Tabloid Gossip: Your News Briefing

I’m on vacation with my family, but I still have to keep up my training for #Mile22. #nodaysoff

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Mark Wahlberg just tried to un-stink the pile of dung into which he stepped. TMZ

Millie Bobby Brown loves the Kardashians. E! Online

Ewen McGregor’s ex-wife did not appreciate being thanked during his speech. Wonderwall

Woody Allen’s time might be up. Too Fab

Katie Couric responded to the Matt Lauer allegations. LA Times

Michelle Williams found love. Ok! Magazine

Ryan Lochte is married. MSNBC

Tonya Harding’s publicist quit. The Wrap

Britney Spears and her boyfriend are going strong. Pop Sugar

Rob Lowe and Bella Thorne are exchanging barbs. The Blemish

The Oasis brothers continue to battle. The Sun

Anne Heche and James Tupper split after 10 years together. RTVW

Brandi Glanville blames social media for her failed romance. Contact Music

 

 

Bill O’Reilly Responds to Sexual Harassment Claims With Matt Lauer

If you thought retribution would bring sense to Bill O’Reilly, you thought wrong, because the former Fox News host is adamant that his hands are clean. Though Matt Lauer asked hard-hitting questions about O’Reilly’s alleged history of sexual harassment and the legal settlements associated with the cases, O’Reilly insisted it was more about a media take-down or left wing conspiracy than justice. Why would Fox axe their biggest asset if there’s no fire with that smoke? Watch below to see what’s become of the boisterous blowhard whose spin zone tactics are still at play.

Kellyanne Conway Banned From Morning Joe

After an embarrassing interview on ‘The Today Show’ with Matt Lauer in which Lauer bluntly told her she “made no sense,” MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” has decided to ban Kellyanne Conway from appearing on their show, saying that the White House Counselor to President Trump is “out of the loop,” and clearly “in none of the key meetings.” They furthered that “she goes out and books herself often [on television shows] and “she doesn’t know, she doesn’t have the information.” Co-host Mika Brzezinski agreed with Joe Scarborough’s account, saying, she does “not believe in fake news.”

In case you missed it, Lauer asked Conway about Michael Flynn resigning as Trump’s national security adviser when information arose about Flynn’s contact with Russian ambassador to the U.S., Sergey Kislyak before Trump took office, thereby making him at risk for blackmail. Just two days after Flynn took office, The Wall Street Journal reported that Flynn was under investigation by U.S. counterintelligence agents for these communications. These calls occurred the same day President Barack Obama announced retaliatory sanctions for Russia’s alleged cyber-attacks against the Democratic Party. At the time, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said that the calls with Kislyak had nothing to do with the retaliatory measures, but U.S. intelligence officials countered that claim and indicated that such discussions did in fact take place. Acting Attorney General Sally Yates allegedly warned the Trump White House that Flynn had not been truthful and was therefore vulnerable to blackmail by Russian intelligence, but we know how that story ended.

Trump allegedly knew Flynn discussed the sanctions, but Mike Pence did not, and the Vice President went on television to deny any such conversation took place. When Kellyanne Conway insisted that Michael Flynn enjoyed the “full confidence of the President” the day before Flynn resigned, she stepped into a flaming pile of dung. Either she was out of the loop or she is not concerned about the ramifications of being a completely untrustworthy representation of the White House. It’s clear that Trump wanted to keep Flynn on staff and chose to request his resignation when the fallout became far too difficult to manage. Conway likely thought that he’d stay on staff, thus confirming her lack of access to the White House. Watch both videos below, and notice Conway’s clear exhaustion. Something tells me she’ll be removed from her post soon.

The Brian Williams / Matt Lauer Interview: My Take

 I have a lot of issues with Matt Lauer’s aggressive interview style, but in the case of Brian Williams, it worked. Lauer was relentless, pushing Williams to profess whether he knew he was lying at the he told his tales, and asking the impetus behind his infractions. As for Williams, it’s clear he’s weaved a web that will take a lot of time to untangle. He did the best he could without actually admitting the intent to lie. If he admits the intent, he’s harder to forgive, and if he claims ignorance, he looks sloppy and perhaps pathological. My take? He became a raging narcissist whose ego got the best of him, and as a newscaster, truth is paramount. The decision to place him at MSNBC and give Lester Holt the job is a genius compromise, and I commend NBC for learning from their Ann Curry debacle. I also give them major credit for allowing Lauer to push hard on Williams, especially when they’re on the same network.


Rachel Dolezal Breaks Her Silence

  It’s fine to self-identify as a different race or religion from that which you were born. If a man born as a woman changes his gender identity, it would be politically and morally insensitive to deny his new gender. So why not accept a white person who identifies as black? After all, being a minority comes with its own set of struggles, and the more the merrier right? We’re all going to be one race eventually, so who cares?

While Rachel Dolezal and her supporters (see Whoopi Goldberg’s argument below) might present that argument, it has some serious holes. First, Dolezal’s claims of identifying as black at the age of five by “drawing self-portraits with a brown crayon” don’t hold up since she sued Howard University alleging that she was discriminated against for being white. To Matt Lauer’s point in her interview on The Today Show, she’s identifying with whatever race suits her needs in the moment, rather than authentically self-identifying with a different race. Furthermore, no one likes a liar, and it appears as if she deliberately twisted the truth to perpetuate the public’s ideas. For example, she claims that a black man named Alfred Wilkinson is her father, justifying the lie by implying he’s been more of a father to her than her own parents. Wilkinson has removed himself from the drama by hanging up the phone on reporters, and there’s no evidence to suggest he raised her as his daughter in any capacity. Furthermore, there are legitimate questions about Dolezal’s claims regarding alleged hate mail she received, adding to the many questions surrounding her web of lies.

This is less about race and more about truth. The public will pounce on lies, with an eager effort to hold people accountable. Had she been honest about her life, perhaps she’d have been embraced. Now she just looks like a standard, “crazy white lady” in need of a serious mental health intervention. Watch her interview The Today Show and see Whoopi Goldberg’s take below.

Matt Lauer Asks One Direction About Zayne Malik’s Absence

In the land of Matt Lauer, nothing is off-limits, even if it involves issues of addiction, which should be kept as private as possible to ensure recovery. And while I understand it’s a reporter’s job to get the facts for the fans, the boos in the background suggest that even One Direction fans objected to the interrogation. As for Zayne Malik and his well-publicized absence, let’s just hope he gets healthy soon. Watch Lauer cross the line below.

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The Demise of Kanye West — What Went Wrong?

Hollywood gives all its players a chance to re-live high school . . . the good way. Everyone has six degrees of separation, and that includes A-listers. If you emit disrespect in any capacity — word gets around. Shockingly, this close click of insiders tell me that Kanye West is actually a nice guy. Though it’s seemingly shocking at first glance, further inquiry sheds some light on his current darkness. In short? The man can’t handle the media.

With every attack, Kanye trades humility for haughtiness, pounding his chest while screaming about his world domination. My arm-chair psychology degree tells me that the man is simply insecure, and with each jab, he throws a boulder. His recent outrage surrounds Jimmy Kimmel, who made fun of the rapper’s recent BBC 1 interview (see below), using children to reenact his pompous declarations. I can only assume Kimmel thought of children because Kanye was in fact acting like a spoiled child, whining about his legos while slamming the floor.

Many people speculate that Kanye’s demise began with his mother’s passing, assuming she reeled in these rants. Since then, it can also be assumed that he’s surrounded himself with “yes-men,” and only agrees to do interviews where he may speak freely (he was sandbagged by Matt Lauer — and never quite recovered). My advice to Kanye West is to dismantle his twitter, find some real friends to reign him in, and to host Saturday Night Live. If that doesn’t work — call Alec Baldwin. He’s a master at cleaning up his temper tantrums — and Kanye can learn a thing or two.

John Edwards’ Daughter Goes Public

20130327-105241.jpgJohn Edwards’ daughter is poised and impressive. She addressed every one of her family controversies without bad-mouthing anyone, a difficult task to achieve considering the many “poor choices” she’s surrounded with. Speaking of poor choices, must Matt Lauer always go to a negative place? Catch his snarky comment at the end of the interview in which he summarizes Edwards’ daughter as political and insists that despite her positive take, there’s clearly still anger afloat.

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Matt Lauer v. Ann Curry v. NBC — Analysis of a Stink Train

20130327-105241.jpgWhen one outlet advocates an opinion, the others run with it, and it’s soon too late to undo the damage. Such is the case with Matt Lauer’s Today Show downfall, and the constant assertions that he’s to blame for the ratings decline. So is he to blame? And will he recover?

While I’ve certainly taken my fair share of digs at Lauer for his aggressive interview style, the only people to blame for the ratings decline are Ann Curry and NBC. And before I get the backlash for bashing America’s sweetheart, allow me to explain. First, she never should have been promoted to that post in the first place. She was historically passed-over for that position for more appropriate hosts (see Meredith Vieria), and someone with a soft-spot felt it fair gift her with the role she’d been patiently eyeing. When she got it, it was immediately clear that she didn’t fit. She lacked the laid-back energy necessary for the show’s family-style morning atmosphere. Though she was perfect for hard news, the soft-stuff was an obvious struggle.

I don’t have inside sources at NBC, so I can’t confirm whether Lauer pointed out what was already clear to anyone watching — Curry didn’t fit, and she had to go. His nice-guy status began to tank when other news outlets did in fact blame him, and he was immediately painted as the bully who swiped the sweet-girl’s dream. My uneducated guess is that Curry and some inside-folks with an agenda leaked the stories. And Curry got public revenge when she openly weeped on the air, in what I can only describe as unprofessional. All I’ve ever left behind at a job is a thank you note and a smile, and while those jobs were not public, I certainly didn’t walk around the office complaining and crying about how I wish I could have “carried the ball.”

The subsequent fallout seems to be irreparable, and the only suggestion I’ve got is to commission Barbara Walters for a sit-down with Lauer and get the folks at NBC to give Ann Curry what she wants so she can stop leaking unflattering stories to the press about how NBC banned her from wishing cancer-stricken Robin Roberts well on twitter (Note: I don’t KNOW she leaked that, but again — it’s just an educated guess). Clean up your mess, guys. I’m sick of this garbage.

Al Roker v. Matt Lauer: “You Threw Ann Curry Under the Bus”

All I have to say after watching the clip below is, “Ouch.” Oh and one more thing — Of all the people I’d expect to publicly call-out Matt Lauer for his alleged treatment of Ann Curry, it wasn’t Al Roker. So good job, Al. Someone had to do it.



Al Roker Seemingly Calls Out Matt Lauer On The ‘Today Show’