Sowing discord meaning

To find the fault lines in society, follow the bots. Fake social media accounts crawl all over the issues that divide us, spreading lies and confusion. For every human being with a genuine grievance on Twitter and Facebook, there is an army of automated outrage amplifiers. For or against, left or right, it doesn’t matter when the goal is maximum polarisation. The bots identify the material that triggers the most passionate reactions and spread it to the widest audience. Before scientists had pinned down vital facts about Covid-19, the internet was crawling with lurid conspiracy theories. One US study looked at 200m tweets discussing the coronavirus, and found that about 45% of comments came from mechanised accounts. Of the top 50 tweeters found to have the most network influence in the study, 41 were fake. Other social media platforms are similarly infested. The busiest engines pumping disinformation down the pipeline are Russian, but Iran and China are big players, too. The top … [Read more...] about Boris Johnson helped sow the discord that’s making it hard for him to govern

A Chinese state broadcaster came under fire on Friday for showing dancers in black makeup during its Lunar New Year entertainment spectacle. The annual show is one of the world's most-watched television programs, and China Central Television (CCTV) also faced criticism for their depiction of African people in 2018 . How did the controversy arise? CCTV's "African Song and Dance" performance came at the start of the Spring Festival Gala for the lunar Year of the Ox. The show included Chinese dancers in African-style costumes and dark makeup who were dancing and beating drums. The depiction drew allegations of cultural insensitivity and racism, including from Black advocacy groups. China's foreign ministry has defended the African segment of the show as a sign of respect. Officials say the hours-long annual spectacle, a television highlight since 1983, is seen by as many as 800 million viewers. CCTV also faced criticism over its 2018 Spring Festival Gala, featuring … [Read more...] about Racism row: China state TV under fire over blackface stunt

Marilyn Manson hinted at trouble with an ex in 2015, reading fans a letter which stated: 'I hope you trick every dumb girl into thinking they got the golden ticket.' The rock star, 52, real name Brian Hugh Warner, read from the note while on stage at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago. At the time he was dating now wife Lindsay Usich.  Evan Rachel Wood, 33, who dated Manson between 2007 and 2010, first named Manson as her alleged abuser last week, saying he 'horrifically abused me for years.' In footage obtained by TMZ Manson reads from the letter: 'You couldn't even look me in the eyes because you were drunk.'  As they cheer he adds: 'Now let's not assume this is written about me. Don't be prejudiced. Don't be racist toward me. He continues to read from the letter: 'I hope your show especially fails.' His fans boo as he then says: 'It's starting to sound like me a little bit.' Manson adds from the letter: 'I hope you trick every dumb girl into thinking they got … [Read more...] about Marilyn Manson hinted at trouble with an ex in 2015 while reading fans a letter which stated ‘I hope you trick every dumb girl into thinking they got the golden ticket’ – years before Evan Rachel Wood accused him of abuse

Evan Rachel Wood has said she was forced to file a police report last year after allegedly learning that Marilyn Manson's wife Lindsay Usich was 'conspiring' to release photos of her when she was 'underage' to 'ruin my career' and 'shut me up', as she posted one of the pictures herself. Hollywood actor Wood, 33, shared a photo of the police report and what she said was one of the pictures Usich was seeking, showing Wood in Manson's stage hat and an Adolf Hitler-style mustache drawn on her face. She also shared screengrabs of an online chat discussing someone named 'Lindsay' asking for 'pictures of Evan doing things that would ruin her career.' Wood posted the latest accusations on her Instagram story Saturday just days after she first broke her silence to name Manson, 52, as her alleged abuser who she said 'horrifically abused me for years.' On Friday, she posted fresh claims that Manson hurled anti-Semitic abuse at her, has three Nazi tattoos and drew swastikas on her bedside … [Read more...] about Evan Rachel Wood reveals police report she made last year after learning Marilyn Manson’s wife Lindsay Usich was ‘conspiring to release photos of me when I was UNDERAGE to shut me up’ as she posts one of the ‘career ruining’ shots herself

The words 'Northern Ireland' were barely mentioned in debates before the 2016 Brexit referendum. Yet the statelet and its winding 499-kilometer (310-mile) border with Ireland became a critical area of negotiation in the four and half years before the UK fully left the post-Brexit transition period on January 1, 2021 . Anyone who expected talk about the statelet's trading arrangements to die away once Brexit happened has been proven wrong. In the six weeks since January 1, Northern Ireland has once again become the Brexit problem that refuses to go away. In the first few weeks of 2021, there were significant shortages of fresh produce in supermarkets across Northern Ireland. Neither the pandemic nor the traditional post-Christmas lull were apparently to blame. The problem was that many companies in Britain were unprepared for the new paperwork required to export to Northern Ireland under the terms of the Protocol. (Border checks — which apply to some goods traveling from Great … [Read more...] about Northern Ireland: The Brexit problem that will not go away