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By land, sea, air – and online

Laura L. Davis   Paste BN

How Hamas used the internet to terrorize Israel. A look at what's next on the road to lower inflation. And Taylor Swift's “Eras Tour” film surprise.

👋 Hey! Laura Davis here. We’ve made it to Thursday. Now, how about some news?

But first: Let's not burn our retinas out. 😎 Here's how to safely watch Saturday's solar eclipse and still get a good video with your phone.

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Hamas' online terror campaign

The attacks came by land, sea, air – and online. Terror propaganda − violent videos and graphic images of kidnappings and murders of civilians and soldiers that flooded social media from the deadly cross-border incursion into Israel − was a key element in Hamas’ military campaign, said Graham Brookie, senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab. Hamas streamed from the war zone “in closer to real time than in past conflicts,” indicating that the online strategy “was an essential part of the overall planning,” Brookie said. Veterans of conflict zones tracking Hamas' digital footprint were struck by the ferocity and volume of the footage, the likes of which they said they'd never seen. 🔎 Here's a closer look at how it unfolded.

Death toll rises; militant calls for protests stoke fear: An Israeli airstrike killed at least 45 people and wounded dozens in a Gaza refugee camp Thursday, the territory's interior ministry said, likely stoking the global protests a former Hamas leader had already called for that provoked fears among travelers. 👉 Follow our live coverage.

📬 For more updates on the conflict: Sign up for Paste BN's Israel and Hamas War newsletter.

What's next for inflation?

It's a long and winding road ... and while inflation is headed in the right direction, we're still in for a bumpy ride. After picking up over the summer, consumer price increases stayed high in September as steady gains in rent and other services offset another decline in used car prices and a smaller rise in gasoline and food costs. Prices overall rose 3.7% from a year earlier, similar to August's increase, according to the Labor Department’s consumer price index. On a monthly basis, prices increased 0.4% following a 0.6% rise in August. Rent, which has been the biggest inflation driver, rose 0.5% for the second straight month, though that’s down from a spate of stronger gains. 📊 Here's a closer look at where inflation is headed.

What everyone's talking about

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She’s in her movie theater era

Taylor Swift’s cross-country Eras Tour enchanted millions. Now, the musical mastermind is staging a big-screen takeover with her concert movie “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” which is all but assured to win the weekend with a mind-blowing box office opening. And look what fans made her do: The movie was scheduled to open on Friday, but after selling more than $100 million in presale tickets and leaving many people waiting in queues, it will now open a day early on Thursday instead! 🍿 Here’s how to get tickets.

Nikki Haley makes her pitch to New Hampshire voters

Nikki Haley is headed to the town hall. Haley will take questions from voters Thursday evening during the inaugural series of 2024 Republican presidential town halls in Exeter, New Hampshire, hosted by Seacoastonline, Paste BN and the Paste BN Network. While the former South Carolina governor and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations is trailing behind Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis in some polls, she has led other GOP rivals, including Mike Pence and Chris Christie. 🎥 Watch the town hall here.

A break from the news

Laura L. Davis is an Audience Editor at Paste BN. Say hello: laura@usatoday.com. This is a compilation of stories from across the Paste BN Network. Support quality journalism like this? Subscribe to Paste BN here.

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