Current Events
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Diddy’s pursuit of bail continues to be an uphill battle. Prosecutors claim he has been abusing his phone privileges to finesse the system and more.
PEOPLE reports that the mogul’s latest push for a restricted release faces more objection. On Friday (Nov. 15), prosecutors submitted new documents detailing their reasoning on why the Bad Boy Entertainment founder should not be granted a new bail hearing.
This time, they point to some of his behavior while behind bars and claim he has been bending the rules in his favor. They say the “Victory” rapper has been utilizing a “non-authorized third-party messaging service” to communicate with his staff, family, and others.
The app in question is ContactMeASAP, and the filing asserts he has been using it to contact “unauthorized” contacts. He is also accused of using other inmates’ phone access codes to make “three-way calls to contact other individuals.”
Will A Recent Social Media Media Post Doom Diddy?
Prosecutors also point to his recent conversation with his children on his birthday.
“The defendant enlisted family members to plan and execute a social media campaign around the defendant’s birthday, with the intention of influencing the potential jury in this criminal proceeding,” the paperwork reads. “At the defendant’s carefully curated direction, the defendant’s children posted a video to their respective social media accounts showing the defendant’s children gathered to celebrate the defendant’s birthday.” The feds would also go on to suspect Diddy had “monitored the analytics” of the post and “explicitly discussed with his family how to ensure that the video had his desired effect on potential jury members in this case.”
The footage in question shows Justin Combs, Quincy Combs, Christian Combs, Jessie, D’Lila Combs, and Chance Combs, who joined via FaceTime and spoke to Diddy over the phone. His children wished him a happy birthday and had a small cake on the table in his honor. Diddy has plead not guilty to the charges.
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Source: Matthias Nareyek / Getty / Kanye West
Ye, the artist formally known as Kanye West, is the subject of another lawsuit, and it alleges plenty of anti-Semitic behavior and perverse behavior from the Hip-Hop star.
Variety reports that a new lawsuit alleges that Kanye West told a former employee that his ex-wife, Kim Kardashian, who has recently claimed that she is raising their four kids basically by herself, has “Jewish masters.”
“The Jews are out to get me,” West said, according to the lawsuit. “They froze my bank account. The Jews got Kim and my kids… The Jews convinced Kim. She has Jewish masters.”
Murphy Aficionado, a project manager, says in the lawsuit that West made him wait in his suite on two separate occasions while he had loud sex in an adjacent room. One time was with his wife, Bianca Censori, who was topless when Aficionado entered the suite; the other time, alongside an unnamed “famous NFL wide receiver,” was with a masseuse. We can all guess who that former NFL player was, *coughs Antonio Brown,* Rolling Stone reports.
Per Rolling Stone:
Aficionado claims that in late November 2022, West summoned him to the Beverly Hills Waldorf Astoria for a meeting. He says a lawyer for conservative commentator Candace Owens exited the suite as he entered. (A month prior, West and Owens posed together at his Paris fashion show wearing matching “White Lives Matter” tee shirts.) Aficionado alleges he quickly spotted West’s wife Bianca Censori standing topless inside and tried to exit as well, but West “commanded” him to sit down. He says West told him the lawyer was “a Jewish spy” and then demonstrated his “dominance” by opening the door to the bedroom where Censori had retreated, exposing her again. He claims West left the door slightly ajar as he had loud sex with Censori while Aficionado waited silently for their meeting to resume.
“Disturbed, Aficionado wanted nothing more than to leave. However, Aficionado feared further retaliation by one of the most famous, powerful, and erratic artists in the world,” the lawsuit states. Aficionado claims West returned from the bedroom wearing a T-shirt with a swastika and aggressively asked him, “Don’t you like my shirt?”
According to the website, West demanded Aficionado return to the suite a second time, and upon arrival, he saw West and the NFL wide receiver both just wearing a towel. He claims they both took turns going into a room where they could be heard having sex with the masseuse.
Bruh.
Aficionado was fired after he was told West’s school, the Donda Academy, would be shut down.
This latest lawsuit is just one of many brought by former employees of the producer/rapper.
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Matt Gaetz, the former Florida congressman who resigned on Wednesday (November 13), found himself getting loads of attention after President-Elect Donald Trump named him as his Attorney General pick. The resulting fallout from Matt Gaetz being selected for the role has led to details of a House Ethics Committee probe against the AG hopeful, with a new report highlighting a woman saying that she and the congressman had sex when she was still in high school.
ABC News reports that the unnamed woman testified in front of the House Ethics Committee over the summer as part of the long-running investigation of sex trafficking allegations swirling around Matt Gaetz. The committee’s report was slated to be released but a meeting with members to discuss those terms was canceled on Friday (November 15) amid calls for the report’s release. However, House Speaker Mike Johnson does not want the report’s findings to be released.
The woman shared during her testimony that she and Gaetz, 42, entered a sexual relationship when she was just 17 at the time. Gaetz has since responded to the allegations and framed them as false.
“These allegations are invented and would constitute false testimony to Congress,” Gaetz said to the outlet regarding its report. “This false smear following a three-year criminal investigation should be viewed with great skepticism.”
As noted in the report from ABC News, Justice Department officials launched the probe into Gaetz three years ago which included claims of obstruction of justice but no charges would emerge from their findings.
Back in September of this year, Gaetz issued a response to a series of questions sent to him by the House Ethics Committee regarding the allegations, which wanted to examine the claims of sexual misconduct and drug use claims that were publicly made.
“Your correspondence of September 4 asks whether I have engaged in sexual activity with any individual under 18. The answer to this question is unequivocally NO. You can apply this response to every version of this question, in every forum,” Gaetz shared via social media.
Public skepticism has remained high as Trump has selected several officials and named them as potential appointees for several high-ranking positions in his cabinet. As a result, there has been chatter about Matt Gaetz cropping up on social media, and we’ve got some of those responses below.
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It’s no secret that crime in New York City began to skyrocket during the COVID pandemic a few years ago. While it has since been declining, things might get a bit safer as authorities have rounded up 30 alleged gang members who turned Washington Heights and Inwood into a war zone.
According to the Gothamist, the NYPD have announced that they have indicted 30 alleged gang members who they say are responsible for roughly half of the shootings in Inwood and Washington Heights and have hit them with a range of charges, including conspiracy to commit violence, weapons possession, attempted murder, and murder. While one might think these are just wild kids looking to gain street credibility, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg says it stems from a yearslong rivalry between two street gangs that turned deadly back in 2018.
Per the Gothamist:
“The violence did not impact just these defendants and their associates,” Bragg said at a news conference detailing the indictment. “It impacted the entire neighborhood, [creating] a climate of fear among ordinary residents who had no part in this violence.”
Bragg said all of the shootings addressed in the charges were sparked by an alleged gang killing in 2018. The incident sparked 18 retaliatory shootings that claimed seven lives, including innocent bystanders, Bragg said.
Bragg blamed the gang war for approximately 50% of all this year’s shootings in the 33rd and 34th precincts, which include much of Washington Heights and Inwood in Uptown Manhattan.
Well, at least the residents of Inwood and Washington Heights can rest a bit easier now knowing that the gang bangers in their neighborhood have been taken into custody, but that PTSD may stay with them for a long time.
Stay safe out on those streets, y’all.
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Living in the Big Apple is about to get even more expensive. Governor Hochul is about to bring back congestion pricing to New York City.
As reported by the New York Times, the politician has announced she is reviving her plan for congestion pricing. Originally announced in April, state officials were aiming to impose an additional $15 dollar toll on vehicles that enter Manhattan below 61st Street. Commercial trucks, however, would face a higher fee of anywhere from $24 to $36 depending the axle count, dimensions, weight and other factors. The original idea was met with harsh criticism from citizens and business owners alike. Ultimately, the plan was put on hold in June.
This version of the plan has a reduced rate, which starts at $9 for regular cars. She detailed the reasoning during a formal press conference. “I’m proud to announce we have found a path to fund the MTA, reduce congestion and keep millions of dollars in the pockets of our commuters,” the governor said. She went on to add that citizens who make than less than $50,000 a year will receive a 50% discount after their 10th entry. Additionally, the toll overall will be cut after 9 p.m.
According to the New York Post, President-elect Donald Trump is not in favor of the move. “I have great respect for the Governor of New York, Kathy Hochul, and look forward to working with her to make New York and America Great Again. But I strongly disagree with the decision on the congestion tax,” he said in an exclusive statement to the newspaper.
The congestion pricing is currently being finalized but could start as early as January. You can see Governor Kathy Hochul’s press conference below.
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Source: David Berding / Getty / Rudy Gobert
Minnesota Timberwolves big man Rudy Gobert has once again stepped into it. This time, he threw his support behind one of Donald Trump’s heada** picks for his presidential cabinet and is getting roasted for it.
Felon 47, aka Donald Trump, is putting together what is easily one of the worst cabinets in the history of the presidency. His latest pick is Robert Kennedy Jr., a constant promoter of conspiracy theories related to health and vaccine hater, to run the Health and Human Services Department.
While the rest of the country knows just how BAD that is, Gobert took to Elon Musk’s dying platform, X, formerly Twitter, to express his excitement for the failed presidential candidate, landing a job he has no business having, writing in the post, “Let’s go @RobertKennedyJr (praying hands emoji).”
Now, why is this bad, you ask? Well, let’s quickly break it down. The former environmental lawyer turned his attention to public health and wrote numerous books that promoted baseless conspiracy theories, many of them about the use of vaccines, which ironically gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic, a subject he also had conspiracy theories about.
Then there are reports about Kennedy Jr’s nonprofit group, the Children’s Health Defense, causing a measles outbreak in American Samoa in 2019 because they believed his nonsense about vaccines, leading to vaccine skepticism, which is on the rise globally and led to the death of 70 people.
You Know It’s Bad When People Actively Root For Draymond Green Against You
Combine the worst Kennedy’s track record and Gobert’s presser incident, which many believe was the catalyst to the NBA shutting down after the pro hooper caught COVID-19; it’s no wonder people are now saying on social media Draymond Green was right for putting him in a chokehold and constantly being a thorn in Gobert’s side.
The backlash to Gobert’s post on X has been epic, and honestly, we wouldn’t be shocked if it made him cry like when he got “snubbed” for participating in the 2019 NBA All-Star Game.
On top of that, Minnesota Timberwolves fans and superstar Anthony Edwards might want their overpaid big man to put down his phone and focus on basketball because he’s struggling right now, and the Timberwolves are not looking like the team they were last year.
Granted, the Timberwolves are not the same team from last year, but there were big moves made, with Karl-Anthony Towns being traded to the New York Knicks for Julius Randle, who is off to a great start, while Donte DiVincenzo struggles to fit in on his new team.
Welp.
You can see more reactions to Rudy Gobert celebrating our health going down the drain in the gallery below.
1. We understand Draymond, we understand
4. The timing is immaculate
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It looks like NBC’s signature morning show Today will be having a new, yet familiar face co-hosting after Hoda Kotb steps down in early 2025.
According to Variety, Craig Melvin will be stepping up to co-host the popular AM show after years of being a part of the show. Now that he’s been tapped to co-anchor the show from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m., it shouldn’t be too hard of a transition as he’s been preparing for this role for quite some time. Still, some viewers might miss Kotb in the very beginning of Melvin’s stint, but the man is quite charismatic so we’re sure he’ll do just fine in his new and deserving role.
Per Variety:
Transitions of talent in morning TV can be fraught. Audiences come to think of the anchors as part of their daily routine, and don’t take kindly to such things being upset. At the same time, no one can anchor forever, and Kotb has cited a desire to spend more time with two young children.
“We are beyond thrilled to have Craig step into the co-anchor chair,” said Libby Leist, senior vice president of “Today,” in a statement to staff.“He’s been an integral and beloved part of our family. From breaking news coverage in the field, to presidential interviews, to multiple Olympics and Super Bowls, Craig’s shown he has the talent and the range to cover all that we do here at ‘Today.’ And he does it without ever losing that Southern charm.”
“Today” has enjoyed some recent momentum, owed in some part to NBC’s recent broadcasts of the Paris Olympics. In the past two weeks, however, “Today” captured bigger overall audiences than its main competitor, ABC’s “Good Morning America,” which typically leads in that category. “Today” has kept its lead among viewers between 25 and 54, the demographic most favored by advertisers in news programming.
We’ll be rooting for Craig Melvin.
What do y’all think of Craig Melvin getting promoted to co-anchor of NBC’s Today? Let us know in the comments section below.
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It’s no secret to anyone who is regularly on social media and is not from the land of MAGA Delulu that Elon Musk has not only eroded the value of X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, but he has turned it into a utopia of racial slurs, right-wing propaganda and shameless Trump-humping. Well, one media outlet is not about to pretend Musk hasn’t turned X into a MAGA fan page and it will no longer post on the platform because of it.
The Guardian is having none of Musk and his X-Klan (see what I did there?) shenanigans.
From Variety:
The Guardian made the announcement on Wednesday in a post on its website, writing that “the benefits of being on the platform formerly called Twitter” have now been “outweighed by the negatives.” The publication cited the “often disturbing content” found on the platform and said the way it handled last week’s U.S. presidential election — which saw Donald Trump win a second term — “crystallized” its decision.
“This is something we have been considering for a while given the often disturbing content promoted or found on the platform, including far-right conspiracy theories and racism,” the publication said. “The U.S. presidential election campaign served only to underline what we have considered for a long time: that X is a toxic media platform and that its owner, Elon Musk, has been able to use its influence to shape political discourse.”
Musk, of course, responded to the news on X by basically describing Trump but applying the definition to The Guardian, tweeting, “They are a laboriously vile propaganda machine.”
That’s rich coming from the guy who supports the guy who has been fact-checked and found to be lying more than any modern president — the same president who spent four years spreading factless and thoroughly debunked election fraud propaganda until he kicked and screamed his way back into the White House.
Shout out to The Guardian for refusing to normalize Musk, Trump and the rest of the white nationalist propagandists who are, indeed, relying on lies and bigotry to “shape political discourse.” That’s what integrity actually looks like, not that any of the aforementioned would know anything about that.
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The Onion, the long-running satirical news website that began as a print publication, has caught on in the digital media world and its parent company made a brazen move seemingly pulled from its headlines. The Onion‘s parent company purchased conspiracy theorist Alex Jones‘ InfoWars, and the “CEO” of the parent company has issued a statement.
The news was announced via The Onion and features words from Global Tetrahedron CEO Bryce P. Tetraeder, a fictitious CEO according to The Onion’s CEO, Ben Collins. That aside, Mr. Tetraeder’s statement to the world regarding the purchase of InfoWars is done in true Onion fashion.
From Bryce P. Tetraeder:
Through it all, InfoWars has shown an unswerving commitment to manufacturing anger and radicalizing the most vulnerable members of society—values that resonate deeply with all of us at Global Tetrahedron.
No price would be too high for such a cornucopia of malleable assets and minds. And yet, in a stroke of good fortune, a formidable special interest group has outwitted the hapless owner of InfoWars (a forgettable man with an already-forgotten name) and forced him to sell it at a steep bargain: less than one trillion dollars.
Make no mistake: This is a coup for our company and a well-deserved victory for multinational elites the world over.
What’s next for InfoWars remains a live issue. The excess funds initially allocated for the purchase will be reinvested into our philanthropic efforts that include business school scholarships for promising cult leaders, a charity that donates elections to at-risk third world dictators, and a new pro bono program pairing orphans with stable factory jobs at no cost to the factories.
Global Tetrahedron, which is the real name of the parent company, purchased InfoWars through a bankruptcy auction to help offset Jones’ $1 billion in defamation judgments for spreading information that the tragic Sandy Hook Elementary shooting was a hoax. Parents and backers of the shooting victims were in support of the auction and the ending of InfoWars, according to replies made by Collins on X and Bluesky
The larger play for InfoWars appears to be a shift to turn all of its hateful and unfounded content into a hub for gun violence prevention. Alex Jones also shared a video on Thursday (November 14) confirming the news.
On X, the reaction to the news is moving along and we’ve got reactions below.
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Source: Jason Mendez / Getty / Bernice Burgos
Bernice Burgos shared some information on her hustle, which took her from being a “startender” to a successful entrepreneur, but some people are not too sure about math regarding the amount of money she made slinging drinks.
The 44-year-old social media influencer/ entrepreneur stopped by the Joe Budden Podcast to break bread with the former rapper and his crew of talkers.
During the conversation, Burgos revealed she was making outstanding money as a bartender/bottle girl at the Starlets Gentlemen’s Club in New York City.
Burgos said on a good night, she was bringing in $30,000, and on special nights, like her own birthday, she would make $70,000, which is very impressive because that is definitely not the case for all the ladies in her former line of work.
The grandmother (yes, she has a granddaughter) revealed she was able to be successful by building “real relationships” with regulars.
“I make sure I give you the bottles for $250 when they cost $350. So I’m gonna hustle,” Burgos said. “You don’t gotta tip me now. You tip me later, like throwing money. I was smart.”
Burgos also revealed that she had a plan and stuck to it during her three years of making drinks, which Budden revealed during the conversation were “trash.” She stacked her money to start her clothing line and buy a home, and that’s exactly what she accomplished.
She also shot down the notion that she made all that money without having to rely solely on her sex appeal, telling Joe Budden and co. that “I don’t do too much,” adding, “I used to be covered with a whole body suit on.”
Social Media Thinks Bernice Burgos Is Full of C A P
Of course, while some were impressed, a good number of people on social media called C A P, referring back to an old interview on The Breakfast Club in which she said she made $8,000, which is far short of the $30-$70K she claimed to be making.
Welp.
We have no clue if Bernice Burgos is lying; we’re not big on pocket-watching.
You can see more reactions to the interview below.
2. Hmmmmmm
5. Podcast math, LOL