Meta ends fact-checking program
Meta will discontinue the use of third-party fact checkers on Facebook, Threads, and Instagram. This is a policy previously enacted to curb the spread of misinformation across the company's social media platforms. Meta instead relies on users to add notes to posts that may be false or misleading.
This reversal is a clear sign of how Mehta is repositioning himself toward President Trump. The company recently alerted Trump administration officials about the changes, according to people familiar with the conversations. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg also announced Monday that the company has added Dana White, the head of Ultimate Fighting Championship and a longtime friend of Trump, to the company's board of directors.
Zuckerberg said the transition would begin in the United States in the coming months. “The time has come to return to the basics of freedom of expression,” he said. He acknowledged that the decision would result in more “bad stuff” on the platform, calling it a “trade-off” to reduce the number of “innocent people's posts and accounts that we mistakenly remove.” He said that.
reaction: While Donald Trump and his conservative allies praised the change, several digital rights groups condemned the decision. The president-elect acknowledged that the decision was “probably” related to the threats he made against Mehta and Zuckerberg.
Could the US occupy Greenland or Canada?
In a rambling press conference yesterday, President Trump offered military or economic options to force Panama to relinquish control of the canal built by the United States more than a century ago or to force Denmark to sell Greenland. refused to rule out the possibility of using coercive force.
His desire to expand U.S. territory dates back to a series of real estate acquisitions in the late 1980s and is consistent with his philosophy of making everything he controls as big as possible, and Greenland suggests that it may be necessary. US NATIONAL SECURITY “We may have to do something,” he said.
It's unclear how seriously the president-elect took his comments. At one point, he suggested the administration would change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
Canada: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was outraged by President Trump's threat to use “economic power” against Canada to take over the country, posting on social media: “Canada's chances of becoming part of the United States are snowballing.” No,” he wrote.
Panama: Few seemed to be taking President Trump's threats seriously, but Panama's Foreign Minister Javier Martínez Acha stressed that sovereignty over the canal was “non-negotiable,” saying: Ta. Like that. ”
Related: Trump's second term as president presents unprecedented potential for conflicts of interest in real estate, cryptocurrency, and sports deals.
Earthquake kills many people in China
At least 126 people were killed and nearly 200 injured in a magnitude 7.1 earthquake that struck Dingli County in western China, near one of Tibet's oldest cities, state media reported. The quake was the country's deadliest since December 2023, when a magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck northwestern Gansu and Qinghai provinces, killing 151 people.
Chinese state television said at least 1,000 homes were damaged and rescue efforts were hampered by logistical difficulties. The region's remote location along the Himalayan border with Nepal made it difficult to deliver resources.
On the ground: Temperatures in the area reached as low as 5 degrees Fahrenheit (-15 degrees Celsius), and rescue workers had little time to find survivors.
Other top news
Snakes compete for many of the same resources and spaces as humans, often with disastrous results. Approximately 120,000 people die each year from venomous snakes, most of them in areas of Africa far from clinics and poor enough to lack access to proper treatment.
This problem was largely ignored until recently, but scientists are now trying to quantify it more precisely. read more.
Life lived: Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary, the folk trio behind such gentle hits as “Puff the Magic Dragon,'' has died at the age of 86.
Start a conversation
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Please turn the page: Writers, artists, and social workers shared their favorite tips to help you start and maintain a journal.
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The person who ran away: Samuel Lundy circumvented an extradition treaty by going to sea to escape fraud charges. He took advantage of everything the offshore world had to offer.
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Hazardous by-products: Mining operations in the Roman Empire resulted in widespread lead exposure. This may have been the world's first case of widespread industrial pollution.
art and ideas
Where are you going this year?
Britain will honor author Jane Austen on her 250th birthday. New York City will celebrate the reopening of four major museums. On Thailand's Koh Samui, fans of “White Lotus” can walk through the sandy beaches and jungles where the next season was filmed. Exploring Angola's tropical beaches, waterfalls and national parks has never been easier.
All of these places are included in this year's Travel Desk's 52 Places to Visit in 2025. Read the list and mark the destinations you most want to visit.
