Mahsa Amini's legacy

Plus AI porn and the mental health harms of air pollution [View this email in your browser]( [The Week Evening Review]( Women's rights loom over Iran's elections, the impact of AI porn, and what air pollution does to your brain   Good evening, The pornography industry is "often at the forefront of emerging technologies," said The Guardian, and artificial intelligence is no exception. Watching how porn-focused platforms handle an influx of AI-made content could be a bellwether — the industry's policies to prevent abuse and set ethical boundaries are sure to trickle down. But if you are just looking for some regular ol' content to watch this weekend, we also have some TV recommendations for the new month. Summer Meza The Week Digital     Talking Points What will Iran's elections mean for women? A year ago, women led historic protests against Iran's Islamist government. The spark for that uprising? The death of Mahsa Amini, a young woman who was detained by the Iranian morality police for improperly wearing her head scarf, or hijab. The uprising rattled the regime, but it survived, using arrests and executions to enforce its rule. Now Iranian voters are headed to the polls for the country's first parliamentary elections since Amini's death. That female-led unrest looms over these elections, CNBC said. Many Iranians have "no faith in their country's political institutions," and there have been widespread calls for voters to boycott the polls. The regime, after all, has excluded "any reformist and even many moderately conservative candidates" from running for office. 'Hijab crackdown'"The hijab has been a prominent issue ahead of the elections," two pseudonymous Iranian journalists said at Foreign Policy. Last year's protests against Iran's "strict dress code on women" in turn gave way to a "hijab crackdown" that is "legitimizing broader gender discrimination." Women report they cannot "drive, do their jobs or even have a coffee" without fear of official harassment. And it could get worse. A nearly finalized bill would "widen gender segregation" and increase punishments for hijab violations. But there are small signs of hope. The crackdown bill has "stalled," said Ali Alfoneh for The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. That suggests the "regime cannot reach a consensus" and that leaders might even fear that "approving the legislation could provoke a new round of protests." 'Widespread discontent' The real question is how many Iranians "actually turn out to vote," said The Associated Press. There is "widespread discontent" over the economy and continuing tensions with the West, and the expectation is that many Iranians simply won't cast a vote. A boycott would show that the government "deserves national sanctions and global disgrace," said Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, the imprisoned women's rights activist. This means these elections are a "legitimacy test" for Iran's rulers, Reuters said. Recent protests reveal that young Iranians are "chafing at political and social restrictions." Boycotting the election may be the strongest signal those voters can send. "This passivity is itself a choice," one young woman told CNN, "and a vote of dissatisfaction with the ruling regime."     QUOTE OF THE DAY "This is a night that we are specifically inviting Black people to fill up the space, to feel safe with a lot of other Black people in a place where they often do not feel safe." Playwright Jeremy O'Harris on his choice to host a night for Black people to enjoy his West End show, "Slave Play," "free from the white gaze"   Advertisement by Betterment [Betterment is the automated investing app that puts your money to work](   Today's Big Question Will AI porn transform adult entertainment? The advent of AI is bringing about seismic changes in the world of adult entertainment, sparking a host of legal and ethical questions. The market is about to be changed forever, said The Washington Post, with "artificial intelligence models that spin up photorealistic images and videos that put viewers in the director's chair, letting them create whatever porn they like." What did the commentators say? The last few years have seen an explosion in AI romance apps, such as MyPeach.ai or Replika, which use AI-generated text and imagery to replicate the experience of chatting — and sexting — with someone online. But with the rise of AI romance comes a "host of questionable use cases," said The Guardian, including "pornographic deepfakes (realistic fake images of real people), AI-generated images and text depicting child sexual abuse, and even harassment by clingy chatbots." The prospect of AI in adult entertainment promises "groundbreaking advancements, yet it is fraught with ethical considerations," Naja Faysal, the founder of AI consulting agency Parrots Lab, said on Medium. The possibility of "increasingly immersive experiences integrating virtual and augmented reality" that offer users "unprecedented interactivity and realism" must be weighed, he said, against concerns around consent, objectification and the portrayal of healthy sexual relationships. For example, the lack of consciousness and, therefore, consent from AI sets up a "dynamic where you're ordering the sex acts that you want, and they're being delivered," Lori Watson, a professor at Washington University, said of AI sexbots. "That's not how ethical sex works." What next? The way that AI porn is generated also raises important questions about compensation for performers whose likenesses are used to create content and the impact on jobs in the wider adult entertainment sector. From VHS to DVDs to hosting sites, the porn industry is a "habitual early adopter of new technologies," said The Washington Post. How it adapts to AI in the future matters because it accounts for a substantial chunk of internet traffic. This means AI's role in adult entertainment "isn't just about AI porn," said Faysal. "It's about how we choose to integrate new technologies into our lives, understanding both their possibilities and their challenges."     Statistic of the day 1.38B: The number of obese people worldwide, according to an analysis by medical journal The Lancet. This marks the first time the number of obese people has surpassed one billion. About 879 million adults and 159 million children were found to be obese around the world. CNN   Advertisement by Betterment [Betterment is the automated investing app that puts your money to work](   The Explainer How air pollution affects the brain Air pollution is considered by some to be the "greatest external threat" to life expectancy, and pollution levels climb as climate change worsens. While breathing in particulates can be bad for the heart and lungs, studies show that repeated exposure to pollutants also has effects on the brain. How does it affect the brain physically?One in four Americans is exposed to unhealthy air quality yearly, and that number is expected to go up. It is known that poor air quality can lead to breathing problems and increased cancer risk, but pollution also increases a person's risk of developing dementia, said a 2023 study published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. The most at-risk areas to live in are those with pollution from agriculture and wildfires. "Agriculture we know is using a lot of pesticides," Sara Dubowsky Adar, who worked on the study, said to CNN. "Tiny pollution particles could be getting into the brain through the nose and causing neuronal cell death that is connected to dementia," CNN said. Even living in areas with a "safe" level of pollution can have negative health repercussions. A 2023 study published in the journal Environment International linked air pollution exposure during childhood to brain development. For adolescents, it can lead to an "increased risk for cognitive and emotional problems later in life," Megan M. Herting, the study's senior author, said in a press release. How does it affect mental health?Exposure to air pollution can lead to increased cases of depression, anxiety and psychosis, said a 2023 study published in the British Journal of Psychiatry. High levels of air pollution can also contribute to a plethora of less obvious issues, including "poor housing, overcrowding, poverty, a lack of green spaces, as well as individual social and psychological vulnerabilities such as lack of access to support, carers or safe spaces," said the University of Oxford. As climate change swells pollution and more places become uninhabitable, people will be forced to relocate, and the risk of losing housing can be a large source of stress.     Poll watch Nearly a quarter of Americans have antisemitic prejudices, according to a new poll from the Anti-Defamation League. The poll surveyed more than 4,000 adults and found 24% agreed with a series of statements commonly used as antisemitic tropes. This figure represents an increase from a 2022 poll that found 20% of Americans harbored antisemitic views.     INSTANT OPINION Today's best commentary 'Mitch McConnell: Hero or villain?'Geoffrey Kabaservice in PoliticoSen. Mitch McConnell's retirement as Republican leader ends a "decades-long reign of highly effective legislative leadership," says Geoffrey Kabaservice. But future historians are likely to see him as someone who began as a "pragmatist" favoring a "big-tent party" and shifted dramatically rightward because of his "determination to put party (and his own power) over country." In the process, he fed the polarization that "undermined the Senate's effectiveness" and "destroyed the GOP as a responsible, governing-minded party." 'The Supreme Court trumps Jack Smith'The Wall Street Journal editorial boardThe Supreme Court is right to hear former President Donald Trump's appeal of the D.C. appeals court's "dismissive" rejection of his claim of immunity from criminal prosecution over Jan. 6, says The Wall Street Journal editorial board. Staying out of it would have been the "safe political play" — a ruling is "sure to infuriate one side or the other." But a definitive ruling is essential to prevent the "crippling" of future presidencies by the "threat of post-presidential prosecutions." 'Russia's opposition needs more than one savior'Casey Michel in Foreign PolicyAlexei Navalny's death in a Siberian gulag "effectively snuffed out what many viewed as the clearest path to Russia's eventual democratization," says Casey Michel. He was not going to beat Russian President Vladimir Putin in an upcoming election, but the dream was that Navalny could emerge from prison to lead a democratic transition, like Nelson Mandela did in South Africa. Russia's opposition needs many new heroes, because it was "too risky to place all hopes" in one person.     Picture of the day On the beaten path Brazil's Lucas Vilar prepares for the 400-meter heat during the World Athletics Indoor Championships at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland. Petr David Josek / AP     Good day 🦭 … for elephant seals. Once on the brink of extinction, the resilient animals are expanding into new breeding grounds along the California coast, turning "long-empty beaches" into a "ruckus of roars, grunts, chirps and moans," Phys Org said. The elephant seals are all related and descendants of a colony in Mexico that "escaped the violence of 19th-century hunters."     Bad day 🌭 … for Phillies fans. After over a quarter century, dollar hot dog night during Philadelphia Phillies baseball games at Citizens Bank Park is no more, as the team decided to discontinue what many fans considered one of the ballpark's best promotions. The change comes after some "unruly Phillies fans" started "chucking their favorite Hatfield meat" during a game last year, The Associated Press said.     Puzzles [Daily crossword]( Test your general knowledge with The Week's daily crossword, part of our puzzles section, which also includes [sudoku]( and [codewords](. [Play here](     The Week recommends [TV not to miss in March]( March comes in like a lion with new television releases. It brings a glossy HBO miniseries, a buzzy Netflix sci-fi based on a popular book series, and the return of several old favorites. 'The Regime' (March 3)Kate Winslet is no stranger to starring in HBO miniseries, but her turn in "The Regime" is a far cry from no-nonsense Philly detective Mare Sheehan of "Mare of Easttown." In HBO's new political satire created by "Succession" writer Will Tracy, Winslet flexes her comedic chops and simultaneously struts her stuff. She plays Elena Vernham, the seductive and paranoid chancellor of a fictional European nation who is struggling to keep things under control. Winslet's performance is "hilarious," said Time, as well as a "complex blending of physical and psychological choices," said The Hollywood Reporter. The cast includes Andrea Riseborough, David Bamber, Danny Webb and Henry Goodman, with appearances by Martha Plimpton and Hugh Grant. 'Girls5eva' (March 14)This exuberant Emmy-nominated musical comedy follows the four members of '90s girl group Girls5eva after they reunite in the present day. In Netflix's third season, the ladies are fresh off recording a new album and launching full-steam ahead into a comeback tour, despite having no plan of action or venues booked. Series creator Meredith Scardino was a writer on "The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," and "Girls5eva" is produced by Tina Fey, which explains why the show's spirit is reminiscent of "30 Rock." It is also refreshing to see an ensemble cast of women over 40. Sara Bareilles, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Busy Philipps and Paula Pell star as the now-adult members of Girls5eva, who prove that getting older doesn't mean giving up on your teenage dreams. '3 Body Problem' (March 21)Netflix's hotly anticipated new science-fiction series is based on a book trilogy by Liu Cixin and helmed by Alexander Woo, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss. The latter two created HBO's "Game of Thrones," but their budget for "3 Body Problem" was even bigger, clocking in at $20 million per episode, said The Wall Street Journal. This adaptation is pretty shrouded in mystery, but the trailers showcase some heart-pounding special effects and seemingly extraterrestrial encounters. [Read more](     WORD OF THE DAY tradwife Short for "traditional wife." Tradwives are a group of influencers gaining traction on social media. Often decked out in "retro '50s hairstyles and cinched aprons," CNN said they showcase their dedication to "traditional" gender roles like housekeeping and raising children.     In the morning Tomorrow's Saturday Wrap will bring you insight into the "swatting" epidemic, as well as analysis of Alabama's IVF ruling on frozen embryos. It also poses the question: Is victory still possible for Ukraine?  Thanks for reading and have a great weekend, Summer     Evening Review was written and edited by Theara Coleman, Nadia Croes, Catherine Garcia, Scott Hocker, Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, Justin Klawans, Harold Maass, Kelsee Majette, Joel Mathis, Summer Meza, Devika Rao, Rafi Schwartz, Anahi Valenzuela and Peter Weber, with illustrations by Stephen Kelly and Julia Wytrazek. Image credits, from top: Illustration by Stephen Kelly / Getty Images; Donald Iain Smith / Getty Images; Gary Hershorn / Getty Images; Stewart Cook / Getty Images for Apple TV+   © Future US, Inc • [theweek.com]( [Unsubscribe from this newsletter]( [Privacy Policy]( The Week is published by Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY, 10036.