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Vibrant homage to black women wins Rio carnival contest
A kaleidoscopic tribute to the strength of black women won Rio de Janeiro's cutthroat carnival parade competition Wednesday, as samba school Viradouro took home the coveted title to close out Brazil's pre-Lent party season.

Online images reinforce gender stereotypes more than text: study
Images on the internet reinforce gender stereotypes -- such as doctors being men or nurses women -- more than text, contributing to a lasting bias against women, a US-based study said Wednesday.

Across the sea from Venice, Albanian studio crafts carnival masks
As carnival celebrations are held across the globe, more than two dozen craftsmen in a quaint studio in northern Albania put the final touches on a series of elegant Venetian masks destined for balls, film sets, and street parties.

Be gone, winter! Young Slovenians reclaim sheepskin monster parade
Clad in a shaggy sheepskin costume, Denis Kokot is among a young generation of Kurenti performers who descend on the northeastern Slovenian town of Ptuj every February to chase away winter.

London exhibition celebrates 'unknown artist' Yoko Ono
She is the world's most famous unknown artist -- everyone knows her name, but no one knows what she does, John Lennon once said of the perceived disregard for his wife Yoko Ono, who turns 91 on Sunday.

Musk's X feeds monetization of wartime misinformation
Influencers on X are monetizing misinformation about conflicts in the Middle East, leveraging the platform's contentious policies that researchers say prioritize engagement over accuracy.

Rio parades until dawn in final carnival extravaganza
In a shimmering riot of colors, thousands of costume-clad, gyrating Brazilians paid tribute to everything from the humble cashew to the fight against slavery in the final parades of Rio de Janeiro's carnival Monday night.

BLACKPINK singer Lisa to star as 'White Lotus' hits Thailand
Singer Lisa of megastar K-pop girl group BLACKPINK will join the cast of "The White Lotus", HBO said Tuesday, as the third season of the hit TV series moves to her homeland Thailand.

Anne Frank musical hits Dutch stage, 'we should never forget'
A new musical production based on Anne Frank's diary has hit the stage in The Netherlands, with the producer and star convinced the story needs telling now more than ever.

'Better than a real man': young Chinese women turn to AI boyfriends
Twenty-five-year-old Chinese office worker Tufei says her boyfriend has everything she could ask for in a romantic partner: he's kind, empathetic, and sometimes they talk for hours.

Academics hold 'Swiftposium' as Tay Tay heads to Australia
Whether it is her relatable pop songs, connection with millions of fans worldwide or role as a feminist icon, the power of Taylor Swift is now too large for academics to ignore.

Dating app helps Swedes with disabilities find love
For 24-year-old Sira Rehn, a dating app for people with mild intellectual disabilities and autism has opened up the world of online dating and a chance to find love in a safe space.

A-list stars to confront dicey politics at Berlin film festival
New movies starring Cillian Murphy, Kristen Stewart, Gael Garcia Bernal and Adam Sandler will top the line-up of the Berlin film festival starting Thursday which risks getting upended by geopolitics.

Ukraine debates future of downed Soviet monuments
In Ukraine's westernmost city of Lviv, a statue of the first woman in space, Valentina Tereshkova, sprawls on the ground, red paint splashed around her helmet.

S. Africa's Tshepo Jeans, from township to stars' closets
Growing up in a rough township outside Johannesburg, Tshepo Mohlala was mocked for wearing skinny jeans before they were popular.

Beyonce, Swift command conversation as Usher helms halftime
Usher delivered a Las Vegas-appropriate set heavy on glitz, choreography and nostalgia as he headlined Sunday's Super Bowl halftime show, but it was new music from Beyonce and the Taylor Swift cam that grabbed the most attention.

'Argylle' sees big drop but still tops N.America box office
Universal's wacky spy thriller "Argylle" held on to the top spot in North American theaters on a molasses-slow movie weekend overshadowed by pro football's Super Bowl championship game.

Guenter Brus, last of Austria's 'actionism' art movement, dies at 85
Contemporary artist Guenter Brus, the last surviving key member of Vienna's famed "actionists", has died at the age of 85, the museum dedicated to the radical and provocative art movement said Sunday.

Parades, parties, pageantry: What to know about Rio's Carnival
After weeks of sweaty, pulsating street parties, the Rio Carnival reaches its crescendo this Sunday with its main event, in which samba schools compete in dazzling parades.

Spain cinema faces #MeToo moment at Goya awards
Spain's glittering Goya film awards ceremony, which takes place Saturday, looks set to be overshadowed by allegations of sexual assault directed at an independent Spanish filmmaker.

A car-free Eiffel Tower zone? Paris mayor faces pushback
Removing cars from an expanse around the Eiffel Tower to create a green pathway sounds pretty good on paper, but the mayor of Paris is struggling to win over residents and above all the police force to revamp one of the city's most celebrated views.

Indonesian tribe shuns political campaigning
In forests a few hours' drive from Indonesia's capital, there will be no presidential election campaigning by an Indigenous tribe that cares little for the outside world.

Helmut Lang kicks off NY fashion week with bubble wrap and balaclavas
Bubble wrap, balaclavas and puffy jackets took center stage at the Helmut Lang show that kicked off New York Fashion Week on Friday.

Meta reviewing use of word 'Zionist' amid Israel-Hamas war
Meta on Friday confirmed it is assessing when the word "Zionist" should be deemed hate speech as online anti-Semitism escalates amid the Israel-Hamas war.

Star Japanese conductor Seiji Ozawa dies at 88
Charismatic Japanese conductor Seiji Ozawa, who led the Boston Symphony Orchestra for nearly 30 years and delighted audiences with his energetic style, died at his home in Tokyo aged 88, his management team announced on Friday.

Meta reviewing use of word 'Zionist' amid Israel-Gaza war
Meta on Friday confirmed it is assessing when the word "Zionist" should be deemed hate speech as online anti-Semitism escalates amid the Israel-Hamas war.

Prince Harry settles UK hacking lawsuit against Mirror tabloid
Prince Harry on Friday settled a long-running legal claim against Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN), nearly two months after a UK judge ruled he had been a victim of phone hacking by its tabloid titles.

Law and politics hamper UK museum artefacts returns
British museums, like others across Europe, are under pressure to return artworks taken during the colonial era, including Bronzes from Benin, royal treasures from Ghana and friezes from Greece.

Indonesia candidates battle for Gen-Z votes on social media
Indonesia's presidential candidates are posting light content on social media in a push to appeal to young voters, dressing up like Tom Cruise in "Top Gun", organising dance contests or forgetting to turn off a livestream.

'One-sided war': Indonesians join forces to bust election disinfo
On a typical workday, Vinanda Febriani starts her morning in Indonesia scrolling on her phone. But her goal is slightly different than most Gen Zers -- she is scanning for disinformation posts.

Women train to fight fire with fire in Portugal
Women from around the world gathered in northwest Portugal this week to practise a traditional technique of deliberately burning land to prevent the kind of wildfires -- intensified by climate change -- that have killed hundreds across Europe.

'Carnival is here': Rio gets ready to party
With the clock ticking down to what has been called the biggest party on Earth, Brazilian dancer Pedro H. Gaspar confesses he is "excited... and tired."