Here’s your April reminder you live in a news bubble

Hey friends!

For our second News Without Borders, we looked far and wide to find out what our friends and contacts around the world were talking about in their countries. There were so many great stories we didn’t get to include: like these Robot nurses in Thailand who will definitely not try to kill you in your sleep, or China’s Ministry of Culture vowing to crack down on the rural custom of hiring strippers for funerals. Ya, those did not make the cut for this month.

Anyways, here’s another humble reminder that the world is a big place…

🇪🇬Egypt:

EGYPTIANS VOTED ON A SECOND TERM FOR PRESIDENT ABDUL FATTAH AL-SISI

The results were pretty predictable as all the other challengers withdrew, or were arrested.

📍Richard R. Chalhoub, 31, Senior Sales Executive

🇫🇷France:

FRANCE SUFFERS 20TH TERRORIST ATTACK SINCE 2014

A gunman hijacked a car, shot at police officers and took hostages in a supermarket in southwestern France. Five lost their lives, including a police officer who died of knife wounds after swapping places with one of the hostages.

📍Camille Gicquel, 27, Producer

🇷🇺Russia:

SURPRISE! VLADIMIR PUTIN WON RE-ELECTION

Exit polls showed a big win for the strongman, who garnered 75% of the vote. Many young people support Putin because of the prosperous economic opportunities experienced during his tenure. WaPo: https://goo.gl/EQ37rZ

📍Anonymous

Like this so far? Press the 👏 and recommend it.

🇩🇪Germany:

CATALONIAN “REBEL” CAUGHT BY AUTHORITIES

German authorities have detained former Catalonian President Carles Puigdemont, and now Spain wants him back.

More context:

A Spanish Supreme Court judge ordered the arrest of five separatist politicians and reactivated an international arrest warrant against Mr. Puigdemont and five other politicians who had fled Spain to avoid prosecution. The Spanish authorities have accused Mr. Puigdemont of rebellion and misuse of public funds. Germany now has 60 days to decide on the extradition request. The Guardian: https://goo.gl/7eor6J

📍Maral, 26, Graduate Student

🇨🇳China:

NEW FILM GLORIFYING PRESIDENT XI BREAKS RECORDS DUE TO MANDATORY SCREENINGS

State media announced Amazing China became the country’s highest grossing documentary of all time. The 90-minute piece praises China’s achievements since President Xi Jinping came to power in 2012. Mandatory screenings may have played a role in its success. The film comes at a time when the personality cult of Xi is arguably the highest since Mao.

📍Deven Das Bussey, 27, Filmmaker

🇺🇸United States:

THOUSANDS MARCH AGAINST GUN VIOLENCE

Last Saturday, hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to march for stricter gun regulations following a recent string of mass shootings, including one at a high school in Parkland, Florida that killed 17 students.

One moment that stood out:

Parkland shooting survivor and high school senior Emma González has become a leading voice in the burgeoning movement. On Saturday, she spoke for just under two minutes, describing the effects of gun violence and reciting the names of her 17 classmates who had been killed. She then stood silently for an additional four minutes and twenty-six seconds to represent the six minutes and twenty seconds it took for the gunman to carry out the massacre.

📍Carrie Cook, 58, Consultant

🇬🇭Ghana:

THIS VIRAL PHOTO OF A TEACHER USING A CHALKBOARD TO TEACH COMPUTER SCIENCE

Last month, a teacher posted photos of himself drawing on a blackboard with multi-colored chalk to highlight the features of a Microsoft Word processing window. The school hasn’t had any computers since 2011, yet students are expected to write and pass a national tech literacy exam to progress to high school.

What’s happened since then?

The photo gained attention after a popular Ghanaian comedian and teacher shared it with his 140,000 Facebook followers. Microsoft learned about the story and flew Akoto to Singapore to participate in the annual Microsoft Education Exchange. Several organizations, including the University of Leeds and NIIT, have since donated computers to Akoto and his students.

📍Teacher Kwadwo, Comedian

— Nicholas Graham Platt

Editors: Justin Barry & Maud Mosterd