Current Events
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Source: The Washington Post / Getty
CNN is embarking on a massive round of job cuts, citing a new restructuring plan by its CEO to focus on a digital-based future.
According to reports, CNN has announced its plans for massive layoffs within the company. The news was delivered to employees in a memo from CEO Mark Thompson Thursday (Jan. 23), in advance of the network restructuring to be better modernized for a digital-based audience. It comes a year after the network, which is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, already enacted a round of layoffs leading to the exit of 100 employees. That represented 2.9% of the 3,500-member worldwide workforce at the time.
“I know that whatever the total number of job losses, the impact on the individuals involved can be immense,” Thompson wrote in the memo. “The process of change is essential if we’re to thrive in the future, but I both acknowledge and regret its very real human consequences.” CNN is laying 200 people, representing a cut of 6% to its workforce. The layoffs will not affect the network’s more recognizable names, as they are under contract.
Former Fox News host Chris Wallace and Alysin Camarota, who were prominent figures on CNN, recently left after their contracts expired.
The restructuring plan includes a goal to reach $1 billion in revenue by 2030. Part of that plan is to hire at least 100 people in the upcoming months to build a stronger digital presence focused on “new high-quality journalism and storytelling.” This will also include work on a “lifestyle-oriented digital product” in development by CNN. It follows the company installing a digital paywall on its website for the first time for consistently heavy users, who can access it at a monthly price of $3.99.
One outspoken opinion on the move was expressed by President Donald Trump, who mentioned it while bashing the MSNBC network on his Truth Social media platform Wednesday evening (Jan. 22): “MSDNC is even worse than CNN. They shouldn’t even have a right to broadcast — Only in America!”
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1. So Trump lied basically
2. It sure will haunt him.
3. Suckers
4. Listen to Black women
5. It was never about the economy
6. We tried to warn folks
8. It’s going to be a spooky 4 years
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Sen. Bradford Blackmon, a Black Democratic Party state senator in Mississippi, introduced a bill, the “Contraception Begins At Erection Act” that pokes fun at the position of anti-abortion critics. While the bill would most likely fail to pass, the Contraception Begins At Erection Act was designed by Sen. Blackmon to highlight men and their role in pregnancies and place the onus on them to be active in the process.
Local outlet WLBT reports that Mississippi’s Sen. Bradford Blackmon drafted and posted the bill earlier this week, which would make masturbation against the law and would result in fines that range between $1,000 to $10,000 for each offense. Sen. Blackmon said such self-assisted emissions would be allowed for sperm bank donations or when using contraception that prevents pregnancies.
“All across the country, especially here in Mississippi, the vast majority of bills relating to contraception and/or abortion focus on the woman’s role when men are fifty percent of the equation,” Blackmon said via a statement to WLBT. “This bill highlights that fact and brings the man’s role into the conversation. People can get up in arms and call it absurd but I can’t say that bothers me.”
Mississippi is one of a dozen states that either have a full ban or mostly total ban of abortion according to data shared by the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF). Blackmon
The full bill can be read via the state’s legislative bill status system here.
On X, folks are applauding Sen. Blackmon’s bill for calling out the hypocrisy of critics and the policing of women’s bodies done by certain segments of elected officials and the wider population
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Photo: Getty
6. Laughter died.
8. Someone didn’t read the story.
10. Another non-reader.
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Source: Terry Wyatt / Getty
The Nashville high school shooter was a Black teen revealed to have embraced neo-Nazi ideals such as being a “Groyper incel,” according to his social media.
The male student who shot two fellow students, killing one at a high school in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday morning (January 22) was revealed to be an African-American student who left a manifesto posted to social media showing his embrace of white nationalism and self-hate. He was identified as Solomon Henderson, a 17-year-old in the Reserve Officers Training Corp at Antioch High School. Henderson would take his own life after the shooting.
The 300-page manifesto was posted to Henderson’s account on X, formerly Twitter, four hours before he walked into the cafeteria at the school at 11 A.M. Central time and fired multiple rounds with a pistol, killing 16-year-old Josselin Corea Escalante and grazing one 17-year-old unidentified male student. The document showed that Henderson’s motivation for the shooting was a hatred of Black people. “I’m ashamed to be black. I feel like s*** being a n******”, he wrote in the text.
Another message in the document posted before the incident read, “God I am ugly. 4 hours to go,” which was imposed over a photo of Henderson. The document also revealed that Henderson considered himself a “Groyper Incel,” a term used by followers of the neo-Nazi figure Nick Fuentes and members of the involuntarily celibate movement. Henderson cited Fuentes as a major influence, in addition to far-right figure Candace Owens and Kanye West aka Ye, along with other white nationalist mass murderers in inspiring his violence.
Henderson’s manifesto was also filled with notes on his plans for the shooting, stating that he initially planned to commit the act on Thursday but moved it up because he was scared of “failing to kill myself or go to jail” and that he aimed to “kill at least 10 people.” He also detailed his embrace of Neo-Nazi ideals, writing: “We must aid the Aryans regardless of our race.”
Henderson also was confirmed by police to have live-streamed the shooting on multiple platforms, including Kick which shut down his account shortly after the incident. “We extend our thoughts to everyone impacted by this event,” the company said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter. “Violence has no place on Kick. We are actively working with law enforcement and taking all appropriate steps to support their investigation.”
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Source: Pool / Getty
New York City Mayor Eric Adams sat down for an interview with Tucker Carlson, sparking more concern and drawing more criticism.
A day after attending the inauguration of President Donald Trump, New York City Mayor Eric Adams was more vocal about his criticisms of former President Joe Biden and his Democratic Party in an interview with Tucker Carlson. The interview, which was previously taped, aired Tuesday night (Jan. 21). “People often say, well, you know, ‘you don’t sound like a Democrat’ and ‘you seem to have left the party,’” Adams said in the interview at Gracie Mansion. “No, the party left me, and it left working-class people.” Adams has stated he will run for office again as a Democrat (he was once a registered Republican in 1990), but has cozied up to Republicans heavily in the last year since being federally indicted on corruption charges.
The 50-minute interview also showed Adams attacking former President Biden, stating that in conversations with aides in the White House, he was told to tone down his criticisms of the administration’s policies regarding migrants entering the U.S. “Basically, be a good Democrat, Eric,” Adams said to Carlson. “That was the basic overall theme.” He also related what another Biden aide told him: “Listen, this is like a gallstone. It’ll pass.” Carlson also touched on Adams’ five federal indictments. “I have no reason to suck up to you,” he said. “I thought it was ridiculous.” Adams responded gaily, ‘When I read it, I was like, where are the bags of cash?”
The interview was a sea change, as the embattled mayor had previously blasted Carlson as someone who “perpetuates racist, anti-immigrant propaganda.” Adams has been under fire after abruptly canceling his appearances at events to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Monday (Jan. 20) to attend Trump’s inauguration, and he offered no comments on Trump’s subsequent executive orders. State Senator Zellnor Myrie, who is running against Adams in the upcoming Democratic primary, ripped the interview in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“If you’re busy tonight, you can catch him on the Steve Bannon podcast tomorrow.” Even one of Adams’ strongest allies, the Reverend Al Sharpton, questioned Adams’ intentions. “To say you’re not going to raise your eyebrows would be being dishonest,” Sharpton said in a segment on MSNBC. “I think this is going to cause a lot of us to say, ‘What is this all about?’”
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Source: Netflix / Netflix
Looks like another reality TV romance has bitten the dust. Ashley Adionser and Tyler Francis, the Season 7 couple from Netflix’s hit series, Love is Blind, who once set our hearts aflutter, have decided to call it quits.
A little over a year after jumping the broom together on the show, the crowd-favorite coupe has parted ways, with Ashley issuing a statement confirming their decision to end their relationship, saying:
“After much reflection, I want to share that Tyler and I have been separated for several weeks and have now made the difficult decision to end our marriage,” Ashley said in a statement to People. “While I had hoped for mutual understanding and transparency in our relationship, it has become clear that our paths are no longer aligned, making it impossible for me to continue in this marriage.” She added that she knows that this decision is “necessary” for her own “growth and peace.”
While Ashley’s statement to People didn’t offer details, she concluded her message sharing that she “will value the time and love [they] shared.
“While this chapter is ending, I will always hold respect for the time and love we shared,” Ashley continued. “I kindly ask for privacy during this deeply personal time as I focus on healing and building a new future. Thank you for your understanding and support.”
The couple’s onscreen love story hit a bump when Tyler revealed that he had donated sperm to help a friend, fathering three children that he initially said he had no relationship with. Photos challenging his story, as well as claims from the mother of said children, later circulated online when the season aired. Tyler, who spoke about wanting to have kids multiple times in the show, was side-eyed by many viewers (some of whom began calling him Tyler the Procreator).
During the reunion, Tyler acknowledged that he had lied about not knowing what the children looked like and suggested that he had wanted to protect their privacy. Ashley also clarified that she knew about the situation before having an on-camera discussion, calling it “insulting” to her intelligence for people to “imply that she was blindsided.”
Tyler has yet to publicly comment on the split.
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Source: Gallo Images / Getty / Chris Brown
Warner Bros. is now staring at a $500 million lawsuit from Chris Brown for sexual assault allegations used in its Investigation Discovery docuseries Chris Brown: A History of Violence.
Spotted on Variety, Brown is fed up with his image being tarnished and is taking legal action against Warner Bros. and Ample, accusing the two companies of “libel and intentional infliction of emotional distress through defamatory claims made against him in A History of Violence.”
The “Look At Me Now” crafter claims that the evidence used in the docuseries to substantiate the docuseries claims is false.
Per Variety:
“To put it simply, this case is about the media putting their own profits over the truth,” the lawsuit reads. “Since the beginning of October of 2024, Ample LLC and Warner Brothers were put on notice that they were promoting and publishing false information in their pursuit of likes, clicks, downloads and dollars and to the detriment of Chris Brown. Ultimately, on October 27, 2024, they aired ‘Chris Brown: A History of Violence’ (the ‘Documentary’), knowing that it was full of lies and deception and violating basic journalist principles.”
Brown’s lawsuit also says that “Jane Doe’s” claims that the docuseries uses as evidence have been “discredited over and over” and that the alleged victim was “a perpetrator of intimate partner violence and aggressor herself.”
The lawsuit also states that Chris Brown knows he made “mistakes” and that they were “publicly acknowledged and addressed by him in his 2017 documentary, ‘Chris Brown: Welcome To My Life.”
The mistake in question was physically assaulting the biggest pop star on the planet and his former flame, Rihanna. Brown was also hit with a restraining order from another ex-girlfriend, Karrueche.
We shall see how this lawsuit pans out.
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Mike Jenkins, a real estate developer who reformed his life after spending time in federal prison, was racially profiled in an affluent Ohio neighborhood by Michelle Bishop, a white mother of two. After Michelle Bishop received backlash, she tearfully apologized to Mike Jenkins, claiming she was more worried about the safety of her children and didn’t recognize that Jenkins was Black.
As seen on Yahoo! News, DaMichael “Mike” Jenkins was attempting to return home last November when he encountered Michelle Bishop walking with her two small children. The situation was caught on Jenkins’ Ring camera where Bishop can be heard talking to Jenkins as he pulled up in his driveway. Believing she was being followed, Bishop went up to Jenkins’ doorstep and said she didn’t believe the developer lived at the home.
After Jenkins asked if she was looking for someone in particular, she can be heard running off and screaming despite it appearing Jenkins made no aggressive moves toward her. Jenkins’ wife came out of the home and tried to make sense of it. Jenkins’ wife seemingly diffused the situation and said she was afraid because Jenkins never said he owned the home whose driveway he parked in and he claimed that he did when she was trying to knock on his door.
Bishop has since taken to social media to apologize for assuming the worst of Jenkins and claims she isn’t racist. She also said that her apologies haven’t been accepted among other talking points. With the Ring video making viral rounds, Jenkins was recently a guest on Shannon Sharpe and Chand Ochocinco’s Nightcap podcast along with his wife to discuss the harrowing incident.
To his credit, Mike Jenkins remained calm throughout the entire fracas and wants to use this moment to help inspire others and not cower in the face of judgment. He also mentioned that his long climb to success after serving prison time and his unyielding faith got him past this hurdle.
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Photo: Headshot/DaMichael Jenkins / Affordable Housing Trust for Franklin & Columbus County
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Source: The Washington Post / Getty
It’s no secret that numbers and popularity mean everything to Donald Trump, so when he decided to hold his presidential inauguration indoors because of “cold weather,” many knew it was really because the small size of his MAGA crowd in attendance would be horrible optics and further damage his already ridiculously inflated ego.
With that being said, the number of viewers who tuned in to watch Donald Trump be sworn in to be the president of the United States (without ever putting his hand on the Bible we might add), turned out to be as struggle as expected. Less than half of the 77 million people who voted for him watched the ceremony.
According to Deadline, the numbers are in and a grand total of 24.59 million viewers cut on Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony this past Monday (Jan. 20) across the 15 networks that were covering the event. With millions of people vowing to ignore the swearing in of a potential dictator, everyone expected the inauguration to have paltry viewing numbers, but we couldn’t have guessed it would’ve been this low.
Naturally, Fox News got the lions share of views as far-right Americans naturally gravitate towards the Trump- loving “news” network with 10.67 million viewers. It was followed by ABC News with 4.85 million, NBC News with 4.58 million, CBS News with 4.35 million, CNN with 1.80 million and MSNBC with 880,000. In the 25-54 demo, Fox News drew 2.09 million, followed by NBC News with 1.22 million, ABC News with 1.12 million, CBS News with 966,000, CNN with 563,000 and MSNBC with 106,000.
We’re low-key surprised MSNBC had that many viewers tune in. Just sayin’.
While the news networks covered the event throughout the day, most of the ratings came during the moment that Cheeto Jesus once again assumed power.
Per Deadline:
Viewership peaked in the 12:15 quarter hour, as Trump was giving his inaugural address.
According to Nielsen, 17.4 million viewers were aged 55 and above, 4.67 million were 35-54 and 1.43 million were 18-34.
During the Trump swearing-in ceremony and inaugural address, about 27.12 million viewers tuned in during the noon-12:45 p.m. ET time frame across the three major cable news networks and the three major broadcast networks, according to early data.
Nearly 40 million watched Biden’s swearing in and inaugural address four years ago on those six networks. In 2017, about 38.3 million watched Trump’s first inauguration.
It might be only a matter of time before Trump calls these fake numbers and declares it the most viewed inauguration of the last 100 years or something. Y’all know it’s coming.
While this may be a nice little thing to troll Trump about going forward, it’s not going to stop all the damage the man is poised to inflict on American society and its principals. The executive orders he’s signed in his first few days that take a hatchet to any program designed to help or assist Black and Brown people is evidence that these next four years (and beyond) are going to hurt Americans for generations to come.
But hey! At least eggs and gas will be cheaper, right? Oh wait…
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Source: Christopher Furlong / Getty / Elon Musk
Fresh off his Nazi salute (no debate on that), Elon Musk, the billionaire nuisance, will have an office in the White House, according to a report and straight from Felon 47, aka Donald Trump’s mouth.
Yup, you read that nonsense correctly. Musk, the current co-chair of the completely made-up non-governmental organization Department of Government Efficiency, will have West Wing office space in the White House, as seen on Raw Story, according to a report in the New York Times.
Per Raw Story:
Musk, a close confidant of Donald Trump who had notably spent the weeks after Election Day at a $2,000 a night cottage at the president’s Mar-a-Lago golf resort, was expected to work out of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, The New York Times reported Monday.
That would have placed him inside the White House complex, but not exactly in the West Wing itself, the publication added.
The development comes as the world’s richest man spent “many days asking about his level of access, signaling a desire for proximity to Mr. Trump, according to the people,” according to the Times report, which cited conversations with two people familiar with the planning.
According to the New York Times, “Mr. Trump had wanted Mr. Musk to have the space, one of the people said. Mr. Musk has been given a badge for the White House complex and filled out paperwork to be brought onboard for the role.”
Bruh.
Trump signs an order creating the Department of Governmental Efficiency
Doocy: Is Elon Musk getting a West Wing office? pic.twitter.com/kqxUGKXyWd
— Acyn (@Acyn) January 21, 2025
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DOGE Is Off To Very Non-Efficient Start
The agency, which Trump announced during the campaign, isn’t running efficiently. Word on the political streets is that DOGE’s other co-chair, Vivek Ramaswamy, is out as co-chair and has his sights on Ohio’s Governor’s seat. The seat will soon be vacated by the current Governor, Mike DeWine, who can no longer hold it due to term limits.
According to Politico, it was Musk himself who also wanted Ramaswamy out and accomplished his goal thanks to the failed Republican presidential candidates’ rant about H-1B visas where he called MAGA’s most prominent supporters, White folks, L A Z Y.
Musk and DOGE also look foolish after promising to slash at least $2 trillion from federal spending. DOGE was hit with a lawsuit, claiming it violates federal transparency rules on disclosure, hiring, and other practices.
Social media has thoughts on the matter; spoiler alert, they had nothing nice to say.
You can see those reactions in the gallery below.
1. Exactly
2. Yeah congress how do you feel aboput this?
3. Interesting
4. He probably won’t have to do anything because there is no accountability anymore
7. Sounds like waste to us too.