Your Thursday Evening Briefing

North Korea, Harvey Weinstein, Syria | View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Thursday, May 24, 2018 [NYTimes.com »]( [Your Thursday Evening Briefing]( By KAREN ZRAICK AND VIRGINIA LOZANO Good evening. Here’s the latest. Doug Mills/The New York Times 1. “Sadly, based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement, I feel it is inappropriate, at this time, to have this long-planned meeting.” That was [President Trump, writing to Kim Jong-un of North Korea]( to let him know that their June 12 meeting is officially canceled. But he left the door open to future talks. [Read the letter here.]( North Korea’s remarks had taken a bellicose turn in recent days. Officials there were furious when Mr. Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton, [floated the disarmament of Libya]( in 2003 as a precedent for North Korea’s denuclearization. ____ Steve Crisp/Reuters 2. The movie producer Harvey Weinstein is expected [to be arrested in New York on Friday]( after an inquiry into allegations that he sexually assaulted numerous women. In other #MeToo news: CNN reported that several women have [accused Morgan Freeman of sexual harassment](. One of the authors of the report said Mr. Freeman harassed her, too. And [Moses Farrow, the adopted son of Mia Farrow and Woody Allen]( defended his father against sexual molestation allegations — and accused his mother of abuse. ____ Jacquelyn Martin/Associated Press 3. Congressional leaders from both parties were briefed by law enforcement and intelligence officials [on the F.B.I.’s use of an informant in the Russia investigation](. Above, the deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, on Capitol Hill. House Republicans close to President Trump have been pressing for access to material related to the informant. Their case exploded into view last week, when Mr. Trump accused the agency of planting a spy in his campaign. John Kelly, the White House chief of staff, was invited to attend the briefings — potentially giving him access to closely held information on the investigation. ____ Colton Elliott/U.S. Air Force 4. We obtained new details on one of the bloodiest battles the American military has faced in Syria. The four-hour firefight on Feb. 7, next to an oil facility near the Iraqi border, was described by U.S. officials as an act of self-defense [against pro-Syrian forces — including Russian mercenaries](. For the first 15 minutes of the battle, U.S. military officials called their Russian counterparts and urged them to stop — to no avail. By the end, 200 to 300 pro-Syrian forces had been killed. ____ Francois Lenoir/Reuters 5. If you’re wondering why you got three million emails about privacy policies this week, you can thank the G.D.P.R. That’s the [General Data Protection Regulation]( a tough set of online privacy rules being introduced in Europe this week. They aim to give internet users more control over what data is collected and shared about them, and punish companies that don’t comply. Our tech columnist advises [you to read those emails and respond](. Above, a scene at the European Parliament in Brussels. ____ Bain News Service, via Library of Congress 6. President Trump has pardoned Jack Johnson, the first black heavyweight champion, who was convicted in 1913 of transporting a white woman across state lines for immoral purposes. [Mr. Trump signed the pardon for Johnson]( during an Oval Office ceremony, flanked by Sylvester Stallone, Lennox Lewis and other boxers. The case had drawn significant attention as a symbol of racism in the American justice system. Our [Race/Related team looked at how The Times covered Johnson in his era](. While the harsh and sometimes racist tone of the coverage came as no surprise, it was still jarring. ____ Todd Anderson for The New York Times 7. Elon Musk, the tech billionaire with ambitions to colonize Mars, has been on a tear against the news media. The [chief executive of SpaceX and Tesla is outraged]( over coverage of the many problems that have plagued his companies in recent months. He proposed creating what he called a “[media credibility rating site]( which he suggested calling “Pravda” — the Russian word for “truth” and also the name of a longtime Communist newspaper. ____ Huttenlocker et al. 8. Scientists made a big discovery about a tiny fossil found in Utah more than a decade ago. The fossil, a skull, was found beneath the foot of a dinosaur fossil that paleontologists were examining. Above, a reconstruction made using computed tomography. Researchers say the skull [belonged to an extinct animal known as a haramiyid]( which lived in North America some 130 million years ago. Some researchers believe the animals bridged the transition between reptiles and mammals. The finding shows that haramiyids spread farther across the globe and in a later time period than previously thought. ____ Saeed Adyani/Netflix 9. On Wednesday, we told you about [our sit-down with some of the cast of “Arrested Development.”]( The actors were asked about the sexual harassment allegations against their co-star Jeffrey Tambor on the set of another show, “Transparent,” and his angry outburst on their own set. Several of the actors, including Jason Bateman, above right, appeared to play down the incident, involving their co-star Jessica Walter, even as she said she had never been treated like that in her 60-year career. Following a blistering reaction on social media, [Mr. Bateman apologized for defending Mr. Tambor.]( “I’m incredibly embarrassed and deeply sorry to have done that to Jessica,” [he wrote on Twitter](. “This is a big learning moment for me.” ____ CBS 10. Finally, Stephen Colbert lampooned President Trump for using the term “Spygate” to refer to his unsubstantiated accusations that the F.B.I. planted a spy in his campaign. “A criminal investigation is not spying,” [Mr. Colbert posited](. “It should be ‘investigate-gate.’” Looking ahead, Anne Hathaway, a star in [the new movie “Ocean’s 8,”]( will talk with Mr. Colbert tonight. The film hits theaters on June 8. Have a great night. ____ Your Evening Briefing is posted at 6 p.m. Eastern. And don’t miss Your Morning Briefing. [Sign up here]( to get it by email in the Australian, Asian, European or American morning. Want to catch up on past briefings? [You can browse them here](. What did you like? What do you want to see here? Let us know at [briefing@nytimes.com](mailto:briefing@nytimes.com?subject=Evening%20Briefing%20Feedback). ADVERTISEMENT Sponsor a Subscription Inspire a future generation of readers by contributing to The New York Times [sponsor-a-subscription program](. For every subscription granted through contributions to this program, The Times will provide a digital subscription to one additional student. FOLLOW NYTimes [Facebook] [FACEBOOK]( [Twitter] [@nytimes]( Get more NYTimes.com newsletters » | Sign Up for the [Morning Briefing newsletter »]( ABOUT THIS EMAIL You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Evening Briefing newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Change Your Email]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact]( | [Advertise]( Copyright 2018 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018