LONDON — Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s government said the U.K. is willing to discuss American concerns over its digital services tax amid renewed pressure from the White House.
President Donald Trump in June threatened to impose 100 percent tariffs on European countries with DSTs which target U.S. tech firms, and in an interview with The Times newspaper published on Monday, Trump’s top trade official Jamieson Greer said the threat was “not a bluff” and the president’s demands that foreign governments abandon such taxes were “quite serious.”
“We remain open to discussing U.S. concerns and working with partners internationally,” a U.K. government spokesperson said when asked about Greer’s comments.
“This tax is about making sure that businesses pay their fair share of U.K. tax based on the value they derive from U.K. activities,” the spokesperson said, adding that the U.K. is committed to removing it “once a global solution is in place.”
The DST raised over £1 billion last year, predominantly from American tech firms, and has repeatedly drawn Trump’s ire.
The U.K. government has so far resisted calls to abandon the tax, including during trade negotiations last year. A U.K.-U.S. Economic Prosperity Deal signed by Trump and Burnham’s predecessor, Keir Starmer, did not mention the DST but said both sides would continue discussions to increase digital trade and address non-tariff barriers.
Greer added in his interview with The Times that the U.S. administration would not “set artificial timelines” and that relations with his British counterparts, including Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds and the prime minister’s business adviser Varun Chandra, are positive.
A full three decades ago, as Bill Clinton turned 50 in the midst of his successful 1996 reelection campaign, he was sounding even then in an autumnal mood.
“I have more yesterdays than tomorrows” he used to say often that year, a wistfulness that caused those of us who covered him to puzzle. What’s with this misty nostalgia? It was literally true, unless he expected to live 100, that he probably had more yesterdays than tomorrows. But fifty is typically the point when people realize they are no longer exactly young. It is hardly an age that merits a self-conception as old. Clinton’s perspective, however, doubtless left him with an appreciation of the fragility of life. He never met his biological father — a traveling salesman who married five times and died at age 28 in a car accident, three months before the future president was born.
Yet Clinton himself has proved reasonably durable, especially for a man who had serious heart surgery at age 58. The 42nd president turns 80 today — at last at an age that amply justifies a more searching look back on life.
Rest assured that no one in 1996 was contemplating the possibility that the president 30 years later would be a man who is actually two months older than Clinton — much less that this man would be President Donald Trump, who at that time had already been famous as a real estate magnate and professional self-promoter for 15 years or so.
Above all, I think few people then were imagining that the country in 2026 would itself be feeling so old — or, at a minimum, so surly and so bereft of a unifying vision of the future. The very essence of the most powerful and divisive political movement since former President Ronald Reagan’s is expressly backward-looking — Make America Great Again.
Many of the habits that today infuse American politics — the ones that make it so remorseless and infused with indignation and disdain — were present in nascent form in Clinton’s presidency. At the time, those developments seemed exotic — there was scant notion that they represented a shabby new norm.
In the early days, this brand of contempt-driven politics often revolved around arguments about Bill Clinton’s public and private character. This was a theme of his 1992 election against George H.W. Bush, his 1996 election against Bob Dole, and it even shadowed the 2004 dedication of his presidential library in Little Rock, Ark.
I am hardly a Clinton intimate. I haven’t been in his company in a decade. At one time, however, I probably knew as much about his presidency — its animating ideas, its decisive moments, its distinctive personalities — as anyone who had not actually served in it. This came from six years covering his White House for the Washington Post, and another two working on a book that aimed to synthesize his years in office and take a preliminary cut at assessing their historical weight. In both journalistic and historical terms, much of this time was devoted to thinking about competing appraisals of Clinton’s character.
It is an argument without end in part because the positive and negative elements of Clinton’s character, the light and the shadows, seemingly flow from the same source: an intense need to win, to matter, to seduce, to prove himself in the world. Imagine if people around Bill Clinton in 1974, the year he ran unsuccessfully for Congress — Hillary Rodham, then a girlfriend but not yet a spouse, showed up in Arkansas to help — had been given a crystal ball to peer into the future. These people would not be surprised to learn that a future president was in their midst; His talent, ambition, and idealism were that obvious. Nor would they be surprised to learn how his campaigns and presidency would at various turns be nearly derailed. As early biographer David Maraniss documented, even then Clinton had a reputation for sexual vagrancy, and the patterns of heedlessness, deception, and hypocrisy such a lifestyle inevitably requires.
He’s been out of political office for more than a quarter-century — as long as he was ever in it, beginning with his first victory as Arkansas attorney general in 1976. By my lights, the years since he yielded the Oval Office to George W. Bush (who turned 80 last month) in January 2001 have abundantly ratified the proposition that the country could do worse — at key junctures plainly has done worse–than Clinton’s character or his record, the strengths and infirmities alike.
As he turns 80, and the country contemplates a post-Trump future two years from now, it seems to me there are at least four ways in which Clinton has prevailed in the great character argument woven throughout his life.
Responsibility
This is a place where my views have not changed much from what I thought at the time and what I think now. A paradox of Clinton’s presidency is that, however reckless he was in his personal life — culminating in the Monica S. Lewinsky scandal and Republicans’ unsuccessful attempt to evict him from office through impeachment — he was supremely responsible in his use of power and his willingness to take sober risks for what he thought was right. Yes, he would over-agonize on hard choices — on issues from trade to welfare to war in the Balkans. But at the end of the day — sometimes it could be a very long day — on big subjects there was rarely much variance between what Clinton genuinely thought was the right decision and what he did.
A good many of his policies are out of favor now within his own party. But the political and policy landscape he was navigating was much different than today. Clinton was a thoroughly political creature, but he was not an unduly cynical one — he was willing frequently to risk his political self-interest on behalf of what he conceived of as the public interest.
Persuasion
One reason Bill Clinton and his brand of centrist politics can seem antiquated is that the past generation has been defined by a whole different emphasis: the politics of mobilization. Under this later school of politics, elections are won principally by sharpening divisions and elevating the moral stakes. The aim is not to win over skeptics through the power of reasoned argument. It is to convince your own side that the other side is so repugnant in its character and aims that they should rally behind you and turn out in the biggest possible numbers.
Clinton would in most of his campaigns give a nod to trying to explain what the other side believed, and why he believed his approach is better. “I think one of the ways you win elections is by talking straight with people and giving them permission to vote against you,” Clinton said a few years ago on a podcast. What he meant was that effective arguments don’t hector audiences or assert moral superiority, or the other side’s moral iniquity. They invite or even inspire people to think about an issue differently.
In short, the politics of mobilization harnesses the power of contempt; the politics of persuasion employs the language of respect. Mobilization politics tends to deal in ideological and cultural abstractions like free markets versus socialism, or “traditional values” versus sexual freedom — the kind of debates that are especially potent at pushing people to decide “which side are you on?” Persuasion politics is more likely to center on the concrete human dimensions of policy choices — here’s what an expansion of childcare tax credits might mean for you.
You could argue which brand of politics is more effective, and for the most part advocates of mobilization politics in recent years on left and right have been prevailing. But it’s hard to see how the politics of persuasion is not a more inspiring expression of American character, and also more likely to resolve serious long-term debates.
The fight for power
When Clinton opened his presidential library in Little Rock in 2004, the late Peter Jennings of ABC News in an interview baited Clinton about a recent survey of historians that rated his presidency reasonably well overall, but second to last (ahead only of Richard Nixon) in “moral authority.” Clinton said curtly that the historians were wrong, adding, “I don’t really care what they think.” Jennings replied: “Excuse me, Mr. President. I can feel it across the room. You care very deeply.”
Clinton then snapped: “You don’t want to go here, Peter. You don’t want to go here. Not after what you people did. And the way you — your network — what you did with [Whitewater prosecutor] Kenneth Starr. The way your people repeated every little sleazy thing he leaked. No one has any idea of what that’s like.”
The new library had an alcove about Clinton’s 1998 impeachment and subsequent acquittal called, “The Fight for Power.” The scandal, the exhibit argued, was simply the Republicans’ effort to overturn an election they lost.
At the time, I believed this was mostly Clinton’s tortured rationalization for his own mistakes. Events since then, however, have swung the historical argument irrefutably in his favor. In the 1990s we spent months and even years covering such inane issues as whether the newly elected Clinton acted properly to fire long-term employees of the office that booked White House charter flights and hotels for the media. Now, Trump asserts the right to eliminate cabinet departments and agencies without congressional approval — and the stories often get lost in the rush of other news. There is not a credible argument that says Bill and Hillary Clinton’s Whitewater land investments in the 1970s were a worthy subject for ethics inquiries and criminal probes but the Trump family’s crypto investments and overseas deals while the company founder is in the Oval Office are no big deal.
Clinton was right that the attacks on his character were often simply not on the level—but a proxy for other agendas.
Perseverance
In 2000, as Bill Clinton’s presidency was winding down and Hillary Clinton was waging a successful campaign for New York Senate, there was a political skull session at the White House involving a trusted roster of aides and strategists. As one of them described it to me later, Bill Clinton brought up the elephant in the room. Female voters in particular, he noted, wanted to understand why Hillary had stayed with Bill during the sex scandal. The mood was briefly awkward until Hillary Clinton said good-naturedly that she wanted to know the answer too.
“Because you’re a sticker!” the president replied, jabbing the air for emphasis.
Actually, it seems to me, both Clintons are. Across many decades, they have stayed married, and stayed in the fight over the issues they care about—amid plenty of victories and setbacks alike. That is a kind of character, too.
These days, Bill Clinton’s public appearances are fewer. At times he looks frail. His skeptics include many people in his own party. Yet, on his 80th birthday, the main question seems to be less about his character than the country’s: Is there a pathway to a destination in which more people believed with him that politics can illuminate the best and most generous and inspiring parts of national identity? Clinton may be getting old, but that idea should be made young again.
Xbox has officially revealed the second round of August 2026 additions to Game Pass and the new lineup includes an interesting mix of genres.
Xbox Game Pass August Wave 2 Adds Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy and More
The second wave of titles coming to Xbox Game Pass in August is a pretty large one, but the highlight for many gamers is likely going to be Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy.
This latest installment in the Plague Tale Franchise appears to be a fresh spin on the world that will play quite differently from the previous games.
“Follow Sophia’s journey to the Minotaur’s Island, where she faces deadly trials, navigates treacherous trails, solves puzzles, all while fighting and staying one step ahead of the army chasing her. But the true challenge awaits, as the terrifying creature hidden behind the myth will soon resonate with her.”
The title is an Xbox Game Pass day one feature, so it will be very interesting to see if it helps draw players into the ecosystem to continue exploring this world after 2022’s A Plague Tale: Requiem.
Here is a full breakdown of everything included on the Xbox Game Pass August Wave 2 list:
Egging On (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, Handheld, and PC) – August 18
Now with Game Pass Premium; joining Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass
Vapor World: Over the Mind (Game Preview) (Cloud, Console, and PC) – August 19
Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass
BlazBlue Entropy Effect X (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, and PC) – August 19
Now with Game Pass Premium; joining Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass
Relooted (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, and PC) – August 19
Now with Game Pass Premium; joining Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass
Starsand Island (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, and PC) – August 20
Now with Game Pass Premium; joining Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass
Aerial_Knight’s DropShot (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, Handheld, and PC) – August 25
Now with Game Pass Premium; joining Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass
Blood Dungeon (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, and PC) – August 25
Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass
Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy (Cloud, XBOX Series X|S, Handheld, and PC) – August 27
Game Pass Ultimate, PC Game Pass
Young Suns (Cloud, Console, and PC) – August 31
Now with Game Pass Premium; joining Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass
Shelldiver (Cloud, Console, and PC) – September 1
Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Premium, PC Game Pass
Aside from Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy, there are a few other standout titles. Starsand island is likely going to appeal to fans of cozy games, while platforming fans may want to check out Blood Dungeon.
Be sure to check back soon for more news and updates on the latest additions and removals from Xbox Game Pass.
ATHENS — Greece’s attempt to lure top scientists back to their homeland after the trauma of the financial crisis has stalled after an ambitious program to reverse the brain drain descended into fiasco.
A group of professors who hoped to bring back young researchers through a much-advertised program financed with EU funds are now feeling betrayed, having been left waiting for years only to find out the program won’t happen.
To rub salt into the wound, no one from the government bothered to inform them that the scheme was dead, they said.
“All this ‘brain gain’ talk isn’t just a joke; it’s a massive step backward,” Aristides Hatzis, a professor at the University of Athens, said. “During the financial crisis, there was only one area where there was money invested: research, as the EU prioritized this. Now there’s nothing; it’s at the very bottom of the list of priorities — a complete abandonment.”
An estimated 500,000 people moved abroad during Greece’s financial crisis, which began in 2008, shrinking the country’s economy by a quarter and driving unemployment to 28 percent. Greece had experienced mass migration before, including in the decades after World War II, but this time it was many citizens with high levels of education and skills who emigrated.
“Brain Regain,” an initiative by the ruling conservative New Democracy government to reverse the mass exodus of scientists and professionals, comprises several schemes, such as offering a 50 percent income tax exemption for seven years, and is expanding to include high-skilled public sector roles.
And overall, the situation has improved since the crisis era.
According to the survey OECD Diaspora Review Greece, from 2021 onward, there has been a steady increase in the number of citizens returning to Greece, with 2023 marking a milestone year when — for the first time since the start of the crisis — more people returned than left. Specifically, during the two-year period of 2023–2024, 69,000 Greeks left their country while 98,000 returned.
But when it comes to scientists, there is still a major problem.
Star-crossed project
The current fury of many researchers and scientists hinges on a Greek government project called “Trust your Stars” — an €80 million research funding program backed by funds from EU’s post-Covid recovery fund, the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).
Research teams were called to submit their proposals, with 145 out of a total 1,241 submissions selected. Thirteen months later, after several complaints regarding the delay, the selected list of projects was finally published on July 22, 2025.
Then, it all started to unravel.
A man walks outside the headquarters of bank of Greece during a demonstation against government’s austerity measures in central Athens. | Aris Messinis/AFP via Getty Images
Those not selected for funding reacted fiercely, with some 203 submitted objections and calls for reevaluation. Scientists raised their concerns over the evaluation process itself, and some even submitted complaints to the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.
In January 2026, Greece’s development ministry then issued a statement, saying payments of some €40 million had already been made, and that the remaining half of the program’s budget was earmarked for completion by Dec. 31, 2029. But complaints only escalated, with some of those selected for funding sending formal legal notices to the education ministry, seeking details about where the money had been spent since the program had not yet started.
Then, the final bombshell dropped: Trust your Stars was not going to receive the EU funds anymore.
In a statement published in May, Greece’s education ministry said the country’s finance ministry had decided to “remove the project during the review of Greece’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan.” It was later revealed that on the day the list of selected proposals was officially published, the government also delisted the program — but no one informed the applicants for 10 months.
“It was ultimately not possible to implement the project ‘Trust your Stars’ within the time frame set out by the RRF,” said an official from the education ministry. “For this reason, the project was removed, as part of a review of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan by the Council of the European Union.”
“As regards the funds linked to the actions in question, these were redirected to finance other actions undertaken by the RRF and the Education Ministry. Consequently, under no circumstances was there any loss of resources from the RRF,” added the official.
Shattered hopes
On July 15, Greece’s finance ministry issued a statement, saying it was trying to secure funds “to settle any outstanding financial obligations arising from legal commitments entered into at the time of the revocation of the program.”
While the statement rekindled hopes that a solution would be found, Hatzis argues that it was just a legal trick and that the education ministry has no legal commitment since no contracts were signed following the initial announcement of accepted proposals.
“What happened violates a fundamental principle, one that is sacrosanct in states governed by the rule of law: ‘reliance,’ the citizen’s legitimate trust in the state,” he said. “There may be no contractual liability, since we did not sign an agreement, but there is a political, moral and even legal obligation. Many young people turned down other offers or did not take up jobs elsewhere because they hoped they would be paid through the program.”
Hatzis added that with its handling of the situation, the government had managed to turn the entire scientific community against it — both those who had been successful and those who had not.
“If you’re a young scientist and you’re abroad, stay there! If you’re a young scientist and you’re thinking of moving abroad, go for it. Don’t wait a minute!” he wrote in a lengthy social media post.
Pantelis Kammas, an associate professor at the Athens University of Economics and Business who was co-leading one of the teams that had a successful proposal, said the program was a chronicle of a death foretold.
“The perception within the scientific community was that this was EU money and that it could be handed out hastily through nontransparent procedures. There was a sense of mistrust because this was a one-off emergency program,” said Kammas. “The ministry lacked an organized framework for evaluation, the academic community’s objections were based on these well-known shortcomings, and media that seek to oppose the government jumped on that. This was the perfect storm, so the government decided to backtrack and cancel the program.”
Petros Bouras-Vallianatos, an associate professor of the history of science at the University of Athens, said he had gathered a team of 25 young scientists to come to Greece from countries like the U.K. and Germany for a study of medicines used during the Byzantine period, which could serve as inspiration for new pharmaceutical formulations. Fortunately, they had not already traveled by the time the project was canceled.
“The most offensive thing is that the government never bothered to meet us or give us a reasonable explanation about what happened,” he said, noting the government’s handling created even greater problems with the scientific community than those that already existed.
Bouras-Vallianatos himself returned to Greece in 2022 after a 15-year career in Edinburgh, and has not regretted the decision, as he wanted to raise his children in his homeland. However, he added that while many others wanted to return to Greece, the conditions for doing so were not in place. Some of them do but only for sentimental, personal reasons, he said.
“There has been no serious policy by the Greek state to get its scientists back.”
According to preliminary statistics, research spending in Greece has declined, dropping to €1.27 billion — or 0.51 percent of GDP — in 2025, from €1.30 billion in 2024.
“Funding and low salaries is a big issue,” continued Bouras-Vallianatos. “An independent body should be set up, which would allocate funds for research and adheres to international standards in terms of evaluation. We are a small country; we all know each other, so a large proportion of the evaluators should be foreigners.”
LONDON — Britain’s Liberal Democrats are holding fire against Andy Burnham — for now.
The centrist party has studiously avoided criticizing the new Labour prime minister during his first weeks in power, instead pushing the same “constructive opposition” approach followed during predecessor Keir Starmer’s early stint in Downing Street.
“I like what he’s doing,” says 2024-intake Lib Dem MP Martin Wrigley. “I like the way he’s going, focusing on things that matter.” The question is: how long can it last?
A person familiar with Lib Dem Leader Ed Davey’s thinking, granted anonymity because their job does not authorize them to speak publicly, says the party hopes Burnham removes the “performative hostility” from Westminster.
“That style of politics really suits the populist parties, both on the left and the right, and it isn’t the sort of politics that we as Liberal Democrats want to do,” they argued.
But while not rocking the boat has landed well with Lib Dem MPs, there is still a call for a distinctive identity for the party in a highly competitive political environment, with Labour enjoying a “Burnham bounce” in the opinion polls on the left, and Tory Leader Kemi Badenoch’s personal brand on the up.
Duty of care
Davey — whose party enjoyed its best-ever result at the 2024 election but remains only just in double digits in national polls — has already made one big play in the Burnham era: being helpful on reforming social care.
The creaking social care system in England is a policy challenge governments of all stripes have failed to meet — leaving families with drained finances and cash-strapped local authorities plugging the gaps.
The Lib Dem leader, who cares for his disabled son, attended a virtual cross-party meeting after Burnham, whose own father is in a care home with Alzheimer’s, called for an open conversation on a fix.
This proactive approach has so far landed well with Davey’s troops. “I don’t think we’re going to sink the process if we don’t get everything we want,” says Lib Dem Shadow Commons Leader Bobby Dean. “If we can get cross-party consensus on one element, then we should get on with that element straight away.”
Indeed, Mike Storey, the Lib Dems’ co-deputy leader in the House of Lords, says the party will “cooperate fully on social care … and we’ll do it with no strings attached.”
Andy Burnham speaks to the media at HM Naval Base in Portsmouth, England on July 27, 2026. | Pool photo by Aaron Crown via WPA/Getty Images
The person familiar with Davey’s thinking laid out the approach, saying “People are put off” by opposition parties that “decide to just immediately say ‘oh, they’re terrible. They’re breaking everything again’” when a new government arrives.
Tom Lubbock, co-founder of polling agency J.L. Partners, agrees a conciliatory approach makes sense for now as “you just look a bit mad if you just go in studs-up within the first couple of months.”
But there’s some angst about making sure the Lib Dems clearly separate themselves from Labour.
Party of the countryside
It’s not the first time the Lib Dems have tried to play nice with a Labour prime minister.
But Davey’s party soon found ways to differentiate themselves from the increasingly unpopular Keir Starmer.
After Starmer’s government changed inheritance tax rules for farmers, the Lib Dems spied an opening — dubbing it the “family farm tax” and ramping up campaigning.
The party has an “extraordinary niche and an extraordinary opportunity” to pose as the “Countryside Alliance arm of the Labour Party,” argues Lubbock — in other words, a progressive rival to Labour that rural voters can still get behind.
Burnham’s focus on reviving urban areas may lend itself to this approach, with Lib Dem figures poised to exploit any perception “Avanti Andy” is shuttling between London and Manchester, another major city.
Adam Dance, who represents the rural constituency of Yeovil, warns Burnham “can’t be a prime minister just for Manchester and the biggest cities” and says “he needs to understand rural areas.”
Northern MP Tom Gordon also challenges the prime minister’s claim to represent northern England, arguing this “does feel slightly performative.” He reckons voters “don’t hate him [Burnham] yet” as “he’s not had long enough to make any really unpopular decisions.”
Left vs. right blocs
Much of the Lib Dems’ success under Davey has come from wooing disillusioned Conservatives, targeting Tory-held seats in the home counties — dubbed the “blue wall.”
But winning remaining Tory areas next time round could be harder if the Lib Dems appear too closely aligned with a Labour government.
YouGov data last month put Kemi Badenoch’s net favorability score at the highest of any Conservative leader for more than five years. | Leon Neal/Getty Images
Lubbock argues the Lib Dems will do “much worse” if supporters of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK “get on the Conservative bandwagon” to help defeat Labour nationally. That would be a mirror of the way some Labour supporters tactically backed the Lib Dems in 2024 to oust the Tories.
Though the Tories are still stuck below 20 percent in most polls, there are signs of recovery. YouGov data last month put Badenoch’s net favorability score at the highest of any Conservative leader for more than five years. Her position is undeniably more stable than it was 12 months ago.
While Lib Dems are optimistic Badenoch’s moves to the right on net zero and human rights will push more One Nation, centrist Conservatives in their direction, their Tory rivals sound bullish.
Tory MP Gregory Stafford, who saw off a challenge by the Lib Dems to win Farnham and Bordon two years ago, doesn’t think there are more Tories left for the Lib Dems to poach.
“All I’m seeing is those people coming back, not the other way round,” says Stafford about voters who bid the Tories farewell in 2024. Despite his narrow win, he thinks some of the 6,000 Reform UK voters in his seat will return — thanks to Badenoch.
“They see demonstrably in Kemi a leader that both they like as a person, but also speaks their language and speaks to the policies that they’re concerned about,” he argues.
As such, the Lib Dems may settle for a stronger attack against the right.
“People just don’t feel listened to,” says the party’s Scotland spokesperson Susan Murray. “When they don’t feel listened to, they are open to populism.” She argues that both the Lib Dems and Labour are “not succeeding in getting that message [of hope and opportunities] across.” Dean adds, “There’s a massive demand out there for a liberal party to make a bold offer to the country and at the moment that space feels vacated.”
It’s a perceived weakness Stafford, the Conservative MP, plans to leap on at the next election. “The real danger for the Liberal Democrats is that they are seen as a patsy party that might champion local issues locally, but actually have nothing to say distinctive on the national stage,” he argues.
Roz Savage, who entered the Commons for the Lib Dems in 2024, recognizes the outfit has a “PR challenge that people think of us as the nice party.” Instead, a “bigger story” is required about a future Lib Dem government, she says.
“When we talk to Lib Dem voters in focus groups, they don’t really have a clear vision for what the Lib Dem party should stand for,” says Merlin Strategy’s Head of Research, Julian Gallie. People often back them as a vote against other parties, the political analyst says.
MPs also want the Lib Dems to reach beyond their traditional strongholds and target historically Labour areas — including Newcastle and Hull. Both have Lib Dem-run city councils, but are the kind of areas in which Burnham will fancy he can improve Labour’s standing. Meral Hussein-Ece, the Lib Dems’ Lords equality spokesperson, says the party must also do more to understand “the diversity of this country, which I don’t think we’ve done very well so far.”
Lib Dem conference in Brighton next month will give the party a chance to lay a marker for the expected general election in 2029. But MPs want more than set-piece events to present a distinctive vision.
“We do have to do better at utilizing the likes of social media and capturing the attention all the time, not just when we get the spotlight shined on us,” argues Gordon, the Harrogate and Knaresborough MP.
The Lib Dems, he says, have to drive “conversation on our own terms, rather than always having to just respond.”
Netflix just dropped Season 3 of Tires, and the new episodes are already making a big hit. However, hidden at the end, in the credits, is one of the best parts of the show.
Tires has been a hit comedy for Netflix over the last few years. Starring comedians like Shane Gillis and Stavros Halkias, the show follows the ins and outs of a medium-level auto shop chain in the Northeast.
‘Tires’: Come for the Comedy, Stay for the dope soundtrack
When the screen goes dark, though, and the credits begin to roll, the music soundtracking the cast and crew is truly incredible. Some other songs from the end credits of Tires Season 3 include “AT&T” by Liquid Mike, “Freaks” by Surf Curse, and “Certain Kinds of Trash” by Chain & The Gang.
At the end of Season 3, Episode 4, you can hear the song “LOS NARCOS” by Master Peace. The British artist even live-reacted to his song being included. Check that out below, and make sure to watch the show for the rest of the killer credits tunes.
Tires was created by Shane Gillis, Steve Gerben, and John McKeever. The show premiered on Netflix in May 2024, and is now in its third season. In addition to Gillis and Halkias, the show’s cast also features Gerben, Chris O’Connor, Kilah Fox, and Thomas Haden Church.
The show has grown to be one of the most popular comedies of the current streaming era, and for good reason. The writing is sharp; the performances are sublime, and, well, I’ve already heaped a lot of praise on the soundtrack.
In 2025, Gerben and McKeever sat down for a Hollywood Reporter interview to discuss the show. Near the end of their conversation, the pair addressed why the show does such a great job handling hot-topic subject matter.
“I’m going to take that one because John would be too modest to answer this. It’s John,” Gerben asserted. “He knows how to walk that line, and he will also— sometimes it’s very hard in the moment when everybody’s pitching, like, funny ideas or whatever, to be the bad guy and be like, ‘That’s too far.’ And yet he makes those decisions. And it is John.”
He added, “That is a very specific thing where it’s like, he— Shane can walk a line too; we’ve all seen that. But insofar as the writing process, John is just so good at that.”
A new leak from a reliable source claims to confirm two earlier rumors about a 2023 Blizzard game finally making its way to the Nintendo Switch 2 this fall.
Leak: Diablo IV Coming to Nintendo Switch 2 September 15
Screenshot: Blizzard
Diablo IV released three years ago at this point, but Nintendo gamers have still been waiting to get in on the action. The title is already available on PC and in the PlayStation and Xbox ecosystems, but some new leaks and rumors suggest that it will finally be arriving on a Nintendo device as well in just a month.
The new information comes from DealLabs, who are claim to have information to confirm that the Age of Hatred Collection is coming to Nintendo Switch 2 and will include the base game as well as the major expansions Vessel of Hatred and Lord of Hatred.
According to the intel from DealLabs:
“As promised, we’re back with new details on the release of Diablo IV on Switch 2. It will indeed be the Age of Hatred Collection , available in both physical and digital editions for €69.99 / $69.99 / £62.99. As a reminder, this collection includes the base game as well as the major expansions Vessel of Hatred and Lord of Hatred.”
The leak went on to dive into details surrounding the release date, as well:
“As for the release date, it’s finally set for September 15, 2026. The official announcement date remains unknown, but it could well coincide with the opening of pre-orders , scheduled for September 12, 2026, according to our latest information. This date is significant, as it corresponds to the opening of BlizzCon 2026, which will be held from September 12 to 13, 2026.”
Readers should keep in mind that this information is still unofficial and Blizzard and Nintendo have not actually confirmed any details about this release at this point. If the leak does end up being accurate, it does seem likely that the new version of the game would be announced at next month’s BlizzCon event and released very shortly afterwards.
With BlizzCon just around the corner, it will be very exciting to see what else Blizzard has been working on behind closed doors. World of Warcraft Classic fans are still hoping to learn more about the mysterious Camelot. Additionally, there’s always the hope that Blizzard might suprise fans with a brand-new game reveal, rather than just new content and expansions for its many existing live service games.
Be sure to check back soon for more and Blizzard news and updates.
Diablo IV is currently available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series consoles. The Nintendo Switch 22 version has not been officially announced at this point.
At one point, there was no limit to what networks would do to create the next great reality show that would bring them viewership. MTV and VH1 were notorious for this, creating shows like Room Raiders, Flavor of Love, and Next. Some ideas were so insane that if they were pitched in the 2020s, they’d never see the light of day.
In January of 2005 Fox premiered Who’s Your Daddy? a series that would take an adopted person and present them with several men that could be their biological father. Amongst a sea of paid actors was the person’s real relative. The contestant’s job was to suss him out and win $100,000.
If they failed to, the imposter would win the cash prize instead.
Intense Backlash got this Fox show canned
It’s a sensitive topic that really shouldn’t be reduced to reality television, but that was the early aughts for ya. The show immediately drew backlash from various groups, including Adam Pertman, executive director of the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute (National Center on Adoption and Permanency).
“The very idea of taking such a deeply personal, complex situation and turning it into a money-grubbing game show is perverse, destructive and insensitive to others,” Pertman penned in a scathing letter to Fox.
The immediate backlash led Fox to canceling it after just one episode. However, the tasteless exploitation of an individual trying to find her birth parents was already done.
While Fox never issued a formal apology, the show’s executive producers—Scott Hallock and Kevin Healey—offered an explanation in a 2005 interview. “I can understand the reservations,” said Healey. “But the people came to it with great excitement and a willingness to play the game. It’s a fun and healthy way to get to know this person that they’ve never met.”
They both emphasized that they didn’t surprise anyone with the concept, and they worked with a company that specializes in helping adopted children find their biological parents.
It wasn’t Fox’s first foray into the tasteless side of television, either. They aired The Swan, where contestants were “beautified” with cosmetic surgery, and The Littlest Groom, a play on The Bachelor featuring a little person. While looking back on it is tough, it’s important to see how much reality television has evolved.
In the dog days of summer, there’s no better place to escape the heat than inside the air-conditioned paradise of a movie theater. Perhaps you’ll even find yourself there with a romantic companion, their uncovered leg grazing against yours as you both tuck your feet in to make room for the annoying person who came in late and is now trying to find their seat in the dark. Your skin touches theirs, trading the dewy moisture of perspiration. How electric; erotic, even. For just a second, the spark between you two is so powerful that it melts away every care outside of that place and time.
And then, your film — a romantic comedy or dramedy that seems like the perfect date movie — begins, and you’re quickly reminded that no amount of desire can remove you from the context of the world you exist in. The fantasy comes crashing down. Even the fluffy rom-coms are steeped in real life’s anxieties about the social and political, the wars and the wages. But the passion was there; it was real. Maybe the moment was even more charged by the knowledge, somewhere in the back of your head, that these unexpected, carnal joys arrive far less often when so much of our time is spent just trying to make it from one day to the next. Sex, even just the lingering thought of it, can feel like an extravagance. I’d wager that’s a big part of why this summer’s theatrical slate has been so overtly horny: Everyone is trying to figure out how sex fits into this strange modern life.
(Nicole Rivelli /Universal Pictures) Monica Barbaro and Callum Turner in “One Night Only”
“One Night Only” encourages a compelling and multilayered dialogue about the role of sex and intimacy amid terrifying political fury. How can we find the joy in all of this? Is, say, one hour of fleeting sexual pleasure enough to combat the 14-some others that we spend in waking dread? The solutions won’t, ahem, come easily.
No film makes that more clear than Will Gluck’s new romantic comedy, “One Night Only,” where, brace yourself here, premarital sex has been outlawed except for one outrageous annual holiday. Think “The Purge,” but for sex — “The Urge” was right there, but whatever — and just as dystopian, though with quite a bit more charm and fewer dead bodies. In the movie, unlucky-in-love strangers Owen (Callum Turner) and Allie (Monica Barbaro) find their paths repeatedly crossing during the 12-hour sex purge window, as both of them seek partners to get it on with. We know the pair will inevitably end up together. But it’s their journey and all the bizarre autocratic municipal rules they have to dance around that make “One Night Only” a clever, peculiar and head-scratching standout from the rom-com crowd.
“One Night Only” also happens to be the discourse darling du jour, with some suggesting that its unusual fusion of genre tropes and political overtones is an insidious embrace of our backslide toward fascism. Indeed, Owen and Allie quibble less about living under a punitive abstinence edict than one might expect, and the film doesn’t have nearly as much fun with, or fury for, the civic regime as it should.
But like this summer’s “The Invite” and “I Want Your Sex,” Gluck’s film encourages a compelling and multilayered dialogue about the role of sex and intimacy amid terrifying political fury. How can we find the joy in all of this? Is, say, one hour of fleeting sexual pleasure enough to combat the 14-some others that we spend in waking dread? The solutions won’t, ahem, come easily, but there’s really no more appropriate time to ask these questions and search for their answers than summer, when the heat makes us alternate between f*cking furiously and f*cking furious.
Curiously, “One Night Only” is more of the former than the latter. As the film’s title card tells viewers, the movie takes place three years into “the mandate,” as the characters refer to it. “It’s been . . . a lot,” the card continues. Opaque and jokey as it is, this is the only bit of tangible backstory the film provides about the average American’s response to the forbiddance of fornication. Though a few ideological asides do provide some additional color as the night goes on. Owen’s mother (Molly Ringwald) and her partner (LeVar Burton) get into a spat about the mandate’s legislation — “That’s what happens with single-issue voters!”; “No one voted for it, it was passed by Congress!” — that soon turns hot and heavy.
It’s a silly but reasonably shrewd way to depict how many of us have landed at some level of complacency in a political atmosphere where, most of the time, we have little direct control and negligible impact over the laws that dictate our lives, no matter how oppressive. We bicker about them, but the majority of Americans aren’t in the streets protesting. As neo-fascist as the country’s become, we still live under capitalism, and the ability to regularly protest is somewhat a luxury. But, then again, so is living in America at all (at least to some extent), even when it’s awful.
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I realize I’m probably giving Gluck and screenwriter Travis Braun too much credit when I say these are the kinds of questions they wanted viewers to ask. But I find “One Night Only” to be a far more interesting film because it doesn’t answer everything up front or take the blanket optimist’s route. These characters know that the mandate is awful, but they’ve found screwed-up ways to live with it. Anyone who says that doesn’t reflect the modern American way has their head in the sand. And frankly, a film as pleasant but ephemeral as this isn’t going to push democracy any further into the dark.
What “One Night Only” makes so apparent is that our personal pleasure is at stake in this environment. Constant federal surveillance and deeply rooted institutional corruption are simply not sexy, even if being cognizant and fearful of them absolutely is. (Caring is still hot!) And I’ve always said that there is no better place to work out thorny, complex ideas — the kind that are sometimes difficult to devote time and energy to amid the stress of our day-to-day lives — than at the movies.
Gluck’s film arrives on the heels of a pair of sweltering summer peers that already laid quite a bit of thematic groundwork in the sex space for audiences to traverse. The stickiest of them all, Olivia Wilde’s terrific chamber dramedy, “The Invite,” just landed on VOD after steadily working its way up from limited to wide theatrical engagements — sort of like cinematic release-schedule foreplay. The film navigates ideas large and small, moving between the casual intimacies, or lack thereof, that make up long-term relationships, and the baseline human carnality that points us toward sex even when those relationships aren’t working.
(A24) Olivia Wilde, Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton in “The Invite”
That’s the glorious thing about going to the cinema: You’re bound to leave any movie with both questions and answers. Occasionally, one such question might be, “Does this movie covertly support fascism by making totalitarian sex mandates cute and manageable?”
Put simply: It’s more difficult to maintain the true intimacy than it’s ever been. The prevalence of dating apps and our ability to follow someone else’s every move on social media have zapped the honeymoon period’s lifespan. Throw in demanding jobs, expensive rugs, rapidly changing social mores, the desire to start or maintain a healthy relationship with your neighbors, and the nagging feeling that everyone in the world is having sex but you, and life gets overwhelming fast. Sex shuffles to the back burner. But though the flame might be small, it remains lit. And “The Invite” attests that it’s never too late to dial up the heat, so long as we’re honest about what we want and what we need from our partners.
“The Invite” is all about communication and open conversation. And that’s a critical strength in both relationships and in the ways we watch and digest art. That this summer has been replete with dialogues not only about our sexual neuroses and compulsions, but real, steadfast love in all its forms, is a sure sign that love and sex are on our minds more than they have been in a few decades. Much like the influx of grief-laden horror movies that followed the 2016 election, one can trace our preoccupation with intimacy back to political rot. Our government directs so much of our lives that it’s impossible to remove its influence completely. Now, we’ve moved past grieving the lost hope and have the chance to create our own using the spark of romance and physical connection.
(Magnolia Pictures) Olivia Wilde and Cooper Hoffman in “I Want Your Sex”
As Gregg Araki’s playful comedy “I Want Your Sex” asserts, crafting the transient delights of the flesh into something stable and meaningful will take some trial and error, perhaps even some sacrifice. We’re living in a moment where people can easily choose to void sex from their lives or pursue it as a ritualistic part of their existence, and the space in the middle is murky and treacherous. If you have questions about sex and where it fits into your life, Araki’s ardent message is to explore them. The answers may come with regret or heartbreak, but they may also come with glorious satisfaction and unbelievable revelations. More often, the resulting discoveries will sit somewhere in between those two emotional polarities. We can’t live our lives to the extreme all the time, but we can do ourselves a favor and become better acquainted with exactly what we want and how to get it.
That’s the glorious thing about going to the cinema: You’re bound to leave any movie with both questions and answers. Occasionally, one such question might be, “Does this movie covertly support fascism by making totalitarian sex mandates cute and manageable?” And those are queries that must be addressed because, whether we like it or not, even dystopian rom-coms might point us in the right — or even new — direction. The federal government certainly isn’t trying to orient us toward a brighter, more consistently pleasurable future. Why not take matters into our own hands? Or better yet, put those hands on someone we love and care for, even if only for a night.
Square Enix has revealed new Kingdom Hearts 4 gameplay and story details following its major D23 presentation. Alongside confirming a late 2027 release window, the publisher released an official game summary explaining Sora’s new journey and launched the sequel’s PS5 wishlist page.
Kingdom Hearts 4 Story Details Reveal Sora’s Mission in Quadratum
Screenshot: Square Enix
Square Enix surprised players at D23 by revealing that the Kingdom Hearts 4 release date is set for late 2027. However, following the event, an official KH4 wishlist page also went live on the PlayStation Store, revealing new details about the game’s story and combat.
According to the PS5 page, Sora will be on a separate journey to find his way home after awakening in Quadratum. Meanwhile, Donald and Goofy will travel to the Underworld to find clues about his disappearance, seemingly setting up their encounter with Hades.
Here is the full Kingdom Hearts 4 game summary:
“As the Kingdom Hearts series approaches its 25th anniversary, a new adventure begins. Our hero Sora awakes in the unfamiliar world of Quadratum. As he looks for a way to return from this modern metropolis to his own world, his friends Donald and Goofy head for the Underworld in hopes of finding a clue to his whereabouts.
The dynamic, fast-paced battle system allows you to effortlessly combine attacks and magic, as well as build combos with a brand-new battle feature. Change the Keyblade Sora wields to unleash unique attacks, matching the flow of battle to your own strategies and play style.”
Screenshot: Square Enix
Interestingly, the description also confirms that players will be able to change Sora’s Keyblade during combat to unleash unique attacks. The popular weapon feature originally made it’s debut in 2019’s Kingdom Hearts 3, and is set to return. In KH4, it appears weapon swapping will play a major role in the sequel’s combat system.
New Kingdom Hearts 4 PS5 Screenshots Reveal Improved Visuals
Screenshot: Square Enix
In case you missed it, we also got a new Kingdom Hearts 4trailer revealing that Pixar’s Coco is the game’s first new Disney world. Following its release on social media, Square Enix also uploaded several new KH4 screenshots to the PlayStation Store.
Technically, most of these images were already shown during the June Nintendo Direct trailer. However, the screenshots released on August 15 are substantially higher resolution, giving us a better look at the PS5 version of Kingdom Hearts 4 and its improved visual fidelity.
Screenshot: Square Enix
If you want never-before-seen footage, though, you can check out the new Kingdom Hearts 4Coco trailer, which features additional story cutscenes with Sora and Mickey. It also reveals Sora wielding a new Keyblade inspired by Miguel’s guitar from the Pixar film.
Kingdom Hearts 4 Is Now Available to Wishlist on PS5
Screenshot: Square Enix
Finally, you can now wishlist Kingdom Hearts 4 on PS5 through its official PlayStation Store page. Unfortunately, we still can’t pre-order the game, as it currently only has a “late 2027” release window.
The new store listing should be updated once Square Enix announces an exact release date. For now, fans finally have a new trailer, official gameplay and story details, and confirmation that Kingdom Hearts 4 is arriving next year. Considering we’ve been waiting since 2019 for a new mainline Kingdom Hearts game, this has been a pretty incredible week for fans.
Square Enix has finally revealed the Kingdom Hearts 4 release date at D23. The much-anticipated sequel will launch late next year, and its first Disney world is based on the popular Pixar film Coco.
Kingdom Hearts 4 Release Date Is Late 2027
Screenshot: Square Enix
Square Enix has confirmed that theKingdom Hearts 4release date is set for late 2027. The Japanese publisher revealed the long-awaited launch window during the Disney Entertainment panel at the D23 convention in Anaheim, California.
Following the presentation, Square Enix uploaded a new Kingdom Hearts 4 trailer showcasing new story and gameplay footage from upcoming sequel. More importantly, the trailer ends by confirming that the game will finally launch near the end of 2027.
Although an exact release date wasn’t announced, this is still a major update for fans who have been waiting years for the sequel. KH4 was originally revealed in April 2022 before disappearing for several years.
Kingdom Hearts 4 Trailer Reveals Coco World
Square Enix also revealed that the first Disney world in Kingdom Hearts 4 is based on Pixar’s Coco. The colorful new level will allow players to explore the Land of the Dead from the beloved 2017 animated film.
The new trailer gives players their first look at how familiar characters and locations from Coco will look in the 2027 RPG. The footage also shows Sora obtaining a new Keyblade based on Miguel’s iconic guitar from the Pixar film. Unsurprisingly, the Coco’s vibrant world looks absolutely gorgeous in the new Kingdom Hearts 4 engine.
While this is the first official Disney world revealed for KH4, there are still many additional crossover levels that have yet to be revealed. Regardless, Coco feels like the perfect Disney world for Square Enix to reveal first. The Pixar film’s themes surrounding memories, family, and the afterlife also seem like they could connect heavily to Sora’s story in Quadratum.
Screenshot: Square Enix
After years of waiting, we finally know when Kingdom Hearts 4 will launch and have our first look at one of its Disney worlds. With a late 2027 release window now confirmed, it appears Square Enix is finally ready to reveal more about Sora’s next adventure.
PARIS — Le Conseil constitutionnel a rendu ce vendredi sa décision sur la loi interdisant les réseaux sociaux aux mineurs et a annoncé censurer son article 1er, qui acte ladite interdiction pour les moins de 15 ans.
De fait, la décision rend caduque le principal objet de cette loi portée depuis plusieurs années par le président de la République.
Dans sa décision, les Sages estiment en effet que cet article, en instituant une interdiction “de portée générale” des réseaux sociaux aux moins de 15 ans, porte “une atteinte disproportionnée à la liberté d’expression et de communication” qui n’est pas “adaptée, nécessaire et proportionnée à l’objectif poursuivi” : celui de protéger les mineurs en ligne.
“L’interdiction instituée par la loi est susceptible de s’appliquer à des services de communication en ligne dont les risques pour la santé et la sécurité des mineurs ne sont pas établis”, estime encore le Conseil constitutionnel, insistant sur l’imprécision autour du champ d’application de l’article.
Le risque avait été soulevé au moment de l’examen du texte au Sénat, certains élus de la Chambre haute ayant tenté d’imposer l’établissement d’une “liste noire” qui définirait plus précisément les plateformes concernées par cette limitation d’accès aux mois de 15 ans – et éviterait ainsi le risque de censure par le Conseil constitutionnel.
Un élément du texte retiré au moment de son examen en Commission mixte paritaire pour assurer sa conformité avec le droit européen.
Le Conseil constitutionnel estime par ailleurs que le texte ne définit pas les garanties légales propres à assurer le droit au respect de la vie privée des utilisateurs qui seront contraints de faire vérifier leur âge par les plateformes pour prouver leur majorité.
“Le gouvernement n’a pas assez écouté le Sénat et le risque d’inconstitutionnalité que nous pointions depuis des mois. Désormais, le risque, c’est que le texte soit vidé de sa substance”, a réagi, sur ce point, la rapporteure du texte au Sénat, Catherine Morin-Desailly, auprès de POLITICO.
Un constat partagé par le député socialiste Arthur Delaporte, à l’origine de l’une des saisines du Conseil constitutionnel. L’autre émanait du groupe de la France Insoumise (LFI).
“Dans notre recours, nous dénoncions un dispositif disproportionné passant à côté de son objectif”, a-t-il commenté sur X. “L’obstination présidentielle a été mauvaise conseillère”.
Le président du groupe EPR, Gabriel Attal, a déclaré sur X prendre acte de la décision de la juridiction concernant ce texte porté par son groupe : “Avec Laure Miller et les députés Ensemble nous poursuivons le travail pour atteindre notre seul objectif : protéger nos enfants et notre jeunesse”, a-t-il promis.
“Le Président de la République a chargé le Premier ministre de travailler, dans les meilleurs délais, à une rédaction juridiquement robuste tenant compte de la décision du Conseil constitutionnel ainsi que du cadre européen”, a assuré de son côté l’Elysée dans un communiqué publié peu après. Et de poursuivre : “la détermination du Président de la République à faire aboutir cette réforme d’ici au printemps 2027 demeure totale”.
Cet article a été mis à jour pour ajouter les réactions à la décision du Conseil constitutionnel.
A prominent insider claims that a major Kingdom Hearts announcement will be revealed at D23 tonight, August 14. According to the leak, there is a possibility that it could be related to Kingdom Hearts 4. However, the rumored Square Enix reveal may instead be for a new movie or TV series.
Kingdom Hearts Announcement Reportedly Coming at D23 on August 14
Screenshot: Square Enix
A Kingdom Hearts announcement will reportedly be made tonight, August 14, during D23. This latest update comes from Daniel Richtman, also known as DanielRPK, in a post on X. This is pretty significant, as DanielRPK is a prominent film industry leaker with a long track record of accurate insider scoops.
According to DanielRPK, the Square Enix announcement could range from a Kingdom Hearts 4 reveal to a potential spinoff movie or TV series. “There will be a Kingdom Hearts announcement today at D23. It could just be that Coco will have a world in the fourth game, or it could be an announcement for a TV show or movie.”
Screenshot: X @DanielRPK
However, before Kingdom Hearts 4 fans get too excited, there are reasons to believe that the reveal may not be related to the video game. For starters, DanielRPK usually leaks information from the film industry and not gaming. This has led many to believe that the announcement could be related to a potential Kingdom Hearts animated movie or TV show instead. Finally, DanielRPK himself has cast doubt on the announcement being related to Kingdom Hearts 4.
The D23 Announcement Probably Won’t Be Kingdom Hearts 4
Screenshot: Square Enix
In a second post on X, DanielRPK updated fans and explained why the D23 reveal is likely not related to Kingdom Hearts 4. According to the prominent film insider, Disney’s panel tonight is focusing on “entertainment” and not gaming. As a result, the leaker said it would be “unusual” to see a Kingdom Hearts 4 reveal during the presentation.
“If it’s related to Kingdom Hearts 4, it would be very unusual for a video game to be presented during the Entertainment Panel at D23. Everything else announced today will be a show or a film. Also, they have a whole panel just for KH tomorrow. So we’ll see.”
Screenshot: X @DanielRPK
That said, DanielRPK also didn’t rule it out completely. Basically, we will just have to wait and see. However, I think Kingdom Hearts fans should keep their expectations in check. For one, Square Enix itself has not confirmed that an announcement will be made tonight. Secondly, while DanielRPK is a legitimate film industry insider with a great track record, he isn’t specifically known for gaming leaks.
Kingdom Hearts D23 Panel Takes Place on August 15
Screenshot: Square Enix
Disney is also hosting its official DEEP DIVE into KINGDOM HEARTS panel at D23 on August 15. The presentation will feature Kingdom Hearts 4 co-director Tai Yasue and several cast members from the series.
The panel will be streamed on Disney’s YouTube channel at 4:30 PM PT and 7:30 PM ET. Therefore, if anything gaming-related does get revealed at D23, it seems more likely to happen during the dedicated Kingdom Hearts presentation on August 15 rather than tonight.
Still, if you are a fan of the series in general, tonight’s Disney Entertainment Showcase is worth keeping an eye on. Even if the announcement isn’t related to Kingdom Hearts 4, a movie or TV adaptation would still be a pretty massive reveal for the franchise.
A bipartisan House delegation met with top Vatican officials on Wednesday to discuss artificial intelligence during a visit that briefly included Pope Leo XIV, according to two people with knowledge of the trip granted anonymity to disclose details of the private meetings.
The delegation’s visit, which has not been previously reported, included nine lawmakers and was coordinated by the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, the person said. Committee member Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.) and California Rep. Ro Khanna, the panel’s top Democrat, led the trip.
A spokesperson for the committee declined to comment.
In an interview confirming the visit, Khanna said the topics of discussion included religious freedom, AI’s economic and geopolitical risks, as well as broader ethical and existential implications. It centered on two key principles: human dignity and equality.
“Human dignity means that human beings need to be responsible for any key decisions involving health, involving finances, involving individual freedom, involving public services,” he said.
The Silicon Valley Democrat said that in this context, equality means preventing automation from causing mass unemployment, and ensuring AI cannot be used to exclude people from social services. Khanna said it also means guarding against a concentration of power in which “a few billionaires can make decisions about data and algorithms.”
The Vatican did not respond to a request for comment about the meeting. But Pope Leo has taken a special interest in the technology and used a May encyclical to call on countries to “safeguard humanity” as AI develops, warning that the technology could deepen inequality, fray the social fabric and erode moral responsibility if it doesn’t have ethical guardrails. Congress, meanwhile, has introduced dozens of AI bills and held several hearings, but has failed to agree on a comprehensive federal framework for governing the technology.
The pope previously cast the global race to develop cutting-edge AI technology in stark terms. As the U.S., China and other powers compete for an edge, he warned against a “dehumanizing ambition to develop ever more powerful technologies or to secure control over them,” describing a contest between “opposing imperialisms” seeking either to preserve or seize technological supremacy.
Khanna told POLITICO he plans to introduce legislation that would tax the use of autonomous AI agents to incentivize companies to hire human workers.
The group also discussed AI’s implications for human mortality and the limits of human knowledge — boundaries some developers have long imagined technology might overcome by uploading human consciousness and accumulated wisdom to the cloud.
Following the meetings, Khanna sent letters to top executives at OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta, Google, Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, and Amazon, asking how they intend to align their technology with the tenets of human dignity and equality.
An OpenAI spokesperson pointed POLITICO to prior policy documents outlining the AI company’s commitment to safety and to ensuring benefits from the technology are distributed equitably. The other companies did not respond to requests for comment.
The lawmakers traveled to Berlin to discuss China’s rising global influence, before picking up on the topic during their Vatican visit and in meetings with Italian government officials a few days later.
Alongside Khanna and Newhouse, Reps. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), Buddy Carter (R-Ga.), John Rutherford (R-Fla.), Randy Feenstra (R-Iowa), Shontel Brown (D-Ohio), Jill Tokuda (D-Hawaii) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) took part in the discussions, according to one of the people familiar with the trip.
Spokespeople for the members did not respond to requests for comment.
A screenshot of Oxenfree II: Lost Signals from Night School Studio. | Image: Night School / Netflix
Netflix plans to shut down two of its gaming studios, as reported by Game File and Variety, as it makes a bigger shift toward party games and titles streamed to TVs.
One of the studios being shut down is Night School Studio, creators of the Oxenfree series. Netflix bought Night School in 2021, and it just released a horror experience called Unhinged for TVs and launched a mobile game in 2025 tied to Black Mirror. The other studio that's set to close is Helsinki-based Moonloot Games, which was created in 2022.
Netflix's big push into TV-based games kicked off late last year and was a pivot from a mobile-focused approach that featured presti …
X is expanding the open source code behind its 'For You' feed and launching new transparency tools that show users when its ranking systems have affected their accounts or posts.
North Korea's Red Star Linux OS ships with a modified Firefox called Naenara ("Our country") and lets users browse Kwangmyong, the country's isolated national intranet. It also comes with an office suite, media players, and video games. It sells for $15. — Read the rest
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