Good morning, I’m Tim Walker with today’s essential stories.
Academy Awards veer off script with a thrilling twist ending
Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite was the unexpected victor at the 92nd Academy Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday. The South Korean production is the first foreign-language film to win best picture, with Bong also claiming Oscars for best director, best international feature and best original screenplay. The rest of the winners’ list went largely to form, with acting prizes going to Joaquin Phoenix (Joker), Renée Zellweger (Judy), Laura Dern (Marriage Story) and Brad Pitt (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood).
Welcome change. Peter Bradshaw says Parasite’s win shows Hollywood is at last opening its mind to the outside world. Taika Waititi, who won the best adapted screenplay Oscar for Jojo Rabbit, dedicated his win to aspiring Indigenous storytellers.
Post-ballgown looks. From capes to chainmail, Sunday’s red carpet looks went well beyond old Hollywood glamour, writes Jess Cartner-Morley, while some stars used their outfits as an opportunity to make a political statement.
WHO warns confirmed coronavirus cases ‘tip of the iceberg’
The head of the World Health Organization has warned that international cases of the coronavirus among people who have never travelled to China “may indicate more widespread transmission in other countries”. It came as China prepared to return to work on Monday following the extended lunar new year holiday. China’s death toll has jumped to 908, with 40,000 confirmed infections, while a further 60 cases have been confirmed onboard a quarantined cruise ship in Japan.
Missing journalist. Chen Qiushi, a citizen journalist and human rights advocate who was reporting from the heart of the outbreak in Wuhan, has gone missing – prompting claims the Chinese authorities may have silenced another whistleblower.
Global economy. China plays an outsized role in today’s world economy, which means the financial fallout from the coronavirus crisis could be large and long-lasting, writes Philip Inman.
Sheldon Adelson ‘to donate $100m to Trump and GOP’
The billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson intends to donate at least $100m to Donald Trump and Republican congressional candidates during the 2020 presidential cycle, GOP fundraisers have told the Guardian. The Las Vegas-based Adelson is an ardent pro-Israel conservative who, along with his Israeli-born wife Miriam, donated more than $100m to Super Pacs and “dark money” groups in 2012 and 2016. One source predicts the couple will spend twice that amount to secure Trump’s re-election in November.
Lindsey and Rudy. Republican senator Lindsey Graham has said the president’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, is passing “information from Ukraine” to the US department of justice, despite fears it may contain “Russian propaganda”.
Sanders campaign to ask for ‘partial recanvass’ in Iowa
Bernie Sanders’s presidential campaign has asked for a partial recanvass of the chaotic caucus results in Iowa, as the Democratic field gears up for Tuesday’s primary in New Hampshire. Pete Buttigieg still leads the Vermont senator by two state delegates at the latest count, but the results are still considered somewhat unreliable. A recanvass is not a recount, but a check of the existing vote count to make certain that the results were tallied correctly.
New Hampshire. Sanders remains the favourite in New Hampshire, with Joe Biden stepping up his attacks on his rival’s democratic socialism as the former vice-president struggles to regain frontrunner status in the national race.
Cheat sheet
Sinn Féin, the former political wing of the IRA, is celebrating an electoral “revolution” in Ireland, where its leaders say they will attempt to form a governing coalition after winning more votes than any other party in the country’s general election.
Angela Merkel’s designated successor, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, is not planning to run for the chancellorship in Germany at the next federal election and plans to step down as the leader of the conservative Christian Democratic Union.
A hitman suspected of involvement in the murder of Brazilian politician Marielle Franco, who had close links with the family of president Jair Bolsonaro, has been shot dead by police in the country’s Bahia state.
Trump has decried a photo showing him with a stark forehead tan line as “fake news”, while Twitter and Facebook refused to remove a video posted by the president, which misleadingly shows Nancy Pelosi repeatedly tearing up his State of the Union speech.
Bill Gates is doing his bit for the environment by commissioning the world’s first hydrogen-powered superyacht, worth an estimated $644m and featuring an infinity pool, helipad and spa.
Must-reads
The food fuelling the Democrats’ 2020 campaigns
The presidential race is the political equivalent of an ultra-marathon, so how do the campaigns sustain their staff during this feat of endurance? As Julia Carrie Wong discovers, the Sanders and Warren campaigns are notably diverse in their dining choices, while Michael Bloomberg’s spent $16,877 at a single sushi restaurant.
The rise of climate anxiety
While the physical impact of the climate crisis is becoming impossible to ignore, it is also taking its toll on people’s mental wellbeing. Now climate scientists are recruiting psychologists to help tackle the trauma caused by ecological breakdown, as Matthew Taylor and Jessica Murray report.
Why comic-book movies are ditching gloomy monochrome
From Birds of Prey to Wonder Woman 1984, the latest batch of superhero blockbusters is getting rid of the gloomy, realistic greys in favour of a vibrant riot of colour. It’s of a piece with the genre’s fresh outlook, writes Steve Rose.
India’s ancient tribes fight the spread of mining
A set of newly approved mining projects in central India could wipe out swathes of the Hasdeo Arand forest, threatening elephants, leopards, sloths and the biodiversity on which local villagers depend. Brian Cassey documents their efforts to protect their ancestral homelands.
Opinion
Barbara Smith helped coin the term “identity politics” when she co-authored the Combahee River Collective statement in 1977. She believes that Bernie Sanders is the best hope for helping marginalised Americans in 2020.
I am supporting Bernie Sanders for president because I believe that his campaign and his understanding of politics complements the priorities that women of colour defined decades ago.
Sport
Everton’s turnaround under Carlo Ancelotti means the club is now in the running for a European place. In Italy, a pair of former Manchester United players shone during the Milan derby. Those are two of 10 talking points from the weekend’s football action.
Austin’s Major League Rugby club has been renamed the Austin Gilgronis, apparently after a yet-to-be-mixed Texan cocktail. It is rare for a professional team to adopt an explicitly corporate moniker, writes Tom Dart – let alone one that promotes alcohol.
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