Researched by: Rachel John, Aarthi Ramnath, Anannya Parekh & Aakriti Anand
Say hello to headlines in five
Have you checked out our excellent daily news wrap ‘What the F*** Happened Here?’. It tells you what happened during the day—in around 5 minutes. As always, we are here to make it easier to know what’s up—without noise, negativity or that existential feeling of despair. The Thursday pm edition is below. Follow us on YouTube to get your daily dose.
PS: We also did a video explainer on why OTT platforms in India are heavily censoring series and movies—even removing them entirely:
OMG: Harvey Weinstein’s conviction has been overturned!
The context: Hollywood’s most powerful producer was brought down by a flood of sexual abuse allegations—by a host of well-known actresses, including Ashley Judd, Rose McGowan, and Gwyneth Paltrow. He was convicted in two cases—first in New York, and then in Los Angeles.
What happened now: In the New York case, Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years for two crimes: forcing oral sex on a production assistant in 2006, as well as rape in the third degree of an actor in 2013. That conviction has now been overturned by the state court of appeals—in a 4-3 verdict. The judgement cited “egregious” improper rulings by the trial judge. Specifically:
The judge, Justice James M. Burke, was accused of allowing three women who claimed the producer had assaulted them to testify even though they were not part of the charges at hand (under what’s called “Molineux ruling”). Also, the 72-year-old Weinstein’s right to testify was infringed by allowing prosecutors to cross examine him on unrelated accusations that demonstrated his “appalling, shameful, repulsive conduct.”
Translation: Even though Weinstein was not charged or tried for the crimes they alleged—their testimonies became part of the case against him. Ergo:
No person accused of illegality may be judged on proof of uncharged crimes that serve only to establish the accused’s propensity for criminal behaviour,” the court stated. “Even if we were to regard the evidence against defendant as ‘overwhelming,’ there remains a ‘significant probability’ that, absent the trial court’s erroneous Molineux ruling, the jury would have acquitted the defendant.”
What this means: Weinstein will likely be tried once again on the same charges. But he will remain in prison for now—serving the 16-year sentence for the LA conviction. That said, the appeal against the LA ruling will be heard next month. His lawyers are confident they can get it overturned—since it also included similar witnesses who testified to sex crimes that he was not charged with.
But but, but: The laws in California are different—and permit such testimony if they “help prove a pattern of behaviour or propensity to commit a crime.” A former L.A. County sex-crimes prosecutor says:
The California case is independent of the New York verdicts that were overturned. The law on admitting prior sexual assault evidence in California is very broad, and the judge’s decision to let that evidence in can be challenged as an abuse of discretion.
The experts say the chances of a successful appeal in California are “slim to none.” The Guardian offers a good overview—including responses to the ruling. Hollywood Reporter looks at the ruling at length. LA Times analyses the impact on the California conviction.
Elections 2024: BJP finally gets served
The context: Last week, in an election rally, Prime Minister Modi said that the Congress plans to redistribute wealth “among those who have a large number of children… and among the intruders.” When opposition parties approached the Election Commission, it said: “We decline comment.” This fueled concerns that the EC has been fatally compromised by a new selection process—which gives the government total control (Explained in the Big Story).
What happened now: The EC has finally issued a notice to BJP President JP Nadda—seeking a response from him to complaints that the PM violated the Model Code of Conduct. What’s interesting: the notice did not name Modi but (very) politely flagged the allegations against him.
Star Campaigners are expected to contribute to a higher quality of discourse by way of providing an all-India perspective, which sometimes gets distorted in the heat of the contests at the local level. Thus, the expectation from Star Campaigners is to provide corrective action or a sort of healing touch, when intensity of local campaign disrupts or inadvertently crosses over such boundaries.
Key point to note: A similar notice was also sent to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge—on alleged code violations committed by Rahul Gandhi. The BJP has accused him of making “malafide and utterly sinister allegations against Modi” during a speech in Coimbatore.
Why this is interesting: This is the first time the commission has chosen to send notices to party presidents—and not directly to the candidates. No one knows why they did it differently–—though it may have something to do with the BJP’s somewhat scary rep on all Modi-related matters. (The Hindu)
War on Gaza: A gathering campus storm
Student protests are spreading like wildfire across the US. So are confrontations with the police. At least 34 were arrested at the University of Texas in Austin. Another 93 were detained by police at the University of Southern California. USC has also cancelled its graduation ceremony, citing security concerns. Students are pissed off that the valedictorian Asna Tabassum’s speech was cancelled by authorities—fearing her pro-Palestine sympathies.
At the Cal State Polytechnic, they have barricaded themselves inside an administrative building. Harvard University students have set up encampments on Harvard Yard—the main quad on campus. Their peers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are also camping out in protest. The movement is spreading quickly—and becoming more intense and angry.
What the students want: An immediate ceasefire, of course. But they’re also calling on their universities to divest all their investments in anything connected to Israel. This isn’t just about Israeli companies. For example, UC Berkeley has $427 million in a portfolio with Blackrock—which includes investments in Israel. Other student groups want to cut off any ties with companies like Google and Amazon—which have a $1.2 billion contract with the Israeli government. Even Airbnb is on the list for listing properties in the occupied West Bank.
Experts say pulling out university funds will have very little effect on Israel—or on the companies that deal with it. Others call the demand anti-semitic. But students say it holds powerful symbolic value. The reason? The last successful divestment campaign targeted the apartheid regime in South Africa. Israel certainly doesn’t want to be clubbed with that kind of company. New York Times and The Guardian have more on divestment. (ABC News)
Meanwhile, in Gaza: Hamas has added fuel to the call for an immediate ceasefire. A top Hamas political official says the group will lay down its weapons if Israel agrees to an independent Palestine. It wants to join the Palestine Liberation Organisation, to form a unified government for Gaza and the West Bank.
Of course, Tel Aviv will never ever agree to this—since PM Netanyahu has sworn to destroy Hamas. But it is a significant concession—that will add pressure on Bibi to be more reasonable. Especially since no one thinks bombing Palestinians into submission is going to end Hamas. Rather, the war is going to become a great recruitment poster for terrorist groups. (Associated Press)
A growing horror: Palestinian authorities continue to uncover more bodies in mass graves at two hospitals in Gaza. Many are women and children. There is evidence that some of the victims were buried alive—while others were tortured and executed: “Ten of the bodies were found with bound hands while others still had medical tubes attached to them, indicating they may have been buried alive.” The total number of bodies at just the Nasser hospital: 392. The UN has called for an investigation into what it calls a possible “war crime.”
What puzzles us: The IDF insists these graves were dug by Palestinians. So the defence is that we killed so many people—with such fury and speed—that the Palestinians had to throw their loved ones’ bodies into a pit to bury them? Consider this:
A CNN stringer who visited the scene on Sunday and Monday saw several decomposed bodies in surgical gowns. Photos CNN has reviewed show several bodies still wearing hospital wristbands. CNN footage also shows several other children’s bodies decomposed in the complex.
Weren’t they killed by the IDF, irrespective of who dug the graves? What are we missing? (Al Jazeera)
A spousal corruption scandal in Spain
The context: On April 24, Spain’s highest court announced an inquiry into the business dealings of Begoña Gomez—wife of Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez. The court was responding to a complaint by far-right group Manos Limpias. The court declared its intention to investigate “alleged influence peddling and business corruption”—but didn’t share any more details. Gomez is accused of having links to private companies that have won government contracts or funding.
What happened now: PM Sánchez announced that he is cancelling all public duties till April 29—while he decides whether or not to step down:
The Socialist prime minister said he would give a statement to the media on 29 April, after reflecting whether it was worth remaining in office "despite the mud" that the right and far right were trying to turn politics into.
In a lengthy statement on X, Mr Sánchez complained of a "strategy of harassment" over months aimed at weakening him politically and personally targeting his wife.
If he chooses to remain in office, Sánchez could submit himself to a confidence vote to give him political cover. If he chooses to resign, parliament could vote for a new prime minister—or there will be a snap election in July. The Guardian has a useful explainer on the allegations.
Jio’s dhamaka announcement
JioCinema has announced a super-discounted subscription pack of just Rs 29 a month! That’s the introductory price for a single device. For four devices, you’ll have to pay Rs 89. The price will go up to Rs 59 per month, after the promotion period. But it’s still a huge drop from the current plan that charges Rs 99 a month, just for Hollywood content.
The new sastaa and tikau subscription will include all Indian series and movies—plus all of Viacom18’s content, before it's broadcast on TV—and all programming from HBO, NBC Universal, and Paramount Global. Also: in 4K quality and no ads, evah! That’s crazy, huh?
Why this matters: Mukesh-bhai just doled out a world of pain to streaming platforms in India. Netflix’s premium plan for four devices is Rs 649 per month. Disney+Hotstar costs Rs 299—and Amazon Prime is the same. Basically, this is the same stunt Reliance pulled on the mobile phone market—with its super-cheap Jio plans. It made mobile phones affordable for millions of Indians—and changed the market forever. It will do the same for the OTT industry. Well played, Mukesh-bhai! (Economic Times)
Kotak Mahindra is in trouble
The Reserve Bank banned the bank from taking on new customers because of gaping holes in its IT systems—including tools to manage user access and data security. It also can’t issue new credit cards. As a result, its shares plummeted by more than 10%—eroding the company’s market value by Rs 377 billion (37,721 crore). In response to the RBI crack down, Kotak said it would continue to onboard new customers while fixing its IT issues. Economic Times looks at RBI’s decision to abandon its much-villified “soft approach.” (Reuters)
Moving on to ICICI: Its mobile app—iMobile Pay—is supposedly showing customers “sensitive details” of other people’s credit cards—including the full card number, expiry date, and CVV. No problems have been reported and ICICI said it’ll compensate anyone who has suffered a loss. (Mint)
The biggest, baddest plastic polluters
According to a new study, 56 companies are responsible for more than 50% of branded plastic waste across the world. The worst of the lot—Coca-Cola! It single-handedly contributes 11% of the total. That’s not exactly surprising. Nor are the names of the other big offenders—which include PepsiCo, Nestlé, and Danone.
The worrying bit: The amount of plastic they produce is almost exactly equal to the waste they generate. As in the kachra you find at beaches, parks, streets, rivers and other locations. This means most of their products are not recycled. And that’s despite the best efforts of these companies to make their products easy to recycle.
The solution: According to researchers, “Make less plastic and use less plastic.” (Washington Post)
Dating apps’ big fail on privacy
A new report from Mozilla Foundation revealed that dating apps have become more “data-hungry” and “intrusive” than ever. Twenty two out of 25 popular apps got the lowest grade of ‘Privacy Not Included’—including Hinge, Tinder, Bumble, OkCupid, and Grindr. Hinge even collects location data when you’re not swiping away. The shocking bit:
Mozilla said 80% of the apps may share or sell your personal data for advertising purposes. The report noted that apps like Bumble have murky privacy clauses that might sell your data to advertisers. “We use services that help improve marketing campaigns . . . Under certain privacy laws, this may be considered selling or sharing your personal information with our marketing partners,” an in-app popup says, as noted by Mozilla.
Queer-owned and operated app Lex was the only app to get a good rating. Harmony and Happn were deemed ‘passable’.
What this is about: A big revenue slump in the dating app industry:
As per data from analytics firm data.ai, dating app downloads are slowing down. Separately, data from Pew Research published last year suggests that only three in 10 adults have ever used a dating site or an app — a figure that has stayed the same since 2019. Last month, The New York Times published a report noting that dating app giants Match Group and Bumble have lost more than $40 billion in market value since 2021.
Hence, the companies are feeling pretty desperate. We did an excellent two-part deep dive into the history of dating apps—why users are growing increasingly unhappy with them. (TechCrunch)
AI can tell your political leanings
According to a new Stanford study, AI can detect a person’s politics by looking at their face—well, their “blank, expressionless face.” According to the study authors, the accuracy is “on par with how well job interviews predict job success, or alcohol drives aggressiveness.”
The big reveal: Liberals tend to have smaller faces:
Liberals have “smaller lower faces” and “lips and noses [that] are shifted downward,” and chins that “are smaller” than conservatives, researchers write… If you have a tiny face, you’re probably a progressive. Or, by contrast, if you have a big fat face, there’s a good chance you might be a Trump voter.
One explanation for this odd link is that it has something to do with fulfilling social expectations:
People largely agree when judging political orientation from faces. Regardless of whether such judgments are accurate, the self-fulfilling prophecy effect postulates that people perceived as having a particular attribute are treated accordingly; internalize such attributions; and, over time, may engage in behaviors consistent with others’ perceptions. For example, people with larger jaws, often perceived as more socially dominant (a trait associated with political conservatism), might over time become more so.
Why this matters: This study proves that facial recognition tech is way more creepy than our worst fears. (Gizmodo)
Venice tourists gotta pay
Venice became the first city in the world to charge day tourists a fee to enter the city. The charge: €5 ($5) a day. The aim is to discourage tourists—and make the city “livable” for its residents. But many of those residents are not impressed with the plan. One of them says: “You can’t impose an entrance fee to a city; all they’re doing is transforming it into a theme park. This is a bad image for Venice … I mean, are we joking?” Residents are more worried about the lack of affordable housing—because properties are being converted to Airbnbs. For all the outrage, it doesn’t sound too bad. The ticket is required only for the historic city centre—and is bookable online. And it will mostly apply on the weekends. (The Guardian)
Three things to see
One: The Greater Chennai Police K9 squad welcomed its new recruits—three Belgian Shepherd pups, who’ve been named Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz, and Lando Norris. Someone is a Formula One fan. As you can see below, they’ll likely be an adorable handful. (Hindustan Times)
Two: Europe is turning all sorts of colours. Dust from the Sahara desert has turned parts of Greece orange. It has created a yellow-orange haze that is very pretty but also very unhealthy. NASA satellite images have captured “a shroud of tan” over nearby Cyprus. These clouds of dust have come in from parts of Africa—and aren't all that unusual.
Meanwhile, Finland has turned white, thanks to unseasonal snow. “Freak April weather” has brought more than 20 cm of snow to parts of the country—and created flight delays in Helsinki. But hey, it is very pretty, as well. Who knew climate change was such a looker! (CNN)
Three: There has long been a heated debate over who painted ‘A Portrait of Mary Magdalene’. Many claimed it was Leonardo da Vinci. Then last year, a UNESCO expert declared Renaissance master Raphael as its true creator. Still others dismiss it as a replica. In any case, the portrait is finally on public display at the Saint Maximin la Sainte Baume basilica in the south of France—allowing the aam aurat or aadmi to make their own judgement. We think it’s lovely and—don’t hate us—way better than Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa. (Artnet)
