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☆ In its latest terror response, Russia is no longer attempting to disguise the brutality of its state security
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Their state appeared designed to create an impression of aggression and brutality, showing the consequences of crossing the Russian authorities. Though the brutality of Russia's security services has long been known, never has it been so brazenly paraded, say analysts. "It was no secret that Russian security agencies torture people, mutilate suspected terrorists and generally practice all known ways of extracting information. AdvertisementThe abuse of terror suspects in Russia has been documented before. But the treatment of the Moscow terror suspects seems to mark a new milestone in the normalization of brutality by officials in Putin's Russia.

Persons: —, Mukhammadsobir Faizov, Dalerdzhon, Saidakrami Rachabalizoda, Shamsidin, Vladimir Putin, Mirzoyev, Rajabalizoda, Fariduni, mutilate, Anton Barbashin, Akram Azimov, Abror, lionized, Andrei Soldatov, Russia's Wagner, Kenneth Roth Organizations: Service, Business, CNN, Nazi, RFE, Human Rights Watch, St, New York Times, UN, Moscow ISIS, Kremlin, Human Rights Locations: Moscow, Tajikistan, Russia, St Petersburg, Ukraine, Putin's Russia

☆ Putin looms over a third successive US election
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

CNN —“Russia, Russia, Russia.”Ex-President Donald Trump’s scathing catch phrase for a torrent of investigations during his administration also serves as an apt catch-all for the current meltdown over Moscow roiling US politics. But Russia and its leader, whom President Joe Biden described as a “crazy S.O.B.” at a Wednesday fundraiser, won’t go away. All the ways Putin is playing in US politicsPutin is advancing Russian interests against the US on multiple fronts. Putin recently formalized his warming ties with North Korean tyrant Kim Jong Un by presenting him with a new limousine. The Russian leader was particularly incensed by the US-led operation to topple Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi in 2011.

Persons: CNN —, ”, Donald Trump’s, Joe Biden, won’t, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Ukraine –, –, Alexander Smirnov, “, Trump, Smirnov, Biden, it’s, Putin can’t, ” Douglas, Alexey Navalny, Biden lambasts Trump, ” Biden, Volodymyr Zelensky, Ronald Reagan, Mikhail Gorbachev, he’s, he’d, Mike Turner, Ksenia, Paul Whelan –, Evan Gershkovich, Geopolitically, Kim Jong Un, George W, Bush, Barack Obama, Moammar Gadhafi, Hillary Clinton, Robert Mueller, “ We’ll, Mueller Organizations: CNN, Kremlin, United States, European NATO, ”, Moscow, House Republicans, GOP, CIA, NATO, Republican Party, Republicans, Republican, Trump, Marine, Wall Street, Putin, Biden, US, Democratic Locations: Russia, Moscow, United States, China, Soviet, East Germany, United, Ukraine, Russian, European, Washington, Asia, Sweden, Finland, Berlin –, Europe, Ukrainian, California, North Korea, Iran, Crimea, Helsinki, Geneva

☆ Man Convicted of Assaulting Police in Tipping Point on Jan. 6
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Alan Feuer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A Pennsylvania barber whose violent attacks on the police on Jan. 6, 2021, were widely seen as the tipping point in the storming of the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob was convicted on Friday of federal assault charges. The barber, Ryan Samsel, was one of the first people to confront the police on Jan. 6 and push through barricades at what is known as the Peace Circle, allowing hundreds of others behind him to breach the grounds of the Capitol and ultimately the building itself. Prosecutors at a trial for Mr. Samsel and four co-defendants, who were also convicted of assault and other charges, said that the men’s actions “ignited a fire that burned for over four hours at the Capitol.”The guilty verdicts, returned by the judge after a bench trial in Federal District Court in Washington, were the latest reminders that the prosecutions of those who took part in the storming of the Capitol continue apace, even more than three years after the attack. This week alone, charges were unsealed against at least nine additional defendants, bringing the total number of people accused in connection with the Capitol attack to more than 1,260. The assault on the building has also found itself front and center in the 2024 presidential campaign as former President Donald J. Trump has lionized those who joined in it, referring to them as “hostages” and “political prisoners.” As he has often done with potential political liabilities, Mr. Trump has sought to flip the script on the Capitol attack and turn it to his electoral advantage through a campaign of persistent disinformation built around the assertion that the Justice Department is persecuting him and his supporters.

Persons: Ryan Samsel, Samsel, “, Donald J, Trump, ” Organizations: Trump, Capitol, Prosecutors, Federal, Court, Justice Department Locations: Pennsylvania, Washington

☆ Opinion: Martha Stewart is a feminist icon in ways you may never have imagined
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-27 | by ( Opinion Sarah Archer | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The new CNN Original Series “The Many Lives of Martha Stewart” premieres Sunday, January 28 at 9pm ET/PT. CNN —It’s rare to meet someone who’s totally indifferent to Martha Stewart. For women who remember the “Martha Stewart Living” media empire at the zenith of its influence — the 1990s — she can inspire a feeling of inadequacy. American media mogul and businesswoman Martha Stewart stands in a kitchen in August 1976. Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart at a private table in the kitchen of Nice Guy in West Hollywood, Calif., Oct. 25, 2016.

Persons: Sarah Archer, ”, Martha Stewart ”, who’s, Martha Stewart, Sarah Archer Sarah Archer, she’s, Justin Bieber, Snoop Dogg, Martha, Martha I, steely perfectionism, homekeeping, Julia Child, doughty, “ Martha Stewart, Jadeite, Marc Morrone, Susan Wood, —, Anna Wintour, Nice Guy, Kendrick Brinson, Dobbs, they’ve Organizations: New York Times, Vox, Washington Post, Culture, CNN, Comedy Central, Sports Illustrated, Reading, Vogue Locations: Philadelphia , PA, Japan, Las Vegas, Turkey, Nice, West Hollywood, Calif, America, California

☆ Analysis: How Iowa became a chaotic curtain-raiser for a fateful political year
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

Des Moines, Iowa CNN —The storied history of the Iowa caucuses has never seen anything like this. Haley: ‘The fellas are scared’Unlike DeSantis, Haley isn’t wagering her campaign on Iowa. Icicles hang from the roof as people arrive for a Haley campaign event at the Thunder Bay Grille on January 13, 2024, in Davenport, Iowa. Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesYet Iowa has has raised existential questions for the DeSantis campaign. And time is short, because the Iowa campaign is ending just as it began — with the former president on top.

Persons: shivers, Donald Trump, they’re, ”, Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis, Iowans, ” Trump, Trump, –, DeSantis, Haley, Chris Christie’s, she’d, Vivek Ramaswamy, Xi Jinping, Nigel Farage, “, ” –, patriotically, we’re, caucusgoers, Ramaswamy, —, Haley slugged, admonitions, Judge Arthur Engoron, Sharon Mancero, ” Mancero, Mancero, Joe Biden, he’s, Clinton, ‘, Haley isn’t, She’s, ” Haley, Will Hurd —, Trump —, That’s, Win McNamee, that’s, George W, Bush, “ We’re, Mark Harris, Haley’s, Lovisa, Swede, ” Tedestedt, Chip Roy, Louis, Stanley, Chip Somodevilla, Joel Rudman, “ I’ve, ” Rudman, It’s, ” DeSantis, Biden, it’s, ” CNN’s Kit Maher, Veronica Stracqualursi Organizations: Des Moines , Iowa CNN, House, Former South Carolina Gov, Trump, Trump –, New, New Jersey Gov, “ Trump, Iowa Republicans, Capitol, Iowa, Des Moines Register, NBC, Republican, GOP, Republicans, Des Moines, Senate, CNN, New York Stock Exchange, Social Security, Jimmy Centers, Iowa Republican, South Carolina, Former Texas GOP, “, White House, Ankeny, Haley, America, South Carolina Republican, Texas, Florida Panhandle, Centers Locations: Des Moines , Iowa, Iowa, week’s, Hampshire, Florida, New York, Washington, Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, Sioux City, New Jersey, British, Indianola, Clinton , Iowa, DeSantis, Des, Fox, Wall, Manhattan, New Hampshire, Cedar Falls, Ankeny, South, Davenport , Iowa, Granite, St, Hubbard , Iowa

☆ Tell-all book lifts the lid on troubled beauty brand Glossier
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Leah Dolan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Glossier, a direct-to-consumer cosmetics company launched in 2014 by US businesswoman Emily Weiss, pioneered this new aesthetic. At Glossier, beauty marks were celebrated, freckles were lionized and makeup application became as free form as finger painting. Beyoncé, Serena Williams, Michelle Obama and Reese Witherspoon have all been pictured wearing the makeup brand to red carpet events like the Oscars and The Grammys. For Meltzer, the brand fell victim to something that often trips up companies leading the zeitgeist: an evolving landscape. But “Glossy” isn’t just a beauty brand biography — it’s a forensic cross-examination of an era-defining company and how it embodied a moment in wider culture.

Persons: ”, Emily Weiss, freckles, Paloma Elsesser, Glossier, Serena Williams, Michelle Obama, Reese Witherspoon, Lila Moss, Sydney Sweeny, Gigi Hadid, Marisa Meltzer, “, ” Meltzer, Richard Levine, Weiss ’, Meltzer, ” Glossier, Sophia Amoruso, John Sciulli, Weiss, Leandra Medine, Audrey Gelman, Nasty Gal, Manrepeller’s Leandra Medine, ” Audrey Gelman, John Phillips, Selena, Hailey Bieber’s, ” Marisa Meltzer's, Simon, Simon & Schuster, Schuster, Meltzer didn’t, It’s Organizations: CNN, The, Teen Vogue, Getty, Rhode, Simon & Locations: overhiring, New York, Glossier, SoHo , New York

☆ Russian, Turkish ministers talk after Turkey sends Ukrainian commanders home
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 9 (Reuters) - The foreign ministers of Russia and Turkey spoke by telephone on Sunday, a day after Ankara angered Moscow by sending five Ukrainian commanders home with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in what Russia called a violation of a prisoner exchange agreement. The Russian and Turkish foreign ministries said Sergei Lavrov and Hakan Fidan discussed the situation in Ukraine, as well as a Black Sea grain export agreement that lifted a Russian de facto blockade of Ukrainian ports last year. Russia captured the city last year after laying it to waste, killing thousands of civilians in a three-month siege. The captured Azov commanders, lionized as heroes in Ukraine and vilified in Russia, were released in a prisoner swap in September, under terms that required them to stay in Turkey until the war ends. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Saturday that Turkey had violated agreements in permitting their release, and had failed to notify Russia in advance.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Sergei Lavrov, Hakan Fidan, Tayyip Erdogan, Ankara's, Zelenskiy, Dmitry Peskov, Alexander Marrow, Peter Graff Organizations: United Nations, Kremlin, Russia, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Russia, Turkey, Ankara, Moscow, Turkish, Ukraine, Russian, Ukrainian, Mariupol, Kyiv, Azov

Prigozhin had reportedly traveled to Belarus as part of a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin following the failed uprising, but Lukashenko told CNN’s Matthew Chance that the Wagner leader is now in Russia. Prigozhin has not been seen in public since June 24 when he left Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia. “I don’t think that Wagner will rise up somewhere and turn its guns against the Belarusian authorities and the Belarusian state,” Lukashenko said. Until recently, Russian state television lionized Wagner’s operations in Ukraine, but the outlets now appear to be vilifying the founder of the private military company following the failed uprising. Russian state television often airs dramatic footage of what are described as raids by security services and foiled terrorist plots.

Persons: Belarus CNN — Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Alexander Lukashenko, Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, Lukashenko, CNN’s Matthew Chance, Wagner, ” Lukashenko, ”, Prigozhin’s, Were Wagner Organizations: Belarus CNN, CNN, Weapons, “, Kremlin Locations: Minsk, Belarus, Belarusian, Russia, Rostov, Vesti, St . Petersburg, Moscow, Ukraine

☆ Ukraine hails return of 45 Azov fighters, Russia says 3 pilots released
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) pose for a picture after a swap, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, at an unknown location in Ukraine, in this handout picture released May 6, 2023. The freed Ukrainian prisoners included 42 men and three women from the Azov battalion, said Andriy Yermak, the head of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's office. Thirty-five privates and sergeants, 10 officers," Yermak said on the telegram app in a post that did not mention the release of Russian prisoners. The Russian Defence Ministry said in a statement that three pilots had been returned and were being provided with medical and psychological assistance. There were no reports on Russian state media of additional Russian prisoner releases.

☆ Another cultish cost-saving formula gets off-track
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Jeffrey Goldfarb | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

Despite its multiple interpretations and approaches, success is widely gauged by a railway’s operating ratio, a simple measure of how much it spends to make a buck. Union Pacific’s peers improved similarly, indicative of the antiquated ways the industry had been deploying resources. Union Pacific also found itself unable to bring back enough furloughed workers in areas where they were most needed. “In a significant departure from the railroad industry's recent past, we deliberately moved away from a singular focus on operating ratio,” he told lawmakers. “If we wanted to drive [operating ratio] lower over time, we could,” the board wrote in a letter to shareholders in late 2021.

☆ Washington Post publisher slams Pompeo calling Jamal Khashoggi an 'activist' in new book, fires back that CIA 'concluded Jamal was brutally murdered'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A Washington Post official blasted Mike Pompeo for his portrayal of Jamal Khashoggi in his new book. Post publisher Fred Ryan said Pompeo "outrageously" misrepresents "the life and work" of Khashoggi. "As the CIA — which Pompeo once directed — concluded, Jamal was brutally murdered on the orders of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman." The report also described that later in his life Khashoggi's ties to the group were "ambiguous." Hanan Elatr Khashoggi, Khashoggi's widow, told NBC News that Khashoggi' was never part of the group.

☆ The man behind Trump World’s myth of rigged voting machines
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +32 min

He publicly announced his purchase of Montgomery’s data in August at a gathering in Missouri of hundreds of his followers. “I own it,” Lindell said of Montgomery’s data, touting it as irrefutable proof Trump was cheated. On Nov. 9, far-right podcaster Joe Oltmann linked Montgomery’s Hammer and Scorecard claims to a parallel conspiracy theory: that widely used voting machines manufactured by Dominion Voting Systems were rigged to flip votes from Trump to Biden. Powell amended her complaint a few days later and dropped the expert’s declaration and the references to Montgomery’s claims. But the government said in a recent court filing that the order has nothing to do with election data.

“It’s an utter betrayal,” his son, Kevin Gnida, said in an interview from his home in Edmonton, Canada. “I know with 100 percent confidence that my dad would have never participated in this,” Kevin Gnida added. “I’m glad they got caught.”Evan, 64, and Josh Edwards, 30, were arrested at their home in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, on Dec. 14. Josh Edwards is taken into custody outside the Edwards family’s New Smyrna Beach home on Dec. 14, 2022. “They came to my dad because they had no money.”Joy Edwards, Evan and Mary Jane Edwards, and Josh Edwards.

☆ How FTX's implosion put crypto news sites like CoinDesk, The Block, and Decrypt in the spotlight as they work to fend off an ad slump and conspiracy theories about their coverage
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Reed Alexander | Steven Perlberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

Crypto news sites like CoinDesk, The Block, and Decrypt have dominated coverage of the FTX implosion. Now, crypto media staffers are wondering whether more dominoes falling from FTX could further hurt the industry or cripple their ad revenues. "We cover the good, the bad and the ugly," Dan Roberts, the editor-in-chief of Decrypt, told Insider. "In general, I think these things are good for crypto media," he said. Stacy-Marie Ishmael, the managing editor for Bloomberg's crypto team, likened burgeoning crypto coverage to 1990s coverage of the Internet.

☆ The story of Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX implosion put crypto news sites like CoinDesk and The Block on the map. Inside their plan to fend off an ad slump and conspiracy theories — and keep winning.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Reed Alexander | Steven Perlberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Now, crypto media staffers are wondering whether more dominoes falling from FTX could further hurt the industry or cripple their ad revenues. Crypto media kicks into overdriveRoberts said Decrypt's traffic doubled during the first week of the FTX saga. "In general, I think these things are good for crypto media," he said. Stacy-Marie Ishmael, the managing editor for Bloomberg's crypto team, likened burgeoning crypto coverage to 1990s coverage of the Internet. "It's now a situation where the crypto media has egg on their face.

☆ From $32 billion to criminal investigations: How Sam Bankman-Fried's empire vanished overnight
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +17 min

Alameda's success spurred the launch of crypto exchange FTX in the spring of 2019. A Twitter fight with the CEO of rival exchange Binance pulled the mask off the scheme. Alameda, FTX and a host of subsidiaries Bankman-Fried founded have filed for bankruptcy protection in Delaware. On Nov. 2, CoinDesk reported a leaked balance sheet showing that a significant amount of Alameda's assets were held in FTX's illiquid FTT token. On Nov. 6, according to Bankman-Fried, the exchange had roughly $5 billion of withdrawals, "the largest by a huge margin."

☆ A growing number of Capitol rioters are being arrested for other crimes —from guns to drugs — which could mean more jail time: report
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-18 | by ( Sarah Al-Arshani | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Over 900 people have been arrested and charged in connection with the Capitol riot, according to Insider's database. A growing number of them have subsequently been charged with additional separate crimes, CBS News reported. The additional charges could complicate their efforts to get lenient sentences in their Capitol riot cases. In one instance, federal authorities said a Navy reservist went into "panic mode" after the Capitol riot and made $50,000 in firearms-related purchases, The Washington Post reported. Additionally, these additional charges could make it harder for the defendants to get lenient sentences in their Capitol riot charges and could mean that other defendants could struggle to secure pretrial releases.

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