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Vogue to release new Kamala Harris cover after controversy - Eyewitness News

Critics slammed the photo that graced the hard copy of the February issue, saying it was poorly composed and diminished Kamala Harris's achievements as the first black woman to be elected vice president.

Critics slammed the photo that graced the hard copy of the February issue, saying it was poorly composed and diminished Kamala Harris's achievements as the first black woman to be elected vice president. NEW YORK - Vogue will publish a limited edition of its latest issue featuring a different photo of Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris after the original cover image sparked controversy, the magazine said Tuesday. Critics slammed the photo that graced the hard copy of the February issue, saying it was poorly composed and diminished Harris's achievements as the first black woman to be elected vice president. Social media users criticised the lighting of the photo - in which Harris wears a blazer, jeans and sneakers - and also questioned whether the magazine had lightened her skin. Vice President-elect @KamalaHarris is our February cover star! Making history was the first step. Now Harris has an even more monumental task: to help heal a fractured Americaand lead it out of crisis. Read the full profile: https://t.co/W5BQPTH7AUpic.twitter.com/OCFvVqTlOk Vogue Magazine (@voguemagazine) January 10, 2021 Following the backlash, Vogue announced it would release some copies with a more formal portrait of Harris wearing a light blue Michael Kors pantsuit. That image had been used for the digital cover. "In recognition of the enormous interest in the digital cover, and in celebration of this historic moment, we will be publishing a limited number of special edition inaugural issues," a spokesperson for Vogue said. Editor Anna Wintour was forced to defend the original image after it circulated online earlier this month, insisting it was not the magazine's intention to "diminish" Harris's "incredible" election victory. Writing in the Washington Post, fashion critic Robin Givhan said the print cover was "overly familiar" and did not give Harris "due respect". Both photos were taken by American photographer Tyler Mitchell, who in 2018 became the first black photographer to shoot a Vogue cover with his portraits of music icon Beyonce. Harris, 56, did not publicly react but sources close to her told US media that she was surprised by the choice of the more relaxed photo. The controversy was the latest to hit Wintour, who found herself under pressure during the massive Black Lives Matter protests that swept the US last summer. She apologised for not making enough room for black stylists and photographers in the magazine. Wintour added that she also took "full responsibility" for "publishing images or stories that have been hurtful or intolerant". Download the Eyewitness News app to your iOS or Android device.

Biden to be sworn in as 46th US president, ending Trump era - Eyewitness News

Official Washington has taken on the dystopian look of an armed camp, protected by some 25,000 National Guard troops tasked with preventing any repeat of this month's attack.

Official Washington has taken on the dystopian look of an armed camp, protected by some 25,000 National Guard troops tasked with preventing any repeat of this month's attack. WASHINGTON - Thirty-four years after first seeking the job, Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th US president Wednesday, drawing a curtain on the most tumultuous administration of modern times and charting a new course to tackle COVID-19 and unite a splintered nation. Outgoing President Donald Trump entered the White House four years ago as a brash billionaire outsider, but he is being ousted by a polar opposite whose devotion to service, deep knowledge of Washington, and personal scars will unquestionably set a different tone. Biden, a 78-year-old former vice president and longtime senator, will take the oath of office at noon (1700 GMT) on the US Capitol's West front, the very spot where pro-Trump rioters clashed with police two weeks ago before storming Congress in a deadly insurrection. While a transition of power will occur much as it has for more than two centuries, this inauguration is unlike any other. Official Washington has taken on the dystopian look of an armed camp, protected by some 25,000 National Guard troops tasked with preventing any repeat of this month's attack. And with the pandemic raging, the general public is essentially barred from attending the swearing-in, leading to unprecedented optics: an empty National Mall on Inauguration Day. With the death toll soaring past 400,000, Biden on Tuesday led a powerful tribute to victims of COVID-19 as he arrived in Washington. Biden, who has suffered deep personal tragedy and is known for his public displays of emotion, has stressed the need to unite the country after Trump's chaos. "It's hard sometimes to remember, but that's how we heal. It's important to do that as a nation," Biden said in somber remarks at the reflecting pool in front of the Lincoln Memorial. TRUMP SNUB Inauguration eve is normally a time of massive crowds gathering in the capital, but Biden, joined by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, was almost alone at the reflecting pool. On the Mall's grassy expanse, some 200,000 flags have been planted to represent the absent crowds at the inauguration. Trump, who has not appeared in public for a week, broke days of silence with a pre-recorded farewell video address on Tuesday. For the first time, he asked Americans to "pray" for the success of the incoming administration - a change from months spent persuading his Republican followers that the Democrats cheated their way to election victory. Trump, whose efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and console its victims have been widely criticised, will snub Biden by not attending the inauguration. He has also yet to personally congratulate Biden, who first ran for president in 1987, on his win, and did not invite him for the customary cup of tea in the Oval Office. In one of his last acts before he flies to Florida on Wednesday morning, Trump issued scores of pardons to people convicted of crimes or facing charges, including key allies. Influential former Trump aide Steve Bannon - charged with defrauding people over funds raised to build the Mexico border wall, a flagship Trump policy - was among 73 people on a list of pardons released by the White House early Wednesday. Neither Trump nor his relatives were on the list. Former Trump fund-raiser Elliott Broidy was similarly pardoned, after pleading guilty last year to conspiring to violate foreign lobbying laws. The rapper Lil Wayne, who last month pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon, and faced 10 years in jail, also made the list. Tensions have soared on Capitol Hill, where the Senate is expected to put Trump on trial soon, following his record second impeachment by the House of Representatives over the Capitol riot. The spectacle will clash with the opening days of Biden's tenure, as the new president seeks to swiftly confirm his Cabinet picks and push through aggressive legislation including a $1.9 trillion rescue package. 'I'LL GET RIGHT TO WORK' "We don't have a second to waste when it comes to tackling the crises we face as a nation," Biden tweeted late Tuesday. "That's why after being sworn in tomorrow, I'll get right to work." His inaugural speech will last between 20 and 30 minutes, according to a source familiar with preparations, and "he will reach out to all Americans, and call on every citizen to be part of meeting the extraordinary challenges facing all of us." To symbolise the new spirit, Biden has invited the two top senators - Democrat Chuck Schumer and Republican Mitch McConnell - and other congressional leaders to attend a church service with him Wednesday before the inauguration. Biden's first day is expected to be packed, with aides saying recently he would sign perhaps a dozen executive orders that could address the pandemic, the ailing US economy, climate change and racial injustice in America. Download the Eyewitness News app to your iOS or Android device.

Astronomers Discover 'Super Earth' That Is Almost as Old as the Universe - IGN Africa

Planet Earth Z Super.

Astronomers have discovered a new Super-Earth planet that's nearly as old as the universe itself, but despite what the name might indicate, the words "Super Earth" only speak to the exoplanet's size as this new planet doesn't have many similarities to Earth. This new Super Earth is called TOI-561b and it's 50% larger than Earth, according to UC Riverside News. It orbits its star in less than half a day though, despite how much larger it is than Earth, which orbits its star, the Sun, every 365 days. TOI-561b is, all things considered, quite different from Earth, but the reason it's called a Super Earth is almost exclusively because of its size. "Super-Earths a class of planets unlike any in our solar system are more massive than Earth yet lighter than ice giants like Neptune and Uranus, and can be made of gas, rock, or a combination of both," according to NASA's official definition of a Super Earth. "They are between twice the size of Earth and up to 10 times its mass. Super-Earth is a reference only to an exoplanet's size larger than Earth and smaller than Neptune but not suggesting they are necessarily similar to our home planet." UC Riverside planetary astrophysicist, Stephen Kane, said that for every day we spend on Earth, TOI-561b orbits its star twice. The reason for this quick orbit is due to the heat created by the planet's close proximity to the star it orbits. TOI-561b's temperature is over 2000 degrees Kelvin, which is obviously too hot for life as we know it to exist on the planet. The other reason for the speedy orbit is due to the planet's density, which is roughly the same as Earth's. "This is surprising because you'd expect the density to be higher," Kane said. "This is consistent with the notion that the planet is extremely old." The older a planet is, the less dense it generally is and that's because the materials that make a planet dense simply weren't as abundant the farther back in time you go. The materials that eventually form dense planets are heavy elements that are produced by fusion reactions in stars as they age, according to UC Riverside News. When stars explode, the elements are scattered outward and those elements form new stars and new planets. Because TOI-561b is not nearly as dense as expected, the astronomers that discovered the Super Earth believe it to be as old as the universe itself as at that point in time, heavy elements to create a more dense planet would not have been as readily available as less stars were exploding since they weren't as old. For more science, read about how the Earth is spinning faster than it has in 50 years and then check out this story about how the Moon is rusting. Read about how a space object that passed by Earth was likely from aliens after that, and then read this story about how researchers are trying to turn Mars green. Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.