A cascade of legal and publicity crises surrounding Taylor Frankie Paul has paused production on Hulu’s The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and prompted ABC to pull the already-shot Season 22 of The Bachelorette days before its March 22 premiere. TMZ published additional footage from a 2023 incident showing Paul throwing barstools at then‑partner Dakota Mortensen; Mortensen has since obtained a temporary protective order and temporary custody of their son. Authorities in Draper City and West Jordan, Utah, are investigating multiple alleged incidents, including a newly reported 2024 episode under review by the West Jordan Police Department. Paul pleaded guilty in abeyance to aggravated assault in 2023 and remains on probation; Salt Lake County prosecutors said new allegations could trigger screening for violations. Production company JJP has hired a third‑party investigator and Disney/ABC/Hulu are reviewing findings. The controversy has generated cast statements, prompted teammates to pause filming, and spilled into wider cast drama — including fellow cast member Jessi Draper’s public divorce and Harry Jowsey posting DMs to counter affair allegations — while reports say Paul will still receive her Bachelorette pay. News surfaced March 25–26, 2026.

Iran-linked hackers claiming the Handala Hack Team said on March 27 they accessed FBI Director Kash Patel’s personal Gmail account and published photographs, a resume and a sample of more than 300 emails online. U.S. officials including the Justice Department and Reuters confirmed the account was compromised; the FBI said the material appears historical and contains no government information and that it has mitigated risks. The Justice Department had seized four domains tied to Handala on March 19 and the State Department is offering up to $10 million through its Rewards for Justice programme for information about the group. Western cyber researchers and U.S. prosecutors have previously tied Handala to Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security and to recent intrusions, including a March attack on medical‑technology firm Stryker. Independent checks by outlets including TechCrunch verified cryptographic email headers for some messages, though the full scope and timing of the breach remain under review. Handala framed the leak as retaliation for the domain seizures and dedicated it to recent naval losses, underscoring cyber operations as part of the wider U.S.–Iran confrontation.

England kicked off World Cup warm-up preparations at Wembley on March 27, 2026, in a 35-man experimental friendly against Uruguay that combined squad auditions with controversy. Thomas Tuchel rested 11 established starters — including Harry Kane, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka — while giving debuts to Everton’s James Garner and Manchester City goalkeeper James Trafford. Arsenal’s Ben White was recalled to replace the injured Jarell Quansah; White, who left England’s 2022 World Cup camp, was urged by Tuchel to “clear the air” with teammates. Real Madrid full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold was conspicuously omitted from the selection and posted “Real Madrid and nothing else,” prompting public debate and criticism from former England captain Wayne Rooney. On the pitch Uruguay defender Joaquín Piquerez suffered a stretchered ankle injury early and was replaced by José María Giménez, who took the captain’s armband. England debuted their new 2026 Nike away kit for the match, broadcast widely across free-to-air and streaming services. Tuchel defended his tactical, intensity-focused selections and said late decisions would shape his final World Cup squad for the summer tournament in North America.

A U.S. federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration and Pentagon from enforcing a directive that would have banned Anthropic’s Claude models from government use and labelled the company a “supply chain risk.” In a 43-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Rita F. Lin granted a preliminary injunction, saying the measures appeared “designed to punish Anthropic,” likely violated First Amendment and due-process protections, and were “arbitrary and capricious.” The injunction pauses government-wide enforcement for seven days to allow an appeal. The legal fight stems from negotiations over a roughly $200m Department of Defense contract in which Anthropic refused a clause allowing the military to use its models for “any lawful use,” including fully autonomous weapons or mass domestic surveillance. Separately, Fortune and other outlets reported that Anthropic accidentally exposed nearly 3,000 unpublished assets in a public content-management system that revealed an unreleased, high-capability model codenamed “Claude Mythos” (also referenced as “Capybara”). Anthropic confirmed Mythos is in early-access testing, flagged cybersecurity risks, and blamed the exposure on a CMS configuration error. The leak coincided with a sell-off in cybersecurity stocks and has heightened concerns inside government and industry about supply-chain resilience and AI-driven offensive cyber capabilities.

The House Ethics Committee’s adjudicatory subcommittee on March 26–27 found Representative Sheila Cherfilus‑McCormick (D‑Fla.) guilty of 25 of 27 alleged violations after a rare, roughly seven‑hour public hearing and overnight deliberations. Investigators say the third‑term congresswoman improperly received millions from her family’s health‑care firm after a roughly $5 million state disaster‑relief overpayment and routed significant sums into her 2021–22 campaigns. The bipartisan panel concluded the evidence met the “clear and convincing” standard and will reconvene after the House returns from its mid‑April recess to recommend sanctions to the full committee — options range from fines or censure to expulsion. Cherfilus‑McCormick, who was indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2025 on charges tied to alleged FEMA overpayments and has pleaded not guilty, denied wrongdoing and said she looks forward to proving her innocence. Her attorney unsuccessfully sought delays, arguing the public process could prejudice an upcoming criminal trial. Several House Democrats publicly called for her resignation, and Republican members signaled they will pursue an expulsion resolution if the committee backs severe punishment. A full House expulsion would require a two‑thirds vote.

K-pop supergroup BTS returned from a near four-year hiatus with the March 20 release of their 10th studio album Arirang and a series of high-profile live and broadcast events that have dominated global music headlines. Data from Hanteo shows Arirang sold about 4.17 million copies in its first week, with reports the record moved 1 million copies within ten minutes and nearly 4 million on day one. The band staged a free comeback concert in Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Square that was livestreamed by Netflix on March 21 and drew a reported 18.4 million global viewers; the feature documentary BTS: The Return premiered on Netflix on March 27. Arirang debuted at No. 1 on album charts in the UK, Australia and Germany while lead single “Swim” achieved new career peaks in several markets (No. 2 UK). BTS promoted the release with U.S. performances — including two Tonight Show sets filmed at the Guggenheim and a Spotify event in New York — and plan a global tour beginning in April. The documentary and press coverage highlight internal creative debates over using the traditional “Arirang” sample and balancing Korean-language authenticity with global appeal.