CIVIC LANE
Brazil’s electoral court is examining complaints about Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram. Lula da Silva’s campaign accuses the company of unfairly favouring his rival, Flávio Bolsonaro. The complaints concern restrictions on posts, search results and paid promotion. UOL reported further court action on 21 October. Meta denies political bias and says technical problems explain the incidents.
CIVIC LANE
Riots and looting hit France on 17 October. More demonstrations are planned for 24 October. On 22 October, Emmanuel Macron called for protests not organised by unions to be banned wherever possible. Marches organised by unions could still go ahead, with routes changed to protect shops. The restrictions could also affect people who want to protest peacefully.
CIVIC LANE
Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign produced an advert featuring Amy Acton’s estranged mother. The mother challenged Acton’s account of her childhood. Acton’s brother supported his sister’s account. Vice-President JD Vance defended the advert on 21 October. The campaign said it would spend $4 million promoting it.
A HEARTBREAKING STATISTIC ABOUT MOTHERS WHO KILL THEIR OWN CHILDREN IS SPARKING A BIGGER CONVERSATION. ARE WE DOING ENOUGH TO RECOGNIZE FAMILY CRISES EARLY AND PROTECT CHILDREN BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE?