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By SCOTT STROUD Associated PressKolby Cooper, Vol. 2 (Combustion Music)Kolby Cooper could add a fresh voice to country radio if he could only get past the censors.The 21-year-old fire breather from the piney woods of East Texas offers relief from the parade of inauthentic junk laden with John Deere tractor references thats still way too pervasive these days.

Hes edgy, thats for sure.On Vol. 2, a new five-song EP, Cooper doesnt take long to start the beat-down. One of the songs, 2 Words, begins with a 15-second banjo intro and then drops hard into a breakup song as emphatic as any you will ever hear. And the two words its built around are enough to take commercial radio off the table.Thats probably OK with Cooper, who still lives in Bradford, Texas, not far from Palestine, a little farther from Dallas. He has the look of a guy who might pump your gas at one of those East Texas stations that still hasnt converted to pay-at-the-pump.

His music pulsates with the give-a-care vibe of someone still kicking dust off his jeans.Coopers first EP, 2018s Vol. 1, was followed by his only full-length album, Good Ones Never Last, which helped make him a word-of-mouth sensation. His previously best-known breakup song, It Aint Me, registered more than eight million Spotify streams.Yes, breakup songs are a specialty. But Cooper, who married early, says neither song is autobiographical.I showed the song to my wife, he says. And she was like, Oh sure, thats a good song. But are we OK?'The answer was yes. And Cooper shows his range and depth on new song Cannonball, a ballad about commitment thats original in its own way.Versatile and fearless, Cooper is the kind of voice that could redeem country music if only his songs can be cleared for airplay.

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Review: A new voice from Texas rips it but tests the censors - Fort Worth Business Press

Wear a mask

There are acts that one can perform in life that are so simple yet so important and impactful in the lives of others. Wearing a mask literally saves lives. It's as simple as that, yet some people laugh it off, or quote garbage cited by someone who "studied" epidemiology at the University of YouTube and wrote their doctorate thesis on Reddit.

I will continue to avoid businesses where the employees don't care about my safety. Long after this pandemic is over I will keep my distance from those who lack intelligence and empathy. I've lost an uncle to COVID-19. We'll all lose more due to the carelessness of others before this is over.

Kevin McKague

Madison Heights

As a longtime consultant for the Illinois Police Academy, Bureau of Investigation, and the primary sponsor of the Pontiac Police Department's fundraising activities during the 1980s, I have had the honor and privilege of meeting hundreds of men and women either in training or already in law enforcement. I have dined, drank and played golf with some. I often wondered what motivated them to enter such a demanding profession. So I read much research regarding this issue.

Most had a great respect for the law and wanted to protect it. Others wanted the respect that wearing a badge could give them. Interestingly, some liked wearing a uniform and not having to decide what to wear to work. There were other personality traits and psychological factors which are the reasons for this letter.

An adequate emphasis on psychological testing and evaluation of each candidate before he is accepted for training just might save a lot of money, time and lives. Do we really want to defund or eliminate our police departments? Good luck if you call the Marines for a neighborhood disturbance.

Most recently, some political figures, notably our governor and the mayor of New York City have publicly addressed the issue of police brutality. Also I read with great interest the recent article titled, "To Defund or Not to Defund" in The Oakland Press Vitality section, July 2020. I have yet to notice any reference to preventing the problems before they occur.

It is time to do the right thing. Let us put the respect back where it should be with our law enforcement officers. A thorough evaluation of all existing testing and training programs would be a start. Consider hiring a psychological consultant. The proper and thorough psychological evaluation of any candidate for any law enforcement agency could prevent the bullies, racists and potential troublemaker from ever wearing a badge.

Bill Vincent

West Bloomfield Twp.

I was shocked to hear about the explosion in Beiruts main port. As an Ahmadi Muslim, I am praying for the victims and their families.

In line with a saying of the Holy Prophet that people must "guard yourselves against the Fire even if it be only with half a date-fruit (given in charity); and if you cannot afford even that, you should at least say a good word" we must pray for Lebanons recovery and, if able, donate to trusted organizations like the Lebanese Red Cross to aid the victims of this horrific incident.

Saood Qureshi

Troy

Thanks to the Oakland County Republican Party for ruining the Dream Cruise.

For many years those with diverse political leanings came together to share their love of classic cars. Not any more. Now all we'll ever see is angry people with Trump signs and anti-Trump people displaying their anger with Trump.

I'm sure the next event you will ruin is the Arts Beats and Eats festival. Say goodbye to any fun event anywhere thanks to the Oakland County Republicans who can't gather without shoving their politics in others face.

David Oswalt

Clarkston

Internet censorship is illegal, and Trump cannot ban TikTok or any other websites. If our lame-duck Congress does not prevent this, we literally are no better than the authoritarian countries we so often liberate. We are no longer The United States of America!

Individually, it's nothing, but with alphabet agencies spying on citizens, federal agents assaulting citizens in the streets, citizens begging for our food and not having jobs, and now extreme mass censorship under the guise of "national security"? Ask yourself: is this the land of the free and the home of the brave?

I'd like our elected officials to know that this is happening on their watch. Before my grandparents passed they were big-time supporters of Sen. Peters and Sen. Stabenow. They would be rolling in their resting places if they witnessed what our country is becoming. I'm asking our officials to please fight for an end to illegal censorship.

Daniel Smith

Madison Heights

Advocating for birds and the places they need doesnt have to stop during a pandemic.

The last week of July, I participated in the National Audubon Societys Virtual Seabird Action Fly-into educate my representatives, Senator Gary Peters and Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, about seabirds and the threats they face.

Seabirds like Black Terns and White Pelicans are in crisis, declining around the world by 70% since the 1950s, due to climate change, overfishing, and habitat loss. But we can help save them by supporting the laws and policies that protect their habitat and the small, schooling fish -- known as forage fish -- they rely on for food. First, Peters and Dingell can improve the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, our nations only federal fisheries law. Since the 1970s, this law has successfully recovered fish populations and reduced overfishing. However, the law needs to be improved to factor in the important role that forage fish play in the ocean, account for climate change, and adequately protect seabirds from bycatch.

Second, our legislators can fully fund the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) programs that protect fish and benefit coastal habitat. Through yearly and supplemental appropriations, Congress can ensure that seabirds have healthy coastal areas to nest, raise their chicks and forage for food. Thank you, Gary Peters and Debbie Dingell, for meeting with me about this important issue, and I hope youll join me to make sure seabirds have a healthy future.

Don Burlett

Oxford

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Letters to the editor: Wear a mask; don't defund police; politics ruining fun; end illegal censorship - The Oakland Press

New Delhi, August 12

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has written a letter to the Censor Board objecting to its undue negative portrayal in the movie Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl, said a senior official.

The movie was released on streaming platform Netflix on Wednesday.

According to the official, the letter mentions concerns related to the movies portrayal of gender bias as an institutional work culture at the IAF.

The movie is based on the life of IAF officer Gunjan Saxena who became the first woman pilot to take part in the 1999 Kargil war. It has been produced by Karan Johars Dharma Productions.

The IAF has written a letter to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) objecting to certain scenes in the movie Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl wherein it has been portrayed in undue negative light, the official said.

The official said a copy of the letter has also been sent to Netflix.

Before the release of the film, the IAF had requested Dharma Productions to modify or delete the objectionable scenes. However, it did not take any action, the official noted.

The Defence Ministry had written to the CBFC last month raising strong objections to the depiction of armed forces personnel in some web series, sources said.

It had urged that production houses may be advised to obtain a no-objection certificate from the ministry before telecasting any film, documentary or web series on an Army theme, they added.

The ministry had received some complaints raising strong objections about the portrayal of Indian Army personnel and the military uniform in an insulting manner, they said.

The sources said the communication last month was also sent to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology for consideration. PTI

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IAF writes to censor board objecting to its undue negative portrayal in movie Gunjan Saxena - The Tribune India

HOUSTON, Texas - U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, wrote in a new op-ed for Fox News about the sanctions announced against him by the Chinese Communist Party. The op-ed highlighted China's recent human rights atrocities and the need for the United States to recognize that China is our greatest geopolitical threat.

On China's announced sanctions against him, Sen. Cruz wrote:

'China announced sanctions against me this week for the second time in a month. This time it was for speaking out against China's deepening control of Hong Kong. The first time, in July, the Chinese government sanctioned me and banned me from traveling to China for condemning the Chinese Communist Party's horrific human rights abuses against the Uighurs.'

On China's threats to the Uighurs and Hong Kong's autonomy, Sen. Cruz added:

'The Chinese regime has forced over 1 million Uighurs into concentration camps and has engaged in ethnic cleansing, including through forced abortions and sterilizations. [...] China has undeniably violated Hong Kong's autonomy at the expense of the precious freedoms that the people of Hong Kong fought tirelessly and bravely to preserve. The recent arrests of Jimmy Lai, his family, and other brave journalists who dared to speak out against the Chinese Communist Party are just the latest examples.'

He continued:

'Unfortunately, China's treatment of Hong Kong and the Uighurs is part of a pattern of despicable behavior including China's aggression, human rights abuses, espionage operations, censorship practices and propaganda campaigns. And what we've learned in the past few months is that the Communist Chinese government's lies, censorship, propaganda, and human rights abuses have serious implications for public health.'

Sen. Cruz concluded:

'We need to do everything we can to make it clear that the United States will not tolerate China's relentless attempts to bully its neighbors into submission and will not tolerate China's espionage operations and propaganda campaigns on American soil. China is expanding its malign influence all over the world. For the sake of the free world, America needs to win this contest.'

Sen. Cruz is leading the charge to fundamentally reassess the U.S.-China relationship and counter Chinese censorship in the wake of the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) coronavirus coverup. In April, Sen. Cruz introduced the SCRIPT Act as part of a comprehensive push to combat China's growing influence over what Americans see and hear. He also introduced the BEAMS Act as part of a successful push to prevent the CCP from blanketing the U.S. with propaganda.

After the CCP first announced sanctions against him, Sen. Cruz delivered remarks on the Senate floor to hold China accountable for their coronavirus cover-up and for engaging in censorship and propaganda campaigns in China and here in the United States. Recently, Sen. Cruz introduced the Protecting America from Spies Act that would allow the Department of State to deny visas to individuals who have committed acts of espionage or intellectual property theft against the United States. Learn more about Sen. Cruz's push to counter Chinese propaganda here.

Read the full op-ed here and below:

Sen. Ted Cruz: China sanctions me again - Communist Party is terrified and lashing outFox NewsSen. CruzAugust 15, 2020

China announced sanctions against me this week for the second time in a month. This time it was for speaking out against China's deepening control of Hong Kong.

The first time, in July, the Chinese government sanctioned me and banned me from traveling to China for condemning the Chinese Communist Party's horrific human rights abuses against the Uighurs.

The irony is that those atrocities had already made China a less than attractive tourist destination.

The Chinese regime has forced over 1 million Uighurs into concentration camps and has engaged in ethnic cleansing, including through forced abortions and sterilizations.

Last October, I went to Hong Kong and met with pro-democracy activists, dissidents, and protest leaders to express my support for the fight to protect Hong Kong's autonomy, free speech and basic human rights. Dressed all in black, we stood together in solidarity, demanding that China honor the deal it agreed to pledging to protect Hong Kong's autonomy.

China has undeniably violated Hong Kong's autonomy at the expense of the precious freedoms that the people of Hong Kong fought tirelessly and bravely to preserve. The recent arrests of Jimmy Lai, his family, and other brave journalists who dared to speak out against the Chinese Communist Party are just the latest examples.

More broadly, China is the greatest geopolitical threat facing the United States and our allies - now and for the next century. China's objective is nothing short of global domination.

Yet many on the world stage, including at the United Nations, turn a blind eye to China's barbaric behavior and aggression. That is not the case in the United States. We must and will respond.

For example, I spearheaded the Hong Kong Policy Reevaluation Act, which required the State Department to report on whether China was eroding Hong Kong's autonomy, setting up a formal process for altering U.S. policy if this proved to be the case.

President Trump signed this bill into law in November 2019 as part of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act. The Trump administration then issued the mandated report, unfortunately, but correctly concluding that China had undermined Hong Kong's autonomy, and then changing our policies.

As the Trump administration's actions make clear, America will not stand by and allow tyrants in China to exploit the special treatment Hong Kong received under U.S. law.

As we all know, China violated that deal. The Communist Chinese government was hoping it could silence and oppress the people of Hong Kong in the dark of night without anybody noticing. But we've noticed, and we won't back down.

Unfortunately, China's treatment of Hong Kong and the Uighurs is part of a pattern of despicable behavior including China's aggression, human rights abuses, espionage operations, censorship practices and propaganda campaigns.

And what we've learned in the past few months is that the Communist Chinese government's lies, censorship, propaganda, and human rights abuses have serious implications for public health. As brave Chinese doctors and journalists were trying to warn the world about coronavirus, they were silenced, and many disappeared.

The Chinese lied to the world about the coronavirus, and what began as a regional outbreak is now a deadly pandemic that has sickened over 21 million people and claimed the lives of over 761,000 around the world.

The Communist Chinese government is directly responsible for those deaths.

It's time for the United States to take serious measures to hold China accountable. That's why I've been fighting in the Senate to fundamentally reassess our relationship with China and counter Chinese censorship in the wake of the Communist Chinese government's coronavirus cover-up.

We need to do everything we can to make it clear that the United States will not tolerate China's relentless attempts to bully its neighbors into submission and will not tolerate China's espionage operations and propaganda campaigns on American soil. China is expanding its malign influence all over the world.

For the sake of the free world, America needs to win this contest.

###

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Sen. Cruz on FoxNews.com: China Is Expanding Its Malign Influence All Over the World - Marketscreener.com

Factually is a newsletter about fact-checking and accountability journalism, from Poynters International Fact-Checking Network & the American Press Institutes Accountability Project. Sign up here

The major social media platforms arent always in lockstep on what content they moderate. But this week, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube were all on the same page in blocking a video of a group called Americas Frontline Doctors touting the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine as a cure for COVID-19, contrary to scientific evidence. One of the doctors said you dont need masks to halt the spread of the virus.

By now, the story of the video is well known the retweets by President Donald Trump and his son, the fact-checks that followed, and the bizarre beliefs of one of the doctors involved, Stella Immanuel.

What happened in the days after that, though, is key in understanding the methods and tactics of people who push unproven cures and other falsehoods and then have their content blocked: The blocking itself and the claims of censorship that follow become part of the attempt to get attention.

The day after the video of their Washington press conference was removed, the white-coated doctors were out again talking about the same messages, but with an added angle: They were being silenced.

Were coming after you Big Tech, were coming after you, said Simone Gold, one of the doctors leading the effort. We wont be silenced,

The censorship message then took off among the doctors supporters on Twitter and other platforms.

This is a common tactic among groups that champion unconventional messages. The censorship claim becomes central to their efforts to control the narrative, said Aimee Rinehart, U.S. deputy director of the nonprofit organization First Draft, which fights disinformation.

Cries that Big Tech is censoring us! become part of the attention grab, she said, even though the platforms are clear that they will only remove content that spreads false information about the coronavirus or messages that suppress the vote.

The doctors events were also held the same week that the CEOs of Amazon, Google, Facebook and Apple (Twitter was not among them) were testifying before a House subcommittee, which is probing the power of the tech companies. So it was convenient timing for the doctors, since there was a good chance that the platforms decision to take down the video would come up in the hearing, and it did.

In short, the doctors were successful in inserting their cause into the hearing, in effect, using the platforms content moderation decision to extend what might otherwise have been written off as a one-news-cycle fringe event.

Susan Benkelman, API

This week, Brazillian fact-checking organizations Agncia Lupa and Aos Fatos debunked a claim that citrus fruit peels contain the same basic ingredients as chloroquine and ivermectin.

Chloroquine has been shown to be ineffective at treating COVID-19 according to studies by both the World Health Organization and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Ivermectin, a medicine used to treat heartworm in animals and roundworm in humans, has shown some promise in early studies to treat COVID-19, but has not been properly vetted and approved to treat the disease.

Both fact-checkers talked to experts who explained both chloroquine and ivermectin are created through combining other chemicals in laboratory settings. They do not exist in citrus fruit peels. Both also noted misinformation about using citrus to treat COVID-19 is not new, and put this latest hoax in that context.

What we liked: This is a unique fact-check that builds on the work fact-checkers have been doing throughout the infodemic. It reiterates the current scientific understanding about the efficacy of chloroquine, and recognizes the trope of citrus fruits being used to treat COVID-19. This falsehood is a combination of those two narratives, and Aos Fatos and Agncia Lupa unpack that for their readers.

Harrison Mantas, IFCN

Thats it for this week! Feel free to send feedback and suggestions to factually@poynter.org. And if this newsletter was forwarded to you, or if youre reading it on the web, you can subscribe here. Thanks for reading.

Susan and Harrison

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Doctors' cries of censorship become part of their message - Poynter