BBC News

On Sunday 8 February, Bad Bunny will perform at the Super Bowl half-time show to an audience of more than 100 million people across the world.

But the NFL’s choice of the Puerto Rican star has proven controversial, because he has long been outspoken in his criticism of Donald Trump's government, including most recently at the 2026 Grammy Awards, when he called for ICE agents to be removed from the streets.

Puerto Rican cultural critic Carina del Valle Schorske, who profiled Bad Bunny for The New York Times Magazine, speaks to Asma Khalid and Tristan Redman.

She explains how the artist’s pride in his homeland is infused throughout his music, and considers how he might use the United States' biggest stage this weekend to challenge the president’s policies.

New episodes of The Global Story are released daily. If you’re in the UK, listen on BBC Sounds. If you live outside the UK, listen on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

LINK: https://app.magellan.ai/listen_links/the-global-story-ytl

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Chapters:

00:00 Introduction

01:34 Who is Bad Bunny?

04:04 When did Bad Bunny go global?

06:45 Where is Puerto Rico?

08:22 Bad Bunny gets political

09:15 President Trump in Puerto Rico

11:40 Bad Bunny's latest album

18:40 Why no tour shows in the US?

20:30 Why was Bad Bunny chosen to do the Super Bowl?

22:00 Will Bad Bunny take on MAGA at the Super Bowl?

#BBCNews #badbunny #superbowl #superbowlhalftimeshow

US President Donald Trump has conceded there needs to be a "softer touch" on immigration after the death of US citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minnesota.

He made the comments in a wide-ranging interview to NBC, which will air during the Superbowl coverage.

The man newly in charge of Immigration and Customs Enforcement deployments in the state, Tom Homan, said he is drawing down the number of agents in the streets to focus instead on the processing of illegal migrants they have already arrested.

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As president of The Recording Academy, which organises the Grammy Awards, Panos A. Panay is grappling with how artificial intelligence and streaming is transforming the music industry, often at the expense of artists.

A former agent who worked with the likes of Leonard Cohen and Nina Simone, Panos spoke on Radical with Amol Rajan about his love of music and how that led to him becoming one of the most influential figures in the industry.

And against the backdrop of record-breaking tours from Beyonce and Taylor Swift, he reflects on why the next generation of artists like Sabrina Carpenter are forging real connections with audiences through live performances.

Radical with Amol Rajan is a Today podcast for BBC Radio 4. Episode are released every Thursday and you can also listen to them on BBC Sounds: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand/p0gg4k6r

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#TheI director of one of Gaza's main hospitals said he is still seeing a pattern of malnourished and traumatised mothers giving birth to underweight or premature babies, more than three months into a fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.

Although significantly more aid has been allowed into Gaza since the ceasefire began, the UN said it is still nowhere near enough.

Israel said it is meeting its obligations under the ceasefire, allowing more food and medical aid into Gaza.

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Peace talks between Ukraine, Russia and the US will continue today in Abu Dhabi, with Ukraine's eastern Donbas region a key talking point.

Moscow is demanding full control of the region, including the key cities of Luhansk and Donetsk as a price for peace, but Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly rejected the calls.

Meanwhile, drone strikes by Russia on Ukraine's capital Kyiv overnight left two injured as Moscow renewed strikes on the country after a week-long pause during an intensely cold period in Ukraine.

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Today, MPs voted to release documents about Lord Mandelson's appointment as US ambassador following a six-hour long debate.

Adam and Chris unpack how Keir Starmer spoke about Mandelson at Prime Minister’s Questions, Kemi Badenoch’s line of questioning about who knew what when and the volume of questions swirling about the Prime Minister’s judgement.

Plus, Laura has been following Reform UK for a new documentary. She chats about what she learned about the party’s track record in local government so far and new revelations from leader Nigel Farage.

You can now listen to Newscast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Newscast”. It works on most smart speakers.

Critical minerals - used in the production of smart phones, electric car batteries and wind turbines - have become a hot geopolitical bargaining chip.

Demand for these precious natural resources, like cobalt, lithium and copper is growing rapidly, especially as countries turn to green energy solutions.

Securing America's supply of the minerals is a key priority for President Trump - who has announced the launch of a US stockpile called 'Project Vault' and held a summit in Washington of more than 50 countries, to establish a trading bloc that could counter China - which dominates the global supply chain.

At the same time, The International Energy Agency has told the BBC that cooperation on the supply of such minerals is vital for the future of renewable energy and that supply and demand issues in future would pose a huge challenge for energy security.

We speak to the BBC's business reporter Jonathan Josephs, who has been in touch with the head of The International Energy Agency's new critical minerals division to find out what the future holds.

Subscribe to the Global News Podcast wherever you get your podcasts or find more episodes here: https://bbc.in/GlobalNewsPodcast

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An email seemingly from Ghislaine Maxwell appears to confirm that a photograph of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor with his arm around his accuser, Virginia Giuffre, is real.

The name has been redacted from the published version of the statement, but the details indicate that it is Maxwell who was discussing Giuffre.

The former prince, who has always denied any wrongdoing, has previously questioned whether the picture had been doctored and claimed he had never met Giuffre.

Giuffre - a prominent accuser of Epstein and Maxwell – alleged Mountbatten-Windsor had sex with her three times as a teenager.

Mountbatten-Windsor, who has always denied the allegations, reached an out-of-court settlement with Giuffre in 2022. It contained no admission of liability or apology.

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UK PM Sir Keir Starmer told MPs during Prime Minister's Questions that Peter Mandelson had "betrayed our country" after "lying repeatedly" about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.

The prime minister voiced his "regret" about appointing Mandelson as the UK's ambassador to Washington in 2024, as he was pushed in the Commons on what he knew, and when, before making that decision.

The PM also told Parliament he will release all material relating to the appointment, barring national security and "international relations" exemptions.

It comes as the connections between Epstein and Mandelson became more apparent after the latest tranche of files was released by the US Justice Department.

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President Donald Trump and his Colombian counterpart, Gustavo Petro, appear to have smoothed over their differences in a meeting at the White House.

Both leaders said their discussions were positive with a focus on stopping illegal drug trafficking and the lifting of sanctions imposed by the US last year.

Colombia is the world’s largest producer of cocaine and accounts for around 70 percent of global supply.

The BBC’s senior international correspondent Orla Guerin joined Colombia’s anti-narcotics police, the Jungle Commandos, on the frontline of their war on drugs.

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#Colombia #Drugs #BBCNews