Links to SEVEN reports: from National Public Radio, Agence France-Presse, Reuters, the Associated Press, and Common Dreams; headlines of others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (Scroll down for MEDIA 2-16-26 and IRAN, UKRAINE, GAZA and VENEZUELA.) — MCM

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CBS in the spotlight as parent company pursues Warner Bros. Discovery deal. Reported by David Folkenflik and Michel Martin | NPR  As CBS’s parent company makes a final play for Warner Bros. Discovery, CBS faces scrutiny over claims it blocked a Stephen Colbert interview while Anderson Cooper stepped down from 60 Minutes. Click HERE to listen and read.

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Mark Zuckerberg arrives at Los Angeles court for socal media addiction trial. From AFP. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is set to testify today at a groundbreaking social media addiction trial, summoned by lawyers representing a plaintiff who alleges Instagram and other platforms were deliberately designed to make young users addicted. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AFP report in French, and HERE for headlines of others.  Click HERE for report from NPR.

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Americans believe Epstein files show the powerful get a pass, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds, by Jason Lange | Reuters  WASHINGTON — Americans believe that wealthy and powerful people are rarely held accountable, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll found after the release of millions of records on the late sex offender Jeffrey ‌Epstein’s connections in elite U.S. business and political circles. READ MORE . . .

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Many Democrats are still down on the Democratic Party, a new AP-NORC poll finds, by Linley Sanders | AP  WASHINGTON — Democratic candidates have notched a series of wins in recent special elections — but a new AP-NORC poll finds views of the Democratic Party among rank-and-file Democrats . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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FROM FEB. 17  Big Tech faces more probes over AI-generated child sexual abuse material, by Brad Reed | Common Dreams   Ireland’s Data Protection Commission announced on Tuesday it was invoking the European Union’s data privacy regulations to open an investigation into Grok, the AI chatbot featured on Elon Musk’s X platform. READ MORE . . .

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The last newspaper hawker in Paris honored with knighthood. Reported by Rebecca Rosman | NPR  Ali Akbar, a 73-year-old immigrant from Pakistan, has been hawking papers on the streets of Paris for the last 50 years. French President Emmanuel Macron honored him with a knighthood late last month. Click HERE to listen and read.

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