Heeeeere’s Jimmy (again)!
Late night host Jimmy Kimmel returns to ABC tonight, six days after Disney yanked his show over the comedian’s monologue on the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The suspension followed threats by FCC chair Brendan Carr to revoke ABC’s broadcast licence, and provoked a national debate on freedom of speech and government overreach. ABC claims Kimmel’s return comes after “thoughtful conversations with Jimmy”, but the U-turn has been also attributed to public outrage and internal dissent among Disney employees. The media conglomerates Nexstar and Sinclair, which together control 20% of ABC’s local stations, said they would continue to nix the program. Nexstar currently has a $6bn merger proposal before FCC regulators which, if approved, would expand the company’s reach to 80% of US households.
Nicaragua goes global with repression.
In the seven years since Nicaraguan strongman Daniel Ortega crushed mass protests at home, he has gone to extraordinary lengths to silence critics abroad as well. According to a group of UN experts, the security services of the tiny Central American country have systematically tracked down thousands of exiled dissidents in order to target them with harassment, asset confiscations, cyberattacks, passport denials, and other intimidation tactics. The 2018 protests were touched off by a pension reform, but they quickly swelled into mass demonstrations over corruption and authoritarianism. Hundreds were killed and more than 100,000 people fled abroad.
Super Typhoon Ragasa threatens South Asia
After slamming the northern Philippines on Monday, Super Typhoon Ragasa is bearing down on China with landfall expected Wednesday in the province of Guangdong. Ragasa is the world’s largest storm this year, packing hurricane force winds of up to 137 mph. Hong Kong is virtually shut down, with 700 flights canceled amid predictions that sea levels could rise as much as fifteen feet. On the mainland, 770,000 people have been evacuated from 11 cities, including technology hub Shenzhen and coastal city Zhuhai. Guangdong is an important industrial and shipping centre and the storm could disrupt supply chains and delay shipments for four or five days due to port closures.