Here are some of the stories making headlines today.
Why Trump blinked
President Donald Trump has spent weeks drawing battle lines for a trade war with Europe and courting Vladimir Putin — causing almost universal angst in Washington. On Wednesday, he blinked on both.
Explosive detonated at the US embassy in Beijing
A 26-year-old man detonated an explosive on the street outside the US Embassy in Beijing Thursday, police said, injuring himself before he was taken away by authorities.
White House press corps showing unity after reporter barred from Rose Garden event
Journalists reacted with dismay when the Trump administration barred CNN’s Kaitlan Collins from attending a presidential event in the Rose Garden. Two White House officials, Bill Shine and Sarah Sanders, told Collins that she asked “inappropriate” questions during Trump’s meeting with European Commissionpresident, Jean-Claude Juncker. So the ban was retaliatory in nature.
Facebook stock plunges 20% after CFO warns sales growth will slow
Wall Street’s sharp reaction followed an earnings report that showed slower than expected growth in user numbers and ad revenue. Overall revenue hit $13.2 billion for the quarter, up 42% from the same period a year prior but below Wall Street estimates. The stock rebounded slightly as the evening wore on, but the news clearly spooked investors.
Cars turn to molten metal as Greek wildfires wipe villages off the map
Dried pools of molten aluminum dot the charred roads of a small Greek village ravaged by fire this week. The flames were so hot that cars in their path began to melt, metal dripping to the ground and tires turned to liquid rubber.
New Zealand tells Australia: Stop ‘copying’ our flag
New Zealand’s acting Prime Minister Winston Peters has accused Australia of copying his country’s flag, telling its trans-Tasman neighbor to get its own design.
Chris Froome accosted by policeman on descent
Four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome stopped by gendarme on descent after Stage 17.
Lunar eclipse: How to watch the blood moon and a brighter Mars
On Friday, skywatchers around the world will be rewarded with the longest total lunar eclipse of the century — except those in North America.
Ex-cricketer Khan leads Pakistan elections
Ex-cricket star Imran Khan has taken an early lead as votes are counted in Pakistan’s poll, but political rivals allege vote-rigging on a major scale. Early unofficial results suggest his PTI party are in the lead, but it will need to form a coalition if it is unable to secure a simple majority.
Facebook shares dive as growth disappoints
Facebook shares tumbled by more than 20% on Wednesday after the social media network’s revenue and user growth fell short of investor expectations. The firm, which is facing backlash for its handling of fake news and privacy, said it had 2.23 billion monthly active users at the end of June.
The secret in my blood
By Jon Kelly Illustrations: Charlotte Edey Matt Merry can’t recall the exact words his mother used to tell him he was HIV-positive. He just remembers not knowing how to react, not at first, not in front of his mum. She had sat him down at a table in the back room of their home in Rugby to break the news.
Row over CNN reporter’s White House ban
A CNN reporter has been barred from a White House event for asking Donald Trump “inappropriate” questions. Kaitlan Collins said she was excluded from a Rose Garden event after asking about Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mr Trump’s ex-lawyer. White House press secretary Sarah Saunders said the reporter had shouted questions and refused to leave.
The man who could die from daylight
But could a unique invention allow Alex to go outside?
Bid to impeach US deputy attorney general
Republicans have launched a bid to remove the Department of Justice official overseeing the Russia inquiry dogging Donald Trump’s presidency. House of Representatives conservatives have filed articles of impeachment in an effort to oust Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. The measures were introduced on Wednesday evening by Representatives Mark Meadows and Jim Jordan.
Trump & EU Agree On Deal To Lower Trade Barriers
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the United States and the European Union were kicking off talks aimed at lowering trade barriers as officials looked to head off a brewing trade war.
Facebook’s Grim Forecast: Privacy Push Will Erode Profits For Years
(Reuters) – Facebook Inc’s shares lost as much as a quarter of their value on Wednesday after executives said that profit margins would plummet for several years due to the costs of improving privacy safeguards and slowing usage in the biggest advertising markets.
Late Night TV Hosts Roast Trump By Releasing Their Own Cohen Tapes
Late night TV hosts covered the emergence of a secretly recorded conversation between President Donald Trump and his former personal attorney Michael Cohen in amusing ways. In the audio that CNN broadcast earlier this week, Trump and his lawyer were heard talking about a hush money payment to former Playboy model Karen McDougal (with whom Trump allegedly had an affair) prior to the 2016 election.
Paul Ryan Reading Mean Tweets About Himself Does Not Go Over Well
House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) received some backlash on Twitter about a video in which he reads mean tweets about himself. In the clip that Ryan office’s shared online Wednesday, he attempted to copy the popular ” Jimmy Kimmel Live! ” segment in which stars repeat the horrible things that people on the social media platform have posted about them.
Jimmy Fallon and Stephen Colbert are thirsty for that secret Trump tape
That secret recording between Trump and former lawyer Michael Cohen has been played relentlessly over the past 24 hours. You can count on late night hosts Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Fallon to give a fresh spin on the tape, opening with the story in both their monologues.
Samsung has an unbreakable smartphone screen, and we can’t wait to test it
You know how they called the Titanic unsinkable? It didn’t turn out to be a very smart way of describing that particular ship. In completely unrelated news, Samsung has announced a smartphone screen that it calls “unbreakable,” which by definition means it can never, ever be broken under any circumstances.
‘The Late Show’ has its own version of the secret Trump-Cohen tape
So, we’ve heard the audio of the secret recording between Donald Trump and his former lawyer Michael Cohen, but now there’s video? Well, at least a video made by Stephen Colbert and The Late Show team. The late night show has crafted their own comedic video accompaniment to the real 2016 recording aired by CNN on Tuesday.
Trump’s Walk of Fame vandal bailed out by dude who also took a pickaxe to the star
Not all heroes wear capes. Some just wield pickaxes. Trump’s name was gouged out of his Hollywood Walk of Fame star overnight. According to the LA Times , Austin Clay destroyed the star with a pickaxe at 3:30 a.m. on Wednesday, and promptly called the police.
