Category Archives: Media

The attorney general v the ABC

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Christian Porter is suing the ABC for defamation over an article reporting that an anonymous senior cabinet minister had been accused of rape in 1988. Porter later identified himself as the minister in question and strenuously denied the allegation. Paul Karp explores how this case could play out, and whether Porter can continue to do his job while fighting to clear his name

The crisis support and suicide prevention service Lifeline can contacted on 13 11 14. Support for sexual assault is available at 1800RESPECT.

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Trump will use ‘his own platform’ to return to social media after Twitter ban

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  • Former president was banned over his incitement of Capitol riot
  • Adviser says Trump will ‘redefine the game’ with his return

Donald Trump will soon use “his own platform” to return to social media, an adviser said on Sunday, months after the former president was banned from Twitter for inciting the US Capitol riot.

Related: 'His new business': Trump seeks personal political brand as he grips Republican base

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Inside Vogue, where women have the top jobs but men still rule

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A new account of life at the fashion bible claims that female staff have been undermined and humiliated for decades. The author reveals why she wrote it

As a fashion-obsessed teenager, I dreamed of working for Vogue. What girl didn’t? This was in the 2000s, and smartphones weren’t everywhere yet, so we’d leaf through the latest copy hungrily at the back of the class. I loved the pictures, the clothes, even the adverts. But most of all I loved the masthead and the index. Who were these glamorous humans with lovely-sounding names and exotic job titles?

Mostly, of course, they were women. That’s the thing about a place like Vogue. It’s a huge global corporation with a lot of soft power, yet unlike most such companies, it has always had women at the top. But not right at the top.

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Keeping an eye on the force: life in the real Line of Duty

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As the popular BBC drama returns, a former crime reporter takes a look at the reality of fighting police corruption

Last week, an officer from South Wales police received formal notification that they were under investigation regarding their dealings with a man who had been arrested and held overnight in a cell in Cardiff.

The suspect had been released from custody the following morning then found dead shortly afterwards. The investigation is to focus on whether the level of force used by the officer was “necessary, proportionate and reasonable” in the circumstances.

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Unmasked: man behind cult set to replace QAnon

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The creator of the rapidly growing ‘Sabmyk Network’ is said to be a Berlin art dealer with a record of media manipulation

The mysterious individual behind a new and rapidly growing online disinformation network targeting followers of QAnon, the far-right cult, can be revealed as a Berlin-based artist with a history of social media manipulation, a prominent anti-racism group claims.

Since Donald Trump left the White House, QAnon’s vast online community has been in a state of flux as it comes to terms with the reality that its conspiracy theories – such as the former US president being destined to defeat a cabal of Satan-worshipping paedophiles – amount to nothing.

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Sun investigator says he illegally obtained information about Meghan

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Dan Hanks claims he compiled 90-page report about actor early in her relationship with Prince Harry

A private investigator employed by the Sun has said he illegally accessed the Duchess of Sussex’s private information shortly after she met Prince Harry.

Dan Hanks, who lives in Los Angeles, told the website Byline Investigates that he compiled a 90-page report on the future member of the royal family in October 2016, shortly after the tabloid newspaper first became aware of her relationship with the prince.

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Why bands are disappearing: ‘Young people aren’t excited by them’

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Maroon 5’s Adam Levine was scoffed at for suggesting there ‘aren’t any bands any more’ – but if you look at the numbers, he’s right. Wolf Alice, Maximo Park and industry insiders ask why

“The moment that we started a band was the best thing that ever happened,” sings Matty Healy on the 1975’s recent single Guys. The song is an ardent love letter to the band, and to the romance of bands in general: the camaraderie, the solidarity, the joyous fusion of creativity and friendship. It’s an old sentiment but an increasingly rare one.

“It’s funny, when the first Maroon 5 album came out [in 2002] there were still other bands,” the band’s frontman Adam Levine told Apple Music’s Zane Lowe this month. “I feel like there aren’t any bands any more … I feel like they’re a dying breed.” Levine was quick to clarify that he meant bands “in the pop limelight” but the internet doesn’t really do clarification, so his remarks sparked bemusement and outrage among the literal-minded, from aggrieved veterans such as Garbage (“What are we Adam Levine? CATS?!?!?”) to fans of newcomers such as Fontaines DC and Big Thief.

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Twitter told to delete Russian opposition’s online news content

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Ban on Khodorkovsky-founded outlet follows Kremlin threat to block entire social network

Russia’s media watchdog has told Twitter to delete the account of an opposition news outlet following threats from Moscow to block the social network entirely if it did not remove “banned content” within a month.

The moves are part of a wider crackdown on social media and the opposition after protests supporting the jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, which were organised via online platforms.

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Monkeys and eggplants: how do men and women use emojis differently?

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Studies have pointed to a gender gap and dating coaches agree – but researchers’ findings don’t always match stereotypes

It’s 2021, and despite some great advances in space exploration, we are no closer to really knowing whether men are from Mars and women are from Venus. In fact, the growing consensus is that we’re all from Earth, and people are more complex than we usually give them credit for.

But what if there were a way of unlocking some of the hidden trends that exist among men and women, which reveal how they think, see themselves and communicate? And what if it were ... emojis?

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First pictures released of Boris Johnson’s new £2.6m briefing room

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No 10 intends the studio, hosted by Allegra Stratton, to be focal point of new media strategy

After £2.6m and a seven-month wait, the curtains have finally opened on a studio based inside Downing Street where the prime minister’s press secretary will address the nation in new White House-style TV briefings.

The first glimpses of the room revealed by ITV showed the podium that Allegra Stratton, a former BBC and Guardian journalist who also worked as communications director for the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, will stand behind as she fields questions from journalists.

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Alan Rusbridger quits Irish media body over Roy Greenslade controversy

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Ex-editor of Guardian steps down after former columnist said he had supported IRA use of violence during the Troubles

Alan Rusbridger, the former editor of the Guardian, has stepped down from a commission on Ireland’s media industry following controversy over his employment of a columnist who it has emerged supported the IRA.

Roy Greenslade, a former senior editor at the Sunday Times, the Sun and the Daily Mirror, recently revealed that he had supported the IRA’s use of violence during the Troubles and had concealed that fact to protect his employment.

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Teen Vogue: controversy continues after editor-in-chief apologizes for anti-Asian tweets

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Ulta Beauty ‘paused’ advertising campaign with the magazine because of Alexi McCammond’s tweets

Controversy around the new Teen Vogue editor in chief Alexi McCammond continues after she apologized for tweeting anti-Asian remarks in 2011.

McCammond apologised for the tweets in 2019 and again this week, calling them “offensive, idiotic” posts. On Thursday she posted a new statement to Twitter in which she said: “I’ve dedicated my career to giving a voice to the voiceless, and the last thing I’d ever want is to make anyone – especially our Asian brothers and sisters in particular – feel more invisible,” she wrote. “And I know that that is a unique source of pain in all of this, too: That historically the AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) community has been left out or ignored in critical conversations around race, racism, justice and equality. I am determined to play a part in changing that.”

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Charlie Hebdo criticised for ‘offensive’ cartoon of Meghan

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Image in French magazine depicts Queen kneeling on Duchess of Sussex’s neck, echoing George Floyd’s killing

French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo has sparked outrage with a cartoon depiction of Queen Elizabeth kneeling on the neck of Meghan Markle, echoing the death of George Floyd.

The controversial publication’s cartoon comes after the Duchess of Sussex, and her husband, Prince Harry, told US interviewer Oprah Winfrey of apparent racism within the royal family, though they did not criticise the Queen. But Markle said courtiers refused her permission to leave Kensington Palace on occasion and that she once only left twice in four months, leading her to experience severe loneliness and suicidal ideations.

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Murray Walker, the voice of Formula One, dies aged 97

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  • Tributes paid after broadcaster’s death announced
  • Walker first commentated on F1 in 1978 for the BBC

For generations of British fans, Murray Walker, who died on Saturday at the age of 97, was, quite simply, the voice of Formula One.

The affection with which he was held by the paddock and across the sport rose from an enthusiasm and often overlooked a dedication to his craft that has rarely been matched in any discipline. Few commentators come to truly epitomise their subject, but over Walker’s 23 years of bringing F1 to the nation he was acknowledged as a true great, and a unique talent.

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Tucker Carlson’s targeting of Taylor Lorenz follows pattern of berating female journalists

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Analysis: the Fox News host had a troubling history of sexist behavior before recent harassment of a New York Times journalist

It was International Women’s Day this week, a global endeavor designed to focus attention on women’s rights and the challenges they face. Many news organizations, and politicians, dedicated tributes to the achievements of women and highlighted the problems that sexism continues to pose.

Over at Fox News, however, Tucker Carlson took a different tack. The rightwing media host instead marked the celebration of women by giddily harassing a female journalist, devoting his time to attacking the New York Times reporter Taylor Lorenz.

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Netflix weighs up crackdown on password sharing

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Streaming service tests feature that asks viewers if they share household with subscriber

Netflix has begun testing a feature that asks viewers whether they share a household with a subscriber, in a move that could lead to crackdown on the widespread practice of sharing passwords among friends and family.

Some Netflix users are reported to have received a message asking them to confirm they live with the account owner by entering a code included in a text message or email sent to the subscriber.

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Daphne Caruana Galizia: killer lays out murder plot in court

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Vincent Muscat describes spying on the journalist and discussions about how she would be killed

The self-confessed killer of Daphne Caruana Galizia told a court on Thursday that he and two other men used binoculars and a telescope to follow the movements of the investigative journalist for days, before planting and triggering the car bomb that killed her in 2017.

Speaking in the presence of journalists and Caruana Galizia’s relatives in hall 22 of the law courts in Malta’s capital, Valletta, Vincent Muscat gave the fullest account yet of the plot to murder the journalist.

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‘Recollections may vary’: how the papers covered Queen’s response to Meghan interview

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Some papers focus on the mild challenge to the Sussexes in palace statement, while others look at the privacy line, or claim support to strip couple of titles

The newspaper front pages have feasted on the royal crisis for a second day with several splashes focusing on the Queen’s “recollections may vary” reaction to the Duke and Duchess of Sussexes’ suggestions of palace racism.

The Telegraph goes with “Issue of race concerning, but recollections may vary, says Queen”, while the Times splash handles the crisis carefully, with a headline reading: “Queen says racism claim will be handled in private”.

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Teen Vogue employees protest new editor-in-chief over anti-Asian tweets

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Staffers sent letter to Condé Nast after racist tweets written by Alexi McCammond 10 years ago resurfaced

Employees at Teen Vogue have sent a letter to publisher Condé Nast, protesting against the hiring of Alexi McCammond as editor-in-chief of the influential magazine.

It follows the resurfacing earlier this week of a series of racist tweets written by McCammond 10 years ago.

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