OUR PICKSHow I Became a Propagandist for Russian Media | Uncertainty, Catastrophic Risk, and AI Regulation | China’s Influence Campaign Intensifies as U.S. Election Nears, and more

‘Terrorgram’ Charges Show U.S. Has Had Tools to Crack Down on Far-Right Terrorism All Along  (Ali Winston, Wired)
The federal indictment of two alleged members of the Terrorgram Collective, a far-right cell accused of inspiring “lone wolf” attacks, reveals the US is now using a “forgotten” legal strategy.

Justice Department Files $100 Million Claim in Fatal Baltimore Bridge Collapse  (Campbell Robertson and Peter Eavis, New York Times)
The crash of the Dali into the Francis Scott Key Bridge killed six people. The federal government says the owner and the operator were “grossly negligent” and “reckless.”

What R.F.K. Jr.’s Alliance with Trump Could Mean for Public Health  (Emily Baumgaertner, New York Times)
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has long voiced doubts about vaccine safety, has hopes of influencing federal health policy. Could he finally get the chance?

Extreme Heat Means More Wildfires. It’s Taking a Toll on Firefighters.  (Arijeta Lajka and Sarah Kerr, New York Times)
Extreme heat increases the chances that firefighters can suffer heat exhaustion or heat stroke — which can be deadly.

How I Became a Propagandist for Russian Media  (Patrick O’Connor, Washington Post)
As a filmmaker, I was drawn to RT’s international audience. But I didn’t expect a clear conscience.

Nuclear Power: Future Energy Solution or Potential War Target?  (Ray Hughes, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists)
Innovative small modular reactors offer potential routes to decarbonization, but they elevate concerns that wartime attacks could expose warfighters and civilians to nuclear fallout.

China Sanctions 9 U.S. Firms Over Military Sales to Taiwan  (Taejun Kang, RFA)
The U.S. announced on Monday the sale of aircraft spare parts to Taiwan.

Uncertainty, Catastrophic Risk, and AI Regulation  (Matthew Tokson, Lawfare)
The future risks of AI are uncertain and hard to quantify, but that doesn’t mean policymakers shouldn’t address them now.

Political Violence in the United States Is Rising – and It Might Be Up to Americans to Say “Enough!”  (Rachel Kleinfeld, Just Security)
Civil wars are not determined by how angry or polarized a populace is – but by how strong institutions are, particularly whether security forces remain neutral in their enforcement of the rule of law.

China’s Influence Campaign Intensifies as U.S. Election Nears  (Lin Yang, VOA News)
Social media accounts are linked to China’s Spamouflage network — a state-sponsored operation aimed at supporting the Chinese government and undermining its critics.