In The News

COVD-19 Cuts Luxury Retail Sales: New York Times

Elizabeth Paton February 20, 2020
The shopping boulevards in London, Paris, Dubai and other cosmopolitan cities, once crowded with enthusiastic Chinese shoppers, are near empty due to the outbreak of novel coronavirus. The coronavirus has placed more than 50 million people under quarantine in China, and 70 other countries imposed travel and visa restrictions for Chinese tourists. Meanwhile, the global luxury goods industry, which...

EU Proposes Big Tech Data-Sharing: Financial Times

Javier Espinoza, Madhumita Murgia and Richard Waters February 20, 2020
The European Commission wants the world’s top tech companies – Amazon, Facebook, Google and others to follow the lead of financial services firms by sharing data with small firms. The commission released a “European Strategy for Data,” and proposes compulsory data-sharing in areas with market failure. “The commission said that tech companies were able to build huge advantages by guarding their...

Will US-Taliban Deal End the War? New York Times

Laurel Miller February 19, 2020
The Taliban’s ongoing fierce attacks in Afghanistan have blocked efforts at peace. US and Taliban negotiators approach a deal. The conditions are minimal with a brief ceasefire. The Taliban expects US troops to withdraw troops and the US does not want Afghanistan to be used by transnational terrorists. The Taliban have demonstrated the extent to which they will fight for a state with Islamic...

To Hell With the Truth: Folha

Flavia Lima February 19, 2020
WhatsApp and other social media platforms increasingly influence public perceptions during election campaigns. A parliamentary committee in Brazil is examining the spread of misinformation on social media and finds disturbing trends, including a tendency for confirmation bias. A data analysis firm demonstrated how some Brazilian officials support misinformation on official social media accounts,...

Handling Coronavirus and No Zero Risk: USA Today

John Bacon February 18, 2020
The world has more than 70,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19. All but a few hundred are in China. The emergence and rapid spread of the new coronavirus, in the same family as the common cold, has alarmed public health officials. Authorities apply a range of controls: Quarantines separate those exposed until confirmation, isolation separates confirmed cases, lockdowns contain all in affected regions...

World Watches Moves by India: Frontline

Anando Bhakto February 18, 2020
Global leaders are speaking out about India’s unilateral action ending semi-autonomous status for Jammu and Kashmir. The European Parliament has tabled a resolution criticizing the move until March, giving time for India’s courts to offer a resolution, and a US congressional panel is reviewing reports on Kashmir. In addition, six resolutions, also tabled, have criticized the Citizenship...

Oman’s New Sultan: Economist

February 17, 2020
Although Haitham bin Tariq’s accession to the position of Oman’s sultan, while surprising, went out with a hitch. Haitham plans to continue down the path laid down by the late Qaboos bin Said. In 1970, backed by the British, Qaboos took the throne from his reclusive father and charted a course towards steady development. As a recent article for the Economist notes, “though it is not as oil rich...