UNITED STATES
Phil Donahue dies at 88
Phil Donahue, who changed the face of daytime television with a long-running syndicated talk show that highlighted topical and often provocative social and political issues, has died at age 88, NBC’s Today show reported on Monday, citing a statement from his family. Donahue died surrounded by his family on Sunday following an illness, it said. Debuting in 1970 when daytime television offered its mostly female viewers a diet of soap operas, game shows and homemaking programs, Donahue’s show tackled subject matter once considered taboo for television — including abortion, the sexual revolution and race relations. With his boyish charm, irrepressible energy and thick white hair, Donahue was known for aggressively questioning his guests and bounding through the studio to give his audience a chance to be heard. The success of his show paved the way for other daytime talk-show hosts, most notably Oprah Winfrey, whose program eventually eclipsed Donahue’s in the ratings. “If it weren’t for Phil Donahue, there never would have been an Oprah show,” Winfrey has said.
PHILIPPINES
Ex-mayor seen in Indonesia
A former local official embroiled in alleged money laundering through China-centric online casinos has left the country, the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission said. Dismissed mayor Alice Guo arrived in Kuala Lumpur from Denpasar, Indonesia, on July 18 then flew to Singapore after three days, commission spokesman Winston Casio said in a message to reporters late on Monday, citing immigration records from these countries. Guo arrived in Batam, Indonesia, from Singapore via a ferry boat on Sunday, he added. Her lawyer, Stephen David, said in a phone call yesterday that Guo told him she was still in the Philippines. The ex-mayor’s bank accounts were earlier frozen over suspected money laundering, human trafficking and fraud. The Department of Justice yesterday said it would investigate how Guo was able to exit the country, despite an immigration lookout bulletin order that directs authorities to closely monitor her movements.
JAPAN
PM election on Sept. 27
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) yesterday said it would select a new leader — and by extension the likely next prime minister — on Sept. 27. Following plummeting approval ratings, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida last week announced that he would step down next month. Campaigning to become the next LDP president is to begin on Sept. 12 with a vote two weeks later, an internal committee decided early yesterday, a party official said. A hodgepodge of candidates, from party veterans to rising young stars and three women, are reportedly weighing their chances and seeking to rally intraparty support.
JAPAN
Fuji barrier taken down
A barrier erected to block a popular view of Mount Fuji has been taken down — for now — after succeeding in discouraging unruly tourists, a town official said yesterday. Fujikawaguchiko put up the large screen in May after residents complained about streams of mostly foreign visitors causing problems while trying to snap photos of the famous volcano. The town on Thursday lowered the screen ahead of a typhoon and has decided not to put it back up. “We wanted to see what would happen,” the town official said. “There are still some people who come to the place. But we no longer find many people suddenly rushing out into the traffic to cross the road.”
DIALOGUE: US president-elect Donald Trump on his Truth Social platform confirmed that he had spoken with Xi, saying ‘the call was a very good one’ for the US and China US president-elect Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) discussed Taiwan, trade, fentanyl and TikTok in a phone call on Friday, just days before Trump heads back to the White House with vows to impose tariffs and other measures on the US’ biggest rival. Despite that, Xi congratulated Trump on his second term and pushed for improved ties, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The call came the same day that the US Supreme Court backed a law banning TikTok unless it is sold by its China-based parent company. “We both attach great importance to interaction, hope for
RISING TENSIONS: The nations’ three leaders discussed China’s ‘dangerous and unlawful behavior in the South China Sea,’ and agreed on the importance of continued coordination Japan, the Philippines and the US vowed to further deepen cooperation under a trilateral arrangement in the face of rising tensions in Asia’s waters, the three nations said following a call among their leaders. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and outgoing US President Joe Biden met via videoconference on Monday morning. Marcos’ communications office said the leaders “agreed to enhance and deepen economic, maritime and technology cooperation.” The call followed a first-of-its-kind summit meeting of Marcos, Biden and then-Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida in Washington in April last year that led to a vow to uphold international
US president-elect Donald Trump is not typically known for his calm or reserve, but in a craftsman’s workshop in rural China he sits in divine contemplation. Cross-legged with his eyes half-closed in a pose evoking the Buddha, this porcelain version of the divisive US leader-in-waiting is the work of designer and sculptor Hong Jinshi (洪金世). The Zen-like figures — which Hong sells for between 999 and 20,000 yuan (US$136 to US$2,728) depending on their size — first went viral in 2021 on the e-commerce platform Taobao, attracting national headlines. Ahead of the real-estate magnate’s inauguration for a second term on Monday next week,
CYBERSCAM: Anne, an interior decorator with mental health problems, spent a year and a half believing she was communicating with Brad Pitt and lost US$855,259 A French woman who revealed on TV how she had lost her life savings to scammers posing as Brad Pitt has faced a wave of online harassment and mockery, leading the interview to be withdrawn on Tuesday. The woman, named as Anne, told the Seven to Eight program on the TF1 channel how she had believed she was in a romantic relationship with the Hollywood star, leading her to divorce her husband and transfer 830,000 euros (US$855,259). The scammers used fake social media and WhatsApp accounts, as well as artificial intelligence image-creating technology to send Anne selfies and other messages
RSS