Democracy Now! Friday, May 22, 2026

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is facing a deadly Ebola outbreak with 177 suspected deaths and 750 cases, yet the global response has been crippled by U.S. funding cuts to USAID and the World Health Organization, as well as travel bans that undermine public health efforts. Experts warn these policies are not only ineffective but actively worsen the crisis by eroding trust and blocking frontline workers. Meanwhile, late-night host Stephen Colbert was abruptly canceled after criticizing CBS’s parent company, Paramount, for settling a $20 billion lawsuit with President Trump—part of a broader pattern of media consolidation and political retaliation under Trump, with the FCC enabling mega-mergers that threaten press freedom. In a parallel development, a growing grassroots movement is resisting the expansion of AI data centers across the U.S., driven by concerns over energy consumption, water use, and wealth concentration. This resistance, now formalized in the AI Resist List, shows how ordinary citizens are pushing back against corporate and state power in the AI era. Despite overwhelming public support for AI regulation, tech billionaires like Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg have successfully stalled federal action through political pressure.