Modalità di lettura

As pioneering Chinese web forum returns, authorities warn free speech has limits

Chinese authorities have praised the return of Tianya – which was one of the country’s most popular internet forums in the pre-algorithm, pre-short-video era – while cautioning that freedom of speech must be balanced with responsibility. The pioneering web portal was launched by Tianya Community Network Technology Co in 1999, when the internet was in its infancy in China, but suddenly closed in April 2023 due to financial problems. On Sunday, the company announced that the forum would come back...

  •  

2 Taiwan air force pilots die in T-34C crash, spurring probe and debate over aircraft

A Taiwanese military aircraft crashed during a training mission on Tuesday, killing two experienced pilots and prompting renewed scrutiny of the island’s ageing fleet of T-34 basic trainers. The T-34C aircraft went down at 8.08am at Gangshan Air Base in Kaohsiung in southern Taiwan while conducting a simulated engine-failure exercise, according to the island’s air force. Both pilots on board, Lieutenant Colonel Kuo Chun-nan and Lieutenant Colonel Lu Chi-yu, were killed. The air force said the...

  •  

Taiwan targets Beijing’s grey-zone tactics near remote South China Sea islands

Taiwan’s navy will support patrols around the Taipei-controlled Dongsha Islands after mainland Chinese coastguard activity near the South China Sea atoll surged over the past year. The activity has fuelled concerns in Taipei that Beijing is using the remote outpost to test Taiwan’s responses and refine its grey-zone tactics. Taiwan’s Coast Guard Administration said mainland Chinese coastguard vessels had appeared around the atoll 39 times since February last year, compared with only occasional...

  •  

Gu Songfen, pioneering designer of Chinese supersonic fighter jets, dies at 96

Aerodynamics expert Gu Songfen has died at 96. He was the chief designer of China’s J-8 fighter jet family – the first home-grown supersonic fighter jet to counter US high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft. Gu was an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering as well as a researcher at the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). He died in Beijing on Sunday night, according to a statement from AVIC. A farewell ceremony is scheduled for Saturday in...

  •  

Can Taiwanese opposition leader pull off balancing act during US trip?

Taiwan’s main opposition leader is due to arrive in the United States late on Monday for a politically sensitive two-week visit expected to attract close scrutiny in Beijing, Taipei and Washington. The Kuomintang delegation, led by the party’s chairwoman Cheng Li-wun, will land on Monday evening local time in San Francisco, where she will visit Taiwanese-American communities and think tanks. She will also travel to Boston and New York before visiting Washington for meetings with political...

  •  

China sentences former Shaolin abbot to 24 years for corruption

Shi Yongxin, former abbot of the world-famous Shaolin Temple, has been sentenced to 24 years in jail for crimes including embezzlement and taking bribes, state news agency Xinhua reported. Shi was also fined 3.5 million yuan (US$516,000). Xinxiang Intermediate People’s Court in China’s central Henan province found that Shi, whose birth name is Liu Yingcheng, had embezzled more than 131 million yuan between 2003 and 2025. Shi appeared in a public trial on Monday. The verdict was announced on...

  •  

Can direct commercial sales fix Taiwan’s US$20 billion weapons backlog?

US defence industry leaders are pushing for deeper commercial cooperation with Taiwan to strengthen its military capabilities, as the island seeks faster ways to bolster deterrence amid Beijing’s mounting military pressure. But they cautioned that such business deals could not replace traditional American arms sales regarded as the backbone of Taiwan’s defence. Speaking at the Taiwan-US Defence Industry Forum in Taipei on Thursday, retired US General Charles Flynn and senior American executives...

  •  

China’s top military officials face ‘ironclad’ rules in anti-corruption fight

China’s top military command has issued strict measures to enforce discipline among senior officials of the People’s Liberation Army, marking its latest bid to further tighten controls over the behaviour of the top brass. The Central Military Commission (CMC), led by President Xi Jinping as chairman, issued the “measures on strengthening the education, management and supervision of senior military cadres” recently, state news agency Xinhua reported on Wednesday. In a front-page commentary on...

  •  

Beijing praises actress Lin Chi-ling for quitting Taiwan culture board

Chinese authorities praised the decision of Taiwanese actress and model Lin Chi-ling to quit her position as a new board member of the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA), after her appointment drew backlash. Chen Binhua, a spokesman for Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said at a press conference on Wednesday that the TAICCA had orchestrated and funded films and television productions in recent years that “distort history and hype the ‘mainland threat’”. “It serves as a political tool for...

  •  

From wedding photographers to farm gadgets, Chinese campaign warns of spy risks

Foreign spies have posed as wedding photographers near naval ports and used cars fitted with advanced radar, GPS and optical sensors to collect mapping data under the guise of autonomous driving research, China’s top state secrets watchdog has cautioned. The National Administration of State Secrets Protection’s warning about foreign spies acting as “eyes in the dark” came in its latest anti-espionage documentary, with state broadcaster CCTV airing the first episode on Tuesday. “In real life, the...

  •  

Shanxi mine disaster casts shadow over province’s shift from coal to culture

Shanxi, China’s top coal-producing province, has attempted to rebrand from a polluting, high-risk mining hub into a cultural and tourist destination. However, the country’s deadliest mining accident in nearly two decades has cast a shadow over this image. On Friday, a devastating gas explosion at the Liushenyu Coal Mine in Shanxi killed at least 82 people. The disaster, which industry insiders said was a result of systemic safety failures, has drawn attention to the safety, governance and...

  •  

What a US defence industry trip to Taiwan says about Taipei’s efforts to overhaul military

A high-level American defence industry delegation arrived in Taipei on Tuesday for a four-day visit aimed at expanding the US role in the island’s military modernisation process and the joint production of weapons systems. The party includes 41 senior executives, and the visit was organised by the US-Taiwan Business Council, which has long served as a bridge for the defence industry. The trip underscores a growing overlap between strategic cooperation and arms sales as Taiwan seeks to strengthen...

  •  

China says engineer jailed for 15 years was lured into sending aerospace secrets overseas

A Chinese aerospace engineer has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for espionage, according to state media, with the report underscoring official warnings that the aerospace industry is a cornerstone of national technological strength and defence security. The engineer, surnamed Zhu, graduated from a top university with a PhD in 2018, state broadcaster CCTV said on Monday. He then worked as an engineer in multiple aerospace research institutes and handled classified documents in the aerospace...

  •  

Are systemic safety failures to blame for China’s deadly mine blast?

A gas explosion that killed at least 82 people in central China – the country’s worst mining disaster in more than a decade – was the result of systemic safety failures across multiple parts of the production chain, according to miners and industry insiders. The Friday blast at the Liushenyu Coal Mine in Shanxi province also left two people missing and 128 survivors in hospital, including two in critical condition. Miners interviewed by the South China Morning Post said several workers had not...

  •  

Owners of Chinese mine where 82 died in blast accused of ‘serious violations’ of the law

The owners of a Chinese coal mine where at least 82 people were killed have been accused of “serious violations of the law” by the local government. As search and rescue operations continued through the night, Chen Xiangyang, the deputy Communist Party secretary of Changzhi in Shanxi province, said that all four mines operated by the Shanxi Tongzhou Group had been “immediately” ordered to suspend operations. “Preliminary assessment indicates serious legal violations by the coal mine enterprise...

  •  

Will China’s residency changes to social insurance unlock economic growth?

China’s decision to ease residency restrictions on social insurance applicants will help unleash positive, long-term economic growth, according to analysts. The new measures announced on Friday by the State Council are part of China’s broader push to create a unified national market by removing barriers to the free flow of capital and talent. Under the new policy, workers can enrol in social insurance programmes in the cities where they are employed, regardless of their official household...

  •  

Myanmar’s Wei family put on trial in latest phase of China’s crackdown on scam compounds

An alleged Myanmar crime boss and members of his syndicate were put on trial this week in the latest stage of Beijing’s sweeping crackdown on cross-border scam networks. Wei Huairen, also known as Wai San, faces charges including fraud, murder, extortion and organising illegal border crossings, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported on Friday. Prosecutors allege that from 2019 onwards, the syndicate used the Wei family’s military and political influence in Myanmar’s Kokang region to operate...

  •  

Cambodia raids buildings linked to Chen Zhi, Chinese billionaire accused of scam empire

Cambodian authorities raided two buildings in Phnom Penh’s Prince Plaza Centre linked to the extradited Chinese billionaire Chen Zhi and detained 104 individuals, including 82 Chinese nationals, local media reported. Governments around the world have intensified their crackdown on Chen’s alleged multibillion-dollar online scam empire since his arrest earlier this year. The Cambodian raid, a joint operation by Phnom Penh police, the country’s Commission for Combating Technology-Based Scams...

  •  

Beijing slams Taiwan’s Lai as ‘destroyer’ of peace after anniversary speech

Beijing on Wednesday accused Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te of “destroying cross-strait peace”, shortly after he delivered a speech to mark his second anniversary in office. The row comes in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s remarks on Taiwan independence following his state visit to Beijing. Beijing’s Taiwan Affairs Office condemned Lai’s anniversary speech and his subsequent remarks to reporters as being filled with “lies and deception, hostility and confrontation”. Spokesman Chen...

  •  

What is the political weight of Diaoyutai State Guesthouse where Putin is staying?

When Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing on Tuesday evening for a two-day state visit, he once again returned to his “second home” at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, a royal garden that has hosted dignitaries including Richard Nixon, Boris Yeltsin and Kim Jong-un. Diaoyutai is a familiar setting for Putin, who has visited China more than 20 times and personally met President Xi Jinping on more than 40 occasions since 2013, according to state news agency Xinhua. He usually resides...

  •  

Why Elon Musk’s post spotlighting Chinese infrastructure has reignited a debate

Tech billionaire Elon Musk is once again using his massive social media megaphone to trumpet Chinese infrastructure to an international audience. On Monday, the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla reposted on X, which he owns, a nearly six-minute video of Chongqing East Railway Station in southwestern China, drawing millions of views within hours. It is unclear whether Musk is currently in Chongqing, China’s “mountain city” known for its spicy hotpot and one of the country’s most popular tourist...

  •  

Trump’s Taiwan comments: a blow to William Lai and ruling DPP?

Donald Trump’s comment that he is “not looking to have somebody go independent” has sparked debate in Taiwan over whether it undermines the ruling party’s pro-independence platform. Trump made the remark after last week’s summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing, where Taiwan emerged as one of the most sensitive issues in Sino-US relations. “I’m not looking to have somebody go independent,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News aired on Friday, adding that the United States was “9,500...

  •  

Why Beijing is outraged over Taiwan’s Lai honouring WWII-era Japanese engineer

Beijing has strongly criticised Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te for paying tribute to a figure from Japan’s colonial era in Taiwan. In a commentary published on Sunday, Communist Party mouthpiece the People’s Daily accused Lai, from Taiwan’s independence-leaning ruling Democratic Progressive Party, of “forgetting his ancestors” and reaching a new low in “ingratiating himself with Japan”. The denunciation followed Lai’s attendance at a memorial service on May 8 in the city of Tainan,...

  •  

“Con quel visino può fare l’escort, ci pensi....”. Succede alle donne negli Atenei italiani

L'Udu (Unione degli universitari) ha raccolto in un report i risultati di un questionario sul fenomeno delle molestie: per la maggior parte delle ragazze i luoghi meno sicuri sono gli uffici dei docenti. Il professore è individuato come la figura più incline alla molestia

  •  

La cover Espresso è un punto per Chiara Ferragni: ma attenzione a reputarlo decisivo

Prima l'affaire pandoro, poi il video del pentimento e infine l'intervista da Fazio. Il  "sentiment" è sempre stato negativo. Ma sebbene la cover del settimanale possa sembrare un punto a suo favore, non è detto che il vento sia cambiato. L'analisi di Roberto Esposito, ceo di DeRev, società di strategia, comunicazione e marketing digital

  •  

Mattarella ricorda Giulia e le altre vittime di femminicidio: "Serve una profonda azione culturale"

"Come non ricordarne le vittime nei tanti femminicidi, anche in giorni recenti? Come non ricordare, per tutte, Giulia Cecchettin, la cui tragedia ha coinvolto nell'orrore e nel dolore l'intera Italia? Si è detto tante volte - anche in quei giorni - che occorre una profonda azione culturale per far acquisire a tutti l'autentico senso del rapporto tra donna e uomo: l'arte è un veicolo efficace e trainante di formazione e di trasmissione di valori della vita. Per questo, oggi, rendiamo omaggio ed esprimiamo riconoscenza al protagonismo artistico delle donne". Lo dice il presidente della Repubblica Sergio Mattarella in occasione della celebrazione della "Giornata internazionale della donna" al Quirinale.

💾

  •  

Biden: "Chi è contro l'aborto non conosce potere delle donne"

Se rieletto e con un'adeguata maggioranza al Congresso, Joe Biden promette di ripristinare il diritto all'aborto a livello nazionale. "Nella sua decisione di ribaltare Roe v. Wade, la maggioranza della Corte Suprema ha scritto: 'Le donne non sono prive di potere elettorale o politico'. Non sto scherzando. Chiaramente coloro che si vantano di aver ribaltato la causa Roe v. Wade non hanno la minima idea del potere delle donne in America. Ma lo hanno scoperto quando la libertà riproduttiva era in ballo e ha vinto nel 2022, 2023, e lo scopriranno di nuovo nel 2024", ha detto il presidente nel suo discorso sullo Stato dell'Unione. "Se gli americani mi mandassero un Congresso che sostenga il diritto di scelta, vi prometto: ripristinerò Roe v. Wade di nuovo come legge del Paese", ha aggiunto.

💾

  •  

Strappati e imbrattati a Roma i manifesti della Lega contro il velo islamico. La rabbia dei paesi arabi

A Roma manifesti leghisti contro il velo islamico sono stati strappati e imbrattati. “Un attacco alla convivenza” protestano gli ambasciatori della Lega Araba in Italia. Ceccardi: "Un messaggio d’amore per le donne"

💾

  •  

Chi era Marianne Weber, madre negletta della sociologia

Riletto oggi, "La Donna e la Cultura" non perde nulla in termini di attualità. Sostiene l’opportunità di una revisione fondativa del canone sociologico, che vada oltre l’incorporazione delle pensatrici di fine '800 come tessere di un mosaico che nei contenuti principali resta inalterato

  •  

8 marzo, Mattarella: "Troppe e inaccettabili molestie sulle donne". E ricorda Giulia Cecchettin

Il presidente parlando delle donne nel mondo dell'arte: "Solo le dittature promuovono quella di Stato". Giorgia Meloni ne approfitta per la polemica del giorno: "È stata la sinistra italiana a farla con chi non era d'accordo con loro"

  •  

Per Eglantyne Jebb e tutte le donne che sono scese in piazza nell'ultimo secolo

Ai primi del Novecento, la fondatrice di Save the Children ha reclamato uno spazio di azione pubblica, rivoluzionando il concetto di “prendersi cura” dell’infanzia. Non più atto caritatevole, ma investimento per creare società giuste, democratiche e sostenibili
  •  

Inchiesta Onu conclusa: Mahsa Amini "uccisa dalle violenze fisiche della polizia iraniana"

Nel rapporto al Consiglio per i diritti umani si legge che l’Iran ha fatto “un uso non necessario e sproporzionato della sua forza letale” per reprimere le manifestazioni scoppiate dopo la morte della ragazza, rea di non indossare correttamente il velo islamico

  •  

L’importanza della prevenzione nelle malattie cardiovascolari

A giocare un ruolo fondamentale sono tutti quei fattori su cui è possibile intervenire. Un corretto stile di vita, un’alimentazione sana, un’adeguata attività fisica sono tutti insegnamenti che ci vengono dati sin dalla nascita, ma che possono davvero far la differenza e ridurre il rischio cardiovascolare
  •  

Contatto

Giuliano Sangiorgi incontra scrittori, chef, attori e comici e condivide con loro i punti in comune delle loro carriere: l’immaginazione e la capacità di sognare.
Con questo podcast, il cantante mette a confronto il processo creativo in campi anche molto diversi tra loro, regalando all'ospite di ogni puntata una nuova improvvisazione musicale e a chi ascolta un ritratto a due inedito e sorprendente

  •  

Sfida per la Casa Bianca

Il 5 novembre 2024 gli Stati Uniti d’America sceglieranno il nuovo presidente. Ai blocchi di partenza ci sono sempre loro due, Donald Trump e Joe Biden. Ex presidente e presidente uscente, 77 e 81 anni a testa. In un Paese sempre più diviso. Tra ricorsi storici e ricorsi in aule di giustizia, quest’elezione segnerà forse più di altre il presente e il futuro, non solo dell’America ma dell’intero Occidente. Vi racconteremo le grandi storie, dei nostri giorni e del passato, quelle che hanno fatto grande gli Stati Uniti d’America. E faremo chiarezza, per capire insieme come, tra caucus, primarie, congressi, grandi elettori, si diventa presidente del più forte e importante Paese del mondo. Un podcast mensile di Gerardo Greco e Giulio Ucciero.

  •  

GOLPE - 50 anni di Cile

Sono passati 50 anni dal colpo di Stato in Cile. L’11 settembre del 1973, dopo ore di combattimenti per le strade di Santiago, i vertici militari prendono il potere destituendo Salvador Allende e instaurando una spietata dittatura con a capo il generale Augusto Pinochet. Il Golpe non servì solo a stroncare l’esperienza politica democratica di Allende ma a fare del Cile il primo vero laboratorio delle teorie neo-liberiste. Oggi come allora, nel Cile tutto è privatizzato, dalla scuola alla sanità, dalla previdenza al welfare, ai beni comuni (acqua, energia, trasporti) e nel commercio dominano le multinazionali. Il popolo cileno non solo è povero, ma è anche arrabbiato. Molte proteste, spesso sedate con il sangue, si sono succedute negli anni. Ma come rileggere i fatti alla luce del presente? Testimonianze di politici, giornalisti, artisti, studenti e lavoratori provano a rimettere insieme vicende, esperienze, non dimenticando gli storici legami con l'Italia, le speranze ancora vive e il peso del passato.

  •  

Ben-Hur, un altro film

Il podcast in 20 episodi di Michele Bovi e Pasquale Panella che raccoglie testimonianze e documentazioni esclusive e che segnala i nomi di tutti gli italiani – cineasti, attori, professionisti e artigiani – che lavorarono in incognito per il kolossal del 1959 premiato da 11 Oscar. Immagini e documenti esclusivi su www.benhurunaltrofilm.it

Lo speciale: Ben-Hur, un altro film

  •  
❌