Facebook announced Thursday that it had deleted over 800 mostly U.S.-based pages and accounts that were posting politically oriented spam and engaging in “inauthentic behavior.” The social media giant declined a request from VOA News to name the 559 pages and 251 accounts. Nation in Distress, a pro-President Donald Trump …
your ad hereMusk Rejects Report on Succession at Tesla
Elon Musk replied with a tweet saying “This is incorrect” after the Financial Times reported that outgoing Twenty-First Century Fox Inc. Chief Executive James Murdoch was the lead candidate to replace him as Tesla Inc. chairman. Tesla has until Nov. 13 to appoint an independent chairman of the board, part of settlements reached last …
your ad hereKid Rock Comes to White House as Trump Signs Royalty Bill
President Donald Trump welcomed musicians Kid Rock and country star John Rich to the White House on Thursday as he signed legislation overhauling the way music is licensed and songwriters compensated. Trump signed the Orrin B. Hatch Music Modernization Act on Thursday. The bill won wide bipartisan support in …
your ad hereWHO Cracks Down on Illicit Sale of Tobacco
Parties to a new global treaty to combat the illicit sale of tobacco products have taken the first steps toward cracking down on this multi-billion dollar trade. At a three-day meeting at the headquarters of the World Health Organization in Geneva they have outlined a plan to shut down the …
your ad hereTop Trump Economic Adviser Denies President Is Pressuring Fed
One of Donald Trump’s top economic advisers says the president is not trying to improperly influence the U.S. central bank. The director of the National Economic Council, Larry Kudlow, spoke to the television network CNBC a day after Trump said the U.S. Federal Reserve is “loco” (crazy) for raising interest rates. On …
your ad hereSingapore Airlines Launches Longest Commercial Flight
The world’s longest commercial flight, a 19-hour journey from Singapore to New York, took off Thursday from Changi Airport. The Singapore Airlines Airbus A350-900ULR will touch down at Newark Liberty International Airport early Friday after traveling 15,350 kilometers. Singapore Airlines previously flew the same route, but abandoned it in 2013 …
your ad here#MeToo Fund Hits Million Mark to Fight UK Harassment
A crowdfunding appeal launched in response to the #MeToo movement has paid out more than a million pounds ($1.32 million) to British charities fighting sexual harassment and abuse. Organizers at the Justice and Equality Fund called for more donations as they announced the payouts, a year after the #MeToo campaign …
your ad hereTrump Says Won’t Fire Fed Chief, Just Disappointed
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he is not going to fire Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, but is just disappointed in the Fed’s policies. Trump continued a series of attacks on the central bank during remarks at the White House, saying the Fed was out of control and …
your ad hereHarvey Weinstein Wins Dismissal of One Criminal Charge
A New York judge on Thursday dismissed one of the six criminal charges against movie producer Harvey Weinstein after prosecutors said they could not oppose the dismissal in light of information they had learned while investigating the case. The dismissed charge concerns an alleged sexual assault of an aspiring actress …
your ad hereAmerican Revolution Museum Honors Filmmaker Ken Burns
Documentary filmmaker Ken Burns is being honored in Philadelphia with an award from the Museum of the American Revolution. The museum announced Thursday that Burns will receive the Gerry Lenfest Spirit of the American Revolution Award. The museum says the award honors Burns’ “lifetime of work advancing understanding of our …
your ad hereEx-FBI Official Says His Book Has Been Delayed by FBI Review
Former FBI acting Director Andrew McCabe says his book has been delayed because of an FBI review and he’s concerned he’s been singled out for what he calls “irregular unfair treatment.” McCabe’s book was scheduled for release Dec. 4. He now says in a statement that it will come out …
your ad hereZimbabwe Arrests Protest Organizers as Economy Plunges
Lawyers say police in Zimbabwe arrested dozens of trade union members ahead of a planned protest in the capital Thursday over the worst economic crisis in a decade. Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights said police arrested Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions members in Harare and the cities of Mutare and …
your ad hereRate of New Ebola Cases in DRC Has Doubled Since September
Health officials say the rate of new Ebola cases has more than doubled since September after rebel violence in northeastern Congo caused response efforts to be briefly suspended. In a statement on Thursday, the International Rescue Committee says it is “alarmed” that there were 33 new cases between October …
your ad hereBMW Ramps Up Investment in China to Meet Electric Demand
German automaker BMW is taking a majority stake in its China joint venture and investing 3 billion euros ($3.5 billion) in factories there, underscoring the importance of the Chinese market as the company prepares to meet increased demand for electric vehicles. Munich-based BMW said Thursday it would pay 3.6 billion …
your ad hereExperts: Urbanization Will Worsen Housing Crisis
Close to 70 percent of the world’s residents will live in cities by the middle of the century, according to recent United Nations figures, and experts warn that an exploding population will exacerbate a housing crisis in some regions. Officials predict that global cities could grow by 2.5 billion people …
your ad hereFor the Next Big Thing in Tech, Look to … Africa?
From a young age, Phatwa Senene knew he wanted to be an inventor. He got his start at age 11, he said, when he attached a DC motor to a fan. He then attached the fan to a drill and proceeded to drill holes into his bedroom wall. His invention …
your ad hereFor the Next Big Thing in Tech, Look to Africa?
The next big advance in technology could well come from Africa. At least, that is the hope of several new technology and innovation incubators on the continent. VOA’s Anita Powell reports from Johannesburg on Toybox, an interdisciplinary hub founded by two female engineers. …
your ad hereExperts: Urbanization Will Spread Housing Crisis Worldwide
More than half of the world’s population lives in cities, according to United Nations figures. By the middle of this century, 68 percent of the world will be urbanized, adding 2½ billion people to global cities. The growth will bring problems, including lack of housing, and, as Mike O’Sullivan reports, some ballooning …
your ad hereUS Companies Affected by Trump Tariffs Grapple With Uncertainty
The trade war between the United States and China has made for a nerve-wracking summer of uncertainty in Wisconsin, where manufacturing has long been in decline yet remains a vital part of the state’s economy. At Johnson Level and Tool in suburban Milwaukee, the Trump administration’s thrust-and-parry trade moves with …
your ad hereAs Markets Swoon, Finance Chiefs Urge US, China to Cool It
The heads of the World Bank and IMF appealed Thursday to the U.S. and China to cool their dispute over technology policy and play by world trade rules, as tumbling share prices drove home potential perils from a clash between the world’s two biggest economies. Global economic growth is slowing …
your ad hereNo Surprise: Kanye’s Free-Style Riffs Dominate Oval Office
Declaring that his red “MAGA” hat makes him “feel like Superman,” rapper Kanye West made a free-styling appearance in the Oval Office Thursday. Ahead of a private lunch, President Donald Trump and West spoke with reporters as they sat across from each other at the Resolute desk. West dominated …
your ad hereCentury-Old American Art Form Alive and Tapping
Tap dance, a young student says with a giggle, is “a bit louder than ballet.” Wearing leotards and pale pink tights, she and three other girls skip across the floor at a community center in Albany, California. Their shiny black tap shoes make them sound like a small herd of …
your ad hereUS-Russian Space Crew Makes Emergency Landing
A U.S.-Russian crew aboard a Soyuz spacecraft safely made an emergency return to Earth on shortly after launching on what was supposed to be a mission to the International Space Station. The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said there was an issue with the spacecraft’s booster after it …
your ad hereAstronauts Make Emergency Landing After Rocket Failure
NASA says that two astronauts from the U.S. and Russia are in good condition after an emergency landing following booster rocket failure minutes after the launch. U.S. astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos’ Alexei Ovchinin lifted off as scheduled at 2:40 p.m. (0840 GMT; 4:40 a.m. EDT) Thursday from the Russia-leased …
your ad hereLosses on Wall Street Rip Through Asian Financial Markets
A stock market rout that started on Wall Street rolled through Asia, driving China’s benchmark to a four-year low Thursday and knocking down indexes in Japan, Korea and Australia. The Shanghai Composite index plunged 5.2 percent to its lowest level since November 2014, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell by an …
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