by Jac Kern
04.30.2012
26 days ago
Jac's favorite recent pop culture and Internet findings
The
White House Correspondents’ Dinner was Saturday, and while CityBeat’s invitation
must have gotten lost in the mail, the event brought journalists, celebrities
and famewhores from across the country to Washington, D.C. What began in the
1920s as an opportunity to recognize journalists is now more of a “Washington
goes Hollywood” event, usually hosted by comedians and attended by celebs who
have little (if anything) to do with politics or reporting. Although the event
gets criticism for becoming a schmooze-fest,
I’m a fan of what has become a Washington roast, where politicians stop taking
themselves too seriously, at least for one night.
President
Obama kicked off the night with a dig at his recent “hot mic” incident, and
continued by poking fun at other politicians, odd celebrity guests and other
current events.
The
evening was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, who took the stage like a true equal
opportunity offender:
Speaking
of diminishing journalistic integrity, how ‘bout the rise and (immediate) fall
Gawker’s Fox News mole? Earlier this month, Gawker announced
a new column by a Fox News employee, who was prepared to share the deepest,
darkest secrets from everyone’s favorite conservative channel — or something.
Two days later, the “mole” (revealed as O’Reilly
Factor associate producer Joe Muto) was found out by the network and
subsequently fired. So that’s the end of that, right? Not quite. Muto
was served with a search warrant early Wednesday morning. New York’s District
Attorney’s office seized Muto’s laptop, cell phone and some notebooks as part
of an open investigation. Fox News is accusing Muto of conspiracy and grand
larceny, according to this warrant.
The best/worst part of the whole debacle is that Muto only managed four Gawker
posts, which included juicy Fox dirt like a photo of a bathroom Bill O’Reilly
uses and a clip of Mitt Romney talking about his horses to Sean Hannity. Yawn. UPDATE: Muto apparently grew up in Cincinnati. Represent!
From
Pizza Hut’s new pies with cheeseburgers instead of crusts to the Heart Attack Grill
living up to its name, junk food on ‘roids is all the rage right now! Las
Vegas’ Heart Attack Grill is known for its over-the-top diner grub, including a
“Quadruple Bypass Burger,” so should anyone be surprised that eating there
could potentially be harmful to one’s health? For the second time this year, a guest collapsed at the restaurant, which boasts the Guinness World Record for
highest calorie hamburger (9,983 — about five times the calories recommended
for one day).
People go to Vegas for the thrill of a gamble — the Heart Attack Grill just
offers a unique spin! Meanwhile,
in the Middle East, Pizza Hut is finally solving that boring pizza crust
problem (what are we supposed to do — just eat plain dough?!) by swapping it
for cheeseburgers and chicken sliders. This
came just weeks after we were introduced to The Hut’s hot dog-stuffed crust,
which is now available in the U.K. The most shocking part about these pizza monstrosities?
They aren’t served in the States (yet)! Are we becoming a healthier nation or
is our fatness just rubbing off on other countries? In
movie news, a 2007 viral comedy short is now becoming a
star-studded smorgasbord. Jay
and Seth vs. The Apocalypse starred Jay Baruchel and Seth Rogan as friends
confined to an apartment during the end of the world. Filmed in just four days
immediately following production on Knocked
Up, the short is only available as a trailer on YouTube:
After
the success of Knocked Up, Pineapple Express and other Rogen
comedies, the crew is remaking the short into a feature film, currently titled The
End of The World. In
the film, James Franco (playing himself) hosts a party at his apartment when
the world begins…to end. Party-goers will include Jonah Hill, Danny McBride and
Aziz Ansari, in addition to Rogen and Baruchel. It’s an Apatowpocalypse!
While these dudes are taking something scary (the apocalypse) and turning it into
something funny, this bitch is turning something from my youth (dolls) into
the stuff of nightmares. Meet Valeria Lukyanov, “human” Barbie!
Also,
this Craigslist ad:
0 Comments · Wednesday, November 30, 2011
If you know anything about integral
calculus, then you know that the area under a curve represents volume,
while the slope is the acceleration at any given point (on a different
type of curve, ha!). But if you think you know enough about integral
calculus to prove these statements wrong then, sorry, but you don’t have
any credibility because you’re probably drunk, as two new studies have found a correlation between intelligence and a
thirst for alcohol.
0 Comments · Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Was the man who burned to death trying to stay warm in Queensgate, William Floyd, another throwaway Cincinnatian? Had he died in a house fire in a better neighborhood, we probably would have learned about his family, his education, trade or profession, his military service, health/mental problems, possible addictions or alcoholism and funeral/burial plans. We might even have learned what bank was accepting donations for his funeral. [Thanks to Kevin Osborne's Dec. 2 blog post on CityBeat.com, I do know some of that information now about Floyd.]
0 Comments · Wednesday, October 20, 2010
You start a kick-ass Blues/Rock duo, work hard building a “cult” following and become commercially successful and make music so amazing even MTV can’t ignore it. The video is so great, it wins a "Breakthrough Video" VMA> So, The Black Keys, nothing can kill the high you’re on, right? Well, nothing except finally receiving your award, only to find that the name is, ahem, “misspelled” as “The Black Eyed Peas.”
2 Comments · Monday, March 15, 2010
In today's cultural, intellectual and financial world, I can't imagine a media job with less potential than science reporter. When your sources become objects of public scorn and ridicule, what's to write? In a nation accustomed to seeking simple answers to complex questions and a culture increasingly driven by belief rather than evidence, scientists today often are trying to communicate with the willfully deaf.
0 Comments · Monday, December 21, 2009
Life can be tough at the top of the Enquirer food chain. Circulation (printed papers sold) continues to decline. The paper has retired, bought out and fired just about everyone it can to cut costs. More unpaid furloughs are likely. I have no idea how profitable The Enquirer remains. The paper doesn't say. It never does, at least publicly. Yet its slumping core paid circulation doesn't encourage optimism.
0 Comments · Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Congress is considering a federal shield law for journalists whose sources, notes, unused images and testimony sometimes are demanded by federal courts and officials. At its most basic level, a shield must protect reporters' promises of confidentiality to sources. Otherwise, reporters will have to choose between breaking their promise or jail. State laws provide some shield but not in federal proceedings. Still, I'm no fan of shield laws.
0 Comments · Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Last fall ACORN's alleged promotion of voter registration fraud and voter fraud got lots of media attention during the 2008 election campaign. The right wing's assault on ACORN and news media complicity are the subjects of an independent media study by Peter Dreier and Christopher Martin: "Manipulating the Public Agenda: Why ACORN was in the news and what the news got wrong."