By Julie Gordon VANCOUVER (Reuters) – Canada’s Conservative government came under fire on Thursday after it emerged that the family of a Syrian toddler whose body washed up on a Turkish beach had wanted to emigrate to Canada, rattling Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s re-election bid.
Read moreOfficials at Howard University on Thursday met with students who have been complaining about rats, mold, high tuition and other issues at the school, one of the oldest historically black U.S. colleges
Read moreBy Astrid Wendlandt and Silvia Aloisi PARIS/MILAN (Reuters) – Natalie Massenet, founder and executive chairman of online fashion group Net-A-Porter, said on Thursday it was the right time to leave after she resigned abruptly ahead of the completion of a planned merger with Italy's Yoox. Regarded as the fashion visionary of the soon-to-be-combined business, she was to become its executive chairman and oversee editorial content, one of Net-A-Porter's main strengths
Read moreThe director of Taylor Swift's new music video set in Africa struck back on Wednesday at mounting criticism of the scarcity of black people in the mini-film and its romanticized portrayal of the continent. “Wildest Dreams,” a love story filmed against a backdrop of giraffes, lions, waterfalls and stunning sunsets, has been viewed more than 15 million times since it was released on Monday to accompany the American pop superstar's latest single.
Read moreBy Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) – Syria's water network, heavily damaged by bombs and shelling, is at risk of collapse as its civil war drags on, increasing the threat of deadly typhoid or cholera outbreaks, the International Committee of the Red Cross said on Wednesday. Millions of people in Aleppo and Damascus are cut off from water supplies for days at a time, a tactic used by all warring sides to exert control in divided cities, the ICRC said. ICRC aid workers have helped water boards and engineers to maintain and repair aging pumping stations throughout Syria since the conflict began in March 2011
Read moreBy Piya Sinha-Roy and Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – When technology and geek culture enthusiast Chris Pirillo purchased his iPhone 6 last year, he rushed home to broadcast himself unboxing the item live on YouTube. The video has garnered nearly 50,000 views and is part of the growing craze of 'unboxing' that is a centerpiece of a live global Walt Disney event, starting on Wednesday evening in Australia, to unveil new toys from its December movie “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” The goal? The Disney event, to be live-streamed online, is the most high-profile embrace to date of unboxing, where people film themselves opening and trying out new toys and gadgets
Read moreMILAN/PARIS (Reuters) – Natalie Massenet, founder and executive chairman of online fashion group Net-A-Porter (NAP) abruptly resigned on Wednesday ahead of its planned acquisition by Italy's Yoox. Massenet, regarded as the fashion visionary of the soon-to-be-merged business, was to become its executive chairman and oversee its editorial content, one of NAP's main strengths
Read moreBy Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Videos like “Walking Around Naked” and “Apps That Need to Be Invented” made Connor Franta a star on YouTube. With that kind of appeal to young readers, Franta is part of a generation of YouTube stars giving a boost to the book publishing industry
Read moreAUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) – A 19-year-old Texas man who was posing with a gun for a social media selfie photo accidentally shot himself and died from the wounds, Houston police said on Wednesday. “A witness told police he was taking a selfie with a gun and the gun accidentally discharged,” Houston police spokeswoman Jodi Silva said. The identity of the man killed in the Tuesday incident in Houston has been withheld pending an investigation by the coroner.
Read more(Reuters) – Microblogging website operator Twitter Inc said it had expanded its self-service ads platform to more than 200 countries and territories from 33 countries. Small and medium-sized businesses can now reach their target audiences on Twitter in 15 languages, Twitter said in a blog post on Wednesday
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