CBS News’ Scott MacFarlane leaves network: ‘I look forward to some independence’

Justice correspondent most known for his January 6 Capitol riot coverage, is latest to quit Bari Weiss-led network…

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/mar/09/cbs-news-scott-macfarlane-leaves-bari-weiss-network

 

Global central banks offer ‘full solidarity’ to US Fed’s Powell amid Trump threats

"The independence of central banks is a cornerstone of price, financial and economic stability in the interest of the citizens that we serve. It is therefore critical to preserve that independence, with full respect for the rule of law and democratic accountability," the statement said...

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jan/13/central-banks-us-fed-powell-trump-bank-of-england-ecb

 

The TikTok deal puts even more media in the hands of the super-rich

The former US labor secretary Robert Reich described the situation plainly, writing this week on the platform formerly known as Twitter: "The richest man on earth owns X. The second richest man on earth is about to be a major owner of TikTok. The third richest man owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The fourth richest man owns the Washington Post."…

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/sep/26/tiktok-deal-china-us-super-rich

 

One Way Parents Can Fight the Phone-Based Childhood - The Atlantic

About 75 percent of kids ages 9 to 12 regularly play the online game Roblox, where they can interact with friends and even strangers. But most of the children in our survey said that they aren't allowed to be out in public at all without an adult. Fewer than half of the 8- and 9-year-olds have gone down a grocery-store aisle alone; more than a quarter aren't allowed to play unsupervised even in their own front yard...

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/08/kids-smartphones-play-freedom/683742/

Opinion | Trump’s Attack on Harvard Should Upset Conservatives, Too. Here's Why. - POLITICO

But the recent moves against universities go far beyond reinterpretations of civil rights statutes. This White House wants to ensure that universities, like big law firms, media outlets and foundations, show their allegiance to those currently in charge. The mere independence of these organizations is seen as a threat to the concentration of power in the hands of the president...

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/07/16/harvard-trump-attacks-anti-semitism-00455208 

 

Why is Iran’s nuclear programme so essential to its identity?

…The document stated that the revolution would be grounded on two principles: that it be democratic and Islamic. …Khomeini in his own handwriting added a third principle to the declaration – independence.

That third principle, the primacy of independence, born of Iran's history of exploitation by colonial powers, helps to explain what may seem otherwise mysterious in the current dispute between Iran and the US: Iran's dogmatic insistence that it must have the right to enrich uranium...

Iran, of course, argues there is no mystery why it has enriched to these high levels of purity. It was part of a clearly signalled staged escalatory response to Donald Trump unilaterally pulling the US out of the JCPOA in 2018 – an act that that had deprived Iran of the sanctions relief it had negotiated. Moreover, Trump, by imposing secondary sanctions, made it impossible for Europe to trade with Iran, the second planned benefit of the JCPOA.

Iran's politics as a result for the past decade has been shaped by the sense that it was the wronged partner, and the US confirmed as inherently untrustworthy.

Centrist figures such as the former president Hassan Rouhani and the foreign minister Javad Zarif expended huge internal political capital to sign a deal with the west, and the west promptly reneged on it. Meanwhile, Israel, a country that is not a member of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty – unlike Iran – and which has a totally unmonitored and undeclared nuclear weapon, receives largesse and support from the west…

"To us, mastering the atomic fuel cycle and generating nuclear power is as much about diversifying our energy resources as it is about who Iranians are as a nation, our demand for dignity and respect and our consequent place in the world. Without comprehending the role of identity, many issues we all face will remain unresolved."

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/23/why-iran-nuclear-programme-essential-to-its-identity

 

New opinion poll shows 85% of Greenlanders do not want to join US

Despite Donald Trump claiming the island's population 'want to be with us', Greenlanders overwhelmingly rejected the idea…

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/28/85-of-greenlanders-do-not-want-to-join-us-says-new-poll

Married or Single? (John Donvan; Open to Debate podcast)

Marriage has long been considered a goal to aspire to and a conventional path to happiness. But over the last few decades, the traditional view of marriage as the cornerstone of adult life has been questioned. Changes in economic conditions, gender roles, and cultural values have fueled a reevaluation of whether marriage is still desirable or necessary for personal fulfillment and social stability. 

Those who believe it’s better to get married argue that married individuals report better physical and mental well-being, compared to single adults. They also experience economic and social benefits. 

Those who believe it’s better to be single say singledom helps promote independence, allows individuals to make decisions freely, makes it likely to create broader social networks and communities, and feel more fulfilled than they would if they felt pressured to be partnered. 

Whether you are in a relationship or not, we debate the following prompt: Married or Single?

Interview: 

https://opentodebate.org/debate/married-or-single/

How federal scientists are girding their agencies for a Trump return - The Washington Post

At the EPA, the new scientific integrity provision is part of a four-year contract with the agency. The provision ensures that workers'complaints will be assessed by an independent investigator, rather than a political appointee...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/06/12/trump-federal-scientists-climate-environment/

Ukraine celebrates independence day with first raid into Crimea

Troops landed in western tip of territory and raised Ukrainian flag before returning home safely…

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/aug/24/ukraine-celebrates-independence-day-with-first-raid-into-crimea

Opinion | Trump Appointees Are Undermining Jan. 6 Prosecutions — And Our Justice System - POLITICO

…The recent and very dubious decisions by Trump appointees in criminal cases stemming from Jan. 6 seem to confirm some of the concerns that many observers had about the quality and intellectual independence of Trump's appointments to the federal trial courts. This points to a disconcerting possibility that we may have entered a new era in which the judiciary at even the lowest levels operates in a politicized manner in important cases…

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/04/08/trump-appointees-jan-6-prosecutions-00024063

What Energy Dependence? The U.S. Still Needs Russian Oil and Middle East Peace - Bloomberg

Simply producing more than you consume might qualify as self-sufficiency, but not true independence...

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2021-02-28/what-energy-dependence-the-u-s-still-needs-russian-oil-and-middle-east-peace

China to impose sweeping national security law in Hong Kong, bypassing city’s legislature - The Washington Post

The announcement that Beijing wants to "improve" governance of the financial hub comes as it increasingly encroaches on the territory's relative freedoms....
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/china-signals-plan-to-take-full-control-of-hong-kong-realigning-citys-status/2020/05/21/2c3850ee-9b48-11ea-ad79-eef7cd734641_story.html

China will win the trade war and wean off US technology in 7 years: Strategist - CNBC

"China will never trust the United States again, and it will achieve its technology independence within seven years," said David Roche, Independent Strategy's president and global strategist.
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/10/china-will-win-trade-war-reduce-reliance-on-us-tech-strategist.html

A student in Boston wrote ‘I am from Hong Kong.’ An onslaught of Chinese anger followed. - The Washington Post

Sitting on a bus in Boston, thousands of miles from her home in Hong Kong, college student Frances Hui crossed paths with an inquisitive fellow passenger. “Where are you from?” the passenger pressed. When she eventually replied “Hong Kong,” the man started to get aggressive, Hui recounted. He insisted that she should define herself as “from China” — which was handed control of the former British colony in 1997...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/a-student-in-boston-wrote-i-am-from-hong-kong-an-onslaught-of-chinese-anger-followed/2019/05/24/298ea3ee-719a-11e9-9331-30bc5836f48e_story.html

Roberts vows independence following Kavanaugh nomination fight - POLITICO

"I will not criticize the political branches. We do that often enough in our opinions," the chief justice said. "What I would like to do is emphasize how the judicial branch is and must be very different." ....
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/10/16/roberts-independence-kavanaugh-nomination-909880

Republicans’ spin on Kavanaugh isn’t working - The Washington Post

Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh delivered a defensive speech at the White House on Monday night. He said he had no “bitterness” — although he was plainly bitter if not enraged when he accused the Clintonian left of orchestrating a plot to smear him. He argues that he was not appointed “to serve one party or one interest” — although he vowed at his hearing that “what goes around comes around.” He insisted he would give every litigant a fair shake and listen to cases with an open mind, but who among Senate Democrats or progressive activists believes this?...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/opinions/wp/2018/10/09/republicans-spin-on-kavanaugh-isnt-working/

Why are Sinclair's scripted news segments such a big deal? - The Conversation US

It's worth looking at how local news stations have traditionally operated. ....
https://theconversation.com/why-are-sinclairs-scripted-news-segments-such-a-big-deal-94365

Top intel Dem accuses Republicans of ‘undermining’ the committee by ‘sending over evidence’ to Trump -- Raw Story

House Intelligence Committee member Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) warned Republicans they're "undermining the independence" of the panel's investigation by "sending over evidence" for Donald Trump to review, according to a transcript of a Feb. 5 committee meeting. ....
https://www.rawstory.com/2018/02/top-intel-dem-accuses-republicans-undermining-committee-sending-evidence-trump/

EU army Bloc forging ahead with its military integration to shake off US dependence — Quartz

It took 70 years, but the European Union finally signed a pact today (Nov. 13) agreeing to integrate military funding, weapons development, and deployment of European defenses. US president’s Donald Trump’s frequent accusations that EU countries do not pay enough into NATO has been one catalyst for them move forward with a unified plan for military cooperation. The other is that it could legitimately diminish the bloc’s dependence on US military support.....
https://qz.com/1127984/eu-army-bloc-forging-ahead-with-its-military-integration-to-shake-off-us-dependence/