Free Republic

A viral hit called “Run Run River” turned out to be an AI-tweaked clone of SoCal reggae band Stick Figure’s 2019 song, earning bootleggers thousands without credit or consent. The case exposes a flood of cheaply made, often fraudulent AI tracks on major streaming platforms, siphoning royalties, overwhelming detection systems and blurring the line between fan remix and scam. As labels and streamers race to monetize AI-powered tools, independent artists warn that weak guardrails, murky attribution and whack-a-mole enforcement could reshape music’s economy. The SoCal reggae act Stick Figure is, in a way, glad the single “Run Run River” made...

Unverified graphic footage purports to show Ukrainian servicemen shooting Russians at point-blank range Russia has launched a probe after graphic video emerged online, purporting to show the torture of prisoners of war at the hands of Ukrainian servicemen. “The video circulating online shows captured soldiers being shot in the legs with medical assistance,” the country’s Investigative Committee said in a statement on Sunday. The head of the body, Alexander Bastrykin, has ordered “investigators to establish all the circumstances of the incident, collect and record evidence and identify all the persons involved in it to subsequently bring them to justice.” While...