Tag Archives: International

Father of 13 wins paternity rights

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By ALLIE SIMON

In Bangkok, Thailand, Mitsutoki Shigeta, a Japanese man nicknamed the “baby factory,” has won the paternity rights to 13 of the babies he has fathered via Thai surrogate mothers.

In 2014, Shigeta revealed to have fathered 16 babies through surrogacy. He won the paternity rights of three of the children in a 2015 trial.

According to strong research by BBC News South East Asia correspondent Jonathan Head, an airport security photo from more than three years ago that showed Shigeta holding a baby as he was leaving Thailand, caused concern about his motives for leaving the country. Shigeta was investigated by Thai police for possible human trafficking, as he had already taken some of his children to Cambodia.

Further investigation by the Japanese government and a statement from Shigeta’s lawyer has since revealed that he is the son of a wealthy entrepreneur and is merely looking to expand his family.

Details about Shigeta’s life are very secretive and there is hardly any information about him that is public, besides for the fact that he owns several companies and has set up trust funds for his children. BBC shares that according to several “sources,” Shigeta has been moving around through Asia frequently and could have even fathered children in India and Ukraine.

Mitsutoki Shigeta, father of 16 surrogate babies.

BBC does not convince the audience that Shigeta should have won the paternity rights, but merely shines a light on the kind of questionable activity that Asian authorities are letting occur.

According to BBC, Shigeta’s Bangkok apartment was raided during a crackdown on commercial surrogacy and nine surrogate babies, nannies, and a pregnant surrogate mother were found. The Thai police seized Shigeta’s 13 children, leading to an investigation and Shigeta filing for sole custody.

According to Thailand’s Central Juvenile and Family Court, Shigeta earns the American equivalent of more than $3 million a year and has enough caretakers and resources to take care of his 16 children.

The reporting on this case is questionable, as is the decision to let Shigeta have sole custody of his 16 children. Despite this, the Thai government has found evidence that he should have paternal rights of the children, according to BBC.

Team USA Hockey wins against Canada

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By AMANDA TORRES

For the first time in 20 years, Team USA Hockey has won gold. Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson, a hockey player on Team USA, scored the goal that won the game. It was a 3-2 victory against the Canadian hockey team, who had been undefeated for four years.

If you did not watch the game, reporters from The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Miami Herald described the game and Lamoureux-Davidson’s move that lead to the goal in a way that was easy to picture and understand.

According to The New York Times, there were only seven minutes left to play when, Lamoureux-Davidson sister, Monique Lamoureux-Davidson, scored the goal that they needed to match Canada’s score. The game went into overtime and Team USA knew it had a chance to win.

Since overtime in a hockey game lasts five minutes, a shootout began when the score remained tied. This meant that there would be one member from each team attempting to make penalty shots against their opposing goaltender. Because there continued to be no change in the score, the game went into sudden death. The game would end as soon as a team got ahead of the other.

The Miami Herald described that Lamoureux-Davidson’s teammates were eagerly watching her play on the hockey’s biggest stage. As they watched, Lamoureux-Davidson made the anticipated move that they were hoping she would do: the triple maneuver. And she did, scoring against Canada’s goaltender, Shanon Szabados.

Lamoureux-Davidson practiced the intricate move many times. She admitted that she failed many of those attempts, but remained persistent to get it right. According to The Washington Post, Lamoureux-Davidson’s said that the triple maneuver consisted of, “a forehand fake, a backhand fake and then a quick transition back to the forehand to shoot the puck, all while selling each herky-jerky con with deft skating.”

Maddie Rooney, the U.S. goaltender, then made a save against Meghan Agosta of the Canada team, which gave the Americans the game.

Team USA hockey team members threw their gloves in the air and piled on top of Rooney. After 20 years, gold was finally theirs.

Flu kills at least 120 in Hong Kong

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By NATALIE NOISOM

This year’s flu has spread worldwide in a matter of a few weeks, leading to the death of children and elders.The common strain among the others this year is H3N2 also known as the “Australian flu.”

Currently, the flu has struck Hong Kong in January and has killed more than 120 people according to public broadcaster RTHK. In order to keep the flu from spreading, Hong Kong has ordered school children to wear face masks.

The city has also ordered some schools to close early for the Lunar New Year and to also help keep the flu quarantine.

According to the World Health Organization, they estimate that “each year around 290,000 to 650,000 people die worldwide as a result of influenza.” With numbers being so high, the Hong Kong’s Centre for Health Protection believes schools are easier sights to spread influenza strains because many toddlers and children may be too young to take care of their personal hygiene.

Hong Kong closed all kindergartens and primary schools 8 days ahead of the New Year holiday to contain the spread. According to HKU researchers, they announced in their latest study that this particular influenza virus was “more transmittable”.

GlaxoSmithKline, a company that supplies the city with batches of flu vaccines said more than 20,000 doses of vaccine from Germany had arrived in Hong Kong the second week of February. The firm released a statement saying the vaccines “will be allocated equally among the public and private clinics as soon as possible.” All this is a part of the process of keeping the flu from killing more people and spreading.

Russian Olympians have ban overturned

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By GRACE SMITH

On Feb. 1, the International Olympic Committee’s lifetime ban on 28 of the 39 Russian Olympic athletes as a result of anti-doping violations was overturned by the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport due to insufficient evidence.

The court upheld the appeals of athletes who had been given a lifetime ban following discovery of “systematic manipulation of anti-doping rules” after the 2014 Sochi Olympics. The court ruled that, while doping violations had taken place, the lifetime bans were not justified. Instead, the court ruled to shortened the ban to just the 2018 Olympic Games and the athlete’s scores and medals in Sochi will be reinstated in the record books.

Other Olympic athletes disagree with the decision. Canadian luger, Sam Edney, whose team risks losing a bronze medal as a result of this ruling, called this “a dark day for Clean Sports.”

Edney’s response on Twitter

However, it is still unclear whether these athletes will attempt to participate in the the 2018 games.

The IOC stated that the decision brought “satisfaction on the one hand and disappointment on the other.”

It also warned that the upholding of their appeals did not mean an invitation to 2018 games.

To do so, they would have to pass the Olympic Committee’s Invitation Review Panel and then be selected to join one of the Russian teams competing under a neutral banner.

The Olympic Committee still has the opportunity to appeal the Swiss court’s decision and bring forth significant evidence that these doping attempts greatly impacted the outcome of the game and that their severity warrants a lifetime ban from participation.

Several affected athletes, including Olga Zaytseva, Russia’s most accomplished bi-athlete who retired in 2015, claim they are victims of an overarching, collective punishment against their nation. She claims that not only is she clean but the entirety of the evidence brought against her fellow athletes is “fabricated.”

As a result of this decision, the Olympic Committee’s action on doping violators was brought into question. There is no doubt that doping and use of forbidden performance enhancers deeply violates not only the Olympic rules but also the spirit of the games.

But the question stands on the severity of the punishment and whether the International Olympic Committee struck too broadly, rather than deeply.

Argentine Navy declares submarine lost

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By VIVIANNA ONORATO

The Argentine Navy has lost a submarine and its crew.

According to the Navy’s Capt. Enrique Balbi on Thursday, “Despite the magnitude of the efforts made, it has not been possible to locate the submarine.”

The submarine, named the ARA San Juan, made last contact on Wednesday, Nov. 15.

The hopes of finding survivors faded after a suspected explosion was reported near its last-known location.

Balbi said the search for the submarine had been “extended to more than double the number of days that determine the possibilities of rescuing the crew,” but added that teams would continue to search for the vessel on the seabed.

On Tuesday, Balbi told reporters that water had entered the submarine’s snorkel, which can be used to take in air from above the surface when the submarine is submerged.

The water got inside a battery tray in the prow, causing the battery a short circuit, he said.

The Argentine navy’s last contact with the vessel was at approximately 10:30 GMT on Nov. 15. During that point, the sub’s captain had reported that all hands within the sub were well.

Despite this, Vienna-based Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organisation quickly noticed a strong noise hours after the sub’s last transmission; this was after eight days of the submarine’s disappearance.

The group labeled the noise a  “hydro-acoustic anomaly” and stated that it had occurred which operates a network of listening posts to monitor nuclear explosions, said that there had been about 30 nautical miles (60 km) north of the sub’s last-known position at 10:31 (13:31 GMT).

The Argentine Navy said it could have been the sound of the submarine imploding — news that hit relatives of the missing crew members hard.

Bitcoin value subject to ups and downs

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By VIVIANNA ONORATO

The value of cryptocurrency known as bitcoin has dropped 16 percent, down to $9,600 from the record $11,434 that it had reached on Wednesday.

While not universally accepted, the digital currency is used online due to its entirely-digital nature. Serving as an alternative currency, it is usually considered an attractive to conventional currency, due largely to its financial independence from governments.

However, the digital currency is usually traded like a financial investment; in fact, at its peak, Bitcoin had increased substantially from the $1,000 value it had when the year started.

It’s worth noting that Bitcoin is “prone to wild swings” due to lack of regulations, as well as the lack of traders. Financial analyst Neil Wilson described trading in recent times as a “rollercoaster like nothing I’ve ever seen” and he equated it with small investors that lacked market experience with the coin.

Because they have no way of discerning the coin’s fair value, as well as the perception that the coin is not a currency, bitcoin has been perceived to be going through a bubble similar to the dotcom crisis.

Financial analysts have warned that bitcoin is not an official currency and should not be treated as such. It is simply a commodity with people choosing to invest and trade it whenever they feel like it.

This has led to some scrutiny by financial entities, whom warn investors about the inherent risks with the coin, whom have warned investors that they might lose their entire savings if they are not careful.

Royal engagement announced

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By IZABELLA FELPETO

After dating for over a year, Prince Harry proposed to American actress Meghan Markle on Monday.

Prince Harry, 33, the grandson of Queen Elizabeth II and fifth in line to the throne, finally popped the question. There were many doubts about their relationship, as it was kept private for a while.

It was no surprise that the couple carefully avoided paparazzi, because of obvious controversies Prince Harry caused in the past. A few of the various incidents with the tabloids included Harry wearing a Nazi costume at a party and photos of the young rebel prince smoking cannabis in public.

Although, his “bad boy” days are behind him. The prince has matured in the past three years after seeking help and admitting his suffering after the death of his mother, Princess Diana. He has been more involved in philanthropic work and being a vocal advocate for people with mental disabilities.

His bride-to-be does not exactly scream conservative for the British monarchy. Her parents Doria Ragland and Thomas Markle said they were “incredibly happy” for the couple. Her mother is a yoga instructor and her father is a cinematographer. Markle, 36, is an actress, best known for her work on the TV series “Suits,” is biracial and has been divorced once. She is a global ambassador for World Vision Canada — and she has worked for gender equality and women’s empowerment.

The young couple wishes to modernize the royal family and end the era of conservatism.

We are involved in modernizing the British monarchy,” Prince Harry said in an interview with Newsweek. “We are not doing this for ourselves but for the greater good of the people.”

The wedding will take place in the Spring of 2018, according to a statement released by Clarence Household. The couple will be known as the duke and duchess of Sussex, according to British news media.

Missile launch lost in media coverage

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By BEN EZZY

On Tuesday, North Korea fired a missile that exceeded any previous capabilities seen in similar missile tests. The missile flew longer and higher, which strikes a fear that they will soon be able to reach mainland United States with their weapons.

President Donald Trump had previously warned North Korean leader Kim Jong-un that the missile testing was in the face of world order and stability, even going as far as adding the country back to a list of state sponsors of terrorism.

“It is a situation that we will handle,” said Trump after hearing about the missile launch, a surprisingly collected and measured response.

The missile test comes amid a chaotic time in American media, with numerous scandals garnering much of the airtime. NBC fired longtime Today show host Matt Lauer Wednesday morning following allegations of sexual misconduct. Other scandals, including those surrounding conduct of Harvey Weinstein, Louis C.K. and Kevin Spacey have also dominated news cycles.

It has gotten to the point that I was totally unaware that this missile test, a sign that our country could potentially be at risk of an attack, even took place. In fact, I was prepared to blog about Lauer’s firing before happening to stumble over this headline buried at the bottom of the scroll on The New York Times’ website.

The article itself was well written, with the inclusion of a video to help readers understand the specifics of these missiles and what the tests actually mean. But the story has been virtually invisible on broadcast news that I’ve seen today. Hopefully, that will change as more details become available, but that remains to be seen.

Lauer story dominates news cycle

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By EVAN ALDO

“Today” show co-host Matt Lauer was fired Wednesday due to inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace, an incident that “Today” executives said they learned about two days ago.

Lauer’s co-anchor, Savannah Guthrie, announced the news this morning on “Today.”

“This is a sad morning here at ‘Today’ and at NBC News,” Guthrie said before reading a statement from NBC News Chairman Andy Lack.

“Dear colleagues, on Monday night, we received a detailed complaint from a colleague about inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace by Matt Lauer,” Lack’s statement read. “It represented, after serious review, a clear violation of our company’s standards. As a result, we’ve decided to terminate his employment.”

The statement also said that this is the first complaint regarding Lauer’s behavior the company has received “in the over 20 years he’s been at NBC News.”

“All we can say is that we are heartbroken. I’m heartbroken for Matt. He is my dear, dear friend and my partner and he is beloved by many, many people here. And I’m heartbroken for the brave colleague who came forward to tell her story and any other women who have their own stories to tell,” said Guthrie.

All that is really known about Lauer’s misconduct is that an NBC staffer had complained about his behavior from throughout 2014, according to The Hollywood Reporter.  Also, The New York Post reported an incident that occurred during the coverage of the 2016 Olympics in Rio.  However, no details from these incidents can be confirmed.

Lauer’s firing comes just days after “CBS This Morning” host Charlie Rose was canned for his behavior towards women, which included showering naked in front of them at his home.  This leaves “Good Morning America” host George Stephanopoulos as the only remaining male anchor of the top three network morning shows.

The news media have covered these stories extensively during the past few days. This story is currently on the front page of CNN, FOX, MSNBC and The New York Times.

Since NBC News fired Lauer without much of an investigation at all, what he was accused of doing must be severe. The network will likely lose ratings due to his absence since he was very popular.

Although I believe it is important for the news media to cover stories such as these, this is taking away a lot of attention from the fact that North Korea has successfully tested a ballistic missile that officially put the U.S. mainland within range of its nuclear weapons.

This is a very dangerous fact that should be the main topic of news for today. With its recent threats and other tests, North Korea is clearly not playing around.

The news media need to help convince citizens and governments that North Korea is a real threat.

A great tragedy can occur if America looks the other way on this issue.  If we are not careful, we will be on the verge World War III if North Korea decides to launch one of these missiles at the United States.

Basketball players detained in China

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By VERONICA SPAGNA

A lot of attention has been brought upon an international incident occurred this week in China. Three freshman UCLA basketball players were accused of shoplifting items from three different stores, including a pair of sunglasses from a Louis Vuitton store, ranging from $435-$1,990.

The basketball players LiAngelo Ball, Jalen Hill and Cody Riley, returned to Los Angeles Tuesday, where they were Initially ignoring all questions asked by reporters.

Donald Trump was involved in resolving the issue, by bringing up the case with China’s President Xi Jinping, allowing the players to get out of China’s detention and back in the United States.

We seem to be more than familiar with Donald Trump’s tweeting habits. He uses Twitter as a way praising himself, demanding praise and judging others for not giving him approval. On Tuesday, when the basketball players returned from China after being detained for 10 days and did not express any gratitude towards Donald Trump, he decided to tweet:

First of all this tweet demonstrates the president’s lack of modesty and talking about himself in the third person, like the CNN reporter said, “that deserves a post all its own. This tweet was given a lot of attention by the news media as it is put the UCLA players in an awkward position, after already being in one.

Some reporters, such as CNN’s Chris Cillizza, suggested that people were interpreting this tweet as racially provocative, he wrote in his article “What Donald Trump’s UCLA tweet reveals about him.”

“That the three players are all young black men should also not be lost here. Trump’s history on racial issues — both as president and as a private citizen — shows some level of intentionality when it comes to using racially coded language and taking advantage of racial animus and stereotypes for his own political gain,” Cillizza wrote.
“The image of an older white man in a position of power demanding thanks from three young black men for saving them will set off a lot of alarm bells for people,” he added.

The players apologized for their actions in a press conference, in addition to thanking Donald Trump and the U.S. government for helping them out of the situation.   The three players have been suspended indefinitely from the UCLA, meaning that they won’t be able to practice or travel with the university’s team.

Donald Trump acknowledged the thanks shared by the basketball players and answered by tweeting

Most articles covering this story linked the video of the conference where the players apologized for their actions, giving the reader a clearer understanding of the events.

The story was covered in detail by the reporters, but there were no real comments made by UCLA students. It would be interesting to know how students at UCLA feel about the story and its effects on the name and reputation of the school and its basketball program.

When covering the story, Reporters were very harsh on Donald Trump’s tweets because they attacked some freshman students who did not even have the time to settle back in their home country after being detained in a foreign country.

Trump reverses elephant trophy ban

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By ANDRES ARENAS GRAYEB

The Trump administration reversed an Obama era ban on importing elephant trophies acquired from hunting in Zambia and Zimbabwe this Wednesday.

A provision of the Endangered Species Act allows the hunting of these elephants so long as there is proof that it is beneficial to the species. A spokesperson from the Fish and Wildlife Service cited this act in defense of such hunting, saying it helps by “… providing incentives to local communities to conserve the species and by putting much needed revenue back into conservation.”

Critics of the decision were not swayed: Animal-protection groups such as the Humane Society and the Elephant Project called the decision “venal and nefarious” and “reprehensible” respectively. Another ethical concern they raised was the hoarding of elephant hunting rights by rich Americans who want only the ivory tusks, in a region where many poor and hungry Africans are strictly prohibited from killing them and using the entire animal for food and profit.

Still another criticism surrounded President Trump’s sons Donald Jr. and Eric, who are known to be fond of hunting from photos posted on social media. No formal accusations of bias have arisen, but the thought is there.

USA Today was quite adept at showing the story’s importance as well as it’s opposing sides. What to many might look like a straightforward ethical dilemma. USA Today presented as an issue with two sides with equally compelling evidence. Their references to previous related events, such as that of Cecil the line, also helped tremendously in showing that animal rights is an ongoing and relevant issue.

Russian zookeeper gets mauled by tiger

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By NINA GARZA

Zookeeper Nadezhda Srivastava, was feeding 16-year-old Siberian tiger, Typhoon, when he jumped on her and started mauling her.

Srivastava told reporters that she tried to get away but the cat put all his weight on top of her and she could not move. Pictures show Srivastave cover her face and put her elbows up in order to keep the tiger from biting her head. After the tiger had torn up her arms she turned to get away but he then sunk his teeth into her back.

People who were visiting the zoo saw what was happening and tried to help by throwing things at the tiger in order to distract him.

Srivastava fought for her life for about 10 minutes before she was finally able to run away to safety from the tiger. She was taken to the hospital with a shattered wrist, several broken fingers and a couple broken ribs. Luckily, there was no damage to her nerves.

When talking to reporters, Srivastava said that she is so grateful for the visitors of the zoo that were trying to help her. She stated, If it were not for the visitors of the zoo, I would no longer be alive.”

The news media reported this story very well because they throughly described everything that occurred within the 10 minutes that Sricastava was battling the tiger. Although 10 minutes does not seem like a long time, it felt like eternity for Scricastave and the news media did a really great job in relating that to the public.

Same-sex marriage closer in Australia

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By KAYLA FOSTER

Australia is on its way to legalizing same sex marriage, after a survey showed that the country is ready to take a progressive step forward.

In a survey conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 62 percent of registered voters said “yes” to same-sex marriage, prompting Parliament to consider legalizing the weddings later this year.

If legalized, Australia will become to 26th country to do so. Following after Ireland to put same-sex marriage to a popular vote.

Needing only to change its Australian Marriage Act, which defines marriage as between a man and a woman, the overwhelming push sparked thousands of marriage equality supporters to fill the streets in celebration of the news.

The news came to social media with #AustraliaSaysYes as people celebrated with posts and pictures of loved ones waiting to get married.

According to CNN.com, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says that legalization could happen by Christmas. However, there has been opposition from conservative politicians due to extensive religious protection, in hopes to stall the bill.

Several lawmakers have submitted their drafts of the bill, but fear of discrimination and dissolving protection are making lawmakers cautious to proposals.

If a law is passed, this will be a major step for the country, after the last prime minister, Tony Abbott, openly opposed same-sex marriage and led the campaign in against changing the law.

Earthquake kills hundreds in Middle East

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By VICTOR GUZMAN BERGER

The Iranian city of Sarpol-e Zahab was strongly hit by an earthquake on Sunday near the Iraqi border.

The New York Times correspondent Thomas Erdbrink told Americans about the aftermath, writing that Iranians spent the night digging in a frantic search for survivors after the powerful earthquake struck near the Iraqi border on Sunday evening. oreM than 300 people were killed and thousands of others injured, officials said.

The epicenter of the quake had a preliminary magnitude of 7.3, according to the United States Geological Survey. Many buildings, farms and homes were destroyed. People are sleeping in the streets in fear of aftershocks.

According to the state news agency IRNA, at least 341 people were killed and nearly 6,000 people in Iran were injured.  According to Dr. Saif-al-Badir, from Iraq’s Ministry of Health, at least eight people were killed and 535 were hurt on the Iraqi side of the border.

As needed when reporting catastrophic events of great magnitude, news organizations use reliable sources as the United States Geological Survey, the Iran News Agency, Iraq’s Ministry of Health, and the Iranian Students News Agency.

TripAdvisor hides warnings of rape

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By EVAN ALDO

More than 10 travelers from around the United States say reviews website TripAdvisor is deleting and muzzling their accounts of rape, blackouts and other injuries suffered at resorts in Mexico, according to an extensive investigation published Wednesday by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

This report came out two days after U.S. officials called on the U.S. State Department and the Office of the Inspector General to investigate Mexican resorts that have allegedly been serving dangerous, tainted alcohol.

Tourists who have had terrible experiences say their posts of TripAdvisor are frequently removed and labeled as “hearsay.”

“To me it’s like censoring,” said Wendy Avery-Swanson of Phoenix. “It wasn’t hearsay. It actually happened to me.”  In her review, she wrote she blacked out after being served alcohol at a swim-up bar.  This review was scrubbed from the website.

Another review that was taken off the website was one by Kristie Love of Dallas. She posted that she had been raped by a security guard at the Iberostar Paraiso Resort near Playa Del Carmen.  She wrote that she had been followed by the guard who later overpowered her and raped her outside. She claims that the hotel staff refused to call police.  Her post was taken down for violating the “family friendly” guidelines.

“We apologize to the sexual assault victim,” said Brian Hoyt, senior director of communications for TripAdvisor. “Since 2010, when the forum post was removed, our policies and processes have evolved to better provide information like this to other travelers.  As a result, when recently brought to our attention, the victim’s initial forum post was republished by our staff.”

Hoyt also said the company is creating a “badge” notification to apply to businesses to “alert consumers of health & safety or discrimination issues at that business reported on within the media or other credible sources of information.”

Hopefully TripAdvisor is being truthful and will no longer censor these voices.

The media has done a very good job of covering this story.  An interview of a woman whose post was deleted had been featured on the NBC Nightly News last week.  The story has been showing up on CNN, FOX, and MSNBC’s websites as well.

This is an important story that many should be aware of, especially college students since many of them go to Mexico for spring break each year.  It is very good that many major news sources have been covering it and getting the word out there.  A lot of people will likely think twice about going to Mexico after reading about this.

Purge shakes up Saudi government

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By ANDRES ARENAS GRAYEB

This past weekend, a slew of arrests were ordered by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. The arrest targeted many influential people in the Arabian government, including Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, the kingdom’s riches investor, and Prince Mutaib bin Abdullah, the most potent threat to Prince Mohammed’s power.

The arrests were the result of orders from an anti-corruption committee formed by the Crown Prince just hours before the arrests. Through a royal decree, the committee reportedly had the power to detain individuals or seize assets without trial or due process.

According to USA Today, the Saudi Arabian news media praised the arrests as a long awaited cleanup. President Donald Trump also appeared to be in favor of the arrests, praising the Crown Prince’s modernization drive in a recent phone call.

There are also concerns abroad and in Saudi Arabia, however, that the Crown Prince’s domination of the Saudi Arabian political scene is a turn for the worst. Scholars, such as James M. Dorsey from Singapore’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, are concerned that international businesses will see a threat to their assets in the Crown Prince’s aggressive behavior, effectively driving away the very business he wished to attract. Former U.S. ambassador Charles W. Freeman expressed concern about the possibility of a government even more corrupt than before, now that the Crown Prince is in firm control of Saudi Arabia.

USA Today worked diligently to create a story that was both a sufficient cover and analysis of the current events in Saudi Arabia. The story told what happened, what it might mean, and provided a brief history of modern Saudi Arabian politics to support their analysis. The newspaper also included analysis from sources outside the conflict, bringing different perspectives into the debate. Appropriately enough, they did not provide a conclusion, saying only time will tell what will happen after these drastic events: a wise ending that gives readers plenty of room to interpret the situation for themselves and draw their own conclusions.

Violence against women protested

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By KAYLA FOSTER

Last Sunday, Miss Peru contestants stood in solidarity as each contestant presented facts on the violence against women in Peru instead of their individual body measurements.

This protest against the violence of women and femicide was pre-planned by former 1987 pageant winner, Jessica Newton, Vanity Fair reported.

All 23 contestants walked the bathing-suit section while news about murdered and assaulted women cycled behind them,and answered questions focused on topics like femicide and gender violence during the question and answer section.

“We definitely had wanted a different Miss Peru,” Luciana Olivares told NPR. Olivares is a content and strategy manager of Frecuencia Latina, the TV network that broadcast the competition.

The hashtag #MisMedidasSon (“#MyMeasurementsAre”) was trending in Perú Sunday night, during and after the pageant.

“This contest could not be about casting pretty faces,” Olivares said. “We decided that we had the opportunity to turn the pageant around and use it as a platform to mobilize, raise awareness and speak up. We knew the whole country would be watching.”

The topic of violence on social media and the protest fits within a larger movement against femicide and violence against women across Latin America, and in wake of the sexual scandals of high profile Hollywood executives in the US.

Ivanka Trump speaks in Tokyo

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By VICTOR GUZMAN BERGER

“TOKYO — As the president might say, the room was half full.”

Ivanka Trump’s appearance at a government-sponsored conference on Friday, during the World Assembly for Women in Tokyo, took place before a half-empty room that motivated clumsy excuses on the part of those in charge of the security and the organizers of the event that put in greater evidence the embarrassment of the moment.

New York Times reporter Motoko Rich wrote, “Yet Ms. Trump spoke to a room with so many empty seats that ushers hustled to move audience members forward several rows in the minutes before she walked to the podium.”

The author limits himself to report in well-structured succession the stumbling blocks of this event.  There was no intention of lecturing and he is so candid in his description of the events that he cannot be labeled as malicious. However, even for the most confused reader, it allows us to glimpse the low popularity and lack of sympathy that Ivanka Trump generates. The author writes in a simple fluent language that engages the reader as if he was following a comedy of situations.

The other fieldwork in Tongo Tongo

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By REGINA SÁNCHEZ JIMÉNEZ

It has been a month since the killing of four American and five Nigerien soldiers in the village of Tongo Tongo in Nigeria by terrorist groups of the region. The patrol, composed of 30 soldiers, was conducting a routine reconnaissance mission when the soldiers were entrusted other mission. They sought to capture one of the main targets of the U.S., in Niger, a man of the ISIS.

The patrol didn’t find its objective so it headed to the base. On the way, the soldiers were ambushed by a group of approximately 50 people and probably associated with ISIS. There were four victims of the U.S. Army, Sgts. Bryan C. Black, Jeremiah W. Johnson, Dustin M. Wright and La David T. Johnson.

This last death has created controversy because the body of the La David T. Johnson was recovered two days after the attack and a mile away from the crime scene. Also, Donald Trump’s condolences to the widow of the sergeant have been described as insensitive and disrespectful.

The American troops were sent to Niger in 2013 to help French Army to stop the rise of terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda, ISIS or Boko Haram. There are 800 American soldiers assigned to Niger.

The U.S. troops are not permitted direct action against the enemy. So, the Pentagon is investigating if there was any change in the mission entrusted.

While official sources try to clarify everything, a CNN reporter, Arwa Damon, has traveled to Tongo Tongo, to find the truth.

She described the landscape to make it easier to understand how the ambush was held. In her article, she describes her purpose as “looking for answers to the many questions that continue to churn around the attack”. She talked with first-hand sources, another great journalist’s practice.

As she was exposed, she didn’t have enough time to investigate deeper. But everything she told gives us clues of how could be the battle.

While the government could be interested in hiding part of the truth, a great practice of a journalist, as carry out fieldwork and talk with first-hand sources, allows us to know more about the situation in Tongo Tongo.

It’s important that journalists don’t wait in their offices to write stories from just an official statement. Journalists have to be suspect of everything, find out the truth themselves, never confine themselves to official sources and try to have a first-hand story to tell their audience.

Cartel chief son: Netflix hurt reputation

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By ANAEL GAVIZON

William Rodríguez Abadía, the son of Miguel Rodríguez Orejuela, former head of Colombia’s powerful Cali drug cartel, says he was never a hitman and worked for his father as a lawyer while fighting a legal battle against the U.S. government.

Rodríguez Abadía decided to reappear and present himself to the public to declare the fact that his portrayal in the famous show “Narcos,” which has an audience of more than 3.2 million people around the world. Rodríguez Abadía, 53, and living in Miami, said that it’s “more important to clarify all the misunderstandings” and the more than 10 lies he said were broadcast during the third season of Narcos.

The Colombian who is hoping to obtain a special U.S. immigrant visa, claims he has been portrayed as a hitman and an assassin. Moreover, he emphasizes that a series like “Narcos” and others glorify drug trafficking. Rodríguez Abadía also said that he is not running away and that he has always admitted the mistakes he made in surrendering, accepting and serving his sentence.

This is not the first time that relatives of former drug traffickers complain to Netflix about the three-season show. Roberto Escobar, brother of Pablo Escobar, is seeking $1 billion from Netflix for the use of the late Medellín cartel chief’s image. Netflix has claimed that he was a public figure and that it obtained the information about him from court documents.

According to law, if the plantiffs are public figures, they have different defamation rights than a private person. There are specific restrictions applied to defamation claims with regard to someone who holds public office or chooses to be in the public eye.

Courts have upheld this rule based on the U.S. belief that the public should be able to freely discuss national issues without fear of any repercussions. If a public official or public figure believes that he or she has been defamed, he or she must prove with convincing evidence that the statement is false.

On one hand, I think that Rodríguez Abadía could have been portrayed in a different way, however, it is part of the public opinion. How many films have portrayed people not exactly as they are in life? Probably a huge number that we wouldn’t even imagine. I also consider that he has a motive to change the image people have of him in the United States, especially the most important newspaper where he lives.

Lastly, I also want to take into consideration the other side of the story that could include a lot of people who are famous because of an event or some other reason of which the public does not know. Many of them could have this false portrayal released out to a big number of viewers and are not able to sue powerful company as Netflix for damages.