Hard Numbers: Trump’s warning for TV broadcasters, Nigerian prez ends local emergency rule, China’s threat delays PNG-Australia deal, & More

​U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One on his return from a state visit in Britain, September 18, 2025.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One on his return from a state visit in Britain, September 18, 2025.
REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

97%: While riding on Air Force One Thursday night, US President Donald Trumpclaimed that some TV networks are “97% against me” and suggested their licences should be revoked. It’s the latest White House threat to television media this week, amid a growing conservative backlash to Jimmy Kimmel’s monologue over the background of Charlie Kirk’s killer.

6: Six months after imposing it, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu lifted emergency rule in oil-rich Rivers State, declaring that it had resolved the constitutional crisis there. Tinubu implemented the rule as tensions between the governor and state legislature there had put the state government in limbo.

8: Eight Democratic senators signed onto a resolution that would recognize a Palestinian state. With Republicans controlling the Senate and Trumpin the White House, the measure has little-to-no chance of passing, but it indicates a growing level of support for Palestinians in a country that has been Israel’s greatest defender.

13: Shankar, a 29-year-old African elephant and long-time resident of Delhi’s zoo who spent 13 years in solitary confinement, died after refusing food and collapsing on Wednesday. Gifted to India in 1998, he isolated himself for most of his life after his companion died in 2001. The cause of death remains under investigation.

2: China warned Papua New Guinea against signing a proposed security treaty with Australia, saying it could limit PNG’s sovereignty. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese left PNG’s capital, Port Moresby, with only a communiqué after failing to finalize the pact. It marks his second Pacific setback this month following a stalled Vanuatu deal, underscoring intensifying China-Australia rivalry in the region.

More from GZERO Media

Walmart’s $350 billion commitment to American manufacturing means two-thirds of the products we buy come straight from our backyard to yours. From New Jersey hot sauce to grills made in Tennessee, Walmart is stocking the shelves with products rooted in local communities. The impact? Over 750,000 American jobs - putting more people to work and keeping communities strong. Learn more here.

People gather at a petrol station in Bamako, Mali, on November 1, 2025, amid ongoing fuel shortages caused by a blockade imposed by al Qaeda-linked insurgents.
REUTERS/Stringer

Mali is on the verge of falling to an Islamist group that has pledged to transform the country into a pre-modern caliphate. The militant group’s momentum has Mali’s neighbors worried.

Last week, Microsoft released the AI Diffusion Report 2025, offering a comprehensive look at how artificial intelligence is spreading across economies, industries, and workforces worldwide. The findings show that AI adoption has reached an inflection point: 68% of enterprises now use AI in at least one function, driving measurable productivity and economic growth. The report also highlights that diffusion is uneven, underscoring the need for greater investment in digital skills, responsible AI governance, and public-private collaboration to ensure the benefits are broadly shared. Read the full report here.

- YouTube

At the 2025 Abu Dhabi Global AI Summit, UNCTAD Secretary-General Rebeca Grynspan warns that without deliberate action, the world’s poorest countries risk exclusion from the AI revolution. “There is no way that trickle down will make the trick,” she tells GZERO Media’s Tony Maciulis. “We have to think about inclusion by design."

- YouTube

In this Global Stage panel recorded live in Abu Dhabi, Becky Anderson (CNN) leads a candid discussion on how to close that gap with Brad Smith (Vice Chair & President, Microsoft), Peng Xiao (CEO, G42), Ian Bremmer (President & Founder, Eurasia Group and GZERO Media), and Baroness Joanna Shields (Executive Chair, Responsible AI Future Foundation).