The War on Truth
The War on Truth examines the pervasive and transformative impact of misinformation in the digital age. Tracing its roots from propaganda to its rapid spread via social media algorithms, the episode explores the factors driving fake news and its consequences, such as polarisation and erosion of public trust.
Featuring compelling stories, including the United States elections, bird flu and COVID-19 misinformation, with insights from experts, the episode employs dynamic visuals and infographics to dissect this pressing issue and offer solutions.
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Al Jazeera
21 minutes ago
- Al Jazeera
United States expects monthly tariff revenue to rise to $50bn
The United States expects to bring in at least $50bn a month from tariffs as higher levies on imports from dozens of countries begin to kick in. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Thursday outlined the forecasted revenue, an increase of $20bn from last month, when tariffs brought in $30bn. 'And then you're going to get the semiconductors, you're going to get pharmaceuticals, you're going to get all sorts of additional tariff money coming in,' Lutnick said in an interview with Fox Business Network. US President Donald Trump's higher tariffs on imports from dozens of countries took effect on Thursday, raising the average US import duty to its highest in a century, with countries facing tariffs of 10 percent to 50 percent. Trump on Wednesday also announced plans to levy a tariff of about 100 percent on imported semiconductor chips unless manufacturers commit to producing in the US, as well as a small tariff on pharmaceutical imports that would rise to 250 percent over time. Details of those sectoral tariffs are expected in the coming weeks after the Commerce Department completes investigations into the impact of those imports on US national security. Lutnick told Fox Business Network that companies could win exemptions from the expected semiconductor tariff if they filed plans to build plants in the US, and those plans were overseen by an auditor. '[Trump's] objective is to get semiconductor manufacturing done here,' he said, predicting that the initiative would result in some $1 trillion in investment to bolster domestic manufacturing. Other exemptions have already been agreed, including with the European Union, which said its agreement to accept a 15 percent tariff on most EU exports includes chips, and with Japan, which has said the US agreed not to give it a worse rate than other countries. The push to boost domestic chip manufacturing is not new. The US Congress created a $52.7bn semiconductor manufacturing and research subsidy programme in 2022 under former President Joe Biden, and all five leading-edge semiconductor firms agreed last year to locate chip factories in the US. Last year, the Commerce Department said the US produced about 12 percent of semiconductor chips globally, down from 40 percent in 1990. Lutnick, asked about separate talks under way with China on extending a tariff truce that is due to end on August 12, said he felt an agreement was possible. 'I think we're going to leave that to the trade team and to the president to make those decisions,' he said. 'It feels likely that they're going to come to an agreement and extend that for another 90 days, but I'll leave it to that team.'
Al Jazeera
21 minutes ago
- Al Jazeera
Lebanese cabinet holds more talks on disarming Hezbollah, under US pressure
Lebanon's cabinet has again met to discuss the disarmament of Hezbollah despite the latter's earlier rejection of the demands, which have largely been driven by the United States. As ministers gathered for more talks on Thursday, two days after they announced they were planning to restrict arms to six official forces by the end of the year, Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc accused the government of 'slipping into accepting American demands' that would serve Israel's interests. Hezbollah ministers and Muslim Shia allies in the Lebanese cabinet withdrew from the cabinet meeting on Thursday in protest during discussions about the proposal to disarm Hezbollah, three Lebanese political sources told Reuters. Beirut's clampdown on Hezbollah comes after prodding from US envoy Tom Barrack, who presented the government with detailed proposals featuring a timetable for disarming the group, even as Israel continued to violate a November truce it signed with Lebanon to end more than a year of hostilities that culminated last year in two months of full-blown war. The phased proposals aim to 'extend and stabilise' the ceasefire, requiring the government to remove Hezbollah's arsenal under 'a detailed [Lebanese army] deployment plan', and calling on Israel to cease attacks and withdraw from the five positions it continued to hold in south Lebanon after the ceasefire deal was struck, according to a copy of a Lebanese cabinet agenda seen by the news agency Reuters. Under the truce, Israel was meant to completely withdraw from Lebanon. Hezbollah, meanwhile, was to pull its fighters north of the Litani River, around 30 kilometres (20 miles) north of the border with Israel, to be replaced by the expanded deployment of the Lebanese army and United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL). After Tuesday's cabinet meeting, Hezbollah said on Wednesday that it would treat the government's decision to disarm it 'as if it did not exist', accusing the cabinet of committing a 'grave sin'. Citing 'political sources', pro-Hezbollah newspaper Al Akhbar said the group and its ally the Amal movement could choose to withdraw their four ministers from the government or trigger a no-confidence vote by parliament's Shiite bloc, which comprises 27 of Lebanon's 128 lawmakers. Israel, which routinely carries out air strikes in Lebanon despite the November ceasefire, has already signalled it would not hesitate to launch destructive military operations if Beirut failed to disarm the group. Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon killed two people on Wednesday, according to the Ministry of Public Health. On Thursday, an Israeli drone strike on a vehicle killed five people and injured 10. The government's decision is unprecedented since the end of Lebanon's civil war more than three decades ago, when the country's armed factions – with the exception of Hezbollah – agreed to surrender their weapons.
Al Jazeera
an hour ago
- Al Jazeera
AIPAC slams Trump ally Marjorie Taylor Greene over Gaza genocide remark
Washington, DC – The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) has accused Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene of betraying 'American values' by saying that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. In a fundraising email to supporters on Thursday, AIPAC – one of the most influential foreign policy lobby groups in the United States – likened Greene, a far-right legislator, to left-wing opponents of Israel. 'You expect anti-Israel smears from Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar,' the group said, referring to Muslim-American Democratic congressmembers. 'But now, Marjorie Taylor Greene has joined their ranks – spouting the same vile rhetoric and voting against the US-Israel alliance.' Last week, Greene, an ally of US President Donald Trump, echoed the growing consensus of rights groups, academics and United Nations experts that Israel is carrying out a genocide in Gaza. 'It's the most truthful and easiest thing to say that Oct 7th in Israel was horrific and all hostages must be returned, but so is the genocide, humanitarian crisis, and starvation happening in Gaza,' the congresswoman wrote in a social media post. AIPAC says Greene's comment 'disgusting' The United Nations defines genocide as 'acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group'. Over the past 22 months, Israel has destroyed nearly all of Gaza, repeatedly displaced the enclave's population, killed more than 61,000 people and imposed a suffocating blockade that sparked deadly hunger in the territory. On Thursday, AIPAC called Greene's genocide accusation 'disgusting'. 'Let's call this what it is: Marjorie Taylor Greene is the newest member of the anti-Israel Squad,' the group said. 'She may think this earns her praise from the far-left or online radicals — but we see it for what it is: a betrayal of American values and a dangerous distortion of the truth.' Greene's recent stances on Gaza stand in stark contrast with her staunch early support for Israel. In 2023, she led efforts to formally rebuke Tlaib – the only Palestinian American in Congress – over condemning Israeli policies. With criticism of Israel in the US mostly coming from the progressive left, AIPAC rarely denounces members of Trump's Republican Party. But the lobby group said on Thursday that it will challenge 'lies' about Israel, whether they come from the 'radical left or the radical right'. Although Trump has been uncompromising in his backing for Israel, a segment of his Republican base has been increasingly critical of unconditional support for the US ally, viewing the relationship as incompatible with the president's 'America first' mantra. AIPAC spending For decades, AIPAC has encouraged its members to donate to candidates for public office, and in 2022, it started directly spending tens of millions of dollars to defeat critics of Israel. Last year, AIPAC helped oust two incumbent progressive congressmembers, spending record amounts on election advertisements. AIPAC has not announced plans to challenge Greene in next year's midterm elections. The congresswoman did not face a primary opponent in her Georgia district last year and won the general election by nearly 30 percentage points. In recent weeks, AIPAC has been trying to mitigate the growing outrage at Israel's starvation policy in Gaza, often repeating false Israeli statements denying hunger in the territory and accusing Hamas of stealing the humanitarian aid. However, despite the group's efforts, many congressmembers, including some legislators who have been backed by AIPAC, have begun condemning Israel's conduct in Gaza. On Wednesday, Democratic Congresswoman Valerie Foushee, whom AIPAC helped elect to Congress in 2022 with $2m in campaign spending, said she was co-sponsoring a bill to block offensive weapons to Israel. 'We simply cannot continue to provide the Israeli government with weapons when they are not being used in accordance with international law to maximize the protection of civilians in Gaza,' Foushee wrote in a social media post.
