Lifestyle

Across globe, women battle 'gendered disinformation'

Fake photos showing Ukraine's first lady sunbathing topless, incorrect video subtitles defaming Pakistani feminists for "blasphemy", slow-motion clips falsely depicting "drunk" female politicians -- a barrage of disinformation targets women in the public eye.. Last year, a fake image of Ukraine's First Lady Olena Zelenska lying topless on a beach in Israel was shared widely on Facebook, triggering criticism that she was having fun while her war-torn country was suffering.

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 3 mins read

Lifestyle

TikTok users protest proposals for US ban at Congress

A group of TikTok content creators descended on the US Capitol Wednesday to protest against calls for a ban on the popular Chinese-owned video-sharing app, amid fears that it presents a national security threat.. A group of around a dozen teenagers, teachers and business owners rallied at Congress to discuss their opposition to a potential ban and draw attention to the benefits of TikTok on their lives and livelihoods. 

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 1 mins read

Lifestyle

Moderna rebuked over plan to hike Covid vaccine to $130

Moderna's chief executive on Wednesday defended the US company's plan to quadruple the price of its lifesaving Covid vaccine to as much as $130 per dose as soon as government stockpiles run out.. The US government subsidized $1.7 billion of Moderna's research at the start of the pandemic and then purchased $10 billion worth of vaccine, Sanders said at a Senate hearing where the company's CEO Stephane Bancel was testifying.

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 1 mins read

Lifestyle

Quake-hit Syrians brace for subdued Ramadan

Umm Esmat, a mother living in war-torn Syria, is preparing for the onset of Ramadan this year with a heavy heart, after a deadly earthquake forced her from her home.. The disaster heaped more misery on the people of northwestern Syria who have been battered by 12 years of war.

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 1 mins read

Lifestyle

Inter-American court hears first abortion rights case

Women gathered outside the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) in Costa Rica Wednesday, calling for "justice" as lawyers presented the tribunal's first-ever abortion rights case.. "The fact that the Court has agreed to hear this case strongly indicates... that the denial of any health service, including those that are controversial such as abortion, is a human rights violation," said Maria Antonieta Alcalde of the Ipas reproductive rights NGO, which is among the plaintiffs.

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 3 mins read

Lifestyle

DNA analysis of Beethoven's hair provides clues to his death

Ludwig van Beethoven died in Vienna nearly 200 years ago after a lifetime of composing some of the most influential works in classical music.. - Family secret - Beethoven, who was born in Bonn in 1770 and died in 1827, battled gastrointestinal problems at various times of his life as well as jaundice.

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 3 mins read

Lifestyle

Time capsules: Mauritania's precious Chinguetti manuscripts

Saif el Islam al Ahmed Mahmoud sat cross-legged on a sheepskin and gingerly turned the pages of an ancient manuscript.. "We are preserving the memory of the world which once crisscrossed these ancient streets," said al Ahmed Mahmoud, with a theatrical gesture.

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 1 mins read

Lifestyle

DNA analysis of Beethoven's hair provides clues to his death

Ludwig van Beethoven died in Vienna nearly 200 years ago after a lifetime of composing some of the most influential works in classical music.. - 'Acute illness' - Beethoven, who was born in Bonn in 1770 and died in 1827, battled gastrointestinal problems at various times of his life as well as jaundice.

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 2 mins read

Lifestyle

Meet the youth reframing the news for TikTok, YouTube

In the suburbs of Madrid, four young women are hard at work creating videos summarising the news that is viewed every day by millions of people on TikTok.. "We thought if it's hard for us, there must be more people like us too," she told AFP. So the pair joined forces with two other friends to launch an account on TikTok called "ac2ality" in June 2020, just as the popularity of the Chinese short-video sharing app was soaring among young people.

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 3 mins read

Lifestyle

French inventor of abortion pill calls Wyoming ban 'scandalous'

French scientist Etienne-Emile Baulieu, known as the father of the abortion pill, said it was "scandalous" and "a setback for women's freedom" that the US state of Wyoming has banned the drug.. "It is a setback for women's freedom, particularly for those in the most precarious position who do not have the means to go to another state" to get an abortion, he told AFP in an interview.

Wed, Mar 22, 2023 3 mins read