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News24.com | Egypt reopens slowly to revive pandemic-hit economy

Egypt's economy had just started to recover after years of political turmoil and militant attacks when the coronavirus crisis hit, impacting especially its vital tourism sector.




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News24.com | Ethiopia's Abiy warns of opposition power grab amid pandemic

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has said that opposition politicians were trying to exploit uncertainty created by the coronavirus pandemic to seize power, risking instability.




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News24.com | Misinformation flood hampers fight for virus vaccine in Africa

The task of introducing a vaccine for the coronavirus faces an uphill struggle in Africa, where a flood of online misinformation is feeding on mistrust of Western medical research.




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More than 140 migrants intercepted in Channel - highest number in one day

A record number of migrants crossed the English Channel on Friday.




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Domino’s will start delivering pizzas via an autonomous robot this fall

Domino's plans to start delivering pizzas using an autonomous, unmanned vehicle. The announcement is the latest example of technology companies using robots to deliver food.




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Florida’s latest oddity: Semi trucks with nobody inside them

Starsky Robotics has begun testing unmanned, remotely operated trucks on highways. The vehicles are being pitched as a solution for the industry's massive driver shortage.




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Ever wonder how much tech workers get paid in your town? This map might have the answer.

Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Business.org looked at 100 metro areas across the United States to rank average tech salaries.




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Meet ‘Mindar,’ the robotic Buddhist priest

A Japanese temple has settled on a new plan for connecting with the masses, one that channels ancient wisdom through the technology of the future.




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It’s never been easier to avoid walking. A cargo-carrying robot might change that.

A new robot from a Boston start-up is designed to make walking easier by carrying your belongings for you.




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California has 33 million acres of forest. This company is training artificial intelligence to scour it all for wildfire.

As fires tear across California, a Silicon Valley technology company believes artificial intelligence could be the key to preventing them in the future.




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Boston Dynamics’ ‘terrifying’ robotic dogs have been put to work by at least one police agency

Boston Dynamics began began leasing their robotic dogs to the public this year. One of their first customers: The Massachusetts State Police.




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Jaguars are your best play in eliminator and survivor pools for Week 4

Expectations were high for Jacksonville heading into the season. The game charters at Pro Football Focus ranked them as the league’s top secondary, the second-best pass rush and the seventh-best run-stopping unit in 2018.




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Fantasy Football start/sit tips for Week 5: Start Redskins QB Alex Smith against the Saints

Smith has lived up to expectations in 2018, completing 66 of 96 passes (career-high 69 percent) for 767 yards, four touchdowns and one interception.




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Patriots are your best play in eliminator and survivor pools for Week 5

The Patriots put their stamp back on the AFC East after throttling the Miami Dolphins 38-7 on Sunday. The Colts are next.




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Texans are your best play in eliminator and survivor pools for Week 6

Houston’s defensive front, featuring one-man wrecking crew J.J. Watt, has the sixth-highest adjusted sack rate.




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Waiver wire targets: Add Ito Smith immediately

Ito Smith is a solid addition for teams seeking backfield depth.




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Fantasy Football start/sit tips for Week 7: Patriots' Sony Michel a smart play against the Bears

Michel will face a Chicago Bears defense that stops opposing rushers a league-low 13 percent of the time.




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Colts are your best play in eliminator and survivor pools for Week 7

Colts have the the fifth-best run-stopping unit per PFF and the fourth-highest stuff rate per Football Outsiders.




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Fantasy Football start/sit tips for Week 8: Expect a slow week from the Saints' Michael Thomas

Thomas and the Saints will have to contend with a Vikings defense that has limited No. 1 receivers to an average of 53 yards per game.




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Steelers are your best play in eliminator and survivor pools for Week 8

Pittsburgh is stuffing 25 percent of rushers in 2018, eighth-most in the NFL.




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Panthers are your best play in eliminator and survivor pools for Week 9

Against No. 1 receiver types like Mike Evans, the Panthers rank fourth-best per Football Outsiders' Defense-adjusted Value Over Average.




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New Coach Mike Budenholzer has the Milwaukee Bucks ahead of schedule

Milwaukee has embraced the modern NBA.




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Chiefs are your best play in eliminator and survivor pools for Week 10

Kansas City's opponent, Arizona, is scoring slightly more than a point per possession, making it the NFL's second-worst offense.




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Chargers are your best play in eliminator and survivor pools for Week 12

The Chargers are scoring 2.4 points per drive, the sixth-most this season, and are only forced to go three-and-out once out of every four drives.




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Week 13 waiver wire tips: A newly minted starting RB is available. Snag him.

The running back situation in Philadelphia is gaining clarity, and the starter is available in more than a third of fantasy leagues.




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Packers are your best play in eliminator and survivor pools for Week 13

This week’s opponent, the Arizona Cardinals, gives Aaron Rodgers and the Packers a great chance to break their losing skid.




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Offense was supposed to limit the Jazz. Instead, defense is the problem in Utah.

Last year, defense was the calling card of the Jazz. That's not the case this season.




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Titans are your best play in NFL eliminator and survivor pools for Week 14

Thursday night matchups are historically difficult on road teams like Jacksonville. Since 2016, the road team is 17-33 in these games, and that includes a 3-12 record in 2018.




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Falcons are your best play in NFL eliminator and survivor pools for Week 15

Atlanta is on a five-game losing streak but their offense is scoring 2.3 points per drive in 2018, the fifth-highest rate in the NFL. That should be more than enough against Arizona's awful offense.




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Facebook's fight against coronavirus misinformation could boost pressure on the company to get more aggressive in removing other falsehoods spreading across the social network (FB)

  • Facebook is taking a harder line on misinformation related to coronavirus than it has on other health topics in the past.
  • This decision may increase the pressure on the company to act more decisively against other forms of harmful falsehoods that spread on its social networks.
  • Facebook is banning events that promote flouting lockdown protests, and is removing the conspiracy theory video "Plandemic."
  • But false claims that vaccines are dangerous still proliferate on Facebook — even though they contribute to the deaths of children.

Amid the pandemic, Facebook is taking a harder line on misinformation than it has in the past. That decision may come back to haunt it.

As coronavirus has wreaked havoc across the globe, forcing lockdowns and disrupting economies, false information and hoaxes have spread like wildfire on social media. Miracle cures, intentional disinformation about government policies, and wild claims that Bill Gates orchestrated the entire health crisis abound.

In the past, Facebook has been heavily criticised for failing to take action to stop its platform being used to facilitate the spread of misinformation. To be sure, coronavirus falsehoods are still easily found on Facebook — but the company has taken more decisive action than in previous years:

But Facebook's actions to combat COVID-19 misinformation may backfire — in the sense that it has the potential to dramatically increase pressure on the company to take stronger action against other forms of misinformation.

The company has long struggled with how to handle fake news and hoaxes; historically, its approach is not to delete them, but to try to artificially stifle their reach via algorithmic tweaks. Despite this, pseudoscience, anti-government conspiracy theories, and other falsehoods still abound on the social network.

Facebook has now demonstrated that it is willing to take more decisive action on misinformation, when the stakes are high enough. Its critics may subsequently ask why it is so reticent to combat the issue when it causes harm in other areas — particularly around other medical misinformation.

One expected defence for Facebook? That it is focused on taking down content that causes "imminent harm," and while COVID-19 misinformation falls into that category, lots of other sorts of falsehoods don't.

However, using "imminence" as the barometer of acceptability is dubious: Vaccine denialism directly results in the deaths of babies and children. That this harm isn't "imminent" doesn't make it any less dangerous — but, for now, such material is freely posted on Facebook.

Far-right conspiracy theories like Pizzagate, and more recent, Qanon, have also spread on Facebook — stoking baseless fears of shadowy cabals secretly controlling the government. These theories don't intrinsically incite harm, but have been linked to multiple acts of violence, from a Pizzagate believer firing his weapon in a pizza parlour to the Qanon-linked killing of a Gambino crime boss. (Earlier this week, Facebook did take down some popular QAnon pages — but for breaking its rules on fake profiles, rather than disinformation.)

And Facebook is still full of groups rallying against 5G technology, making evidence-free claims about its health effects (and now, sometimes linking it to coronavirus in a messy web). These posts exist on a continuum, with believers at the extreme end attempting to burn down radio towers and assault technicians; Facebook does take down such incitements to violence, but the more general fearmongering that can act as a gateway to more extreme action remains.

This week, Facebook announced the first 20 members of its Oversight Board — a "Supreme Court"-style entity that will review reports from users make rulings as to what objectionable content is and isn't allowed on Facebook and Instagram, with — in theory — the power to overrule the company. It remains to be seen whether its decisions may affect the company's approach for misinformation, and it still needs to appoint the rest of its members and get up and running.

For now, limits remain in place as to what Facebook will countenance in its fight against coronavirus-specific misinformation.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the company would immediately take down posts advertising dangerous false cures to COVID-19, like drinking bleach. It is "obviously going to create imminent harm," he said in March. "That is just in a completely different class of content than the back-and-forth accusations a candidate might make in an election."

But in April, President Donald Trump suggested that people might try injecting a "disinfectant" as a cure, which both has the potential to be extremely harmful, and will not cure coronavirus.

Facebook is not taking down video of his comments.

Do you work at Facebook? Contact Business Insider reporter Rob Price via encrypted messaging app Signal (+1 650-636-6268), encrypted email (robaeprice@protonmail.com), standard email (rprice@businessinsider.com), Telegram/Wickr/WeChat (robaeprice), or Twitter DM (@robaeprice). We can keep sources anonymous. Use a non-work device to reach out. PR pitches by standard email only, please.

SEE ALSO: Facebook announced the first 20 members of its oversight board that will decide what controversial content is allowed on Facebook and Instagram

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: A cleaning expert reveals her 3-step method for cleaning your entire home quickly




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Meet the 10 Oracle execs backing CEO Safra Catz and founder Larry Ellison in the tech giant's cloud offensive against Amazon, Microsoft, and Google (ORCL)

  • Oracle's bid to become a bigger player in the cloud has become more aggressive in the COVID-19 crisis, highlighted by a new partnership with Zoom.
  • The tech giant is up against stronger rivals led by Amazon, Microsoft and Google, but the need for more cloud capacity sparked by the sudden pivot to remote work has created opportunities for the Silicon Valley behemoth.
  • Here are the 10 Oracle executives who are playing key roles in CEO Safra Catz and founder Larry Ellison bold cloud offensive.
  • Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Oracle has been through some jarring changes in the last seven months. 

The tech giant lost a well-regarded and experienced co-CEO when Mark Hurd died in October after taking leave for health reasons, leaving Safra Catz as the solo CEO. Now, like other major tech companies, Oracle is grappling with the impact of the coronavirus crisis.

But Oracle has been through tough times in its 43-year history. In fact, the Silicon Valley giant has been known to seize opportunities during rough spots. It's already seen some success during this crisis, too: Oracle just scored a big win when videoconferencing company Zoom — suddenly facing a surge in demand — chose to expand on Oracle Cloud, instead of other platforms like top cloud provider Amazon. Oracle is generally considered a smaller player in the cloud wars, behind giants Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and Alibaba.

Yes, Oracle still has a long way to go to match its rivals' reach, but its strategy of expanding its capacity by building more data centers seems to be paying off, IDC President Crawford Del Prete told Business Insider.

That increased capacity and Oracle's "world class" applications are key in the cloud words, Del Prete said: "Oracle is one of the few companies able to deliver both at scale in order to compete."

While Catz and founder, executive chairman, and chief technology officer Larry Ellison the lead company, they're also relying on key top executives, including cloud veterans from rival Amazon, to advance Oracle's cloud strategy. 

Nearly all are white men, something Oracle has criticized for in the past: Over 30 members of Congress slammed the company late last year about the lack of diversity in its leadership team and on its board.

Meet the 10 top executives playing important roles in Oracle's cloud offensive:

SEE ALSO: Oracle is known for making bold M&A moves in a recession and it's sitting on a fresh $20 billion. Here are the 7 companies experts think it could acquire as the coronavirus crisis drives down valuations

SEE ALSO: Experts lay out five moves that Oracle founder Larry Ellison, one of tech's best tacticians, might take in a coronavirus-driven downturn

Don Johnson left Amazon to focus on Oracle's cloud infrastructure.

Title: Executive vice president, cloud infrastructure

Reports to: Larry Ellison

Johnson  played a key role in Amazon's dramatic expansion in the cloud before joining Oracle in 2014.

He was instrumental in setting up Oracle's cloud engineering development center in Seattle and in the tech giant's expanding data center footprint.  Johnson has also led another major Oracle initiative: forming a cloud partnership with Microsoft.

 



Oracle's chief corporate architect Edward Screven has been with the company since 1986.

Title: Chief corporate architect

Reports to: Larry Ellison

Screven is an Oracle veteran who helped lead the company through all of the major industry changes of the past 30 years.

He admits that cloud market-leader Amazon had a head start, but says that there are benefits to following it. 

"We definitely started after Amazon: The bad news is they have market share, the good news is we get to learn a lot," he told Business Insider in an interview in May 2019. "Mindshare, that may be their biggest asset. But there is no technology they have that is concerning to me at all."

As one of Oracle's top technologists, he's focused on making Oracle's cloud infrastructure more secure, with more sophisticated and efficient ways to manage data. 

"We have hundreds of thousands of customers that store their most important data in Oracle databases," Screven said. "We could do a far better job for them than any other cloud provider. We are doing a far better job for them."

 



Clay Magouyrk leads cloud infrastructure engineering and played a key role in forging Oracle's new alliance with Zoom.

Title: Executive vice president, cloud infrastructure engineering

Reports to: Don Johnson

Magouyrk is another veteran of Amazon Web Services who joined the Oracle team in Seattle in 2014. 

He was Oracle's point-man in forging its new partnership with Zoom, which was seen as a major victory for Oracle.

"They needed capacity," Magouyrk told Business Insider last month "They reached out to us and we were like, 'Awesome, we can work with you.' Within a day, we had their application up and running."

Magouyrk was a founding team member of Oracle's cloud engineering development center in Seattle, which is spearheading the company's cloud infrastructure efforts.

 



Ariel Kelman left Amazon Web Services to become Oracle's chief marketing officer.

Title: Chief Marketing Officer

Reports to: Safra Catz

One of the biggest hurdles for Oracle is the public perception that it's a minor player in the cloud. In other words, it's a marketing problem.

This is where Kelman comes in. Before Oracle brought him on board in January 2020, Kelman led rival Amazon's cloud marketing efforts, and served as a marketing executive at Salesforce for six years before that.

"Ariel is a super smart hire for Oracle," analyst Ray Wang of Constellation Research told Business Insider. "He brings the cred in the market and understands how to counter all of Amazon's tactics and long-term strategy. He has the ear of Larry and Safra and is making progress with some great hires on his team."



Juergen Lindner left SAP to lead Oracle's software-as-a-service marketing strategy.

Title: Senior vice president, software-as-a-service marketing

Reports to: Ariel Kelman, chief marketing officer

Lindner spent most of his career helping SAP outsell Oracle in the traditional business software market: both dominated teh market for software installed in private data centers. 

He switched sides and roles four years ago to support Oracle's bid to become a stronger player in cloud software, also referred to as software-as-a-service, where businesses access applications through cloud platforms and pay via a subscription, usually based on the number of users granted access. 

Lindner has said it became clear to him that Oracle had a better strategy for the cloud-software era.

"Oracle has architected a very sustainable cloud infrastructure and applications strategy," he told Business Insider last year.



Steve Daheb left Citrix to lead Oracle's cloud marketing strategy.

Title: Senior vice president, cloud go-to-market

Reports to: Ashley Hart, senior vice president, global marketing cloud platform and database

Daheb joined Oracle in 2015 after serving as the chief marketing officer of Citrix, a cloud pioneer that first let businesses set up computing networks on web-based platforms instead of on-premise data centers, leading to dramatic IT cost savings.

Daheb witnessed the unexpected rise of Amazon in cloud computing, which began in the early : 2000s when the online retail giant realized it could make some extra money by giving businesses access to its massive but underutilized computing infrastructure, hosted from its data centers.

"Amazon had spare computing resources to rent out," he told Business Insider last year. "It's like, 'Hey, man, I got an extra room in the house during the summer when it's not spike retail time. There's nobody in there, so why don't I put this thing on Airbnb and see if anybody wants it?'"

Amazon Web Services has led the industry ever since. 

Like others on the Oracle team, Daheb thinks the software giant's technology and track record of working with major players across industries will eventually propel it to the front of the cloud pack.

"There's a level of understanding we have and a level of empathy we have for enterprise users: We serve the major banks, we serve transportation, we serve healthcare," he said. "We brought this enterprise mentality to it."



Juan Loaiza, who has been with Oracle since 1988, is in charge of mission-critical database technologies.

Title: Executive vice president, mission-critical database technologies

Reports to: Larry Ellison

Loaiza is another Oracle veteran who has been with the company for more than 30 years and is currently focused on its bid to expand the reach of its flagship database product.

The tech giant's cloud-based automated data-management platform Autonomous Database uses machine learning to quickly repair and update itself.Loaiza has compared the status of this fairly new initiative to the development of the self-driving car:

"It took a long time to get to a point where we are now and say, 'The next step is a self-driving car,'" he told Business Insider last year. "It's got to be safe. It has to have seatbelts and airbags and a navigation system. All that stuff was necessary before you take it to the next stage." 

The database is ready for that next stage. 



Jason Williamson left Amazon to lead Oracle's outreach to startups.

Title: Vice president, Oracle for Startups

Reports to: Mamei Sun, Ellison's chief of staff

Startups have played an important role in the growth of cloud computing and Oracle has launched a big push to establish closer ties with these smaller companies, given that they could eventually become the biggest power players. 

Williamson has been the company's point-man in this effort, as he develops ways to make Oracle's products and services more accessible to startups.

Williamson is another veteran of Amazon Web Services where he led the cloud giant's private-equity team before joining Oracle in 2017.

 



Evan Goldberg cofounded NetSuite, which is now part of Oracle.

Title: Executive vice president, NetSuite

Reports to: Safra Catz

Goldberg is part of the elite club of Oracle alums who went on to launch successful enterprise-software companies. (Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff is perhaps the best-known.)

Goldberg left a long career at Oracle in the late 1990s to launch NetSuite, a cloud-based provider of financial- and accounting-management services. He was the chief technology officer alongside CEO Zach Nelson, another Oracle alum, and Ellison was actually one of their early backers.

Oracle acquired the company in 2016 and it now has more than 18,000 customers. 



Steve Miranda has been with Oracle since 1992 and leads cloud-applications development.

Title: Executive vice president, applications product development

Reports to: Ellison

Miranda is an Oracle veteran in charge of different aspects of the company's cloud-software business, including product development and strategy.

This covers applications used for major business operations, like supply-chain management, human resources, and enterprise performance management.






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The top 9 shows on Netflix and other streaming services this week

  • Every week, Parrot Analytics provides Business Insider with a list of the nine most in-demand original TV shows on streaming services in the US.
  • This week includes "The Midnight Gospel," a surprise animated hit from Netflix. 
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Netflix's new animated series, "The Midnight Gospel," is a surprise hit and gaining in audience demand while the one-time sensation, "Tiger King," dramatically dipped to the point where it's not among this week's most in-demand streaming originals. 

Every week, Parrot Analytics provides Business Insider with a list of the nine most in-demand TV shows on streaming services in the US.

The data is based on "demand expressions," Parrot Analytics' globally standardized TV-demand measurement unit. Audience demand reflects the desire, engagement, and viewership weighted by importance, so a stream or a download is a higher expression of demand than a "like" or a comment on social media, for instance.

Disney Plus' final season of "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" dramatically surged in demand this week after the series finale debuted on May 4, otherwise known as "Star Wars" Day.

But last week's newcomers, Apple TV Plus' "Defending Jacob" and Hulu's "Little Fires Everywhere," disappeared this week. 

Below are this week's nine most popular original shows on Netflix and other streaming services:

SEE ALSO: Insiders say major questions hang over DC Universe as its parent company prepares to launch Netflix rival HBO Max

9. "The Midnight Gospel" (Netflix)

Average demand expressions: 32,846,492

Description: "Traversing trippy worlds inside his universe simulator, a space caster explores existential questions about life, death and everything in between."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 1): 90%

What critics said: "We often say that a show is 'like nothing else on television' and it's usually an act of critical hyperbole. Trust me. It's true here." — RogerEbert.com (Season 1)

Season 1 premiered on Netflix on April 20. See more insights here.



8. "Narcos: Mexico" (Netflix)

Average demand expressions: 33,194,298

Description: "Witness the birth of the Mexican drug war in the 1980s as a gritty new ‚Narcos' saga chronicles the true story of the Guadalajara cartel's ascent."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 2): 87%

What critics said: "The second season of Narcos: Mexico, then, is far from flawless - but there are enough reminders of what has made the show such a phenomenon to make it a worthy watch." — Radio Times (Season 2)

Season 2 premiered February 13 on Netflix. See more insights here.



7. "The Witcher" (Netflix)

Average demand expressions: 34,076,054

Description: "Geralt of Rivia, a mutated monster-hunter for hire, journeys toward his destiny in a turbulent world where people often prove more wicked than beasts."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 1): 67%

What critics said: "It is messy, and absurd, but also — it is fun." — The Atlantic (Season 1)

Season 1 premiered on Netflix on December 20. See more insights here.



6. "Harley Quinn" (DC Universe)

Average demand expressions: 34,470,458

Description: "Harley Quinn has taken down the Joker and Gotham City is finally hers for the taking…whatever's left of it that is. Gotham has become a desolate wasteland, left in ruins, following the huge earthquake caused by the collapse of Joker's tower. Harley's celebration in this newly created chaos is cut short when Penguin, Bane, Mr. Freeze, The Riddler, and Two-Face join forces to restore order in the criminal underworld. Calling themselves the Injustice League, this group now stands in the way of Harley and her crew from taking sole control of Gotham as the top villains of the city."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 2): 88%

What critics said: "If you weren't sold on the first season of Harley Quinn, the Season 2 premiere probably won't change your mind. However, the series looks to be even stronger in its sophomore outing." — IGN (season 2)

Season 2 premiered April 3 on DC Universe. See more insights here.



5. "Titans" (DC Universe)

Average demand expressions: 40,950,684

Description: "'Titans' follows young heroes from across the DC Universe as they come of age and find belonging in a gritty take on the classic Teen Titans franchise. Dick Grayson and Rachel Roth, a special young girl possessed by a strange darkness, get embroiled in a conspiracy that could bring Hell on Earth. Joining them along the way are the hot-headed Starfire and lovable Beast Boy. Together they become a surrogate family and team of heroes."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 2): 81%

What critics said: "This hard-hitting drama provided much of the talented cast with some juicy material, while also allowing the show to continue to go from strength-to-strength." — What Culture (Season 2)

Season 2 premiered on DC Universe on September 6. See more insights here.

 



4. "Money Heist (La Casa de Papel)" (Netflix)

Average demand expressions: 45,905,200

Description: "Eight thieves take hostages and lock themselves in the Royal Mint of Spain as a criminal mastermind manipulates the police to carry out his plan."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 4): 75%

What critics said: "If you are looking for addictive entertainment, this fourth season of 'Money Heist' has more than enough doses of it." — Espinoff (Season 4)

Season 4 premiered on Netflix April 3. See more insights here.



3. "The Mandalorian" (Disney Plus)

Average demand expressions: 53,820,742

Description: "After the fall of the Empire, a lone gunfighter makes his way through the lawless galaxy."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 1): 93%

What critics said: "[The Mandalorian] has an empire of sentiment serving as the wind at its back, and as long as it keeps up its momentum, even those of us programmed to dissect and critique programs may be content to simply sail along with it." — Salon (Season 1)

Season 1 premiered on Disney Plus on November 12. See more insights here.



2. "Stranger Things" (Netflix)

Average demand expressions: 57,853,672

Description: "When a young boy vanishes, a small town uncovers a mystery involving secret experiments."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 3): 89%

What critics said: "Even the most distinctive moments feel disconnected from the rest, especially a segment in the final episode that feels as if its sole purpose is to be extracted and recirculated as a meme." — Slate (Season 3)

Season 3 premiered July 4 on Netflix. See more insights here.



1. "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" (Disney Plus)

Average demand expressions: 126,320,893

Description: "From Dave Filoni, director and executive producer of 'The Mandalorian,' the new Clone Wars episodes will continue the storylines introduced in the original series, exploring the events leading up to 'Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith.'"

Rotten Tomatoes critic score (Season 7): 100%

What critics said: "The overall ending to seven seasons can feel rudely abrupt when other threads are hanging. But the solemn meditation on the casualties of war and the slow-yet-swift-feeling disintegration of a seemingly secure world is the microcosm of the entire series." — Slashfilm (season 7)

Season 7 premiered on February 21 on Disney Plus. See more insights here.






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Michelle Obama goes low and leads Team USA to victory in celebrity dodgeball match on ‘Late Late Show’

The former first lady and her A-list friends triumphed over late-night host James Corden and his squad.




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John Cusack apologizes for anti-Semitic tweet — after defending why he posted it

In a string of tweets, the actor apologized for retweeting an anti-Semitic meme.




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Rihanna has a message for President Trump about immigration

The native of Barbados apparently doesn't like Trump's immigration policies.




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‘Real Housewives’ stars Ashley and Michael Darby are closing their Virginia restaurant

The couple ran Oz, an Australian-themed eatery in Clarendon.




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Actor Adam Scott and Sen. Mitch McConnell’s social media team are in a Twitter fight

The actor responded unfavorably to a tweet by McConnell's campaign, and the beef didn't stop there.




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Michelle Obama talks about her last night at the White House, Democratic presidential candidates in interview

“The transition happens so quickly; it’s like you don’t even get to move your furniture out until the new president takes the oath of office,” Obama told Gayle King in an interview at Essence Festival.




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Human rights group asks Nicki Minaj to cancel performance in Saudi Arabia

The "Megatron" rapper is set to perform in the country next week despite calls to quit the gig over the government's alleged human rights violations.




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Nicki Minaj pulls out of concert in Saudi Arabia ‘after better educating myself on the issues’

The rapper said she wanted to support women's and LGTBQ rights.




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Miss the Biden and Obama bromance? There’s — another — book for that.

Parodist Andrew Shaffer's new mystery "Hope Rides Again" (a sequel to 2018's "Hope Never Dies"), reunites the literary and real-life duo.




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Alyssa Milano faces backlash for supporting a Marianne Williamson fundraiser: ‘I know. I know.’

The "Charmed" actress defended her decision to help raise money for the controversial Democratic candidate, saying Williamson is addressing the "soulful ache of the nation."




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After Nicki Minaj backs out of concert in Saudi Arabia, Janet Jackson, 50 Cent and others join lineup

Human rights advocates have urged artists not to perform in the country because of its dismal human rights record.




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Kim Kardashian spotted filming at D.C. jail

The reality star and criminal justice reform advocate was in town Tuesday.




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Cardi B continues her support of Bernie Sanders by filming a campaign video together

The rapper has been a supporter of the Democratic presidential candidate, and says she wants to help "a movement of young people to transform this country."




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Trump sends envoy for hostage affairs to Sweden ‘on a mission’ to bring back A$AP Rocky

The president wants the rapper, who is accused of assault, returned to the United States.




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Tomi Lahren apologizes after saying Kamala Harris slept her way to the top

The Fox Nation host got plenty of criticism for her tweet about the Democratic presidential candidate — including from fellow Fox-ers.




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Ben Folds makes a song called ‘Moscow Mitch’

Joe Scarborough of "Morning Joe" on MSNBC took credit for the name, which reportedly angers Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.




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Brightest Young Things brings the millennials to the revamped International Spy Museum

A mostly millennial crowd explored the upgraded and interactive museum.




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Michelle Obama, Lin-Manuel Miranda, James Corden and more expected at National Portrait Gallery’s gala

Like the Kennedy Center Honors, the gallery’s gala has turned into a red-carpet affair.