Yahoo Movies Morning mail: Lancet retracts Covid-19 paper, Floyd memorial, walking with wombats
Good morning, this is Richard Parkin bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Friday 5 June.
Top stories
The leading medical journal the Lancet has retracted a paper responsible for halting global trials of hydroxychloroquine in relation to Covid-19, with its editor, Richard Horton, describing the data behind the research, provided by a little-known US company, Surgisphere, as “a shocking example of research misconduct”. Control trials established by the World Health Organization and several countries around the world had been suspended on the basis of the paper’s findings but an investigation by Guardian Australia’s Melissa Davey has exposed how experts around the globe had doubts about the accuracy of the data provided by Surgisphere.
The family of George Floyd and invitees including the Rev Jesse Jackson have conducted a memorial service in Minneapolis, the first of three planned across the US. The civil rights activist Rev Al Sharpton delivered the eulogy, calling for greater rights and protections for all Americans in dealing with the police. Meanwhile, a movement to reduce law enforcement budgets across the US has attracted “unprecedented” support, including from legislators, with advocates saying reinvesting the money in services would be a powerful way to reverse police brutality and killings. In Georgia, a state investigator has alleged in court that the white shooter of the black jogger Ahmaud Arbery was heard using a racial slur shortly after mortally wounding the unarmed 25-year-old.
Brazil has overtaken Italy’s Covid-19 tally to register the third-highest officially recorded toll globally, after a record 1,349 deaths took its number to 32,500. Mexico also reported a record daily tally of more than 1,000 deaths, with experts suggesting worse could yet be to come across Latin America in coming months. The director of Brazil’s Institute for Health Policy Studies expressed his extreme worry that exiting lockdown has proceeded too prematurely, warning: “[We] are going to witness hospitals collapsing in almost every state.” In Iran, the government has confirmed a record daily rate of new infections – even higher than the first wave experienced in March. In the UK, the transport secretary has announced that face coverings will be mandatory on public transport from 15 June.
Australia
A $9.3m government scheme to deliver emergency food supplies to older Australians isolating during Covid-19 delivered just 38 of a predicted 36,000 food boxes, the Department of Health has confirmed. The opposition’s aged care spokeswoman, Julie Collins, said Australians over 70 had been “left to slip through the cracks”. A rival $50m Meals on Wheels program has been blamed for “low demand”.
Commissioners handpicked by Scott Morrison for the National Covid-19 Coordination Commission are attracting scrutiny over potential conflicts of interest, with the prime minister’s department refusing to release “in confidence” disclosures from members including the chair and former Fortescue Metals boss, Nev Power.
A new national security test will be added to Australia’s foreign investment regime, allowing the federal treasurer to vet any significant investments in businesses that have national security ramifications. Previously, purchases up to nearly $1.2bn could take place without screening.
The world
German public prosecutors investigating a new lead suspect in the Madeleine McCann abduction case believe the British girl is dead. Madeleine disappeared in Portugal in 2007, aged three, but police are still appealing to members of the public to come forward with information pertaining to the suspect.
A 14-month siege of Libya’s capital Tripoli by the renegade general Khalifa Haftar has been lifted after Turkish-backed troops aligned with the UN-recognised government forced the rebels to retreat to strongholds in the country’s south and east.
More than 300 animals and plants endemic to Canada are facing the threat of extinction, with only 10% considered “globally secure” or “apparently secure”, according to a major new study that was two years in the making.
More than a century after it was torn down by a revolutionary mob, a replica of a historic 17th century statue of the Virgin Mary has been restored to its original place in Prague. The baroque figurine, erected in 1652, had been seen as a symbol of Hapsburg oppression during the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian empire.
Recommended reads
As humans stayed inside due to the coronavirus, many animals increasingly came outside. And with restrictions easing, writes Susan Gough Henly, from swimming with cuttlefish to walking with wombats, there’s probably never been a better time for a low-impact wilderness encounter. Here’s eight of the best to consider.
It used to be all about cooking with coconut oil – so when did wellness advocates suddenly start peddling rightwing conspiracies, Brigid Delaney asks. “Memes turning up on Maga pages were being reposted by yoga teachers who once quoted Maya Angelou but were now quoting David Icke.” And while it sounds like mere silliness, when one in five young Australians thinks there’s a link between 5G technology and the spread of Covid-19, it’s a dangerous example of “fusion paranoia”.
It started as an “above-average workplace comedy” but Tina Fey’s 30 Rock became the master of the long-running gag, writes Andrew P Street. From Jack Donaghy’s dismissive refrain of “good god, Lemon” to constantly evolving support characters, this trailblazing comedy is able to rise above the occasional poorly aged joke.
Listen
After widespread protests in the US after the killing of George Floyd, people are also taking to the streets in Australia. On this episode of Full Story, Indigenous affairs editor Lorena Allam examines Australia’s shameful record on Indigenous deaths in custody.
Full Story is Guardian Australia’s news podcast. Subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or any other podcasting app.
Sport
Rafael Nadal has said he would not compete in the US Open if it was held in New York today, as the governing bodies of the ATP and WTA deliberate over tennis’s return. Nadal stressed the game’s need to “be a positive example for society”, and said being responsible in the messages the game sends is a key part of that.
The New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees has issued a heartfelt apology after leading US athletes included LeBron James and his own teammates criticised an interview he gave in which he stated his opposition to Colin Kaepernick’s 2016 anthem protests.
Chelsea appear poised to beat Liverpool to the £53m signature of German international Timo Werner, with the RB Leipzig striker reportedly eyeing a five-year contract.
Media roundup
Qantas is in talks with the federal government about additional support as the airline begins to increase services from 5% to 15% of pre-Covid levels, the ABC reports. The New Zealand prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, has cooled anticipation surrounding an Australian-New Zealand “travel bubble”, refusing to put a date on any such plan due to Australia’s ongoing rate of new infections, writes the Australian. And a family stranded in an Airbnb holiday house for 10 weeks after flying home to visit a dying relative are some of the more than 10,000 people stuck in limbo due to travel bans, says the Age.
Coming up
The high court will make a key decision on the fate of the proposed expansion of the New Acland coalmine in Queensland. Oakey Coal Action Alliance and New Acland Coal have been locked in a lengthy legal battle over the plans.
The judgment in the Asic case against the Commonwealth Bank over an AgriAdvantage Plus package will be handed down today. Asic alleges 8,695 customers were ripped off to the tune of more than $8m.
And if you’ve read this far …
Mummified in a fish’s gut cavity – It sure isn’t a glamorous life for a family of eel species, known as snake eels, that normally spend their lives burrowed in the soft sand of the ocean floor. But a new report from the Queensland Museum has captured the last days of several unfortunate snake eels. And it’s not great reading, frankly.
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