The MIT Technology Review obtained a Facebook internal data-research report in 2019. According to the report from 2019 running up to 2020, the top pages that create content for Christian and African American audiences were run by troll farms. The separate pages creating different ranges were managed by the same troll farms based in Kosovo and Macedonia.
Protesters showed up during the September 26 screening of the film Benedetta at the Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, where the 59th New York Film Festival premiered the film. Armed with megaphones, banners, and placards, members of the American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family, and Property branded Benedetta as a “blasphemous lesbian movie.”
The office of the Prosecutor General of Russian declared on Friday, September 24th, that the World Institute of Scientology Enterprises International and Church of Spiritual Technology are threats to the “security of the Russian Federation.” Both religious organizations are connected to the Church of Scientology, a California-based religious cult infamous for
In early September, a photo of a controversial billboard appeared on Twitter. The sign pictured former President Donald Trump next to prophetic words partially quoted from Isaiah 9:6, which compared him to Jesus. The scripture referenced by the sign, however, is inaccurate.
Critics quickly identified the bible misquotes in the sign after the photo made its way to Twitter. The verse quoted is from Isaiah 9:6 rather than Romans 8:17. The words are easily recognized as prophesizing the return of Jesus.
Religious schools and organizations in the Australian state of Victoria will soon be prohibited from hiring or terminating based on the applicant's gender identity or sexual orientation. On September 16th, the Victorian Labor Party in Australia proposed a law that would end this discrimination.
A wide range of religious organizations in the UK was subject to an inquiry investigation regarding child abuse. The inquiry revealed “shocking failures” and “blatant hypocrisies” in how these religions handle abuse allegations. Children are subjected to abuse of power and victim-blaming by religious leaders and, as a result, are often not reported.
Authorities arrested six family members in Peoria, a suburb of Phoenix, Arizona, for allegedly trying to kidnap a 20-year-old female relative because she has a non-Muslim boyfriend — and she is approximately 5-months pregnant. The victim later told police how she feared dying at the hands of her relatives because they believe she brought dishonor to them.
Merve Taskin, a Turkish Instagram influencer, is expected to appear in court for publishing photos that were deemed to be obscene. The pictures in question came from a trip she took with two of her friends to the Netherlands to celebrate her 22nd birthday.
On July 26th, the U.S. Court of Appeals held the lower court’s decision to deny a web designer’s petition to discriminate against the LGBTQ+ community in Colorado. There have been many other court rulings in the United States deciding if a business that denies service to LGBTQ+ people is considered prejudice or exercising their right to religious freedom.
