Friday 6 November 2026

Key Claims

• Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate in this week's US midterm elections. — BBC Two
• Technology and AI-related shares fell sharply in the US and the sell-off spread to Asian and European markets, followed by a partial recovery. — BBC One, BBC Two, Sky News
• Markets around the world lost trillions of dollars by the previous close, with a partial recovery the next day. — BBC Two, Sky News
• The Nasdaq fell 6.4 percent on Thursday. — Sky News
• The Nasdaq decline was described as its worst day since the COVID pandemic in 2020. — BBC Two
• Investors were concerned that the Democrats' midterm success would slow AI development or lead to more regulation. — BBC One, Sky News
• President Trump blamed the Democrats for the market downturn; BBC ONE West reported he said on Truth Social that the stock market crashed because Democrats had a big Tuesday. — BBC One, BBC Two
• Japanese markets fell 6 percent, the German DAX 2 percent and the FTSE 100 1 percent. — BBC One
• Nvidia recovered some but not all of its losses, and Tesla had a smaller recovery and remained below its level before the midterm election. — BBC One
• In about 45 local referenda, all but one rejected new data centers; the city of Harwood approved one. — Sky News
• Public concern about AI and data centers covered jobs, energy, water use and threats to humanity, and led to protests. — BBC One
• 57 percent of voters had wanted nothing to do with data centers. — Sky News
• The data center industry creates nearly 75,000 jobs a year and pays more than 5 billion dollars, but once built a data center needs two or three people, according to Democratic congressman Don Beyer on BBC TWO. — BBC Two
• Anthropic had 16 billion dollars in revenue and 80 billion dollars in losses last week, according to Don Beyer on BBC TWO. — BBC Two
• The US public is more negative on AI than any other country, according to Don Beyer on BBC TWO. — BBC Two
• BBC TWO said Don Beyer had drawn up a bill to regulate AI and target risky models. — BBC Two
• Don Beyer disputed that Democrats were to blame for the market fall and said part of the move was a readjustment after a large gain the day before. — BBC Two
• A BBC TWO panelist said a fifth of UK economic growth comes from AI. — BBC Two
• Sky News reported that a Bank of England chart suggested about one fifth of UK GDP could be attributed to AI. — Sky News
• BBC TWO panelist Matthew Syed said AI is an existential risk and that, without a global moratorium, slowing US data-center development would export AI to China; he said the first country to reach recursive self-improvement would gain cyber, military, scientific and economic advantages. — BBC Two
• Sky News analysis said it was too early to say the AI bubble had burst but questioned whether data centers are financially viable given energy and computing costs. — Sky News
• Sky News discussion said some AI industry calls for regulation may reflect a desire for government support as well as safety concerns. — Sky News

Key Claims

• Tech stocks began recovering in the United States after a previous day's sell-off sparked a global slump, while European stock markets dipped. — BBC One, BBC News
• Hundreds of billions were wiped off the value of the world's biggest companies, with coverage also referring to trillions wiped off stock values; it was described as the most volatile trading day since President Trump's tariff shock. — BBC One, BBC News
• Investors appeared concerned that Democratic midterm victories could result in lower spending on artificial intelligence and data centres. — BBC One, BBC News
• Concerns about an AI bubble had been stalking markets for months. — BBC One, BBC News
• There was growing public unease in the US over AI and data centre expansion, with protests over jobs, energy, water use and threats to humanity. — BBC One, BBC News
• Democrats campaigned successfully on the issue during the midterm election trail. — BBC One, BBC News
• President Trump said on Truth Social that the stock market fell because Democrats had a big Tuesday and blamed them. — BBC One, BBC News
• Japanese markets were down 6%, the German DAX down 2% and the FTSE 100 down 1%. — BBC One, BBC News
• Nvidia recovered some but not all of its losses; Tesla had a smaller recovery and remained well down on before the midterm election. — BBC One, BBC News
• Elon Musk poured hundreds of billions of dollars into losing Republican allies of President Trump and saw a particular hit to the value of his companies. — BBC One, BBC News
• Coverage raised the question of whether the UK should follow a backlash against data centres or see the AI sector as an opportunity that is boosting the UK economy. — BBC One, BBC News
• Sana Khareghani, former head of the UK government's Office for AI, said a correction had been expected after a build-up of debt and speculative development, and that the sharp dip was a knee-jerk reaction to the US midterm results. — BBC News
• Khareghani said AI technologies and data centre construction were not slowing, and that the drop could instil more discipline in developers to build in socially justifiable terms. — BBC News
• Khareghani referred to a UK data centre covenant and said it was about ensuring local community benefits and appropriate stewardship of natural resources. — BBC News

Key Claims

• A US judge temporarily blocked construction of President Trump's triumphal arch in Washington. — Sky News
• The triumphal arch project would cost up to a quarter of a billion dollars. — Sky News
• The arch would stand 250 feet, or 76 metres, tall, be 166 feet wide with a 55-foot central opening, and stand 80 feet taller than Paris's Arc de Triomphe. — Sky News
• The arch would be near Arlington Memorial Bridge and closer to Arlington National Cemetery, and some people in Washington were concerned it would dominate a place of remembrance. — Sky News
• Sky News presenters said some people saw the arch as an honour, that Trump would see it as a tribute, and that it had been dubbed the 'Arc de Trump'. — Sky News
• The judicial block came days after Trump's Republican Party suffered losses in the midterm elections, which Sky News described as crushing. — Sky News
• Hundreds of billions of dollars were wiped off tech stocks as the Democratic victory sparked fears of an AI slowdown, affecting major tech firms including Nvidia. — Sky News
• Many Republicans were already pointing to what Sky News called Trump's war in Iran as the reason for their deep losses, and some were questioning whether Pete Hegseth still had a future in the White House. — Sky News
• Trump said Pete Hegseth had done a fantastic job, in Oval Office comments the previous night that were carried on the White House livestream after some news organisations were blocked from reporting from the White House. — Sky News
• Donald Trump announced that Stephen Miller, currently Deputy Chief of Staff, would replace Susie Wiles as White House Chief of Staff from Monday. — BBC Two
• Trump posted on Truth Social that Susie Wiles had done an outstanding job and would move to the Trump political operation. — BBC Two
• BBC TWO aired a guest calling Stephen Miller 'probably the single darkest force' and 'the Darth Vader of this country' and criticising his role in immigration enforcement. — BBC Two
• BBC TWO guests said the Miller appointment indicated Trump was responding badly to the midterm results and predicted more negative policies; one guest said Trump would not be president in three years. — BBC Two
• BBC TWO aired a guest saying leading Republicans were inching away from Trump, citing a tweet by Vance condemning the war in Iran and similar moves by Marco Rubio. — BBC Two
• BBC TWO aired a guest saying impeachment was not completely out of the question if Republicans pursued corruption allegations against the Trump administration. — BBC Two

Key Claims

• Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley backed government plans for radical reforms to police forces across England and Wales. — Channel 4
• Sir Mark Rowley said the current 43 separate forces were overstretched and struggling to keep pace with increasingly sophisticated criminals. — Channel 4
• Sir Mark Rowley was to warn in a speech later that day that the policing system was heading for failure without sweeping changes. — Channel 4
• Sir Mark Rowley told police chiefs in Manchester that the current system was unable to cope with modern criminals and called for an urgent restructure. — Channel 5
• Sir Mark Rowley warned that policing would fail without urgent reform and that the cost of standing still was that criminals would win. — Channel 5
• The proposed reforms would create a national police service covering terrorism, fraud and organised crime and overseeing technology for regional forces. — Channel 5
• The plan would merge the current 43 separate forces into eight super forces. — Channel 4
• The plan would cut the number of forces from around 43 to around nine super forces. — Channel 5
• Savings from efficiencies would go into local policing teams with targets on 999 calls and response times and 13,000 more neighbourhood and community support officers. — Channel 5
• Sir Mark Rowley cited recent clashes between police and anti-migrant protesters on the south coast as an example of local forces being overwhelmed and lacking wider support. — Channel 5
• Critics said available funding could be better spent and that creating mega forces would cost millions at a time when policing had little free money. — Channel 5
• Critics said the changes would take policing further from communities and had not shown how they would keep people safe. — Channel 5
• Sir Mark Rowley argued major structural change was the only option. — Channel 5

Key Claims

• A court heard evidence about a knife attack on an LNER service from Doncaster to London King's Cross in November last year. — BBC One, ITV
• A train worker confronted the attacker and used a frying pan to defend himself and passengers. — BBC One, ITV
• The train worker was named Samir Zituni by BBC ONE West and Samir Zatouni by ITV1; ITV1 described him as a catering manager. — BBC One, ITV
• The train worker was stabbed multiple times and was in a life-threatening condition in intensive care. — BBC One, ITV
• The train worker suffered punctured lungs, needed four blood transfusions and required a ventilator. — BBC One
• In a video-recorded interview, the train worker said he was terrorised, tried to hit the knife, did not want to let the attacker pass or give up until the train stopped, and asked the man to stop and offered help. — BBC One, ITV
• A 999 call was played from Scott Blecher, who said he had been stabbed in the head and hid in a bike rack until the train stopped at Huntingdon; he said he thought this is what it feels like to die. — BBC One
• Passenger Michael Cawthorpe said in a video interview that he threw a large toaster at the attacker and told him to calm down and put the knife down, saying we have all got kids. — ITV
• ITV1 referred to the accused as a man accused of trying to kill 10 people on board the train. — ITV
• The judge told jurors that whether Anthony Williams carried out the attack was not in question, but they must consider whether he intended to kill. — ITV
• Anthony Williams, 33, denies multiple counts of attempted murder. — BBC One, ITV
• Anthony Williams denies 14 counts of attempted murder relating to the train stabbings and four other attacks in Peterborough and London. — BBC One
• The court was identified as Cambridge Crown Court by BBC ONE West and as Cranebridge Crown Court by ITV1. — BBC One, ITV

Key Claims

• Thomas Markle Sr, the father of Meghan Markle, was arrested at his care home in Florida and charged with possession of child sexual abuse material. — BBC One, Channel 5
• Thomas Markle Sr is 82 years old. — BBC One, Channel 5
• The US Department of Justice said Thomas Markle Sr would appear in court in Florida on the day of the coverage. — BBC One, Channel 5
• The US Department of Justice statement referred to material including sexually explicit photographs of Thomas Markle Sr with underage girls, according to BBC ONE West, or prepubescent girls, according to 5. — BBC One, Channel 5
• The material was said to have been kept in two Los Angeles storage units; 5 reported they were rented for nearly two decades. — BBC One, Channel 5
• BBC ONE West reported that four large boxes of old computers, phones, hard drives and videotapes were found at a former home in Cebu in the Philippines, said to contain hundreds of suspected child abuse images. — BBC One
• BBC ONE West identified Thomas Markle Jr as the person who found the boxes. — BBC One
• 5 reported that Meghan's half-brother alleged he found child abuse images belonging to Thomas Markle Sr at his father's former home in the Philippines. — Channel 5
• 5 reported that a Philippine police investigation into the allegations was ongoing. — Channel 5
• Thomas Markle Sr has previously denied the allegations, describing them as sick lies. — BBC One, Channel 5
• He faced one charge at the time of the coverage. — BBC One, Channel 5
• BBC ONE West reported the charge carried a potential penalty of up to 20 years imprisonment. — BBC One
• BBC ONE West reported that the FBI director described the alleged conduct as targeting innocent children. — BBC One
• BBC ONE West reported that law enforcement searched lockups, one in Mexico and two in Los Angeles, and seized slides, film negatives and books. — BBC One
• BBC ONE West reported that the FBI published a summary of the material with detailed descriptions of images and that investigators believed some photos could be traced to a hotel in the Philippines. — BBC One
• 5 reported that footage obtained by the Daily Mail showed Thomas Markle Sr handcuffed in a wheelchair, with an agent attempting to lift him before he was placed on a stretcher and believed taken into an ambulance. — Channel 5
• Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, previously said she was deeply distressed and her thoughts were with any children who may have been harmed. — BBC One, Channel 5
• BBC ONE West said the Sussexes had not commented, while 5 said it was not known whether Meghan had been told of the latest development. — BBC One, Channel 5

Key Claims

• The polar vortex is a spinning area or ring of very cold air and strong winds over the Arctic, high in the stratosphere. — BBC One, Sky News, Channel 5
• Sudden stratospheric warming can weaken, wobble, reverse or split the polar vortex and disrupt the jet stream, sometimes leading to colder weather in the UK or Europe. — BBC One, Sky News, Channel 5
• The link between sudden stratospheric warming and UK cold weather is not automatic and depends on pressure patterns and the jet stream. — Channel 5
• Sky News reported forecasters were seeing evidence of sudden stratospheric warming and that it was the earliest such event on record. — Sky News
• 5 News described the sudden stratospheric warming as the earliest ever recorded and said this was the first time it had been seen in November. — Channel 5
• BBC ONE West reported that if it is a major sudden stratospheric warming event, it would be the earliest on record. — BBC One
• Sky News reported that a polar vortex collapse this early in winter had not been seen before. — Sky News
• A strong El Niño may be influencing stratospheric winds and the timing of the polar vortex changes. — Sky News, BBC One
• Sky News reported models suggested high pressure could shift the jet stream and allow freezing Arctic air into parts of North America and Northern Europe. — Sky News
• BBC ONE West reported a typical warming event would increase the chance of cold and potentially snowy weather in Europe and the UK later in winter. — BBC One
• 5 News reported that unusually cold, snowy and windy conditions were expected this winter because of changes to the polar vortex. — Channel 5
• 5 News reported that any cold spell would typically follow about six weeks after the sudden stratospheric warming and could set in later in winter before the new year. — Channel 5
• The 2018 cold spell known as the Beast from the East was linked to sudden stratospheric warming and polar vortex changes. — BBC One, Sky News, Channel 5
• Sky News reported that the 2018 Beast from the East brought temperatures as low as minus 14C to southern England and caused snow-related disruption. — Sky News
• Sky News reported that this early-season event may mean temperatures are less extreme than a midwinter event like the 2018 cold spell. — Sky News
• BBC ONE West reported that a long period of blocked flow could lead to a lack of rain, with southern England in severe drought and reservoirs relying on winter recharge. — BBC One
• BBC ONE West reported that changes in the polar vortex have been linked to snow in Texas and a big freeze in Chicago. — BBC One
• 5 News reported that the effect of the polar vortex on UK weather is uncertain and that a white Christmas cannot be predicted until five to ten days ahead. — Channel 5
• BBC ONE West and Sky News reported that forecasters have little or no precedent for an event this early, making the impact uncertain. — BBC One, Sky News

Key Claims

• A childminder in Fife was sentenced to two years in prison. — BBC One, Channel 5
• The childminder had admitted neglect. — BBC One
• The childminder had admitted willfully neglecting and abandoning children in her care. — Channel 5
• The childminder was named Amanda Mathison. — BBC One
• The childminder was named Amanda Mathewson and was 55 years old. — Channel 5
• She had been a childminder for 30 years. — BBC One
• More than 20 children were left alone at her home. — BBC One
• She looked after more children than she was allowed to. — Channel 5
• At one point 27 children were found at her home in Fife. — Channel 5
• She was arrested in August 2024 after two parents became suspicious and arrived unannounced. — BBC One
• The parents found a group of children in the garden alone, a toddler screaming under the kitchen table, and a large group upstairs including two infants strapped into a pushchair. — BBC One
• She was sentenced at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court. — BBC One
• The sheriff said she was guilty of a gross abuse of trust and that the potential for catastrophic harm was enormous. — BBC One
• She was likely receiving inside information from the regulator about upcoming inspections. — BBC One
• The Care Inspector said it had learned lessons from the case. — BBC One
• Parents wanted oversight to be completely reformed to prevent a repeat. — BBC One

Key Claims

• Bomb threats affected passenger flights in Europe, in what BBC ONE West described as a third time that week and Channel 4 described as a third day of threats across the continent. — BBC One, Channel 4
• Newsrooms in Ireland, including national broadcaster RTE, were evacuated following threats. — BBC One
• The Irish government described the threats as a coordinated pattern or programme of disruption. — BBC One
• As far as BBC ONE West knew, no explosives were found on board the affected planes. — BBC One
• All planes involved landed safely and no devices were found. — Channel 4
• Italy and Bulgaria scrambled jets to escort planes. — BBC One
• Nearly all threats came while planes were in mid-air, too late for additional screening. — BBC One
• BBC ONE West's security correspondent described the threats as simultaneous and coordinated, and said they were effective because they disrupted flights even though no explosives were found. — BBC One
• BBC ONE West's security correspondent said there was a large amount of circumstantial evidence pointing to Russian hybrid warfare, but no hard evidence linking the threats to Russia or any state. — BBC One
• An email sent to Rome airport authorities a day earlier claimed to be from fighters of the 'male state'; BBC ONE West's correspondent said this almost certainly referred to an ultra-right Russian group banned in 2021, that its leader denied involvement and said it had not been active for years, and that the claim was probably a red herring. — BBC One
• Spain's foreign minister described Europe as appearing to face hybrid aggression and a form of psychological warfare. — Channel 4
• Almost 30 flights were disrupted the previous day by a series of hoax threats. — Channel 4

Key Claims

• Police Scotland dealt with an unacceptable number of Bonfire Night disorder incidents last night, including a police vehicle being burned in Glasgow. — BBC One
• Seven people were arrested after Bonfire Night violence in Glasgow and other parts of Scotland. — BBC One, Channel 4
• A police vehicle was set alight in Glasgow. — BBC One, Channel 4
• The police vehicle in Glasgow was targeted after officers were attacked, and police withdrew as crowds of up to 50 young people gathered. — BBC One
• Fireworks were thrown at emergency service vehicles and crews and at members of the public. — BBC One, Channel 4
• A police officer and a paramedic were injured in the attack in Glasgow. — BBC One
• In Edinburgh, firefighters came under attack as they tried to tackle bin fires. — BBC One
• The Scottish government rejected claims that a teenage mob had been allowed to take over the area where police came under attack. — BBC One
• Opposition politicians called for those involved to face the full force of the law and for tougher sentencing. — BBC One
• Police Scotland said its deployment over Halloween and Bonfire Night was one of the most complex and demanding operations in recent memory. — Channel 4
• A local resident said Bonfire Night disorder had been a problem in the area for years and described bottles, bricks and fireworks being thrown after police arrived. — BBC One

Key Claims

• Sir Mark Rowley, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, called for urgent reform of policing in England and Wales. — BBC One, Channel 5
• Rowley said policing in England and Wales would be heading for failure unless urgent reform was undertaken. — BBC One
• Rowley said the current system of 43 separate police forces is not fit for purpose. — BBC One
• Rowley proposed reducing the number of police forces from 43 to a smaller number of regional units; BBC ONE West reported eight to ten units and 5 reported as few as eight. — BBC One, Channel 5
• Rowley proposed a new National Police Service alongside the regional forces. — BBC One, Channel 5
• The proposed National Police Service would tackle the most complex crimes. — BBC One
• Rowley said the current system was not coping with the sophistication of modern criminality driven by organised crime, cyber attacks and online abuse. — BBC One
• Rowley framed the choice as reform or fewer officers on the beat. — Channel 5
• Police and crime commissioners in rural areas said merging forces would leave smaller towns and communities with less protection, with resources drawn to high-crime areas. — BBC One
• Estimates suggested that merging police forces could cost more than one billion pounds. — BBC One
• The Home Secretary launched a consultation on the future of policing earlier this year. — BBC One
• Some in policing agreed on the need for a National Police Service but disagreed over reducing the number of forces to eight to ten regional units. — BBC One

Key Claims

• The government announced plans to force employers to publish salaries in job adverts. (Sky News only) — Sky News
• Businesses have been told they should include salaries on job adverts from now onwards. (5 only) — Channel 5
• Prime Minister Andy Burnham said people should know what a job pays before they spend time applying, and that the requirement will soon become law. (5 only) — Channel 5
• Andy Burnham was quoted in government press releases urging businesses to start publishing salaries now rather than wait for legislation. (Sky News only) — Sky News
• Government statistics said fewer than half of employers always publish a salary range, with 41% doing so and 18% publishing a specific salary target. (Sky News only) — Sky News
• Research previously found that fewer than half of employers always include salary information in job adverts. (5 only) — Channel 5
• The Fawcett Society welcomed the plan as a positive step for women's rights at work and argued it is hard to fight for fair pay or take a discrimination case without knowing pay levels. (Sky News only) — Sky News
• Some employer organisations said setting salaries can be sensitive because it depends on experience and potential, and raised concerns that the measure could be heavy-handed. (Sky News only) — Sky News
• The government framed the plan as part of efforts to help young people into work. (Sky News only) — Sky News

Key Claims

• Tech shares fell after Democratic gains in the US midterm elections, amid investor concerns about stricter regulation of artificial intelligence and data centres. — BBC One, Channel 4
• The Nasdaq fell 5.5% on Thursday. — BBC One, Channel 4
• About $2.5 trillion was lost from American tech stocks in a single day. — BBC One
• The Nasdaq was still higher than it was a year earlier. — Channel 4
• Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 6%. — BBC One
• BBC ONE West gave differing figures for South Korea in separate bulletins: the KOSPI closed down 6% in one, while Seoul's market dropped 8% and trading was halted in another. — BBC One
• Taiwan's stock market had its worst week in 25 years. — BBC One
• Chipmakers were hit hardest, with Nvidia falling more than 9%. — BBC One
• The Nasdaq was more than 10% below its October record, heading toward correction territory. — BBC One
• Analysts described the market move as a correction rather than a crash. — BBC One, Channel 4
• Over the previous month, the Nasdaq was down close to 17% and a semiconductor index was down over 30%, according to Bob Parker. — BBC One
• High energy prices, inflation and rising bond yields were cited as additional market pressures, with further interest rate rises expected in December or early next year. — BBC One
• Large tech companies had strong balance sheets and profitability, making a repeat of 2008 or the 2000 tech bubble unlikely, according to Bob Parker. — BBC One
• Anthropic's pending IPO might be delayed because of market conditions, according to Bob Parker. — BBC One
• President Trump said he was 100% in favour of 'super intelligence' and would work with states that want data centres. — BBC One
• Carlene Jackson said AI would continue to grow and she viewed the fall as a blip or rebalancing, not a major crash. — BBC One
• Zoe Kleinman said the backlash against data centres could slow AI development but give the industry breathing space because it was spending heavily without equivalent returns. — BBC One
• Many midterm candidates campaigned for tougher regulations on AI companies and their data centres. — Channel 4

Key Claims

• Paul Mackenzie was a former taxi driver. — BBC News, Sky News
• Paul Mackenzie was described as a self-styled pastor. — BBC News
• Sky News identified Mackenzie as the self-proclaimed leader of the Good News International Church. — Sky News
• Mackenzie had been convicted over a doomsday cult case and was due to be sentenced. — BBC News, Sky News
• The sentencing was underway in Mombasa. — BBC News
• The judge was reading the names of victims during sentencing. — BBC News
• Sky News said the sentencing could take hours because the names of victims were being read. — Sky News
• Mackenzie was found guilty of murdering 191 people, 190 of them children. — BBC News, Sky News
• He encouraged followers to starve themselves and their children to death in the belief they would go to heaven or meet Jesus. — BBC News, Sky News
• Prosecutors were seeking the death penalty. — BBC News, Sky News
• Mackenzie was convicted alongside 27 associates. — BBC News
• Mackenzie was convicted alongside 28 others. — Sky News
• Police found more than 400 bodies in graves in Shakahola Forest. — BBC News, Sky News
• BBC News correspondent said 450 bodies were found. — BBC News
• BBC News said Mackenzie had been convicted last month. — BBC News
• BBC News reported that Mackenzie's doctrine treated education and modern medicine as a conspiracy and satanic, and that he told parents to withdraw children from school. — BBC News
• Sky News reported that Mackenzie banned children from vaccination and hospital treatment because he considered those institutions satanic. — Sky News
• BBC News noted there had been no execution in Kenya since 1987 and said the case could make history. — BBC News

Key Claims

• Republicans suffered losses and Democrats made gains in the US midterm elections. — BBC One, Sky News
• Hundreds of billions of dollars were wiped off technology stocks after the Democratic victory, with Nvidia and Samsung shares falling and markets in Asia also falling, amid fears of an AI slowdown. — Sky News
• Elon Musk made combined contributions estimated at 483 million dollars to support Republicans, described as the biggest political donor in a single election round. — Sky News
• Musk spent around 200 million dollars in Texas congressional and gubernatorial races. — Sky News
• Republican candidates backed by Musk lost, including Vivek Ramaswamy in the Ohio governor race to Democrat Amy Acton and Ken Paxton in a Texas Senate race to Democrat James Talarico. — Sky News
• Texas elected Gina Hinojosa as its first Democratic governor in 30 years. — Sky News
• Texas became a hotspot for data center construction, passing Virginia as the biggest site for current and proposed AI data centers. — Sky News
• Local objections to data centers and concerns about AI and big tech were major campaign issues in Texas, and the new governor called for a moratorium on data centers. — Sky News
• Musk posted on X that data centers in space looked appealing, and Tesla and SpaceX shares fell as markets considered the impact on him. — Sky News
• President Trump backed Pete Hegseth. — BBC One, Sky News
• President Trump acknowledged that Pete Hegseth had opposition. — Sky News
• Some news organisations were again blocked from reporting from the White House, and an event was carried only on the White House live stream. — Sky News
• Ted Cruz said the Republican Party failed to address the rising cost of living. — BBC One
• Ron DeSantis described the result as an extinction level event for Republicans, attributed it to a failure in campaign messaging, and labelled it a rebuke of the president. — BBC One
• Marco Rubio denied reports that he was weighing whether to leave the Trump administration, and the White House and State Department dismissed the claims. — BBC One
• Pete Hegseth defended the war in Iran and dismissed the Democratic call to impeach him as political theatre. — BBC One
• Several midterm races remained undecided, including Mississippi, where Democrat Scott Colom was slightly ahead of Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith for a US Senate seat, and Alaska, where Republican Dan Sullivan trailed Democrat Mary Peltola by the narrowest margin. — BBC One
• Mississippi had not elected a Democrat to the US Senate in more than 40 years. — BBC One
• Democrats were preparing a 100-day agenda to address cost of living concerns before the congressional term began in January. — BBC One
• A CBS correspondent told BBC ONE West that voters from Democratic, Republican and nonpartisan independent parties disliked what was happening in Washington, and that there was a strong debrief within the Republican Party. — BBC One
• The CBS correspondent said Ron DeSantis argued Republicans focused too much on culture war issues, and that Trump had asked some cabinet members and advisers whether Pete Hegseth should keep his job because of his connection to the war with Iran, while Trump continued to support Hegseth. — BBC One
• BBC ONE West reported market reaction to suggestions that data centers could be targeted by Democrats, and said data centers had become a bipartisan issue. — BBC One

Key Claims

• Russell Brand was in custody after being found guilty of rape and sexual assault. — Sky News, BBC One
• The judge indicated that Brand faced a substantial or significant custodial sentence and that sentencing was set for Monday. — Sky News, BBC One
• Brand showed little reaction when the verdict was read. — Sky News
• Brand was refused bail and remained in custody pending sentencing. — Sky News, BBC One
• Brand was found guilty of one rape and three sexual assaults against four women and was cleared of three other charges. — BBC One
• Detectives or police revealed that Brand was under investigation over rape allegations made by two other women. — Sky News, BBC One
• The trial allegations dated from 1999 to 2009. — Sky News, BBC One
• Six women gave accounts or were complainants in the trial. — Sky News, BBC One
• The jury was made up of eight men and four women. — Sky News
• The case was linked to 2023 reporting by Channel 4 and the Times. — Sky News, BBC One
• Brand denied the allegations and described a coordinated attack and a wider agenda to silence alternative anti-establishment voices. — Sky News
• The prosecution alleged that Brand used his fame, power and influence to prey on or harm women. — Sky News, BBC One
• The prosecution acknowledged Brand could be charming but claimed he was also ruthless, manipulative and a sexual predator. — Sky News
• Brand gave evidence describing his behaviour with women as persuasive, seductive, begging and flirting, and as beyond reckless philandering and idiocy. — Sky News
• Brand was supported in court by his wife, Laura Brand. — Sky News, BBC One
• The couple framed the case through his Christian faith and read psalms on the way to court. — Sky News
• The trial began four weeks earlier at Southwark Crown Court. — BBC One
• Police praised the women's courage, resilience and bravery and said more victims were likely to come forward. — BBC One
• Deniz Uygur of the End Violence Against Women Coalition said rape is about a perpetrator choosing to abuse power and criticised defence character evidence and attacks on the press. — BBC One