🤖Analysis Finds Thousands of Bots Amplified Nicki Minaj’s Conservative Turn on X

Exclusive review by disinformation firm Cyabra identifies more than 18,000 suspected fake accounts boosting the rapper’s pro-Trump posts, raising fresh concerns about political manipulation in celebrity-driven discourse.

An exclusive analysis shared with POLITICO, CBS News, and by 'TELL IT LIKE IT IS' News concludes that thousands of suspected bot accounts amplified the recent political commentary of rap superstar Nicki Minaj, fueling her emergence as one of the most visible celebrity advocates aligned with President Donald Trump and the MAGA movement.

The report, compiled by disinformation detection firm Cyabra, identified more than 18,000 accounts on X that it says exhibited coordinated inauthentic behavior while promoting Minaj’s political posts between Nov. 11 and Dec. 28. Cyabra estimates it is approximately 85 percent confident that the accounts are fake — a figure that could climb higher under stricter analytical thresholds.

The findings raise broader questions about how bot networks, long associated with election interference and geopolitical conflicts, may now be influencing the intersection of celebrity culture and American politics.

Attorney for Epstein Survivors Says Justice ‘Impossible’ Under Bondi’s Justice Department

Lawyer Representing Nine Accusers Argues Trump DOJ Is Protecting the Powerful at Survivors’ Expense

In a sharply worded critique of the current Justice Department, an attorney representing nine women who accused convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein says meaningful accountability is “impossible” under Attorney General Pam Bondi, accusing the U.S. Department of Justice of shielding influential figures while sidelining survivors.

Spencer Kuvin, a Florida-based attorney who has long represented Epstein accusers, argues that prosecutorial decisions made under the Trump administration have undermined transparency and eroded survivors’ trust in federal institutions. His remarks come as scrutiny over the handling of Epstein’s associates and sealed records continues to animate debate in legal and political circles.

“This is not simply about one man who is now dead,” Kuvin said in a recent interview. “It’s about whether our justice system applies equally to the powerful and the powerless.”

🎓Gov. Kay Ivey Urges Alabama Students to Enter Presidential 1776 Award Civics Challenge Ahead of America’s 250th Birthday

National “Impossible Test” competition offers $250,000 in scholarships as U.S. prepares to mark historic semiquincentennial

MONTGOMERY | Kay Ivey is calling on Alabama high school students to step into the national spotlight as the country prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, urging them to compete in the Presidential 1776 Award — a nationwide civics and American history challenge launched in partnership with the U.S. Department of Education.

In a video message released Thursday, Governor Ivey framed the initiative as both a celebration of American history and a call to civic responsibility.

“This summer, we will celebrate America’s 250th birthday – two and a half centuries of the greatest nation the world has ever known,” Ivey said. “As we mark that milestone, we have a responsibility to prepare the next generation to carry it forward.”

A National Civics Competition With High Stakes

At the center of the competition is the “Impossible Test,” an online civics exam open to high school students nationwide. The exam challenges students’ knowledge of America’s founding documents, constitutional principles, civic traditions, and the framework of self-government.

Top-performing students from each state will advance to the regional semifinals. Finalists will compete in a nationally broadcast championship event in Washington, D.C., underscoring the federal and educational significance of the competition as the country approaches its semiquincentennial celebration in 2026.

🏛️Gov. Kay Ivey Announces 31 Appointments, Taps New Circuit Judges and Lauderdale County District Attorney

Sweeping judicial and executive appointments reshape Alabama’s Fourth and Fifth Judicial Circuits and elevate veteran prosecutor Angela King Hamilton to lead the Lauderdale County DA’s office

MONTGOMERY | In one of the most significant waves of judicial and executive appointments this year, Kay Ivey announced 31 appointments across Alabama, including two key circuit court judgeships and a new district attorney for Lauderdale County.

The appointments — spanning the Fourth and Fifth Judicial Circuits and the 11th Judicial Circuit — underscore the governor’s continued emphasis on courtroom experience, prosecutorial leadership, and continuity within Alabama’s judicial system.

🐘🥎Alabama Softball Sweeps No. 6 Florida State Behind Pupillo’s Two-Homer Day in Tallahassee

Crimson Tide Improves to 12-0 as Jocelyn Briski Fans Career-High Nine; Elon Game Halted by Rain at Dugout Club Classic

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. | Statement made.

The Alabama Crimson Tide softball continued its early-season surge Saturday, securing a weekend sweep of No. 6 Florida State Seminoles softball with a commanding 5-1 victory at the Dugout Club Classic. One night after an 8-0 shutout, Alabama (12-0) leaned on timely power and dominant pitching to leave Tallahassee unbeaten.

The Tide’s second scheduled game against Elon was called in the third inning due to rain and will not be resumed, but the headline belonged to Alabama’s continued dominance against one of the ACC’s perennial powers.

🐎 No. 1 Auburn Tigers equestrian Rides Past No. 4 SMU Mustangs equestrian, 13–7, in Dominant Home Return

Top-Ranked Tigers Sweep MOP Honors, Win Three Events at Auburn University Equestrian Center Ahead of Showdown with No. 3 Georgia

AUBURN, Ala. | The nation’s top-ranked team made a statement in its first home appearance of 2026.

The No. 1 Auburn Tigers equestrian returned to the Auburn University Equestrian Center and powered past No. 4 SMU Mustangs equestrian, 13–7, in a weather-delayed Saturday showdown that showcased Auburn’s championship depth.

Head coach Jessica Braswell praised her squad’s poise after the one-hour delay and lauded the Auburn faithful who packed the stands despite the storms. The Tigers (7-2) rewarded that energy by winning three of four events and sweeping all four Most Outstanding Performer (MOP) honors.

Western Sets the Tone

Auburn struck first with a 3-2 edge in Reining. Senior Alexia Tordoff delivered a commanding 70.25-0 ride to secure MOP honors, while freshman Michelle Fumagalli sealed the event with a clutch 69-66.25 victory.

Horsemanship provided the knockout punch. The Tigers dominated 4-1, highlighted by Brooke Jolstad’s MOP-winning 75-74.5 ride and Sydney Swallom’s meet-clinching performance.

🏀 Warhawks Rally Early but Fade Late: AUM Drops Final Road Game to West Alabama, 79-62

Brooks’ 26-Point Effort, Flatgard’s Five Threes Not Enough as Tigers Pull Away in Second Half

LIVINGSTON, Ala. | The AUM Warhawks closed out their final road game of the season with a hard-fought effort but ultimately fell 79-62 to the West Alabama Tigers inside Pruitt Hall Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon.

With the loss, Auburn University at Montgomery moves to 3-23 overall and 3-17 in Gulf South Conference play, while West Alabama improves to 13-11 (11-10 GSC).

Fast Start Fuels Early Lead

The Warhawks came out with urgency, setting the tone early behind Samya Brooks, who opened the scoring and sparked a 6-0 run. AUM controlled the tempo in the first quarter, capitalizing on second-chance opportunities and perimeter shooting.

Andie Flatgard connected on two three-pointers in the opening frame as AUM built a commanding 17-9 lead after one quarter, showcasing disciplined shot selection and strong defensive rotations.

✊🏾'TELL IT LIKE IT IS Black History Series': The Hidden Figures of the Manhattan Project-Benjamin Franklin Scott’s Scientific Legacy

From Morehouse to the Manhattan Project, the South Carolina Chemist Helped Shape the Nuclear Age—and Advanced Radiochemistry for a Generation

In the annals of American scientific achievement, the story of the Manhattan Project is often told through the names of its most famous architects. Yet behind the headlines and the history books stood a cadre of African American scientists whose work proved essential to one of the 20th century’s most consequential undertakings.

Among them was Benjamin Franklin Scott (1922–2000) — a chemist born in Florence, South Carolina, whose work at the University of Chicago Metallurgical Laboratory contributed to the development of the atomic bomb during World War II.

As part of 'TELL IT LIKE IT IS’ Black History Series, Scott’s life offers a powerful reminder that the American scientific enterprise has always been broader—and more diverse—than the conventional narrative suggests.

🎸U2 Surprise-Drops Politically Charged ‘Days of Ash’ EP on Ash Wednesday, Tackling Ukraine War, Middle East Turmoil and U.S. Protest Tragedy

Six-Track Digital Release Features Tribute to Renée Good, Collaboration With Ed Sheeran and Ukrainian Front-Line Musician Taras Topolia; Full-Length Album to Follow With ‘More Joyful’ Tone

In a move that blends liturgical symbolism with geopolitical urgency, U2 has surprise-released a six-track EP, “Days of Ash,” timed to Ash Wednesday and steeped in themes of grief, protest, and global unrest.

The digital-only collection marks the band’s most substantial body of new material since 2017’s Songs of Experience, offering what frontman Bono describes as “songs of defiance and dismay” written in response to what he calls “mad and maddening times.”

Produced by longtime collaborator Jacknife Lee, the EP will not roll over into the band’s forthcoming full-length studio album. That record, Bono promises, will pivot toward a “much more joyful tone,” positioning Days of Ash as an urgent dispatch rather than a commercial bridge.

Hidden Figures of the Manhattan Project: The African American Scientists Who Helped Build the Atomic Age

Long Overlooked, Black Scientists and Technicians Played Critical Roles in America’s Most Secretive Wartime Mission

When President Franklin D. Roosevelt approved a crash program in October 1941 to develop an atomic bomb, he set in motion the most ambitious scientific mobilization in U.S. history. The effort—later known as the Manhattan Project—would ultimately change global geopolitics, end World War II, and usher in the nuclear age.

Yet buried within the classified corridors of laboratories at the University of Chicago, Columbia University, and Los Alamos Laboratory was a small but extraordinary group of African American scientists and technicians whose contributions have remained largely absent from mainstream history.

⚖️Supreme Court Strikes Down Trump’s Sweeping Tariffs in Major Rebuff of Executive Power

In a 6–3 ruling, the high court rejects President Donald Trump’s reliance on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, wiping out broad import duties and signaling limits on unilateral trade authority.

The Supreme Court on Friday struck down former President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs, delivering a significant setback to a core pillar of his economic and geopolitical strategy.

In a 6–3 decision, the conservative-led court ruled that Trump lacked clear congressional authorization to impose across-the-board import duties under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the 1977 statute he cited as the legal basis for the tariffs.

Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the majority and joined by Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch as well as the court’s three liberal justices, concluded that the president’s asserted authority to impose tariffs of “unlimited amount, duration, and scope” required explicit congressional approval.

“The President asserts the extraordinary power to unilaterally impose tariffs of unlimited amount, duration, and scope,” Roberts wrote. “He must identify clear congressional authorization to exercise it.”

The court found that IEEPA “falls short” of granting such sweeping trade authority.