New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has sparked widespread discussion by speaking in Bangla, Mandarin, and Spanish to promote a free theater ticket initiative for the city's school students. Social media users have been captivated by his multilingual proficiency. International media outlet The Independent reported this news. As part of the initiative, 2,100 free theater tickets are being distributed to New York high school students. Selected students through a lottery system will receive up to two tickets each. Mamdani released promotional videos in multiple languages to publicize the campaign. He initially released a video in Spanish before surprising audiences by speaking in Mandarin. However, his video in Bengali generated the most attention. At the beginning of the video, Mamdani says, "How are you, New York City high school students?" After delivering his entire message in Bengali, he concludes by saying, "Alright, then see you at the theater." Bengali-speaking residents of New York, alongside people from various countries, have reacted enthusiastically to the video. Many praised his Bengali pronunciation, with one user jokingly remarking that Mamdani seems to be collecting languages one by one. Mamdani was born in Uganda during his childhood, spent time in South Africa, and moved to New York at the age of seven. Throughout his political career, he has previously communicated with voters in various languages, including Arabic, Hindi, and Urdu. Mamdani’s multilingual campaign has generated a tremendous response among New York's diverse, language-speaking communities.

Actress Pori Moni, who has remained a frequent subject of discussion due to various reasons since the beginning of her career, has reached a new milestone on social media, surpassing Bangladesh cricket poster boy Shakib Al Hasan in Facebook followers. With this feat, the popular actress has overtaken the world-class all-rounder to capture the top position in terms of Facebook popularity among national stars. Currently, Pori Moni's official Facebook page boasts over 17 million (1.7 crore) followers. In contrast, Shakib Al Hasan has slightly over 16 million (1.6 crore) followers. Consequently, the actress has claimed the top spot with a margin of nearly one million followers. Prior to this, a tight race in follower counts between Shakib and Pori Moni had been observed on several occasions. Notably, Shakib had pulled ahead in August 2023. However, a recent surge in followers has allowed Pori Moni to reverse that gap. The active engagement of followers on Pori Moni's Facebook page is also quite noticeable. A few days ago, a video post featuring her daughter garnered nearly 90,000 reactions. Before that, three photos of herself captured in the mild sunlight received over 56,000 reactions. Furthermore, views on her recently published videos have ranged anywhere from one million to over 15 million. Despite having over 17 million followers, Pori Moni herself follows only seven accounts, though she keeps the identities of those she follows private. Meanwhile, Pori Moni has become significantly less regular in acting compared to before. Currently, she spends most of her time managing her enterprise "Body" and caring for her children, alongside participating in various promotional activities. Although news surfaced over the past year and a half of her signing on to multiple films, concrete information regarding the progress of those projects remains scarce.

The results of the preliminary Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) examination for enrollment as advocates in the subordinate courts under the Bangladesh Bar Council have been published. Barrister Zaima Zarnaz Rahman, daughter of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, is among the successful candidates. The results were released on the Bangladesh Bar Council’s official website on Friday night (June 12). Zaima Rahman later confirmed her success via a story posted on her verified Facebook account. "Alhamdulillah, I would like to share a small personal milestone with you all," Zaima Rahman wrote. "Today, I appeared for the first step of the Bangladesh Bar Council examination (MCQ) to practice law in my country. By the grace of Allah, I have passed the exam." It is reported that the Prime Minister's daughter took the examination at the BAF Shaheen College center. A total of 37,080 candidates applied for the MCQ exam this year, with 9,201 examinees successfully passing the first stage. [Click here to view the list of successful candidates.] To be officially enrolled as advocates, candidates must pass a rigorous three-tier examination process comprising MCQ, written, and oral tests. Successful enrollment will qualify them to practice in all subordinate courts and tribunals across the country, excluding the High Court Division of the Supreme Court. The Bar Council's Enrollment Committee oversees all decisions and directives regarding the examination process.

In a major move to ensure the online safety of children, Canada has initiated steps to ban social media use for anyone under the age of 16. According to a report by the BBC, the Canadian government has introduced a new bill which, if passed, will see Canada join Australia in implementing some of the world's strictest regulations on youth social media access. The proposed legislation, titled the "Safe Social Media Act," aims to restrict children under 16 from creating accounts or using social media platforms. However, the bill introduces a key variance from Australia's model: tech companies may receive partial exemptions if they can prove they have implemented highly effective safety measures to mitigate harm to minors. Marc Miller, Canada’s Minister of King's Privy Council and Cultural Infrastructure (Culture), introduced the bill in parliament on Wednesday. "Enacting legislation to combat online harm is now a top priority for the government," Miller stated. The new law also includes provisions to regulate Artificial Intelligence-based (AI) chatbots and restrict content deemed harmful to children. To enforce these regulations, the bill proposes the establishment of an independent regulatory body, the "Digital Safety Commission of Canada." Heavy Penalties for ViolationsThe bill explicitly categorizes seven types of "harmful content," including cyberbullying of children, hate speech, incitement to violence, and other high-risk subject matter. Platforms found violating the law could face severe financial penalties, with fines reaching up to 10 million Canadian dollars or 3% of their global annual revenue. However, the proposed legislation has already sparked intense debate. Several organizations advocating for freedom of expression have raised concerns that the new law could pave the way for increased online censorship. They argue that these issues could be effectively managed under existing criminal laws instead. Global concern regarding children's online safety continues to grow. Countries such as Australia, the United Kingdom, France, and New Zealand have already adopted various laws and policy frameworks to tackle the issue. The BBC added that the intersection of artificial intelligence and child safety online is expected to be a key agenda item at the upcoming G7 Summit in France next week.

Popular private broadcasting network Rtv has shattered records in Bangladesh’s competitive social media landscape, rapidly scaling new digital heights by crossing the 26 million (2.6 crore) follower milestone on its primary Facebook page on Friday (June 5, 2026). This historic achievement comes mere days after the network celebrated reaching 25 million followers on May 26, 2026, showcasing an unprecedented surge in digital growth and firmly cementing its title as the country’s most-followed Facebook page. Rtv's trajectory over the past year highlights its immense popularity and steadily accelerating audience loyalty. The network has consistently outpaced competitors through a well-executed online strategy: March 20, 2025: Secured its leading crown by crossing the 22 million follower mark. May 26, 2026: Reached 25 million followers, marking a steady accumulation of 3 million new followers in just over a year. June 5, 2026: Hit the monumental 26 million milestone, gaining an astounding 1 million followers in less than two weeks. According to the network, this massive digital footprint is the result of a robust online strategy initiated over a decade ago when digital media was still in its infancy in Bangladesh. Read More RTV Retains Crown as the Most-Followed Facebook Page in Bangladesh By step-by-step improving content quality, understanding audience demands, and adopting modern technologies, Rtv has successfully forged a profound relationship with its viewers. The platform has stayed ahead in the highly competitive digital space by consistently delivering time-sensitive news, entertainment, trending topics, and exclusive content. For the broadcasting giant, these 26 million followers represent far more than a statistical victory; it is a narrative of deeply rooted trust, love, and an unbreakable bond with the audience. Celebrating this combined milestone, Rtv credited its massive online community, stating: "This success belongs to our viewers; your unwavering trust and confidence in RTV made this possible. Every single follower inspires us, and we extend our deepest love and gratitude to each of you." The network also extended its sincere appreciation to its dedicated team of journalists, content creators, crew members, advertisers, and well-wishers whose combined efforts have driven this historic media achievement.  Moving forward, Rtv management reaffirmed its commitment to utilizing advanced, modern technology to deliver high-quality news and entertainment to an even larger global audience.