headlines that matter

We need advice on the Advisory 

In our two-part series last month, we explained the slow collapse of digital news around the world. The dwindling attention to news, ongoing inability to find a reliable revenue model—all of it is behind our new editorial strategy. We’ve reduced the number of Big Stories so we can focus more resources on new kinds of content—which offer new avenues to revenue. 

We’re not the New York Times, but we are inspired by its success in leveraging Cooking, Games, WireCutter (product reviews) etc. to thrive in a difficult market. Can the Advisory become the foundation of something as valuable for a wider audience? Every day, we help you ‘discover’ news that is valuable, relevant and—above all—reliable. Much like the news, we are buried in lifestyle content—and yet it seems impossible to find what to cook, watch, read, listen to, or buy. How can we be your trusted guide who helps you figure that out? 

To answer that question, we need your help. Please take 10-15 minutes to fill out our survey. It’s mostly multiple choice questions—but detailed answers would be really helpful. If you’d rather speak than type, you can sign up for a quick 15 minute chat, as well. Here’s the form—please fill it out when you have a little time.

Kolkata rape & murder case: A nationwide strike

The context: On August 9, a 31-year-old post-graduate trainee doctor was found murdered in a seminar hall in RG Kar Medical College. The body had extensive injuries—revealing that she had been raped and strangled. The suspect—Sanjay Roy—is a ‘civic volunteer’ with Kolkata Police. The CBI has taken over the case after the Calcutta High Court noted “serious lapses” in the hospital’s response—and lack of progress in the investigation. The murder has sparked widespread protests from doctors and the rest of the medical fraternity.

What happened now: In the midst of a “Reclaim The Night” protest on hospital premises, a mob of 40-50 men—”armed with lathis, bricks and fish-cutting blades”— stormed the RG Kar premises. They attacked the police—who were criticised for not doing enough. But the police claim that they had been caught by surprise:

None of the cops who were posted at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital were armed with firearms or lathis. “The apprehension was, that in case of any confrontation or instigation, the police should never strike a student or the common man. Hence they were not even given lathis,” said the officer.

A big strike: Enraged doctors have now declared a nation-wide strike:

Subsequent to the brutal crime in R.G. Kar Medical College, Kolkata, and the hooliganism unleashed on the protesting students on the eve of Independence Day, the Indian Medical Association declares nationwide withdrawal of services by doctors of modern medicine from 6 am on Saturday 17.08.2024 to 6 a.m. Sunday 18.08.2024 for 24 hours.

Emergency services will still be available.

The arrests: The police have now arrested 12 men in connection with the violence. The Telegraph has more on the arrests and the violence. The Hindu has more on the strike. The Wire explains the politics playing out around the case. See a clip of the frightening madness unleashed on the RG Kar campus below.

The US Election: The latest update

The Harris campaign has been caught using a sneaky—but entirely legal tactic to rig your search results. It has rewritten news headlines—turning them into ads for Kamala: 

An ad that ran alongside an article from The Guardian shows a headline that reads "VP Harris Fights Abortion Bans - Harris Defends Repro Freedom" and then includes supporting text underneath the headline that reads, "VP Harris is a champion for reproductive freedom and will stop Trump's abortion bans." An ad featuring a link to an NPR story reads, "Harris Will Lower Health Costs," with supporting text that says, "Kamala Harris will lower the cost of high-quality affordable health care."

They basically look like normal search results—except for a small ‘sponsored’ tag.

The really icky bit: These ‘ads’ are not unusual—and don't violate Google’s policies. And the news outlets have no clue this is happening. Axios and USA Today offer good breakdowns of this issue.

Speaking of campaign ads: Harris’ campaign has blown over $57 million on digital advertising—outspending Trump by 10X. Financial Times (splainer gift link) has the analysis. 

Vance’s big mouth: Trump’s running mate’s old interviews continue to cause great outrage. The latest involves stupid remarks on a 2020 podcast interview—where he claims the “whole purpose of the postmenopausal female” is to help raise their grandchildren. Making things worse: The host agrees—adding it’s a “weird, unadvertised feature of marrying an Indian woman”—presumably a reference to JD’s wife Usha. In other words, Trump has now lost the votes of both ‘childless cat ladies’ (single women) and all dadis & naanis. (MSNBC)

Trouble for Trump & Musk: The United Auto Workers (UAW) union filed a complaint against Trump and Elon Musk for comments made during the X interview two-hour conversation broadcast to X—in which Trump complimented him for firing striking workers—which is illegal. Trump’s response—this admittedly awesome AI vid of him and Elon channelling John Travolta. (Reuters)

Just as amusing: X released an upgraded version of its AI chatbot Grok which—unlike other AI tools—allows you to morph celeb photos. Behold the madness:

Other fun stuff to see: A man tried to pass himself off as the Republican party’s desi wonder Vivek Ramaswamy—and even made it to the stage before being kicked out. Moral of this story—the Secret Service sucks and/or they can’t tell one Indian from another. See the drama below. 

Strange twist in Matthew Perry’s death

The context: The ‘Friends’ actor was found drowned in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home last year. It seems like an accident except this: “a coroner found something curious: high levels of ketamine in his blood in the range used for general anaesthesia during surgery.” Yes, Perry had been treating his depression with ketamine—but his last therapy appointment had been a week before his death. And he was supposedly sober after decades of battling addiction.

The K network: A year-long investigation into Perry’s death has uncovered a dark ketamine network—and resulted in five arrests:

His live-in assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute ketamine causing death, and two others — Eric Fleming and Dr Mark Chavez — also pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute drugs unlawfully. Dr Salvador Plasencia, accused of supplying ketamine to Perry, is charged with falsifying records. Jasveen Sangha, an alleged dealer, faces nine counts.

Sangha—also known as the ‘Ketamine Queen’—allegedly sold 50 vials of ketamine to Perry for about $11,000. Desis—we’re everywhere! BBC News has loads more on how this racket worked—and how these five conspired to cheat and finally kill Perry (albeit unintentionally). 

War on Gaza: The latest update

One: According to new numbers released by Gaza authorities, the official death toll has crossed 40,000—and 92,400 people have been injured. Of the dead, 33%—more than 16,456—were children, while 18.4% (11,088) were women, and 8.6% were elderly people. Reminder: A Lancet study released in July claims the number could be as high as 186,000—since we don’t know how many bodies are buried under the rubble. 

The quote to note: A Gaza resident told Al Jazeera:

Can you imagine what 40,000 means? It is a catastrophic number that the world cannot imagine. Despite this, the world sees, is aware, hears, and watches us every day, every minute, but remains silent, and we are powerless. We are exhausted, we have no energy left. 

But hey, Kamala is “speaking now”—Palestinians will just have to wait until she’s done. (Al Jazeera)

Two: Columbia President Minouche Shafik came under tremendous political pressure to crack down on student protests against Israel. Shafik—an Egyptian-born economist— sent in police to take down student tents set up on campus—and arrest over over 100 students. This earned her the ire of Columbia faculty and free speech advocates—and has now led to her resignation. The irony: Only the Republicans are celebrating. (CNN)

Three: Washington has approved the sale of $20 billion worth of military aid to Israel. But, but but: Israel will not get most of these weapons until in 2026—and the first fighter jets will arrive in 2029. (Associated Press) 

Three health stories of note

One: MPox outbreaks in Africa have triggered a WHO alert of a global emergency. A new strain of the virus—previously known as Monkeypox—is better able to spread among heterosexuals. Previous outbreaks primarily affected gay or bisexual men. So far, more than 500 have died and there are 17,000 suspected cases—with war-torn Congo accounting for 96% of these infections. The worst bit: a severe shortage of vaccines. Why this matters: The outbreak in 2022 affected 70 countries and killed 1% of the infected. The new strain is expected to kill 3-4%. New York Times (login required) has a detailed overview—and we did a Big Story on MPox back in 2022. (Associated Press via The Hindu)

Two: The first made-in-India dengue vaccine—DengiAll developed by Panacea Biotec—started its phase three trial. It will be conducted in 18 states and union territories, and will be tested on more than 10,335 healthy adult participants. Why this matters: there’s no antiviral treatment or vaccine against dengue. (The Telegraph)

Three: Researchers may have also found a promising drug to treat anorexia. It increases levels of a peptide important to stimulating hunger. But, but, but: The trials were conducted on mice—who are not subject to social media or peer pressure. (Gizmodo)

The high price of a Disney+ subscription

You better read the ‘Terms of Use’ on any Disney sub really, really carefully. A Florida man has sued the company for the wrongful death of his wife—who died of a severe allergic reaction to nuts after eating at a pub in a Disney resort. But the company says he signed away his right to sue the company—in a one-month free sub for Disney+:

The first page of the Subscriber Agreement states, in all capital letters, that ‘any dispute between You and Us, Except for Small Claims, is subject to a class action waiver and must be resolved by individual binding arbitration’.

The kicker: The family chose that restaurant because the place made “the accommodation of persons with food allergies” a “top priority.” (Hollywood Reporter)

Two big ‘bursts’ of ageing

A new study reveals that ageing is not a slow or steady process. Rather, our bodies experience two dramatic bursts—at 44 and at 60—at a molecular level:

The first wave of changes included molecules linked to cardiovascular disease and the ability to metabolise caffeine, alcohol and lipids. The second wave of changes included molecules involved in immune regulation, carbohydrate metabolism and kidney function.

Other usual signs of ageing—such as wrinkles etc—are common to both phases. The even more intriguing bits: The mid-40s burst has nothing to do with menopause—since men experience it as well. The lesson of this story: We need to work on our lifestyle before these kinds of changes kick in. (Washington Post, paywall, The Guardian)

In other very useful research: According to a new study, a five-second break—right in the middle—can help diffuse or end a fight between couples:

Researchers found that when couples were forced to take a short break from a competitive game in a study, their negative emotions and aggression eased. Couples also tended to match each other's level of aggression during the game, the study said, but the enforced break disrupted this pattern of retaliation and resulted in them being less aggressive.

Interestingly, the length of the break doesn’t matter. (Business Insider)

what caught our eye

business & tech

• Oreo and Coca-Cola have teamed up to make…Oreo-flavoured Coke Zero and Coke-flavoured Oreo biscuits. 
• As median pay stagnates or falls while business school fees rise, IIM graduates are getting a reality check in the job market. 
• Due to payments not made to creditors, the Supreme Court has cleared the insolvency process for Byju’s—deepening the edtech startup’s financial woes. 
• Binance—the world’s largest crypto exchange—has resumed services in India, after being blocked for seven months for operating “illegally”. 
• Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt has walked back his previous foot-in-mouth remarks—in which he blamed Google’s work-from-home policy as the reason the company fell behind OpenAI in the AI race.  
• With global demand for EVs slowing, Toyota is betting big on hybrid-only cars.
• NASA is still deciding whether to keep astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore at the International Space Station until early 2025, instead of sending them back on Boeing’s Starliner (which has witnessed a series of setbacks).
• ChatGPT users in the UK are having a hard time making sense of the AI tool’s Welsh answers to English-language questions. 

sports & entertainment 

• Vinesh Phogat’s last hope for an Olympic silver medal has been dashed—the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has upheld her disqualification from the women’s 50 kg freestyle wrestling event. 
• SAG-AFTRA—Hollywood’s labour union for actors that led industry-wide strikes last year—has struck a deal with AI startup Narrativ in order to set “a new standard” for ethical uses of AI in the industry. 
• Katy Perry’s new ‘Lifetimes’ music video has caught the ire of the Spanish government for filming in a protected, ecologically sensitive area without permission. 
• George Clooney is auctioning an “intimate dinner” with himself in New York City for his charity—the Clooney Foundation for Justice. 

as for the rest

• Splainer could get cheaper! The I&B ministry has recommended exempting digital news subscriptions from GST—bringing it down from 18% to 5%.
• Through draconian bans, the Taliban regime has deliberately deprived 1.4 million Afghan girls of their schooling, according to UNESCO.
• As many as 3,800 bamboo lights and 36 projector lights—worth over Rs 5 million (50 lakh)—have allegedly been stolen from Ayodhya’s Bhakti Path and Ram Path.  
• Japan’s PM Fumio Kishida pulled a Joe Biden ahead of the ruling party’s upcoming leader vote.
• Due to Hurricane Ernesto, more than half of the US territory of Puerto Rico has been left without electricity—seven years since Hurricane Maria wreaked havoc there.
• Scientists have discovered that the central “altar rock” of Stonehenge likely originated in present-day Scotland—deepening the mystery of the historical site.
• A paper has revealed that new teeth discovered in the UK and Belgium belong to a marine carnivore that resembles today’s walruses.

Four things to see

One: Indian classical music maestros performed a gorgeous rendition of the national anthem—alongside a 100-member UK orchestra conducted by Ricky Kej, and 14,000 children from tribal communities at the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences. FYI: This performance now holds the Guiness World Record for the largest group to perform a national anthem. (Indian Express)

Two: Sticking with patriotic performances, check out this heartwarming video of Indian and Pakistani diaspora singing AR Rahman’s ‘Vande Mataram’ on a London street. You can check out their performance of ‘Jai Ho’ here. (Mint)

Three: The Zuck unveiled a seven-foot statue of his wife Priscilla Chan—sculpted by New York-based artist, Daniel Arsham. She is a strange shade of green—and dressed in a flowing metallic cloak. Sorta a sci-fi nerd’s version of a Roman sculpture—as you can see in this video. (The Guardian)

Four: Here’s the teaser-trailer for the live-action remake of ‘Snow White’—starring Rachel Zegler as Snow White and Gal Gadot as the Evil Queen. It has inevitably become a lightning rod in the political war over Gaza. One lot have called for a boycott because of Gadot—who takes a hard pro-Israel line. The others are upset at Zegler—who tweeted: “and always remember, free palestine”—after sharing the trailer. (Haaretz)

feel good place

One: Who’s the best Elaine of them all? (context here)

Two: Indian English is like that only lol!

Three: Spicing Scaring up your relationship.

Takshashila: A doorway to public policy

Editor’s note: We are delighted to unveil our partnership with Takshashila Institution. It is one of India’s foremost think-tanks on public policy. They also run valuable courses that teach students how to tackle complex policy challenges—bringing together academic experts and policy practitioners from across the world. We will be showcasing their courses and community in splainer. Please note: This is not paid content. 

Over to Takshashila… 

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