Zambian-Canadian Rapper Backxwash Wins 2020 Polaris Music Prize

Becca Longmire 2020-10-20

Zambian-Canadian rapper Backxwash is the winner of the 2020 Polaris Music Prize for the album God Has Nothing To Do With This Leave Him Out Of It.

© Credit: Polaris Music Prize

The Montreal-based artist said of the big win, “Be as honest as you want to be and create the art that you want to."

This is Backxwash’s first Polaris Music Prize honour.

The Prize, which was presented by CBC Music, goes to the best Canadian album of the year based on artistic merit without regard to genre, sales history, or label affiliation.

It was determined by a grand jury of 11 music media professionals drawn from the greater Polaris jury pool of 201 writers, editors, broadcasters, DJs, and personalities from across the country. This was the 15th edition of the Polaris Music Prize.

RELATED: Polaris Music Prize 2020 Long List: The Weeknd, Jessie Reyez, Daniel Caesar 

Backxwash’s victory comes with a $50,000 reward. The nine other short-list nominees, including Caribou, Junia-T, and Pantayo, each received $3,000, courtesy of Slaight Music.

Backxwash’s name was revealed by Polaris 2019 winner Haviah Mighty, live from the stage of Toronto venue The Carlu during the 2020 Polaris Music Prize Celebration broadcast.

Due to COVID-19, Polaris chose not to host a winner gala event this year. Instead, they invited Canadian filmmakers to apply to create commissioned films inspired by each of the short-list-nominated albums. Hundreds of filmmakers applied, with the selected filmmaking teams being commissioned based on input from Polaris staff, CBC Music, and short-list nominee teams.

These 10 short films were streamed during the 2020 Polaris Music Prize Celebration, hosted by CBC Music’s Saroja Coelho.

"It's an incredible and humbling honour to oversee this year's Polaris Grand Jury," said Polaris jury foreperson Melissa Vincent. "Their devotion to discussing and championing the work of an outstanding group of artists is a testament to the vitality of music coming out of Canada. We could not be more thrilled to congratulate the winner of the 2020 Polaris Music Prize!"

Past Polaris winners include Jeremy Dutcher (2018), Lido Pimienta (2017), Kaytranada (2016), Buffy Sainte-Marie (2015), and Tanya Tagaq (2014).

Backxwash wins Polaris Music Prize for her album "God Has Nothing to Do With This..."

2020-10-20

TORONTO — Backxwash has won the 2020 Polaris Music Prize for her gothic rap-metal album "God Has Nothing to Do With This Leave Him Out of It."

© Provided by The Canadian Press

The recording by the Montreal-based artist was selected by an 11-member jury as the Canadian album of the year based on its artistic merit. The recognition carries with it a $50,000 cash prize.

Backxwash is the first transgender female artist to win the Polaris, an award that in recent years has celebrated an array of Indigenous and Black musicians who are often ignored in mainstream Canadian music. Previous winners include Haviah Mighty, Jeremy Dutcher and Kaytranada.

"My existence itself is political, my livelihood is political, and the livelihood of my sisters is political," she said while accepting the prize.

"We just want rights, and we have to go through so many hurdles to do that, and I feel very connected to that struggle."

Backxwash, the stage name of performer Ashanti Mutinta, drew from her own experiences with faith, family and her queer identity growing up in Zambia to create the dynamic reflection of self.

"This (album) is the most of myself that I've been ever since I started living on this earth," she said by webcam from Montreal.

"I think it's very symbolic, the world just kind of telling me to be myself."

She beat out nine other contenders, including First Nations indie rockers nehiyawak, three-time Polaris shortlisted U.S. Girls and R&B-pop singer Jessie Reyez.

Three other nominees this year were previous winners, electronic composer Caribou, DJ and record producer Kaytranada and singer-songwriter Lido Pimienta.

The Polaris was presented this year with a "cinematic" broadcast that replaced the usual gala concert showcase held at Toronto's Carlu event space. Organizers commissioned a group of directors to bring each of the 10 nominated albums to life as short films.

"God Has Nothing to Do With This Leave Him Out of It" stood out from the other competitors for the elements of horror woven into the lyrics, frequently evoking religious imagery.

The album uses distorted samples of metal legend Ozzy Osbourne performing in Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and "In Heaven" a song from David Lynch's film "Eraserhead," alongside pointed words about her life experiences.

"The first time I heard (the lyrics) out loud was me rapping," she said.

"I was like, oh damn, that's pretty dark... the lyrics come from a really deep place in me."

Mutinta grew up in Zambia, making hip hop beats as a teenager before moving to British Columbia to live with her brother and sister at 17 years old. She set aside music to focus on a computer science degree, before a move to Montreal reinvigorated her love for live music.

"I fell in love with the city, and just, it was a perfect city to express myself," she said.

"So I started to express myself from a gender standpoint and a music standpoint, and the two places just coincided well with the type of art that I was making."

But unlike the threads of her music, Mutinta was beaming after learning of her win.

She supposed she would invest the money in her next album, which she describes as a horror anthology inspired by people from her life.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published October 19, 2020.

David Friend, The Canadian Press

SpiderMable web-swings onto big screen in new film about Edmonton cancer survivor

CBC/Radio-Canada

© Min Dhariwal/CBC Spider-Man joined SpiderMable in 2015 to fight crime for a day in Edmonton.

Five years after the story of an Edmonton cancer fighter took off across social media around the world, a documentary about SpiderMable will premiere next week.

The film, SpiderMable — A Real Life Superhero Story, is about Mable Tooke, a young cancer patient who lived out her dream of fighting crime alongside Spider-Man in 2015, as part of a city-wide manhunt set up by The Children's Wish Foundation.

Kelly Wolfert, the director and producer of the film, said when he started filming the day for Children's Wish and saw how popular it became on Twitter, he thought it would be an interesting subject for a short film.

But he knew it would be an even stronger film once he saw how selfless Mable was in giving back to her community afterward.

"You can't get a better message than what's in this film for what we're going through right now which is basically look after each other," said Wolfert, who was interviewed Tuesday on CBC Radio's Edmonton AM.

The film opens at Metro Cinema on Nov. 5, the opening night of NorthwestFest.

On that fateful day in 2015, Mayor Don Iveson summoned Mable to Edmonton city hall to track down a missing hockey player and capture his kidnapper.

"I just remember waking up and being told 'Get into your Spider-Man costume, we're going somewhere.' The day went by in a wonderful haze," Mable said Tuesday on Edmonton AM.

Mable had been diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells, in 2013.

While in treatment, she read comic books. Her favourites were 1960s-era Spider-Man because of how close he was to being human, her mother said at the time.

Mable's mother, Lisa Tooke, said it was odd to see that day through another set of eyes on screen.

The way Mable's journey blew up on social media showed the value of a feel-good story, Lisa said. The day was also helpful in Mable's own journey to recovery, she added.

"She saw a lot more potential in herself than she ever would have," Lisa said. "Because when other people see something in [you], it makes you realize that maybe you can do more than you thought you could."

As for Mable, nowadays she's feeling a lot better. She is 11 years old now and doing her Grade 6 studies online.

"Even if I'm not physically going out in my SpiderMable costume, I'll always have a little bit of SpiderMable in my heart," Mable said.

"It's not something you can let go of."

Pipeline worker struck and killed by equipment in west Edmonton

CBC/Radio-Canada 

© David Bajer/CBC Occupational Health and Safety officials are investigating after a worker was struck and killed by a piece of equipment at this pipeline construction site.

A worker died Tuesday after being struck by a piece of equipment at a Trans Mountain pipeline construction site in northwest Edmonton.

The employee died around 2:30 p.m. in the area of Whitemud Drive and Winterburn Road, a spokesperson for Occupational Health and Safety said.

The death is being investigated by OHS. Spokesperson Natasha McKenzie said no details are available about what happened.

Work at the site has stopped but no stop work orders have been issued, McKenzie said Wednesday.

The worker killed was an employee of SA Energy Group, a general contractor hired to construct portions of the Trans Mountain pipeline in the greater Edmonton area.

SA Energy Group said it is co-operating with investigators.

"We are deeply saddened to confirm a fatality has occurred at the SA Energy construction site in Edmonton," the company said in a statement.

"Our operations have been put on hold, and we are cooperating fully with Alberta Occupational Health and Safety in respect of the incident.

"Our prayers and sympathies are with our employee's family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time."

As of Wednesday morning, work on the site remained halted. Caution tape and plastic tarps surrounded a large side-boom crane.

In a separate statement, Ian Anderson, president and CEO of Trans Mountain Corporation, offered his condolences to the worker's family and colleagues.

"This is a tragic incident and I know that staff and contractors at both SA Energy and Trans Mountain join me in extending our deepest sympathies to the worker's family.

"They remain in our thoughts and prayers at this very difficult time."

ALBERTA GOVERNMENT WAR ON GREENS
Inquiry into Alberta oil and gas critics extended to Jan. 31, with no new money

EDMONTON — A public inquiry into who is funding environmental opposition to Alberta's oil and gas industry has been granted an extension until the end of January.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Alberta's United Conservative government contends foreign interests have long been bankrolling campaigns against fossil fuel development and in 2019 tapped forensic accountant Steve Allan to lead a $2.5-million inquiry.

Allan's report was initially due in July, but he was granted an extension until Oct. 30 and a $1-million budget increase.

Energy Minister Sonya Savage says Alberta's cabinet has agreed to another 90-day extension to Jan. 31, but it comes with no additional funding.

She says it's meant to ensure potential participants have a fair opportunity to provide input and that COVID-19 restrictions have led to procedural delays.

A lawsuit filed by environmental law firm Ecojustice argues the inquiry is politically motivated, biased and outside provincial jurisdiction.

“Our government has been unwavering in our commitment to stand up for our energy sector, including launching a public inquiry into the existence of a foreign-funded anti-Alberta energy campaign," Savage said in a statement Wednesday.

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said Saturday during the United Conservatives' virtual annual general meeting that his government would be introducing legislation next year to make it illegal for foreign interests to fund political action committees.

It would also pursue "legal avenues'' to push Ottawa into cracking down on charities that improperly engage in political activity, he said.

Kenney added that the $30-million-a-year Canadian Energy Centre, a war room meant to counter what the UCP government considers misinformation about the oil and gas industry, will ramp up again after the pandemic put it on hiatus.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 28, 2020.

The Canadian Press


BETA

Don Mazankowski, former Alberta MP and cabinet minister, dies at 85

EDMONTON — Donald Frank Mazankowski, a former Tory deputy prime minister, has died at the age of 85.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Speaker Anthony Rota announced the news in the House of Commons Wednesday and MPs held a moment of silence in his memory.

Whether working as Brian Mulroney’s right-hand man in Ottawa or selling cars in his hometown of Vegreville, Alta., “Maz” was known as a down-to-earth farm boy who got the job done.

The son of Polish immigrants, Mazankowski served in several top cabinet positions including finance and agriculture under Mulroney and transport under Joe Clark.


In 2003, Mazankowski was involved in behind-the-scenes talks to broker a deal to unite the former Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative parties.

During his 25 years in Parliament, Mazankowski also served as president of Treasury Board, government House leader, minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board and privatization minister.

Mulroney once called the tall, burly man who could play a mean fiddle and liked to croon old cowboy songs his “minister of everything.”

First elected to the Commons in 1968, Mazankowski strived to keep in touch with constituents in his sprawling rural riding east of Edmonton.

He was so popular that thankful citizens commissioned a statue of Maz in Vegreville before he retired from elected office in 1993.

“For 25 years Don Mazankowski has served his constituency, his party and his country,” reads the dedication for the one-tonne bronze depiction of Maz giving a speech.

“Even though he has risen to great prominence nationally and internationally, he has maintained a humbleness and genuine friendliness.”

Following his retirement from the Commons, Mazankowski remained active in politics and continued to draw the public spotlight.

Former Alberta premier Ralph Klein appointed him to lead a controversial commission to review Alberta’s health-care system.

The commission’s report in 2001 recommended dropping coverage for some medical services and drugs, increasing health-care premiums and expanding the use of private health clinics.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Mazankowski was a champion for his community and the country.

"Don Mazankowski dedicated his life to serving others. As Minister of Transport, of Agriculture, and of Finance, and as Deputy Prime Minister, he contributed a lot to Canada. My deepest condolences to all who are mourning his passing," Trudeau said in a statement.

"Don and his wife Lorraine stayed true to their rural roots, continuing to live in Vegreville, and more recently Sherwood Park," said a statement from Alberta Premier Jason Kenney

Mazankowski "personified the virtues of humility and servant leadership," he said.

“At the heart of his public service was a belief that Western Canada needed strong voices to defend its economic and political interests in the Canadian federation. Maz was such a voice for decades. For that and for all that he did, Albertans are deeply grateful."

Mazankowski was named as a companion of the Order of Canada — the highest civilian honour — in 2013. He had been an officer of the Order of Canada since 2000.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 28, 2020.

John Cotter, The Canadian Press

Greta Thunberg reflects on living through multiple crises in a 'post-truth society'

Oliver Whang 

Since her first sit-in outside the Swedish parliament building more than two years ago, Greta Thunberg’s fundamental message has been clear and unchanging: The climate crisis is humanity’s greatest existential threat and we need to treat it as such. That message inspired millions of young activists to protest for change and led to a series of viral speeches that have defined Thunberg’s global fame. She was Time’s 2019 Person of the Year and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize two years in a row.

© Photograph by Shane Balkowitsch, Nostalgic Glass Wet Plate Studio
This portrait is titled “Greta.”

Now, though, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic—a global crisis of a much different nature—and the looming threat of the U.S. backing out of the Paris Agreement, the 17-year-old activist is back at school in Sweden. National Geographic spoke with Thunberg via Zoom about how her activism has changed over the past year, and how her message might survive an increasingly complex world. (This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity).

Oliver Whang: A lot has happened in the past half year or so. How has your work changed since the coronavirus hit?

Greta Thunberg: Well, we have moved from lots of physical things, meetings and strikes and so on, to doing it digitally. But, I mean, since we are a movement of people who don't fly because of the environmental impact, we haven't had to change that much in the way we work. And then every country, every local group, differs. Because we are a very decentralized movement. We are not run top-down, but every local group decides on their own what they're going to do. So it's been different from city to city, from country to country

.

© Photograph by Shane Balkowitsch, Nostalgic Glass Wet Plate Studio
Thunberg poses for a photo, “Standing For Us All.”

Oliver Whang: Have any of those countries or cities adapted in a way that's been really successful?

Greta Thunberg: Yeah. Some do weekly digital strikes, which have been successful. And many have done symbolic actions. Some have put up signs or shoes outside the parliament buildings to symbolize that we should be here, but we are home. So there are lots of creative ways people have adapted.

Oliver Whang: Do you feel like the climate change crisis has been kind of forgotten in the middle of all this other stuff?

Greta Thunberg: Well, that's a very poignant narrative because, yes, of course, as have all other issues. In an emergency like this, you have to expect that other things are going to be put on hold, as they have been.

Oliver Whang: One thing that's been striking to me about the worldwide response to the coronavirus pandemic is that a lot of countries and companies have made really big moves. Stimulus bills were passed and companies are developing vaccines quickly. Do you see this kind of response as inspiring some kind of action towards addressing the climate crisis?

Greta Thunberg: Well, we shouldn't be comparing different crises, but it does show that we can treat a crisis like a crisis. And that it will probably change the way we perceive crises and crisis response. And it really proves that the climate crisis has never once been treated as a crisis. It's just being treated as a public and important question, like a political topic. Which it is not, because it's an existential crisis.

Oliver Whang: But has the response to the coronavirus given you more hope? As in, we can have a similar response to the climate crisis?

Greta Thunberg: It confirmed what I already knew. That once we treat the climate crisis like a crisis, we can change things and we can achieve things.

Oliver Whang: Here in the U.S., an election is coming up and our country is scheduled to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on November 4th. Our president has been promising to do this for years—he says that the accord is unfair to America. And there are a lot of people, not most of the people in the U.S., but a lot of them, who agree with the president and agree with that decision to withdraw from the accord. What would you say to those people?

Greta Thunberg: Nothing. Just as I always do, refer to the science. Because people have been trying to impact these people for so long, and they haven't succeeded. So why should I? Why should I be any different? If they don't listen to and understand and accept the science, then there's really nothing that I can do. There's something much deeper that needs to change them.

Oliver Whang: What might that deeper thing be?

Greta Thunberg: That we live in a post-truth society today, and that we don't care that we have lost empathy. We have stopped caring for each other in a way. We have stopped thinking long-term and sustainable. And that's something that goes much deeper than just climate crisis deniers.

Oliver Whang: So do you think in order to address the climate crisis, we might need like a cultural shift or a paradigm shift rather than just passing carbon taxes and legislation, influencing leaders and developing technology?

Greta Thunberg: Well if I say that, then people will take that quote out of context and say that I want a revolution or something. But I mean the climate crisis is not the only problem here. It is just a symptom of a larger crisis. Like the loss of biodiversity, acidification of the oceans, and loss of fertile soil, and so on. And these things will not just be solved by stopping our emissions of greenhouse gases. The earth is a very complex system. If you take one thing and put it out of balance then that will have an impact on things beyond our comprehension. And that goes for equality as well. Humans are part of nature, and if we are not doing well, then nature is not doing well, because we are nature.

Oliver Whang: Does it bother you that you might be missing all these people who maybe accept that climate change is a thing and that it's a crisis, but prioritize joblessness or access to food or other domestic issues over the climate crisis? Do you feel like you're missing them?

Greta Thunberg: No, it doesn't bother me. We have not been made aware of the climate crisis—the climate crisis has never been treated as a crisis, so how can we expect people to care about it? Since we are not aware of even the basic facts, how can we expect people to want climate action? And so that is something that needs to change. We need to understand that we are not fighting for separate causes. We are fighting for one and the same cause even though it might not seem like it. It's the fight for climate justice, social justice. Whatever is the issue, it’s the fight for justice.

Oliver Whang: Do you think that we've made any significant progress towards addressing the climate crisis since you started protesting more than two years ago?

Greta Thunberg: It depends on how you see it. In one way, yes. It feels like the debate has shifted and more and more people are starting to slowly understand the climate crisis more and prioritizing it. But on the other hand, it has still never once been treated as a crisis. And the emissions are still rising. So it depends on how you see it.

But I mean we can't expect that this one movement will change the world. If we think that is the case then we have not understood the climate crisis. People are like, ‘Has your movement failed since you have not accomplished your goals?’ But, I mean, what are our goals? We don't have any goals. Our goal is to do as much as we possibly can to be a small part of a very big shift. To be one of countless of activists who push in the same direction from different perspectives. And that is our goal. We can't expect one movement or one initiative, one solution, to change everything, or to put us in the right direction. Because the climate crisis is very complex. It's not just that simple.

Oliver Whang: Was there anything that you did or that other youth climate activists have done that you think has been particularly successful? Or any sort of manifestation of what you've done in policy or in the economy that you think is an example of your success?

Greta Thunberg: Yes, we have many. Especially local examples. But I think the biggest thing that we have accomplished is to put the focus on the science. We just say, ‘We don't want you to listen to us, we want you to listen to the science.’ This not a question about politics, this is not our opinion. We don't want the emissions to reduce, it's what the science says is needed if we are to stay in line with our commitments. We don't want things to be like this. But unfortunately, that's where we are. And we will continue to push for people to listen to the science.

Oliver Whang: Do you ever have any doubts about your work? Do you ever doubt yourself or what you've been doing?

Greta Thunberg: No, because I know it's the right thing to do. We are at a time now where we must step out of our comfort zones. I feel like I have a moral duty to do what I can, since I'm a citizen. And that makes me part of something and it is my duty, my moral duty, my moral responsibility, to do everything I can.

Oliver Whang: And that's never been in question for you?

Greta Thunberg: No. I mean, I don't want to be an activist. I don't think any climate activist does it because they want to. We do this just because no one else is doing anything, and because we need to do something. Someone needs to do something, and we are somebodies.

Oliver Whang: I'm curious if you feel like your moral duties or your responsibility has changed as you’ve become this more recognized name.

Greta Thunberg: Well, yes. Of course everyone has a responsibility, but the bigger your platform, the bigger your responsibility. And the bigger your power, the bigger your responsibility. The bigger your carbon footprint, the bigger your moral duty. So of course, as I've gotten a bigger platform that also comes with a bigger responsibility. I must use these channels, or whatever you would call them, to educate, to spread awareness.

And the things, all the resources I have, they will disappear one day. I mean, I won't be this person for a long time. Soon people will lose interest in me and I won't be so-called “famous” anymore. And then I will have to do something else. So I'm trying to, as long as I have this platform, use it.

Oliver Whang: How do you see yourself proceeding from here? Do you want to go to university? Do you have any plans?

Greta Thunberg: Well, I don't really know. I just do what I want to do at the moment. And right now, I just started gymnasium (Editor’s note: “gymnasium” is the Swedish equivalent of high school). And there I will be for the following three years. And unless I want to do something else, I mean, we will see. The world changes from day to day. So you just have to adapt, I guess.

Oliver Whang: How do you plan on sustaining this movement? Are there specific things we need to do that are different from what needed to be done two years ago or one year ago or eight months ago?

Greta Thunberg: I mean, it's very complex. But right now we have kind of hit the wall. There are no arguments left. There are no excuses left. Now, it's just, either you try to minimize the crisis or just completely deny it, or you try to distract. We just need to start treating the crisis like a crisis and continue to lift up the science, but now everyone's blaming each other and we are stuck in a loop. We won't get anywhere unless someone breaks that chain, so to speak. Someone needs to do something. I mean, of course, many people have to do lots of things, but unless someone with a big platform or big responsibility does something to start treating the crisis like a crisis—for instance, the media—then we won't be able to move from here.

I am Greta, a documentary about Thunberg’s rise to prominence, begins streaming on Hulu on November 13. The Walt Disney Company is majority owner of National Geographic Partners and Hulu.

Photographer Shane Balkowitsch, based in Bismarck North Dakota, used the wet plate collodion process, invented in 1848, to create these images. More of his work can be found on Instagram @balkowitsch.

NSA COVER UP

Spy agency ducks questions about ‘back doors’ in tech products

PUBLISHED WED, OCT 28 2020

KEY POINTS

The U.S. National Security Agency is rebuffing efforts by a leading Congressional critic to determine whether it is continuing to place so-called back doors into commercial technology products, in a controversial practice that critics say damages both U.S. industry and national security.

The NSA has long sought agreements with technology companies under which they would build special access for the spy agency into their products.

These so-called back doors enable the NSA and other agencies to scan large amounts of traffic without a warrant.


Paul Nakasone, director of the National Security Agency, arrives to a Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing in Washington.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images


The U.S. National Security Agency is rebuffing efforts by a leading Congressional critic to determine whether it is continuing to place so-called back doors into commercial technology products, in a controversial practice that critics say damages both U.S. industry and national security.

The NSA has long sought agreements with technology companies under which they would build special access for the spy agency into their products, according to disclosures by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden and reporting by Reuters and others.

These so-called back doors enable the NSA and other agencies to scan large amounts of traffic without a warrant. Agency advocates say the practice has eased collection of vital intelligence in other countries, including interception of terrorist communications.

The agency developed new rules for such practices after the Snowden leaks in order to reduce the chances of exposure and compromise, three former intelligence officials told Reuters. But aides to Senator Ron Wyden, a leading Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, say the NSA has stonewalled on providing even the gist of the new guidelines.

“Secret encryption back doors are a threat to national security and the safety of our families – it’s only a matter of time before foreign hackers or criminals exploit them in ways that undermine American national security,” Wyden told Reuters. “The government shouldn’t have any role in planting secret back doors in encryption technology used by Americans.”

The agency declined to say how it had updated its policies on obtaining special access to commercial products. NSA officials said the agency has been rebuilding trust with the private sector through such measures as offering warnings about software flaws.

“At NSA, it’s common practice to constantly assess processes to identify and determine best practices,” said Anne Neuberger, who heads NSA’s year-old Cybersecurity Directorate. “We don’t share specific processes and procedures.”

Three former senior intelligence agency figures told Reuters that the NSA now requires that before a back door is sought, the agency must weigh the potential fallout and arrange for some kind of warning if the back door gets discovered and manipulated by adversaries.

The continuing quest for hidden access comes as governments in the United States, the United Kingdom and elsewhere seek laws that would require tech companies to let governments see unencrypted traffic. Defenders of strong encryption say the NSA’s sometimes-botched efforts to install back doors in commercial products show the dangers of such requirements.

Critics of the NSA’s practices say they create targets for adversaries, undermine trust in U.S. technology and compromise efforts to persuade allies to reject Chinese technology that could be used for espionage, since U.S. gear can also be turned to such purposes.

In at least one instance, a foreign adversary was able to take advantage of a back door invented by U.S. intelligence, according to Juniper Networks, which said in 2015 its equipment had been compromised. In a previously unreported statement to members of Congress in July seen by Reuters, Juniper said an unnamed national government had converted the mechanism first created by the NSA. The NSA told Wyden staffers in 2018 that there was a “lessons learned” report about the Juniper incident and others, according to Wyden spokesman Keith Chu.

“NSA now asserts that it cannot locate this document,” Chu told Reuters.

NSA and Juniper declined to comment on the matter.

Juniper’s compromise

The NSA has pursued many means for getting inside equipment, sometimes striking commercial deals to induce companies to insert back doors, and in other cases manipulating standards -- namely by setting processes so that companies unknowingly adopt software that NSA experts can break, according to reports from Reuters and other media outlets.

The tactics drew widespread attention starting in 2013, when Snowden leaked documents referencing these practices.

Tech companies that were later exposed for having cut deals that allowed backdoor access, including security pioneer RSA, lost credibility and customers. Other U.S. firms lost business overseas as customers grew wary of the NSA’s reach.

All of that prompted a White House policy review.

“There were all sorts of ‘lessons learned’ processes,” said former White House cybersecurity coordinator Michael Daniel, who was advising then-president Barack Obama when the Snowden files erupted. A special commission appointed by Obama said the government should never “subvert” or “weaken” tech products or compromise standards.

The White House did not publicly embrace that recommendation, instead beefing up review procedures for whether to use newly discovered software flaws for offensive cyber operations or get them fixed to improve defense, Daniel and others said.

The secret government contracts for special access remained outside of the formal review.

“The NSA had contracts with companies across the board to help them out, but that’s extremely protected,” said an intelligence community lawyer.

The starkest example of the risks inherent in the NSA’s approach involved an encryption-system component known as Dual Elliptic Curve, or Dual EC. The intelligence agency worked with the Commerce Department to get the technology accepted as a global standard, but cryptographers later showed that the NSA could exploit Dual EC to access encrypted data.

RSA accepted a $10 million contract to incorporate Dual EC into a widely used web security system, Reuters reported in 2013. RSA said publicly that it would not have knowingly installed a back door, but its reputation was tarnished and the company was sold.

Juniper Networks got into hot water over Dual EC two years later. At the end of 2015, the maker of internet switches disclosed that it had detected malicious code in some firewall products. Researchers later determined that hackers had turned the firewalls into their own spy tool by altering Juniper’s version of Dual EC.

Juniper said little about the incident. But the company acknowledged to security researcher Andy Isaacson in 2016 that it had installed Dual EC as part of a “customer requirement,” according to a previously undisclosed contemporaneous message seen by Reuters. Isaacson and other researchers believe that customer was a U.S. government agency, since only the U.S. is known to have insisted on Dual EC elsewhere.

Juniper has never identified the customer, and declined to comment for this story.

Likewise, the company never identified the hackers. But two people familiar with the case told Reuters that investigators concluded the Chinese government was behind it. They declined to detail the evidence they used.

The Chinese government has long denied involvement in hacking of any kind. In a statement to Reuters, the Chinese foreign ministry said that cyberspace is “highly virtual and difficult to trace. It is extremely irresponsible to make accusations of hacker attacks without complete and conclusive evidence. At the same time, we also noticed that the report mentioned that it was the U.S. intelligence agency - the National Security Agency - that created this backdoor technology.”

Nervous companies

Wyden remains determined to find out exactly what happened at Juniper and what has changed since as the encryption wars heat up.

This July, in previously unreported responses to questions from Wyden and allies in Congress, Juniper said that an unidentified nation was believed to be behind the hack into its firewall code but that it had never investigated why it installed Dual EC in the first place.

“We understand that there is a vigorous policy debate about whether and how to provide government access to encrypted content,” it said in a July letter. “Juniper does not and will not insert back doors into its products and we oppose any legislation mandating back doors.”

A former senior NSA official told Reuters that many tech companies remain nervous about working covertly with the government. But the agencies’ efforts continue, the person said, because special access is seen as too valuable to give up.

WHERE THERE IS SMOKE THERE IS WORK

Lower air quality in some Chinese cities points to iPhone 12 production surge, Morgan Stanley says

Morgan Stanley analysts on Wednesday said that they were tracking air quality reports in Chinese cities that suggested an increase in industrial activity tied to iPhone 12 production.

In Zhengzhou, China, a major production site for Apple's manufacturing partners, Morgan Stanley analysts believe air quality data suggests a ramp in production for new iPhone models.

Morgan Stanley says its air quality analysis shows signs of iPhone 12 mass production ramping up one month later than historical patterns

.

© Provided by CNBC

Morgan Stanley analysts on Wednesday said they are tracking air quality reports in Chinese cities that suggests an increase in industrial activity tied to iPhone 12 production.

Two new iPhone 12 models went on sale last week and two more will go on sale next month. This is a few weeks later than Apple's traditional cadence, which aims to release new iPhones in September, and the delay is most likely due to disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Apple investors are looking for clues as to how the production of the finished devices is going in order to better project sales in the coming quarters.

For Morgan Stanley, air quality is one such clue.

"Using air quality data from a non-profit platform that collects and publishes air quality data in China, we track nitrogen dioxide levels (controlling for temperature, humidity, wind, etc.), which, according to the European Space Agency, is a first-level indicator of industrial activity, in four Chinese cities where Apple's manufacturing partners have a large manufacturing presence," the analysts wrote.

In Zhengzhou, China, a major production site for Apple's manufacturing partners, the analysts suggest lower air quality shows a ramp in production.

"As of October 26th, air quality data from Zhengzhou, also known as 'iPhone City,' shows that industrial production levels have spiked higher recently, about a month later than historical seasonality, which we believe coincides with the ramp in iPhone 12 mass production," Morgan Stanley analysts led by Katy Huberty wrote in a note this week.

In Shenzhen, Morgan Stanley believes industrial production ramped higher in early September, but dipped below historical seasonal levels. In Chengdu, the analysts found that industrial activity is ramping higher in recent days. In Chongqing, industrial production has ramped meaningfully higher in recent days after an uptick and pullback in September.

Apple reports its fourth fiscal quarter earnings on Thursday. However, the period Apple is reporting results for ends in September, so it will not have any iPhone 12 sales included.

Junior hockey employment lawsuit on thin ice; judges refuse to OK $30-million deal

TORONTO — A $30-million settlement of three class actions over the alleged failure to pay junior hockey players the minimum wage has been thrown into jeopardy after three judges refused to sign off on the agreement.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

In their decisions, the judges in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta objected to wording in the settlement they said was too broad and could prevent the players from pressing other legitimate claims.

More precisely, Ontario Superior Court Justice Paul Perell said, class members would get an average of about $8,400 but could end up barred from suing leagues for damages related to concussions, sexual assaults or physical harassment, or alleged anti-competitive behaviour.

"Class members may be foreclosed from suing the defendants in other class actions for compensation for significant injuries," Perell said. "A release of the claims in those other actions makes the settlement in the immediate case an improvident settlement and one that is not fair and reasonable, nor in the best interests of the class members."

The plaintiffs in the three lawsuits alleged the Ontario Hockey League, Western Hockey League and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and their affiliated clubs — all operate under the umbrella of the Canadian Hockey League — failed to treat them as employees.

According to the plaintiffs, some players were paid as little as $35 per week for working between 35 and 65 hours weekly. The leagues, they asserted, should have paid them minimum wage, overtime pay, and provided other employment benefits.

The first lawsuit, launched in Ontario in 2014, sought about $175 million in outstanding compensation.

In response, the leagues argued, among other things, that the players were amateur athletes and not employees. Nevertheless, in March, the leagues agreed after mediation to pay $30 million to settle the lawsuits — with about $9 million going to the players' lawyers.

The settlement was set for court approval when two representative plaintiffs — Kobe Mohr and Anthony Poulin — objected to the wording of the final release, which would insulate the leagues from any related lawsuits in the future.

As a result of the objection, the courts learned of other actions against the Canadian Hockey League, including one filed in British Columbia over player concussions. Another filed in Ontario alleges players younger than 18 suffered sexual abuse, while a third in Federal Court alleges various leagues engaged in anti-competitive practices.

"To be blunt about it, in the immediate case, in my opinion, once the 11th-hour objection arrived, class counsel should have withdrawn their motion for settlement approval until the matter of the prejudicial scope of the release was resolved," Perell said. "What is required is a renegotiation of the release provisions of the settlement agreement."

In a similar ruling, Justice Robert Hall of the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench leaned on Perell's analysis for refusing to go along with the settlement.

"The class members cannot be unwittingly releasing the defendants from other claims beyond the one being settled," Hall wrote. Quebec Superior Court Justice Chantal Corriveau expressed similar sentiments.

The judges did say the parties could reapply for settlement approval after fixing the issue with the release given that the other provisions of the deal were reasonable.

If an agreement isn't reached on the release, the settlement could be terminated within weeks and lead to a resumption of the litigation.

Neither the Canadian Hockey League nor the plaintiffs' counsel had any comment.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 28, 2020.

Colin Perkel, The Canadian Press

Two Black former DC Comics editors describe the career obstacles they faced, from white leadership saying they'd never be promoted to their achievements being undercut

tclark@businessinsider.com (Travis Clark) 

© DC Comics; Samantha Lee/Business Insider DC Comics; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Harvey Richards and Lateef Ade "L.A." Williams, two Black former DC Comics editorial staffers, told Business Insider they felt their careers at the company were hindered because of their race.

Richards was fired in December 2019 after 22 years and was the only Black editorial staffer at DC when he left. He was only promoted once. 

Williams exited in 2000 after six years without a promotion and after disputes with white members of DC leadership.

The careers of Richards and Williams cut across two decades, but the similarities in their experiences, from being told they'd never be promoted to a feeling that their achievements were not valued, show how little has changed for Black staffers.

DC's small editorial team shapes the comics that inspire lucrative movies, video games, and merchandise. Richards and Williams said that it's important for Black editors at DC to be in a position to champion diversity.

Harvey Richards and Lateef Ade "L.A." Williams have a lot in common. They both grew up reading comics with aspirations to work in the industry one day. They both ultimately nabbed roles on the editorial staff of DC Comics in the 1990s.

And they are both Black men who say they never achieved their full potential at DC Comics because of their race.

There are differences in their stories — notably, the time periods. Williams exited his role as an assistant editor in 2000 after six years without a promotion, while Richards spent 22 years at the comics giant with just one promotion before he was fired in December 2019.

But the similarities that cut across those two decades are striking and speak to how little has changed for Black editorial staffers at DC Comics and in the comics industry at large.

Richards was the only Black staffer in the main DC editorial department at the time of his exit in 2019, which included about 15 people, he said. He added that DC had since hired a Black assistant editor. DC declined to comment on personnel matters.

DC, which is home to Batman, Superman, and other iconic characters, is much larger than its comics editorial department, with around 200 employees on the publishing side. But the small team of editors shape the comics and characters that inspire lucrative movies, video games, TV shows, and merchandise.

"You need [Black] editors to help nurture talent to foster diverse characters," Richards said.

Besides being the only Black editorial staffer at the time of his exit, Richards felt stymied in his own career, he said. In his 22 years at the company, he was only promoted once. He began as an assistant editor and 12 years later, in 2009, he was promoted to associate editor.

L.A. Williams can relate.

"My personality and work style is different than Harvey's, who is different from every other name I could rattle off," Williams said. "But no matter how different our work styles or personalities are, the reality is that every one of our stories ended up the same. When it keeps happening year after year, person after person, you have to ask yourself what all of these people have in common."

A Latinx former assistant editor, who exited in 1999 after five years without a promotion, shared similar concerns with Business Insider about a lack of a career path forward at DC and a sense that her work was undervalued.

The stories of these three former DC editors are also similar to that of Charles Beacham, a former Marvel editor who spoke with Business Insider in July. Beacham was one of two Black editorial staffers Marvel had employed in the last five years and quit in 2017 because he felt his voice wasn't heard.

For Richards, there were many instances during his time at DC where he felt he was treated unfairly because of his race. He recalled specific instances with Paul Levitz, the DC publisher at the time, like when Levitz told Richards he had "grammar problems," and when Levitz told him "some people think you deserve this" when Richards won an award. Richards was never promoted while Levitz was publisher and president.

Williams also described a confrontation with Levitz, in which Levitz told Williams that he would never be promoted as long as he was publisher.

In response to a request for comment, Levitz said: "I'm not going to comment on decades old incidents. I'm proud of the increasing diversity at DC in my time as an executive there, and while we didn't achieve an ideal balance, I think much changed for the better."

Since Richards' departure, DC has taken some steps to promote diversity and inclusion.

Two women — Marie Javins and Michele Wells — were named interim editors-in-chief after recent layoffs. DC recently hired former Activision Blizzard exec Daniel Cherry, who is Black, as its new senior vice president and general manager, overseeing marketing, sales, and more for the company.

DC is also reviving Milestone, a division of DC that focused on Black characters like Static Shock and was founded in 1993 by four Black men. It ceased operations in 1997 but will return in February.

But for Richards and Williams, it's essential to have Black voices on the editorial front to help inspire change and champion a diverse set of voices and characters.

© DC Comics/Jim Lee Milestone Comics, including Static Shock, is returning in 2021. DC Comics/Jim Lee

'I've had my doubts about you'

For Williams, comics were his life. He had written his senior thesis in Afro-American studies at the University of Massachusetts on the history of Black characters in superhero comics.

So when he got a job at DC Comics in 1994, it was a dream come true. But he faced roadblocks that previewed Richards' own experiences in the coming years.

Williams, 51, recalled an instance in 2000 when some assistant editors were given a monthly comic to edit on their own by then-executive-editor Mike Carlin, who is now a DC Entertainment creative director. Williams said the assistant editors of color were set up to fail and given comics that were doomed from the start.

But Williams turned his assigned book, "Impulse," starring a Flash sidekick that had been hurting in sales, into a success.

Carlin wasn't happy. Williams said Carlin cursed him out for getting veteran comics creator Walt Simonson to draw two issues of the comic, and "wasting his time on Impulse when he should be drawing other characters like Superman."

Carlin did not return a request for comment. DC declined to provide a comment on his behalf.

That sense of not being valued even when he succeeded was a hallmark of Williams' time at DC, he said.

After a white associate editor was fired, Carlin offered Williams to take over that editor's books, which included one of DC's best-selling comics at the time, "Wonder Woman."

Williams remembered vividly what Carlin told him: "I've had my doubts about you, but you've delivered. Everything is always on time, it sells, and critics like it."

"I thanked him for my promotion," Williams said. "And he interrupted me and said it didn't come with a promotion. I feel so stupid now, but at the time I was so confused and asked why it wouldn't come with a promotion."

More than two decades later, Williams said the answer was obvious to him.

© Harvey Richards Richards. Harvey Richards

'Some people think you deserve this'

Williams' DC career ended just as Richards' was just getting started.

Richards, 48, moved from Akron, Ohio, to New York City in 1995 and began his comics career with an internship at the original Milestone, which then shut down in 1997. His Milestone connections eventually led him to DC, where he started in the mailroom and then became an assistant editor.

"I was living my dream at this point," Richards said.

In 2001, after four years as an assistant editor, Richards was offered the chance to work on the Superman titles. It wouldn't have been a promotion, but a chance to prove himself (the chain generally went like this: assistant editor, associate editor, editor, group editor, and executive editor).

But Richards was given what he said was the "unusual" task to write about what he "could bring to the Superman books." Paul Levitz, then the EVP and publisher of DC, told Richards he had "grammar problems" after he completed the assignment.

"After that, Levitz made up his mind about me," Richards said. "I felt he already had because most people are promoted after four years. But after that, it was over, even if I got a good review or worked on good projects or got company awards for going above and beyond."

Richards won two such awards, called "Carrots," which were given by DC's parent company, Warner Bros. After he won the second time, Levitz handed it to him and said "some people think you deserve this," Richards said.

Richards was finally promoted to associate editor in 2009, 12 years after he was hired, when Diane Nelson took over as president of DC Entertainment.
'Change is going to come'

Richards' time at DC came to an end in December.

He had been put on zero-tolerance probation in August of last year. The document Richards provided Business Insider outlined "poor time management skills and an inability to meet deadlines." Richards said he was being overworked.

The day after he returned to the office from Thanksgiving break last year, he was let go with a six-month severance and told he "no longer fit company standards."

He's still looking for work while honing his digital art skills. He said a potential employer asked him why he was only promoted once in all that time at DC.

"It wasn't because of my work performance," Richards said. "I feel like they blacklisted me."

19 years earlier, Williams had left DC with similar sentiments.

After a confrontation over Williams using the likeness of the Alabama governor in an issue of "Impulse," Levitz told him: "As long as I am publisher of DC Comics, you will never be promoted. You're welcome to stay here in the role of assistant editor for as long as you like."

Williams thought the timing of the dispute — shortly after he had filed a racial-discrimination complaint with human resources against Carlin — was suspect. He quit shortly after.

"I naively thought that as long as I do good work, the comics sell, and the critics like them, I'm going to do well," he said. "As a Black man in America, I knew I wouldn't be able to make as many mistakes as others. But I thought the solution was, work harder and do better."

Their experiences highlight why editors of color are so important, Richards said. They can help "realize a creator's vision" and promote more diversity in comics. He lamented that he never got that opportunity. And Black editors in senior positions could provide a source of support for ones in assistant or associate roles, he said.

"Ideas came down, they didn't go up," he said. "And I didn't have anyone above me advocating for me."

He hopes the recent shakeup at DC affords marginalized groups more opportunities and he sees more women in comics than ever before. Jessica Chen, who is Asian American, was promoted from associate editor to editor last year, for example. But Richards also noted there is still a lack of Black women in the industry.

"Change is going to come," he said. "It has to."