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The Boston Globe 2021-09-02

Dissenting justices were outraged by the Supreme Court decision to allow a Texas abortion law to stand. Here’s what they said - The Boston Globe

A Texas law went into effect on Wednesday that prohibits abortions once medical professionals can detect cardiac activity, usually around six weeks and before many women know they’re pregnant. In a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court late Wednesday night failed to approve an emergency appeal from abortion providers and others that looked to block the law. The four justices who dissented were Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Stephen Breyer, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, and Justice Elena Kagan. In their dissents against the majority ruling allowing the Texas abortion law to take effect, here is what the justices had to say.

The Boston Globe 2021-08-09

No ICU beds were available Monday in Mississippi hospitals, state and hospital officials say - The Boston Globe

Mississippi officials and hospital executives said that no intensive care beds were available at hospitals in the state early Monday as Mississippi grapples with an escalating COVID-19 surge and low vaccination numbers. Dr. LouAnn Woodward, vice chancellor for The University of Mississippi Medical Center, tweeted Monday morning that the state had run out of available ICU beds for COVID and non-COVID patients. Her statement was echoed by state health officer Thomas Dobbs, who added that there were also 200 patients waiting in emergency rooms for open hospital beds.

The Boston Globe 2021-08-04

Delta, Gamma, Lambda, and more: Here’s what you need to know about coronavirus variants - The Boston Globe

The recent surge in COVID cases due to the Delta variant has created confusion and raised questions about how variants could change the global response to the coronavirus pandemic. All viruses change over time, according to the World Health Organization. These different forms of a virus, a result of mutations, are called variants. Virus mutations can change the properties of viruses including how easily they spread, the severity of the disease they cause, or even the effectiveness of vaccines. Since January 2020, WHO has been working with authorities and scientists around the world to monitor these variants in order to find the most effective pandemic response. Here are some of the variants on its radar.

The Boston Globe 2021-07-20

Back on Earth, here’s how some people are reacting to Bezos’s trip to space - The Boston Globe

As Jeff Bezos was launched into space on Tuesday, people back on Earth had plenty to say about his trip, with many critical of his company’s business practices and Bezos’ own personal fortune. For some, the billionaire’s space trip has become a flashpoint in the debate over vast concentrations of wealth among a privileged few. According to an analysis by ProPublica, the 25 richest Americans were worth $1.1 trillion by the end of 2018, their wealth equivalent to that of 14.3 million American wage-earners.

The Boston Globe 2021-07-01

New survey ranks Abraham Lincoln as most effective president, Donald Trump as one of the least - The Boston Globe

Abraham Lincoln is the most effective president in US history according to a recently released C-SPAN survey. The Presidential Historians Survey canvassed presidential historians and professional presidential observers to rank the country’s 44 former chief executives based on ten characteristics of leadership. Participants, whose individual answers were anonymous, used a 1 “not effective” to 10 “very effective” scale to rate each president on ten qualities of presidential leadership including public persuasion, crisis leadership, economic management, moral authority, international relations, administrative skills, relations with Congress, vision/setting an agenda, pursued equal justice for all, and performance within the context of the times.

Voice of America 2021-06-04

The Risky Job of Covering Local Elections in Mexico

Mexican voters will go to the polls Sunday to elect candidates for thousands of local offices, and in a country where elections have a tradition of violence, journalists will be in the crosshairs. “We know that when there's so much violence, journalists who cover these elections, they can become targets, too,” said Jan-Albert Hootsen, the Mexico representative at the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).

Voice of America 2021-05-17

News Inside: A COVID Lifesaver for America’s Incarcerated

The United States is the world’s leader in incarceration, with 2.2 million people imprisoned, a total count that justice reform advocacy groups say is higher than any other country. Confinement, along with the COVID-19 pandemic, has resulted in above average deaths and infection rates five times higher than the nation’s overall rate, according to the advocacy group Equal Justice Initiative. And that’s where News Inside comes in. The non-profit publication has been distributing news and COVID-19 information that inmates need to stay safe.

Voice of America 2021-05-05

With Assaults on Press at Protests Increasing, US Journalists Want Better Protections

In Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, journalists were detained and assaulted last month while covering protests over the death of 20-year-old Black man Daunte Wright. Minnesota police fired tear gas and pepper spray into the crowds, injuring freelance photographer Tim Evans, who was also tackled and hit in the face by officers. Minneapolis StarTribune photojournalist Mark Vancleave was struck in the hand by a rubber bullet .

Voice of America 2021-04-26

How Global Network of Journalists Helps Expose Organized Crime

Before she was murdered in 2017, Maltese journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia was investigating two companies named in the Panama Papers – a leak of millions of records that exposed corruption in offshore finance. Caruana Galizia, a harsh critic of the government in her Running Commentary blog, uncovered apparent trails between Malta and overseas companies that she suspected were tied to top Malta politicians. But she never had the chance to finish her reporting. In October 2017, the journalist was killed by a car bomb.

Voice of America 2021-04-24

Raids, Fines, Detention Aim to Block Cuba’s Underground Press

Cuba, one of the world’s most censored countries, where the government keeps a tight grip on the internet, and independent news media are considered illegal. Cubans do their best to work around the censorship, and a key part is played by underground media organizations that share free newspapers or spread news by email chains or even fax. Helping them is the Cuban Institute for Freedom of Expression and the Press (ICLEP), a local press freedom group active in seven Cuban communities. ICLEP prints and distributes free underground newspapers every two weeks.

Voice of America 2021-03-23

Analysis of Trolling Reveals Efforts to Undermine Philippine Journalist

An analysis of five years of internet trolling directed at Maria Ressa found a concerted effort to undermine credibility and trust in the Philippines-based journalist. The study by the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) examined over 400,000 tweets over a 13-month period and 57,000 public Facebook posts and comments published between 2016 and 2021. While 60% of the attacks were aimed at Ressa’s professionalism, over 40% were personal assaults, with the researchers saying many could be defined as misogynistic, sexist or explicit abuse. The findings reflect the wider problem of online harassment and attacks directed at female journalists.

Voice of America 2021-03-22

Pandemic Media Restrictions Limited Access to News

Emergency measures introduced during the coronavirus pandemic resulted in a rise in arrests for “fake news,” journalists being denied access to briefings or health officials, and news websites being blocked, media rights experts say. A year after the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic, journalists in several countries are still feeling the impact of laws and regulations as governments sought to control the narrative or silence critical reporting. Media rights groups say the restrictions have denied citizens access to news and information.

Voice of America 2021-03-01

Campaign Aims to Amplify Rappler’s Reporting in Philippines

Under the hashtag #AmplifyRappler, the international journalism community has come together to support a news outlet by highlighting the very reporting authorities in the Philippines have tried to silence. Launched by the nonprofit Forbidden Stories, the five-part video series looked at Rappler’s coverage, including exposés on President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs, the coronavirus pandemic, and corruption and financial crime. As a result of its reporting, Rappler has been the target of a disinformation campaign and trolling. Its reporters were banned from the presidential palace and the outlet and its founder, Maria Ressa, are fighting several court cases that that could result in a combined prison sentence of 100 years, if convicted.

Polygraph.info 2021-02-23

Maduro’s Dissembling Attack on Leopoldo Lopez

At a news conference on February 17, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro claimed that his administration has “20 years of evidence against Leopoldo Lopez for all of his crimes, conspiracies and his fascism.” Except that the purported conspiracies and criminal accusations against Lopez are distortions and falsehoods that rights groups and an academic review have said are politically charged. Leopoldo Lopez is an important political figure in Venezuela who has consistently challenged Maduro’s au

CSIS Journalism Bootcamp 2020-12-19

Deforestation Hits Home: Indigenous Communities Fight for the Future of Their Amazon

A woman of the Arazaire indigenous group stands in front of a burned tree near Puerto Maldonado in the Amazon rainforest of southeastern Peru, on September 01, 2019. The Arazaire community is now besieged by gold miners and loggers, who already consumed thousands of rainforest hectares. Photo by ERNESTO BENAVIDES / AFP via Getty Images As regional and global governments and non-profits scramble to combat deforestation, Indigenous communities on the frontlines bear the brunt of the consequences.

The Bennington Banner 2020-07-06

'Operation Copsicle' visits Willow Park

BENNINGTON - A mobile popsicle truck named "Operation Copsicle" visited Willow Park on Monday to hand out popsicles to young children of the community, an event that initiated bigger conversations about policing during an era of tension and police brutality. After the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer magnified divides in the nation and touched off large scale movements and protests across the country and around the world, the Bennington Police Department hopes that community

The Bennington Banner 2020-06-08

Why organic? A conversation with Lisa MacDougall of the Mighty Food Farm

Why organic? A conversation with Lisa MacDougall of the Mighty Food Farm SHAFTSBURY — Rows of greenhouses are tucked back behind a farmhouse. A dog comes to greet customers, joyfully covered in mud. Down this back road, Lisa MacDougall's Shaftsbury farm is producing organic fruits and vegetables to keep our bodies and world healthy. MacDougall, who grew up in Ipswich, Mass., graduated from the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a bachelor of science in plant, soil and insect sciences.

VTDigger 2020-05-17

The Bright Side: A virtual community unites to stitch mountains of masks

BENNINGTON – A group of women who met on Facebook have organized into Green Mountain Mask Makers, a nonprofit that has made more than 2,400 fabric face masks to help stop the spread of Covid-19. Organized by Barbara Fitzgerald of Bennington, the nonprofit group has called upon volunteer seamstresses and donors to sew handmade masks for essential workers and facilities in southwestern Vermont. “Our group came about on FB (Facebook),” said volunteer seamstress and Bennington local Jenna Hunt. “We all work in different career