Gabourey Sidibe has a new gig: The Oscar-nominated actress will host a documentary series on public television starting next month. The show is AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange, a series of independent films showcasing contemporary life, art and pop culture in the African diaspora, as the many communities of African-origin people around the world are known.

When Vladimir Putin took office as President for the third time, he sent the Ministry of Foreign Affairs a document outlining the philosophy that would guide his approach to international relations for the next five years. Only recently released, the document is very revealing, showing that Putin’s worldview, and his idea about Russia’s role in that world, has changed substantially since he first took office as president in 2000.

Dalian Wanda Group, the world's biggest owner of movie theatres, is in talks with leading Hollywood studios to co-produce films and is looking to buy and build hotels in major U.S. cities as the Chinese firm eyes a $10 billion (6 billion pounds) 'soft power' spending spree.

The open Internet, available to people around the world without the permission of any government, was a great liberation. It was also too good to last. Authoritarian governments this month won the first battle to close off parts of the Internet.

Shasta County Board of Supervisors started its day in Redding (California, USA) with Hindu prayers on December four for the first time since its 1850 creation, containing verses from world’s oldest existing scripture.

This past Thanksgiving break, Ben Hubley ’15 traveled to China to compete in the 5th Chinese Bridge Competition, a Chinese proficiency contest for foreign high school students, held in Kunming City. Out of 104 contestants from 45 countries between the ages of 15 and 20, Hubley placed third in the individual competition after a student from Singapore placed first and a student from Russia placed second.

Across America, anticipation is running high for next month's U.S. release of Downton Abbey season three. To celebrate, we held a Downton-themed party on Thursday evening at the Ambassador's Residence in Washington.

Rocker Andrew W.K. made headlines recently with the quest that ultimately wasn't—his initiative to bring positive partying to Bahrain on behalf of the US State Department. A case of rockers being held down by the man (isn't that what sparked the punk movement?).