Fact & Spin

March 11, 2023: US bank shutdown, Xi Jinping 3rd term and deadly German shooting

Facts & Spin for March 11, 2023 top stories: Regulators shut down Silicon Valley Bank, Xi Jingping secures a third term as China's president, At least seven are killed in a Jehovah's Witness hall shooting in Hamburg, Iran and Saudi Arabia agree to restore relations, Wagner reportedly takes an 'operational pause' in Bakhmut, The US House votes unanimously to declassify intelligence related to the COVID lab leak theory, Ron DeSantis visits Iowa ahead of a potential presidential election bid, ‘Twitter Files’ journalists Matt Taibbi and Michael Shellenberger testify before Congress, Human Rights Watch says Lebanon is failing to uphold the ‘right to electricity,’ and a new report warns global freedoms and democracy are backsliding.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

March 10, 2023: Biden budget proposal, Afghanistan GOP hearings and sushi terrorism arrests

Facts & Spin for March 9, 2023 top stories: Biden reveals a $6.8 trillion budget proposal for 2024, Republicans kick off their first hearing on the Afghanistan withdrawal, at least 40 are killed in alleged rebel twin attacks in the D.R. Congo, several are killed in Russian missile attacks across Ukraine, the US Senate clears a bill to block a D.C. crime law, Australia is reportedly planning to buy nuclear subs from the US, the UK government is revealed to have censored Matt Hancock’s Wuhan lab leak comments, the federal trade commission ramps up its investigation of Twitter, a new idea for removing CO2 from the air shows promise, and Japan arrests several people for alleged ‘sushi terrorism.’
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

March 9, 2023 top stories: Carlson Jan. 6 footage, Nord Stream blame game and US troops staying in Iraq

Facts & Spin for March 9, 2023 top stories: Tucker Carlson defends his Jan. 6 footage commentary, a new report claims a pro-Ukraine group was likely behind the Nord Stream pipeline attack, protests erupt in Georgia over a proposed 'foreign agent' law, Wagner’s chief claims control over eastern Bakhmut, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says US troops will remain in Iraq, US House Speaker Keving McCarthy confirms plans to meet with Taiwan's president, China blasts Germany over its reported plan to ban Huawei and ZTE from 5G networks, texts reveal Tucker Carlson “passionately hated” Trump, France faces more massive strikes, and Californians are warned to prepare for another atmospheric river.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

March 8, 2023 top stories: China US rebuke, UK illegal immigration bill and Canada election interference probe

Facts & Spin for March 8, 2023 top stories: China rebukes the US and warns of a potential ‘conflict,’ the UK unveils a bill to stop illegal entry from the English Channel, Canada’s Justin Trudeau orders a probe into alleged Chinese election meddling, sources say the White House may begin detaining migrant families again, Israel allegedly strikes Syria’s Aleppo airport, Zelenskyy pledges to continue defending Bakhmut, US Fed Chair Jerome Powell says interest rates may increase more than expected, Turkey’s opposition names Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu as its presidential candidate, South Korea announces deal on a Japan forced labor dispute, and Japan is forced to destroy its flagship H3 rocket in a failed launch.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

March 7, 2023: Rohingya refugee camp fire, more Chinese military spending and historic ocean treaty

Facts & Spin for March 7, 2023 top stories: A fire blazes through a Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh, China announces an increase in military spending, A pro-Russia official claims Ukraine is preparing a counter-attack in Zaporizhzhia, Taiwan warns China’s military may make a ‘sudden entry’ into its territory, Texts reveal the UK’s former health minister aimed to 'frighten' Britons into lockdown compliance, Iran agrees to more joint nuclear site inspections, 35 are arrested after clashes at a proposed Atlanta police training center, Nine security officers are killed in a suicide attack in Pakistan, Trump delivers the closing CPAC speech, California announces it will end business with Walgreens over abortion pill issues, and nearly 200 nations agree to protect 30% of the world's oceans by 2030.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

March 4, 2023 top stories: Whistleblower Ellsberg cancer, Tennessee trans minor curbs and 2035 obese majority

Facts & Spin for March 4, 2023 top stories: Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg reveals he has terminal cancer, Nobel laureate Ales Bialiatski is sentenced to 10 years in Belarusian prison, the G20 summit again ends with no agreement over Ukraine, new leaked texts show UK government officials mocking people in hotel quarantine, the US Department of Justice rejects Trump’s claims of lawsuit immunity, Argentina urges the UK to resume negotiations over the Falkland Islands, Tennessee curbs gender reassignment treatment and drag shows for minors, the US says executives should pay for corporate misconduct, Newcastle's £305M Saudi takeover faces fresh scrutiny, and a report suggests half of the world could be overweight by 2035.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

March 3, 2023: Sri Lanka child malnutrition, RFK assassin parole denial and insulin price cap

Facts & Spin for March 3, 2023 top stories: A report finds half of Sri Lankan families have had to reduce their children's food intake, Robert Kennedy's assassin is denied parole for the 16th time, Olaf Scholz joins the US in urging China not to provide Russia with weapons, Eli Lilly announces plans to cap insulin at $35 per month out-of-pocket, a US House panel approves a bill allowing Biden to ban TikTok, the UK navy intercepts alleged Iranian missiles headed for Yemen, an Indian court orders a bipartisan panel to select election officers, a judge allows Brian Flores' discrimination lawsuit against the NFL to proceed, Starbucks is ruled to have illegally fired workers after unionizing, and a new report finds that carbon dioxide emissions hit a record high in 2022.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

March 2, 2023: Deadly Greek train collision, Tinubu Nigeria victory and UK lockdown files

Facts & Spin for March 2, 2023 top stories: At least 40 are killed in a train collision in Greece, Bola Tinubu wins Nigeria's presidential election, Leaked government texts raise questions about the UK’s COVID response, Putin orders Russia’s border with Ukraine to be strengthened following drone attacks, Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot loses her re-election bid, UK house prices fall at their fastest rate in over a decade, US intelligence says foreign adversaries are unlikely to blame for so-called 'Havana syndrome,' Tesla plans to build a plant in Mexico, Denmark scraps a public holiday to boost its defense budget, and the CDC issues an alert for a drug-resistant stomach bug.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

March 1, 2023: NI Brexit deal, SCOTUS loans cancellation skepticism and Iranian schoolgirl poisoning probe

Facts & Spin for March 1, 2023 top stories: The UK and EU announce a new post-Brexit deal for Northern Ireland, The US Supreme Court voices skepticism over Biden’s student loan cancellation plan, Iran investigates the poisoning of hundreds of schoolgirls, Zelenksyy says the situation in Bakhmut is growing 'more and more difficult,' A watchdog blames the US withdrawal and lack of planning for Afghanistan’s collapse, An Israeli-American is killed in a Jericho attack, The US requests druglord El Chapo's son to be extradited from Mexico, Canada bans TikTok from government devices, Rupert Murdoch says Fox hosts endorsed false election claims, and Twitter is reportedly under fire for allegedly censoring Palestinian public figures.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

February 28, 2023: Nigeria elections, 60 killed migrants and Dilbert comic canceled

Facts & Spin for February 28, 2023 top stories: Peter Obi wins Lagos but Bola Tinubu leads overall in Nigeria’s elections, nearly 60 migrants are killed after their boat sinks near Italy, thousands of protesters across Europe call for peace in Ukraine, a Belarusian group claims responsibility for an attack on a Russian surveillance aircraft, a US government report says COVID was likely leaked from a lab, two Israelis are killed in a West Bank attack, sparking a rampage of violence, the GOP says candidates will be made to pledge loyalty to the 2024 presidential nominee, the House GOP probes the government response to the Ohio train derailment, Ron DeSantis signs a bill to take over Florida’s Disney district, and Dilbert comics are dropped following the creator's controversial comments on race.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod