Politics
The White House Briefs TikTok Stars on Ukraine Crisis
National Security Council staffers and White House press secretary Jen Psaki gathered 30 TikTok stars via Zoom Thursday, March 10th for a briefing on the war between Russia and Ukraine. Since Russia invaded Ukraine late last month, TikTok became an unlikely source of real-time information for millions around the world. While the app has proven to be a useful tool for reporters, its algorithm has also harbored dangerous misinformation and Russian propaganda. Psaki led the briefing alongside Matt Miller, a special adviser for communications at the White House National Security Council. In a recording obtained by The Washington Post, Biden officials emphasized the influence these creators have in online discussions surrounding the crisis. “We recognize this is a critically important aven...
President Joe Biden Turns Attention To Brittney Griner Russia Case
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Mike Mattina / Getty WNBA star Brittney Griner is currently jailed in Russia on drug charges as the nation is embroiled in an all-out assault on Ukraine. While it was assumed that President Joe Biden would put the player’s situation on the back burner, administration officials alerted members of Congress that they’re working on the matter. In an exclusive chat with theGrio, Rep. Shelia Jackson Lee says that White House officials told members of the Congressional Black Caucus that they’re actively looking to address Griner’s harrowing situation in Russia after the Phoenix Mercury standout was reportedly caught with THC vape cartridges. The arrest came at the top of last month but was only recently revealed to the global media, sparking high levels of conce...
Angelina Jolie Arrives in Yemen to Support Civil War Refugees
As the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine dominates international headlines, Angelina Jolie is asking for equal attention to be paid to other refugees around the world. Jolie, who serves as Special Envoy to the United Nations Refugee Agency, is on the ground in Yemen to meet displaced families and refugees affected by the country’s civil war. “As we continue to watch the horrors unfolding in Ukraine, and call for an immediate end to the conflict and humanitarian access, I’m here in Yemen to support people who also desperately need peace,” Jolie wrote on Instagram. “This week a million people were forced to flee the horrific war in Ukraine. If we learn anything from this shocking situation, it is that we cannot be selective about who deserves support and whose rights we defend. Everyone deserve...
Donald Trump Pressuring Supporters to Fund New Plane After Emergency Landing
Leave it to Donald Trump to brazenly ask supporters to fund a new big boy toy rather than fixing his old plane. Days after a jet flying him to Florida was forced to make an emergency landing (following a fundraising speech, naturally), the former president’s Save America PAC sent an email blast to supporters boasting about his plans for “a BRAND NEW Trump Force One.” “Do you remember Trump Force One?” the email read (via Rolling Stone). “Before becoming the greatest President of all time, I traveled the Country in my plane, known as Trump Force One. I have a very important update on my plane but I need to trust that you won’t share it with anyone: my team is building a BRAND NEW Trump Force One.” According to The Hill, the email also included a GIF of a plane taking off with a poll gi...
Inflation spikes in Europe: What do Bitcoiners, politicians and financial experts think?
Rising prices are grabbing headlines all over the world. Across the pond in the United States, inflation recently broke a 40-year record. The situation is severe in Europe, with prices rising over 5% across the Eurozone and 4.9% in the United Kingdom. While prices rise, Bitcoin (BTC) is flatlining at around $39,000. It poses many questions: Is Bitcoin an effective hedge against rising prices, what role can Bitcoin play in a high inflation environment and did Bitcoiners know that inflation was coming? Experts from the world of Bitcoin, finance and even European politics responded to these questions, sharing their views with Cointelegraph about the alarming price rises in Europe. From data analysts Kaiko’s monthly report, the Bitcoin price marched ahead of inflation, implying...
Disney Pledges $5 Million to LGBTQ Rights Following “Don’t Say Gay” Bill Controversy
The Walt Disney Company is pledging $5 million to the Human Rights Campaign and other LGBTQ+ organizations in light of Florida’s discriminatory “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Additionally, Disney CEO Bob Chapek announced plans to meet with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to discuss the company’s concerns with the bill, Variety reports. The Parental Rights in Education bill, more commonly known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, prevents Florida educators from discussing issues of gender and sexuality in the classroom and allows parents to sue schools and teachers who do so. The bill has been passed by Florida’s House of Representatives and Senate, and DeSantis is expected to sign it into law. Disney’s donation comes after the company came under fire for not speaking out against the bill; the Orlando S...
Ukrainian Orchestra Holds Concert for Peace in Kyiv Square
The Kyiv-Classic Symphony Orchestra performed a small concert in Ukraine’s Maidan Square Wednesday (March 9th), an act Conductor Herman Makarenko described as a call for peace amid the Russian invasion. The orchestra performed the Ukrainian national anthem as well as an excerpt from Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy,” on which the European Union’s anthem is based — both strong displays of Ukrainian sovereignty and a desire to move closer to Western Europe as Russian forces advanced on the country. “We would like to support our president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who called, calls and will call to all governments of the world (to) stop the war in Ukraine,” Makarenko said (per Reuters). While up to 70 musicians normally perform in the orchestra, Makarenko said he was only able to gather about 20 people fo...
Ariana Grande and More Celebs Slam Passage of Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill
On Tuesday (March 8), the controversial Parents Rights in Education bill was passed in the Florida Senate, leading Ariana Grande and other famous faces to speak out against it. Better known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, the potential law would restrict teachers from speaking about LGBTQ+ history, people, and other topics in school classrooms across the state and give parents the right to sue educators and administrators who did so. A proposed amendment to the bill would also require school counselors and teachers to out LGBTQ+ students to their parents at home if they come out or confide in a trusted adult at school. Explore See latest videos, charts and news “Really disgusting,” Ari wrote in her Instagram Stories beneath a post by Equality Florida sharing the news. Meanwhile, George Takei ...
MAGA Actor Ricky Schroder Has Another Meltdown Over Mask Mandate
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: VALERIE MACON / Getty Former child star, actor, and MAGA affiliate Ricky Schroder has yet another public meltdown captured on video after being asked to follow masking rules intended to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The incident, which was shared on social media by Schroder through his Instagram account, shows the former NYPD Blues actor becoming irate with security guards at the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum in Abilene, Kansas. Schroder stopped there while en route to Washington D.C. to join the purported “freedom convoy” of truck drivers protesting against vaccine and mask mandates throughout the United States. The video, which was shared by the Patriot Takes account on Twitter on Sunday (March 6th), shows the guards at t...
Kate McKinnon Takes Aim at Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” Bill on Saturday Night Live: Watch
Kate McKinnon stopped by Weekend Update during last night’s Saturday Night Live to speak about Florida’s discriminatory “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Watch the segment below. Appearing out of costume, the SNL vet first had nothing but nice things to say about the anti-LGBTQ+ bill, which passed through its final state Senate committee this week. “I heard about this law, and I think it’s amazing,” McKinnon told a baffled Colin Jost. She went on to explain: “You know, when I was in middle school in the ’90s, I was kind of, like tortured by the constant use of the word ‘gay.’ Like, you know, ‘That’s so gay’ or ‘Ew, you’re gay.’ It made me feel horrible, and to hear that Ron DeSantis has taken a stand and said, ‘No! You cannot say gay in school anymore,’ I’m just like, I’m so jazzed. And in Florida of ...
Crypto industry seeks to educate, influence US lawmakers as it faces increasing regulation
Interaction between the cryptocurrency industry and Capitol Hill is becoming ever more intensive as efforts to regulate crypto grow in tandem with its popularity. The surge in crypto industry lobbying last year was given some concrete parameters in February by crypto analytics startup Crypto Head. It released a report showing that the crypto companies that spent the most money on lobbying in 2021 were Robinhood, Ripple Labs, Coinbase and the Blockchain Association. These organizations were the lobbying leaders during the past five years as well, although with different rankings. Here is what the United States crypto-lobbying landscape looks like today. Metrics of influence Robinhood spent $1.35 million on lobbying in 2021 and was the only crypto-related organization to spend more than $1 m...
Andy Serkis, as Gollum, Stands with Ukraine on Colbert: Watch
It’s always fun to watch talented voice actors jump from character to character, which is what Andy Serkis did during a recent visit to the Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Despite doing press for his recent turn as Alfred Pennyworth in The Batman, Serkis humored Lord of the Rings megafan Colbert by impersonating several characters from Tolkein’s universe, including a very topical rendition of a Ukraine-invading Gollum. Explaining how he managed to voice 132 different characters in the Lord of the Rings audiobooks, Serkis used a prop microphone to mime the physicality of each of the characters. After shuffling through the likes of Gandolf and Elron, Serkis brought out the hobbit Gollum, who he famously voiced in the Lord of the Rings movies. “Gollum was on this...
