Pop Culture
“Hollyboob” Stunt Was Actually a Statement Against Instagram’s Censorship
On Monday, a group of people climbed up and altered the iconic Hollywood sign to read “Hollyboob”. All six of them were subsequently arrested and charged with misdemeanor trespassing, but their stunt wasn’t for naught. As it turns out, the feat wasn’t a pointless prank like the 2017 “Hollyweed” hi-jink, but a statement against Instagram’s censorship of sex workers. The person who organized the caper is a woman named Julia Rose, the founder and CEO of an adult website called Shagmag, which boasts the description “Playboy’s hotter, younger sister” on its website. In an interview with Vice, Rose explained that both her personal Instagram account and the official Shagmag account were recently suspended from the app for nudity. The “Hollyboob” maneuver was an elaborate way t...
Jeff Bezos Will Step Down as Amazon CEO
Alexa, what do you do after you’ve conquered the world? In an email to his employees, Amazon founder and Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos has announced he’ll be stepping down in Q3, with current head of Amazon Web Services Andy Jassy taking over. Bezos will transition to the role of Executive Chairman, where he’ll be less involved in day-to-day operations but still focused on long-term strategy. In his letter, Bezos wrote that, “In the Exec Chair role, I intend to focus my energies and attention on new products and early initiatives,” while investing more time in his personal and philanthropic projects. He continued, “As Exec Chair I will stay engaged in important Amazon initiatives but also have the time and energy I need to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, Th...
R.I.P. Ricky Powell, Iconic Hip-Hop Photographer and Honorary Beastie Boy Dead at 59
Ricky Powell, the celebrated hip-hop photographer who was known as the honorary fourth member of the Beastie Boys, has died at age 59. Powell’s manager and business partner Tono Radvany confirmed that his client had passed away on the night of February 1st. No cause of death has yet to be revealed. “I just want to let everyone know he was a very special man, and he will be sorely missed,” Radvany told Complex. A New York City native through and through, the Brooklyn-born Powell entered photography mainly to stick it to an ex-girlfriend. He discovered a camera she’d left behind and determined to use it to make a name for himself. After photographing art galleries in Greenwich Village and hip-hop shows in downtown Manhattan for a year, he was able to quit his job selling lemon ices to head o...
O.J. Simpson Receives Coronavirus Vaccine
O.J. Simpson is many things, but he is not an anti-vaxxer. The former NFL star-turned-accused murderer received his coronavirus vaccine on Friday. Simpson, who was previously seen partying without a mask, got his shot in Las Vegas on Friday. He was photographed wearing a mask that said, “The Juice” (of course), which he subsequently posted to Twitter. In an accompanying caption, Simpson wrote, “Get your shot. I got mine!!!” Simpson’s lawyer told the New York Post that his client was eligible to receive the vaccine due to his advanced age (he’s 73). “If you’re 70-plus, you’re eligible for the shot — you can schedule your shot and they’ll do it,” Malcolm P. LaVergne said. “There’s no favoritism with him being a celebrity — that has nothing to do with his getting the shot.” As for w...
Reddit Exploited a Hedge Fund and Made GameStop Stock Prices Explode
Shares of GameStop (GME) opened at more than $350 today after starting the month at around $17 a share. This has led a generation of half-dead old white guys to spit out their coffees onto their Wall Street Journals, demanding to know: what happened? Via New York Times, The Motley Fool, and CNBC, a Reddit board has used an avalanche of small trades to exploit an enormous bet made by the hedge fund Melvin Capital, with the little investors making a killing while the billionaires took a bath. The story begins with a financial practice called “shorting,” which happens when an investor is convinced that a stock price will go down. They borrow shares from a lender with an agreement to give the stock back at a later date. In the meantime, the investor hopes to make some money. First, t...
Disney’s Jungle Cruise Ride Will Remove “Negative Depictions” of Native Peoples
Another round of changes are coming to both of America’s Disney parks. The iconic Jungle Cruise rides at Disneyland and Disney World will be modified to remove what the company calls “negative depictions” of native peoples. According to a new post on the Disney Parks Blog, the riverboat attraction that first opened at Disneyland in 1955 and was replicated at Disney World in 1971 will no longer feature dated scenes of people of color dressed in generic jungle attire. Instead, the ride will follow an actual storyline narrated by its beloved skippers, and the scenery will contain more animals and less offensive human depictions. These updates are being made to “reflect and value the diversity of the world around us.” “This is not a re-envisioning of the entire attraction,” explained Disney Im...
TikTok “Dreams” Sensation to Skateboard in Joe Biden’s Inauguration Parade
With that one loser finally on his way out of the White House, Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day celebrations are expected to be all about the good vibes. And who better to bring them than Mr. “Good Vibes Only” himself, Nathan Apodaca, a.k.a. TikTok “Dreams” skateboarder @420doggface208. According to TMZ, the viral sensation is scheduled to appear as part of Biden’s virtual inauguration parade later this week. The President-elect’s planning team reportedly tapped Apodaca “because they saw how his feel-good video uplifted the world this past fall during social unrest and pandemic anxiety.” For those who may have somehow missed it, Apodaca’s famed TikTok clip saw him skateboarding blissfully to Fleetwood Mac hit “Dreams” while sipping from a bottle of Ocean Spray. For a brief moment, the hum...
Donald Trump Orders Construction of 250 Bizarrely Chosen Statues on His Way Out of Office
On his way out of office, Donald Trump is expected to issue a flurry of executive orders and pardons. Among the actions taken on Monday was an executive order following through on his pledge to build a “Garden of American Heroes.” Trump first announced plans for the monument over the summer, but today’s executive order includes a full list of statues that shall be constructed. It’s a disorientingly long list of 250 names spanning entertainment, sports, literature, and politics, with no apparent rhyme or reason for why they were included other than that they’re dead. Musicians include Johnny Cash, Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin, Billie Holliday, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Elvis, and Whitney Houston, while Humphrey Bogart, Bob Hope, and Jimmy Stewart are among the Hollywood figures ...
Chuck Norris’ Rep Says He Wasn’t at the MAGA Capitol Riot
Chuck Norris wasn’t at the MAGA capitol riot, but his doppelganger sure was. After a photo began circulating on social media that appeared to show the 80-year-old actor posing at last week’s insurrection, his representative Eric Kritzer has confirmed that it isn’t Norris in the photo, but a fraudulent imposter. “This is not Chuck Norris and is a wannabe look-alike although Chuck is much more handsome,” Kritzer said in a statement delivered to PEOPLE (via EW ). “Chuck remains on his range in Texas where he has been with his family.” Although it wouldn’t be surprising to learn that the long-time Republican and ex-TV cop who’s regarded as a symbol of American masculinity was present in a mob of people who live and breathe that shit, the guy standing next to that grimacing imbec...
Bruce Willis Booted from LA Pharmacy for Refusing to Wear Mask
Live free… or die hard in the ICU: Bruce Willis, he of the Die Hard franchise, was asked to leave a Los Angeles pharmacy after refusing to abide by the city’s strict mask guidelines. Page Six reports Willis was shopping at a Rite Aid in LA, the current epicenter of the pandemic in the US, when some of his fellow patrons became upset that he wasn’t wearing a mask. They complained to the store’s workers, who asked Willis to follow guidelines and cover his face. Despite having a bandana around his neck that he easily could have just pulled up, the actor refused, and was asked to leave. Apparently, Willis left without much of a disagreement, but also without making his purchase. Editors’ Picks Willis had spent the early part of the pandemic quarantined in Idaho with his ex-wife, Demi Moo...
Donald Trump Permanently Suspended From Twitter
Donald Trump no longer has access to his beloved Twitter. As of Friday at 6:20 p.m. ET, his account has been permanently suspended. “After close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them — specifically how they are being received and interpreted on and off Twitter — we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence,” Twitter said in a statement. “Our public interest framework exists to enable the public to hear from elected officials and world leaders directly. It is built on a principle that the people have a right to hold power to account in the open. However, we made it clear going back years that these accounts are not above our rules entirely and cannot use Twitter to incite violence, among other thi...
Facebook Bans Trump Through the End of His Presidency
Congress officially certified Joe Biden as the next US President yesterday, which means Donald Trump’s reign is about to come to an end — and social media sites are finally ready to wave goodbye. After temporarily banning Trump’s account because he encouraged his supporters to take the Capitol under siege, Facebook is now extending its block through the end of his presidency on January 20th. Starting immediately, Trump’s access to his Facebook and Instagram accounts will be blocked for the two weeks that remain before his term in the office ends. As such, he will not be allowed to post or share any new content on either of the platforms. This is a continuation of the temporary block that Facebook put in place on January 6th after Trump posted messages encouraging his supporters to storm th...
