Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich lost his appeal against the extension of pre-trial detention in Moscow on Thursday on spying charges, which he denies.
Gershkovich’s detention, at the notorious Lefortovo prison in Moscow, was extended last month to August 30. He faces up to 20 years in jail on espionage charges, which he and his employer vehemently contest.
Gershkovich was in court for the decision, in a glass cage, wearing a dark t-shirt and jeans.
The US ambassador to Russia, Lynne Tracy, was also at the hearing at Moscow City Court, as were his parents, Ella Milman and Mikhail Gershkovich.
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Tracy told reporters outside the court that the US was “extremely disappointed” by the decision to reject Gershkovich’s appeal.
“This was a procedural hearing, appealing the conditions of his continued detention and we were extremely disappointed by the denial of his appeal,” Tracy said, adding that she “could not speak with Evan directly at the courthouse today,” and blasted Russia’s denial of US diplomats’ requests for consular access to him.
“Failing to comply with its obligations under the consular convention enforced between our two countries, Russia has denied the US embassy’s requests for formal consular access on three occasions since I last visited Evan in April,” she said.
“Nonetheless, today, in the courtroom, Evan continued to show remarkable strength and resiliency in these very difficult circumstances.”
Earlier on Thursday, Russian state news agency TASS reported that the Russian Foreign Ministry was considering a request from the United States for consular access to Gershkovich.
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Russia’s main security service, the FSB, has claimed that Gershkovich, a correspondent based in Moscow, had been trying to obtain state secrets.
His arrest in March was the first detention of an American reporter in Russia on allegations of spying since the Cold War, rattling White House officials and further straining ties between Moscow and Washington.
On May 23, his detention was extended until at least August 30 while he awaits trial.
The US State Department has officially designated Gershkovich as wrongfully detained in Russia. US President Joe Biden has also been blunt about Gershkovich’s arrest, urging Russia to “let him go.”
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Mike Tyson, left, and Jake Paul faced off in the live bout on FridayNetflix’s push into streaming live events was put to its biggest test on Friday with the boxing match-up between former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson and Jake Paul, a YouTube influencer who became a professional fighter in 2020.
The bout, which was won by Paul, 27, who beat Tyson, 58, on points, was available to all of Netflix’s 280mn subscribers at no extra charge, a departure from the expensive pay-per-view or premium TV packages that have long been associated with professional boxing.
Boxing used to be a lucrative business for the pay-TV networks HBO and Showtime, but both exited the sport as its popularity declined.
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For Netflix, the Tyson-Paul bout was aimed at attracting new subscribers — particularly to its advertising-supported service, analysts say. The company’s ad tier, launched in late 2022, has about 70mn subscribers.
The boxing “megaevent . . . should boost audience engagement and attract advertising-tier subscribers, viewers and dollars”, analysts at JPMorgan said.
On social media, some fans complained about buffering problems during the fight. The website Down Detector reported that more than 84,000 viewers reported problems.
The unusual bout featuring Tyson, the fiercest and most controversial boxer of his generation, and Paul, a brash social media star, appeared to be part of a strategy to target younger male viewers. In January, Netflix signed a $5bn, 10-year deal with World Wrestling Entertainment’s weekly Raw programme in the US, by far the group’s biggest foray into streaming live events.
Netflix has had success with what it calls “sports-adjacent” programming, including documentaries such as Formula 1: Drive to Survive and Beckham. But it is starting to feature more live sporting events, including a planned National Football League game on Christmas Day — prompting speculation on Wall Street that it plans to eventually secure a rights deal with a major sports league.
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Ted Sarandos, co-chief executive, has tried to damp the speculation, saying Netflix does not want to enter a typical sports rights deal in which most of the financial benefit goes to a league.
“Where we can really differentiate and outcompete everybody is in the storytelling of sports, the drama of sports,” Sarandos said on an earnings call earlier this year.
Netflix’s position contrasts with its streaming rivals, including Amazon Prime, Apple TV and Google’s YouTube, which gobbled up sports professional sports rights — Amazon has NFL’s Thursday Night Football, Apple hosts Major League Baseball’s Friday Night Baseball and YouTube is the home of the NFL’s Sunday Ticket roster of games. But analysts at Morgan Stanley have said they expect Netflix to eventually enter the competition for sports rights as traditional TV networks decline and existing deals with major US sports leagues expire by 2030.
Netflix began experimenting with live programming last year with a comedy special by Chris Rock, which faced technical problems. It has also live-streamed the SAG awards and a “roast” of retired American football star Tom Brady.
One of Donald Trump’s most controversial cabinet picks just became even more so: Pete Hegseth, tapped for defense secretary earlier this week, was accused of sexual assault in 2017, according to police.
No charges were filed in the case, but shocked Trump transition team officials are nonetheless reportedly weighing next steps for the Fox News host, whose nomination took many in Washington by surprise.
President-elect Trump nominated the 44-year-old National Guard veteran on Tuesday to run the world’s most powerful military, despite having never managed a large organization.
Police in Monterey, California confirmed Thursday that they had investigated “an alleged sexual assault” at a hotel involving Hegseth that included bruising to the victim’s right thigh, in early October 2017.
News of the woman’s accusations caught the Trump team off guard, according to Vanity Fair, which first reported the story.
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Hegseth’s lawyer Timothy Parlatore told the publication that the allegation “was already investigated by the Monterey police department and they found no evidence for it.”
And Trump’s communications director Steven Cheung said that Hegseth “has vigorously denied any and all accusations, and no charges were filed.
“We look forward to his confirmation as United States Secretary of Defense so he can get started on Day One to Make America Safe and Great Again,” Cheung said.
Hegseth’s hearing in the Senate is likely to be among the more fraught, not only due to his lack of experience but also other controversies, such as his lobbying of Trump during his first term to pardon service members accused of war crimes.
Hegseth joined Fox News as a contributor in 2014 and now co-hosts “Fox and Friends Weekend” and serves as a host for “Fox Nation.”
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He additionally served as an infantry officer in the National Guard, deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan.
The accusations against Hegseth come as Trump’s pick for attorney general, far-right former congressman Matt Gaetz, stunned many following his lengthy embroilment in sexual misconduct allegations.
And Trump himself was convicted of financial wrongdoing for covering up payments to a former porn star and found liable for defaming and sexually abusing an author.
Hegseth has been married three times, divorcing his first wife in 2009 following an “irretrievable breakdown” and “infidelity,” according to the Washington Post.
His second wife filed for divorce in September 2017, one month after he had a baby with a Fox News producer whom he subsequently married, according to US media.
Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world
Donald Trump has moved quickly to name candidates for the top jobs in his incoming administration. The picks show that loyalty appears to have been a crucial criteria for a post — and in many cases, the president-elect’s picks have shocked Washington’s political establishment.
Many of the nominees could face gruelling Senate confirmation hearings in the new year before they are confirmed, but here is a handy guide to those likely to be among the most powerful players in the second Trump White House.
Marco Rubio
Secretary of state
Florida senator Marco Rubio, 53, is set to become America’s chief diplomat in Trump’s second administration. Rubio, a former political rival to Trump, is known for his hawkish views on China and Iran — and is not as isolationist as some other Trump allies.
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Pete Hegseth
Secretary of defence
Pete Hegseth is a 44-year-old army veteran and Fox News host with no government experience who has been asked to lead an organisation with almost 3mn military and civilian employees. Hegseth’s views of the US military align with Trump’s instincts, including rooting out “socially correct garbage”.
Susie Wiles
White House chief of staff
Trump’s first decision after winning the 2024 presidential election was to pick his campaign manager, Susie Wiles, as chief of staff. Wiles, 67, is a seasoned Republican campaign operative who has established herself inside Trump’s orbit, in part by keeping the public spotlight on others.
John Ratcliffe
CIA director
John Ratcliffe, 59, director of national intelligence in the final year of Trump’s first term, is a staunch ally who sharply criticised special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election when he was a congressman.
Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy
Government efficiency
Elon Musk, 53, and Vivek Ramaswamy, 39, are being put in charge of a promised effort to slash rules, bureaucracy and spending throughout government. They will lead a yet to be established “department of government efficiency”.
Mike Waltz
National security adviser
Mike Waltz, 50, is a decorated military veteran, Nato critic and China sceptic. The Florida congressman and retired Army Special Forces officer has called China an “existential” threat. He served several tours in Afghanistan, the Middle East and Africa.
Kristi Noem
Homeland security secretary
Governor of South Dakota Kristi Noem, 52, has been nominated to lead the Department of Homeland Security with a mandate to stem immigration. Her autobiography, which recounted how she shot her puppy Cricket for misbehaviour, became a national talking point earlier this year.
Tom Homan
Border tsar
Tom Homan, 62, previously served as Trump’s immigration and customs enforcement director, backing the policy of separating parents from their children to discourage irregular migration. He has been asked to crack down on undocumented immigrants crossing the US-Mexico border and deport those already in the US.
Elise Stefanik
US ambassador to UN
Republican New York congresswoman Elise Stefanik, 40, is a former White House aide to George W Bush who rose to prominence for questioning the presidents of Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania about antisemitism on their campuses, leading to their resignations.
Mike Huckabee
US ambassador to Israel
Mike Huckabee, 69, is the former governor of Arkansas and a prominent evangelical Christian. He is adored by the Israeli right for unflinching support of Israel’s military campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon, and his support for their desire to annex the occupied West Bank.
Stephen Miller
Deputy chief of staff for policy
Stephen Miller is among the most vocal and influential immigration hawks in Trump’s inner circle. The appointment of the 39-year-old will put the conservative firebrand and longtime adviser at the heart of the president-elect’s effort to reduce illegal immigration.
Tulsi Gabbard
Director of national intelligence
The former Democratic congresswoman from Hawaii is known for her pro-Russian views, including blaming Nato and President Joe Biden’s administration for Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Tulsi Gabbard, 43, ran for president in 2020 from the far left of the Democratic party but has since embraced Trump and the Republicans.
Matt Gaetz
Attorney-general
The nomination of Republican congressman Matt Gaetz, 42, to run the Department of Justice has stunned Washington. Gaetz, a loyal Trump backer, was previously under investigation by the House of Representatives for alleged ethics breaches. Trump wants him to overhaul the department in retaliation for criminal investigations launched against the president-elect.
Robert F Kennedy Jr
Health secretary
Robert F Kennedy Jr, known as RFK, dropped his independent presidential campaign in August and backed Trump despite coming from the Democratic dynasty. Trump said he would allow 70-year-old Kennedy, a vocal vaccine sceptic and critic of the pharmaceutical industry, to “go wild” in reforming the US health and food system.
Reporting by Alex Rogers, Lauren Fedor, Oliver Barnes and Sophie Spiegelberger
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