BBC: Coronavirus: Madrid at serious risk without tougher rules, minister warns. “Madrid is again at the epicentre of Spain’s coronavirus outbreak, as it was during the first peak earlier this year. The country recorded a further 12,272 cases on Friday, bringing the official total to 716,481, the highest infection tally in western Europe. Spain and many other countries in the northern hemisphere have seen a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic in recent weeks.”
Europe
Reuters: EU regulators extend Google, Fitbit deal probe to December 23
Reuters: EU regulators extend Google, Fitbit deal probe to December 23. “EU antitrust regulators have extended their investigation into Alphabet GOOGL.O unit Google’s fitness tracker maker Fitbit FIT.N to Dec. 23, the European Commission said on Wednesday.”
CBS News: WHO warns of “alarming” virus spread in Europe after 54,000 cases recorded in 24 hours
CBS News: WHO warns of “alarming” virus spread in Europe after 54,000 cases recorded in 24 hours. “The World Health Organization on Thursday warned of ‘alarming rates of transmission’ of COVID-19 across Europe and cautioned against shortening quarantine periods as countries in the region scrambled to find ways to reduce infections without resorting to new lockdowns. The WHO’s regional director for Europe Hans Kluge said a September surge — Europe set a new record last week, with some 54,000 cases recorded in 24 hours — ‘should serve as a wake-up call for all of us.'”
Phys .org: Database of parliamentarians’ tweets opens new research opportunities
Phys .org: Database of parliamentarians’ tweets opens new research opportunities. “Researchers have compiled a new database of tweets from parliament members from 26 European countries and illustrated how this resource could help address challenges in the burgeoning field of Twitter research. Livia van Vliet of the University of Amsterdam, Netherlands, and colleagues present the new database and findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on September 16, 2020.”
BNN Bloomberg: After $9 Billion in Fines, EU Says Something Nice About Google
BNN Bloomberg: After $9 Billion in Fines, EU Says Something Nice About Google. “After fining Google more than 8.2 billion euros ($9.7 billion) in three antitrust cases, a European Union official finally had something nice to say about the Internet giant. Olivier Guersent, the head of the European Commission’s antitrust arm, said Google’s efforts to provide more choice in shopping search results lead to ‘good, positive developments.’ Guersent’s comments Wednesday potentially ease the threat of new fines for the Alphabet Inc. unit.”
DuurZaam Nieuws: Database reveals worst polluters in Europe
DuurZaam Nieuws : Database reveals worst polluters in Europe. “The Industrial Plant Data Viewer allows users to access and compare data from over 3,000 large combustion plants across the EU, and check whether they are doing their job to prevent pollution. It was launched by the European Environmental Bureau to help fill the dramatic transparency gap in EU industrial emissions reporting.”
Reuters: Facebook, Google, Twitter urged by EU to do more against fake news
Reuters: Facebook, Google, Twitter urged by EU to do more against fake news. “Two years after agreeing to a self-regulatory code of practice to tackle disinformation, Facebook, Alphabet’s Google, Twitter and other tech rivals must try harder to be more effective, the European Commission said on Thursday.”
TechCrunch: TikTok joins Europe’s code on tackling hate speech
TechCrunch: TikTok joins Europe’s code on tackling hate speech. “TikTok, the popular short video sharing app, has joined the European Union’s Code of Conduct on Countering Illegal Hate Speech. In a statement on joining the code, TikTok’s head of trust and safety for EMEA, Cormac Keenan, said: ‘We have never allowed hate on TikTok, and we believe it’s important that internet platforms are held to account on an issue as crucial as this.'”
Pascha: One of Europe’s biggest brothels goes bust (BBC)
BBC: Pascha: One of Europe’s biggest brothels goes bust. “The 10-floor Pascha is a major landmark in the city of Cologne. ‘We are at an end,’ the brothel’s director, Armin , told local paper Express. Prostitution has been outlawed in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia since the outbreak of the virus. Some 120 prostitutes usually work at Pascha. It employs around 60 staff including cooks and hairdressers.”
Reuters: Google urges EU to be flexible in setting digital rule book
Reuters: Google urges EU to be flexible in setting digital rule book. “Google urged the European Commission on Thursday to avoid a one-size-fits-all approach to the tech industry in its forthcoming Digital Services Act. The EU executive is drawing up new rules for data-sharing and the digital marketplace as well as boosting competition after concluding that multiple antitrust actions against Google have been ineffectual. The Commission’s public consultation period ends on Sept. 8.”
Phys .org: Big data delivers important new tool in conservation decision making
Phys .org: Big data delivers important new tool in conservation decision making. “The Harry Butler Institute has collaborated with researchers around the world to develop a new tool to inform conservation decisions across Europe. The research is poised to have a direct and immediate impact—on both science and practice.”
France: Virus cases spike to 4,700 in a day (BBC)
BBC: France: Virus cases spike to 4,700 in a day. “France has reported a sharp rise in the number of coronavirus cases – 4,771 – up a thousand on Wednesday’s figure. It is the first time more than 4,000 daily cases have been seen since May. Meanwhile Spain, Germany and Italy have also recorded their highest numbers of cases since late April or May.”
Europe lockdown: New coronavirus curbs country by country (BBC)
BBC: Europe lockdown: New coronavirus curbs country by country. “Restrictions to deal with new coronavirus outbreaks have been imposed in parts of Europe since lockdowns were eased. So what are these measures and how do they compare in different countries?”
New York Times: Europe Said It Was Pandemic-Ready. Pride Was Its Downfall.
New York Times: Europe Said It Was Pandemic-Ready. Pride Was Its Downfall.. “This was not supposed to happen. The expertise and resources of Western Europe were expected to provide the antidote to viral outbreaks flowing out of poorer regions. Many European leaders felt so secure after the last pandemic — the 2009 swine flu — that they scaled back stockpiles of equipment and faulted medical experts for overreacting. But that confidence would prove their undoing.”
ABC News: Elbows? Masks? Presents? Let this divisive EU summit begin!
ABC News: Elbows? Masks? Presents? Let this divisive EU summit begin!. “At the start of one of the most daunting and divisive summits in recent history, the atmosphere among the European Union leaders was downright giddy. Blame the coronavirus pandemic. With all kinds of masks, social distancing rules, and new ways of greetings, some of the leaders reveled in the novelty of it all as they met in person for the first time since February.”
