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CBC
28-05-2025
- General
- CBC
A royal visit and a high-stakes political moment
Front Burner (Sarah Claydon) For more episodes of this podcast, please click here . For the third time in Canadian history, the head of the British monarchy delivered the throne speech before ushering in a new session of parliament. It comes at a time when Canada could use some help protecting its sovereignty in the face of threats from U.S. President Donald Trump. But how does this moment fit in with King Charles' reign so far, which has been marked by political turmoil, royal rifts, calls for reparations and cutting ties with the British monarchy? We break it all down with Ellie Hall, a freelance reporter and former official royal correspondent for BuzzFeed News. For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit:
USA Today
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Ellen DeGeneres ditches famous blonde for shocking new look: See transformation
Ellen DeGeneres ditches famous blonde for shocking new look: See transformation Show Caption Hide Caption Oprah Winfrey embraces new weight-loss drug, talks misconceptions Oprah Winfrey openly discussed why she decided to start using medication to help her lose weight. unbranded - Entertainment Ellen DeGeneres is giving a glimpse at her life in the U.K. countryside – and her new hair. The "Ellen" sitcom star has appeared to ditch the signature bold blonde hairstyle that helped define her years on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," her former daytime talk show. In a May 4 post on Instagram, the ex-host sported a grayer, brunette style while riding on a lawn mower at her home with wife Portia de Rossi. "Portia thought it would be fun to film my first time on the mower. She was right," DeGeneres captioned the video. Days earlier, on May 1, DeGeneres posted a video of her rowing date with Rossi, which shows her hair peeking through underneath an orange hat. "Life update- Portia and I are now rowers. We've already learned so much. For example, did you know the pointy end of the boat is the front?" she wrote. "P.S. I don't know what college Portia learned to row at but I promise I won't post their name." Reports surfaced last year that DeGeneres and Rossi moved to the U.K. after the former's 2020 workplace scandal. In 2020, the former "Ellen" host faced toxic workplace claims about her talk show as BuzzFeed News reported about firsthand accounts of current and former employees who claimed that they experienced racism, fear and intimidation while working on the show. While addressing the allegations that year, the standup comedian said she "learned that things happened here that never should have happened" and apologized "to the people who were affected." In 2022, she ended her talk show and exited public life altogether. In her standup special "Ellen DeGeneres: For Your Approval" released in September on Netflix, DeGeneres again addressed the scandal, telling the audience that "I got kicked out of show business because I'm mean. Yeah, you can't be mean and be in show business." She later describes this as the "second time I've been kicked out of show business," referring to backlash she faced after coming out as gay in the 1990s. "Eventually, they're going to kick me out a third time for being old," she added. "Mean, old and gay. The triple crown." In "For Your Approval," DeGeneres reveals she went to therapy to "deal with all the hatred" amid the scandal. "It was not a common situation for a therapist to deal with," she jokingly tells the crowd. "At one point, my therapist said, 'Ellen, where do you get this idea that everyone hates you?' I said, 'Well, New York Times, Washington Post, Entertainment Weekly, Us Weekly' — I think Elmo may have said something recently on an episode of 'Sesame Street.'" Contributing: Brendan Morrow
Malay Mail
26-04-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
AI-generated fakes and conspiracy theories fuel misinformation campaigns Pope Francis opposed, following his death
WASHINGTON, April 26 — The death of Pope Francis drew tributes from mourners around the world — and with them a wave of disinformation, old and new. Swarms of fake and misleading content interrupted the global rush of condolences that poured online for the 88-year-old Argentine reformer ahead of his funeral Saturday. The outcome was in some ways par for the course for the 12-year head of the Catholic Church, who spoke out fiercely against disinformation but was also a frequent subject of it. 'The tragedy of disinformation is that it discredits others, presenting them as enemies, to the point of demonising them and fomenting conflict,' Pope Francis wrote in a 2018 message for World Communications Day. He likened modern-day 'fake news' to the 'snake-tactics' employed by the serpent in the Christian origin story described in the Bible. 'There is no such thing as harmless disinformation,' he argued. 'Even a seemingly slight distortion of the truth can have dangerous effects.' Two years earlier, the pope had found himself an unwilling yet central character in one of the most prominent lies of the 2016 US presidential election, when a hoax saying he endorsed Donald Trump exploded online. The false story garnered the most engagement on Facebook of any election story in the three months before the vote, BuzzFeed News reported at the time. Several of the falsehoods that trailed his death appeared similarly aimed at misrepresenting his actions and connections. One widespread video appeared to show him swatting the hand of President Trump, whose deportation policies the pontiff had denounced. The clip was manipulated, however, and had originally aired as a joke on a comedian's late-night TV show. Another video, claiming to show Satanic rituals on display at the pope's funeral, turned out to be unrelated footage from Spain. In a third case, a photo of the pope meeting Holocaust survivors in 2014 was misrepresented as evidence that he was beholden to the wealthy Rothschild family, a favourite target of anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. People gather along Via della Conciliazione street ahead of late Pope Francis' funeral ceremony, near the Vatican in Rome April 26, 2025. — AFP pic 'Content follows attention' The rash of disinformation underscores how bad actors seeking to farm engagement or push targeted narratives work to exploit the buzz around major events. Similar campaigns followed the deaths of other public figures such as Queen Elizabeth II, whose passing in 2022 inspired false claims about vaccines and paedophilia. 'In general, content follows attention,' digital literacy expert Mike Caulfield, the author of a book about verifying information online, told AFP. 'When someone dies, as morbid as it seems, people run to where the spotlight is and try to put on their show,' Caulfield said. 'For some people it's a chance to promote an agenda, and they connect the event or the figure to whatever political cause or conspiracy theory they generally promote. For others, it's just about the money, the trolling or the attention.' Numerous images generated by artificial intelligence — including an AI creation of Pope Francis draped in a rainbow LGBTQ Pride flag, and the now-infamous depiction of him wearing a white puffer coat that became an internet sensation in 2023 — also resurfaced after his death. They were joined by new fakes spread in multiple languages, one of which portrayed the pope's body in an open casket. Some AI-enabled images circulated alongside malicious links that led to scams or fraudulent websites, according to research from Check Point, a cybersecurity company. The pope cautioned against such deception in January, saying AI technologies 'can be misused to manipulate minds.' The message became one of his final warnings about disinformation. — AFP
NDTV
26-04-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Pope Francis' Death Triggers Surge Of Disinformation He Fought Against
The death of Pope Francis drew tributes from mourners around the world -- and with them a wave of disinformation, old and new. Swarms of fake and misleading content interrupted the global rush of condolences that poured online for the 88-year-old Argentine reformer ahead of his funeral Saturday. The outcome was in some ways par for the course for the 12-year head of the Catholic Church, who spoke out fiercely against disinformation but was also a frequent subject of it. "The tragedy of disinformation is that it discredits others, presenting them as enemies, to the point of demonizing them and fomenting conflict," Pope Francis wrote in a 2018 message for World Communications Day. He likened modern-day "fake news" to the "snake-tactics" employed by the serpent in the Christian origin story described in the Bible. "There is no such thing as harmless disinformation," he argued. "Even a seemingly slight distortion of the truth can have dangerous effects." Two years earlier, the pope had found himself an unwilling yet central character in one of the most prominent lies of the 2016 US presidential election, when a hoax saying he endorsed Donald Trump exploded online. The false story garnered the most engagement on Facebook of any election story in the three months before the vote, BuzzFeed News reported at the time. Several of the falsehoods that trailed his death appeared similarly aimed at misrepresenting his actions and connections. One widespread video appeared to show him swatting the hand of President Trump, whose deportation policies the pontiff had denounced. The clip was manipulated, however, and had originally aired as a joke on a comedian's late-night TV show. Another video, claiming to show Satanic rituals on display at the pope's funeral, turned out to be unrelated footage from Spain. In a third case, a photo of the pope meeting Holocaust survivors in 2014 was misrepresented as evidence that he was beholden to the wealthy Rothschild family, a favorite target of anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. 'Content follows attention' The rash of disinformation underscores how bad actors seeking to farm engagement or push targeted narratives work to exploit the buzz around major events. Similar campaigns followed the deaths of other public figures such as Queen Elizabeth II, whose passing in 2022 inspired false claims about vaccines and pedophilia. "In general, content follows attention," digital literacy expert Mike Caulfield, the author of a book about verifying information online, told AFP. "When someone dies, as morbid as it seems, people run to where the spotlight is and try to put on their show," Caulfield said. "For some people it's a chance to promote an agenda, and they connect the event or the figure to whatever political cause or conspiracy theory they generally promote. For others, it's just about the money, the trolling or the attention." Numerous images generated by artificial intelligence -- including an AI creation of Pope Francis draped in a rainbow LGBTQ Pride flag, and the now-infamous depiction of him wearing a white puffer coat that became an internet sensation in 2023 -- also resurfaced after his death. They were joined by new fakes spread in multiple languages, one of which portrayed the pope's body in an open casket. Some AI-enabled images circulated alongside malicious links that led to scams or fraudulent websites, according to research from Check Point, a cybersecurity company. The pope cautioned against such deception in January, saying AI technologies "can be misused to manipulate minds." The message became one of his final warnings about disinformation.
The Sun
26-04-2025
- Politics
- The Sun
Pope's death triggers surge of disinformation he fought against
WASHINGTON: The death of Pope Francis drew tributes from mourners around the world -- and with them a wave of disinformation, old and new. Swarms of fake and misleading content interrupted the global rush of condolences that poured online for the 88-year-old Argentine reformer ahead of his funeral Saturday. The outcome was in some ways par for the course for the 12-year head of the Catholic Church, who spoke out fiercely against disinformation but was also a frequent subject of it. 'The tragedy of disinformation is that it discredits others, presenting them as enemies, to the point of demonizing them and fomenting conflict,' Pope Francis wrote in a 2018 message for World Communications Day. He likened modern-day 'fake news' to the 'snake-tactics' employed by the serpent in the Christian origin story described in the Bible. 'There is no such thing as harmless disinformation,' he argued. 'Even a seemingly slight distortion of the truth can have dangerous effects.' Two years earlier, the pope had found himself an unwilling yet central character in one of the most prominent lies of the 2016 US presidential election, when a hoax saying he endorsed Donald Trump exploded online. The false story garnered the most engagement on Facebook of any election story in the three months before the vote, BuzzFeed News reported at the time. Several of the falsehoods that trailed his death appeared similarly aimed at misrepresenting his actions and connections. One widespread video appeared to show him swatting the hand of President Trump, whose deportation policies the pontiff had denounced. The clip was manipulated, however, and had originally aired as a joke on a comedian's late-night TV show. Another video, claiming to show Satanic rituals on display at the pope's funeral, turned out to be unrelated footage from Spain. In a third case, a photo of the pope meeting Holocaust survivors in 2014 was misrepresented as evidence that he was beholden to the wealthy Rothschild family, a favorite target of anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. 'Content follows attention' The rash of disinformation underscores how bad actors seeking to farm engagement or push targeted narratives work to exploit the buzz around major events. Similar campaigns followed the deaths of other public figures such as Queen Elizabeth II, whose passing in 2022 inspired false claims about vaccines and pedophilia. 'In general, content follows attention,' digital literacy expert Mike Caulfield, the author of a book about verifying information online, told AFP. 'When someone dies, as morbid as it seems, people run to where the spotlight is and try to put on their show,' Caulfield said. 'For some people it's a chance to promote an agenda, and they connect the event or the figure to whatever political cause or conspiracy theory they generally promote. For others, it's just about the money, the trolling or the attention.' Numerous images generated by artificial intelligence -- including an AI creation of Pope Francis draped in a rainbow LGBTQ Pride flag, and the now-infamous depiction of him wearing a white puffer coat that became an internet sensation in 2023 -- also resurfaced after his death. They were joined by new fakes spread in multiple languages, one of which portrayed the pope's body in an open casket. Some AI-enabled images circulated alongside malicious links that led to scams or fraudulent websites, according to research from Check Point, a cybersecurity company. The pope cautioned against such deception in January, saying AI technologies 'can be misused to manipulate minds.' The message became one of his final warnings about disinformation.
