Worldcrunch
PARIS – “It was an intense challenge but absolutely awesome!” says actress Ellen Page (Juno, Inception) about the new PlayStation game Beyond: Two Souls. Page interprets every scene using the same performance-capture technology as Avatar, which records movement and voice. The game, created by French developer Quantic Dream, and to be released in October, pushes […]
THE CRIMEAN MANDATE Crimeans voted overwhelmingly yesterday to secede from Ukraine and join the Russian Federation. With a turnout of 83%, the measure won support from 96.77% of voters. MALAYSIA PLANE’S COMMUNICATION SYSTEM DISABLED MANUALLY The co-pilot of missing Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 issued his last message to air traffic control after part of the […]
Pope Francis will preach humility and fraternity in the spirit of his namesake St. Francis of Assisi. Can he make it relevant in the 21st century?
DISASI – As the little coffin leaves the hospital morgue in this western Congolese town, there is total silence. Yves Ibama was 14 years old when he was taken from his parents suddenly, after a short illness. On Buzala Avenue, in the densely populated town of Disasi where the wake is being held, everyone is […]
They are neither anti-religious rebels nor feminist iconoclasts, but three nuns and a Catholic theologian. Here’s how they think Pope Francis should face the female question.
Why has Washington stayed so quiet about South Korean allegations of secret North Korean bank accounts?
LA STAMPA (Italy) Worldcrunch VATICAN CITY– Pope Francis is his name, and Church watchers all seem to agree that this is a signal that a central them of the new papacy will be caring for the needy – needy humans, that is. But history also tells us that the inspiration for the Pope’s name, St. […]
ALEPPO – For nearly three months, a rumor has been spreading through Aleppo: whoever faces hardship, however small, can go to a hearing of the “Committee for the promotion of good deeds and support of the oppressed.” There, in this northern neighborhood of the country’s largest city, members of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) are […]
They were just 12, and her father didn’t approve of their childhood love. Sixty-five years later, she watched him step onto St. Peter’s balcony as Pope Francis.
Sebastião Salgado’s blue eyes have seen a bit of everything in this world – and this might not even be an exaggeration. For the past eight years in particular, the 69-year-old Brazilian photographer has traveled to more than 30 isolated regions of the world, collecting images of dozens of remote tribes, endangered animals and unusual […]
Worldcrunch ROME– What do get when you mix a rugby match and a marathon with the patron saint of Ireland and an Argentine Pope? Endless eternal city traffic jams, for sure. Holy chaos? Well, we’ll see. Here is the once-in-a-lifetime agenda for Rome this Sunday. MARATHON milky.way There are an estimated 100,000 people — including […]
MOSCOW – Berel Lazar, the Chief Rabbi of Russia, was born in Milan and went to college in the United States. A U.S. citizen, Lazar is a controversial figure, but not because of his unusual pedigree. He arrived in Russia in 1990, and quickly attracted several Jewish oligarchs to his congregation. Their money lent his […]
Beware of “Ransomware”…
SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST (China), BBC NEWS (UK), Worldcrunch BEIJING – One day after formally appointing Xi Jinping as the country’s new president for the next 10 years, China leaders have named Li Keqiang for a five-year term as premier, the last leg of a well-oiled generational transition of power. Although Xi and Li hail […]
Two years after a plagiary scandal turned him into a pariah in his own country, Karl-Theodor Guttenberg is thriving in the United States. A profile in contradictions.
El UNIVERSAL (Mexico) Worldcrunch MEXICO CITY – Let’s call it spot-a-cop! The Mexico City’s Ministry of Public Security has dubbed it Mi Policia (My Police), a smartphone app launched this week that uses GPS technology to allow smartphone users to communicate with their local police directly, and in real-time, reports El Universal. This is believed […]
And a Peronist to boot!
More and more elderly Chinese people are living far awar from their children, bringing the reality of aging “empty nesters” to the country. The social impact is huge.
-Analysis- VATICAN CITY – As it turned out, there was a hidden candidate right there in front of us. This explains the rapidity of the conclave, which was almost as fast as the one that elected Joseph Ratzinger eight years ago. When he took the floor last week during the pre-conclave General Congregation meetings, sources […]
Worldcrunch Masses of Catholics and non-Catholics alike tuned in for the announcement and appearance of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the 266th Supreme Roman Pontiff. It was a singular media moment that was watched, listened to, shared, tweeted — and won’t soon be forgotten. There is still much to learn about the 76-year-old Argentine, and […]
SÜDDEUTSCHE ZEITUNG (Germany) Worldcrunch BERLIN – What better way to help educate kids on healthy eating than with some Big-Mac-And-Large-Fries-sponsored lessons!? This special sauce comes courtesy of a German non-profit, that has called on McDonald’s to be one of the sponsors for a new government-sanctioned program to provide nutrition education in schools, writes Süddeutsche Zeitung. […]
XINHUA (China), ABC (Australia) Worldcrunch BEIJING – China’s annual parliamentary session formally appointed Xi Jinping as the country’s president for the next ten years on Thursday. The vote at the annual National People’s Congress only drew one “no” vote and three abstentions amongst nearly 3,000 delegates, reports ABC. The NPC is largely considered a “rubber […]
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PARIS – The horsemeat lasagna scandal has reignited the debate on “junk” food. However, it can be very difficult to sort out the good and the bad… Some key recommendations from Dr. Laurent Chevalier, a prominent French nutritionist: 1 – Favor organic products. They are less contaminated by chemicals – especially pesticides and hormones – […]
The new Pope and Argentine President Cristina Kirchner have faced off over gay marriage. But tensions date back to the presidency of her deceased husband President Nestor Kirchner.
KERRY AND LAVROV MEET IN LONDONU.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov are meeting today at the American ambassador’s residence in London, two days before the Crimean vote on whether to join the Russian Federation, The Washington Post reports. PLANE SEARCH EXTENDED TO INDIAN OCEANThe search for Malaysian Airlines flight […]
The native of Buenos Aires, who rose to be its Archbishop, prefers the subway to limousines — ‘villas miserias’ to ecclesiastical sophistication. The name he took evokes a closeness with those who suffer most.
VATICAN CITY– After the surprise resignation of Benedict XVI, the calls to find a strong administrator to reform the governance of the Church, days of speculation and two rounds of black smoke…the white smoke came after the cardinals chose a new leader for the Catholic Church known for his humility, and notably the first pontiff […]
Worldcrunch VATICAN CITY – White smoke rose from the Sistine Chapel and the bells of St Peter’s Basilica pealed, on Wednesday, heralding the election of a new pope. Watch live feed from St Peter’s Square: Click here for Worldcrunch’s special papal coverage.
Reforming a broken Vatican is important, but the true job of the Roman pontiff is to proclaim the Gospel. Is Pope Francis, the Argentine-born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, that man?
Warnings that the government has failed to protect Antinoupolis, among the largest Egyptian archaeological sites, which is being “systematically destroyed” by those who want to farm the land.
PARIS – Among the 2.5 million people who are illiterate in France, there are also executives from the corporate world. Because of the jobs they hold, these people are very good at hiding their inability to read or write, making this phenomenon impossible to quantify — some have dubbed it the “invisible affliction.” When he […]
LES ECHOS (France), EU OBSERVER (Belgium), BOSTON CONSULTING GROUP (USA), WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM, DATA PROTECTION IN EUROPE Worldcrunch BRUSSELS – This week, more than 90 leading academics across Europe launched a petition to support the European Commission’s draft data protection regulation, reports the EU Observer. The online petition, entitled Data Protection in Europe, says “huge […]
Worldcrunch PARIS – In the north of Paris, the neighborhood of Montmartre is known for its Sacré Coeur Basilica perched on a hill, that offers splendid views of the capital. The tourist favorite is also where the Amelie movie was filmed. During the winter however, the neighborhood transforms into the city’s top ski destination. It […]
In a state hospital after growing ill in jail, the Ukranian opposition leader denounces the “cannibalistic” tactics of those who have condemned her — and vows to fight on.
KOREA TIMES, CHOSUN ILBO, YONHAP (South Korea) Worldcrunch PYONGYANG – A “large number” of soldiers are deserting the North Korean ranks due to the growing tensions with its southern neighbor, US sanctions and insufficient food supplies, according to a South Korean official source. The number of deserters stationed in the frontlines has multiplied by seven […]
TELESUR (Venezuela) Worldcrunch CARACAS – Venezuela has launched an inquiry to determine if late President Hugo Chavez’s cancer was caused by “foreign enemies.” Acting President Nicolas Maduro told teleSUR that Venezuelan officials were convinced that “Chavez was poisoned by dark forces that wanted to be rid of him.” “He had an illness, a cancer that […]
LA STAMPA (Italy) Worldcrunch VATICAN CITY– The second round of black smoke puffed out of the Sistine Chapel chimney Wednesday morning, meaning no luck so far for the 115 cardinals gathered inside to choose a successor to Benedict XVI. At 11:38 a.m. local time the smoke emerged, revealing no pope has yet been chosen. The […]
SINA, CHINA DAILY, JIAXING DAILY (China) BBC (UK) Worldcrunch SHANGHAI – The first reports came Sunday, and were shocking enough: more than 1000 dead pigs were fished out of Huangpu River in Shanghai, China Daily reported. But by Wednesday the count was approaching 6,000. According to the labels pinned in the ears of the pigs […]
STANLEY – In the first message from the British government of the Falkland Islands after the referendum on the archipelago’s future, Gavin Short, chairman of the Falklands eight-member legislative assembly, did not mince his words. “President Fernandez de Kirchner – we have sent you a message: we have absolutely no desire to be ruled by […]