Media Today

[Rick Plant]

Paul McCartney signals support for Johnny Depp at concert



Johnny Depp’s reputation might be getting by with a little help from his friends.

Paul McCartney, during a concert in Seattle this week, appeared to lend the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star, 58, his support amid the contentious defamation trial between Depp and ex-wife Amber Heard.

Philanthropist and former model Jill Vedder, wife of Eddie Vedder, shared video on Instagram Tuesday that shows McCartney — a reported pal of Depp’s — performing “My Valentine” at the piano, in front of footage of Depp playing guitar.

“Might be controversial to post this video with J.D,” Vedder, 44, captioned the clip. “Don’t care. Know him only to be a gentleman .. And while I support women and the ‘me too’ movement I also know some women who have destroyed the lives of innocent & good men. ... p.s verbal abuse is not cool either.. watch your tongue.”

Vedder posted additional footage from the concert earlier that day.

McCartney had scheduled tour stops in Seattle on both Monday and Tuesday.

Depp is suing “Aquaman” star Heard, 36, for $50 million over a 2018 Washington Post op-ed she penned, referring to herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse,” which he says derailed his career and reputation. Heard counter-sued for $100 million.

Other celebrities who may be subtly supporting Depp include Heard’s “Aquaman” costar Jason Momoa, who late last month followed Depp on Instagram. While the Oscar nominee’s proponents view this as a mark of support, others believe it could signal objectivity as Momoa’s texts with Heard are expected to be read in court.

A representative for McCartney did not immediately respond to the Daily News’ request for comment.

© New York Daily News

[Rick Plant]

'A great start': News of Chuck Todd's MSNBC show demotion met with cheers



MSNBC's Chuck Todd will have his daily show aired as a streaming service instead of as cable news, a decision that generated a great deal of social media discussion on Friday.

"Meet the Press Daily, the MSNBC program based on the Sunday public affairs show, will go streaming-only beginning next month. The show, which is anchored by Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd and runs at 1 pm weekdays, will be renamed Meet the Press Now, and will stream at 4 pm weekdays," Alex Weprin reported for The Hollywood Reporter.

Chris Jansing we inherit Todd's slot on MSNBC.

Todd has been a controversial figure at MSNBC and the network has received pressure to "fire Chuck Todd."

At the White House Correspondents' Association dinner, host Trevor Noah roasted Todd's journalism.

The Daily Beast reported, "To Meet the Press host Chuck Todd, Noah asked, 'How are you doing? I’d ask a follow-up, but I know you don’t know what those are.' When the crowd groaned, he added, 'Don’t boo him, he’s trying!'"

It was against this backdrop that social media weighed in on Todd's demotion.

Media analyst Jeff Jarvis described it as a move to the "kiddie table."

"I'm sure the company line is that this is an investment in the digital future. And others will say good riddance," he noted.

Democratic strategist Adam Parkhomenko referenced Noah's joke.

"Trevor Noah’s joke was so good it booted Chuck Todd off MSNBC," he said.

But New York University journalism professor Jay Rosen disagreed.

"I have no inside information, but I doubt that Trevor Noah's dig is the reason NBC decided to move Chuck Todd's MSNBC show to streaming," Rosen said. "If they concluded that, yes, he's too weak an interviewer, would they keep him in his marquee job as host of Sunday's Meet the Press on NBC?"
Historian Kevin Kruse suggested that NBC News also fire Todd from Meet the Press.

"This is a great start, but can we get his Sunday morning gig moved to Quibi or the Weather Channel's app and replace that spot with an actual journalist too?" Kruse wrote.

He then clarified that "the Weather Channel is actually useful, and doesn't deserve being linked to Chuck Todd."

Nelly Torres of the watchdog group Center for Public Integrity said Todd is "among the worst."

"Can't interview and doesn't know how to challenge lies and misinformation. So bye Felicia! Streaming news is where you go to die," she wrote.

Journalist Allen McDuffee argued it is worse than it looks.

"Most people would take this spiral as a sign they should exit. Kinda suggests nobody else is opening a door for him to enter. And it's telling that NBC didn't even try to offer Chuck Todd's show as premium content to paying Peacock subscribers. Instead, they're putting it on the NBC News app, which anybody can watch for free," he noted.

https://www.rawstory.com/chuck-todd-2657278623/

[Rick Plant]

Fred Savage fired from 'The Wonder Years' for 'inappropriate conduct'



Actor Fred Savage came to prominence on the 1988 television series "The Wonder Years," but has been fired from the reboot of the show, People magazine reported Friday night.

"Recently, we were made aware of allegations of inappropriate conduct by Fred Savage, and as is policy, an investigation was launched. Upon its completion, the decision was made to terminate his employment as an executive producer and director of 'The Wonder Years,'" a spokesperson for 20th Television told the magazine.

Savage, 45, starred as Kevin Arnold in the original series.

"The allegations come four years after actress Alley Mills, who played Savage's mother Norma Arnold in the original series, alleged in 2018 that a sexual harassment lawsuit against the actor and Jason Hervey ended the show in 1993. Hervey portrayed Savage's older brother Wayne Arnold," the magazine reported. "Costume designer Monique Long sued the TV brothers in 1993, claiming that their alleged verbal and physical harassment prevented her from properly doing her job and led to her being fired, per Vanity Fair. The lawsuit was ultimately settled and dropped."

Deadline predicted the news would stun many.

"The accusations probably come as a shock to a generation of Americans who grew up with Savage and his hugely popular characters as a child actor: He played the grandson in 1987’s modern classic 'The Princess Bride,' and Kevin Arnold, a teenager growing up in a suburban middle-class family in the late 1960s and early 1970s, on the original Wonder Years series, which aired on ABC from 1988-93. He was 12 when he was cast in the series, and at 13 he received the first of two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series — becoming the youngest actor ever nominated in the category," Deadline noted.

The Hollywood Reporter says Savage issued a statement saying “none of the accusations being leveled at me are true.”

https://people.com/tv/fred-savage-fired-director-ep-of-the-wonder-years-for-alleged-inappropriate-conduct/

[Rick Plant]

Former Fox News reporter complains about being fired because she compared Dr. Fauci to infamous Nazi



Lara Logan, a former Fox News reporter who frequently fell for internet hoaxes, revealed this week the reason she was fired from the right-wing cable news network.

While appearing at an event to raise money for Republican candidates in Kerrville, Texas, Logan was asked by an audience member what happened to her job at Fox News.

Logan replied that she got the axe when she compared Dr. Anthony Fauci to a notorious Nazi war criminal.

"I was on a show, I think it was with Pete Hegseth, who's a great person," she began. "And Anthony Fauci had just done an interview with Margaret Brennan at CBS... and she asked him about the criticism he was getting, and he said, 'Well, I am science, so anyone who questions me is questioning science.' So I was asked about this on this Fox show and I said, 'A lot of people I talk to, they don't see Fauci as science, they see him more as Dr. Joseph Mengele."

This remark drew cheers from the audience.

Logan then acknowledged that the comparison of Fauci to a doctor who ran horrific experiments on people in concentration camps gave "an opening" for people to pressure the network to fire her.

Logan first revealed she'd been "dumped" by Fox this past March.

Watch the video below:

https://twitter.com/i/status/1522544386697007104

[Rick Plant]

New York subway shooting suspect indicted on terrorism charge



A U.S. grand jury on Saturday indicted a man for terrorism and other charges stemming from an April 12 gunfire and smoke bomb attack that injured 23 people on the New York City subway.

The indictment in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York charged Frank James, 62, with a terrorist attack and other violence against a mass transportation system plus a count of discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.

If convicted on the terrorism charge James could be sentenced to life in prison.

Defense attorneys representing James did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

James is accused of setting off smoke bombs and opening fire inside a New York City subway car in Brooklyn, striking 10 people with gunfire and setting off a round-the-clock manhunt.

Thirteen others were injured in the frantic rush to flee the smoke-filled train, police said.

He was taken into custody some 30 hours later in lower Manhattan, about 8 miles (13 km) from the scene of the assault, after authorities determined his whereabouts with the help of tips from residents, some of whom posted sightings on social media, police said.

James, a Bronx native with recent addresses in Philadelphia and Milwaukee, had previously been charged with a criminal complaint filed by law enforcement over the attack. The more formal indictment came after prosecutors presented evidence to a grand jury.

Authorities accuse James of setting off two smoke bombs inside a subway car moments before opening fire on fellow passengers with a semi-automatic handgun. The gun, purchased in 2011, was later recovered from the scene, along with three extended-ammunition magazines, a torch, a hatchet, a bag of fireworks and a container of gasoline, according to police and court documents.

The attack followed string of violent crimes unnerving passengers in the America's largest metropolitan transit system, including instances of commuters being pushed onto subway tracks from station platforms.

The motive remained unclear. An FBI affidavit referred to a number of YouTube videos James posted addressing statements to New York City's mayor about homelessness and the subway system.

© Reuters

[Rick Plant]

Meghan McCain fails at selling new book — her dad’s strategist explains why



GOP heiress Meghan McCain's failure to sell her new book Bad Republican was explained by the senior strategist on her father's 2008 presidential campaign.

"According to an NPD BookScan provided to Secrets, it sold just 244 copies in the first few days," The Washington Examiner reported Friday. "A book agent said the low sales were a surprise considering the celebrity status of the former View star and outspoken daughter of former Sen. John McCain."

Longtime GOP strategist Steve Schmidt said, "I can explain this" in a thread posted to Twitter.

"When I kicked [Meghan McCain] off of the 2008 McCain plane, because of her outrageous behavior, I talked to her mom and explained what was happening and why. Cindy got weepy and said 'I just want to say I raised two good sons' I said 'everyone knows you did.' My daughter was three at the time and I made a promise to myself that I would make sure that my number one priority in life would be raising a child that never acted like [Meghan McCain], a spoiled rotten, entitled bully," he wrote.

Schmidt said her personality is why her book isn't selling.

"That is why in a nation of 330 million people, 247 have bought it. Nothing new to learn," he wrote.

Schmidt responded to criticism of him posting Cindy McCain's comments.

"Why. I was a volunteer who gave up a year of my life to work for her father. I’ve been publicly lied about and abused by her for 14 years. She wrote a tell all book, not me. Why is that a secret? Is it the Esper rule? How does that work? She is a bully not a victim," he declared.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/washington-secrets/meghan-mccains-bad-republican-book-flops-too

[Rick Plant]

WWE legend Tammy ‘Sunny’ Sytch arrested for DUI manslaughter after fatal car crash that ‘killed 75-year-old man’



Former WWE star Tammy Sytch has been arrested for DUI manslaughter and eight other charges after allegedly causing a fatal car crash in March.

The 49-year-old star – best known to wrestling fans as Sunny – was allegedly involved in the accident in which a 75-year-old man, later identified as Julian Lafrancis Lasseter, died.

On Friday evening, Sytch was arrested and processed at Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach.

As reported by PWInsider, she is currently facing nine charges including DUI Manslaughter (DUI causing the death of a person), Driving with a suspended or revoked license (causing death or serious injury) and seven counts of DUI causing damage to a person or property.

Volusia County Branch Jail has released Sytch’s mugshot and charges, including details of her $227,500 bond.

TMZ previously reported that police suspected Sytch – who recently claimed on Twitter that she suffered a seizure before the incident – was under the influence of alcohol.

A crash report by Ormond Beach Police Department, Florida, reportedly shows that the accident happened at around 8:28 PM on March 25 on US Highway 1 in Volusia County.

Sytch is thought to have crashed her 2012 Mercedes into the back of a 2013 Kia Sorento and then into the rear of a 2011 GMC Yukon that had also stopped at a stoplight.

The driver of the vehicle she hit, identified as Julian Lafrancis Lasseter, was transported to Halifax Health Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

Witnesses reportedly said Sytch – who was also taken to the hospital but later released – was ‘driving at a high rate of speed’ before crashing.

Sytch was inducted the WWE Hall of Fame in 2011 and is considered the company’s first Diva.

She has faced more legal trouble recently, being arrested in January for ‘terroristic threats and weapons possession’.

In 2015, she alleged to have suffered a seizure after a traffic accident, but she later pleaded guilty to DUI in three cases.

The following year, she claimed she agreed to the guilty plea because she was ‘blackout drunk’ during what she described as the worst relapse of her life.

In February 2019, was arrested for DUI – the sixth time she’s been arrested for the charge.

In July 2020, she was arrested on charges of eluding a police officer, violating a domestic violence restraining order and operating a vehicle during a second license suspension.

She was released on June 9, 2021, and later that month she told WrestleZone.com: ‘I am happy to be finished with my sentence and I am anxious to start the next chapter of my life. I am healthy and happy and feel great.

‘‘The incident which led to this last incarceration stemmed from some major misunderstandings. However I accept responsibility and have used this time to make a better me and put my past mistakes behind me.’

https://metro.co.uk/2022/05/07/wwe-tammy-sunny-sytch-arrested-for-dui-manslaughter-after-car-crash-16602668/