Warnings over France’s financial situation grew on Friday when the Moody’s ratings agency issued a negative outlook for the country’s sovereign debt rating amid concerns about the nation’s rapidly rising debt and deficit. The outlook reflects what Moody’s said were heightened risks of political gridlock in France as Prime Minister …
Read More »Mozambique’s Governing Party Candidate Wins Disputed Presidential Election
Daniel Chapo was declared the winner of Mozambique’s presidential election on Thursday after a process marred by violence and widespread accusations that his party, Frelimo, which has run the country for nearly five decades, committed fraud. The country’s electoral commission announced that Mr. Chapo won with nearly 71 percent of …
Read More »Why Democracy Lives and Dies by Math
“Math is power” is the tag line of a new documentary, “Counted Out,” currently making the rounds at festivals and community screenings. (It will have a limited theatrical release next year.) The film explores the intersection of mathematics, civil rights and democracy. And it delves into how an understanding of …
Read More »Bots Linked to China Target Republican House and Senate Candidates, Microsoft Says
Dozens of inauthentic accounts on X linked to China have been assailing Republican members of Congress running for re-election in Alabama, Tennessee and Texas, accusing them of corruption and promoting their opponents, according to a report released on Wednesday by Microsoft’s Threat Analysis Center. Those targeted include Representatives Barry Moore …
Read More »F.D.A. Names a New Chief of Medical Devices
The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday announced that Dr. Michelle Tarver, an agency veteran, will be the new director of the medical device division. Dr. Tarver will face a slate of pressing tasks, that include addressing calls to strengthen standards to protect the public from issues like racial bias …
Read More »What Joko Widodo Achieved as President
The words “emergency warning” galvanized protesters in Indonesia in August. It was a rallying cry to protect the world’s third-largest democracy, which broke free from dictatorship less than 30 years ago. Thousands of protesters took to the streets. Some stormed the gates of Parliament, tearing one down in fury. The …
Read More »The Scandal of the Indonesian Leader’s Son and the Private Jet
At first glance, it looked like so many other photos posted on social media, the kind taken by excited travelers en route. The wing of a plane, juxtaposed against fluffy white clouds, with the sun streaming through. The caption read: “U.S.A. here we go.” On board that August flight from …
Read More »José Rubén Zamora Will Leave Prison After Nearly Two Years
After spending more than 810 days in a cramped cell with little more than his books to keep him company, one of Guatemala’s most renowned journalists was released to house detention on Saturday night as he waits to find out whether he will be granted a new trial. The decision …
Read More »‘Life Is Complicated’: How a Scourge of Oligarchs Fell in Love With One
Feted by many fellow journalists and Western diplomats as a fearless scourge of corrupt oligarchs, Moldova’s most popular television host torched her soaring career and stellar image three years ago with a startling life choice. She fell in love and had a child with one of her country’s most notorious …
Read More »Rare Copy of U.S. Constitution Sells for More Than $11 Million
A rare copy of the United States Constitution that was printed shortly after the Constitutional Convention in 1787 and played a role in the document’s adoption by the original 13 states sold for more than $11 million during a live auction on Thursday evening. The high bid, from a buyer …
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