🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️NewsHero | Supreme Court tosses La. abortion clinic regulation; Amnesty International logs protesters' rights violations; Miss. votes to change flag; 'Stop Hate for Profit' goes global
June 29, 2020 - Issue 127
Welcome to this edition of NewsHero for June 29, 2020.
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In this issue… Research indicates that Fox News’ COVID-19 reporting prevented millions from taking the coronavirus seriously; Intelligence says Russia offered cash rewards to Taliban fighters to kill U.S. troops—and that Trump may have known about it; a federal judge orders the release of children detained by ICE amid the coronavirus pandemic; more social media platforms ban Trump and his supporters;
HHS Secretary Warns Virus Outbreaks Could Spread Beyond Control Without Proper Action
Research indicates Fox News COVID-19 reporting prevented millions from taking virus seriously
A woman puts up a sign for COVID-19 testing at a boarded-up business near the White House. (Daniel Slim/AFP via Getty Images)
🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Alex Azar
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Dr. Anthony Fauci
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Reporters and researches taking a critical look at how media and misinformation is affecting the pandemic
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Texas Democratic Party, for trying on mail-in votes
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Again, those who wear masks and practice social distancing. Like, come on already!
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar warned Sunday that coronavirus outbreaks in states including Texas, Florida and Arizona threaten to grow out of control without immediate action, like wearing masks, reports Politico.
“The window is closing,” Azar said. “We have to act, and people as individuals have to act responsibly. We need to social-distance. We need to wear our face-coverings if we're in settings where we can't social-distance, particularly in these hot zones.”
Dr. Anthony Fauci says he would “settle” for a coronavirus vaccine that’s 70-75 percent effective, but adding the fact that many Americans say they won't get a COVID-19 vaccine, makes it "unlikely" that the U.S. will reach levels of immunity to squash the outbreak, reports CNN.
Media Matters for America posted on Instagram the above intriguing infographic that shows Fox News primetime coverage June 22-24 devoted 25 minutes to the coronavirus, compared to 1 hour and 21 minutes to the toppling of racist monuments. Because it’s clear which one is the greater threat to our society?
Speaking of coverage, The Washington Post delivered this story on Sunday: “The data is in: Fox News may have kept millions from taking the coronavirus threat seriously”
And the data is not a collection of Twitter comments. Take a look at “The Relation between Media Consumption and Misinformation at the Outset of the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic in the US”—it’s from The Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review.
After reporting last week that its ICU beds were filled to capacity, Texas Medical Center, the world’s largest medical complex, located in Houston, appears to have quietly removed that data from its website, reports Forbes. We recommend reading that story, as it includes a number of interesting (to say the least) details.
While we’re on Texas, we also recommend this one from the New Yorker: “The Coronavirus Surge That Texas Could Have Seen Coming,” which says there were plenty of signs of the oncoming streak of new cases, but no one wanted to see them.
The Texas Democratic Party had urged the Supreme Court to allow all voters, not just those ages 65+, to submit their ballots by mail, but the court said on Friday that it would not require Texas to let all eligible voters vote by mail, reports The New York Times. Super.
Let’s stay in Texas a bit longer—not literally! CNN reports that during a “Celebrate Freedom Rally” held Sunday at the First Baptist Church in Dallas, a choir of more than 100 people performed without masks. Nearly 2,200 people attended the event, which featured a speech from “Fearless” Mike Pence.
Voters in deep-red Oklahoma this week could order Medicaid expansion for at least 200,000 poor adults, defying state and Trump administration officials fighting to limit the Obamacare program, states Politico.
As the European Union prepares to re-open and welcome international travelers beginning July 1, The New York Times reports that travelers from the U.S. and Russia, along with dozens of other countries, may be deemed too risky to allow in, due to the countries’ questionable handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Intelligence Says Russia Offered Taliban Fighters Cash To Kill US Troops
Officials say Trump was briefed on the matter, he denies knowing about it
American troops in Afghanistan have been the target of some Taliban operations backed by Russia, Intelligence officials found. (Jim Huylebroek for The New York Times)
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Intelligence investigating Russian bounties
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Journalists fact-checking and reporting it
You may have heard—how could you not—a lot of news about American intelligence officials saying that Russia secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants to kill coalition forces in Afghanistan, resulting in the deaths of U.S. service members, and, that Donald Trump knew about it, though he denies it.
Like we said, it’s a lot. We’ve gathered some resources here that thoroughly and factually break down the situation so far. The Washington Post, CNN, and The New York Times were quick with comprehensive coverage (NYT first reported) with the Times reporting that “Spies and Commandos Warned Months Ago of Russian Bounties on U.S. Troops.”
The White House said today that Trump wasn’t briefed on the U.S. intelligence assessments, because the information had not been “verified,” The Associated Press reports. Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany said that intelligence “would not be elevated to the president until it was verified,” though AP News points out it’s rare for intelligence to be confirmed without a shadow of a doubt before being presented to top officials.
Joe Biden attacked Trump on Saturday over the intelligence, saying that if it’s accurate, it’s a “truly shocking revelation” about the president and his failure to protect U.S. troops in Afghanistan and stand up to Russia, The Associated Press reports.
The Washington Post today published “Timeline: What we know about Russia’s bounties on U.S. troops—and Trump’s response,” offering a step-by-step account of developments starting back at April 2017.
Amnesty International Documents Human Rights Violations By Police Against Peaceful Protesters
Mississippi votes to remove Confederate symbol from state flag
Paloma Wu holds a Black Lives Matter banner at the Capitol in Jackson, Miss., while calling for a new Mississippi state flag. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Amnesty International
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Peaceful protesters
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Supporters of changing the Mississippi state flag
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - The “anti-Trump protesters shouting ‘Nazi,’ ‘racist,’ and profanities at the Trump supporters”
According to Amnesty International, police in the U.S. violated peaceful protesters’ human rights more than 100 times during protests following the death of George Floyd, reports Newsweek. On Tuesday, the organization launched an interactive map marking incidents of unlawful use of force, which included beatings, misuse of tear gas and pepper spray and the firing of less-lethal projectiles such as rubber bullets.
Protesters in Colorado shut down a major highway Saturday in a peaceful demonstration calling for justice in the death of Elijah McClain, reports CNN. McClain, 23, died last August during a confrontation with police. One officer had McClain in a chokehold. McClain suffered a heart attack while in the ambulance and was declared brain dead three days later.
Mississippi lawmakers voted Sunday to remove the Confederate battle emblem from the state flag, more than a century after white supremacist legislators adopted the design a generation after the South lost the Civil War, reports The Associated Press. The historic votes in the House and Senate led to cheers and applause from spectators.
A commission will design a new flag that cannot include the Confederate symbol and that must have the words “In God We Trust.” Hooray! Wait, what? *sigh* One step at a time.
As a number of statues celebrating Confederate leaders and proponents of slavery have come down, a statue in Washington, D.C.’s Lincoln Park, depicting a freed slave kneeling at the feet of President Abraham Lincoln, is now the focus of controversy. An op-ed from The Washington Post argues that while yes, the Freedmen’s Memorial uses racist imagery, it shouldn’t be torn down.
Here’s one you surely haven’t missed, and the Independent’s headline is too complete to pass up: “Trump shares video of ‘great people’ shouting ‘white power’ at protesters”. The headline from The Associated Press does a solid job, too: “Trump tweets video with ‘white power’ chant, then deletes it”.
That’s right, Donald Trump on Sunday tweeted a video showing one of his supporters at a Florida retirement community, called The Villages, chanting “white power.” He later deleted the tweet and the White House said the president had not heard “the one statement” on the video.
“Thank you to the great people of The Villages,” Trump tweeted.
The video also shows anti-Trump protesters shouting “Nazi,” “racist,” and profanities at the Trump supporters.
Supreme Court Tosses Louisiana Law Regulating Abortion Clinics
Judge orders release of children detained by ICE amid coronavirus pandemic
Immigrants seeking asylum hold hands last year at the ICE South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas. Independent inspectors told a judge that tests for the coronavirus at such centers and the infection rates in the counties where the Texas facilities are located are cause for concern. (Eric Gay/AP)
🦸♀️🦸♀️ - U.S. Supreme Court
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - The appeals court that ruled Trump can’t use federal military money to build his wall.
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee, for ordering the release of children detained by ICE
The U.S. Supreme Court today struck down a Louisiana law regulating abortion clinics, reaffirming its commitment to abortion rights, The Associated Press reports. Chief Justice John Roberts and his four more liberal colleagues ruled that a law requiring doctors who perform abortions must have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals violates abortion rights the court first announced in Roe v. Wade.
A federal appeals court panel ruled on Friday that the Trump administration does not have the authority to use military funding to pay for construction of a border wall, reports NBC News. The court found that re-directing $2.5 billion Congress had appropriated for the military violated the Constitution and is unlawful.
And continuing on with the maybe-there’s-still-hope theme, a federal judge on Friday ordered the release of children held with their parents in U.S. immigration jails and denounced the Trump administration’s prolonged detention of families during the coronavirus pandemic, reports Politico.
Citing the unrelenting spread of COVID-19, U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee ordered that all children currently held in ICE custody for more than 20 days must be released by July 17.
She described the ICE-operated facilities as being “on fire,” adding that “there is no more time for half measures,” reports NPR.
‘Stop Hate For Profit’ Campaign Goes Global
More social media platforms ban Trump and his supporters
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Companies halting ads with Facebook (including us)
🦸♀️🦸♀️🦸♀️ - Tech companies actually doing something to combat hate speech
Starbucks has joined a growing list of companies boycotting advertising with Facebook over its lack of action in handling hate speech and misinformation. Starbucks says that its decision is not part of the #StopHateforProfit campaign, but that it’s holding off on social ads while talking with civil rights organizations about how to stop hate speech online, reports The Associated Press.
A report from Gizmodo says: The “Stop Hate For Profit” Movement Isn’t Going to Stop Anything.
The “Stop Hate for Profit” campaign will begin calling on major companies in Europe to join the boycott, Jim Steyer, chief executive of Common Sense Media, said in an interview with Reuters on Saturday. Free Press and Common Sense, along with U.S. civil rights groups Color of Change and the Anti-Defamation League, launched the campaign following the death of George Floyd.
Microsoft halted its advertising on Facebook and Instagram in the U.S. in May and recently took that move globally, according to an internal chat transcript seen by Axios.
Along these lines, The New York Times reports that Reddit on Monday banned its biggest community devoted to Donald Trump—the subreddit known as “The Donald”—as part of an overhaul of its hate speech policies.
Twitch has temporarily banned Trump for “hateful conduct” that was aired on stream—Twitch says the offending content has now been removed, The Verge reports.
“As Black Lives Matter protests captured national attention, tech companies have leaned heavily on black employee resource groups to put together programming for Juneteenth, host panels on race, and vet executive statements,” reports The Washington Post.
House adopts bill to make DC 51st state; Senate GOP opposes - AP News
In NYC, marking 50th anniversary of Pride, no matter what - AP News
China forces birth control on Uighurs to suppress population - AP News
As Covid-19 peaks, a virus once again takes advantage of human instinct - Stat
‘PizzaGate’ Conspiracy Theory Thrives Anew in the TikTok Era - The New York Times
Zuckerberg once wanted to sanction Trump. Then Facebook wrote rules that accommodated him. - The Washington Post
Sources:
COVID/Monuments - Media Matters
Azar warns 'window is closing' on combating Covid spread - Politico
Covid-19 vaccine might not get us the herd immunity if too many people refuse to get it, Fauci says - CNN
The data is in: Fox News may have kept millions from taking the coronavirus threat seriously - The Washington Post
The Relation between Media Consumption and Misinformation at the Outset of the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic in the US - The Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review
Texas Hospital Says 100% Of ICU Beds Full—Then Removes Its Report - Forbes
Choir of more than 100 people perform without masks at Pence event - CNN
The Coronavirus Surge That Texas Could Have Seen Coming - The New Yorker
Supreme Court Turns Down Request to Allow All Texans to Vote by Mail - The New York Times
E.U. Plans to Bar Most U.S. Travelers When Bloc Reopens - The New York Times
Deep-red Oklahoma could become first to expand Medicaid during pandemic - Politico
Trump denies knowing Russia offered the Taliban bounties for US soldiers - Vox
Russia Secretly Offered Afghan Militants Bounties to Kill U.S. Troops, Intelligence Says - The New York Times
Trump denies briefing about reported bounties on US troops - AP News
Russian intelligence officers offered cash rewards to Taliban fighters to kill US, UK troops in Afghanistan, source says - CNNPolitics
Biden slams Trump over reported bounties placed on US troops - AP News
Russian bounties to Taliban-linked militants resulted in deaths of U.S. troops, according to intelligence assessments - The Washington Post
Spies and Commandos Warned Months Ago of Russian Bounties on U.S. Troops - The New York Times
Timeline of Russia’s bounties on U.S. soldiers and Trump’s response - The Washington Post
Police Violated Human Rights of George Floyd Protesters 125 Times: Amnesty International - Newsweek
Colorado protesters shut down highway calling for justice in the death of Elijah McClain - CNN
Mississippi governor: I'd sign bill to remove flag's rebel emblem - Politico
Mississippi state flag: Lawmakers take major step to change it - Clarion Ledger
Look away, Dixie: Mississippi to lose rebel emblem from flag - AP News
At Lincoln emancipation statue unveiling, Frederick Douglass denounced the president - The Washington Post
Opinion: Yes, the Freedmen’s Memorial uses racist imagery. But don’t tear it down. - The Washington Post
Trump shares video of 'great people' shouting 'white power' at protesters - Independent
Trump shares video where supporter yells 'white power' - Politico
Trump approvingly tweets video showing 'white power' chant - AP News
Supreme Court strikes down Louisiana abortion clinic law - AP News
Appeals court rules funding for Trump border wall construction 'unlawful' - NBC News
Judge: U.S. must free migrant children from family detention - Politico
Judge Orders ICE To Free Detained Immigrant Children Because Of COVID-19 - NPR
Starbucks latest to say it will pause social media ads - AP News
The "Stop Hate For Profit" Movement Has a Major Flaw - Gizmodo
Tech companies are asking their black employee groups to fix Silicon Valley’s race problem—often for free - The Washington Post
Exclusive: Facebook ad boycott campaign to go global, organizers say - Reuters
Reddit, Acting Against Hate Speech, Bans ‘The_Donald’ Subreddit - The New York Times
Twitch temporarily bans President Trump - The Verge
Scoop: Microsoft has been pausing spending on Facebook, Instagram - Axios
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