North Korea has released a photo of shirtless, muscular troops smashing bricks with sledgehammers against the body and head of a comrade.

The picture, taken at an undisclosed location in the country, shows one soldier lying between small supports as his colleagues swing hammers at the bricks on his face and stomach. A formation of other kneeling bare-chested men is seen in the background.

The release of the image comes as Kim Jong-un, the North Korean dictator, threatened to use nuclear weapons to smash South Korea if it encroached on his country’s sovereignty.

North Korea “would use without hesitation all the offensive forces it has possessed, including nuclear weapons”, the Korean Central News Agency quoted Kim as saying on Friday.

“If such [a] situation comes, the permanent existence of Seoul and the Republic of Korea would be impossible,” Kim added, using the official name for South Korea.

North Korea has previously used photos of shirtless troops in its propaganda.

In October 2021, state media released a video of soldiers breaking bricks over the heads and arms of their bare-chested colleagues. North Korean dignitaries, including Kim Jong-un, were shown applauding the demonstration.

The display of martial vigour was released as part of a “self-defence” exhibition showcasing North Korea’s latest weaponry, which at the time included what Pyongyang said was a hypersonic missile.

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The US economy added 254,000 jobs in September, far outstripping expectations, in a sign of the labour market’s resilience as the Federal Reserve considers how rapidly to cut interest rates.

The figure from the Bureau of Labor Statistics was above expectations of economists polled by Reuters of 140,000 and compared with an upwardly revised gain of 159,000 jobs in August.

The unemployment rate fell to 4.1 per cent, having come close to a three-year high in July at 4.3 per cent.

The report suggests the Fed is on course to pull off a so-called soft landing for the US economy, which has weathered the worst period of high inflation in a generation while maintaining robust growth and strong employment.

The Fed last month cut its benchmark interest rate by half a percentage point to pre-empt any significant weakening of the labour market. 

After Friday’s data release, investors in futures markets scaled back predictions that the Fed would cut interest rates by another half percentage point at its next policy meeting in November.

Futures markets were pricing in a 94 per cent chance of a smaller quarter-point cut, compared with about 65 per cent shortly before the data was released.

“These numbers are a bit of a game-changer,” said Josh Hirt, senior US economist at Vanguard. “When you look at the revisions too, this changes the narrative about the underlying pace of job growth . . . overall it’s very positive.”

Treasury yields jumped shortly after the data was published. The two-year Treasury yield, which is sensitive to interest rate expectations, rose 0.15 percentage points to a one month high of 3.86 per cent. Futures markets suggested the S&P 500 was poised to open 0.9 per cent higher.

The dollar climbed 0.5 per cent against a basket of rival currencies following the data. It has risen more than 2 per cent since last Friday, putting it on course for its strongest week in more than two years.

“The market likes cuts but it doesn’t like them if they’re because of real weakness in the economy and worries about recession,” Hirt said. “It likes cuts with a positive underlying economy, which would bolster the soft landing scenario.”

Jobs growth in Friday’s report was strongest across the leisure and hospitality sector, specifically in restaurants and bars. Employment in those categories increased by almost 70,000. Healthcare jobs rose by 45,000.

Manufacturing and other industrial jobs such as in mining and oil were unchanged for the month, alongside the retail, transportation and professional and business services sectors.

Average hourly earnings increased 0.4 per cent for the month and are up 4 per cent on an annual basis.

US central bank officials are focused on the health of the labour market as they plan further interest rate cuts in the coming months after making a larger-than-usual half-point reduction in September. The cut left the Fed’s benchmark rate at 4.75-5 per cent.

Fed chair Jay Powell hinted this week that the central bank would revert to its more usual quarter-point cut when it next meets in November — just after the US presidential election — as long as the economy does not deteriorate unexpectedly.

Officials have grown more confident in their ability to bring price pressures back down to the Fed’s 2 per cent target without triggering a recession. Lay-offs have not yet risen, although some economists warn that the fall in demand in recent months could be a precursor to steeper job losses.

New data on Tuesday showed that the number of vacancies unexpectedly rose in August to 8mn, but the rate at which Americans are quitting their jobs fell to the lowest level since June 2020.

The unemployment rate is up substantially from its recent low of 3.4 per cent last year, but economists largely attributed the rise to a growing workforce.

Most Fed policymakers last month forecast that the US unemployment rate would peak at 4.4 per cent this year and next, while interest rates would fall to 4.25-4.5 per cent and 3.25-3.5 per cent, respectively.

TESCO has issued an urgent recall urging consumers not to buy certain mince pies because they could contain glue.

The product affected is the six pack of Tesco Finest 6 All Butter Pastry Mince Pies.

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Packets with the following best before dates should not be eaten: October 4, October 26, November 2, and November 10.

The Food Standards Agency put the alert up on Thursday warning customers that the baked goods may contain pieces of dried glue from the packaging, making them “unsafe to eat”.

The agency advises customers who have bought the product not to eat it but to return it to any store for a full refund – no receipt is required.

If customers run into any further issues they have been urged to call the Tesco Customer Service line on 0800 50 5555.

The supermarket has reassured customers that no other products have been affected by this issue.

A spokesperson for Tesco said the recall was a “precautionary measure”.

They added:“The quality of our products is our number one priority and we immediately began an investigation with our supplier to understand what happened. We’re sorry for the inconvenience”.

However, if you suspect someone has swallowed glue, the NHS recommends calling 111 for advice.

If the person is showing signs of serious illness, such as loss of consciousness, seizures, or drowsiness, you should call 999 to request an ambulance or take them to the A&E department.

Tesco’s recall follows Marks & Spencer’s announcement yesterday that its butternut squash soup,  with a use-by date of 6.10.2024 and barcode 0041142, may contain pieces of metal.

The UK supermarket warned its customers that due to the possible contamination the soup was “unsafe to eat”.

In a similar course of events, Farmfoods, another popular UK supermarket, issued a “do not eat” alert on 20 September over some chicken nuggets.

The frozen food brand said undeclared ingredients could put some at risk of dangerous allergic reactions.

As a general rule, if a recall involves a branded product, the manufacturer would usually have lead responsibility for the recall action.

Product recalls are an important means of protecting consumers from dangerous goods.

Many safety notices are issued as a precautionary measure, letting consumers know an item may be dangerous.

In more serious cases like this one, retailers issue a recall, warning customers not to use the product and asking them to return it.

Usually, if a recall involves a branded product, the manufacturer will be responsible for the recall action.

But it’s often left up to retailers to notify customers when products could put them at risk.

A company will sometimes issue a recall to limit the number of complaints.

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Independent newsweeklies—from the North Bay Bohemian and Random Lengths News in California, to the Santa Fe Reporter (New Mexico), and the C-Ville Weekly (Charlottesville, VA)— have been featuring the top “Censored” stories from State of the Free Press 2024. The American Prospect has also featured this year’s story list.

The yearbook’s editors, Andy Lee Roth and Mickey Huff, have been guests on several news and public affairs programs. Huff joined John Fugelsang on Tell Me Everything (at 46:30 of the episode) to discuss how to hold corporate news media accountable; Roth discussed some of the year’s most important but under-reported news stories with Michael Welch on The Global Research New Hour. Andrew Keen interviewed Roth for the Keen On podcast. And Kevin Gosztola hosted Huff and Roth on Unauthorized Disclosure. Truthout published an interview by Peter Handel with Roth and Huff discussing the new book and the Project’s longtime mission of fighting censorship and advocating for critical media literacy.

The Progressive published an excerpt from Robin Andersen’s chapter on News Abuse, which critically examined George Santos’s election campaign lies and how a lack of government oversight contributed to the February 2023 Ohio train derailment disaster. The Los Angeles Progressive published Roth and Huff’s From News Deserts to Revitalization: Navigating the News Void, an excerpt from their introduction to the 2024 yearbook, which was also republished by Savage Minds, Dissident Voice, and Highbrow Magazine.

Mischa Geracoulis, who organized and introduced the yearbook’s Media Democracy in Action chapter, interviewed the US executive director of Reporters Without Borders, Clayton Weimers, for the Winter 2023 issue of Quill, the magazine of the Society for Professional Journalists.

Steve Macek and Andy Lee Roth published As the Planet Boils, Corporate Media Still Carry Water for Fossil Fuel Giants in Truthout. Their article draws heavily from a number of the environmentally-themed stories in the 2024 yearbook.

Website Redesign

Project Censored’s Adam Armstrong and Kate Horgan have been hard at work redesigning the website to provide users with an enhanced and intuitive browsing experience. In addition to the visual overhaul, the design team has implemented new features such as our revamped Censored Notebook, making it easier to find original articles and discover related content.

This new, clean design, which highlights our same trustworthy content, invites users to explore, engage, and become a part of a community dedicated to promoting independent investigative journalism, media literacy, and critical thinking. Dive into the website here.

Kevin Gosztola, author of Guilty of Journalism, appeared on Redacted with Clayton Morris, and on Making Sense of the Madness with Jason Bermas, to discuss the latest developments in the case against Julian Assange and the implications of his prosecution for the integrity of journalism.

In The Local News Crisis Lowdown, and a Glimmer of Hope for Democracy in the New Year, Mischa Geracoulis discusses the crisis of local news, according to Northwestern University’s latest The State of Local News report; how news deserts “threaten the civic health of cities and towns across the nation;” and the signs of hope still ahead in 2024. “As pivotal US presidential elections loom ahead,” Geracoulis writes, “the local news crisis will come into sharper focus, reminding us that we do not want a world without journalism.”

Light Through the Slats, by Andy Lee Roth and Steve Macek, examines visual metaphors of light and illumination to address the power of independent journalism. In the article, adapted from their introduction to Chapter 1 of State of the Free Press 2024, Roth and Macek write: “Examining public issues that independent journalists and outlets have reported but which fall outside the scope of corporate news coverage makes it possible to document in specific detail how corporate news media leave the public in the dark by marginalizing or blockading crucial issues, limiting political debate, and promoting corporate views and interests.”

Follow the links for each episode to learn more about the Show’s featured guests and content. Find the comprehensive archive of Project Censored Show episodes here.

National News Literacy Week, as presented by the News Literacy Project and E.W. Scripps Company, will take place January 22-26. It is supported by many industry insiders, some of the same outlets we constructively critique for their lack of coverage on key topics in the public interest. At Project Censored, we think every week should be News Literacy Week, which is why our work never stops. As many are heading back to school for spring semester, consider including our free critical news media literacy curriculum in the classroom! We also offer free teaching guides and supportive resources for our many publications, including the award-winning The Media and Me: A Guide to Critical Media Literacy for Young People. Contact us to learn more about our educational programs!

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Some of the UK’s largest wealth managers have warned chancellor Rachel Reeves that people are pulling money out of their pensions early because of “uncertainty” over potential tax changes in the Budget.

Wealth manager Quilter and investment platforms AJ Bell and Hargreaves Lansdown are among the companies highlighting that an increasing number of people are considering withdrawing from their pension pots over speculation that the government could dilute pension tax relief.

Steven Levin, chief executive of Quilter, which manages £113bn, sent a letter to the Treasury on Wednesday to flag that the wealth manager was “experiencing a significant increase in calls from customers wanting to adjust their retirement plans”.

He said this was “a direct result of the recent Budget warning, which indicated ‘painful’ changes to taxation but left a gap in information other than ruling out changes to major taxes”.

The Quilter letter added: “The knock-on uncertainty around changes to pension tax reliefs, tax-free cash and possible amendments to pension contributions is causing anxiety and confusion for those trying to plan their financial futures.”

Investment experts have warned of a potential tax raid on pensions in this month’s Budget as the UK government seeks to close a £22bn hole that it has identified in the public finances.

Individuals can currently access 25 per cent of their pensions tax-free up to a cap of £268,275 from the age of 55. The Fabian Society, a left-wing think-tank, has urged the government to drop the tax-free limit to £100,000.

But once the tax-free lump sum has been withdrawn, money cannot be put back in — sparking concern among financial advisers and wealth managers.

AJ Bell, one of the UK’s largest investment sites, told the Financial Times it was also sending a letter to the Treasury on the issue. AJ Bell said it had warned the Treasury it was concerned that customers were making decisions on their pensions based on speculation and uncertainty.

“Once you’ve taken your tax-free cash you can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube and, assuming the chancellor doesn’t pursue a disastrous raid on tax-free cash, those people may find they’re in a worse position long term,” said Tom Selby, public policy director at AJ Bell. “The chancellor should use her inaugural Budget to publicly commit to a pact on pension taxation.”

One of the UK’s largest workplace pension providers, which declined to be named, said it had also seen “an increase in tax-free cash withdrawals”. 

Another source in the industry said the volume of inquiries about pension withdrawals was similar to the surge in questions about personal finance issues experienced at the tax year-end in April.

Pension providers including insurance groups Aviva, Royal London and Standard Life, and wealth managers including Evelyn Partners have experienced a surge in inquiries from individuals considering taking their tax-free lump sums ahead of the Budget, in case the government reduces this limit, according to people familiar with the matter.

Of all potential budget measures, “this is certainly one of the main areas causing anxiety”, said Jason Hollands, managing director at Evelyn Partners. He said there was a “spike in inquiries and conversations” from concerned clients about the issue.

Quilter’s Levin said the current uncertainty was “driving knee-jerk decisions” that could jeopardise long-term financial security.

“Our financial planners are receiving calls from anxious clients, many of whom are at risk of making hasty adjustments to their retirement plans without fully understanding the potential consequences.”

The government could also decrease the maximum amount individuals can contribute to their pensions each year without incurring a tax charge, which was increased from £40,000 to £60,000 in April last year. 

The Treasury declined to comment.