Tony Abbott nominated to Fox Corporation board of directors Former prime minister
Lachlan Murdoch said the former prime minister had skills, experience and perspective that would contribute to the board and benefit the company.
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/tony-abbott-nominated-to-fox-corporation-board-of-directors-20230923-p5e6zy.html
Russell Brand slams UK Parliament for demanding social media companies deplatform him
Brand said "this happens in the context of the Online Safety Bill, which is a piece of UK legislation that grants sweeping surveillance and censorship powers."
Russell Brand on Friday addressed the "distressing week" he had following sexual assault allegations which resulted in social media companies banning Brand from their platforms. Without any due process, the UK Parliament had sent a letter to social media companies demanding for Brand's accounts to be demonetized and he be stripped off the platforms.
"By now you're probably aware that the British government have asked Big Tech platforms to censor our online content, and that some online platforms have complied with that request. What you may not know is that this happens in the context of the Online Safety Bill, which is a piece of UK legislation that grants sweeping surveillance and censorship powers, and it's a law that has already been passed," Brand said in a video.
Brand, who has been demonetized on YouTube, where he has four channels and millions of subscribers, said the UK Parliament is attempting "to target, control, choke, and shut down Independent media organizations" through a coordinated effort between Big Tech and legacy media under its Trusted News Initiative, which is the basis they used to cut Brand off at the knees.
"To give you an idea of what the TNI is, this is a quote from one of their spokespeople," Brand said.
The quote reads: "Because the actual real rivalry now is not between the BBC and CNN, globally. It's actually between all trusted news providers and digital platforms. It's clear that these organizations collaborate in constructing narratives, whether that's around the war or the pandemic."
Brand continued by saying that he is not going to allow the smear campaigns to impact his voice and that he will continue speaking out on topics like Big Pharma, the military-industrial complex, the deep state, and corporate collusion, among others. He encouraged listeners to tune into his podcast on Monday which will be airing on Rumble.
Unlike YouTube, which is known for deplatforming conservative-leaning accounts, Rumble stood up for Brand after receiving a letter from UK Parliament requesting that they demonitize the comedian.
In a statement, Rumble called the letter "extremely disturbing," adding that "while Rumble obviously deplores sexual assault, rape, and all serious crimes, and believes that both alleged victims and the accused are entitled to a full and serious investigation, it is vital to note that recent allegations against Russel Brand have nothing to do with content on Rumble’s platform."
The platform noted that on Tuesday, YouTube suspended Brand’s monetization on the platform after anonymous allegations of sexual misconduct arose.
https://thepostmillennial.com/russell-brand-slams-uk-parliament-for-demanding-social-media-companies-deplatform-him
West preparing to ‘dump’ Zelensky – Lukashenko
The Belarusian president hinted at a US connection to Poland’s initiation of the grain dispute with Ukraine
Washington has given the go-ahead to its partners to “dump” Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky as he has become a nuisance, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko claimed during a government meeting on Friday.
Lukashenko pointed to the ongoing grain dispute between Poland and Ukraine as an example of this new policy, noting that Warsaw had been one of Zelensky’s staunchest supporters but is now sharply critical of its partner.
This shift occurred after Poland, along with Hungary and Slovakia, unilaterally banned the import of Ukrainian grain despite the EU having chosen to lift its bloc-wide embargo. In turn, Kiev filed disputes against the three countries with the World Trade Organization.
“Do you think that Poland is putting pressure on poor Ukraine today for no reason? No, they have been given the go-ahead from overseas: We need to dump this Zelensky, we’re tired of him,” Lukashenko said.
He noted that the US has an upcoming presidential election and suggested that no one will care about Zelensky at that point.
At the same time, US President Joe Biden stressed on Friday that Washington would stick with Zelensky throughout the Russia-Ukraine conflict and announced that US-made Abrams tanks would start arriving in Ukraine next week.
Meanwhile, Zelensky, who is on his second wartime visit to Washington, insisted that Kiev’s continued fight against Russia relied on sustained US military assistance and reportedly said that if it doesn’t get the aid, it “will lose the war.”
https://www.rt.com/news/583412-lukashenko-west-dumping-zelensky/