Fact & Spin

August 24, 2023 Top Stories: Prigozhin crash, Giuliani surrender, and India lunar landing

Facts & Spins for August 24, 2023 Top Stories: A plane crash presumably kills Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, Kevin McCarthy suggests a Biden impeachment inquiry could begin soon, the US imposes new visa restrictions on China over Tibet, Iran unveils a drone reportedly capable of attacking Israel, Trump’s Mar-a-Lago information technology director recants his testimony, Rudy Giuliani turns himself in for the Fulton Co., Georgia case, a Chinese dissident flees to South Korea via jet ski, the UK hails the world’s first womb transplant as a “massive success,” UPS’s union inks a 5-year contract, avoiding a disruptive strike and India makes a historic landing near the moon’s south pole.
Sources: https://www.verity.news/

August 23, 2023: Pending Trump arrest, Fukushima water release and endangered Pakistani gondola

Facts & Spins for August 23, 2023 Top Stories: Trump confirms plans to turn himself in in Georgia, Cambodia’s outgoing PM is replaced by his son, Wagner’s chief vows to “make Russia even greater,” the US urges its citizens to leave Belarus, the UN reports over 200 slain former Afghan officials since the Taliban takeover, Japan is set to release treated radioactive water, Biden visits fire-ravaged Maui, a judge considers the future of Texas’ buoy border barrier, Biden names a new White House counsel, and 8 are rescued from a trapped cable car in Pakistan.
Sources: https://www.verity.news/

August 22, 2023: Ecuador election runoff, failed Russian moon mission and Spain FIFA win

Facts & Spins for August 22, 2023 Top Stories: Trump says he won’t attend any GOP presidential debates, Ecuador’s presidential race heads to a runoff, Saudi border guards are accused of killing hundreds of migrants, Russia's lunar mission ends in failure, ECOWAS rejects Niger’s coup leader's transition plan, Russia warns against sending F-16 jets to Ukraine, London’s mayor is accused of trying to silence dissenting scientists, Japan’s armed forces are accused of covering up harassment, A storeowner in California is shot over a pride flag dispute, Biden admin is set to urge Americans to get new COVID boosters, and Spain beats England to win the FIFA Women's World Cup.
Sources: https://www.verity.news/

August 19, 2023: Trump jury threats, 1.4K Tigray starvations and trans chess ban

Facts & Spins for August 19, 2023 Top Stories: Georgia police investigate threats against a Trump jury, The head of Maui’s emergency agency resigns, China property giant Evergrande files for US bankruptcy protection, Ethiopia's Tigray says 1.4K have died following food aid suspension, The US says Kyiv's counteroffensive will fail in its key goal, Iran's foreign minister visits Saudi Arabia, Disney files another lawsuit against DeSantis' oversight board, Hurricane Hilary moves toward California, Jordanian intelligence is accused of targeting the LGBTQ+ community, and the International Chess Federation bars trans players from women's events.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
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August 18, 2023: ECOWAS military intervention, RFK Jr. censorship hearing and Canada wildfires

Facts & Spins for August 18, 2023 Top Stories: ECOWAS threatens to intervene militarily in Niger, wildfires rage through Canada’s Northwest Territories, over 100 are arrested over church burnings in Pakistan, over 60 migrants are feared dead off Cape Verde’s coast, RFK Jr. is granted an emergency hearing for his lawsuit against YouTube, a US appeals court upholds limits on abortion pill access, New York City bans TikTok on government devices, a study finds ChatGPT holds ‘systemic’ left-wing bias, a pig kidney functions for a month in human body, and UK scientists think they’ve discovered the cause of smoking addiction. 
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
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August 17, 2023 Top Stories: Massive Sudan displacement, Meadows federal court request and global millionaire drop

Facts & Spins for August 17, 2023 Top Stories: The UN says more than 1M people have fled Sudan’s spiraling conflict, Mark Meadows asks for the Fulton Co., Ga. case to be moved to federal court, a NATO official floats a territorial concessions-for-membership solution for Ukraine, while Ukraine captures a key town in its counteroffensive, North Korea says the US soldier who crossed its border was fleeing racism, Kevin McCarthy proposes a stopgap bill to avoid a US government shutdown, extreme water stress faces countries home to 25% of the global population, a former FBI official pleads guilty to supporting a Russian businessman, X was reportedly delaying access to content on some media platforms and 3.5M people worldwide lose their millionaire status.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
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August 16, 2023: US surveillance watchdog, alleged Russian espionage and hottest recorded July

Facts & Spins for August 16, 2023 Top Stories: A US watchdog plans to regulate the “surveillance industry,” Suspected Russian spies are reportedly detained in the UK, The ruble slides to a 17-month low, Trump is indicted in the Fulton County, Georgia case, A deadly explosion strikes the Dominican Republic, China stops reporting on youth unemployment, Vice allegedly blocked stories that could offend Saudi Arabia, Former police officers plead guilty in the torture of two Black men in Mississippi, A US judge backs youth activists in a historic climate case, and NASA logs the hottest July on record.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
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August 15, 2023: Trump hearing, insect plastic and Argentina presidential primaries

Facts & Spins for August 15, 2023 Top Stories: Fulton County Grand Jury begins hearing Trump’s case, Javier Milei wins Argentina’s presidential primaries, Taiwan’s vice president stops in the US, several Hong Kong protesters have their convictions partially quashed, the slain candidate’s VP is picked to run for Ecuadorian presidency, Hunter Biden's lawyers say US prosecutors reneged on a plea deal, Kim Jong Un calls for a 'drastic boost' in weapons production, Mexico says it will pay the families of migrants killed in a detention center fire $8M, Miss Universe cuts ties with Indonesia, and scientists turn fly carcasses into biodegradable plastic.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
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August 11, 2023: Ecuador assassination, new fundamental force and Hawaii wildfires

Facts & Spins for August 11, 2023 Top Stories: A presidential candidate in Ecuador is assassinated, the US is accused of pushing Pakistan to oust former PM Imran Khan, a Utah man who threatened Biden is killed in an FBI raid, wildfires kill at least 36 in Hawaii, Iran claims to be testing a supersonic cruise missile, India passes a data protection bill amid surveillance concerns, Russia and Ukraine exchange drone attacks, the FBI is accused of a widespread campaign to label traditionalist Catholics “radicals,” Twitter is fined for delayed compliance with a Trump election probe, and US scientists say they’re close to discovering a fifth force of nature.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
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August 12, 2023: Hunter special council, CIA China spy and record suicides

Facts & Spins for August 12, 2023 Top Stories: A special counsel is appointed in the Hunter Biden probe, China arrests an alleged CIA spy, Biden calls China a 'ticking time bomb,' at least 23 Rohingya are killed after their boat sinks off Myanmar, Trump and an aide plead not guilty to new classified documents charges, Biden asks Congress for an additional $24B in Ukraine aid, India looks to scrap colonial-era laws, US mortgage delinquency rates fall to an all-time low, Rupert Murdoch's News Corp sees profits plunge 75%, and data reveals the US recorded its highest number of suicides in 2022.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod