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• Rahil Prakash, a 21-year-old, admitted to running a website that published fake election polls to test how easily misinformation could penetrate the political ecosystem. • The fabricated data influenced several races, including the LA mayoral contest between Karen Bass and Nithya Raman, and a Wisconsin governor's primary where candidate Francesca Hong was falsely reported to lead by over 20 percentage points. • The incident highlights a critical vulnerability in the political press, as some California media outlets picked up and shared the fake polls without verification.

Exclusive: Rahil Prakash tells the Guardian: ‘I wanted to see if fake polls could penetrate the ecosystem that easily’A 21-year-old recent college graduate was behind an anonymous website that put out widely shared fake election polling in Wisconsin, Nevada and California, the Guardian can reveal.The website, Median Strategies, abruptly shut down and withdrew its polling earlier this week following questions from a reporter from the Los Angeles Times. In an unsigned statement, it described a “short-term social experiment” to examine how fake polling “could enter and spread through the political information ecosystem without independent verification”. Continue reading...

A ‘capacity for despair’ forged by political oppression has long been consider a Magyar national trait. But after Orbán, writers in the country remind us that melancholy must not always be bleakA lone visitor looks for a garden outside an empty monastery. A morose housekeeper won’t let anyone behind the door of her own home. A retired general living alone on a crumbling estate waits 40 years to confront the only friend he ever had. Melancholy, an affinity with oblivion without a concrete cause, suffuses the Hungarian fiction translated for foreign audiences over the past 30 years, from the tortured tales of Sándor Márai to the taut novels of Magda Szabó.In his book In Praise of Melancholy, essayist László F Földényi tells the story of an Englishman who monomanically decides to teach himself Hungarian. For Földényi, the commitment to studying a language with 26 cases and with no connection to any other language, from a culture besieged by centuries of invasion, is to embrace melancholy, a seductive “capacity for despair”. To read Hungarian literature as an outsider, the poet János Pilinszky claimed in 1972, is to acquire unique spiritual insights that come from centuries of rootlessness, alienation and strife. Continue reading...

PM says public money alone won’t solve problem but ‘we did it in the pandemic, we can do it again’UK politics live – latest updatesAndy Burnham has said government money alone may not be enough to get rough sleepers off the streets by Christmas, as he issued a “rallying call” for councils, charities and communities to help solve the problem.Speaking on a visit to the north-east of England, he said he felt “very passionately” about tackling homelessness and wanted the wider society to play a part in wiping it out. Continue reading...

Forecasters say intense showers might cause flooding as rain falls on dry, hard groundFloods and drought could hit the UK at the same time this week, with heavy rain forecast to fall on hard, parched soil.While some parts of the UK will have the “first meaningful rain for a long time” in the coming days, it will not reverse widespread drought conditions that have put pressure on wildlife, farmers, firefighters and water resources. Continue reading...

• PolitiFact announced on August 12, 2026, the launch of its most extensive partnership network to date to fact-check the 2026 midterm elections. • The initiative involves collaborating with premier local newsrooms in battleground states to reach an estimated 40 million people. • This effort aims to combat online misinformation and help voters verify political claims in key races across the United States.

Rise in new mine proposals, mainly in states of Odisha and Jharkhand, comes despite plateau in global demandEnough new coalmining projects were proposed last year to increase global supplies by 2.5bn tonnes a year, an increase of 11% from the year before, even as demand for coal plateaus, according to a new report.Global Energy Monitor, an NGO, found that India ignited a rise in new coalmine proposals in 2025 despite a global slowdown in the number of mine openings because of falling demand for the fossil fuel. Continue reading...

• The global Tourism-as-a-Service (TaaS) market is experiencing rapid growth, driven by the integration of technology-enabled, on-demand, and personalized travel solutions. • Industry giants such as Booking Holdings, Expedia Group, and Airbnb are leading the shift toward a service-driven ecosystem for consumers and tourism organizations. • This transformation matters as it moves the industry away from static bookings toward integrated experiences that cater to specific user preferences in real-time.

Telco board cuts senior executive bonuses by total $1.3m after tech fail that affected millionsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastTelstra has paid its chief executive, Vicki Brady, $6.8m for the year ending in June, after docking 20% of her bonus in response to the network’s nationwide outage in July.The company reported financial results on Thursday. Its board met on Monday and decided to cut Brady’s bonus by $607,000 – but she still took home a $700,000 pay rise as she was awarded a total of $6.1m the year before. Continue reading...

• PolitiFact has launched its most extensive partnership network to date to provide fact-checking services for the 2026 midterm election cycle. • The organization is collaborating with premier local newsrooms specifically located in key battleground states to combat political misinformation. • This initiative aims to help voters navigate a complex landscape of political claims and online falsehoods during a critical election period.

• Journalists globally are facing escalating threats, including detentions, digital restrictions, economic strain, and violence in conflict zones. • In the United States, recent court decisions have weakened several legal challenges brought by Donald Trump against major news organizations regarding defamation and journalist protections. • These developments highlight the critical role of judicial oversight in safeguarding the First Amendment and protecting confidential sources from government overreach.

• South Korean stocks experienced their sharpest daily loss in over four months on July 28, 2026, with the Kospi sinking 10.84% to close at 6,023.66. • The decline was driven by an Asia-wide sell-off in semiconductor shares, specifically impacting industry giants Samsung and SK Hynix. • This volatility marks a shift in regional market dynamics, as South Korean semiconductor trends are now driving wider swings in Japanese stocks, reversing the previous pattern.

• NASA is scheduled to launch the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope on August 30, 2026, using a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. • The telescope features a mirror similar in size to Hubble's but possesses a field of view approximately 100 times wider, allowing it to map dark energy and search for exoplanets. • By monitoring roughly 200 million stars for gravitational microlensing, the mission aims to discover over 1,000 planets, specifically targeting cold, distant worlds that current detection methods often miss.

• The Trump Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) have released the "United States Government Policy for Stopping High-Risk Life Sciences Research." • This new framework explicitly prohibits federally supported gain-of-function research that is deemed dangerous to public health. • The policy aims to enhance oversight for life sciences research that could potentially compromise biosecurity or national security.

• A July report from Goldman Sachs reveals that AI infrastructure investment is expanding beyond major hyperscalers to include neoclouds, sovereign projects, and broader enterprise adoption. • The report highlights key deals involving companies such as Meta and IREN, signaling a diversified growth pattern in AI computing capacity. • This shift is significant as it demonstrates that AI integration is moving into global markets and specialized sovereign investments rather than remaining concentrated among a few tech giants.

• The FDA has issued a Class II recall for more than 12 million eye drops nationwide due to contamination concerns. • The recall was triggered by fears that the contaminated products could cause temporary damage to users' eyes or vision. • This action highlights a significant public health risk, as a Class II designation indicates a potential for temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences.

• The United States has resumed exchanging military strikes with Iran, marking a sudden escalation in tensions. • This development follows a Tuesday interview with Fox News where President Trump appeared to hesitate over the humanitarian costs of targeting Iranian infrastructure, such as power plants and bridges. • The renewed hostilities suggest a shift in strategy as the U.S. encounters a more determined adversary in a widening conflict.

Trump vowed to hit Iran ‘very hard’ after it targeted a base in Jordan that hosts US troops, a day after joint US-Saudi strikes on militants in IraqMiddle East crisis – live updatesThe US military has launched strikes on Iranian targets in response to Tehran’s attack on American forces in Jordan on Wednesday, raising the risk of a return to all-out-war in the region.The new strikes were launched hours after president Donald Trump vowed to hit Iran “very hard” after it targeted a base in Jordan that hosts US troops, and comes after a days-long pause in violence between the two sides. Continue reading...

• Global semiconductor stocks plummeted, with the US Nasdaq 100 falling 1.8% in early trading and Japan's Nikkei 225 and Taiwan's Taiex both dropping approximately 4%. • The sell-off was triggered by a combination of China's reported breakthroughs in chip manufacturing and growing investor fears regarding AI-related debt. • This downturn is significant as it targets some of the year's biggest AI winners and has pushed the MSCI AC Asia Pacific Index toward a technical correction.

• The deadlock between the CJP and the government has intensified, leading to the announcement of nationwide protests scheduled for tomorrow. • Protesters have rejected a government offer to hold talks at the health minister's residence, while authorities suspended mobile internet services around Jantar Mantar. • In other news, Donald Trump has vowed to punish Iran for Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, contributing to oil prices surging over $100.

• Activist Sonam Wangchuk has ended his hunger strike following a visit and negotiations with ministers representing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government. • The protest, which included a "cockroach" themed demonstration, focused on demanding constitutional safeguards for Ladakh's environment and political autonomy. • Prime Minister Modi released a midnight video promising "strict action" to address the region's concerns, aiming to quell calls for a broader nationwide protest.

• Major US stock indexes, including the Dow Jones, NASDAQ, and S&P 500, fell sharply on July 23, 2026. • The decline was driven by a heavy selloff in Big Tech shares as investors questioned AI capital expenditures, coupled with a massive surge in global oil prices. • Market volatility is being fueled by geopolitical instability following the widening of attacks in the Middle East.

• The Korean series 'The East Palace,' starring Nam Joo Hyuk, Roh Yoon Seo, and Cho Seung Woo, climbed to No. 2 on Netflix's Top 10 Non-English Shows worldwide within three days of its release. • Since its July 17 premiere, the show has accumulated 4.9 million views and secured the No. 1 spot on the Top 10 list in South Korea. • The series has achieved significant international reach, entering the Top 10 charts in 27 different countries, including India, Thailand, Hong Kong, and the Philippines.

• Approximately 50,000 people from over 100 countries gathered in Britain for the 60th convention of the nation's largest Muslim organization. • The event focused on calling world leaders to prioritize justice and peace over the strategic interests of powerful states to prevent a devastating global war. • Discussions centered on urgent international crises, specifically highlighting the ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine.

• Indian stock indices, the Sensex and Nifty 50, are expected to open lower on July 22, 2026. • The anticipated decline is driven by a jump in global oil prices resulting from the widening conflict between the US and Iran. • Market volatility is expected to impact a wide range of sectors, including energy and finance, with key companies like Adani Green Energy, BPCL, and IndusInd Bank under observation.

• The Trump administration has resumed military strikes on Iran and expanded sanctions targeting weapons procurement and oil-shipping networks. • On July 17, the EU Council sanctioned one individual and five entities linked to the ABS Electro group for producing electronic components used in Russian drone warfare. • Simultaneously, the U.S. Congress is advancing legislation that could impose unprecedented tariffs on major energy buyers to further isolate Russia.

In its final report the High Pay Centre says the median remuneration of a FTSE 100 CEO has risen to a record £5.06mThe bosses of Britain’s largest listed companies received record pay last year, fuelling the widest earnings gap with workers in eight years.Median pay for FTSE 100 chief executives hit £5.06m in the last financial year, according to data released by the High Pay Centre, an 8.6% increase on £4.66m the previous year and the highest level on record. Continue reading...

• President Xi Jinping has announced China's ambition to lead global AI development by offering technology partnerships and training to other nations. • This push coincides with nearly 30 countries, including Russia, Brazil, and Indonesia, joining the newly formed World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization. • The initiative aims to increase Beijing's influence over international AI governance and the establishment of global technical standards.