Black

Three-time Olivier winner to play general viewed through ‘urgent new lens’ of misogynoir in futuristic productionThe Royal Shakespeare Company has cast Sharon D Clarke as a black lesbian Othello in a futuristic reimagining of the play which is being billed as projecting the 400-year-old story through “an urgent new lens”.Clarke, who is a three-time Olivier winner and has starred in West End and Broadway productions, brought the project to the RSC with the twist that Othello would be depicted as a black lesbian general married to a younger Desdemona. Continue reading...

• The 2026 BET Awards will celebrate 25 years of honoring Black excellence across the music, entertainment, and sports industries. • The event will feature high-profile stars and a hosting presence from comedian and content creator Druski. • Viewers are being provided with guidance on how to stream the ceremony live from any location, including options for free trials.

• This week's science highlights include a massive earthquake that may have physically shifted the position of Japan. • Researchers have achieved a "cosmic first" by using observations to study black-hole horizons, a feat previously considered science fiction. • Theoretical physicist Sizheng Ma of the Perimeter Institute in Canada emphasized the significance of transitioning these observations into actual scientific practice.

• The Supreme Court struck down a Hawaii gun law in a 6-3 ruling in the case of Wolford v. Lopez. • Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson faced significant backlash from gun rights groups for her dissent, in which she suggested the Court should have examined if a "Black Code" law violated the Second Amendment. • This legal clash highlights a tension between historical racial restrictions and modern interpretations of firearm ownership rights.

• Actor Choi Woo-shik, known for the film ‘Parasite’, is facing intense online backlash after being accused of ignoring a Black fan during an event in Paris. • The incident, reported on June 27, 2026, has sparked widespread criticism and discussions regarding inclusivity and celebrity behavior toward diverse fanbases. • This controversy highlights the growing scrutiny of global stars' interactions with international fans as their popularity expands across different demographics.

• The BET Awards is celebrating its 25th anniversary, positioning itself as a "living archive" that documents the evolution of Black culture. • Beyond the distribution of trophies, the event serves as a historical record of artistic achievement and cultural influence within the Black community. • The milestone highlights the show's longevity and its role in legitimizing Black excellence on a global stage over two and a half decades.

• Thailand has become a significant source of talent for the South Korean music industry, producing several globally influential K-pop stars. • High-profile idols such as Lisa from BLACKPINK and BamBam from GOT7 are highlighted as leading examples of Thai artists achieving international success. • This trend underscores the growing globalization of K-pop, as young dreamers from diverse backgrounds, including India and America, train to debut in South Korea.

Scrutiny of Black’s association with Epstein has intensified after DoJ released millions of files last year and this yearThe billionaire financier Leon Black is scheduled to appear Friday morning before the House committee on oversight and reform as part of its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein.The interview will be conducted behind closed doors, though the committee is expected to release a transcript at a later date, as it has done with previous interviews. Continue reading...

Transcript of congressional testimony shows Microsoft founder spoke of ‘veiled’ threats made by late sex offenderThe Microsoft founder Bill Gates told US members of Congress that the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein had sought to “blackmail” him over his extramarital affairs, according to a transcript of the testimony.The tech pioneer testified behind closed doors before the House oversight committee on 10 June regarding his friendship with Epstein, who died in prison in 2019 as he awaited trial for sex crimes. Continue reading...

Bahrain Mujagata is just 21 years old and balances taxi driving with university studies and acting classes“I’ve got T-shirts older than you!” The joke draws laughter from a table of black-cab drivers gathered in the Astral cafe on Regency Place in Westminster. Around the table, cabbies swap stories accumulated over decades behind the wheel: picking up the England World Cup hero Geoff Hurst, ferrying senior politicians around London, and navigating the capital long before smartphones and satnavs existed.At just 21, Bahrain Mujagata is an anomaly among them. In late 2025, he became London’s youngest licensed black-cab driver after completing the Knowledge – the notoriously demanding test of the capital’s streets – in just two years and five months. Most candidates take three to four years to qualify, according to Transport for London. Continue reading...

Federal government identifies more than 150 native and unique bird species and 10 mammal species at ‘very high risk’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMore than 150 of Australia’s native and unique bird species have been assessed as being at “very high risk” of extinction or major decline if they catch the deadly H5N1 bird flu strain, with Western Australia’s celebrated black swans among the most susceptible.The federal government analysis of Australia’s 800 different birds and 350 mammals reflects the high level of concern among experts about the arrival of the H5N1 strain, which has killed millions of birds and mammals around the world. Continue reading...

Police fear Waleed Saeed may have up to 70 more victims after campaign of entrapment, threat and extortionA sexual predator who targeted mostly Muslim males online for blackmail has been jailed for 16 years, with detectives fearing he may have up to 70 more victims.Waleed Saeed’s campaign of entrapment, threat and extortion started in 2018 and left one victim feeling suicidal because of the humiliation they felt.Anyone with information should call police on 101, quoting 5335/18JUNE2026. Continue reading...

• Banks are rapidly integrating AI into credit underwriting, with a November 2025 European Central Bank assessment revealing that usage for credit scoring jumped from 15% to 30% between 2023 and 2024. • Regulators are concerned that these "black box" AI models lack transparency, creating significant compliance gaps as the technology outpaces existing financial oversight. • This clash matters because opaque AI decision-making could lead to systemic risk, unfair lending practices, and potential regulatory penalties for lenders.

Rouser Lab says the steel structure will record ‘every step’ humanity takes towards climate catastropheGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastIt was designed to survive the apocalypse, as humanity’s last testament to its failure. But for a while it seemed the “Earth’s Black Box” hadn’t even survived its own planning process.Now, five years after it was announced to much fanfare, followed by years of ominous silence, the box is back. Its creators say parts assembly is under way and, in December, the full monolith will be installed near Queenstown on the edge of a remote western Tasmanian airfield. Continue reading...

Group of hikers encountered a bear and her cubs and the mother bear charged the group, swiping at one of the teensA teenage hiker was injured by a black bear in a mountainous recreation area outside Seattle on Tuesday, according to officials, who closed the trail where it happened.About 12.45pm on Tuesday, a group of three basketball players from Thomas Jefferson high school were about 2.7 miles (4.4km) up the Mount Si trail in the Mount Si Natural Resources Conservation Area when they encountered a bear and her cubs. The conservation area is composed of four mountain peaks, and about 35 miles south-east of Seattle. Continue reading...

• K-pop artists achieved significant success at the Music Awards Japan 2026, with major acts securing top honors. • High-profile winners included BTS, Blackpink, G-Dragon, Jin, and Lee Youngji, highlighting the diverse range of recognized talent. • These wins underscore the enduring popularity and cultural influence of K-pop within Japan, one of Asia's largest music markets.

• BlackBerry (BB) has been identified as one of five stocks seeing a surge in investor interest according to Benzinga's "Stock Whisper" Index. • The company is implementing a share buyback program that could retire up to 4.58% of its public float to strengthen its financial position. • Investors are closely watching the company ahead of its first-quarter financial results report scheduled for June 23.

• NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has uncovered new evidence regarding "little red dots," mysterious objects discovered in 2022 that emerged roughly 600 million years after the Big Bang. • By analyzing the spectrum of a specific red dot, researchers are now strengthening the "black hole star" hypothesis to explain these abundant early-universe phenomena. • This discovery is significant as it helps scientists solve a complex cosmic puzzle regarding the nature and composition of objects in the infant universe.

• Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have discovered evidence that the mysterious "little red dots" observed in the early universe may be black hole stars. • While many such objects have been spotted, researchers found a specific instance where all necessary pieces of evidence aligned to support this classification. • This discovery is significant as it helps scientists understand the nature of these enigmatic objects and the evolution of the early cosmos.

When politicians talk ‘common sense’ it’s time to worry; when the Tory leader does, it’s time to be doubly vigilantYou know how it is. You’re a middle class, straight white man in his 60s in A&E. Possibly the most disadvantaged person in the entire country. You complain of chest pains. In the adjoining triage queue there is a black woman with what looks like a broken toe. You know what happens next. The black woman is seen within minutes. You have a cardiac arrest on the waiting room floor.Said no one ever. There may be times when there simply aren’t enough staff in the A&E department. There may also be times when a doctor under pressure fails to make the right diagnosis. But no one for a minute believes they are being deliberately kept waiting any longer than necessary. The founding principle of the NHS is predicated on patients being treated according to the severity of their condition. Continue reading...

• Major Asian stock markets experienced a severe crash, with South Korea's KOSPI index suffering the most significant decline. • Trading on the KOSPI was officially halted after a 9% drop triggered a circuit breaker, while Japan's Nikkei 225 fell by 4%. • Other regional indices, including Hong Kong's Hang Seng, China's Shanghai Composite, Taiwan's TAIEX, and Australia's ASX/200, also saw steep plunges.

• Theoretical physicists are exploring the holographic principle, a theory suggesting that the three-dimensional universe may actually be a projection of two-dimensional information. • The concept stems from the study of black holes, where information about falling matter appears to be stored on the event horizon's surface rather than within the volume. • This hypothesis is significant because it attempts to reconcile general relativity with quantum mechanics, potentially providing a unified framework for understanding gravity and spacetime.

Commentators say the conditions that led to bloody prewar protests have been made worseIran is already preparing for the perilous transition from wartime unity to a fractious peace marked by hyperinflation, a 10% contraction in the economy, power cuts and calls for a triumphalist government to end its unprecedented hunting down of dissent.With peace not yet secured, the debates within the regime about Iran’s future are only just starting to emerge but its rulers are clearly thinking about how after surviving the war, they can survive the peace. Continue reading...

• Astronomers have discovered powerful winds emanating from Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole located at the center of the Milky Way galaxy. • The discovery concludes a 50-year search by scientists attempting to find direct evidence of these galactic outflows. • This finding is significant because it provides critical insight into how black holes influence their surrounding environments and regulate galaxy evolution.

Entrepreneur died of colon cancer, with Mobo Organisation hailing her as ‘one of the most fearless champions’ in the music industryKanya King, the entrepreneur and tireless champion of Black British music who founded the Mobo awards, has died aged 57 from colon cancer.The news was announced by the Mobo Organisation, who said she died on Wednesday “after a courageous and characteristically determined battle” with her illness. Continue reading...

The Hampshire force whose officers responded to the murder of Henry Nowak have a higher than average racial disparityThe police force accused of anti-white racism following the murder of Henry Nowak is over five times more likely to subject black people to a stop and search than white people, according to the latest figures.The racial disparity in the Hampshire force is higher than the average for England and Wales, and has gotten worse in recent years. Continue reading...

Civil rights scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw warns Birmingham City University’s decision part of extremist campaign that has ‘travelled across Atlantic’A leading US civil rights scholar has urged Birmingham City University (BCU) to reverse its decision to close its black studies course, comparing it with the attack on diversity, equity and inclusion in the US.Kimberlé Crenshaw, a professor of law at the University of California, Los Angeles and Columbia University, expressed “profound concern” about plans to withdraw the MA in black studies and global justice, just months after the course was launched. Continue reading...

• Netflix Tudum is celebrating Black Music Month by highlighting a curated collection of 14 movies and shows that honor Black musical heritage. • The featured content includes documentaries on legendary figures such as Beyoncé and Quincy Jones, as well as the film Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. • This initiative aims to provide viewers with a deeper exploration of the influence and artistry of Black musicians through streaming media.