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The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
Top photos this week from Latin America and the Caribbean
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference.
The Independent
an hour ago
- The Independent
Key things to know about how Elon Musk has boosted hard-right figures in Europe
Elon Musk may have tumbled from political grace in Washington, D.C., but as he seeks to build a new political party, his power on X — where he commands the most popular account — remains unchecked. Musk is a kingmaker on the platform he acquired in 2022 for $44 billion. He has used his influence to cultivate hard-right politicians and insurgent activists across Europe. A retweet or reply from Musk can lead to millions of views and tens of thousands of new followers, according to an Associated Press analysis of public data. That fact has not been lost on influencers who have tagged Musk persistently, seeking a reply or a retweet. It has also fueled concerns in Europe about foreign meddling -- not from Russia or China, but from the United States. 'Every alarm bell needs to ring,' Christel Schaldemose, a vice president of the European Parliament who works on electoral interference and digital regulation, told AP. The Associated Press analyzed more than 20,000 posts, which were compiled by Bright Data, over a three-year period from a sample of 11 European figures who had significant interactions with Musk and frequently promote a hard-right political or social agenda. These case studies are not meant to be representative of a broad universe; rather they showcase the ways in which Musk's engagement can have an impact on local influencers that share his views. Musk has sweeping power to direct attention on X Since acquiring Twitter in October 2022, Elon Musk's followers have more than doubled, to over 220 million. No other large account has shown such high or consistent growth. The result: If Musk's X account is his megaphone, it has gotten a lot bigger since he took over -- a change that has global implications. The accounts Musk has been promoting are part of a growing global alliance of nationalistic parties and individuals united in common cause to halt migration, overturn progressive policies and promote an absolutist vision of free speech, which has rattled the foundation of a trans-Atlantic bond that guided U.S. and European relations for over eight decades. Several of the accounts AP analyzed belong to people who have faced allegations of illegal behavior in their own countries. Tommy Robinson, an anti-immigrant agitator in the U.K., was sentenced in October to 18 months in prison for violating a court order blocking him from making libelous allegations against a Syrian refugee. Bjoern Hoecke, a politician from Germany's Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) party, was convicted last year of knowingly using a Nazi slogan in a speech. Italian vice premier Matteo Salvini was acquitted in December of allegations he illegally detained 100 migrants aboard a humanitarian rescue ship Among the others examined by AP: Alice Weidel, who helped lead Germany's Alternative for Deutschland (AfD) party to its best electoral showing this year; Eva Vlaardingerbroek, a Dutch influencer known as the 'shieldmaiden of the far-right'; Naomi Seibt, a German activist dubbed the 'anti-Greta Thunberg' now living in what amounts to political exile in Washington DC; Rubén Pulido and Foro Madrid, both associated with Spain's populist Vox party; and Fidias Panayioutou, a politician from Cyprus who has also advocated for Musk's companies. These accounts collectively gained roughly 5 million followers from the time Musk took over Twitter in October 2022 through January of this year. Most saw triple-digit percentage increases in their followers -- as high as 920%, or in one case of a tiny account exploding over that time, topping 6,000%. Even some accounts that grew more steadily on their own saw their follower counts sharply begin rising once Musk started interacting with them. Similarly, on days Musk interacted with a post, the number of views the account got soared — in most cases, accruing two to four times as many views, with a few seeing boosts 30 or 40 times their normal daily viewership. More established players in Musk's orbit -- like Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, whose ruling Brothers of Italy party has neo-fascist roots — benefit less when Musk interacts with them on X, AP found. Attention seekers know that getting Musk to engage can be transformative Musk's dominance creates a strong incentive for people to get Musk to engage with their content. Naomi Seibt, a German climate skeptic, pinged Musk nearly 600 times over the past three years. Musk finally engaged in June 2024, when he asked her to explain why the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is so controversial in Germany. Since then, Musk has replied to, quoted or tagged Seibt more than 50 times, and her followers have grown by more than 320,000 since Musk took over the platform. On days Musk interacted with Seibt, her posts, on average, got 2.6 times as many views. 'I didn't intentionally 'invade' Elon's algorithm,' Seibt told AP. 'Obviously Elon has a lot of influence and can help share a message even with those who are usually glued to the legacy media, particularly in Germany.' Musk's online influence has real-world political and financial impact Alice Weidel, who helps lead the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, saw her daily audience surge from 230,000 to 2.2 million on days Musk interacted with her posts on X. After Musk hosted a livestream with Weidel on X, vice president JD Vance broke protocol and met her in Munich. Weidel's party, which is fighting a lawsuit to block the German government's decision to designate it as an extremist group, went on to secure its best electoral showing ever. Musk has also used X to advocate for the leader of Italy's hard-right League party, Matteo Salvini. On days Musk interacted with Salvini's account, average views were more than four times higher than usual. Now serving as vice premier, Salvini has urged his government to move ahead with controversial contracts for Starlink and pushed back against European efforts to regulate content on X. And Musk has a friend in Brussels: Fidias Panayiotou — a 25-year-old social media influencer from Cyprus. Before winning a surprise seat in the European Parliament last year, the Cypriot spent weeks on a quest to get Elon Musk to hug him. In January 2023, his wish came true. Their embrace went viral. Since taking office, Panayiotou has praised X on the floor of the European Parliament, pushed back against regulations that impact the platform, and credited Musk with sparking his call to fire 80% of EU bureaucrats. Musk, evidently, was pleased. 'Vote for Fidias,' he wrote on X. 'He is smart, super high energy and genuinely cares about you!' The endorsement has been viewed 11.5 million times. —- —-
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Trump raises Canada trade tariff to 35%
US President Donald Trump has raised the tariff on Canada to 35%, escalating a trade war with one of Washington's key economic decision, contained in an executive order, increases the rate from 25% and will come into effect at 00:01 US East Coast time (05:01 BST) on 1 said Canada had "failed to cooperate" in curbing the flow of fentanyl and other drugs across the US border, something Prime Minister Mark Carney insisted earlier this month his country was making "vital progress" president also announced sweeping tariffs on dozens of countries on Thursday, as he continued his drive to remake how global trade operates. As the clock ticked towards Trump's deadline to strike trade deals, he announced goods from Mexico would be charged at current rates for another 90 days, avoiding a threatened increase to 35%. However senior White House officials said their Canadian counterparts were less constructive in negotiations than Mexico, prompting the 35% tariff on that levy remained due to come into effect from midnight US East Coast time on Friday, countries affected by the so-called "reciprocal" tariffs would have seven days before they kick that are loaded onto ships by 7 August and those that are already in transit will also not be affected by the rates if they reach the US before 5 by the White House, the orders leave most goods coming into the US facing new taxes of between 10% and 50%.Few nations have been spared in the latest list of tariff rates. Even small economies like Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea in the Asia-Pacific region were issued 15% not mentioned on the list face baseline duties of 10%. Follow live coverage hereHow much cash is the US raising from tariffs? The tariffs, which are a tax on imports, hit Asian countries major trading partners in the region - India and Taiwan - were hit with levies of 25% and 20% President Lai Ching-te said the levy was only "temporary", vowing to complete talks with Washington for a land-locked South East Asian nation Laos is facing the second-highest rate in this round of tariffs. At 40% it sits just behind Syria's unenviable 41%.A day earlier, Trump reached a deal with South Korea, imposing a 15% tariff on its imports in return for investment in the US and other concessions. Economists and financial analysts have warned that the new levies will raise prices for businesses and consumers in the US and weigh on the economy, predictions that the Trump administration has House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday that Trump was "proving the so-called economic experts wrong at every turn"."What we are watching is President Trump rebuilding the greatest economy in the history of the world," she said. Follow BBC's coverage of US tariffs ANALYSIS: How much cash is the US raising from tariffs?EXPLAINER: What tariffs has Trump announced and why?CONSUMERS: Six things that will get more expensive for Americans The escalation of the tariffs had been telegraphed for months, starting when Trump unveiled sweeping "reciprocal" tariffs in April, saying they would rebalance global trade flows and reduce America's trade deficit - the gap between what it buys and sells abroad. The measures added to separate levies targeting key sectors such as steel, aluminium and cars. After turmoil in financial markets, he suspended some of the most punishing measures, inviting countries to negotiate, while leaving in place a 10% duty on most products. More than 200 countries reached out to the White House in the months following, according to Trump administration officials, though some struggled to get officials ultimately reached rough "framework" agreements with eight trade partners, including the UK, China, Japan and European Union, which set tariff rates in exchange for promises of investment in the US or other key aspects of those agreements remain unresolved. Talks with other countries, such as India ended without terms. Trump has said India will face a 25% levy on its goods, plus an unspecified "penalty" for its dealings with Russia. Up until nearly the last moment, many countries were still waiting word on what new tariff rates the administration had settled a post on social media, Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter said she had a last-minute phone call with Trump, which ended without an accord. "The trade deficit remains a central concern of his," she wrote. Switzerland ended up with a 39% tariff.
