‘It’s really sad’: US TikTok users rethink app over concerns about privacy and censorship 01. February 2026 (18:00) Some users are stepping away from the app after it made a deal to create a US entity and updated terms and conditionsMany TikTok users across the US say they’re rethinking their relationship with the platform since its ownership and terms and conditions have recently changed, with some citing censorship and lack of trust as reasons why they’re removing themselves from the app.Keara Sullivan, a 26-year-old comedian, says TikTok jumpstarted her career and provided a pathway to getting a manager and a literary agent. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Five-year-old Liam Ramos and his father released from Texas detention center 01. February 2026 (17:52) Boy and his father back in Minneapolis after being detained by ICE and held in immigration facility for more than a weekA five-year-old boy and his father were back in Minneapolis on Sunday after being released from a Texas immigration detention center where they were held for more than a week, according to US House representative Joaquin Castro.“Liam is now home. With his hat and his backpack. Thank you to everyone who demanded freedom for Liam,” Castro, a San Antonio Democrat, said in a post on X. “We won’t stop until all children and families are home.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
UK hospitality firms demand more help with business rates amid questions over Heathrow discount 01. February 2026 (17:52) Airports identified as biggest winners of government’s £4.3bn support package with Heathrow alone taking £900m discountStruggling hotels, restaurants and nightclubs are calling for more financial help with business rates after it emerged that Heathrow is among the biggest beneficiaries of a multibillion-pound package of state support.The UK’s biggest airport is in line for a discount of nearly £900m on its rates bill over the next three years. That is a fifth of the total £4.3bn “transitional relief” fund announced by the chancellor in the budget for all businesses facing big bill increases. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Melania film earns $7m in US, strongest documentary debut in over a decade 01. February 2026 (17:46) Melania, however, fell substantially short of turning a profit because it cost $40m to make and $35m to promoteAmazon’s Melania Trump documentary has reportedly beaten box office expectations and recorded the strongest start of any documentary in over a decade, taking $7m at the US box office during its lavishly-promoted opening weekend. Simultaneously, though, Melania fell substantially short of turning a profit because it cost $40m to make and $35m to promote.And Amazon – which recently cut 16,000 corporate jobs – has been hit with criticism that making the documentary about the first lady, and paying so highly for it, was little more than a ploy to curry favor with her husband, Donald Trump, during his second presidency. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Mandelson should testify in US Congress about Epstein links, UK minister says 01. February 2026 (17:21) Documents released in US appear to show the convicted child sex offender sent former US ambassador $75,000Peter Mandelson should testify before the US Congress about his links to Jeffrey Epstein, a government minister has said, as documents appeared to show the late child sex offender sent the former US ambassador $75,000.Emails and other documents released by the US justice department on Friday shed new light on the closeness of the relationship between Epstein and Lord Mandelson. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Likeness of restored angel to Giorgia Meloni triggers investigations in Rome 01. February 2026 (17:04) Cherub at landmark church causes ecclesiastical and political uproar with alleged resemblance to Italian PMItaly’s culture minister and the diocese of Rome have launched investigations after claims were made that an angel in a landmark church in Rome was restored in the likeness of the Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni.The resemblance was first flagged by the newspaper La Repubblica, which noted that one of the two angels flanking a marble bust of Italy’s last king in the Basilica of St Lawrence in Lucina now had “a familiar, astonishingly contemporary face”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Florida Republicans advance bill to weaken vaccine protections for children 01. February 2026 (17:00) But effort fell short of state surgeon general’s promise to end Florida’s immunization mandates altogetherRepublicans advanced a bill in the Florida legislature this week to weaken vaccine protections for children, but it fell well short of state surgeon general Joseph Ladapo’s promise made last year to end immunization mandates.The proposed new law, introduced by Jacksonville state senator Clay Yarborough, and which narrowly passed the chamber’s health policy committee on Monday in a 6-4 vote, seeks only to expand exemptions for parents who do not want their school-age children vaccinated. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Dozens of historic Maseratis recreated for movie about Italian car company 01. February 2026 (16:00) Film with a cast headed by Anthony Hopkins tells the story of a supercar marque that began in a small Bologna garageDozens of Maseratis of 1920s and 1930s designs have been built specially for a feature film about the Italian car company’s earliest days, with a cast headed by Anthony Hopkins.Maserati: The Brothers tells the story of siblings driven by their love of cars to create an automotive company from scratch. It all began in a little garage in the Italian city of Bologna: in 1914 they founded a sports supercar company that went on to make some of the fastest vehicles on the planet. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Democrat flips reliably red Texas district in victory that stuns Republican party 01. February 2026 (15:33) Taylor Rehmet’s win adds to Democrats’ record of overperforming in special elections so far this cycleDemocrat Taylor Rehmet won a special election for the Texas state senate on Saturday, flipping a reliably Republican district that Donald Trump won by 17 points when he clinched a second presidency in 2024.Rehmet, a labor union leader and veteran, easily defeated Republican Leigh Wambsganss, a conservative activist, in the Fort Worth-area district. With almost all votes counted, Rehmet had a comfortable lead of more than 14 percentage points. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Death toll from Crans-Montana bar fire rises to 41 01. February 2026 (15:26) Eighteen-year-old Swiss national injured in blaze at Swiss ski resort died on SaturdayA teenager injured in the fire that engulfed a bar in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana during new year celebrations has died in hospital, taking the death toll from the blaze to 41.The Wallis canton’s public prosecutor, Beatrice Pilloud, said in a brief statement on Sunday: “An 18-year-old Swiss national died at a hospital in Zurich on January 31. The death toll from the fire at Le Constellation bar on January 1 2026 has now risen to 41.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
