebook moderation work after staff ‘traumatised’

Outsourcer Sama facing legal cases brought by Kenya-based employees alleging exposure to graphic content

The chief executive of a company contracted to moderate Facebook posts in east Africa has said she regretted taking on the work, after its staff said they were left traumatised by graphic content on the social media platform.

The US outsourcing firm Sama is facing a number of legal cases brought by Kenya-based employees, who alleged being exposed to graphic and traumatic content such as videos of beheadings, suicide and other material at a moderation hub.

Continue reading...

BBC’s Stephen Nolan accused of sending explicit images to colleagues

Corporation under pressure to respond to claims presenter sent photos of reality star Stephen Bear

The BBC is under pressure to respond to allegations that Stephen Nolan, one of the corporation’s highest-paid presenters, sent sexually explicit images to colleagues and was the subject of a bullying claim.

Political parties in Northern Ireland called on the BBC to provide a full response to the allegations about the region’s most influential and controversial broadcaster.

Continue reading...

Vice blocked news stories that could offend Saudi Arabia, insiders say

Exclusive: Media company recently signed lucrative deal with Saudi government-controlled MBC Group

Vice has repeatedly blocked news stories that could offend the Saudi government, leaving its reporters unsure if they are still able to report freely on the kingdom’s human rights abuses, sources have said.

The media company recently signed a lucrative partnership deal with the MBC Group, a media company controlled by the Saudi government, to establish a joint venture in the Middle Eastern country. Of the 29 jobs currently advertised on Vice’s careers page, 20 are based in the Saudi Arabian capital, Riyadh.

Continue reading...

‘Stressed beyond her limits’: co-owner of Kansas newspaper dies after police raid

Police served a search warrant to the Marion County Record’s Joan Meyer, 98, after the paper’s investigation into local restaurateur

The co-owner of a small Kansas newspaper whose offices and staff were raided by local police officers conducting a leak investigation has died after the situation left her “stressed beyond her limits”, according to the publication.

Joan Meyer, 98, collapsed on Saturday afternoon and died at her home a day after she tearfully watched officers who showed up at her home with a search warrant cart away her computer as well as an internet router, reported the Marion County Record, which she co-owned. After officers also photographed the bank statements of her son, Record publisher Eric Meyer, and left her house in mess, Meyer had been unable to eat or sleep, her newspaper said.

Continue reading...

‘At what price?’: German press sceptical over Harry Kane’s £100m transfer

Bayern Munich fans delighted but commentators question price tag and Germany’s failure to nurture homegrown talent

There may have been tens of thousands of Harry Kane fans tracking his Cessna flight’s path to Munich on Saturday, followed by standing ovations when he finally appeared before Bayern Munich supporters – many already wearing “Harry Kane – 9” shirts – to the stirring strains of Rock You Like a Hurricane by German rock band the Scorpions, but scepticism about the wisdom of the Tottenham Hotspur striker’s £100m transfer was rife among German commentators.

The affection for the 30-year-old striker was not in doubt. “Citizen Kane is now officially a Bavarian!” ran one typical headline, and the greetings servus (hello) and willkommen (welcome) towards “Herry” (as some Germans pronounce it) came thick and fast at his first press conference, at which he was flanked by bottles of water and Bavarian wheat beer.

Continue reading...

TikTok users in UK to be left with ‘more toxic’ version of app, say campaigners

Activists call on tech giant to extend a change making personalised algorithm optional to comply with rules for EEA countries

TikTok users in the UK face being left with a “less safe” and “more toxic” version of the app than those in Europe after the tech giant was forced to make its personalised algorithm optional there to comply with EU rules.

From the end of August, TikTok users in 30 countries in the European Economic Area will be able to opt out of receiving personalised content recommendations, which are largely generated based on past activity. Instead, their “For You” and live feeds will include popular videos from the places they live and around the world.

Continue reading...

ABC clears Four Corners TV crew of wrongdoing during protest at Woodside CEO’s home

Broadcaster’s managing director says crew did not collude with Perth protesters but corrects earlier claim they had no knowledge of action

An internal ABC inquiry has concluded that a Four Corners TV crew did not collude with or encourage Woodside protesters nor did they trespass on the home of CEO Meg O’Neill.

The ABC managing director, David Anderson, said the Four Corners investigation – about climate protests in Australia – would proceed despite the crew being heavily criticised by the fossil fuel company, the Western Australian government and the West Australian newspaper.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Canada publishers urge Ottawa to stop Meta from blocking users’ news access

Dust-up began after law passed requiring social media companies to compensate news publishers for posting their content

A group of Canadian news publishers and broadcasters has called on the country’s competition regulator to stop Meta from blocking access to news as the federal government and technology companies clash over revenue and content sharing.

News Media Canada, the Canadian Association of Broadcasters and CBC/Radio‐Canada warned on Tuesday that Meta’s decision to bar Canadians from viewing news on Facebook and Instagram amounted to “anticompetitive conduct” and violates a provision of a federal law.

Continue reading...

BBC presenter Nick Owen announces prostate cancer diagnosis

The Midlands Today presenter has undergone surgery and plans to return to work for the broadcaster in autumn

Nick Owen has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and has undergone surgery, the BBC Midlands Today presenter has announced.

After a period of absence from the programme, the 75-year-old broadcaster spoke on Monday about the impact of the condition on his life since he received the news in April.

Continue reading...

Krishnan Guru-Murthy joins Strictly Come Dancing lineup

Journalist takes ‘irresistible’ chance to take part in show while still working as Channel 4 newsreader

Krishnan Guru-Murthy has been announced as the fourth celebrity to join this year’s Strictly Come Dancing.

The journalist, who is a main presenter on Channel 4 News, joins a lineup that includes Angela Rippon, the actor Amanda Abbington and the Bad Education star Layton Williams.

Continue reading...

Angela Rippon to be oldest Strictly Come Dancing contestant

Ex-newsreader famous for dancing on 1976 Morecambe and Wise show will be joined by Amanda Abbington and Layton Williams

Angela Rippon is to compete in the upcoming season of Strictly Come Dancing becoming the oldest competitor on the BBC primetime show at the age of 79.

The actor Amanda Abbington and Bad Education star Layton Williams have also been announced as the first contestants for the 21st series of the dancing competition this autumn.

Continue reading...

Meta, Google and YouTube ‘profiting’ off posts for bogus women’s health cures in Kenya

Tech firms permit ads for potentially harmful products including vaginal ‘cleanse’ balls and useless herbs for infertility, according to an investigation

Meta, YouTube and Google are profiting from posts promoting harmful and useless health products to women in Kenya, according to an investigation.

Researchers from the media collective Fumbua have accused big tech firms of amplifying content that promises unproven cures for infertility and herbs that can stave off cancers on their networks.

Continue reading...

Meta to ask EU users’ permission to show targeted advertising

Facebook and Instagram’s parent company will stop harvesting audience data to create profiles for advertisers after regulatory rulings

Facebook and Instagram are to ask EU users for permission to show them personalised adverts, in a concession that challenges the platforms’ core money-making strategy.

The social media networks’ parent company, Meta, announced the change after a series of regulatory rulings struck down the company’s legal justification for harvesting audience data to create user profiles that can be targeted by advertisers.

Continue reading...

Solomon Islands newspaper pledged to promote ‘truth about China’s generosity’ in return for funding

The Solomon Star denies accusations of ‘giving away’ its independence by accepting thousands of dollars’ worth of equipment

Local media in Solomon Islands have been accused of compromising their independence by entering into agreements with Chinese news organisations and accepting thousands of dollars’ worth of equipment from the Chinese embassy.

Since the Solomon Islands government signed a high-profile security agreement with China in March 2022, some newspapers in the Pacific country have received cars, cameras, phones and printing machinery that costs thousands of dollars from the Chinese government, via its local embassy, according to local journalists. Some have raised concern about the gifts and the continued close dialogue between media organisations in China and Solomon Islands.

Continue reading...

Meta to end news access in Canada over publisher payment law

Move comes in response to Canadian legislation requiring internet giants to pay news publishers

Meta has begun the process to end access to news on Facebook and Instagram for all users in Canada, the company said on Tuesday.

The move comes in response to legislation in the country requiring internet giants to pay news publishers.

Continue reading...

ITV warns it is in ‘worst ad recession since financial crisis’

Broadcaster’s earnings more than halve in first half but studios business performs strongly

ITV has warned it is in the midst of the worst advertising downturn since the 2008 financial crisis.

The broadcaster, which is behind hit shows including Love Island and I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!, said earnings more than halved in the first six months of the year, as it came up against a “very tough” advertising market and as it invested in its ITVX online streaming service.

Continue reading...

LadBible co-founder Arian Kalantari resigns from business

Kalantari steps down as chief operating officer of digital platform, saying it is time for ‘new adventures’

One of the co-founders of LadBible, a digital platform that creates content aimed at young men, has decided not to return to work after taking a seven-month sabbatical from the business.

Arian Kalantari, who set up LadBible with a school friend, Alexander “Solly” Solomou, and developed it into a successful digital platform with millions of followers, resigned this week, saying it was the right time “to create space in my life for new challenges and new adventures”.

Continue reading...

Netflix lists AI job worth $900,000 amid twin Hollywood strikes

Company lists highly paid machine-learning project manager role while actors and executives at odds over future of AI in Hollywood

As actors and writers strike over fair compensation and protections from the encroachment of artificial intelligence, Netflix has listed a position for a machine learning product manager that will compensate somewhere between $300,000 and $900,000 a year. According to the Screen Actors Guild (Sag-Aftra), 87% of the guild’s actors make less than $26,000 per year.

The use of AI in the production of film and television – either to write scripts, generate actors’ likenesses, or cut corners in paying creative work, has been a major point of contention in negotiations between the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) and Sag and the Writers Guild of America (WGA). Writers have been striking since May; the actors joined earlier this month. The first joint strike since 1960 threatens to bring Hollywood to a complete standstill.

Continue reading...

Telegraph Media Group says it will soon reach 1m paying subscribers

Acquisition of Chelsea Magazine Company titles bumps up figures as newspaper group seeks new owner

The Telegraph’s parent company has insisted it will soon have a million paying subscribers – aided by the decision to buy Classic Boat magazine.

Telegraph Media Group is in the early stages of seeking a new owner after banks wrestled control of the newspaper from the Barclay family early this year.

Continue reading...