Iran aware of reports about Iranian-American journalist’s arrest, ministry says

Iran aware of reports about Iranian-American journalist’s arrest, ministry says
Reza Valizadeh, an Iranian-American journalist and former Radio Farda employee, is believed to have been imprisoned in Iran for several months, according to the U.S State Department (X/@MeoNew)
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Updated 11 November 2024
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Iran aware of reports about Iranian-American journalist’s arrest, ministry says

Iran aware of reports about Iranian-American journalist’s arrest, ministry says
  • Iran does not recognize second nationalities and treats dual nationals solely as Iranian

DUBAI: Iran’s foreign ministry is aware of reports about the arrest of Iranian-American journalist Reza Valizadeh in Iran, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday.
Earlier this month, the Associated Press reported that Reza Valizadeh, an Iranian-American journalist who once worked for a US government-funded broadcaster, was believed to have been detained by Iran for some months.
“We are aware of reports regarding the arrest of one Iranian national, he is an Iranian national and I do not have information on his second citizenship. We are in contact with relevant institutions to follow up on the case,” Baghaei said when asked about Valizadeh in a press conference.
Iran does not recognize second nationalities and treats dual nationals solely as Iranians.
The US State Department had earlier acknowledged the imprisonment of Valizadeh, who previously worked for Radio Farda, an outlet under Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that is overseen by the US Agency for Global Media.


Lebanese journalist Soukaina Mansour Kawtharani killed in Israeli strike on Joun

Lebanese journalist Soukaina Mansour Kawtharani killed in Israeli strike on Joun
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Lebanese journalist Soukaina Mansour Kawtharani killed in Israeli strike on Joun

Lebanese journalist Soukaina Mansour Kawtharani killed in Israeli strike on Joun
  • Her death brings the toll of Lebanese media workers killed to 12

LONDON: Lebanese journalist Soukaina Mansour Kawtharani was killed alongside her two children and other family members in an Israeli airstrike on a three-story residential building in Joun, near Sidon in southern Lebanon.

Kawtharani, who worked as a correspondent for Radio Al-Nour, a station seen as close to Hezbollah, was reported dead on Wednesday by the radio station.

The airstrike targeted the building, which was housing displaced families, on Tuesday.

Joseph Qosseifi, president of the Lebanese Press Editors’ Association, condemned the attack, calling it a “crime” and urging international human rights organizations, the International Criminal Court, the General Federation of Arab Journalists and UNESCO to take action.

In a statement issued through the official National News Agency, he said: “The Israeli enemy makes no distinction between civilians and combatants in its bombardments, violates every law, charter and pact, and speaks only the language of fire and blood.”

The building, reportedly owned by the Ghosn family — relatives of Carlos Ghosn, the Brazil-born French Lebanese businessman and former automotive executive — was completely destroyed in the strike, which killed 15 people, including eight women and four children, and injured 12, according to the Health Ministry.

Kawtharani’s death brings the number of Lebanese journalists and media workers killed since the beginning of the Israeli-Hamas conflict to 12, according to the Lebanese Press Editors’ Association.


Parody news website the Onion buys Alex Jones’ Infowars out of bankruptcy

Parody news website the Onion buys Alex Jones’ Infowars out of bankruptcy
Updated 14 November 2024
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Parody news website the Onion buys Alex Jones’ Infowars out of bankruptcy

Parody news website the Onion buys Alex Jones’ Infowars out of bankruptcy
  • Families of victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting backed the Onion’s bid

NEW YORK: The parody news website the Onion bought conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’ Infowars brand and website in a bankruptcy auction, according to court documents filed on Thursday.
Jones filed for bankruptcy protection in 2022 after courts ordered him to pay $1.5 billion for defaming the families of 20 students and six staff members killed in the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Jones, unable to pay those legal judgments, was forced to auction his assets, including Infowars, in bankruptcy.
The Connecticut families of eight victims of the school shooting backed the Onion’s bid, saying it would put “an end to the misinformation machine” that Jones operated.
The Onion said it aims to replace “Infowars’ relentless barrage of disinformation” with the Onion’s “relentless barrage of humor.” “The Onion is proud to acquire Infowars, and we look forward to continuing its storied tradition of scaring the site’s users with lies until they fork over their cold, hard cash,” the Onion CEO Ben Collins said in a statement. Everytown for Gun Safety, the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country, said it will serve as the exclusive advertiser on the new Infowars.
The Onion will acquire Infowars’ intellectual property, including its website, customer lists and inventory, certain social media accounts and the Infowars production equipment, the families said in a statement.
“They’re shutting us down,” Jones said on social media site X. “I’m going to be here until they come in here and turn the lights off.”


Bluesky has added 1 million users since the US election as people seek alternatives to X

Bluesky has added 1 million users since the US election as people seek alternatives to X
Updated 14 November 2024
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Bluesky has added 1 million users since the US election as people seek alternatives to X

Bluesky has added 1 million users since the US election as people seek alternatives to X
  • Bluesky said Wednesday that its total users surged to 15 million, up from roughly 13 million at the end of October
  • Championed by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Bluesky was an invitation-only space until it opened to the public in February

LOS ANGELES: Social media site Bluesky has gained 1 million new users in the week since the US election, as some X users look for an alternative platform to post their thoughts and engage with others online.
Bluesky said Wednesday that its total users surged to 15 million, up from roughly 13 million at the end of October.
Championed by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Bluesky was an invitation-only space until it opened to the public in February. That invite-only period gave the site time to build out moderation tools and other features. The platform resembles Elon Musk’s X, with a “discover” feed as well a chronological feed for accounts that users follow. Users can send direct messages and pin posts, as well as find “starter packs” that provide a curated list of people and custom feeds to follow.
The post-election uptick in users isn’t the first time that Bluesky has benefitted from people leaving X. Bluesky gained 2.6 million users in the week after X was banned in Brazil in August — 85 percent of them from Brazil, the company said. About 500,000 new users signed up in the span of one day last month, when X signaled that blocked accounts would be able to see a user’s public posts.
Despite Bluesky’s growth, X posted last week that it had “dominated the global conversation on the US election” and had set new records. The platform saw a 15.5 percent jump in new-user signups on Election Day, X said, with a record 942 million posts worldwide. Representatives for Bluesky and for X did not respond to requests for comment.
Bluesky has referenced its competitive relationship to X through tongue-in-cheeks comments, including an Election Day post on X referencing Musk watching voting results come in with President-elect Donald Trump.
“I can guarantee that no Bluesky team members will be sitting with a presidential candidate tonight and giving them direct access to control what you see online,” Bluesky said.
Across the platform, new users — among them journalists, left-leaning politicians and celebrities — have posted memes and shared that they were looking forward to using a space free from advertisements and hate speech. Some said it reminded them of the early days of X, when it was still Twitter.
On Wednesday, The Guardian said it would no longer post on X, citing “far right conspiracy theories and racism” on the site as a reason. At the same time, television journalist Don Lemon posted on X that he is leaving the platform but will continue to use other social media, including Bluesky.
Lemon said he felt X was no longer a place for “honest debate and discussion.” He noted changes to the site’s terms of service set to go into effect Friday that state lawsuits against X must be filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas rather than the Western District of Texas. Musk said in July that he was moving X’s headquarters to Texas from San Francisco.
“As the Washington Post recently reported on X’s decision to change the terms, this ‘ensures that such lawsuits will be heard in courthouses that are a hub for conservatives, which experts say could make it easier for X to shield itself from litigation and punish critics,’” Lemon wrote. “I think that speaks for itself.”
Last year, advertisers such as IBM, NBCUniversal and its parent company Comcast fled X over concerns about their ads showing up next to pro-Nazi content and hate speech on the site in general, with Musk inflaming tensions with his own posts endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory.


Al Jazeera Gaza bureau chief Wael Dahdouh to receive 2024 International Press Freedom Award

Al Jazeera Gaza bureau chief Wael Dahdouh to receive 2024 International Press Freedom Award
Updated 13 November 2024
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Al Jazeera Gaza bureau chief Wael Dahdouh to receive 2024 International Press Freedom Award

Al Jazeera Gaza bureau chief Wael Dahdouh to receive 2024 International Press Freedom Award
  • His resilience despite devastating personal losses is ‘inspiration for reporters around the world,’ says head of award organizer the National Press Club
  • Dahdouh learned during a live broadcast that an Israeli airstrike had killed his wife, 15-year-old son, 7-year-old daughter, and 8 other relatives

LONDON: Wael Dahdouh, media organization Al Jazeera’s Gaza bureau chief, has been honored by the National Press Club with its 2024 John Aubuchon International Press Freedom Award for his reporting on the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

The journalists’ organization, which is based in Washington D.C., said Dahdouh will receive its highest honor in recognition of his “determination to keep his bureau open and video feed available to the general audience and other journalists.”

Dahdouh gained worldwide recognition for his reporting on the ongoing conflict in Gaza, even after suffering devastating personal losses.

In deeply moving scenes that caught the world’s attention, he learned during a live broadcast on Oct. 28, 2023, that an airstrike on the Nuseirat refugee camp had killed his wife, 15-year-old son, 7-year-old daughter, and eight other relatives. He lost his other son, Hamza, also a reporter for Al Jazeera, in another Israeli air raid on Jan. 7 this year.

Dahdouh himself was injured by Israeli drone fire on Dec. 15, 2023, while covering an attack on a school in Khan Younis. He required surgery for his injuries and traveled to Qatar for treatment.

Announcing the award in Berlin on Tuesday, Emily Wilkins, president of the National Press Club, said: “Despite his physical and emotional wounds, Dahdouh remains resilient as he works to recover. His endurance, strength and perseverance are an inspiration for reporters around the world.”

His award will be officially presented during the National Press Club’s annual Fourth Estate Gala on Nov. 21 at its offices in Washington.

At least 137 journalists and other media workers, mostly Palestinians, are known to have been killed since the start of the conflict in October last year. Media advocacy organizations say the true death toll might be even higher.

“The National Press Club has and will continue to advocate for all journalists, including Israeli journalists, Lebanese journalists and Palestinian journalists,” Wilkins said.

“The club continues to fight for Aubuchon honorees long after the gala ends. We will work until they are freed from prison or find justice in a court, no matter if it takes months, years or decades. We stand by our honorees and we will stand by Wael Dahdouh.”


Guardian exits Elon Musk’s X platform over ‘toxic content’ and US election coverage

Guardian exits Elon Musk’s X platform over ‘toxic content’ and US election coverage
Updated 13 November 2024
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Guardian exits Elon Musk’s X platform over ‘toxic content’ and US election coverage

Guardian exits Elon Musk’s X platform over ‘toxic content’ and US election coverage
  • British newspaper said Musk’s ability to influence political discourse during US election reinforced its decision

LONDON: The Guardian announced Wednesday it will cease posting from its official accounts on X, the social media platform owned by Elon Musk, citing concerns over its recent coverage of the US election and a growing prevalence of “toxic content.”

The British newspaper, which operates over 80 accounts on X with a combined following of nearly 27 million, said the decision takes effect immediately.

“We wanted to let readers know that we will no longer post on any official Guardian editorial accounts on the social media site X (formerly Twitter),” said The Guardian.

“We think that the benefits of being on X are now outweighed by the negatives and that resources could be better used promoting our journalism elsewhere.”

The Guardian pointed to a rise in “disturbing content” on the platform, including far-right conspiracy theories and racist content, as well as coverage of the US presidential election that it said reinforced its decision.

Since Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of X in October 2022, the platform has come under fire for its perceived failure to curb misinformation, especially on high-stakes topics like the ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon and government elections, including in the US.

Despite mounting pressure from rights groups and government officials who have warned of potential fines, Musk has upheld what he calls a “free speech absolutist” approach, defending his stance on minimal content moderation.

The Guardian described X as a “toxic media platform” that no longer meets conditions for responsible publishing.

“Social media can be an important tool for news organisations and help us to reach new audiences but, at this point, X now plays a diminished role in promoting our work,” it explained.

Content from The Guardian will still be shareable on X, and reporters will continue to use the platform for news-gathering purposes.

The Guardian joins other media outlets in boycotting X over disputes with Musk. Last year, National Public Radio stopped posting after the platform labeled it “state-affiliated media,” a designation that also prompted PBS, a US public broadcaster, to suspend its activity on X.