Since Elon Musk’s $44 billion takeover of Twitter, he has alleged censorship by the previous leadership of the social media platform and enacted broad changes with little warning.
US social media company Twitter said on Wednesday it was softening the platform's policy on political advertising.
"We believe that cause-based advertising can facilitate public conversation around important topics. Today, we're relaxing our ads policy for cause-based ads in the US. We also plan to expand the political advertising we permit in the coming weeks," the company tweeted.
Twitter also plans to align its advertising policy with the one followed by US television and other mass media services, the message read.
The ban has been in place sine 2019, prohibiting the promotion of political content on the platform.
The ad could also bring additional revenue to the company which is hampered by a small income. The issue became important after several major advertisers left Twitter as a reaction against Musk taking control of the social network last year, because they feared he would moderate content.
Musk, who has repeatedly stressed he is a champion of free speech, changed the strict moderation policy and revealed Twitter papers, suggesting that under the previous ownership, an inordinate amount of censorship had existed as well as possible links with authorities regarding the control of news flow on the network.
Elon Musk-led Twitter said it will expand the political advertising it permits in coming weeks to “facilitate public conversation around important topics” and align its advertising policy with those of TV and other media outlets.
We believe that cause-based advertising can facilitate public conversation around important topics. Today, we're relaxing our ads policy for cause-based ads in the US. We also plan to expand the political advertising we permit in the coming weeks.
Twitter Inc. will relax a three-year ban on political advertising in a continued policy shift after its takeover by billionaire Elon Musk.
The company said on Tuesday that it will expand the political advertising it permits in coming weeks to “facilitate public conversation around important topics” and align its advertising policy with those of TV and other media outlets, with further details to be announced.
While it wasn’t immediately clear how extensive the changes will be, it represents a departure from a global ban on advertisements by candidates, elected officials and political parties first announced in 2019 by Twitter co-founder — and chief executive officer at the time — Jack Dorsey.
Dorsey justified the ban, which attracted the ire of then-President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign, by saying that “political message reach should be earned, not bought.”
But since Musk’s $44 billion takeover of Twitter, he has alleged censorship by the previous leadership of the social media platform and enacted broad changes with little warning. Among other shifts, the company has ended a policy preventing the sharing of Covid misinformation, reinstated the accounts of Trump and other right-wing personalities, and banned users tracking Musk’s private jet.
Twitter currently allows some so-called issue ads or cause-based ads for some economic, environmental and social topics, albeit with restrictions. The company said it will also relax its policy for such cause-based ads in the US.
Political advertising was a minor income source for Twitter before the ban — amounting to less than $3 million in sales during the 2018 US midterm elections. Still, the easing may help a company now struggling to stem losses in ad revenue as brands pull back from the site amid concern about its moderation policies.
FILE - A man wearing a face mask to protect against coronavirus travels on a metro in Berlin, Germany, March 22, 2022. A German doctor has been sentenced to two years and nine months in prison for illegally issuing more than 4,000 people with exemptions from wearing masks during the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File)
A German doctor was sentenced late Monday to two years and nine months in prison for illegally issuing more than 4,000 people with exemptions from wearing masks during the coronavirus pandemic.
A regional court in the southwestern town of Weinheim confirmed Tuesday that the doctor was convicted of “issuing incorrect health certificates” to people from across Germany, most of whom she had never met or examined.
In addition to the prison sentence she was handed a three-year work ban and ordered to pay 28,000 euros ($29,550), the sum she had received for issuing the medical certificates. Her office assistant was fined 2,700 euros.
“The process is more reminiscent of a sale of certificates than a medical procedure,” the court said in a statement. It noted that she was not faulted for providing certificates to her existing patients.
During the trial the defendant had argued that wearing masks was harmful to people’s health.
The doctor’s lawyer intends to appeal the verdict, public broadcaster SWR reported.
The doctor’s lawyer intends to appeal the verdict, public broadcaster SWR reported.
Dozens of supporters gathered outside the court in Weinheim, north of Heidelberg, to protest against the verdict and Germany’s pandemic restrictions.
Germany ended requirements to wear masks in many indoor settings last year, though they are still compulsory on long-distance trains, in doctors’ practices, hospitals, nursing homes and on some regional public transport.
Twitter was pressured by US lawmakers and media to exaggerate alleged Russian meddling on the social media platform during the 2016 president election, journalist Matt Taibbi said in the latest release of the so-called Twitter Files.
The latest batch of internal documents released on Tuesday, in coordination with Twitter chief Elon Musk, shows that the social media giant had originally seen no coordinated effort by Russia to use the social media platform to launch a major campaign to influence the 2016 presidential election.
"No evidence of a coordinated approach, all of the accounts found seem to be lone-wolf type activity (different timing, spend, targeting, ($10k in ad spend)," Twitter's Russia Task Force said in a document on October 2017.
Twitter's then Public Policy Vice President Colin Crowell said in an email to former CEO Jack Dorsey in September 2017 that Democrat lawmakers had taken cues from then Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton to pressure Twitter to investigate accounts linked to Russia.
The top Democrat on the Senate intelligence Committee Mark Warner also pressured Twitter to produce material that will make news headlines about alleged Russian meddling in the US elections via social media, according Crowell.
However, Twitter continued to find no coordinated effort by Russia to use the platform to allegedly influence the presidential elections, the documents found.
In an October 23, 2017 email the task force said the probe found only 17 suspicious accounts linked to Russia, only two of which had significant ad purchases, including Russia Today, which spent less than $10,000.
Twitter Files, discrediting doctors and experts who spoke out against vaccines
New twitter document released on December 26, detailing how Twitter executives attempted to censor 'inconvenient' data on Covid by discrediting doctors and experts who spoke out against vaccines
Using their pull, Zweig writes, the government was able to discredit doctors and experts, and suppress ordinary users' freedom of speech on Twitter — even if they were citing the Center for Disease Control's own data.
The documents provide more context as to how the government infiltrated the social media giant to suppress certain stories, as Twitter CEO Elon Musk vows there will be more revelations next week
According to the documents released on Monday, the Trump administration met with executives at Twitter, Google, Facebook and Microsoft looking for 'help from the tech companies to combat misinformation' about 'runs on grocery stores... that could stoke panic buying and behaviors' in the early days of the pandemic.
1. THREAD:
THE TWITTER FILES: HOW TWITTER RIGGED THE COVID DEBATE
– By censoring info that was true but inconvenient to U.S. govt. policy – By discrediting doctors and other experts who disagreed – By suppressing ordinary users, including some sharing the CDC’s *own data*
Then, when the Biden administration took over, they became focused on tackling 'misinformation' about vaccines and targeted high-profile vaccine skeptics like Berenson.
In the summer of 2021, Zweig writes, Biden said social media companies were 'killing people' for allowing vaccine misinformation — and just a few hours later, Berenson's account was suspended.
He was kicked off the platform the following month, and ultimately sued (and settled with) Twitter.
As part of the legal process, Twitter was compelled to release internal communications, which showed how the White House pressured the company to take action on Berenson.
14. But Twitter did suppress views—many from doctors and scientific experts—that conflicted with the official positions of the White House. As a result, legitimate findings and questions that would have expanded the public debate went missing.
But the Biden administration was apparently 'very angry' that Twitter had not done more to deplatform other accounts, and pressured executives to do more.
The Biden administration also piled pressure on the social media platform to suspend former New York Times reporter Alex Berenson over his tweets questioning Covid vaccines
In the latest instalment of the Twitter Files, journalist David Zweig laid bare how both the Trump and Biden administrations pressured Twitter executives to censor information that was 'true but inconvenient.'
Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) talks with reporters after a House Republican caucus meeting on the first day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, January 3, 2023.
Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
Republicans are facing a leadership drama as they take control of the House Tuesday. House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy appears to lack support to become speaker ahead of key vote.
As the 118th Congress convenes, the first order of House business will be election of a new speaker, and current Republican leader Kevin McCarthy could be stymied by a group of hardliners demanding concessions.
Because the GOP holds only a slim majority, a small number of defections could stop McCarthy from gaining the office he's long sought.
As the House prepares to usher in the 118th Congress and new Republican majority on Tuesday, GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy is struggling to secure enough support for his bid to be House speaker to avoid a protracted and historic fight on the House floor.
The California congressman has lobbied his fellow Republicans for months and made several concessions to a small but outspoken bloc of conservatives. But the efforts have not yet produced the breakthrough McCarthy needs to be elected House speaker in the first round of voice voting, which is expected to take place shortly after noon ET.
In order to be elected speaker, McCarthy needs support from a majority of the members who vote Tuesday, or 218 of the 434 House members expected to vote. But with only 222 Republicans total, and no Democrats expected to vote for him, McCarthy can afford to lose only four members of his caucus
As of Tuesday morning, six current Republican members and three members-elect, all conservatives, still publicly opposed McCarthy. McCarthy also faced months of organized opposition from influential conservative outside groups, which have amplified his critics on social media.
McCarthy's failure to win public support from his entire caucus has already cast a shadow over the new Republican majority, exposing divisions within the party that have existed for decades. The differences were deepened by former President Donald Trump, who emboldened a small band of ultra-conservatives.
Trump eventually backed McCarthy's bid for speaker, as did other influential conservatives such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga.
House Republicans began Tuesday morning with a caucus meeting that was viewed as McCarthy's final opportunity to make his pitch to members who might be on the fence.
Rep. Crenshaw on Republicans who oppose McCarthy as Speaker: "If you're a narcissist & you believe that your opinion is so much more important than everyone else's […] you'll threaten to tear down the team for the benefit of the Democrats."
After the meeting but before the vote, McCarthy told reporters that "we may have a battle on the floor, but the battle is for the conference and the country, and that's fine with me."
"Look, I have the record for the longest speech ever on the floor, I don't have a problem getting a record for the most votes for Speaker too," he added.
Judging from early statements by key Republican holdouts, the conservatives had a long list of demands they believed McCarthy has failed to meet.
Judging from early statements by key Republican holdouts, the conservatives had a long list of demands they believed McCarthy has failed to meet.
House Democrats, meanwhile, openly relished the internal chaos roiling the opposing party.
"We certainly are seeing chaos today in Congress, and this is an extension of the extremism that we have seen from the GOP," incoming House Minority Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe."
She accused McCarthy of having "thrown away his moral compass."
With at least five Republicans publicly vowing to oppose him and more quietly on the fence, Mr. McCarthy appeared short of the necessary votes, despite a series of major concessions he has made in an attempt to appease the far-right lawmakers.
“I am not going away,” Mr. McCarthy defiantly told Republicans in a closed-door meeting on Tuesday, which devolved into bitter squabbling as the leader berated his detractors and his critics vented their spleen, according to lawmakers who attended.
In a room in the basement of the Capitol, Mr. McCarthy made the case that the lawmakers opposing him were selfishly disrupting what was supposed to be a day of unity for their own personal gain.
“I earned this job,” Mr. McCarthy said.
“Bullshit!” came the response from Representative Lauren Boebert of Colorado, one of the hard-right Republicans opposing him. (She later told a reporter she did not shout anything during the meeting, but would not say whether she had spoken up.)
“He’s worked hard,” Representative Ralph Norman of South Carolina, another of the defectors, said of Mr. McCarthy’s final plea during the meeting. “In his mind, he has.”
But Mr. Norman told reporters he still planned to oppose Mr. McCarthy.
Representative Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, the chairman of the Freedom Caucus, emerged from the meeting fuming.
“This meeting wasn’t about trying to inform people about what it takes to get to 218 and ask for what you want,” he told reporters. “This was about a beat down and a simulated unity in the room that doesn’t really exist.”
Mr. McCarthy’s allies were equally furious. One incoming committee chairman, Representative Mike Rogers of Alabama, who is set to lead the Armed Services Committee, declared during the meeting that those who opposed Mr. McCarthy should lose their committee assignments, according to people in the room.
If Mr. McCarthy is unable to win the support he needs on the first ballot, lawmakers would take successive votes until he or a different nominee secured enough supporters to prevail. No speaker election has gone to multiple ballots since 1923, but Mr. McCarthy has vowed to fight for the job on the House floor until the very end.
Mr. McCarthy’s allies have insisted that the Republican leader would stop at nothing to win the job, and they previewed plans to try to cajole more of the holdouts — especially incoming freshmen who have yet to publicly declare positions — on Tuesday.
“I think we can get there,” Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio told reporters as he left a meeting in Mr. McCarthy’s office on Monday night.
Asked how many ballots it would take for Mr. McCarthy to prevail, Mr. Jordan replied, “We’ll see tomorrow.”
In the months leading up to the vote, Mr. McCarthy had made a series of concessions to win over the defectors, including encouraging his members to vote against the lame-duck spending bill to fund the government and calling on Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the homeland security secretary, to resign or face potential impeachment proceedings.
Over the weekend, in a last-ditch effort to sew up the votes, Mr. McCarthy put forward his most significant offers yet. He unveiled a package of rules governing how the House operates, including the so-called Holman rule, which allows lawmakers to use spending bills to defund specific programs and fire federal officials or reduce their pay.
His biggest concession was agreeing to a rule that would allow five lawmakers to call a snap vote at any time to oust the speaker. That had been a top demand of conservatives who had previously used the procedure to drive out Speaker John A. Boehner, Republican of Ohio.
But it was not enough to appease the obstreperous right flank of his party, which wanted any single lawmaker to be able to force such a vote. After Mr. McCarthy announced the concessions, nine more Republicans emerged — most of whom had previously expressed skepticism about his bid for speaker — to criticize Mr. McCarthy’s efforts to win them over as insufficient.
At the same time, some moderate supporters of Mr. McCarthy said they were unsettled by the hefty concessions, arguing that a small group of naysayers should not be allowed to hijack the new majority.
The past few years have seen more US states authorize the use of marijuana for medical or recreational purposes. Medics say the fact that cannabis can be infused into chocolate bars, gummy candies, cookies, chips and juices should prompt parents be more vigilant in keeping kids from eating it.
The number of small children in the US who accidentally ate marijuana-laced treats increased drastically between 2017 and 2021, a new study has revealed.
Within this period, there were more than 7,040 exposures to edible cannabis in children under age six, including some toddlers, according to an analysis of records from the National Poison Data System.
The survey found that in 2017, there were 207 reported cases of accidental edible cannabis exposure among young children, while by 2021, there were 3,054 such cases.
Almost a quarter of these children wound up hospitalized, some seriously ill, the study said, adding that symptoms include heart problems, confusion, vomiting and trouble breathing.
Marit Tweet, a medical toxicologist with the Southern Illinois School of Medicine who led the study, called for greater vigilance by parents and for more laws to be passed so as to make pot products less appealing and accessible to children.
“When it’s in a candy form or cookies, people don’t think of it in the same way as household chemicals or other things a child could get into. But people should really be thinking of it as a medication,” she was cited by a US media outlet as saying.
Tweet was echoed by study co-author Antonia Nemanich, who said, “My stance is that it is not a problem that these products are legalized, but the problem is that they’re not packaged the way drugs or medications are packaged. We have a lot of safeguards in place for that.”
The cases of children accidentally eating pot-laced products, including candies, chocolate, chips and cookies, coincided with more US states authorizing medical and recreational marijuana use.
Right now, using cannabis for medical purposes is legal in 37 states, while 21 states have legalized the recreational use of the drug.
There were more than 7,040 exposures to edible cannabis in kids under 6 between 2017 and 2021, according to an analysis of records from the National Poison Data System, a central repository for data from America’s Poison Centers.
In 2017, there were 207 reported cases of accidental edible cannabis exposure among kids under the age of 6. By 2021, there were 3,054, the study found.
With increased legalization, there may also be more products available overall.
“Honestly, we knew it was increasing. I work in the [emergency department] as well as taking calls for the poison center, and so even though I was seeing more cases coming through the ER, when we looked at the data nationwide, we were definitely surprised,” said study co-author Dr. Antonia Nemanich, who works in emergency medicine and medical toxicology at Rush Emergency Medicine in Chicago.
“I think all of that plays into this, and the regulations haven’t kept pace with the increased prevalence of the product,” Nemanich said.
The American College of Medical Toxicology has urged the industry to change its packaging so kids don’t get so easily confused and can’t open the packages as easily. The association also suggests that people should not use cannabis products in front of children.
Nemanich says edible cannabis products should come in plain, neutral, opaque white packaging.
“My stance is that it is not a problem that these products are legalized, but the problem is that they’re not packaged the way drugs or medications are packaged. We have a lot of safeguards in place for that,” she said. “They’re marketed as if they’re just any other tasty treat.”
She hopes the study will spur change.
“We wanted to catch this population of kids that are getting into this stuff unintentionally,” Nemanich said. “We know they’re not seeking it out as a mind-altering substance. We knew subjectively they were at high risk because we’d see a lot of exposures in the ER, and they’re very likely to just put something in their mouth that looks tasty.”
The Russian Aerospace Forces delivered a strike on the deployment site of the Ukrainian army’s foreign legion in the Donetsk People’s Republic, eliminating over 130 mercenaries in the past day during the special military operation in Ukraine, Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant-General Igor Konashenkov reported on Tuesday.
"Precision strikes by the Russian Aerospace Forces against the temporary deployment sites of foreign legion units in areas near the settlement of Maslyakovka and the city of Kramatorsk in the Donetsk People’s Republic eliminated over 130 foreign mercenaries," the spokesman said.
The Russian MoD’s briefing on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:
Russian Forces eliminated more than 40 Ukrainian troops, as well as destroyed three armored combat vehicles and three pick-up trucks near Kupyansk;
The Russian Army eliminated two Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups in the Kharkov region;
Russian Forces eliminated and wounded more than 120 Ukrainian servicemen, as well as destroyed four armored combat vehicles, three pick-up trucks and two other vehicles near Krasny Liman;
Russian troops eliminated up to 90 Ukrainian servicemen, as well as destroyed two tanks, five armored combat vehicles and seven other vehicles near Donetsk;
The Russian Army eliminated more than 30 Ukrainian troops, as well as destroyed two armored combat vehicles and three pick-up trucks in the DPR;
Russian Forces performed a high-precision strike on the dislocation point of foreign mercenaries in the DPR; as a result, more than 130 foreign mercenaries were eliminated;
Russian servicemen hit 72 Ukrainian artillery units at their firing positions;
The Russian Army destroyed four Ukrainian artillery ammunition depots in the Zaporozhye region;
Russian troops destroyed two US-made HIMARS rocket systems and four RM-70 “Vampire” rocket systems in the DPR;
The Russian Army destroyed two HIMARS rocket systems near Kramatorsk;
Russian Forces destroyed three M-77 7 artillery systems in the DPR and in the LPR, as well as two D-30 howitzers in the Zaporozhye region;
Russian air defenses destroyed 13 Ukrainian UAVs, as well as intercepted nine HIMARS rockets.
Russia’s MoD has revealed footage showing Akatsiya self-propelled 152mm artillery system crews in combat
Germany's first LNG terminal in Wilhelmshaven. Europe has boosted its LNG imports from the US and Gulf countries amid falling Russian gas exports. Reuters
Forecasts of above-normal temperatures and rising reliance on gas from storage are driving European gas prices lower.
Dutch TTF gas futures, the benchmark European contract, was last trading at €97.75 ($104.08) per megawatt hour on Wednesday, down 25 per cent compared with a week ago.
European gas prices hit a record high of about €343 per megawatt hour in August after Russia reduced gas deliveries to the continent in response to wide-ranging economic sanctions following its invasion of Ukraine.
“Current weather forecasts indicate that temperatures in Europe will be above normal towards year-end, likely lowering prices further,” Rystad Energy said.
Gas continues to be withdrawn from Europe’s underground storage, with facilities 86 per cent full at roughly 94 billion cubic metres (bcm), the energy consultancy said.
As Europe looks to replace Russian gas, countries in the region have boosted their imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the US and Gulf countries.
The continent imported more than 11.4 million tonnes of LNG in November, a record for the year, Rystad said earlier this month.
France, Spain and the UK combined accounted for more than half of Europe’s total imports.
Qatar with 24 per cent, and Russia with 20 per cent, the US Energy Information Administration said.
EU energy ministers on Monday approved an emergency cap on gas prices, which, from February 15, would be triggered if benchmark gas prices rose to €180 per megawatt hour for three working days in a row.
The spread between prices on the Dutch Title Transfer Facility hub and global LNG prices also needs to reach €35 over the same period of time for the cap to be implemented. Once activated, it would remain in force for at least 20 working days.
The cap, roughly €83 per megawatt hour higher than current gas prices, is “unlikely” to be triggered, but will protect European consumers from “extreme price spikes” seen earlier this year, Rystad said.
“We do not believe it will reduce supply or worsen Europe’s gas deficit … we also believe it will continue incentivising gas exports to Europe at maximum levels,” it said.
The International Energy Agency has warned that 2023 may present a “sterner test” for EU countries as Russian gas exports dwindle and Chinese demand for LNG rises.
The EU could fall short by about 27 bcm of gas next year if Russian gas deliveries drop to zero and China’s LNG imports rebound to 2021 levels, the Paris-based agency said in a report this month.
The risk of shortages can be avoided through “stronger” efforts to improve energy efficiency, as well as use more renewable energy and further diversify natural gas sources, it said.
Global liquefied natural gas exports jumped to a record last month as projects ramped-up output and utilities boosted imports to restock inventories, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Qatar, the U.S. and Australia -- the world’s top three exporters of the super-chilled fuel -- all boosted output in December compared to the previous year.
U.S. LNG Cargoes Depart on New Year’s Eve Heading for EuropeUnseasonably mild temperatures are forecast in the South and central portions of the continent this week, Maxar said in an emailed report on Monday. Below normal temperatures are seen across the North in the beginning of next week, trending warmer later on.
Yet prices remain far higher than normal after more than tripling last year. High gas prices have fueled inflation, forced industries to curb output and triggered the collapse of power suppliers.
Gazprom PJSC increased exports to its main buyers in Europe, Turkey and China last year, yet flows remained below pre-Covid levels as the producer capped deliveries to Europe as a whole, amid the continent’s worst energy supply crunch in decades.
Russia’s exports have been closely scrutinized as tight supplies in Europe sent prices soaring to records. The Russian company has been sending only as much gas to EU clients as it’s obliged to under long-term contracts.
Gas shipments into Germany via Russia’s Yamal-Europe link have been halted for 14 days, adding to the uncertainty.
Indonesia, one of the world’s largest thermal coal exporters, has paused on Saturday coal shipments in January to secure dwindling supplies for domestic power plants. The decision could increase LNG needs from China, India, Japan, and South Korea, which together received 73% of Indonesian coal exports in 2021, according to Engie EnergyScan
