Can't Feel Nothing - How the Internet Warps Our Emotions – DW – 06/27/2025
Is the internet making us emotionally numb? Online trolls and influencers expertly manipulate people's feelings, leading many to disconnect from their emotions.
Scientists explain how the internet influences what we feel — and whether we feel at all.
A man lies in bed, illuminated by the blue-white light of his smartphone screen. As he scrolls through endless social media feeds, he sees adorable pets, outraged opinion pieces, and haunting images from conflict zones - but he feels absolutely nothing.
With curiosity and humor, director David Borenstein travels to Europe, Asia, the U.S., and Russia to investigate how bad things really are. Who is pulling the strings when the internet makes us angry, sad, horny or just plain indifferent?
Is there any way to reclaim our emotions? Borenstein portrays a range of perspectives, including an American internet troll, a burnt-out star from the Asian influencer industry, a Russian state propagandist, and an online dominatrix.
Scientific research into human emotions sheds light on how our emotional responses are being manipulated. The result is an alarming diagnosis of our digital era — paired with a bold attempt to search for solutions.
DW English
FRI 27.06.2025 – 01:15 UTC
FRI 27.06.2025 – 04:15 UTC
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1 in 6 cancer drugs in four African nations are defective – DW – 06/27/2025
Across Africa, cancer medications have been found to be substandard or falsified. It means that people are being given medicines that may not work, or that might even may cause harm. An alarming number of people across Africa may be taking cancer drugs that don't contain the vital ingredients needed to contain or reduce their disease. It's a concerning finding with roots in a complex problem — how to regulate a range of therapeutics across the continent. An American and pan-African research group published the findings this week in . The researchers had collected dosage information, sometimes covertly, from a dozen hospitals and 25 pharmacies across Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi and Cameroon. They tested nearly 200 unique products across several brands. Around 17% — roughly one in six — were found to have incorrect active ingredient levels, including products used in major hospitals. Receiving insufficient dosages of these ingredients could allow a patient's tumors to keep growing, and possibly even spread. Similar numbers of substandard antibiotics, antimalarial and tuberculosis drugs have been reported in the past, but this is the first time that such a study has found high levels of falsified or defective anticancer drugs in circulation. "I was not surprised by these results," said Lutz Heide, a pharmacist at the University of Tübingen in Germany who has previously worked for the Somali Health Ministry and has spent the past decade researching substandard and falsified medicines. Heide was not part of the investigative group, but said the report shed light on a problem not previously measured. "I was delighted that, finally, someone published such a systemic report," Heide said. "That is a first, really significant systematic study of this area." "There are many possible causes for bad-quality products," the investigation's senior researcher Marya Lieberman of the University of Notre Dame, US, told DW. Those causes can include faults in the manufacturing process or product decay due to poor storage conditions. But some drugs are also counterfeit, and that increases the risk of discrepancies between what's on the product label and the actual medicine within. Spotting substandard and falsified products can be difficult though. Usually, a medical professional or patient is only able to perform a visual inspection — literally checking a label for discrepancies or pills and syringes for color differences — to spot falsified products. But that's not a reliable method. In the study, barely a quarter of the substandard products were identified through visual inspection. Laboratory testing identified the rest. Fixing the problem, Lieberman said, will require improving regulation and providing screening technologies and training where they're needed. "If you can't test it, you can't regulate it," she said. "The cancer medications are difficult to handle and analyze because they're very toxic, and so many labs don't want to do that. And that's a core problem for the sub-Saharan countries where we worked. Even though several of those countries have quite good labs, they don't have the facilities that are needed for safe handling of the chemo drugs established." To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Nearly a decade ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) found around 1 in 10 medicines used in low and middle-income countries were substandard or falsified. Independent research conducted since has backed those figures up, sometimes finding rates that are potentially twice as high. "This could lead to treatment failure, adverse reactions, disease progression," health economist Sachiko Ozawa told DW. Ozawa contributed to the investigation on anticancer drugs and has separately researched other cases of defective medicines. "For the community, there's also economic losses in terms of wasted resources,' she said. 'So countries may be spending a lot of money on medications that are not going to be effective." While high-income countries can monitor supply chains and have stringent regulatory systems in place to identify and withdraw suspect products, the infrastructure to do that is far from common in other regions. In those places, poor access to affordable medication often drives patients to less-regulated marketplaces. Inadequate governance and regulation, as well as a scarcity of surveillance and diagnostic equipment to test pharmaceuticals, are all contributing to the problem in Africa. "In high-income countries, I think there's a much more secure supply chain where you know the manufacturers are vetted, it has to go through very stringent regulatory processes to get gets tested more frequently," Ozawa said. The WHO told DW that following the report's findings, it was working with the four impacted countries to address the problem. "We are concerned with the findings the article has highlighted. WHO is in contact with national authorities of 4 impacted countries and obtaining relevant data," it said in a statement. "We expect to assess full information to evaluate the situation, which often takes time and capacity. But we're committed to address these issues working with the relevant countries and partners." It also reiterated its ongoing call for countries to improve their regulatory frameworks to "prevent incidents of substandard and falsified medicines, including in settings of cancer programmes." In 2017, the WHO's review of substandard and falsified medicines offered three solutions based around prevention, detection and response. Stopping the manufacture and sale of those medicines is the primary preventative measure, but where defective products make it to market, surveillance and response programs can prevent poor quality medicines from reaching patients. Regulatory reform sought by experts and authorities takes time though. More immediate solutions are being developed in the form of better screening technologies. Lieberman is working on a "paper lab" — a type of test that can be used by trained professionals to chemically test the quality of a product before it's administered to a patient. Other laboratory technologies are also under development. One comforting point is that while a significant proportion of the medication circulating in medical facilities in the four African countries was defective, the majority of the products tested met required standards. " [With] two-thirds of the suppliers, all the products [were] good quality, so there are good quality suppliers," Heide said. "But a few of them really have a suspiciously high number of failing samples."
DW
a day ago
- DW
Can't Feel Nothing - How the Internet Warps Our Emotions – DW – 06/27/2025
Is the internet making us emotionally numb? Online trolls and influencers expertly manipulate people's feelings, leading many to disconnect from their emotions. Scientists explain how the internet influences what we feel — and whether we feel at all. A man lies in bed, illuminated by the blue-white light of his smartphone screen. As he scrolls through endless social media feeds, he sees adorable pets, outraged opinion pieces, and haunting images from conflict zones - but he feels absolutely nothing. With curiosity and humor, director David Borenstein travels to Europe, Asia, the U.S., and Russia to investigate how bad things really are. Who is pulling the strings when the internet makes us angry, sad, horny or just plain indifferent? Is there any way to reclaim our emotions? Borenstein portrays a range of perspectives, including an American internet troll, a burnt-out star from the Asian influencer industry, a Russian state propagandist, and an online dominatrix. Scientific research into human emotions sheds light on how our emotional responses are being manipulated. The result is an alarming diagnosis of our digital era — paired with a bold attempt to search for solutions. DW English FRI 27.06.2025 – 01:15 UTC FRI 27.06.2025 – 04:15 UTC SAT 28.06.2025 – 13:15 UTC SUN 29.06.2025 – 19:15 UTC MON 30.06.2025 – 09:15 UTC MON 30.06.2025 – 16:15 UTC MON 30.06.2025 – 21:15 UTC WED 02.07.2025 – 12:15 UTC Lagos UTC +1 | Cape Town UTC +2 | Nairobi UTC +3 Delhi UTC +5,5 | Bangkok UTC +7 | Hong Kong UTC +8 London UTC +1 | Berlin UTC +2 | Moscow UTC +3 San Francisco UTC -7 | Edmonton UTC -6 | New York UTC -4
Int'l Business Times
a day ago
- Int'l Business Times
Bezos, Sanchez To Say 'I Do' In Troubled Venice
Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez were to tie the knot Friday at a sumptuous ceremony with the rich and famous on an island in Venice's lagoon, out of the sight and sound of protesters. "This city seems impossible! It can't exist... and yet, here it is!" an enchanted Bezos told a Repubblica journalist Thursday who had got close to the magnate as he whizzed around the canals by boat. Here it is, say the protesters, but for how long? While the billionaires party, activists say the fragile city is sinking, overrun by tourists, a victim of depopulation as locals unable to pay soaring rents are forced out. "No Kings, No Bezos" read a sign in green neon projected on St Mark's Campanile Thursday night. Bezos and former news anchor and entertainment reporter Sanchez have been celebrating their nuptials with guests including Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Oprah Winfrey and Orlando Bloom. The tech magnate, 61, and Sanchez, 55, are staying at the Aman hotel, a luxury 16th-century palazzo on the Grand Canal with a view of the Rialto bridge. They will exchange vows at a black-tie ceremony on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore later Friday, according to Italian media reports. The wedding is expected to take place in a vast open-air amphitheatre on the island, which sits across from St Mark's Square. The newlyweds will then be serenaded by Matteo Bocelli, the son of famed opera singer Andrea Bocelli, the reports said. Michelin-starred chef Fabrizio Mellino will be preparing the wedding dinner, while the cake has been made by French pasty chef Cedric Grolet, the Corriere della Sera said. Sanchez is alleged to have prepared 27 outfits to wear during the festivities. Italian designer Domenico Dolce -- half of the duo Dolce & Gabbana -- was seen leaving the Aman hotel on Thursday, possibly following a fitting. Wedding guests snapped by paparazzi as they hopped into boats included Jordan's Queen Rania, US football player Tom Brady, American fashion designer Spencer Antle, singer Usher, and Ivanka Trump -- the daughter of US President Donald Trump. The guests reportedly lunched together Thursday in the gardens of Villa Baslini, on the islet of San Giovanni Evangelista. The celebrations are set to end Saturday with a party likely at the Arsenale, a vast shipyard complex dating back to when the city was a naval powerhouse. Bezos and Sanchez are donating three million euros ($3.5 million) to the city, according to Veneto's regional president Luca Zaia, and are employing historic Venetian artisans. Venice's oldest pastry maker Rosa Salva is baking 19th-century "fishermen's biscuits" for party bags which will also contain something by Laguna B, renowned for its handblown Murano glass. Trump and her family visited a glass-blowing workshop on the small island of Murano on Wednesday, according to the owner. "They were amazed and enchanted by the magic of glass," Massimiliano Schiavon told the Corriere della Sera, adding that the family had had a go at blowing their own. Venice, home to the oldest film festival in the world, is used to VIPs whizzing around in speed boats, and happily hosted the star-studded nuptials of Hollywood actor George Clooney in 2014. Some locals say this wedding too brings good business, but critics say Bezos -- one of the world's richest men and founder of a company regularly scrutinised for how it treats its workers -- is different. And environmental activists have also pointed to the carbon footprint of the mega yachts and dozens of private jets -- at least 95 -- bringing the rich and famous to the canal city. Scientists say extreme heatwaves are a clear sign of global warming. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez are getting married in Venice AFP Not everyone is happy to see the celebrities as historic Venice is fragile, sinking and overrun with tourists AFP Kim and Khloe Kardashian are also attending AFP
