Showing 1 - 10 of 20
Hold Facebook accountable for scams, hoaxes
News, Published on 20/01/2025
» Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg's decision to fire his fact-checking team has opened the floodgates to a deluge of scams, hate speech, propaganda and lies. I first discovered how the platform used by 3.2 billion people was being misused when I started sub-editing at the Post in 2017. Every news story about the plight of the Rohingya was followed -- in seconds -- by dozens of crude memes and copy-and-paste hate speech in comments demonising the stateless people as usurpers, animals and even cannibals. The campaign was later linked to propaganda farms run by Myanmar's Tatmadaw military.
Playing cat and mouse at Downing Street
Roger Crutchley, Published on 06/10/2024
» Important news from London. Larry the Cat has a new housemate at Downing Street. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced the arrival of a white Siberian kitten called Prince. This breed of cat is apparently "good at problem solving" so considering the state of the UK at the moment it should be kept very busy in the PM's office. It is unclear if it will attend Cabinet meetings as being a Russian breed it may face security issues.
Boeing needs organisational shift to end crisis
Oped, Published on 15/03/2024
» Boeing's mounting crises are beginning to resemble an aviation thriller cooked up in Hollywood. In addition to a piece of fuselage falling off midair during a recent commercial passenger flight, there was the nail-biting discovery of mis-drilled holes in undelivered planes and revelations that an inspector had found an "excessive amount of defects" in a supplier's operations.
The song that broke all the taboos
Roger Crutchley, Published on 23/07/2023
» The song "Je t'aime" surfaced on the airwaves last week following the death of its star performer Jane Birkin at the age of 76. I don't know enough about her to comment on her career, suffice to say the English actress went on to captivate France.
Unnecessary directive
Oped, Postbag, Published on 15/04/2023
» Re: "Army, cops pressed to nab hacker", & "AWOL hacker sparks outcry", (BP, April 11& 12).
The Stones just keep rolling along
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 17/07/2022
» This past week marked the 60th anniversary of the Rolling Stones' first-ever gig which took place at the Marquee club in London. That makes me feel even more wrinkly than usual.
The metaverse: Will it consume my life and soul?
Oped, Thana Boonlert, Published on 03/12/2021
» Donning cumbersome headsets, I can jack into the new "digital oasis" where thousands of others will likely migrate. At my fingertips, I can do practically anything from work and play to hanging out and shopping when in fact I am alone in a room. This is the metaverse, or the virtual world that will be the next chapter of the internet.
Courting reciprocity
Oped, Postbag, Published on 05/06/2021
» Re: "ISPs told to take down 'hoax' sites," (BP, June 3). Our courts have ordered internet service providers to close or remove accounts of eight individuals alleged to have posted "fake news" on websites and social networks.
It all began with 'Newsgirl Nan' in 1960
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 24/11/2019
» Switch on BBC World Service television and there is a good chance there will be a female news presenter. Among the more familiar faces these days are Lucy Hockings, Sally Bundock, Philippa Thomas and Karin Giannone. I'm always amazed how calm and relaxed they look in what must be such a stressful job.
HK protests: Behind the barricade
News, Dave Kendall, Published on 18/11/2019
» On the night of Nov 13th in Hong Kong, I heard there was a protest in the city centre of the area of the New Territories I was staying in, Sha Tin. After crossing the bridge over the Shing Mun River, I notice four protesters talking beneath a pedestrian underpass. Walking through the megamalls that constitute the city centre, I see workers clearing up broken glass but see no protesters. But on my way back across the bridge to my hotel, I encounter a crowd of about 50 people yelling and screaming abuse, and working my way through them, see a line of riot police advancing from the other direction. After several minutes of shining torches and bellowing warnings through a megaphone, the police raise the black flag warning that tear gas will be fired. The crowd retreats as one or two canisters are fired.