The Bull Ring

ℍ𝕠𝕨 𝔸𝕞𝕖𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒 𝕖𝕧𝕠𝕝𝕧𝕖𝕕 𝕚𝕟𝕥𝕠 𝕒 𝕔𝕦𝕝𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕖 𝕠𝕗 𝕗𝕒𝕟𝕤 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕗𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨𝕖𝕣𝕤 𝕄𝕒𝕤𝕤 𝕗𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨𝕖𝕣𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕤𝕖 𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖 𝕖𝕩 𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕤𝕚𝕕𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝔻𝕠𝕟𝕒𝕝𝕕 𝕋𝕣𝕦𝕞𝕡 𝕚𝕤 𝕒 𝕡𝕖𝕣𝕗𝕖𝕔𝕥 𝕖𝕩𝕒𝕞𝕡𝕝𝕖 𝕠𝕗 𝕙𝕠𝕨 𝔸𝕞𝕖𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕟𝕤 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕖 𝕒 𝕟𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 𝕠𝕗 𝕗𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨𝕖𝕣𝕤. C elebrity has become a "weapon of mass distraction" that takes away from real heroism, says Landon Jones, former managing editor of  People  magazine. He explores how Americans became so fame-obsessed in the new book  Celebrity Nation. How did we come to care about celebrities? . . The origins of celebrity worship, Landon tells Jesse Mulligan, go back to Ancient Greece and the world's "first truly famous mortal" – Alexander the Great. "This urge that people had to be reverential, that came from Greek gods, then it got transferred to Alexander the Great."

𝕊𝕚𝕣 𝕁𝕒𝕞𝕖𝕤 𝕎𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕒𝕔𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕟𝕧𝕚𝕔𝕥𝕖𝕕 𝕠𝕗 𝕚𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕔𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝕒𝕤𝕤𝕒𝕦𝕝𝕥 𝕆𝕟𝕖 𝕠𝕗 ℕ𝕖𝕨 ℤ𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕒𝕟𝕕'𝕤 𝕓𝕖𝕤𝕥-𝕜𝕟𝕠𝕨𝕟 𝕒𝕣𝕥 𝕔𝕠𝕝𝕝𝕖𝕔𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕤, 𝕓𝕦𝕤𝕚𝕟𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕞𝕖𝕟, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕡𝕙𝕚𝕝𝕒𝕟𝕥𝕙𝕣𝕠𝕡𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕤, 𝕊𝕚𝕣 𝕁𝕒𝕞𝕖𝕤 𝕎𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕒𝕔𝕖, 𝕙𝕒𝕤 𝕓𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕟𝕒𝕞𝕖𝕕 𝕒𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕖 "𝕡𝕣𝕠𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝕓𝕦𝕤𝕚𝕟𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕞𝕒𝕟" 𝕛𝕒𝕚𝕝𝕖𝕕 𝕗𝕠𝕣 𝕚𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕔𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕝𝕪 𝕒𝕤𝕤𝕒𝕦𝕝𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕙𝕣𝕖𝕖 𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕘 𝕞𝕖𝕟. 𝕊𝕚𝕣 𝕁𝕒𝕞𝕖𝕤 𝕎𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕒𝕔𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕟𝕧𝕚𝕔𝕥𝕖𝕕 𝕠𝕗 𝕚𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕔𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝕒𝕤𝕤𝕒𝕦𝕝𝕥 W allace had been granted name suppression while his case ran through the courts, but that lapsed yesterday with a final judgment by the Supreme Court. Arts commentator and journalist Mark Amery spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss. . . 𝔸𝕣𝕥𝕤 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕞𝕦𝕟𝕚𝕥𝕪 𝕣𝕖𝕝𝕚𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕕 𝕒𝕗𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕟𝕒𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕘 The arts community is relieved Sir James Wallace has been publicly named for in

  Prime Minister Chris Hipkins meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping Prime Minister Chris Hipkins meets Chinese President Xi Jinping. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has held his highly anticipated meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The two leaders met Tuesday evening in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Speaking through a translator at the start of the face-to-face, Xi praised the bilateral relationship between China and New Zealand. "Our bilateral ties have continued to grow in a sound and steady manner. Amid the changing international landscape, our relationship has remained robust and strong. "It has brought tangible benefits to the people of our two countries and contributed to regional peace, stability and prosperity. China always views New Zealand as a friend and a partner." Xi said he treats China's relations with New Zealand with "great importance". Hipkins thanked

𝕀𝕟 ℙ𝕒𝕣𝕝𝕚𝕒𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥: 𝕊𝕖𝕡𝕦𝕝𝕠𝕟𝕚 𝟙 𝕃𝕦𝕩𝕠𝕟 𝟘 𝕃𝕆𝕋𝕆 𝕃𝕦𝕩𝕠𝕟 𝕤𝕥𝕣𝕦𝕘𝕘𝕝𝕖𝕤 𝕚𝕟 ℙ𝕒𝕣𝕝𝕚𝕒𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥. 𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕖 𝕚𝕤 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕟𝕖𝕖𝕕 𝕥𝕠 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕠𝕟 𝕪𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕗𝕖𝕖𝕥, 𝕓𝕖 𝕡𝕣𝕖𝕔𝕚𝕤𝕖, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕞𝕒𝕜𝕖 𝕚𝕟𝕔𝕚𝕤𝕚𝕧𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕤 𝕠𝕟 𝕚𝕞𝕡𝕠𝕣𝕥𝕒𝕟𝕥 𝕚𝕤𝕤𝕦𝕖𝕤. L uxon has none of these skills.He has spent too long being the king pin where underlings have to decipher the crap that came out of his mouth and dress them up as pearls of wisdom. But in Parliament the interactions are raw and pointed.  There is no room for extended pontification. . . Clearly Luxon and National thought yesterday that they would ambush Carmel Sepuloni. Normally Chris Hipkins dances around Luxon’s questions.  Luxon lacks the ability to listen to the question and adjust.  All he can do is look at National’s prepared list of questions.  Hipkins is really good at seeing in which direction National wants

ℂ𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕖𝕤𝕖 ℙ𝕣𝕖𝕤𝕚𝕕𝕖𝕟𝕥 𝕏𝕚 𝕁𝕚𝕟𝕡𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕞𝕖𝕖𝕥𝕤 ℙ𝕄 ℂ𝕙𝕣𝕚𝕤 ℍ𝕚𝕡𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕤, 𝕤𝕒𝕪𝕤 ℕℤ 𝕚𝕤 '𝕗𝕣𝕚𝕖𝕟𝕕 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕟𝕖𝕣' 𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕖 𝕒𝕡𝕡𝕖𝕒𝕣𝕖𝕕 𝕥𝕠 𝕓𝕖 𝕒 𝕨𝕒𝕣𝕞 𝕣𝕖𝕔𝕖𝕡𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 𝕗𝕠𝕣 ℙ𝕣𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕄𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣 ℂ𝕙𝕣𝕚𝕤 ℍ𝕚𝕡𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕤 𝕕𝕦𝕣𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕋𝕦𝕖𝕤𝕕𝕒𝕪 𝕟𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥'𝕤 𝟜𝟘-𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕦𝕥𝕖 𝕞𝕖𝕖𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕚𝕟 𝔹𝕖𝕚𝕛𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕠𝕟𝕖 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕞𝕠𝕤𝕥 𝕡𝕠𝕨𝕖𝕣𝕗𝕦𝕝 𝕞𝕖𝕟 𝕚𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕠𝕣𝕝𝕕. T here was one particular road bump in the lead-up to the meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, including an Australian media report with an unnamed source saying New Zealand's Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta had been "harangued" for an hour by her Chinese counterpart  during a meeting in China in March . Neither Hipkins nor Mahuta outright denied the report, with Mahuta saying repeatedly there were "robust" discussions where each side laid out their position very clearly. That certainly raised que

'𝕊𝕚𝕘𝕟𝕚𝕗𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕟𝕥' 𝕊𝕠𝕦𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕟 𝕆𝕔𝕖𝕒𝕟 𝕤𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕞 𝕥𝕠 '𝕨𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕡' ℕ𝕖𝕨 ℤ𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕨𝕚𝕟𝕕, 𝕣𝕒𝕚𝕟, 𝕤𝕟𝕠𝕨 𝕋𝕙𝕖 "𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕤𝕥 𝕞𝕒𝕛𝕠𝕣 𝕨𝕚𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕤𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕞" 𝕠𝕗 𝟚𝟘𝟚𝟛 𝕚𝕤 𝕓𝕣𝕖𝕨𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕚𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕊𝕠𝕦𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕟 𝕆𝕔𝕖𝕒𝕟 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕙𝕖𝕒𝕧𝕚𝕝𝕪 𝕚𝕞𝕡𝕒𝕔𝕥 ℕ𝕖𝕨 ℤ𝕖𝕒𝕝𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕕𝕒𝕪𝕤. D escribed by WeatherWatch as a "significant global storm", the low-pressure system near Aotearoa is due to start deepening, bringing with it a lot of wind and rain. From Tuesday to Thursday, Canterbury will get about 40mm total of rain. The heaviest rain this week is coming in along the eastern coastline of the South Island and into Wellington. . . The pressure will continue to deepen as the week goes on. ⚠️The first major winter storm of 2023 is brewing in the Southern Ocean and will intensify on Thursday, p

  Colorado Club Q shooting: Attacker sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty Bouquets of flowers and a sign reading "Love Over Hate" are left near Club Q, an LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on November 20, 2022. Photo: AFP / Jason Connolly By Bernd Debusmann Jr, BBC News The attacker who killed five people at an LGBT nightclub in Colorado last year has been sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to murder and attempted murder. Anderson Lee Aldrich, 23, opened fire with an assault rifle at Club Q in Colorado Springs on 19 November 2022. The shooting was stopped by club-goers, who subdued the attacker until police arrived. The five dead ranged in age from 22 to 40. Another 17 were left shot. The slain victims were Daniel Aston, Derrick Rump, Kelly Loving, Ashley Paugh and Raymond Vance. As part of a plea deal, the attacker was sentenced to five consecutive life sentences without the possibility of p

ℙ𝕣𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕄𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣 ℂ𝕙𝕣𝕚𝕤 ℍ𝕚𝕡𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕤 𝕥𝕠 𝕞𝕖𝕖𝕥 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕏𝕚 𝕁𝕚𝕟𝕡𝕚𝕟𝕘, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕥𝕣𝕒𝕕𝕖 𝕥𝕒𝕝𝕜𝕤 𝕚𝕟 ℂ𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕒 ℙ𝕣𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕄𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣 ℂ𝕙𝕣𝕚𝕤 ℍ𝕚𝕡𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕤 𝕥𝕠 𝕞𝕖𝕖𝕥 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕏𝕚 𝕁𝕚𝕟𝕡𝕚𝕟𝕘, 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕥𝕣𝕒𝕕𝕖 𝕥𝕒𝕝𝕜𝕤 𝕚𝕟 ℂ𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕒 𝕒𝕗𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕒 𝕗𝕚𝕧𝕖 𝕖𝕪𝕖𝕤 𝕞𝕖𝕖𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕚𝕟 𝕎𝕖𝕝𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘𝕥𝕠𝕟 W hat can be expected on the trade front when Prime Minister Hipkins meets with Xi Jinping tonight? The meeting comes on the back of the refresh of the free trade agreement between the two countries which was signed last year. Pat English is a former New Zealand trade commissioner in Southern China who helped work on the original China-NZ free trade agreement. He spoke to Corin Dann. . . 𝔽𝕚𝕧𝕖 𝔼𝕪𝕖𝕤 𝕞𝕖𝕖𝕥𝕤 𝕚𝕟 ℕℤ 𝕒𝕙𝕖𝕒𝕕 𝕠𝕗 ℍ𝕚𝕡𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕤 𝕞𝕖𝕖𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕏𝕚 𝕁𝕚𝕟𝕡𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕠𝕟𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 The Prime Minister will meet late tonight with China's Pre

ℙ𝕣𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕄𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣 ℍ𝕚𝕡𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕤 𝕚𝕟 ℂ𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕒, ℕ𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟𝕒𝕝𝕤 𝕝𝕒𝕨 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕠𝕣𝕕𝕖𝕣 𝕡𝕠𝕝𝕚𝕔𝕪, "𝕒 𝕓𝕚𝕥 𝕤𝕙𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨", ℙ𝕠𝕝𝕚𝕥𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕝 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕞𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕒𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕤. 𝕆𝕦𝕣 ℙ𝕣𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕄𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣 ℂ𝕙𝕣𝕚𝕤 ℍ𝕚𝕡𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕤 𝕚𝕤 𝕚𝕟 ℂ𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕒 𝕨𝕙𝕚𝕝𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕟𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟𝕒𝕝 𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕥𝕪'𝕤 𝕝𝕒𝕨 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕠𝕣𝕕𝕖𝕣 𝕡𝕠𝕝𝕚𝕔𝕪, 𝕓𝕒𝕤𝕖𝕕 𝕠𝕟 𝕗𝕒𝕚𝕝𝕖𝕕 𝕚𝕕𝕖𝕠𝕝𝕠𝕘𝕪 𝕘𝕖𝕥𝕤 𝕒𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 𝕚𝕟 𝕞𝕖𝕕𝕚𝕒 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕡𝕠𝕝𝕚𝕥𝕚𝕔𝕒𝕝 𝕡𝕒𝕟𝕖𝕝𝕤. ℙ𝕣𝕚𝕞𝕖 𝕄𝕚𝕟𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣 ℍ𝕚𝕡𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕤 𝕚𝕟 ℂ𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕒 T he Prime Minister has arrived in China - the first top level visit since 2019 when Dame Jacinda Ardern's trip was cut short because of the mosque terror attacks. The covid pandemic then blocked travel for years. Now in the midst of heightened regional tensions and the war in Ukraine, China's Ambassador to New Zealand, says the relationship is as good it's ever been. Both sides say there is room to discuss areas of disagreement o