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FORBES
Forbes is an American business magazine. Published bi-weekly, it features original articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. Forbes also reports on related subjects such as technology, communications, science, politics, and law. Its headquarters is located in Jersey City, New Jersey.
K-Pop To Catalonia: How The Metaverse Can Turn Local Culture Global
Future
Rozena Crossman

K-Pop To Catalonia: How The Metaverse Can Turn Local Culture Global

Glitchy online museum tours are a thing of the past. From Barcelona to Bollywood, the metaverse is bringing immersive cultural experiences right into our homes.

Between environmental costs, COVID and criticisms of digital nomads hurting local economies, the world is questioning the magic of travel — and increasing the time spent in front of screens. Although the meager form the metaverse has taken today can’t replace the smells, tastes, or exact luminescence that make discovering new corners of the world so thrilling, it may soon be dropping local adventures from far away lands into our living rooms.

While the guided tours of museums and online concerts that we all tested out during lockdowns were often glitchy and underwhelming, the beginning of 2022 has seen regional cultural initiatives from around the world flocking to the metaverse, a virtual reality world where people can interact and have experiences as they do in the real world.

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On patrol in Milan, April 23
FORBES

How Criminals Exploit A Coronavirus World

With a large chunk of the world's population forced still to stay at home, local communities and entire nations are recording steep drops in overall crime rates.

Burglars are generally less likely to prey on a home that's occupied, and most theft and assault hotspots such as sporting venues and pubs are shuttered. Still, it'snot all a pretty picture, as the unique dynamic of national lockdowns puts new pressure on law enforcement and spurs more cases of certain crimes.

Italy's L'Espresso weekly "Criminal Contagion: How the Mafia is getting rich from coronavirus'

Here's a quick tour of the world of crime in the time of coronavirus:

  • Gangs on the rise: In Mexico, about 200 criminal groups see the COVID-19 crisis as an opportunity to grow their influence. Positioning themselves as guardians and protectors of communities, the gangs use extortion, kidnapping and violence on a regular basis. Forbes Mexico reports that the country's already high homicide rate rose even more, hitting a new record in March, as the state redirected resources into containing the health crisis and trying to prop up its sluggish economy.

  • Plague of domestic abuse: Reports from China to France to Argentina confirm fears that confining families to their homes will increase domestic violence. In Israel, the daily Haaretz reported that the number of cases opened by the police involving sex crimes within the family jumped by 41% this March compared to last year.

  • Digital delinquents: Since a big part of our lives went online, crimes are bound to follow. The Swedish newspaperETC has reported an increase in online pedophile activity and cyberbullying. Europol warns about cyber-attacks exploiting the global chaos, including fraudulent online sale of COVID-19 tests, face masks and sanitizers.

  • Mob stories: In Italy, some fear that cash-strapped, small- and medium-sized entrepreneurs will turn to the mafia to save their businesses. This way, mafia money enters in competition with the social and business support programs set up by the government, Radio France Internationale reported. According to Mario Vaudano, the former anti-mafia magistrate, other European countries with a significant mafia presence, including Slovakia, Poland or Malta, are in a high risk to see organized crime capitalize on the pandemic.

  • Police brutality: In some countries, authorities have been accused of excessive violence and abuse when enforcing the curfew, reported Le Monde. In the first days of lockdown in Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Senegal and elsewhere, social media were flooded with images showing the military and police beating people in the streets, forcing them to do push-ups or even dancing in front of the camera while reciting curfew restrictions.

  • Crimes of contagion: Curiously, the pandemic is also giving rise to some new, illness-related offenses. "Malicious coughing" is now a crime and has already sent a man in the UK to jail for six months. In the Czech Republic, a man posted on social media that he has coronavirus and licks bread in supermarkets for fun, the Czech news site iDNES.czreported. The suspect is now facing up to eight years in prison for scaremongering during a state of emergency.

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Work → In Progress: Finding A Job In The Matrix
Sources
Carl-Johan Karlsson

Work → In Progress: Finding A Job In The Matrix

In early civilizations, landing a job amounted to interning until your employer died. Fast-forward a few thousand years and fortunately, internships have gotten shorter ... and life expectancy has gotten longer! Still, job hunting has become a journey marked by alternating pulls of hope and hysteria. The swift ascension of global connectedness, Artificial Intelligence, the shifting nature of social norms are uprooting the way we're evaluated by recruiters.

This edition of Work → In Progress dives into how these transformations affect us today and what expectations we should have for recruitment in the future. In many countries, the classic curriculum vitae is becoming obsolete as recruiters use AI and virtual-reality simulations to evaluate candidates; in Russia, employers are shifting their focus from looks to merit; while in the U.S., "likability" might soon be more important than your masters' degree.​

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Nabcosmetic pop up store in Paris, France
Society
Melissande Kingue

Instagram's International Influencers: One Global Recipe

PARIS — In the beauty and fashion industry, Instagram and brands have begun to blend into one. And it's happening all over the world. As Sabine Delanglade explains in Les Echos, the French business daily, the social media success stories tend to follow a certain script. You need at least 50,000 followers for sponsors to start being interested in your profile, which can lead to partnerships with existing brands. Top one million, and you might start to think about launching a makeup or clothing line of your own.

But every Instagram "story" is different. Posting in English is usually required to rise to Instagram megastar status, but many haven't started out that way. Here are five international "Instabrands' who've made it big.

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