If you were forwarded this email (Hi! Welcome!), you can sign up to the newsletter here.
Good morning!
Here is this week’s trivia question: What is the chemical symbol for gold?
The answer is in the titbit!
I’ve got 10 seconds
The quote: “We are united in our search for answers about what happened to our little boy, Gus, who means everything to us… We know someone out there may have information. If someone knows what happened… please come forward.”
Parents of missing four-year-old boy Gus Lamont appeal for information as a major police investigation continues in South Australia.
The stat: 72. The number of tigers that have died from a virus in recent weeks at a zoo in Thailand, according to local media.
The big question:
Yesterday’s results: 83% of you have re-gifted a present. [1,287 votes].
I’ve got 30 seconds
Some headlines from this morning:
Former High Court judge Virginia Bell has opened the first public hearing for the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion. The inquiry was announced in the wake of the Bondi terror attack, which saw 15 people killed during beachside Hanukkah celebrations on 14 December. A key focus of the inquiry will be to understand the prevalence of antisemitism in Australia. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has also tasked Commissioner Bell with making recommendations to strengthen social cohesion and counter the spread of ideological and religious extremism. An interim report is due on 30 April, with the full findings to be handed down by 14 December, the first anniversary of the attack.
The Victorian Government will announce new guidelines to standardise how endometriosis is diagnosed. It comes after claims a prominent Melbourne surgeon performed unnecessary surgeries on multiple young women who had little or no trace of endometriosis. Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said she was “sickened” by the alleged surgical misconduct aired by the ABC’s Four Corners. “Performing unnecessary surgery is a crime, removing a woman’s organs without a clinical need is a crime, and assisting in that conduct is a crime,” Allan said. New clinical guidelines will be published to make clear the steps for diagnosing endometriosis across the state.
Recommendation of the day
Your share investing options, explained
Shares aren't a one-size-fits-all. You can pick individual shares if you like being hands-on, or go with ETFs and managed funds for an easier, set-and-forget approach. Start local with Aussie companies or explore international markets.
Want to learn more about your share investing options? Check out Season 1, Episode 7 of CommSec Invest: The Share Market Simplified podcast. Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.
Disclaimer: Information is general in nature. Consider the T&C's and other fees and charges at commsec.com.au before making a decision. Investing carries risk.
I’ve got 1 minute
Tourette’s campaigner John Davidson has apologised after he involuntarily shouted a racial slur during a BBC broadcast of the British Film and Television Awards (BAFTAs) on Sunday.
The BBC has also apologised for airing the racial slur, which was directed at ‘Sinners’ stars Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo while they were presenting an award.
The ceremony was not broadcast live. The BBC aired an edited version hours after it was recorded.
Context
Tourette’s syndrome is a neurological disorder that may cause sudden, repetitive, and rapid movements or vocal outbursts called tics.
One of the symptoms of Tourette’s is ‘coprolalia’, where a person involuntarily uses inappropriate language, including slurs.
Tourette’s syndrome campaigner John Davidson, the subject of the BAFTA-winning biopic ‘I Swear’, shouted the slur.
Davidson said he was “aware of the distress [his] tics were causing,” and left the BAFTAs ceremony early.
In a statement, he added: “I am, and always have been deeply mortified if anyone considers my involuntary tics to be intentional or to carry any meaning... I have spent my life trying to support and empower the Tourette’s community and to teach empathy, kindness and understanding from others and I will continue to do so.”
BAFTA response
Lindo, who was on stage with Jordan during the incident, told Vanity Fair he wished “someone from BAFTA spoke to us afterwards.”
BAFTA apologised “unreservedly to Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo, and to all those affected by what was heard during the event”.
Organisers said they “took measures to make those in attendance aware of the tics, announcing to the audience before the ceremony began, and throughout, that John was in the room and that they may hear strong language.”
BBC response
Following criticism for airing the slur, the BBC issued an apology and said the moment would be removed from the streaming version of the ceremony.
The BBC was also asked about its decision to edit Akinola Davies Jr’s acceptance speech in the broadcast, cutting him off before he said: “For Nigeria, for London, the Congo, Sudan, free Palestine.”
A BBC spokesperson told Deadline “the same happened to other speeches” to ensure the broadcast ran on time. “All winners’ speeches will be available to watch via BAFTA’s YouTube channel.”
Reporting by Elliot Lawry.
Quick hits
🎧 On today’s TDA podcast, we unpack what we know about a Mexican cartel leader’s death.
🏀 Sport news for everyone. Sign up to TDA Sport here for a daily drop in your inbox.
I’ve got 2 minutes
The Mexican Army killed a major cartel leader on Sunday.
Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as ‘El Mencho’, led the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (JNGC).
He was captured on Sunday and died while being flown to medical care in Mexico City.
In response to his death, El Mencho’s cartel blockaded roads, firebombed buildings and killed soldiers.
Let’s get into it.
Context
El Mencho rose through the ranks of Mexico’s underworld throughout the 1990s.
A U.S. court convicted him of heroin trafficking in 1994, for which he served three years in prison.
He founded JNGC in the 2000s, developing it into one of the country’s most powerful cartels.
U.S. authorities posted a $15 million reward for information leading to his arrest in 2024 and designated JNGC as a terrorist organisation in 2025.
An independent conflict monitoring agency found that between 2018 and 2020, El Mencho’s cartel was linked to 298 violent events, more than seven other cartels combined.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said last year that JNGC was one of the “dominant” groups trafficking fentanyl across the country’s southern border with Mexico.
Fentanyl is a highly addictive drug that can be prescribed legally for pain.
The operation
On Sunday, the Mexican Government said its army had raided a house in Tapalpa, a town in the western state of Jalisco.
They were able to locate him after surveilling a romantic partner, who went to visit him on Friday.
During the operation, violence broke out,
with Mexican soldiers killing seven cartel members.
Of this group, four died at the scene, while three – including El Mencho – died while being transferred to medical care in Mexico City.
Mexican authorities seized weaponry from cartel members, including two rocket launchers. These were not successfully deployed during the encounter with the army.
The Government said the raid was carried out with information from the U.S, which White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed in a post to X.
Aftermath
The death of El Mencho has led to a wave of violence in Mexico.
His cartel imposed blockades, burnt buildings, and effectively shut down Jalisco’s capital, Guadalajara.
Residents and tourists were instructed to stay indoors, as schools and businesses closed on Monday.
Mexican officials have arrested 70 people and killed at least 34 people suspected of being cartel members.
25 members of the National Guard have been killed, as well as at least one civilian who was caught in a shootout.
On Monday, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said: “The most important thing right now is to guarantee the peace and security of the entire population. When something like this happens, what we need to do is be very coordinated and face the situation with great responsibility.”
A message from BPAY®
Make adulting easier with BPAY®
Bill-paying stress? We’ve all been there – staring at rent, energy, water or credit card bills, thinking “I’ll do it later”, then panicking about whether you actually paid. BPAY has been helping people in Australia pay bills securely for over 28 years.
From phone banking in the ’90s to scheduling payments straight from your banking app today, BPAY lets you pay without sharing bank or card details. Once you’ve made a payment, the Biller’s details are saved for next time, making future payments quick and easy.
Less time worrying about bills. More time getting on with life.
Give me some good news
Scientists are a step closer to developing a universal vaccine for the flu, COVID, allergies, and other bacterial and viral illnesses.
Researchers at Stanford University in the U.S. say they’ve successfully developed a nasal spray vaccine that can provide broad protection in the lungs for several months with just two doses. Stanford Medicine said the breakthrough “could replace multiple jabs every year for seasonal respiratory infections and be on hand should a new pandemic virus emerge.” Clinical trials are continuing, with estimates a universal vaccine might be available in five to seven years.
Reporting by Emma Gillespie.
TDA titbit
Well, it was another bad day for the Louvre security department!
In case you missed it, activists from the group Everyone Hates Elon walked into the Paris museum earlier this week and hung a framed version of the widely-circulated photograph of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor taken after his arrest, placing it among the Louvre’s royal portraits.
A card was also affixed to the wall under the frame, reading: “He’s Sweating Now”. (This is a reference to Mountbatten-Windsor telling the BBC in 2019 that he has a medical condition that prevents him from sweating.)
Security soon removed the frame.
Reporting by Pavitra Ravi.
*
*
*
Titbit answer: Au is the chemical symbol for gold.
TDA asks
