David Biller

Here’s a preview of the liveblog. We’ll have this running every day.

Live updates: Cardinals return to the Sistine Chapel to vote on a new pope Catholic cardinals return to the Vatican to elect Pope Francis' successor. White and black smoke will signal if a new pope has been chosen or not.

Haven't posted in awhile, but want to share link for anyone wishing to follow @AP's all-formats live coverage of the Vatican's conclave apnews.com/live/conclav...

Até logo, América Latina. Amo demais.👋💚

Finally, I’ve seen Brazil corros leave and list their favorite stories. I won't do that; narrowing down would be a chore rather than a joy, and anyway I’m trying to focus on the future. Bc of that mindset, the saudades haven’t set in, but I have no doubt they will come. (7/8)

I hope those who follow my account for Brazil news will continue, to read & watch AP journalism across Southern Europe. And I welcome story ideas, contacts and account recommendations, as I get
myself situated. (6/8)

On that note, I want to express my gratitude to the
AP’s fantastic team in Brazil, with whom working was a joy and an inspiration, and salute all the journalists in Brazil and LatAm at large. (5/8)

My exit also marks the end of 21 years in LatAm - before Brazil, in Argentina, then Chile, then Mexico, and reporting in/on most of its other countries. I’m reluctant to say that I gave two decades of my life to LatAm, because I feel the region gifted those years to me. (3/8)

Exploring has been fascinating and fun. It's so vibrant, so diverse, so beautiful. There are captivating stories, journalism is crucial to shine a light on important issues, and foreign correspondence in particular to help inform those abroad and help them better empathize. (4/8)

I spent 13 years there, learned so much about political polarization, economics, racism, solidarity and more (including, yes, Carnival.) And I loved the life I carved out for myself in Rio de Janeiro. (2/8)

Some personal news, as they say: this month, I started as
@apnews.com ’s Southern Europe News Director, based in Rome.

I’m thrilled about this new opportunity, but before I posting about the here and now, I feel compelled to say that I left Brazil with a heavy heart... (🧵1/8)

AP PHOTOS: In Rio and beyond, Carnival brings euphoria and release to Brazilians RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — It’s that time of year in Rio de Janeiro: Carnival! Carnival in the Brazilian city has two sides: the street parties, known as blocos, and the parades at the legendary Sambadrome...

The AP’s top photos from Brazil’s Carnival, along with a short story breaking down what Carnival in Rio is all about. Check it out!

📷 @sizqui.bsky.social , Bruna Prado, André Penner

apnews.com/article/braz...

Street vendors dispense the party fuel for Rio’s Carnival, but face pushback as their numbers grow Vendors are a fixture at Rio’s Carnival street parties. They scour Instagram pages for times and locations, coordinate on WhatsApp groups, then race across parks and up hills, from Rio’s downtown to C...

Rio's Carnival street vendors race across parks and up hills to place themselves and their carts in the thronging crush of thirsty revelers. It's an economic lifeline for them, but as their numbers have grown, they've drawn pushback.

📝@eleonorehughes.bsky.social

apnews.com/article/braz...

Oscar fever for Brazil's Fernanda Torres has made her this year's Carnival muse Brazil’s Carnival muse this year isn’t one of the divas or drum queens parading with the Rio de Janeiro samba schools.

Oscar fever for Brazil’s Fernanda Torres has made her this year’s Carnival muse

📝@pessoagabi.bsky.social

apnews.com/article/braz...

A samba school rises to Rio Carnival’s top league, bringing an economic boom to its poor residents

📝diarlei Rodrigues and Mauricio Savarese
apnews.com/article/samb...

Mud-covered Carnival revelers are a strange sight in sleepy Brazilian town Several hundred mud-covered Carnival revelers paraded in the sleepy seaside town of Paraty in southeastern Brazil on Saturday, a decades-old tradition that has grown ever larger since its first editio...

Mud-covered Carnival revelers are a strange sight in sleepy Brazilian town

apnews.com/article/braz...

Carnival 2025: Live updates and photos from Brazil's street parties Brazil’s 2025 Carnival revelry is ramping up, from the raucous street parties to the glitzy parades. Follow AP reporters and photographers as they follow Saturday's pre-Lenten parties.

Today’s the first full day of Brazil’s Carnival. Stay with The Associated Press’ live blog throughout the day, as we bring you into the merry madness.🎉🎊🥳

📝 me, @msavarese.bsky.social, @eleonorehughes.bsky.social
📷 @sizqui.bsky.social, bruna prado, André penner

apnews.com/live/carniva...

A Rio Carnival parade will tell the story of a trans woman nearly burned at the stake A Carnival parade in Rio de Janeiro will present the story of a trans woman nearly burned at the stake in the 16th century as a means to spotlight trans people’s struggle in Brazil, where more of them...

A Carnival parade in Rio will present the story of a trans woman nearly burned at the stake in the 16th century, highlighting the ongoing violence against transgender people in Brazil.

📷Silvia Izquierdo
📝Diarlei Rodrigues & @eleonorehughes.bsky.social
apnews.com/article/braz...

Author behind Oscar-nominated film finds praise and ire for his rebuke of Brazil's dictatorship Marcelo Rubens Paiva, a popular author in Brazil for four decades, has had intense days and exchanges since the movie based on his 2015 book “I’m Still Here” became a box-office success.

Brazilian author Marcelo Rubens Paiva has been dismayed at the outpouring of hatred directed at him since his book "I'm Still Here" became a movie, now competing for the Best Picture Oscar. But says he feels his mission has been achieved.

📝@msavarese.bsky.social

apnews.com/article/braz...

She's the world's most expensive cow, and part of Brazil's plan to put beef on everyone's plate Brazil has hundreds of millions of cows, but one in particular is extraordinary. Her massive, snow-white body is watched over by security cameras and an armed guard.

Here’s that story, which takes you inside Brazil’s weird and wild world of elite cattle breeding

apnews.com/article/braz...

Avaliada em R$ 21 milhões, segunda vaca mais cara do mundo é clonada em MG Nascida há três meses, em Uberaba, no Triângulo Mineiro, o clone da Viatina-19 19 FIV Mara Móveis permanece sob cuidados da clínica genética onde a clonagem ocorreu. De acordo com uma das empresas que...

Last year, I reported on what was then the world’s most expensive cow, worth $4 million. The story included efforts to clone her… and her clone has been born! 🐄 🐄 g1.globo.com/mg/triangulo...

Jogo de bicho gringo
🐈🐰🐀🦊🐻🐷 🐇🐄

New Brazil law restricts use of smartphones in elementary and high schools Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has signed a bill restricting the use of smartphones at school, following a global trend for such limitations.

New Brazil law restricts use of smartphones in elementary and high schools

apnews.com/article/smar...

The coming battle between social media and the state Behind the alignment of X and Meta with Trump is a cold business logic — and a position of weakness rather than strength

"As the surrender of Musk and X to the Brazilian courts shows, state power is likely to always ultimately win against the platforms if tested."

Brazilian box office success of the film “I’m Still Here” is rooted in its exploration of a long-neglected national trauma, but it is particularly timely, especially as Brazil confronts a recent near-miss with democratic rupture.

📝 Gabriela Sá Pessoa

apnews.com/article/braz...

"I have no hopes for 2025. Humanity is disappointing. We killed the Earth. Villains triumph and the innocents suffer. I imagine these trends will continue."

incredible -- the NYT ran fluff "what i hope to see in 2025" blurbs from CEOs and economists, and then this guy

www.nytimes.com/2025/01/02/o...

How bout a troll doll in the rosca?🧌

Brazilian box office success of the film “I’m Still Here” is rooted in its exploration of a long-neglected national trauma, but it is particularly timely, especially as Brazil confronts a recent near-miss with democratic rupture.

📝 Gabriela Sá Pessoa

apnews.com/article/braz...

That’s really interesting, and good to know! Will look into it.

38 people die in a crash between a passenger bus and a truck in Brazil Officials say 38 people have been killed in a crash between a passenger bus and a truck on a highway in Minas Gerais, a state in southeastern Brazil.

38 people die in a crash between a passenger bus and a truck in Brazil

apnews.com/article/braz...

Santa Claus joins sharks for a holiday swim at a Rio de Janeiro aquarium Santa Claus has arrived in Rio de Janeiro — under water. Starting on Saturday, he’ll be spotted at AquaRio Marine Aquarium swimming with sharks during their daily fish feeding sessions as part of the ...

Santa Claus joins sharks for a holiday swim at Rio de Janeiro’s aquarium

apnews.com/article/braz...