Whistle blows in Germany for world's first hydrogen train fleet

Florian CAZERES
Tue, August 23, 2022 


Germany on Wednesday will inaugurate a railway line powered entirely by hydrogen, a "world first" and a major step forward for green train transport despite nagging supply challenges.

A fleet of 14 trains provided by French industrial giant Alstom to the German state Lower Saxony will replace the diesel locomotives on the 100 kilometres (60 miles) of track connecting the cities of Cuxhaven, Bremerhaven, Bremervoerde and Buxtehude near Hamburg.

"Whatever the time of day, passengers will travel on this route thanks to hydrogen", Stefan Schrank, project manager at Alstom, told AFP, hailing a "world first".


Hydrogen trains have become a promising way to decarbonise the rail sector and replace diesel, which still powers 20 percent of journeys in Germany.

Billed as a "zero emission" mode of transport, the trains mix hydrogen on board with oxygen present in the ambient air, thanks to a fuel cell installed in the roof. This produces the electricity needed to pull the train.
- Run for its money -

Designed in the southern French town of Tarbes and assembled in Salzgitter in central Germany, Alstom's trains -- called Coradia iLint -- are trailblazers in the sector.

The project drew investment of "several tens of millions of euros" and created jobs for up to 80 employees in the two countries, according to Alstom.

Commercial trials have been carried out since 2018 on the line with two hydrogen trains but now the entire fleet is adopting the ground-breaking technology.

The French group has inked four contracts for several dozen trains between Germany, France and Italy, with no sign of demand waning.

In Germany alone "between 2,500 and 3,000 diesel trains could be replaced by hydrogen models", Schrank estimates.

"By 2035, around 15 to 20 percent of the regional European market could run on hydrogen," Alexandre Charpentier, rail expert at consultancy Roland Berger, told AFP.

Hydrogen trains are particularly attractive on short regional lines where the cost of a transition to electric outstrips the profitability of the route.

Currently, around one out of two regional trains in Europe runs on diesel.

But Alstom's competitors are ready to give it a run for its money. German behemoth Siemens unveiled a prototype hydrogen train with national rail company Deutsche Bahn in May, with a view to a roll-out in 2024.

But, despite the attractive prospects, "there are real barriers" to a big expansion with hydrogen, Charpentier said.

For starters, trains are not the only means of transport hungry for the fuel.

The entire sector, whether it be road vehicles or aircraft, not to mention heavy industry such as steel and chemicals, are eyeing hydrogen to slash CO2 emissions.
- Colossal investment -

Although Germany announced in 2020 an ambitious seven-billion-euro (-dollar) plan to become a leader in hydrogen technologies within a decade, the infrastructure is still lacking in Europe's top economy.

It is a problem seen across the continent, where colossal investment would be needed for a real shift to hydrogen.

"For this reason, we do not foresee a 100-percent replacement of diesel trains with hydrogen," Charpentier said.

Furthermore, hydrogen is not necessarily carbon-free: only "green hydrogen", produced using renewable energy, is considered sustainable by experts.

Other, more common manufacturing methods exist, but they emit greenhouse gases because they are made from fossil fuels.

The Lower Saxony line will in the beginning have to use a hydrogen by-product of certain industries such as the chemical sector.

The French research institute IFP specialising in energy issues says that hydrogen is currently "95 percent derived from the transformation of fossil fuels, almost half of which come from natural gas".


Europe's enduring reliance on gas from Russia amid massive tensions over the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine poses major challenges for the development of hydrogen in rail transport.

"Political leaders will have to decide which sector to prioritise when determining what the production of hydrogen will or won't go to," Charpentier said.

Germany will also have to import massively to meet its needs.

Partnerships have recently been signed with India and Morocco, and an agreement to import hydrogen from Canada was on the agenda this week during a visit by Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

fcz-dlc/hmn/rl

 

An overview of NASA's Artemis 1 mission to the Moon

by Lucie AUBOURG

NASA's Artemis 1 Moon rocket is rolled out to Launch Pad Complex 39B at Kennedy Space

 Center, in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

NASA's Artemis 1 mission, scheduled to take off on Monday, is a 42-day voyage beyond the far side of the Moon and back.

The meticulously choreographed uncrewed flight should yield spectacular images as well as valuable scientific data.

Blastoff

The giant Space Launch System rocket will make its maiden flight from Launch Complex 39B at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Its four RS-25 engines, with two white boosters on either side, will produce 8.8 million pounds (39 meganewtons) of thrust—15 percent more than the Apollo program's Saturn V rocket.

After two minutes, the thrusters will fall back into the Atlantic Ocean.

After eight minutes, the core stage, orange in color, will fall away in turn, leaving the Orion crew capsule attached to the interim cryogenic propulsion stage.

This stage will circle the Earth once, put Orion on course for the Moon, and drop away around 90 minutes after takeoff.

Trajectory

All that remains is Orion, which will fly astronauts in the future and is powered by a service module built by the European Space Agency.

It will take several days to reach the Moon, flying around 60 miles (100 kilometers) at closest approach.

"It's going to be spectacular. We'll be holding our breath," said mission flight director Rick LaBrode.

Graphic on NASA's Artemis program to establish a mini-space station orbiting the Moon 

before landing on the surface in 2024.

The capsule will fire its engines to get to a distant retrograde orbit (DRO) 40,000 miles beyond the Moon, a distance record for a spacecraft rated to carry humans.

"Distant" relates to high altitude, while "retrograde" refers to the fact Orion will go around the Moon the opposite direction to the Moon's orbit around the Earth.

DRO is a stable orbit because objects are balanced between the gravitational pulls of two large masses.

After passing by the Moon to take advantage of its gravitational assistance, Orion will begin the return journey.

Journey home

The mission's primary objective is to test the capsule's heat shield, the largest ever built, 16 feet (five meters) in diameter.

On its return to the Earth's atmosphere, it will have to withstand a speed of 25,000 miles per hour and a temperature of 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,760 degrees Celsius).

Slowed by a series of parachutes until it is traveling at less than 20 miles per hour, Orion will splashdown off the coast of San Diego in the Pacific.

Divers will attach cables to tow it in a few hours to a US Navy ship.

The crew

The capsule will carry a mannequin called "Moonikin Campos," named after a legendary NASA engineer who saved Apollo 13, in the commander's seat, wearing the agency's brand new uniform.

Campos will be equipped with sensors to record acceleration and vibrations, and will also be accompanied by two other dummies: Helga and Zohar, who are made of materials designed to mimic bones and organs.

One will wear a radiation vest while the other won't, to test the impacts of the radiation in deep space.

Temporary work spaces are set up near the Vehicle Assembly Building ahead of the 

Artemis 1 moon rocket launch at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

What will we see?

Several on-board cameras will make it possible to follow the entire journey from multiple angles, including from the point of view of a passenger in the capsule.

Cameras at the end of the solar panels will take selfies of the craft with the Moon and Earth in the background.

CubeSats

Life will imitate art with a technology demonstration called Callisto, inspired by the Starship Enterprise's talking computer.

It is an improved version of Amazon's Alexa voice assistant, which will be requested from the control center to adjust the light in the capsule, or to read flight data.

The idea is to make life easier for astronauts in the future.

In addition, a payload of 10 CubeSats, shoebox-sized microsatellites, will be deployed by the rocket's upper stage.

They have numerous goals: studying an asteroid, examining the effect of radiation on living organisms, searching for water on the Moon.

These projects, carried out independently by international companies or researchers, take advantage of the rare opportunity of a launch into deep space.

NASA's new Moon rocket to launch as soon as August 29

© 2022 AFP

For Russian re-enactors, battle with West is more than history

Romain COLAS
Wed, August 24, 2022 


Surrounded by dozens of men in chainmail and helmets playing dead in a field, an impersonator of mediaeval Russian prince Alexander Nevsky raises his sword and roars.

"This land is Russian, always has been, and always will be!"

It was on this spot near Lake Peipus on Russia's border with Estonia that eight centuries ago Nevsky repelled a force of Teutonic Knights who wanted to convert Russia to Catholicism.

Known as the Battle of the Ice because it was fought largely on the frozen lake, the clash in April 1242 is celebrated as a great victory against efforts to turn Russia away from Eastern Orthodox Christianity.


For the hundreds of history enthusiasts re-enacting the battle on a recent August day, that victory is especially resonant today, as Russian forces wage an offensive in Ukraine framed by the Kremlin as part of an enduring conflict with the West.
- ADVERTISEMENT -


"We are fighting against Europe just like our ancestors did," says Oleg Yakontov, a 56-year-old retired paratrooper, holding a sword and shield as sweat drips off his face.

Historical re-enactments are a popular pastime in Russia, whether of mediaeval battles, Napoleonic-era clashes or the fierce fighting of World War II.
- Historic parallels -

Drawing parallels with that history -- and with President Vladimir Putin as a kind of successor to figures like Nevsky -- is part of the messaging put forward by the Kremlin and Russian state media in support of Moscow's campaign in Ukraine.

"To me, Nevsky symbolises the defence of the Motherland and victory," says 23-year-old Vladislav Vasilyev, still out of breath after taking part in the re-enactment.

Several hundred people gathered for the mock battle near the lake, called Lake Chud in Russian. They feasted on grilled meat and listened to live rock music as the combatants pummelled each other on the field.

The event culminated in horseback combat demonstrations a few metres away from a large metal sculpture of Nevsky that was inaugurated in September 2021 by Putin and Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church.

"Alexander Nevsky's personality was truly grandiose," Putin said at the time, praising him as a "talented commander" and "skilful diplomat".

Part of the modern-day appeal of Nevsky for the Kremlin was his alliance with the great power of the time, the Mongol Empire and its Golden Horde, which had destroyed and seized many of Russia's lands.

For some in Russia, Nevsky's acceptance of Mongol dominion helped preserve the country's religious traditions and Eurasian character in the face of Western expansionism.

"His main achievement is this civilisational choice," says Igor Fomyn, a bearded 52-year-old Orthodox priest in a black cassock who came to watch the spectacle.

"By making this choice, he put spirituality, his people, and his Motherland before comfort," the priest says.

- Hero of landmark film -

Nevsky has been used in the past to stir up patriotic fervour, most famously in Sergei Eisenstein's landmark propaganda film "Alexander Nevsky" in 1938.

Made at a time of strained ties between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, the film portrayed Nevsky as a heroic figure battling Teutonic domination.

It features an epic recreation of the battle at Lake Peipus with the heavily armoured crusaders crashing through the ice and drowning -- a scene many historians regard as of dubious authenticity.

The film was pulled from cinemas when the USSR and Germany signed a non-aggression pact in 1939, then allowed back onto screens when the Nazis invaded the Soviet Union in 1941.

Nevsky remains a cherished historical figure for many in Russia, and some here have little doubt about who would be his modern counterpart.

"Our president is continuing his work, of course," says Oleg Davydov, a 52-year-old engineer, in attendance at the re-enactment.

"It's all about this country's defence, its strength, its security."

rco/brw/mm/rox-jj

 

COUP LEADER

Thailand court suspends PM Prayuth Chan-ocha pending term limit review

Reuters
Bangkok Updated: Aug 24, 2022,


Thailand's Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha delivers the policy statement of the council of ministers to the parliament at the parliament in Bangkok, Thailand. 

Photograph:( Reuters )


STORY HIGHLIGHTS

The petition was filed by the main opposition party, which argued that Prayuth's time spent as head of a military junta after he staged a coup when he was army chief in 2014 should count towards his constitutionally stipulated eight-year term.

Thailand's Constitutional Court suspended Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha from official duties on Wednesday, after deciding to hear a petition to review his legally mandated eight-year term limit.

The petition was filed by the main opposition party, which argued that Prayuth's time spent as head of a military junta after he staged a coup when he was army chief in 2014 should count towards his constitutionally stipulated eight-year term.

Though Prayuth could be restored to his position when the court makes its ruling, his surprise suspension threw Thai politics into confusion.

Prayuth will have 15 days to respond, the court told media in a statement, adding that a panel of judges ruled five to four in favour of his suspension, starting from Wednesday.

ALSO READ | Europe facing worst drought in almost 500 years, new report claims

"The court has considered the petition and related documents and sees that the facts from the petition are cause for questioning as demanded," it said.

Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan is expected to take over as interim leader, another deputy prime minister, Wissanu Krea-ngam, told reporters on Monday.

It was not clear when the court would deliver a final ruling on the petition.

Prayuth ruled as head of a military council after he overthrow an elected government in 2014, and became a civilian prime minister in 2019, following an election held under a military-drafted constitution.

In its request for review, the main opposition party has argued that Prayuth should leave office this month because his time as junta chief should count towards his term.

Nearly two-thirds of Thais also want Prayuth out of office by this month, a recent poll showed.

But some supporters argue his term started in 2017, when a new constitution took effect, or after the 2019 election, meaning that he should be allowed to stay in power until 2025 or 2027, if elected.

The controversy is the latest in a country that suffered intermittent political turmoil for nearly two decades, including two coups and violent protests, stemming broadly from opposition to military involvement in politics and demands for greater representation as political awareness grows.

Pro-democracy activists have campaigned against Prayuth and his government, arguing that the 2019 election was not legitimate.

But student-led demonstrations petered out over the past couple of years, with the imposition of COVID-19 bans on gatherings. Activists gathered in Bangkok on Tuesday calling on the court to suspend Prayuth.

Thailand's next general election is due by May next year

Japan PM eyes nuclear power push to combat energy crunch

Issued on: 24/08/2022 - 

Nuclear power is a sensitive topic in Japan after the 2011 Fukushima disaster Philip FONG AFP


Tokyo (AFP) – Japan's prime minister on Wednesday called for a push to revive the country's nuclear power industry in a bid to tackle soaring imported energy costs linked to the Ukraine war.

Such a move could prove controversial after the 2011 Fukushima disaster led to the suspension of many nuclear reactors over safety fears.

But like many countries, Japan -- which is aiming to become carbon neutral by 2050 -- has faced a squeeze on its energy supplies since Russian forces entered Ukraine six months ago.

"Russia's invasion of Ukraine has vastly transformed the world's energy landscape" and so "Japan needs to bear in mind potential crisis scenarios", Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said at an energy policy meeting.

Japan should consider building next-generation nuclear reactors, he said, while the government will also discuss bringing more nuclear plants online and extending the service life of reactors if safety can be guaranteed.

Kishida called for "concrete conclusions by the end of the year" on the topic, which remains a sensitive one after a deadly tsunami in March 2011 caused a meltdown at the Fukushima plant, the world's worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl.

Eleven years on, 10 of Japan's 33 nuclear reactors are back in action, although not all are operational year-round, and the country is heavily dependent on imported fossil fuels.

The national nuclear safety watchdog has approved in principle the restart of seven more reactors, but those moves often face opposition from local communities.
'Politically challenging'

"In addition to securing the operations of the 10 reactors that are already back online, the government will spearhead an effort to do all it takes to realise the restart" of the others whose safety has been approved, Kishida said.

The prime minister, who joined the meeting remotely after testing positive for Covid-19, also urged policymakers to consider "constructing next-generation nuclear reactors equipped with new safety mechanisms".

Before the Fukushima disaster, a third of Japan's power generation came from nuclear sources, but in 2020 the figure stood at less than five percent.

Tom O'Sullivan, a Tokyo-based energy consultant at Mathyos Advisory, said building next-generation reactors in Japan would be a "major step", because "all the current reactors are conventional ones".

Bringing more existing nuclear plants online will need to be approved by local governors, which could prove "politically challenging", O'Sullivan told AFP.

"But again, there's a different environment now after the Ukraine war," he said.

For the Japanese public, "I don't think it's just the electricity costs. It's the reliance on Russia, for natural gas, oil and coal... the Japanese public have really woken up to that."

The price of Japanese shares related to nuclear power surged in afternoon trade as local media reported the possible plans, with Tokyo Electric Power ending up 9.96 percent and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries jumping 6.85 percent.

Japan has imposed sanctions on Russia over the war in Ukraine along with other G7 countries.

The government has also pledged to make efforts to reduce its energy dependency on Russia, which supplies around eight percent of Japan's LNG needs.

© 2022 AFP

ICYMI

Conservative Dark Money Group Gets $1.6 Billion Donation In Huge Win For The Right

Leonard Leo said the donation would help the new group go “toe-to-toe in the fight to defend our constitution and its ideals.”

By Nick Visser
Aug 23, 2022


A Republican donor gave $1.6 billion to a new conservative nonprofit last year, the largest known donation to a political advocacy group in the nation’s history, The New York Times reported Monday.

The group, Marble Freedom Trust, is run by Leonard Leo, the co-chair of the conservative Federalist Society, an influential force in Washington that has worked to transform the nation’s judiciary. Leo has been instrumental in the fight to overturn Americans’ access to abortion and limit voting rights across the nation. ProPublica notes Leo has directly helped select judges to be nominated to the Supreme Court and organized massive media campaigns to see them confirmed.

The sheer size of the donation will likely aid the nation’s conservative wing for years, if not decades, and will serve as a particular boon to the GOP as the country heads into November’s midterm elections.

The money came via Barre Seid, a 90-year-old electronics manufacturing tycoon from Chicago, who transferred the massive sum via a series of legal tax loopholes that seem to have largely avoided any liabilities, the Times reported. Seid donated 100% of his shares in his company, Tripp Lite, to the nonprofit group before the company was then sold for $1.65 billion to an Irish conglomerate.

The nonprofit group received the proceeds from the sale, which was completed in March 2021, some $1.6 billion in total. ProPublica added the structure of the donation likely avoided as much as $400 million in taxes.

Leonard Leo told the Times it was “high time for the conservative movement to be among the ranks of George Soros."
VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS


Marble Freedom Trust, which was founded in 2020, is what’s known in political circles as a dark money group that faces no requirements to publicly disclose its donors. Such organizations are able to spend as much as they like on third-party electoral efforts and political issues.

Leo told the Times in a statement it was “high time for the conservative movement to be among the ranks of George Soros, Hansjörg Wyss, Arabella Advisors and other left-wing philanthropists.” He said the donation would help the new group go “toe-to-toe in the fight to defend our constitution and its ideals.”

Tax filings show Leo is the trustee and chairman of the trust and has “primary authority” over how they money is spent, according to tax filings obtained by the Times. His power over the war chest will solidify his role as a conservative power broker and supercharge his relationships with major donors throughout Washington.

The $1.6 billion figure will immediately shift the balance of power in American political spending. Dark money groups have long aided Democrats, and the Times notes the top 15 most active nonprofit groups benefiting the party spent more than $1.5 billion in the 2020 race (compared to $900 million for GOP-linked groups in that period).

Democrats have worked to end such spending after the Supreme Court legalized the practice in its Citizens United decision, but have largely failed to do so thus far.

Activism, an In-Your-Face Attitude and Uber Driving: The Making of a Gen-Z Politician In Florida

If he wins Rep. Val Demings’s open seat, this blunt-talking activist would be the first Gen Zer and the only Afro-Cuban in Congress.


Maxwell Alejandro Frost sits in his campaign office. | Photos by Gary Bogdon 

By SABRINA RODRIGUEZ
08/23/2022  POLITICO

ORLANDO — Tucked in a small strip of offices downtown, Maxwell Frost’s campaign headquarters shows all the frenzied signs of a primary Election Day rapidly approaching: marathon days with barely enough time to order takeout or run to the bathroom. Campaign flyers scattered on tables and shelves all throughout the office. A non-stop flow of calls to donors. Krispy Kreme donuts in the kitchen and an ironing board set up in the corner of a conference room.

Here, in one room crammed with a couple dozen volunteers and campaign staffers, there’s a sense of both expectation and urgency. Maybe it’s the presence of two House Democrats who’ve flown in to drum up excitement now that early voting has begun. Maybe it’s the $1.5 million in donations Frost has racked up — far outpacing his more seasoned opponents in a race for Rep. Val Demings’s open seat. And maybe it’s Frost himself.

At first glance, Frost looks like any other Gen Zer, zipping around the office, short curly ‘fro, khaki pants, multi-color sneakers and a black quarter-zip sweatshirt, occasionally dropping TikTok references into conversations. Then he slips into a blue plaid suit with tan leather shoes (the better to greet the Washington delegation) and smiles the casual, confident smile of someone who’s both well-versed in energizing a crowd — and unfazed by all the attention.

Maxwell Alejandro Frost (center) doing morning calls to the community at his campaign headquarters in downtown Orlando. “Hey! This is Maxwell Alejandro Frost, Democratic candidate for Congress in Orlando, Florida. How’s everything going?” he says, almost verbatim, on dozens of back-to-back calls.

It’s obvious he doesn’t fit the typical mold for a candidate for Congress — and he’s owning it. For starters, there’s his age, 25, the minimum to serve in the House. He’s Afro-Cuban in a state — and country — where a politician who is both Black and Latino is exceedingly rare. He hasn’t finished college, instead prioritizing his work in community organizing (abortion rights; gun control). He’s never held office. And he doesn’t come from wealth: When he’s not campaigning, he’s behind the wheel of his Kia Soul, clocking in hours for Uber to make ends meet. (His car is currently in the shop, which means he’s got even more time to devote to campaigning for Tuesday’s primary.)

“It’s not just one politician that’s going to save us all. It’s not just one leader,” Frost tells the packed room. “It’s how we’re going to change Florida. And when I say ‘changing Florida,’ it’s not just flipping it red to blue… It’s about creating a society where we say, ‘Your success is my success and my success is your success.’”

“That’s right!” someone shouts as the room erupts with applause.

One of the lawmakers, Democratic Rep. David Cicilline of Rhode Island, stands back, taking it all in. He made the trek from D.C. with Rep. Mark Takano of California to support the young upstart. This is, he says, by far the biggest gathering of folks he’s seen in any campaign headquarters this year.

“That’s a good sign.”

It’s clear the lawmakers, volunteers and staffers gathered here have all bought into Frost’s vision — and they’re committed to ensuring he wins the primary on Tuesday in this deep blue district, which would all but guarantee his path to becoming the first Gen Z and the only Afro-Cuban in Congress.

And polling indicates that a win may be within reach. A new poll by progressive policy and polling group Data for Progress has Frost outperforming his Democratic primary opponents by double-digits, garnering 34 percent of the vote. State Sen. Randolph Bracy and former Rep. Alan Grayson, trail him with 18 percent and 14 percent of the vote, respectively.

Here in this battleground state, where national headlines increasingly focus on two Floridians — former President Donald Trump and Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis — Frost wants to chart a path for a new generation of politicians. And he’s convinced this is the place to do it.

Volunteers, campaign staffers, local union members and other Frost supporters say he’s the future of the Democratic Party. They say he’s inspired them to get involved. They say they can’t imagine dedicating so many hours of work for anyone else. They say he’s the one to usher in a new political energy that Florida — and the rest of the country — so desperately needs.



A new poll by progressive policy and polling group Data for Progress has Frost outperforming his Democratic primary opponents by double-digits, garnering 34 percent of the vote. State Sen. Randolph Bracy and former Rep. Alan Grayson, trail him with 18 percent and 14 percent of the vote, respectively. He is on the ballot in the Democratic primary on Tuesday, August 23, 2022.

These days, says Cicilline, an 11-year House veteran, the business of politics “can really be discouraging. You look at what’s happening in Washington with conspiracy theorists and election deniers and you can get down and question, ‘Are we going to get through this?’”

“But then,” he says, “you meet somebody like Maxwell … and it renews your belief in democracy and your hope for the future.”

That’s a lot of hope and change to pin on a 25-year-old’s shoulders. But Cicilline isn’t the only political veteran heaping on the praise. Frost has racked up endorsements from dozens of major groups and leaders at the local, state and national level, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rev. Jesse Jackson, the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC (“a national leader on gun reform and abortion rights”) and the AFL-CIO. He’s also garnered the support of top Central Florida unions and local representatives as well as an endorsement from the Orlando Sentinel, which declared Frost “has made himself impossible to ignore, for all the right reasons.”

But, in spite of all the money and endorsements, the ultimate question remains: Will the voters of Orlando back a baby-faced first-timer in a crowded race that includes a former member of Congress and long-time state senator?

Frost is betting yes.

“I quit my job to do this. I drive Uber to pay my bills. It’s a sacrifice, to be honest,” Frost says. “But I’m doing it because I can’t imagine myself not doing anything but fixing the problems we have right now.”

He channels that can-do energy as he joins five young staffers at an old wooden dining table with mismatched chairs, making a flurry of thank-you calls to donors on a recent night.

Many don’t answer the call. Some hang up or tell him to get to the point. Others congratulate him for the campaign he’s running. In all, Frost keeps up the same high energy, determined to keep good relationships with donors and raise the money necessary to close out his campaign.

“Hey! This is Maxwell Alejandro Frost, Democratic candidate for Congress in Orlando, Florida. How’s everything going?” he says, almost verbatim, on dozens of back-to-back calls.

At the table, the chaos of the final days of the campaign — and the young team’s ability to multitask — are on display. Two volunteers are making calls simultaneously on their cell phones. The room immediately goes silent when someone asks Frost to jump on a call. They’re surrounded by piles of mail ads — both Frost’s and his opponents’ — laptops and empty water bottles.

One volunteer talks about how he’s just a couple days away from starting his senior year of high school. Another talks about voting earlier in the day. One friend drove three-and-a-half hours from Miami to help out. Another flew in from D.C.

His sister, Maria, shows up, her small dog, Cooper, in tow, sporting a yellow bumble bee harness. As Frost talks to a voter, Cooper’s high-pitched yelps punctuate the room. Everything is put on pause — briefly — to order sushi for dinner. It’s going to be a long night.



Maxwell Frost meets with US Rep. Mark Takano (right) and Rep. David Cicilline (left), who came to show their support. Frost has racked up endorsements from dozens of major groups and leaders at the local, state and national level, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rev. Jesse Jackson, the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC and the AFL-CIO.

Frost, who was adopted and grew up in a Cuban family, proudly shares his family’s story: His mother came to the U.S. as a child during the Freedom Flights from Cuba in the 1960s. She came with his grandmother Yeya and his aunt, with no money and just one suitcase between them. The family worked hard to make it in their adopted country, but it was rough. Today, his mother is a public school educator who’s taught special education for almost 30 years. (He doesn’t talk much about his father.)

Frost attributes his love of music to growing up in his Cuban family, where he recalls waking up Saturday mornings to the windows flung wide open and Latin music blasting, knowing it was time to clean — a ritual in many Latino homes. That love of music carried into his middle and high school years, when he started a salsa band while attending an arts magnet school. It’s a little-known fact, he says, that his band, Seguro Que Sí, which translates in English to “of course,” played in the parade at then-President Barack Obama’s second inauguration.

But, as he tells it, his decision to run for Congress comes from another part of his identity. Last year, amid news that Demings was running for Senate in an attempt to unseat Republican Marco Rubio, local organizers began courting Frost to run for her open House seat.

Initially, however, he didn’t want to do it. Having worked on campaigns in the past, he knew a lot of the stresses of running for office.

“And I just didn’t think it was my time,” he says.

But that changed last July when he connected with his biological mother. In an emotional call, she told him she gave birth to him at the most vulnerable point in her life. She was battling a host of ills when she put him up for adoption — drugs, crime and poverty — systemic problems in need of real-life solutions, Frost says.

“I hung up the phone and said, ‘I need to run for Congress.’”

That “spitfire” attitude is what attracts his supporters, a CWA union member tells Frost. “That’s what we need! We need young blood.”

His activist impulse started early. At 15, after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, he started organizing to end gun violence, getting involved in protests and knocking on doors. His resolve and commitment to that cause only amplified in the face of several mass shootings in his state: the 2016 shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, and the one at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

“We don’t even have to let him know when we have a protest,” Curtis Hierro, senior legislative and political lead for Communication Workers of America in Florida, says to a group of about a dozen union members at the local union hall readying to go knock on doors in support of Frost. “Maxwell just materializes because you’re part of the movement, you understand movement and it’s what you live and breathe.”

Frost held a host of jobs in field organizing for campaigns and causes before his activism attracted the attention of the ACLU of Florida, where in 2018 he worked on the fight to secure Amendment 4, which restored voting rights to over 1.6 million Floridians with felony convictions. Most recently, he worked as the national organizing director for March for Our Lives, the youth-led movement focused on gun violence prevention.

“Someone the other day made the comment, ‘10 years ago, you were 15,’” Frost says with a hint of annoyance. “Yeah, I was 15 — and how sad is it that we live in a country where at 15 I had to be worrying about being shot at my school so I sprung into action?”

“Hell yeah, I was 15 when I started my advocacy.”

In the lobby of his campaign headquarters, there’s a large painting by Manuel Oliver, father of Joaquin, one of the students killed in the Parkland shooting. Against a bright yellow background are images of Joaquin and Frost along with a pointed message: “Time to save lives! So get on board or get out of our way!”

If he’s elected, Frost says, he’ll be putting up the painting in his office on Capitol Hill.




His activist impulse started early. At 15, after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, he started organizing to end gun violence, getting involved in protests and knocking on doors. His resolve and commitment to that cause only amplified in the face of several mass shootings in his state: the 2016 shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, and the one at a Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.

Beyond ending gun violence, Frost’s platform centers on “the future we deserve.” In a mail ad, his campaign breaks down his priorities, priorities in sync with the progressive left: Medicare for All, safe streets and an end to gun violence, affordable housing, a living wage and 100 percent clean energy.

Still, victory in Tuesday’s primary is not a guarantee. His biggest competition in the field of 10 candidates is Bracy and Grayson, who launched a last-minute bid in June after a failed bid for the U.S. Senate.

The race has become increasingly messy, and in the final weeks, Frost has thrown a few punches.

In a recent mail ad, Frost directly attacks them both: Grayson is “corrupt.” Bracy is “compromised.” Both candidates have pushed back; Grayson’s campaign said they sent Frost a cease and desist letter.

“The things that Frost is saying about both Senator Bracy and me are patently false,” Grayson said in a statement to POLITICO. Frost’s ad, he said in the statement, is a “desperate move by a chronic liar.”

And Grayson has a nickname for his young opponent: “Maxwell Fraud.”

Frost, meanwhile, shrugs off the criticism, leaning into his differences.

“I just represent a new type of politics,” he says. “I come from a different place. I’m not a lawyer. I’m not a millionaire. I’m an organizer.”



“We don't even have to let him know when we have a protest,” Curtis Hierro, senior legislative and political lead for Communication Workers of America in Florida, says to a group of about a dozen union members at the local union hall readying to go knock on doors in support of Frost. He has garnered the support of top Central Florida unions and local representatives as well as an endorsement from the Orlando Sentinel.

And he’s tussled with top Republicans as well.

In June, less than two weeks after the elementary school shooting in Uvalde, Frost was one of several activists who disrupted an Orlando event that DeSantis attended with conservative political commentator Dave Rubin. In a video widely circulated on social media, Frost approaches the stage, shouting, “Gov. DeSantis, we’re losing 100 people a day due to gun violence. Governor, we need you to take action on gun violence. We need to take action. Floridians are dying.”

“Nobody wants to hear from you,” DeSantis says as the crowd boos and Frost is escorted out.

That “spitfire” attitude is what attracts his supporters, a CWA union member tells Frost. “That’s what we need! We need young blood.”

It’s been a long day and it’s going to be another long night — he’s got a fundraiser sponsored by some of his top local donors in Baldwin Park, one of the city’s wealthiest neighborhoods. There, he’ll work the room while attendees listen raptly as they sip wine and munch on mini Cuban sandwiches.

But for now, before he has time to grab some Chipotle for lunch, he heads over to the CWA union hall, where Hierro and members are preparing to go door-knocking to drum up more support for him. Many of them already know Frost, offering up hugs. Some have come from a neighboring county to show their support.

“I wish we had a candidate like you in my district,” one member says.

“It’s about power building together,” Frost tells them. “I’m not the savior.”

Major News Brands Need to Fight Harder for Gen Z

Major news brands are likely not working aggressively enough to align their current distribution strategies with Gen Z’s latest news consumption habits, writes media and entertainment analyst Kevin Tran

Getty Images / Morning Consult artwork by Chloe Phan
By Kevin Tran
August 23, 2022 at 5:00 am ET

Gen Zers are less likely than their older counterparts to be aware of or have favorable views toward major news brands. There’s an opportunity for brands to win over these younger consumers by ramping up content distribution on YouTube and taking a more innovative approach with discovery through Instagram and TikTok.

The biggest news publishers have an evergreen goal to reach more younger consumers. The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal are working to address their aging bases, while The Washington Post established a task force to bring in a more youthful readership and the massive publisher podcast boom began in part because podcasts represented a relatively untapped channel for reaching younger consumers. Meanwhile, media conglomerates like Comcast and Paramount have long been working to boost news offerings on their video streaming products to soften the blow from the growing number of cord-nevers (primarily Gen Zers and millennials) who can’t access broadcast news networks on traditional TV.

But news brands may not be going far enough: New Morning Consult research shows that Gen Z adults tend to be much less aware of major news brands than the general population.

ARTICLE CONTAINS CHARTS READ ON 

Major News Brands Need to Fight Harder for Gen Z - Morning Consult

WOKE CAPITALI$M

As Corporate Activism Goes International, Morning Consult’s Global Corporate Purpose Tracker Will Help Leaders Chart a Course

Our newest tracker measures consumer demand for corporate activism and trust in business across 17 countries

Getty Images / Morning Consult artwork by Anna Davis

By Sonnet Frisbie
August 23, 2022 

Amid a rising tide of ethical consumerism, geopolitical risk and corporate activism are colliding in ways that leave business leaders with difficult choices about how to respond.

Morning Consult’s newly launched Global Corporate Purpose Tracker is intended to help decision-makers chart a path forward.

The tracker follows trust in business, values-based purchasing intentions and consumer demand for corporate activism in response to geopolitical developments across 17 countries monthly, including a deep dive into U.S. consumer sentiment.

The tracker is an unparalleled resource for business leaders seeking to stay ahead of the rapidly evolving geopolitical landscape and meet global consumers — the majority of whom engage in values-based purchasing — where they stand.

The past few years have seen consumers and employees placing increasing demands on business leaders to react to hot-button domestic issues like diversity and inclusion, COVID-19 vaccination mandates, and the future of work. In parallel, consumers have been calling upon multinationals to take stances on global geopolitical developments, ranging from evidence of forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s exhortation of Western companies still operating in Russia to “stop funding the murder of women and children.”

Global corporate activism is not new. Boycotts of apartheid South Africa and the Free Burma campaign, as well as backlash against Western oil companies doing business in Nigeria, are a few examples that predate the current wave. But navigating the rapidly evolving geopolitical landscape — including war in Europe, tensions over Taiwan and ever-growing concerns about climate change — will test companies’ abilities to balance their business interests with consumers’ demands like never before.

Across 17 markets where Morning Consult tracks public opinion on geopolitics on a monthly basis, majorities of adults say they prefer to buy from brands that reflect their social values, highlighting the magnitude of latent global demand for corporate activism.
Majorities of Consumers Across 17 Markets Prioritize Ethical Consumerism
Share of adults who “strongly” or “somewhat” agree that they prefer to buy goods and services from companies that reflect their social values

Survey conducted monthly among a representative sample of roughly 1,000 adults in each country, with unweighted margins of error of +/-3 percentage points.

Yet global consumers’ enthusiasm varies markedly by country. U.S. adults were the least likely to say they would reward corporate social responsibility (58%), compared with those in the United Kingdom (61%), Germany (66%), China (69%) and Italy (78%).

The values consumers hold — both across and within countries — vary widely, too. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a case in point. Consumers in the United States and much of Western Europe called for companies to withdraw from Russia or risk consumer boycotts in a show of solidarity with Ukraine. Meanwhile, Chinese consumers punished ride-hailing giant Didi for announcing its withdrawal from Russia, reminding business leaders that what people mean by “values” is often shaped by where they live. U.S. consumers’ interest in values-based purchasing in response to global developments such as these is contingent on their political leanings: While 73% of Democrats said they prefer to buy goods reflecting their social values, only 54% of Republicans and 51% of independents said the same, which helps to explain the relatively low levels of overall U.S. support compared with other countries.

As these examples make clear, geopolitical risk, domestic politics and consumers’ preferences vis-à-vis corporate activism can collide in ways that force business leaders to make difficult choices about whose values to prioritize and under what circumstances. Today’s increasingly fraught geopolitical landscape — and, in many countries, heightened political polarization — mean leaders will be forced to contend with such dilemmas more frequently than before.

To that end, Morning Consult’s Geopolitical Risk Analysis team has launched the Global Corporate Purpose Tracker. It will help business leaders proactively gauge global consumers’ expectations in response to major categories of geopolitical developments and chart a path forward by following trust in business, values-based purchasing intentions and consumer demand for corporate activism on a monthly basis across 17 countries, including a deep dive into U.S. consumer sentiment.

The tracker is updated quarterly.

Sonnet Frisbie

Sonnet Frisbie is managing director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) on Morning Consult's Geopolitical Risk Analysis team. Sonnet leverages the company’s high-frequency survey data to advise clients on how best to integrate geopolitical risk into their decision-making. Interested in connecting with Sonnet for a media request or a speaking opportunity? Email press@morningconsult.com.

Fetterman calls for prosecution of corporate executives 'gouging consumers'

Jake Johnson, Common Dreams
August 22, 2022


Pennsylvania U.S. Senate candidate John Fetterman made the case Sunday for prosecuting corporate executives as part of a broader government crackdown on unlawful price gouging and other business practices that have driven up the costs of medicine, groceries, and gas—padding company bottom lines at the expense of consumers.

"Take the massive oil companies, for example," the Democratic candidate wrote in an op-ed for the Pennsylvania Times Leader. "Chevron, Exxon, and Shell have seen their profits increase 200% since last year, but they're still charging us sky-high prices for gas. Companies like Tyson posted over a billion dollars in profits last quarter, while raising prices on meat products our families depend on."

"Out-of-touch politicians got us into this mess, we can't trust an out-of-touch millionaire TV doctor to get us out of it."

"It's gross, and deeply unpatriotic, for the big corporations to be rolling around in cash while charging us record-high prices for gas and groceries," wrote Fetterman, who is currently Pennsylvania's lieutenant governor. "We'll crack down on this by prosecuting the executives of these huge corporations, including the Big Oil companies and meatpacking companies who are artificially driving up prices, gouging consumers at the pump and at the grocery store."

Fetterman's op-ed comes just over a week after he held his first major public event since suffering a stroke in mid-May, days before the Democratic primary contest that he won handily.

The Democrat's general election campaign in the critical battleground Pennsylvania—a state that could determine which party controls the U.S. Senate next year—currently enjoys a double-digit polling lead over his Republican opponent, the former celebrity television personality and ultra-millionaire Dr. Mehmet Oz.

Fetterman is looking to press his advantage by continuing to deploy populist messaging that presents Oz as a carpetbagger whose extreme wealth and ties to corporate interests such as Big Pharma render him unfit to deliver for the working class, whose earnings are being eroded by surging prescription drug prices, housing costs, and other inflationary trends.

According to one recent analysis, pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. have raised drug prices more than 1,100 times so far this year.

"Let's be clear: Dr. Oz just isn't connected to the struggles that Pennsylvanians are facing every day," Fetterman wrote in his new op-ed. "While he's been complaining about rising prices from his New Jersey Mansion, I've been meeting Pennsylvanians on grocery store runs, speaking with them about the challenges they're facing, and finding real policy solutions that get stuff done and make their lives better."

"Working Pennsylvanians are getting screwed," he continued. "While costs are rising and wages are failing to keep up, too many of our leaders in Washington simply aren't doing enough. Out-of-touch politicians got us into this mess, we can't trust an out-of-touch millionaire TV doctor to get us out of it."

In addition to prosecuting corporate executives for price-gouging and other abuses, Fetterman voices support for a range of policy solutions aimed at tackling rising costs and inequality, including:Enacting a financial transaction tax on trades of stocks, bonds, and derivatives;
Ending the stranglehold of healthcare costs on American families by instituting a cap of a thousand dollars per year on out-of-pocket costs;
Passing legislation to allow for the importation of lower-priced prescription drugs from other countries; and
Putting a cap on prescription drug costs.

"If we start getting stuff done, starting with these priorities I've listed," Fetterman wrote, "we can make real change for the towns, cities, and people of Pennsylvania."