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This rallying cry is alluring for many of the 4 million Iranian exiles and expats worldwide, just under a third of whom live in the U.S., according to Iranian Foreign Ministry statistics from 2021.

“If change does come, the only path that offers both stability and a sense of national continuity is through Pahlavi,” said Amin, 38, an Iranian now living in Canada who declined to give his second name or exact location because of fear of speaking out against the regime even from abroad.

There is a disagreement among experts about Pahlavi’s popularity inside Iran itself.

A 2022 study by Gamaan, a Dutch-based research group, gauged Pahlavi’s domestic popularity at 39%, far more than then-Prime Minister Ebrahim Raisi, in second with 17%, and imprisoned Nobel Peace laureate Narges Mohammadi on 15%.

“He is the only national figure inside Iran with cross-generational, cross-class, and cross-ethnic legitimacy,” one prominent Iranian diaspora account on X, @upuouo, said last week.

Other contenders abroad include the dissident group Mujahedeen e-Khalq, more commonly known as the MEK, which has gained high-profile supporters including the former New York mayor and Trump ally Rudy Giuliani. But MEK, widely seen by Western experts as a cult, has negligible support inside Iran thanks to its backing for Saddam Hussein during the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-88.

Critics of Pahlavi see him as the pro-Western figurehead of a dynasty that took power in the 1920s aided by the British, cemented its grip with help from the CIA, and is only poised for a return following airstrikes by Israel and the U.S.

Amin Aghdasi, 30, from Tehran, described him as “a coward who betrays his nation” and someone waiting “for power to be handed to him.” Pahlavi “thinks a war criminal like Bibi can help bring back his monarchy,” Aghdasi added, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

NBC News has requested comment from Pahlavi’s media team, both on concerns about his familial ties to his father’s legacy, and the decision to use preselected questions at his news conference.

Some analysts are also skeptical of polling inside Iran, where some opinions can lead to jail or worse.

“There’s been a real push to get Pahlavi to be seen as a credible opposition figure in Iran, but my sense is he’s not,” said Dina Esfandiary, the Middle East geoeconomics lead for Bloomberg Economics, Bloomberg’s internal research division. “He’s got a following outside of the country,” but “honestly, inside Iran, not that much. He hasn’t been inside the country in over 40 years” and many “people believe his family is the reason why Iran is where it is today.”

She agrees there are few good options.

“That’s one of the reasons why the Iranian people, while they want change, are afraid of it, because they have nobody to coalesce around,” she said. Any lasting solution, she thinks, would “need Iranians to work together and to present a viable opposition.”

One reason that’s not been possible domestically is Iran’s crushing of successive protest movements with deadly force. Most notably the Green Movement of 2009, in which marchers railed against that year’s rigged election, and the mass outcry over the death of Mahsa Amini following her detention for not following female headscarf laws in 2022.

In Paris, Pahlavi sought to portray himself as a model of openness and selflessness who would help birth a new peaceful and democratic era in Iran, perhaps along the lines of Spain’s King Juan Carlos I who helped dismantle the authoritarian regime of Francisco Franco and establish a parliamentary monarchy.

Though he was reluctant to give a formal name to the transitional role he might play — saying “I don’t believe I need a title” — he was unequivocal about his message to the ayatollah.

“Step down,” he said down the barrel of the camera. “If you do, you will receive a fair trial and due process of law — which is more than you have ever given any Iranian.”

An attorney representing rapper Fat Joe’s former hype man was arrested Wednesday, accused of hitting a process server with his car in New York City.

Attorney Tyrone Blackburn, 40, was taken into custody Wednesday morning and booked for assault, the New York City Police Department said. Blackburn did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.

The arrest is the latest in a back and forth between Fat Joe, whose real name is Joseph Antonio Cartagena, and his former hype man Terrance “T.A.” Dixon and Dixon’s lawyer, Blackburn.

According to Fat Joe’s attorney, Joe Tacopina, it all started on March 23 when Dixon and Blackburn sent the rapper a written demand letter seeking money for being a “ghostwriter and uncredited vocalist” on some of Fat Joe’s songs.

Fat Joe disregarded the demands, but on April 21 Blackburn and Dixon sent a follow up demand letter threatening to file a lawsuit not just for unpaid wages, but for other allegations including rape, forced labor, sex trafficking and fraud — all claims Tacopina called “false and outrageous” and “with utter disregard for truth or decency.”

As a result, Fat Joe filed a civil lawsuit against Dixon and Blackburn in April alleging extortion, defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

When the process server went to hand that paperwork to Blackburn, the attorney allegedly hit him with his vehicle, Tacopina said.

A warrant was issued for Blackburn’s arrest on Thursday, according to Tacopina. That same day, Blackburn and Dixon filed a $20 million federal lawsuit against Fat Joe in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

That lawsuit alleged the rapper forced Dixon to engage in thousands of sex acts with women, and also alleges he was underpaid, denied songwriting credits and threatened.

Tacopina previously told NBC News those claims were “complete fabrications” designed to damage the rapper’s reputation.

“Tyrone Blackburn’s arrest comes as no surprise to me — it’s just the latest example of his malicious and manipulative pattern of misconduct finally coming to light,” Tacopina said in a statement Wednesday.

“Blackburn is an embarrassment to the legal profession and it’s a disgrace watching him use the court system to shield his extortion tactics. This is exactly why Mr. Cartagena proactively sued Blackburn and his client Terrance Dixon in April because he knew they intended to try to destroy his reputation by peddling salacious lies,” he continued. “Today’s arrest is just the first step, but I’m confident that my client’s name will be cleared from all of these falsehoods and Blackburn will be brought to justice once and for all.”

Blackburn has represented high-profile clients in the past. In February 2024, he filed a lawsuit on behalf of Diddy accuser producer Lil Rodney. In that case, Lil Rodney accused Combs of sexually harassing, drugging and threatening him. Combs’ attorneys denied those allegations.

The Tennis Channel is extending its deal with the Women’s Tennis Association that will see the cable TV network and streaming service continue to broadcast more than 2,000 matches each season.

While terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, Tennis Channel CEO Jeff Blackburn told CNBC in an interview there was a “pretty big step up in our payments” to the WTA for the U.S. media rights, which includes international tournaments and the WTA Finals event. The new agreement lasts through 2032.

“Our goal and mission is to just cover pro tennis and the game of tennis like no one else, every day, every hour, all year round. There’s no offseason,” Blackburn said. “WTA plays a huge role in that and it was a big priority for me to make sure that we renewed our relationship and extend it as long term as we were able.”

The exclusive rights renewal comes as the Tennis Channel is in the midst of a transition on several fronts.

Last year, longtime Tennis Channel CEO Ken Solomon was ousted from the company. Blackburn stepped into the role in early May, following a 24-year career at Amazon, where he helped to build out Prime Video and expand the streaming service into sports, among other businesses.

Meanwhile, Sinclair, the owner of broadcast stations as well as the Tennis Channel, had recently considered offloading the network, CNBC previously reported. The parent company, however, is no longer exploring a sale of the Tennis Channel, particularly since Blackburn has taken the helm, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss nonpublic details.

In the backdrop, the Tennis Channel, like its network peers, is contending with the continued loss of customers from the pay-TV bundle. While live sports garner the biggest audiences — and leagues have reaped huge rights payouts as a result — media companies are focused on growing the profitability of their streaming businesses.

In 2014 the 24/7 tennis network took its first step into streaming with Tennis Channel Plus, and later in 2022 introduced Tennis Channel 2, a free, ad-supported streaming channel. While Blackburn said Tennis Channel 2 has been successful and attracted a younger audience, he is focused on beefing up the Tennis Channel’s recently launched direct-to-consumer streaming app.

The app, which launched in November 2024, costs $9.99 a month or $109.99 annually and offers the same programming as the pay-TV network. Media companies are increasingly offering the same live sports featured on pay-TV networks on their counterpart streaming alternatives — most notably with the launch of Disney’s flagship ESPN app later this year.

“What’s important about the partnership is that they’re committing to doing more with us,” said Marina Storti, CEO of WTA Ventures, the commercial arm of the WTA. “They’re committed to that increased exposure across all of their platforms. They’re committed to ensuring this kind of equal exposure for women and men, where they have the rights. And they’re making a significant commitment. There is a substantial increase in the rights fees, which is a big milestone for us as part of our plan and commitment to growing.”

The Tennis Channel’s agreement with the WTA covers a large swath of the WTA’s tournaments outside of North America through the season-closing WTA Finals.

The audience for WTA events on the Tennis Channel has been growing, particularly among the younger demographic. Viewership among 18- to 34-year-olds on the Tennis Channel has grown annually for each of the past two years, according to a news release.

‘Equal footing’

The deal comes as American female tennis players have shot to the top of global rankings and women’s sports in general have seen a rise in popularity and investment funding.

Already in 2025, two American women have won two of the top majors: Madison Keys took the Australian Open in January, and Coco Gauff was crowned the winner of the French Open in June. Gauff and Keys will be among the participants at Wimbledon, which kicks off on Monday.

“Tennis is really the only major sport where the men’s and women’s game is on equal footing, and that’s really important,” said Blackburn. “I think for tennis it makes it unique. The growth of women’s sports overall? Maybe basketball and soccer will get there, but I think tennis is way ahead in terms of providing that for the fan.”

The Tennis Channel 2 free streaming option has earmarked every Tuesday as “Women’s Day” — showing only women’s match coverage — and Blackburn highlighted the network’s roster of heavy-hitting female talent, including former players and Hall of Famers Martina Navratilova and Lindsay Davenport, among others.

The deal extension also builds on WTA Ventures’ recent efforts to grow its commercial revenue and build the profiles of its athletes.

In 2023 the WTA formed a strategic partnership with private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, which invested $150 million for a 20% stake in the newly created WTA Ventures. The entity was formed to focus on growing commercial revenue through sponsorships and media rights deals, with the goal of tripling its revenue by 2029.

In 2024 WTA Ventures said it expected to increase revenue by 24% in its first full year.

The media rights extension marks the first renegotiation with the Tennis Channel under the WTA Ventures framework. The WTA’s long-standing media rights deal with streaming service DAZN expires at the end of next year, and talks have begun for new deals that would begin in 2027, said Storti.

WTA Ventures said its global audience surpassed 1 billion viewers on broadcast and streaming last season, and Storti said the U.S. is among one of the WTA’s biggest growth markets, along with China and Poland.

“We are a completely mass-market product that attracts hundreds of millions of fans across the world, and I would say we deliver a product that stands kind of shoulder to shoulder with the men counterpart,” Storti said.

The WTA has also recently emphasized improvements for players.

This year it’s has announced a paid maternity leave funded by the Saudi Public Investment Fund, as well as a new policy allowing players to protect their rankings during fertility treatments

Still, tennis is not without its issues of disparity. While the U.S. Open awarded equal prize money to men and women beginning in 1973, it was decades ahead of Wimbledon and other majors. And while equal prize money is given at the majors level, there’s still a considerable pay gap at lower-level tournaments.

The sport also drew criticism around the 2025 French Open when the majority of prime-time slots went to men’s matches.

A social media fitness influencer known as the “Liver King” was arrested on Tuesday after posting threatening messages directed to popular podcaster Joe Rogan on social media, according to police.

The Austin Police Department said in a statement that they arrested Brian Johnson after learning that he was traveling to Austin, where Rogan lives, and threatening the highly influential podcaster in a series of videos he posted to Instagram.

“Joe Rogan, I’m calling you out, my name’s Liver King. Man to man, I’m picking a fight with you,” Johnson said in a video he posted on Monday. “I have no training in jiu-jitsu, you’re a black belt, you should dismantle me. But I’m picking a fight with you. Your rules, I’ll come to you, whenever you’re ready.”

In another video he posted that day, he similarly challenged Rogan to fight “man to man.”

“You never come across something like this, willing to die, hoping that you’ll choke me out because that’s a dream come true,” Johnson said.

Police said they contacted Rogan on Tuesday, who told them that he never previously interacted with Johnson and considered the posts to be threatening.

Later that day, Johnson was apprehended at the Four Seasons Hotel and charged with terroristic threat, a class B misdemeanor, police said.

Representatives for Johnson and Rogan did not immediately return requests for comment.

The “Liver King’s” videos promote what he describes as the “ancestral lifestyle,” which includes consuming large amounts of raw meat and animal organs, particularly animal liver. His dietary techniques have been criticized by nutritionists for spreading misinformation.

Johnson has never been a guest of Rogan’s highly successful podcast. However, Johnson and his alleged steroid use — which Johnson initially denied and then later apologized for — were the subject of one of Rogan’s podcast episodes in 2023, which has more than 8.7 million views on YouTube.

A video showing Johnson being handcuffed and put into a police vehicle was posted to his Instagram account — which has more than 3 million followers — on Tuesday.

Most governments and people in Europe agree with Trump’s stated premise that they need to spend more on their militaries — and stop their historical, postwar reliance on the United States. But Trump’s perceived unpredictability still causes great anxiety on the continent, particularly the president’s repeated questioning of the mutual defense promise at the heart of NATO, which was established after World War II to counter the Soviet Union.

This summit is expected to see most of NATO’s 32 allies agree to Trump’s demand to more than double their defense spending targets to 5% of gross domestic product. This caused disquiet when Trump first suggested it in January, but has been accepted without too much open protest now.

However, some defense-industry analysts say that even such lofty targets may not satisfy Trump — a man who has repeatedly treated the European members of the alliance with open hostility, and upended decades of U.S. policy by initiating a rapprochement with the leader of Russia, President Vladimir Putin.

Sven Biscop, a director at the Egmont Institute think tank in Brussels, agrees with raising European defense spending. But he believes “the focus on the 5% target is the wrong tactic” because Trump appears to have “plucked this number out of thin air.”

“If it’s meant to keep Trump happy, I don’t think it will keep him happy for very long,” Biscop said.

He warned European countries they may find themselves in a “catch-22.” If they don’t raise spending, “Trump will say, ‘Well, if you don’t even want to defend yourself, why should I do it for you?’” he said. “But if we do strengthen our defense, Trump will say, ‘You can clearly do it by yourself, so I will reduce my commitment anyway.’”

The previous NATO leader, Jens Stoltenberg, became known as a “Trump whisperer” for his deft handling of a president who reportedly wanted to quit the alliance altogether. But Rutte has gone even further in his praise of the American president.

Rutte’s text message was “so subservient and obsequious,” Biscop said. “It’s also counterproductive. I think he will lose respect from other leaders and it won’t buy respect from Trump.”

NATO declined to comment when NBC News asked about the criticism of Rutte’s language.

Europe’s central dilemma remains: how to placate a president who has openly stated his opposition to multilateral organizations and unabashedly referred to Europe as a “foe”?

Since Trump’s first term, many European leaders have accepted they can no longer rely on the level of commitment offered by Atlanticist presidents such as Joe Biden. The calculus of Biden and his predecessors was that America underwrites European security, and in return has a huge influence over political, diplomatic and even cultural happenings on the continent and beyond.

With Trump doubling down on his rejection of this model, European powers have this year committed hundreds of billions more to their defense industries, vowing to ramp up production and purchasing of military equipment.

That still leaves another “pretty critical question for European leaders,” said Brett Bruen, the director of global engagement for President Barack Obama and a career American diplomat. What does European military independence “truly mean?” he said.

Trump has for years suggested that he would not honor Article 5 — NATO’s central clause that suggests allies would come to each other’s aid if attacked. Though he tried to allay these fears Wednesday — saying “We are with them all the way” when asked about the clause — many officials and experts say occasional notes of support do not undo the damage of previous comments undermining an alliance built on trust.

In answer to a question about concerns in Europe over Trump’s commitment to NATO, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told NBC News: “President Trump secured a massive win by delivering a historic 5% spending pledge, and America’s place as the leader of the free world has been restored. This President has done more than anyone to advance global stability, and now, Europe and the entire world can benefit from peace through strength.”

If Europe does trust the U.S. to honor its Article 5 commitments, then it might only need to augment the gaps in American military presence on the continent, said Bruen, now president of the Global Situation Room, a communications firm based in Virginia. But if the uncertainty persists, then European forces would need to be a “backstop to American capabilities, which is both duplicative and dumb,” he said.

“The whole security architecture of Europe has been predicated on the notion that we’re doing this together,” he added. But “Trump hasn’t yet said whether or not the U.S. will remain a steadfast partner of Europe, or whether he’s intent on pulling back.”

The “biggest problem going forward is: What does Article 5 mean to Donald Trump,” Bruen added.

Former Massachusetts GOP Sen. Scott Brown is making another run for Senate in New Hampshire.

Brown ran unsuccessfully for Senate in New Hampshire in 2014, after representing Massachusetts in the Senate from 2010 to 2013. After his failed New Hampshire run, Brown served as President Donald Trump’s ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa during Trump’s first term.

Brown touted his background in his launch video, also saying, “Like a lot of you, I’m worried about where the country is headed.”

“New Hampshire is an amazing place to live, work and raise a family,” Brown said. “We’ve been blessed by two great governors: Chris Sununu and Kelly Ayotte. But in Washington, we haven’t been represented by the right people.”

Brown then took direct aim at Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas, who is running for Senate to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen.

“For four years, Chris Pappas has stood by Joe Biden as he opened the border, drove up the cost of everything and made life just simply unaffordable,” Brown said.

Brown also praised Trump, saying, “He sealed the border, he stood up to China, and he restored our standing in the world,” showing an image of Trump in the Situation Room taken as Trump authorized strikes against Iran.

Pappas responded to Brown’s announcement, saying in a statement that Brown “stands with corporate special interests, supports efforts to strip away health care coverage from tens of thousands of Granite Staters, and backs President Trump’s reckless tariffs that New Hampshire small businesses are speaking out against every single day.”

“While Scott Brown looks for yet another opportunity to do Wall Street’s bidding and blindly support President Trump and his agenda, I’ll always put New Hampshire first,” Pappas added.

The open seat race could be competitive next year. Former Vice President Kamala Harris won the state by 3 percentage points in 2024.

A DoorDash executive and members of his family have been identified among the eight people who died in a boating accident on Lake Tahoe over the weekend.

Joshua Antony Pickles, 37, from San Francisco, died in the accident, the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office announced Tuesday.

He worked as the global head of strategic sourcing and procurement under DoorDash’s finance team.

His parents, Paula Bozinovich, 71, and Terry Pickles, 73, from Redwood City, also died in the accident.

The other victims were identified as Pickles’ uncle Peter Bayes, 72, from Lincoln, California; Timothy O’Leary, 71, from Auburn, California; Theresa Giullari, 66, from Honeoye, New York; James Guck, 69, of Honeoye; and Stephen Lindsay, 63, of Springwater, New York.

Ten people were on the boat that capsized in South Lake Tahoe near D.L. Bliss State Park Saturday afternoon as waves reached eight feet in height.

Two individuals were immediately rescued from the water and hospitalized, but ultimately eight bodies were recovered from the water. The last missing individual was recovered on Monday.

“The El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office extends its deepest heartfelt condolences to the families of those who were lost and all those who have been affected by this tragic event,” the sheriff’s office said.

DoorDash told NBC Bay Area the company was “heartbroken” by the accident.

“Josh loved his team and was an inspiration to everyone who had the privilege of knowing him. During his nearly seven years at DoorDash, he brought a contagious spirit that lifted those around him. The loss of Josh is immeasurable. We miss him deeply and will carry his memory with us always,” the company said.

“Our thoughts and love are with his wife, his daughter, his family, and all who were close to him. We are working to support them through this incredibly difficult time,” the statement continued.

Sam Singer, a spokesperson for the family, said the group was celebrating Bozinovich’s birthday on her son’s boat that he purchased a year ago.

Pickles’ wife had stayed home taking care of their 7-month daughter, he said, noting the couple split their time between the Bay Area and Lake Tahoe and had used the boat only twice prior.

“The waves were so big that the water came onboard and started to fill the boat up and stalled the engine,” Singer said on the turbulent weather that saw winds top 35 mph on Saturday on the lake.

Pickles’ wife, Jordan Sugar-Carlsgaard, on Tuesday said, “We are devastated by this tragedy.”

“We lost my loving husband Josh Pickles, his parents Terry Pickles and Paula Bozinovich, and Uncle Peter Bayes, as well as friends in this tragedy,” she said, according to the affiliate. “No words can express the pain and anguish we feel knowing their lives were lost during what was meant to be a joyful time on the lake. Our hearts go out to those who tragically lost their lives and the two survivors of this unexpected and deadly storm on Lake Tahoe.”

With a pair of bears on the loose, police were called and a firearms unit dispatched at the wildlife park in southwest England.

But the panic was quickly quelled when Mish and Lucy were found fast asleep in the honey store on Monday, having eaten a weeks worth of stocks of the sweet treat at Wildwood Devon.

The sisters managed to get out through a back door which had been left open while staff were working with vehicles inside, Mark Habben, the park’s director of zoological operations, told NBC News in a phone interview Wednesday.

“They weren’t in the public space, but they were out of their enclosure in the staff areas, just wandering around,” he said.

With their newfound freedom and sense of smell 2,000 times higher than humans they made their way to the kitchens.

“We had a fresh food delivery with all the fruit and vegetables just an hour before they escaped,” Habben said of the supplies that would’ve otherwise lasted four days. “They ate all of the bananas, apples, fresh food, and the vegetables,” he said.

The siblings then found honey jars in the area where the staff prepares meals for them and “ate about a week’s worth,” he said.

“They’ve got an amazing sense of smell, so they just wandered around looking for their favorite food items, and then they fell asleep,” he said.

Mish and Lucy’s escape prompted an emergency evacuation throughout the park and the deployment of a firearms response team supported by the local police, Habben said.

He added that there was never any dangers of the bears being shot “because the bears were very, very calm,” he said, adding nobody was injured.

“All they wanted to do was take themselves back in the end,” he said.

After an hour of rummaging for snacks, Mish, who weighs about 400 pounds, just walked himself back into the enclosure, and Lucy, who weighs about 300 pounds, ran back inside after the keepers rang a bell that she was trained to follow, Habben said.

The European brown bears were rescued as cubs from a snow drift in Albania in 2019, Habben said. Originally they were supposed to be released in Romania, but when that didn’t work Wildwood built a “bespoke forest home” for the pair, he added.

“They’re just really inquisitive, really friendly, and a lot of fun,” he said. “They are very intrigued by everything.”

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