Manslaughter Charges Against Alec Baldwin Dropped
On Thursday, New Mexico prosecutors announced that they're dropping involuntary manslaughter charges against actor Alec Baldwin over the fatal on-set shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in October 2021.
This comes after prosecutors learned that Baldwin's prop gun, a Colt .45 pistol, had been modified with a new trigger in a way that made a misfire more likely, stating that the newly revealed facts "demand further investigation and forensic analysis."
Baldwin had been filming 'Rust' on a ranch south of Santa Fe when the prop firearm he was pointing at Hutching went off, killing her and injuring director Joel Souza.
Narrative A
This case has been botched from the get-go. The investigators failed to determine how live bullets ended up on a movie set while turning a blind eye to the fact that live rounds were found in multiple locations, and that firearms had reportedly gone off by accident before this fatal incident. Moreover, the decision to drop the involuntary manslaughter charges raises questions about whether the previous team of prosecutors ever had sufficient evidence before deciding to charge Baldwin.
Narrative B
Indicting Baldwin was undoubtedly wrong given he had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the firearm, as he relied on the role of professionals whose job it was to ensure safety on set. Nevertheless, Hutchins's death was not an accident — it was the tragic and wholly avoidable result of Hollywood's obsession with authenticity in its pursuit of profit. This incident highlights the urgent need to legislate, or even ban, the use of real weapons on movie sets.
Nerd narrative
There's a 1% chance that the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution will be amended or repealed before 2025, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Buzzfeed to Close News Division, Cut 15% of Staff
In a memo sent to staff on Thursday, BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti revealed that BuzzFeed News, the Pulitzer Prize-winning news division of BuzzFeed.com, will shut down as the company can no longer continue to fund it as a standalone organization.
In addition to closing BuzzFeed News, the company will cut 15% of its workforce — approximately 180 employees — in its business, content, tech, and administrative teams.
Peretti cited the pandemic, a tech recession, a tough economy, a declining stock market, a slowdown in digital advertising, and changing audience habits as factors that led to the decisions.
Narrative A
BuzzFeed News's shutdown is sad but unsurprising. As audiences and advertisers move away from traditional social media platforms such as Facebook towards video services like YouTube and TikTok, even Buzzfeed News's award-winning credentials could not guarantee its survival. While more traditional media outlets with loyal readership — such as the New York Times — continue to thrive, the end of the road was always inevitable for Buzzfeed News, which depended on drive-by clicks.
Narrative B
This decision highlights the failings of the online information economy. Plummeting digital advertising has cut into the profitability of major tech companies; however, it is a shame that an award-winning, newsworthy publication is the first to be grounded. The move also raises questions about Peretti's future intentions with Buzzfeed, as he doubles down on artificial intelligence as a route to transform the company into a premier platform for AI-powered content.
IRS Whistleblower Alleges Hunter Biden Probe Being Mishandled
An unnamed US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agent said to be involved in the federal probe of Hunter Biden's taxes has alleged that undue political interference has hampered the investigation. Hunter Biden is Pres. Joe Biden's son.
Mark D. Lytle, a lawyer for the whistleblower, wrote to Congress Wednesday, stating his client is a "career IRS Criminal Supervisory Special Agent who has been overseeing the ongoing and sensitive investigation of a high profile, controversial subject since early 2020."
While the letter did not explicitly mention Hunter Biden, sources reportedly confirmed that he is the figure in question. The letter said the agent, under whistleblower protections, could unveil "clear conflicts of interest" and "preferential treatment and politics improperly infecting" the tax probe.
Democratic narrative
Biden has been in public office for a staggering half-century, and there have never been any signs of greed or corruption. Any wrongdoing by his son Hunter seems more like a personal tragedy than a public scandal. As many politicians' children are, Hunter was likely destroyed by the political arena he was born into but never chose to be a part of. Whether he committed illegal acts has nothing to do with his father but rather an unfortunate media landscape that can't help but report on celebrities' children.
Republican narrative
Of course, Joe Biden has gone out of his way to shield Hunter from prosecution. How else could he have committed so many documented crimes without ever facing justice for any of them? If regular Americans lied on their federal firearms form and then filmed themselves waving their illegal gun in the air while enjoying the company of a prostitute, they would likely face serious consequences from federal authorities. Hunter Biden committed both of those crimes, among others, but his dad's power and influence got him off the hook.
Nerd narrative
There is a 42% chance that Joe Biden will be re-elected President of the United States in 2024, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Twitter Starts Removing Blue Ticks From Verified Users
After months of delays, Twitter on Thursday began removing blue ticks from verified users who did not sign up for its paid subscription service Twitter Blue.
Users who lost their blue ticks included popular figures such as Beyoncé, Pope Francis, Oprah Winfrey, and former US Pres. Trump.
Twitter had around 300K verified accounts under the original blue-check system, which was largely comprised of journalists, athletes, and public figures. It was meant to verify that a user was who they said they were and prevent impersonation.
Narrative A
Musk can sugarcoat it all he wants, but Twitter is an ad-reliant platform, and ad sales are projected to drop by around 28% this year over last. And the number one problem is Musk; advertisers can’t trust him, especially since he’s rolled back rules related to objectionable content and revamped the verification system. For Twitter to survive, it must do better than break even, which will only happen when the platform is separated from Musk’s personal brand.
Narrative B
Saving Twitter was a challenging task, but it looks like the worst is behind Musk and the platform. Twitter now has a sleeker workforce and a subscription model that'll help offset advertising losses. Moreover, many advertisers are returning after waiting to see what Musk would do with the company. In a matter of months, Twitter could be in the black.
Nerd narrative
There's a 25% chance that Twitter will have a corporate credit rating in the "C"s or worse before July 2023, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
UK: Dominic Raab Resigns as Deputy PM Over Bullying Probe
Dominic Raab on Friday resigned as the UK's deputy prime minister and justice secretary, after a months-long independent investigation found he had bullied multiple government officials across three different departments.
In a letter posted on Twitter, Raab — who had pledged to resign if investigators found any evidence of bullying — said the inquiry had "set a dangerous precedent" by "setting the threshold for bullying so low."
The inquiry, conducted by independent investigator Adam Tolley, followed up on eight formal complaints of bullying made against Raab while he was acting as justice secretary and foreign secretary under Boris Johnson, and as Brexit secretary under Theresa May.
Left narrative
This is a huge setback for Rishi Sunak, who had promised to put integrity, professionalism, and accountability at the heart of his administration. The fact that he knew Raab belittled and demeaned his staff before reappointing him shows he never intended to root out bullying from his cabinet — he is failing to deliver the ethics he promised.
Right narrative
The motives of government officials who complained about Raab must be questioned, as even the investigators found that the now ex-deputy PM did not intend to upset, humiliate, or physically intimidate anyone. We might never get to know the whole truth due to shortcomings in the inquiry, including the systematic leaking of skewed and fabricated claims, which resulted in Raab being subject to trial by the media.
Cynical narrative
There is one inevitable conclusion to this whole saga — a real bully always bounces back. There is a hugely disproportionate power dynamic between politicians and government employees, and a plethora of examples of similar cases go unheard. Raab will inevitably return to the front bench, and ministers' bullying behavior towards civil servants will likely continue to be both a symptom and a cause of this sick government.
Nerd narrative
There's an 85% chance that Rishi Sunak will be Prime Minister of the UK on January 1, 2024, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Russian Warplane Accidentally Bombed Own City
A Russian Sukhoi-34 warplane accidentally bombed the Russian city of Belgorod late on Thursday, injuring three civilians. Regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov added that four cars and four apartment buildings were damaged. "Thank God there are no dead," he said.
In a statement, Russia's defense ministry admitted the error, stating that the fighter jet "accidentally discharged aircraft ordnance" at 22:15 local time on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Russia launched 12 kamikaze drones into Ukraine overnight; Ukraine's air force said eight of them were shot down. At least one of the drones struck an infrastructure facility in the region of Vinnytsia, local officials said, causing a fire that's since been extinguished with no reports of civilian casualties.
Pro-establishment narrative
This invasion is an egregious violation of international law. Putin's ultimate aim is to restore the Soviet empire, even if it takes massive bloodshed and false pretexts such as calling the 2014 Ukrainian revolution after an election a "coup." This unprovoked attack is the latest chapter in Putin's Orwellian attempt to rewrite history.
Pro-Russia narrative
NATO and the US have ignored Russia's security concerns by breaking its promise not to expand eastward in return for German reunification. These concerns are legitimate and taking them seriously would have avoided the Ukraine tragedy.
Nerd narrative
There's an 8% chance that there will be more than 4 deaths between Russia and NATO forces outside of Ukraine before July 1, 2023, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
Sri Lanka: Protests on Fourth Anniversary of Easter Bombings
Thousands of Sri Lankans held a protest Friday in the capital city of Colombo to demand justice for Apr. 21, 2019, Easter Sunday bombings that killed 269 people and wounded some 500 more.
Protesters want the government to uncover who's responsible for the suicide bombings of two Catholic churches, one Protestant church, as well as three tourist hotels that killed 42 foreigners from 14 countries.
Sri Lanka's Catholic Church has questioned the slow pace of both domestic and international investigations, including by the Vatican and UN. Archbishop of Colombo Malcolm Ranjith called the bombings a "grand political conspiracy" rather than just a religious extremist attack.
Narrative A
Despite hundreds of suspects having been interviewed and multiple investigatory commissions established, the Sri Lankan government has failed to achieve justice for the devastating attack. Though some politicians were forced to pay fines, financial penalties have done nothing to truly hold the murderers accountable. If other countries can quickly prosecute and convict suspects for far lesser crimes, why can't Sri Lanka punish suicide bombers and the government officials who allowed them to kill hundreds of people?
Narrative B
Though it could take years, given there are dozens of defendants and thousands of individual charges, the Sri Lankan Attorney General's department has already begun its prosecution of the alleged attackers. This investigation has been complicated as the terrorists and their families are under the prosecutorial microscope, which shows how much information authorities must sift through before justice can be served. This investigation is proceeding accordingly.
Soccer: Juventus' 15-Point Deduction Overturned
On Thursday, the Italian Olympic Committee, the country's highest sporting court, overturned a 15-point penalty previously given to soccer team Juventus for financial violations — pending a final decision by the Italian Football Association's appeals court.
Juventus was punished in January after being found guilty of falsifying capital gains related to transfer dealings between 2019 and 2021. However, the club has denied any wrongdoing, and the penalty's reversal will bring Juve from seventh to third in Serie A.
The decision was made after a three-hour hearing on Wednesday afternoon, with Juventus now only two points behind Lazio in second and pushing AC Milan outside of Champions League qualification.
Narrative A
While there is some uncertainty due to the necessity for the ruling to be upheld by the appeals court, the result is a reason for Juventus and its supporters to be happy. Now the club is suddenly back in Champions League contention. While worries will continue to linger, the decision should be celebrated while it continues to stand.
Narrative B
The latest ruling is the worst possible scenario for Serie A. Soccer standings for many clubs will not be decided on the pitch for the rest of the season, and any definitive results cannot be expected until the end of the season. In reality, it would've been much better if the committee ruled one way or the other, instead of keeping Italian soccer in a limbo.
Canadian Police Investigating $15M Heist at Toronto Airport
Canadian police are investigating a major heist at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport in which approximately CAD $20M (US $14.8M) of gold and other valuable assets vanished on Monday.
Peel Police Inspector Stephen Duivesteyn spoke to the media Thursday and said a "high-value container" was stolen after it was off-loaded into a holding cargo facility from a plane that had arrived at Canada’s busiest airport.
According to Duivesteyn, the missing aircraft container was about 5 square feet in size and "contained other items of monetary value" in addition to the gold. He added that his team is investigating "all avenues."
Narrative A
Regional and national police are looking into this massive heist. There isn’t much information available at this time, but investigators believe this is an isolated incident that doesn't appear to be a professional job. Thefts like this are rare in Canada, and authorities will get to the bottom of it.
Narrative B
While this is indeed a rare incident, it isn't the first gold heist at Pearson Airport. Given its status as the epicenter of Canada's air cargo traffic, dealing with millions of dollars worth of valuables, this embarrassing stunt calls into question the proficiency of its security.
Orban Casts Doubt on Long-Term Ukraine NATO Membership
Following NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg saying Friday that "all Nato [sic] allies have agreed that Ukraine will become a Nato member," Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban has cast doubt on Ukraine's aspirations, tweeting "What?!" in response.
Stoltenberg made his first wartime visit to Ukraine Thursday, during which he added that "Ukraine’s rightful place is in the Euro-Atlantic family." Ukrainian Pres. Zelenskyy accepted NATO’s invitation to a July summit in Lithuania but said what Ukraine needed most was NATO membership.
Orban has repeatedly said Hungary will not support Ukraine’s applications to either NATO or the EU. Hungary has also refused to provide military aid to Kyiv or allow such shipments to travel through its territory in support of Ukraine.
Pro-establishment narrative
Despite the military alliance's slow-paced accession process, Ukraine has quickly built a NATO-ready military within 14 months of being ruthlessly attacked by Russia. The purpose of NATO is to defend the West against geopolitical threats, so quickly accepting Kyiv into its ranks should be a no-brainer. Whatever qualms certain countries may have with Ukraine, they can be dealt with once all rule-abiding nations have joined together under one banner.
Establishment-critical narrative
Hungary isn't the only one against NATO expansion and its deadly consequences, and the proof is in the thousands of protesters — and even some politicians — taking to the streets and speaking out against NATO and the US. Greeks, Germans, and Britons, among others, know this is a US proxy war against Moscow, and they don't want their husbands, wives, and children to shed blood over these political games.
Nerd narrative
There is a 1% chance that Ukraine will join NATO before 2024, according to the Metaculus prediction community.