Thirty years ago, South Africa released famed political prisoner Nelson Mandela from prison. I covered the momentous story. Nelson Mandela with his wife Winnie Manela, two days after he was released from prison, in Soweto, South Africa, 13 February 1990 (EPA/STR)...
Coronavirus headlines are taking readers on a roller coaster of fear, hope and confusion. Here are tips for telling what’s true and what’s not. Medical staff check the temperature of passengers at Nanjing South Railway station in Nanjing, China, 27 January...
What’s more harmful to your health — sugar or fat? Is it most important to exercise? The answers can depend on who’s paying for “scientific” research. Cans of soda and bottled water in New York, 7 May 2018 (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan) “I love...
Iran’s nuclear programme has held much of the world in suspense for years. But what if the real story, largely overlooked by the media, is elsewhere? Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, hold a poster of a Hezbollah leader during a rally in Sanaa, Yemen, 3 March...
Are the Houthis in Yemen “Iran-backed” or “Iran-aligned”? Are Hezbollah members “terrorists” or “liberators”? Labels can make a big difference. Hezbollah supporters wear headbands with pictures of Iran’s Ayatollah...
Two global prizes supported by News Decoder recognize projects in the UK and U.S. that fight fake news and gun violence. (Photo courtesy of The Student View) A UK not-for-profit promoting media literacy and a U.S. team reporting on gun violence have won global prizes,...
Filipino journalists Fermando Sepe Jr. and Maria Ressa have exposed government corruption and abuse — and persist despite threats to their safety. Human rights activists demonstrate in front of an office where Rappler CEO Maria Ressa was detained, Manila, 14...
We all have our convictions. But the world’s a complex place, where opposing viewpoints co-exist. Humility can be the first step to understanding. Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, seen in London on 11 July 1961, was the first man to orbit the Earth, not U.S....
A standoff in Washington involving high school students, a Native American and Hebrew Israelites offers many lessons — not all of them gloomy. Student Nick Sandmann (L) and Native American Nathan Phillips on the U.S. National Mall (photo taken from YouTube) An...
Threatened by populists and “fake news,” democracy is in crisis. But it remains better than alternatives — and a holy grail for states ditching dictators. Britain’s Big Ben clock tower, a symbol of parliamentary democracy, with a nearby statue...