Fact & Spin

Facts & Spin for April 11, 2023 top stories: A shooting in Kentucky leaves four dead, A ship carrying 400 migrants goes adrift in the Mediterranean Sea, Ukraine alters its military plans following recent Pentagon leaks, A Saudi-Oman envoy meets with Houthi officials for peace talks, Iran and Saudi Arabia look set to reopen embassies, Expelled Tennessee lawmakers seek reappointments, A building collapse in Marseilles kills six, The Biden admin begins appealing last week’s abortion pill ruling, A court backs the firing of a teacher who wouldn’t used preferred names, and Fox News settles an election defamation lawsuit with a Venezuelan businessman.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

Facts & Spin for April 8, 2023 top stories: Israel strikes Gaza and South Lebanon following rocket fire, SCOTUS Justice Clarence Thomas comes under fire for failing to disclose luxury trips, The Pentagon is reportedly investigating a Ukraine war plans leak, The latest US labor department report shows 236K jobs were added in March, The Biden admin defends the US Afghanistan withdrawal, Thousands flee to Thailand amid renewed fighting in Myanmar, Tesla workers are accused of sharing sensitive images recorded by customer cars, The US Supreme Court rules in favor of a transgender track runner, Ron DeSantis picks a finance director for his prospective presidential campaign, and Protesters in France storm the BlackRock investment company building.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

Facts & Spin for April 7, 2023 top stories: Tennessee’s House GOP expels Democrat Justin Jones over a gun protest, Robert F. Kennedy Jr announces his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, a Russian defector reports details on Putin, Iranian and Saudi foreign ministers meet in China, a Maryland report reveals 'staggering' church sex abuse, a kindergarten attack in Brazil leaves four children dead, Idaho passes a law restricting travel for out-of-state abortions, Oklahoma eyes the US’s first religious charter school following a SCOTUS ruling, the British government leases a barge to house 500 asylum seekers, and NPR criticizes Twitter after being labeled 'state-affiliated media.'
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

Facts & Spin for April 6, 2023 top stories: Democrat-backed Janet Protasiewicz wins Wisconsin’s Supreme Court race, Gaza militants fire rockets into Israel following a police raid on Al-Aqsa Mosque, Zelenskyy travels to Poland amid a farmers' dispute on Ukrainian grain, Scottish ex-Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon's husband is arrested, The US flies nuclear-capable bombers to the Korean Peninsula, The UK’s so-called “perfect war” in Iraq and Syria comes under renewed scrutiny, Twitter is accused of censoring critics of Indian Prime Minister Modi, J&J agrees to an $8.9 billion talc settlement, The Vatican accuses China of breaking a bilateral pact on appointing bishops, and an Australian mayor prepares a defamation lawsuit over ChatGPT content.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

Facts & Spin for April 5, 2023 top stories: Trump is arrested and appears in court in New York, US House Speaker McCarthy confirms he’ll meet with Taiwan's president on Wednesday, the US military says it killed a top IS leader in Syria, Wisconsin votes in a pivotal Supreme Court election, US officials claim February’s alleged Chinese spy balloon collected US Intelligence, Russia continues to make gains in Bakhmut, Florida passes a bill allowing concealed carry without a permit, Amnesty accuses El Salvador of ‘systematic’ abuses in its purge on gangs, Australia bans TikTok from government devices, and a massive fire destroys a clothing market in Bangladesh.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

Facts & Spin for April 4, 2023 top stories: PM Sanna Marin is defeated in Finland’s parliamentary election, Oil prices surge after OPEC+ announces surprise output cuts, Finland is set to join NATO on Tuesday, Israel’s cabinet approves Ben-Gvir’s ‘private militia’ plan, A St Petersburg blast kills a Russian blogger, Malaysia moves to end the mandatory death penalty, Twitter strips the New York Times of it’s blue check, Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson announces his presidential bid, A DeSantis-supporting super PAC has reportedly raised $30M, and NASA names the first woman and Black man for a Moon mission.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

Facts & Spin for April 1st, 2023 top stories: Former US president Donald Trump is indicted by a New York grand jury, the Turkish parliament ratifies Finland’s NATO membership, Bucha marks one year since the withdrawal of Russian forces, an India temple well collapse kills at least 36, Wimbledon reverses its ban on Russian and Belarusian players, the Egyptian army is accused of turning Sinai schools into military bases, the UK joins the Trans-Pacific Trade Pact, Japan announces plans to restrict semiconductor equipment exports, the US House passes a GOP energy agenda, and the US Census Bureau may include a slave descendant question in its survey.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

Facts & Spin for March 31, 2023 top stories: Nine are killed in a military helicopter crash in Kentucky, Jair Bolsonaro returns to Brazil, Russia detains a Wall Street Journal reporter on espionage charges, the ICJ orders the US to pay compensation for freezing Iranian assets, the EU removes Pakistan from its list of 'high-risk' countries, evicted Kyiv monks refuse to leave their complex, Meta reportedly considers banning political ads in Europe, a Bangladeshi journalist is arrested for reporting on rising food prices, Kentucky and West Virginia move to limit transgender therapies for minors, and Mexico opens a homicide probe into Monday’s migrant center fire.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

Facts & Spin for March 30, 2023 top stories: Experts urge for a pause on training AI systems more powerful than GPT-4, China warns of retaliation if Taiwan’s president meets with the US House speaker, Zelenskyy warns against a possible reversal of US support, Kamala Harris speaks in Ghana, A US House Committee subpoenas the State Department over an Afghanistan cable, The New York Trump Grand Jury will reportedly take a weeks-long break, A new report finds TikTok's popularity is growing among British children, The Guardian apologizes for its founders’ links to transatlantic slavery, The WHO considers adding obesity drugs to its 'essential' medicines list, Italy introduces a bill to ban lab-grown meat.
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod

Facts & Spin for March 29, 2023 top stories: A fire at a migrant center in Mexico kills 39, police say Monday’s Nashville school shooting was planned, the Taliban arrests a prominent girls' education activist, Taiwan's former Pres. Ma begins a landmark visit to China, Sam Bankman-Fried is charged with bribing a Chinese official, Kyiv is attacked as British and German tanks arrive in Ukraine, the US Senate votes to advance a repeal of the Iraq War Authorization, Biden bans government use of commercial spyware, new polls show Trump leads DeSantis as the GOP presidential nominee, and a study claims China has spent $240B bailing out 'Belt & Road' countries.
 
Sources: https://www.improvethenews.org/
 
Brief Listener Survey: https://www.improvethenews.org/pod