The Big Stories of January 2016

January 2016 was much of the same with wars raging on and scandals engulfing the worlds of sports and entertainment.

Headlines

The war against ISIS raged on with targeted attacks on leaders from all coalition forces sending ever more refugees fleeing to Europe while elsewhere terrorist attacks took place with Jakarta hit with bombings.

Weather wreaked havoc globally with blizzards hitting the East coast of America and flooding hitting Europe while the southern hemisphere was dried up with droughts spreading as far as South Africa.

Business

Bitcoin had a bumpy start to the year losing one of it's head developers while the issue of taxation continued with stories of evasion and avoidance dominating. The aftermath of the VW emissions scandal continued to reverberate around the globe while the US Federal Reserve struggled with some tough decisions.

Sports

The world of tennis was rocked by accusations of match fixing casting a shadow over the Australian Open. The future of sports also made headlines with the Olympics on everyone's minds with concerns over the Zika virus to the price tag of the spectacle but it was the controversial past in the form of FIFA corruption that ultimately dragged everyone's hopes down with it.

Entertainment

Most of the talk in the entertainment world centered around awards with the Oscars and controversy over the lack of diversity surrounding the event. While the Oscars had major PR problems the Golden Globes went off without a hitch along with the Critics Choice Awards. Elsewhere the Grammy's managed to build interest while the Sundance Film Festival had everyone trekking to the famous frozen film festival.

Outside of major events we said goodbye to much loved icons in the industry with the deaths of celebrities like David Bowie and Alan Rickman along with Celine Dion's husband and then brother two days later. Other celebrities in the news include Bill Cosby who had a small victory when a lawsuit against him was dismissed after months of sexual assault allegations against him.

Technology

The world of technology and science saw Ebola making a come back after being declared over while cyber crimes made headway thanks to infections in various networks. The technology industry however saw Apple reporting some disappointing numbers while it's peers continued innovating.

Style

In the world of style we saw Men's fashion take to the stage while Paris Couture Fashion Week kicked the year off to a fashionable start.

The Stories that Made 2015

2015 has come and gone with no area left unscathed. We've seen natures majestic intensity and man committing horrific acts. We've seen nations on the brink and hero's made on the field. We saw icons fall from grace and graceful beauty on the catwalk. We saw it all in 2015.

Headlines

The world suffered multiple atrocities with terrorists wreaking havoc indiscriminately killing in Paris and abroad while smaller groups of armed individuals killed with mass shootings and racial profiling.

Mother nature's awesome force was felt by those elsewhere with earthquakes in Nepal and more but it was man who taught nature with the killing of Cecil the lion and a climate on the edge.

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Business

The world teetered on the edge early in the year with Greece threatening to break the Eurozone but pulled through in the end. After that it was business as usual with some straying off the beaten path seeing VW involved in a massive emissions scandal and a pharmaceutical CEO on an ego trip.

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Sports

The world saw world class athlete's compete on the world stage with the Rugby World Cup going to New Zealand and the New England Patriots winning the Super Bowl but it was FIFA that made headlines with a massive corruption scandal that sent shock waves around the globe.

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Entertainment

The entertainment world celebrated at the usual awards ceremonies with all the expected festivities but it was individual entertainers who left their mark. While we lost some talent it was the darker side that made news with Bill Cosby's spectacular fall from grace as sexual assault victims emerged from all corners.

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Technology

The world of technology saw the tech giants show their wares with new gadgets hitting the markets with new promises of a better life. It was also a time for man's achievements to take the spot light with the New Horizons craft reaching the farthest reaches of our solar system and private companies pushing the envelope to reach space.

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Style

The beautiful people made sure they were seen with the Fashion Weeks drawing the fashion elite in droves while celebrities clambered for the spotlight in designer gowns and headed massive campaigns.

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Hollywood is the Gift that Keeps on Giving

It's that time of year where celebrities tried to be on their best behaviour but ultimately failed. On the top of this years naughty list we find R. Kelly who walked out of an interview when his past sexual abuse was mentioned resulting in a painfully awkward exit but not to be out done Bill Cosby said he planned to counter sue several of his sexual assault accusers for defamation. Tom Hardy didn't make any friends either when he pissed off journalists making them wait 4 hours for an interview while Limp Bizkit lead singer Fred Durst discovered he has been banned from entering the Ukraine.

While some celeb's ran into issues others just had bad luck with Johnny Depp being named as the most overpaid actor according to Forbes but even he had a better week than Steve Harvey who handed the Miss Universe crown to the wrong contestant and had to awkwardly apologize for the mistake.

Santa's Naughty Spreadsheet

The business world kept chugging along with the festive season fast approaching but when it came to the naughty or nice list it seems there was an oversupply of naughty this week.

We begin with the Fed raising interest rates due to an improving American economy for the first time in a long time showing promise. Alas things only get worse from here onwards after it was discovered that government agencies had spent a whopping $4.4billion to promote themselves under the Obama administration. But it wasn't just organizations in the news, individuals made headlines with a security guard being arrested for stealing $5million worth of diamonds after they were accidentally thrown out and Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer on the hot seat for a lavish $7million Great Gatsby inspired party even with news of major restructuring at the business. But at the top of the naughty list was the Pharmaceutical CEO who made headlines earlier in the year for raising the prices of AIDS drugs. Martin Shkreli was arrested this week by the FBI for running a ponzi scheme and securities fraud.

Individuals in the News

Time named their Person of the Year with German Chancellor Angela Merkel taking the prize even though she was up against controversial figures like ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and Donald Trump. Speaking of Trump, Donald Trump made the headlines with his continued attack on Muslims pushing for bans on Muslims entering the United States. Mr Trumps continued vilification of Muslims has also lead to petitions from the UK to ban his entry.

In other news it was revealed that the pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli who made headlines for raising the price of a AIDS drugs astronomically had bought the sole copy of Wu-Tang Clan's album for $2 million. Lastly there was buzz this week that the secretive creator of Bitcoin had been found this week in Australia.