War spreads in the Middle East, a coaching legend dies, and several incumbents face tough primaries.
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Trump fires a Cabinet official, and a fluke injury ends an NBA streak: The news quiz
Iran’s president apologizes for strikes on neighboring countries
Iran’s president apologized Saturday for attacks on regional countries even as its missiles and drones flew toward Gulf Arab states, suggesting Tehran’s political leadership could not exercise full command over the Islamic Republic’s armed forces, and rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated demands for surrender.Related video above: Trump vows more firepower, role in choosing next Iranian leaderPresident Masoud Pezeshkian, one member of a tripartite leadership council overseeing Iran since a Feb. 28 airstrike started the war and killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, delivered the defiant message exactly one week into a conflict that has spread across the region, rattled global markets and air travel and left Iran’s own leadership greatly weakened by hundreds of Israeli and American airstrikes.The message, seemingly filmed in a hurry without professional broadcast equipment, again underlined the limited powers being exercised by the theocracy’s leaders over its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which controls the ballistic missiles targeting Israel and others, answered only to Khamenei and appears to be picking its own targets as the conflict widens.While the Iranian president attempted to assuage growing Gulf Arab anger over the attacks, just hours before, a wave of missiles and drones disrupted flights at Dubai International Airport, targeting a major Saudi oil facility and sending people fleeing for cover multiple times in Bahrain.Pezeshkian also kept up his criticism of Trump’s call for Iran to unconditionally surrender to America.“That’s a dream that they should take to their grave,” he said.Miscommunication among Iran’s ranksPezeshkian’s statement Saturday said the country’s three-man leadership council had been in touch with the armed forces over the attacks.“I should apologize to the neighboring countries that were attacked by Iran, on my own behalf,” the president said. “From now on, they should not attack neighboring countries or fire missiles at them, unless we are attacked by those countries. I think we should solve this through diplomacy.”Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi, Iran’s armed forces spokesman, then added more confusion by saying after Pezeshkian that Tehran has “not hit countries that did not provide space for America to invade our country.”The American strikes have not been coming from the Gulf Arab states now under attack.US says more intense bombing lies aheadThere was no foreseeable end to the fighting. Trump’s administration approved a new $151 million arms sale to Israel after Trump said he would not negotiate with Iran without its “unconditional surrender” and U.S. officials warned of a forthcoming bombing campaign they said would be the most intense yet in the weeklong conflict.U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a television interview Friday that the “biggest bombing campaign” of the war was still to come.Iran’s U.N. ambassador said the country would “take all necessary measures” to defend itself.Associated Press video showed explosions flashing and smoke rising over western Tehran as Israel said it had begun a broad wave of strikes.The U.S. and Israel have battered Iran with strikes, targeting its military capabilities, leadership and nuclear program. The stated goals and timelines for the war have repeatedly shifted, as the U.S. has at times suggested it seeks to topple Iran’s government or elevate new leadership from within.The fighting has killed at least 1,230 people in Iran, more than 200 in Lebanon and 11 in Israel, according to officials in those countries. Six U.S. troops have been killed.Iran strikes Gulf States as fighting spreadsIn a sign of the widening nature of the conflict, sirens sounded early Saturday in Bahrain as Iranian attacks targeted the island kingdom. And Saudi Arabia said it destroyed drones headed toward its vast Shaybah oil field and shot down a ballistic missile launched toward Prince Sultan Air Base, which hosts U.S. forces.In Dubai, several blasts were heard Saturday morning, and the government said it had activated air defenses. Passengers waiting for flights out at Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest for international travel, found themselves ushered down into train tunnels at the sprawling airfield after the alert sounded.Later that morning, long-haul carrier Emirates said that “all flights to and from Dubai have been suspended until further notice.”Shortly after, the decision was reversed, and the Emirates said the airline would resume operations. The news brought cheers at Dubai International Airport, where passengers had been sheltering after hearing a large boom overhead. Authorities have not explained if there was an interception or damage at the airport.Iranian naval vessel docked in IndiaThe Indian foreign minister said Saturday that an Iranian naval vessel has docked in India.Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said the IRIS Lavan was moored in the southern city of Kochi after India granted permission when the vessel reported “having problems” on March 1. News agency Press Trust of India, citing unnamed “government sources,” had earlier reported that the ship has been in Kochi since March 4.“I think it was the humane thing to do,” Jaishankar said.A U.S. submarine sank the Iranian warship IRIS Dena off the coast of Sri Lanka on Wednesday. Another Iranian vessel, the IRIS Bushehr, requested assistance from Sri Lanka, where more than 200 sailors were being brought ashore.The ships had previously taken part in naval exercises hosted by India, but Jaishankar said they got “caught on the wrong side of events” once the war began.Qatar warns that war can ‘bring down economies’Qatar’s energy minister, Saad al-Kaabi, warned in an interview with the Financial Times that the war could “bring down the economies of the world,” predicting a widespread shutdown of Gulf energy exports that could send oil to $150 a barrel.The price for a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude rose above $90 on Friday for the first time in more than two years.PHNjcmlwdCB0eXBlPSJ0ZXh0L2phdmFzY3JpcHQiPiFmdW5jdGlvbigpeyJ1c2Ugc3RyaWN0Ijt3aW5kb3cuYWRkRXZlbnRMaXN0ZW5lcigibWVzc2FnZSIsKGZ1bmN0aW9uKGUpe2lmKHZvaWQgMCE9PWUuZGF0YVsiZGF0YXdyYXBwZXItaGVpZ2h0Il0pe3ZhciB0PWRvY3VtZW50LnF1ZXJ5U2VsZWN0b3JBbGwoImlmcmFtZSIpO2Zvcih2YXIgYSBpbiBlLmRhdGFbImRhdGF3cmFwcGVyLWhlaWdodCJdKWZvcih2YXIgcj0wO3I8dC5sZW5ndGg7cisrKXtpZih0W3JdLmNvbnRlbnRXaW5kb3c9PT1lLnNvdXJjZSl0W3JdLnN0eWxlLmhlaWdodD1lLmRhdGFbImRhdGF3cmFwcGVyLWhlaWdodCJdW2FdKyJweCJ9fX0pKX0oKTs8L3NjcmlwdD4=Writing for the Qatar-funded satellite news network Al Jazeera, a regional analyst warned Iran was making “a strategic miscalculation of historic proportions.” Al Jazeera, a Pan-Arab satellite news network owned and funded by Qatar’s government, has been used in the past to signal Doha’s opinions on regional matters.Sultan al-Khulaifi, a senior researcher at the Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies, wrote, “By spreading the conflict to the Gulf, Tehran is doing precisely what Israel could not do alone: steering the war away from the Israeli-Iranian axis and transforming it into a confrontation between Iran and its Arab neighbors.” Saudi Arabia and Pakistan discuss how to stop Iranian attacksOn Saturday, the defense minister of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan’s army chief met to discuss ways to stop the attacks coming from Iran, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported.Saudi Prince Khalid bin Salman, a son of King Salman, talked with Field Marshal Asim Munir in Riyadh about the Iranian attacks. Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan had signed a mutual defense pact that defines any attack on either nation as an attack on both.Also, early Saturday, incoming missiles from Iran had people heading to bomb shelters across Israel, and loud booms sounded in Jerusalem. There were no immediate reports of casualties from Israel’s emergency services.Fighting with Israeli troops reported in eastern LebanonThe Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah said its fighters clashed with an Israeli force that landed late Friday in the mountains of eastern Lebanon.The Lebanese Health Ministry said Saturday that at least 16 people were killed in subsequent Israeli strikes and another 35 were wounded.Israel did not acknowledge the fighting, and its military did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Israel has carried out waves of airstrikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut, where Hezbollah has a large presence, but which is also home to hundreds of thousands of civilians.Lebanon’s Health Ministry says over 200 people have been killed by Israeli strikes since Monday and over 800 wounded.___Mednick reported from Tel Aviv, Israel and Magdy from Cairo, Egypt.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates —
Iran’s president apologized Saturday for attacks on regional countries even as its missiles and drones flew toward Gulf Arab states, suggesting Tehran’s political leadership could not exercise full command over the Islamic Republic’s armed forces, and rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated demands for surrender.
Related video above: Trump vows more firepower, role in choosing next Iranian leader
President Masoud Pezeshkian, one member of a tripartite leadership council overseeing Iran since a Feb. 28 airstrike started the war and killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, delivered the defiant message exactly one week into a conflict that has spread across the region, rattled global markets and air travel and left Iran’s own leadership greatly weakened by hundreds of Israeli and American airstrikes.
The message, seemingly filmed in a hurry without professional broadcast equipment, again underlined the limited powers being exercised by the theocracy’s leaders over its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which controls the ballistic missiles targeting Israel and others, answered only to Khamenei and appears to be picking its own targets as the conflict widens.
While the Iranian president attempted to assuage growing Gulf Arab anger over the attacks, just hours before, a wave of missiles and drones disrupted flights at Dubai International Airport, targeting a major Saudi oil facility and sending people fleeing for cover multiple times in Bahrain.
Pezeshkian also kept up his criticism of Trump’s call for Iran to unconditionally surrender to America.
“That’s a dream that they should take to their grave,” he said.
Miscommunication among Iran’s ranks
Pezeshkian’s statement Saturday said the country’s three-man leadership council had been in touch with the armed forces over the attacks.
“I should apologize to the neighboring countries that were attacked by Iran, on my own behalf,” the president said. “From now on, they should not attack neighboring countries or fire missiles at them, unless we are attacked by those countries. I think we should solve this through diplomacy.”
Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi, Iran’s armed forces spokesman, then added more confusion by saying after Pezeshkian that Tehran has “not hit countries that did not provide space for America to invade our country.”
The American strikes have not been coming from the Gulf Arab states now under attack.
US says more intense bombing lies ahead
There was no foreseeable end to the fighting. Trump’s administration approved a new $151 million arms sale to Israel after Trump said he would not negotiate with Iran without its “unconditional surrender” and U.S. officials warned of a forthcoming bombing campaign they said would be the most intense yet in the weeklong conflict.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a television interview Friday that the “biggest bombing campaign” of the war was still to come.
Iran’s U.N. ambassador said the country would “take all necessary measures” to defend itself.
Associated Press video showed explosions flashing and smoke rising over western Tehran as Israel said it had begun a broad wave of strikes.
The U.S. and Israel have battered Iran with strikes, targeting its military capabilities, leadership and nuclear program. The stated goals and timelines for the war have repeatedly shifted, as the U.S. has at times suggested it seeks to topple Iran’s government or elevate new leadership from within.
The fighting has killed at least 1,230 people in Iran, more than 200 in Lebanon and 11 in Israel, according to officials in those countries. Six U.S. troops have been killed.
Iran strikes Gulf States as fighting spreads
In a sign of the widening nature of the conflict, sirens sounded early Saturday in Bahrain as Iranian attacks targeted the island kingdom. And Saudi Arabia said it destroyed drones headed toward its vast Shaybah oil field and shot down a ballistic missile launched toward Prince Sultan Air Base, which hosts U.S. forces.
In Dubai, several blasts were heard Saturday morning, and the government said it had activated air defenses. Passengers waiting for flights out at Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest for international travel, found themselves ushered down into train tunnels at the sprawling airfield after the alert sounded.
Later that morning, long-haul carrier Emirates said that “all flights to and from Dubai have been suspended until further notice.”
Shortly after, the decision was reversed, and the Emirates said the airline would resume operations. The news brought cheers at Dubai International Airport, where passengers had been sheltering after hearing a large boom overhead. Authorities have not explained if there was an interception or damage at the airport.
Iranian naval vessel docked in India
The Indian foreign minister said Saturday that an Iranian naval vessel has docked in India.
Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said the IRIS Lavan was moored in the southern city of Kochi after India granted permission when the vessel reported “having problems” on March 1. News agency Press Trust of India, citing unnamed “government sources,” had earlier reported that the ship has been in Kochi since March 4.
“I think it was the humane thing to do,” Jaishankar said.
A U.S. submarine sank the Iranian warship IRIS Dena off the coast of Sri Lanka on Wednesday. Another Iranian vessel, the IRIS Bushehr, requested assistance from Sri Lanka, where more than 200 sailors were being brought ashore.
The ships had previously taken part in naval exercises hosted by India, but Jaishankar said they got “caught on the wrong side of events” once the war began.
Qatar warns that war can ‘bring down economies’
Qatar’s energy minister, Saad al-Kaabi, warned in an interview with the Financial Times that the war could “bring down the economies of the world,” predicting a widespread shutdown of Gulf energy exports that could send oil to $150 a barrel.
The price for a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude rose above $90 on Friday for the first time in more than two years.
Writing for the Qatar-funded satellite news network Al Jazeera, a regional analyst warned Iran was making “a strategic miscalculation of historic proportions.” Al Jazeera, a Pan-Arab satellite news network owned and funded by Qatar’s government, has been used in the past to signal Doha’s opinions on regional matters.
Sultan al-Khulaifi, a senior researcher at the Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies, wrote, “By spreading the conflict to the Gulf, Tehran is doing precisely what Israel could not do alone: steering the war away from the Israeli-Iranian axis and transforming it into a confrontation between Iran and its Arab neighbors.”
Saudi Arabia and Pakistan discuss how to stop Iranian attacks
On Saturday, the defense minister of Saudi Arabia and Pakistan’s army chief met to discuss ways to stop the attacks coming from Iran, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported.
Saudi Prince Khalid bin Salman, a son of King Salman, talked with Field Marshal Asim Munir in Riyadh about the Iranian attacks. Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan had signed a mutual defense pact that defines any attack on either nation as an attack on both.
Also, early Saturday, incoming missiles from Iran had people heading to bomb shelters across Israel, and loud booms sounded in Jerusalem. There were no immediate reports of casualties from Israel’s emergency services.
Fighting with Israeli troops reported in eastern Lebanon
The Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah said its fighters clashed with an Israeli force that landed late Friday in the mountains of eastern Lebanon.
The Lebanese Health Ministry said Saturday that at least 16 people were killed in subsequent Israeli strikes and another 35 were wounded.
Israel did not acknowledge the fighting, and its military did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Israel has carried out waves of airstrikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut, where Hezbollah has a large presence, but which is also home to hundreds of thousands of civilians.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry says over 200 people have been killed by Israeli strikes since Monday and over 800 wounded.
___
Mednick reported from Tel Aviv, Israel and Magdy from Cairo, Egypt.
10 Movie Shoots So Off the Rails They Got Their Own Documentaries
Making movies is hard. We all know this. The planning, the pre-planning, the money, the designs, the sets, the mishaps, the studio notes, the recastings, the emergency rewrites, the reshoots—it’s a wonder anything gets made at all. But plenty do, even the films with decidedly difficult production processes. For some of these films, the story of their making is almost as good as the movies themselves.
There’s an art to a great making-of documentary, and even more of an art to a making-of documentary that revolves around an unusually arduous production. There are always problems that arise with any project of this kind of scale, but some problems are bigger and more widespread than others, and some films, for one reason or another, end up having a whole lot of problems. These are the movies whose filming was so near-impossible that the fact that any of them actually got to a theater feels like a miracle. (And a few of them didn’t even make it that far.) Basically, if a movie looks like it was particularly difficult to make, chances are it probably was.
Many of the movies you’ll find here are famous partially because their productions were so difficult they got their own documentaries. For others, the cracks are visible only after all the problems come to light years later. A few of these were never released in their original form—one of them was never made at all. Whatever the case, watching these making-of documentaries will make you appreciate the lengths that people will go to to make sure even a small piece of their vision sees the light of day, even if it means turning your cast and crew into nervous wrecks to get there.
10 Movie Productions So Terrible They Made Documentaries About Them
The process is almost more interesting than the finished product.
Gallery Credit: Emma Stefansky
READ MORE: Good Movies That Won Razzie Awards For Some Reason
10 Horror Movies That Saved Bad Franchises
These good movies saved struggling horror sagas from oblivion.
For Some Influencers, Epstein Conspiracy Theories Are Big Business
Documents meant to shed light on Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes are feeding unfounded theories online about baby farms, murder and cloning.
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Expert picks for Duke vs. North Carolina, top games on regular season’s last Saturday
The final weekend of the college basketball regular season is here. Teams across the country will have one final game this weekend before the real fun starts with power conference tournaments starting next week in the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Big East and the SEC.
There is plenty of intrigue with Selection Sunday just over one week away. Saturday’s college basketball action begins in Stillwater, Oklahoma, when Oklahoma State hosts No. 7 Houston on CBS. That game will be part of a tripleheader on the network, with showdowns between No. 14 Kansas and Kansas State and No. 15 Purdue and Wisconsin coming shortly after.
One of the best rivalries in sports renews at Cameron Indoor Stadium when No. 1 Duke hosts No. 17 North Carolina. This game will be a rematch of one of the best games of the regular season, won by the Tar Heels in upset fashion. After trailing for almost the entire 40 minutes of regulation, UNC star Seth Trimble knocked down a 3-pointer in the final second to give his team a dramatic win.
Reigning national champion Florida wrapped up the SEC regular-season title already, but it is still in contention to earn a No. 1 seed on Selection Sunday. The Gators will face Kentucky in their final game before the SEC Tournament begins next week in Nashville.
What is next for North Carolina after Caleb Wilson’s season-ending injury?
Isaac Trotter
Our experts have picks for all of Saturday’s big games below.
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook | All times ET
No. 7 Houston at Oklahoma State
12 p.m. on CBS, CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App, Paramount+ Premium: Oklahoma State’s defense can be just too rogue against this Houston backcourt. If JoJo Tugler can stay out of foul trouble, the Cougars could dominate the boards and hold the ‘Pokes at arm’s length. Pick: Houston -10 (Isaac Trotter)
Kansas State at No. 14 Kansas
2 p.m. on CBS, CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App, Paramount+ Premium: Kansas is coming off a brutal swing through Arizona that saw the Jayhawks go 0-2 with losses by a combined 33 points. But don’t get fooled into thinking the Jayhawks are bad enough to be challenged by Kansas State at home. KU won the first meeting by 24 on the road and should have no problem matching that margin on Senior Day inside Allen Fieldhouse. This is the ideal “get right” spot for Kansas entering the Big 12 Tournament, and the Jayhawks should roll to an authoritative victory. Pick: Kansas -17 (David Cobb)
Wisconsin at No. 15 Purdue
4 p.m. on CBS, CBSSports.com, CBS Sports App, Paramount+ Premium: Vroom-vroom guards have given Purdue lots of issues this season, and Wisconsin has two of them in Nick Boyd and John Blackwell. That duo combines for 38 points a night, and they can toggle back and forth depending on who has the best matchup. If the Badgers’ bigs can hold their own on the glass and knock down some pick-and-pop treys, the Badgers can hang around in this one. Purdue wins; Wisconsin covers. Pick: Wisconsin +8 (Trotter)
No. 5 Florida at Kentucky
4 p.m. on ESPN, fuboTV (try for free): It’s still unclear who is going to earn the final No. 1 seed on Selection Sunday. Duke, Michigan and Arizona seem like locks to remain on the No. 1 line regardless of what happens over the next eight-ish days. There are not many teams playing as well as Florida right now. The Gators will be a dangerous out, regardless of where they ultimately land in the bracket. Florida has won 10 straight games. Kentucky has been one of the most confusing teams in the country. Florida wins this game easily. Pick: Florida -7 (Cameron Salerno)
No. 17 North Carolina at No. 1 Duke
6:30 p.m. on ESPN, fuboTV (try for free): Just over 24 hours before tip-off, North Carolina announced that star forward Caleb Wilson would miss the remainder of the season after suffering a broken thumb in practice. It’s a devastating blow for the short- and long-term future of UNC basketball. Wilson was incredible in the first matchup against Duke. Others will have to step up. Duke should be able to finish the regular season at home with a win over its in-state rival. In both of Duke’s losses this season, late-game blunders cost them. Duke hasn’t lost at home this season, and I expect that to continue this weekend. Still, even without Wilson, UNC keeps this game somewhat close and covers the 16-point spread. Pick: North Carolina +16 (Salerno)
No. 16 Alabama vs. Auburn
8:30 p.m. on ESPN, fuboTV (try for free): The term “must-win” only applies during the NCAA Tournament when it’s quite literally win-or-go-home. Still, it’s hard to overstate the importance of this game for Auburn. The Tigers are walking a dangerous line on ending up on the wrong side of the bubble after losing seven of their last nine entering this game. A win over Alabama would go a long way toward securing an at-large berth. Unfortunately for Auburn, I don’t think that happens. Alabama wins. Pick: Alabama -9 (Salerno)
Who will win and cover in every college basketball game? Visit SportsLine to get picks from the model that simulates each game 10,000 times and is up more than $1,200 for $100 players on its top-rated spread picks the past six years.
Hegseth on reports Russia aided Iran: “Anything that shouldn’t be happening” will be “confronted strongly”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that President Trump is “well aware of who’s talking to who” amid reports that Russia is providing intelligence to Iran on U.S. movements in the region.
Hegseth told Major Garrett in an interview airing Sunday on “60 Minutes” that the U.S. is “tracking everything” and factoring it into battle plans. “The American people can rest assured their commander-in-chief is well aware of who’s talking to who,” he said. “And anything that shouldn’t be happening, whether it’s in public or back-channeled, is being confronted and confronted strongly.”
Earlier Friday, multiple sources, including a senior U.S. official, told CBS News that Russia is providing intelligence to Iran regarding U.S. positions in the Middle East during the ongoing joint U.S. and Israeli military operations in Iran. It was the first known indication that Russia is aiding Iran.
Asked if the American people can expect conversations with the Russians to stop their involvement in the conflict, Hegseth said Mr. Trump “has a unique relationship with a lot of world leaders where he can get things done that other presidents, certainly Joe Biden, never could have.” He added that “through direct conversations or indirect, through him one-to-one or through his Cabinet, messages definitely can be delivered.”
When asked whether Russia’s involvement puts U.S. personnel in danger, Hegseth said: “We’re putting the other guys in danger, and that’s our job. So we’re not concerned about that. … But the only ones that need to be worried right now are Iranians that think they’re gonna live.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, when asked during an appearance on Fox News about Russia providing intelligence to Iran on U.S. assets, said she could not comment on “intelligence reports that are leaked to the press.” The intelligence aid from Russia was first reported by The Washington Post.
“Whether or not this happened, frankly, it doesn’t really matter, because President Trump and the United States military are absolutely decimating the rogue Iranian terrorist regime,” she said.
Later, Leavitt clarified to reporters that she meant Russia sharing intelligence on U.S. assets with Iran “doesn’t matter” because “it clearly is not making a difference with respect to the military operations in Iran, because we are completely decimating them.”
Watch more of Major Garrett’s interview with Hegseth Sunday on “60 Minutes.”
Colder air moves in to start the weekend, but warms up again quickly
March-like weather has returned to New Mexico, but the cooler stretch will be short lived. Temperatures begin warming again Sunday, with much warmer weather next week. It is noticeably cooler across New Mexico Friday, with high temperatures running 5° to 20° cooler than Thursday. A Pacific cold front moved through the state overnight, bringing a […]
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Apple Music Introduces AI Transparency Tags As Streaming Platforms Tackle AI-Generated Music Surge
AI-generated music has exploded in recent months, forcing streaming platforms to develop new ways to manage and monitor content. Companies like Suno and Udio are enabling users to generate millions of songs, but the boom has sparked controversy and copyright disputes.
In November, Billboard reported that Suno produces 7 million tracks daily, effectively generating Spotify’s entire catalog every two weeks. Suno co-founder Mikey Shulman recently revealed the platform has 2 million paid subscribers and more than 100 million total users creating music, including on the free version.
Meanwhile, Deezer reported more than 60,000 AI-generated tracks uploaded daily in January 2026 – six times the rate from a year earlier. Synthetic content now accounts for roughly 39% of Deezer’s uploads, and over 13.4 million AI tracks have been flagged by its detection system since 2025.
Deezer has focused on detecting AI tracks independently at the platform level to prevent fraud, which it says drives the majority of uploads. “We know that the majority of AI-music is uploaded to Deezer with the purpose of committing fraud, and we continue to take action,” said CEO Alexis Lanternier.
Up to 85% of AI streams in 2025 were deemed fraudulent, compared to just 8% across the platform’s entire catalog. Deezer has licensed its AI detection tool to other organizations, including French collecting society Sacem.
Spotify has taken a different approach, tightening policies in September 2025 to remove tracks that impersonate artists without consent, filter spam, and require AI usage disclosure in credits. The platform also removed 75 million spam tracks over the past year.
Apple Music’s newly announced framework, launched March 4 via a newsletter captured by Music Business Insider, takes a disclosure-focused approach rather than technical enforcement. The platform introduces Transparency Tags, which allow record labels and distributors to flag AI usage across four elements: Artwork, Track, Composition, and Music Video. Labels can apply multiple tags simultaneously, but Apple does not currently verify or enforce compliance.
“Proper tagging of content is the first step in giving the music industry the data and tools needed to develop thoughtful policies around AI,” Apple said.
“We believe labels and distributors must take an active role in reporting when the content they deliver is created using AI… a concrete first step toward the transparency necessary for the industry to establish best practices and policies that work for everyone.”
The contrast between Apple’s voluntary tagging system and Deezer’s technical enforcement highlights the broader challenge facing the industry: balancing transparency, artist rights, and the flood of AI-generated content.
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Vincorion Plans Frankfurt Listing as European Defense Spending Rises
The defense and aviation supplier expects the IPO to be completed by the first half of 2026, and said it is well-positioned to tap into rising European defense budgets.
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