Ticketmaster cancels Taylor Swifts Eras Tour public ticket sale
2023-03-19 06:17:33author：dointy.com
Views:
Ticketmaster cancels Taylor Swifts Eras Tour public ticket sale
Ticketmaster announced on Thursday (Nov. 17) that the public sale for tickets to Taylor Swift's Eras Tour has been cancelled.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
In the tweet, Ticketmaster cites "extraordinarily high demand" and "insufficient remaining ticket inventory" as the reason for the ticket sale cancellation that was supposed to begin tomorrow (Nov. 18) at 10 a.m. The desire to see Swift's Eras Tour is particularly high as its her first tour since 2018, and the pop star has released four albums and re-recorded two classic albums since then.
Verified Fan presale tickets went on sale Tuesday (Nov. 15), which resulted in the ticketing website crashing and fans being stuck in the queue for tickets for hours.
SEE ALSO:
Taylor Swift's Eras tour presale breaks Ticketmaster
The second wave of ticket sales were reserved for Capital One cardholders and went on sale yesterday after being postponed a day due to the "historic demand" for tickets. Live Nation chairman Greg Maffei says a reported 14 million people(Opens in a new tab) were trying to buy tickets to the Eras Tour.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Cancelling the public sale of tickets means that fans who weren't chosen for a presale code and aren't Capital One cardholders are unable to purchase tickets, and now their fate is in the hands of resellers. After Verified Fan presale tickets were posted to resale website StubHub for thousands of dollars, things are looking dire for Swifties.
Related Stories
Taylor Swift's Eras tour presale breaks Ticketmaster
Taylor Swift's 'Midnights' is taking over TikTok one song at a time
Taylor Swift's 'Midnights' promo was weird, right?
Taylor Swift's 'Midnights' is here. Let's talk about those fan theories.
And who's to say how high prices will get now that the general sale of tickets was cancelled.
Website of this article：https://dointy.com/?m=home&c=View&a=index&aid=65093
A guide to getting off to your own sexual fantasies and imagination
They say the mind is the biggest, most powerful sex organ in the body. But, uh, don't try visualizing that mental image too vividly or literally, unless you're into that sorta thing?
Instead, imagine your favorite fictional crush pressing you up against a wall, or think back to the hottest sex you ever had in your life. Now stop imagining, because this magical place where all your desires are possible and acceptable exists. And literally anyone can tap into it.
While sexual fantasies are by definition not "real," their effects on your sex life (especially when explored during masturbation) are — shall we say — palpably physical.
"Engaging your imagination rather than relying on visual porn for example helps to build, enhance and strengthen your erotic mind," said Dr. Britney Blair, co-founder and Chief Science Officer of the sexual wellness Lover(Opens in a new tab) app. "You can bring that imagination to life when you want to prime the pump on your desire or push yourself over the edge to climax while solo or with a partner."
"It's incredibly liberating, recognizing our own power to design the scenes and situations that turn us on."
To be clear, there's nothing wrong with porn or other forms of erotica. But there's something especially powerful in orgasming to smut that couldn't be more personally tailored to what you like.
"In our minds we're not confined to our studio apartments or our current sexual partners. There are no rules or judgments. Not even the laws of physics apply," said Gina Gutierrez, co-founder of the popular audio erotica app Dipsea(Opens in a new tab). "It’s incredibly liberating, recognizing our own power to design the scenes and situations that turn us on and to scrap the ones that don’t work for us."
Don't take our word for it, though. There's science to show exactly how real the effects of a healthy erotic imagination are.
In a landmark 2016 study(Opens in a new tab), Dr. Nan Wise — neuroscientist, sex therapist, and author of Understanding the Neuroscience of Pleasure for a Smarter, Happier, and More Purpose-Filled Life(Opens in a new tab) — mapped the brain's response when subjects merely imagined pleasurable stimulation on their genitals. Just by thinking about it, the pleasure centers in their brains "lit up like a Christmas tree," Wise said.
"The mind is really the recipient of all the body's sensations. So there's this empirical evidence of a huge connection between the mind and pleasure," she said.
While everyone can benefit from using their imagination as a sexual aid, it's an especially potent practice for women and others who society has conditioned to feel ashamed about their sexuality.
"We have to do more work to lay down the connections, the neural pathways, between the genitals and the brain's sensory reward regions," said Wise. "Using your imagination to masturbate not only gives us the information about what stimulation we need, but also actually strengthens the connections between our genitals and the brain."
SEE ALSO:
Why some people masturbate about people they hate
Beyond that, getting off to our own sexual fantasies tackles another negative effect that patriarchy can have on women's sexuality.
"We're socialized to think of ourselves as the objects of other people's desires, like we need to borrow someone else's idea of pleasure" said Wise. That's why learning how to be the subject of our own desires, to embody the pleasure we conjure up in our own mind, can be so empowering.
Everyone with a brain, genitals, and desire is already equipped to masturbate to their own sexual fantasies. And while the practice does come more naturally to some, it only takes little guidance and patience to unlock the endless possibilities tucked inside your erotic mind.
Set the right environment
Set that phone to night mode, but make it sexy.Credit: bob al-greene / mashable
A major key in setting your mind up for erotic success is to ensure your environment allows your brain to feel fully relaxed, safe, and free from distraction.
Pick a time and place where you'll have full privacy without needing to worry about any interruption, whether from roommates or notifications. For most people, that place will naturally be the bedroom. But put some effort into also making it a true fortress of sensual solitude, like by locking the door, setting your phone to airplane mode, putting on an eye mask, or maybe even using some essential oils and putting on your favorite sexy playlist.
Blair even recommends purposefully scheduling these more exploratory kind of session and making them habitual. So maybe it can be something you add to your nightly ritual before bed: Brush your teeth, do the skincare routine, put on some pajamas, then let your mind wander as you touch yourself.
Create a safe space in your mind
Of course, priming yourself with the right mindset is vital to unlocking your brain's full fantasy potential.
One of the biggest hurdles to exploring our erotic imaginations is actually the engrained social shame many of us have picked up (even subconsciously) through sexism, homophobia, social stigmas, religion, etc.
"It’s important to know if that is coming up for you, you’re not alone. But there is no such thing as a wrong or right fantasy." said Blair.
SEE ALSO:
Am I the only one who's horny for podcasts?
Treat your imagination as a judgement-free zone. To be fair, clearing or redirecting your mind away from feelings of shame is easier said than done. But certain exercises can help (which we'll get into more in the mind-body connection section below).
Blair suggests that, while exploring sexual fantasies in your mind, try to distinguish between when you're having a reaction versus a judgment to a certain scenario. Judgments often come from values imposed on you by something or someone else, while visceral reactions can be an indication that your mind wants to explore it further — especially if it's something your never thought you'd be into.
It's easy to get scared off by an intense response to a fantasy, and write that off as being too weird or outside the norm for your taste. But if you give yourself a second to assess where that response is coming from, you might actually find that the intensity comes from a part of you that you've never tried tapping into before.
"Everything is okay in the world of fantasy. No fantasy is a crime."
Or maybe not, and that's fine too. The point is, if you feel safe doing it, just try leaning into parts of your erotic mind that feel challenging and see where it goes.
"Everything is okay in the world of fantasy. No fantasy is a crime," said Blair. "Whatever turns you on in your mind is totally healthy. Your fantasy doesn’t say anything about you except that you are lucky to have a rich imagination that you can use to have an exciting and enduring erotic life."
That's another major benefit of sexual fantasies versus traditional porn, too. You don't have to worry about any ethical concerns, because your imagination can't hurt you or anyone else. You're in total control.
"You imagination is a completely safe space," said Dipsea's Gutierrez. "We can play out fantasies that are risky or illicit that we would never actually want to happen in real life. In our minds we’re free to experiment without consequences."
Familiarize yourself with (but don't feel limited by) common sexual fantasies
While the whole point is to tap into the unique potential of your own mind, a good jumping off point is to explore whether the most common sexual fantasies(Opens in a new tab) spark your interest. Researchers have labeled them into different categories, though there's a world of possibilities within those labels as well.
Dr. Blair described these categories as multi-partner sex like group sex or threesomes; power, control, or rough sex; novelty, adventure, and variety; taboo and forbidden sex; partner sharing and non-monogamous relationships; passion and romance; and erotic flexibilitylikehomoeroticism or gender-bending.
Jess O'Reilly is a sex educator, author of The New Sex Bible(Opens in a new tab), and Astroglide's resident sexologist. She explained that through each of these fantasy categories you can help identify the specific core erotic feelings that get you into a heightened state of arousal.
"Oftentimes, they relate to fantasy, escapism or subverting otherwise 'negative' emotions. You might find that sex is really hot when you feel powerful, submissive, challenged, mindful, or playful," she said. "You may also find yourself aroused by feelings that you don’t naturally associate with pleasure, like jealousy, inadequacy, fear, and even humiliation can be exciting."
What our brains often gravitate to most is pure novelty. What gets you off in a fantasy can actually be the total opposite of your real-life sexual orientation or even completely removed from you, as an abstract scenario happening to someone else entirely.
Let your spank bank be a place where your freak flag flies.Credit: vicky leta / mashable
So don't be weirded out if you learn that you're as horny for that fish-god monster from The Shape of Water as the Academy Awards were in 2018. Or maybe you're one of the many women who enjoys a rape fantasy — which, as Dr. Wise points out, in a fantasy context is the opposite of a real-life rape since, "you're choosing to have the fantasy and who's overpowering you. You're in complete control."
One other general rule of thumb Wise found is that while men tend toward more visually-oriented fantasies centered around preferred body parts, women tend to focus on overall scenarios. However, it's impossible to distill the endless possibilities of human sexuality into neat categories. Which is why you also shouldn't get discouraged or ashamed if none of these common fantasies do it for you.
"Our capacity for imagination is limitless," said Wise. Don't feel pressure to confine yours to a specific label.
Related Video: I built my own vibrator at CES
Start building your erotic imagination through fiction, porn, memories... anything!
The truth is that, while other obstacles might make it hard initially to give yourself permission to explore sexual fantasies, using your imagination is a very natural and innate part of being human. Who doesn't fantasizing about getting up from their desk in the middle of a hard work day and quitting, or spend time daydreaming about how they'd furnish their dream apartment?
"We make Pinterest boards and save Instagram photos, collect and catalog all these things that we like. I recommend starting to do that for your sex life," said Gutierrez. "Become more mindful observing what attracts you to someone. The moments where you feel sexiest. What you want to say out loud during sex but hesitate to. Then the next time you want to use your fantasy for pleasure, you know exactly where to draw from."
Everything in your life can become part of your horny mood board.
Everything in your life can become part of your horny mood board.
We all have that one fictional character or public figure — whether from books, tv, movies, video games, or even politics and the internet — that just does it for us. Begin there, expanding into a specific sexy scene that got you going or whatever comes to mind when you think of that person. Heck, maybe you're like me and realize that a silky, authoritative voice is actually your kink, leading a bunch of non-erotic popular podcasts to become your go-to spank bank material.
Audio erotica can be a great place to start if you don't want to take the training wheels off yet to explore sexual fantasies of your own making. Unlike visual porn, audio erotica still exercises the muscles of your erotic imagination, asking you to fill in the details and paint the full picture. While we always recommend Dipsea, there's also plenty of free ways to try audio erotica like r/gonewildaudio(Opens in a new tab) and Girl on the Net(Opens in a new tab).
Once you're ready to bring yourself more to the forefront of the fantasy, begin with a memory of the hottest, most visceral sex you've ever had. Really ground yourself back in that moment by recalling your senses: What position were you in? What did the person's lust feel like? Were you sweating? How exactly did they touch you?
Touch yourself while pulling from all the erotic mental material you've curated, and don't be afraid to really get your whole body involved in mimicking the sensations you're creating through your mind. Maybe that means masturbating while you're on all fours, or matching the tempo of the fantasy, or even dry-humping a pillow. Don't put any pressure on yourself to orgasm throughout any of this, though, and instead just zero in on embodying the experience of your imagination.
"It's about giving yourself full permission to explore all our internal pleasure places, and how we experience them in both our minds and bodies at the same time," said Wise.
It's like writing fanfiction, but in real-timeCredit: vicky leta / mashable
Try these exercises to strengthen your mind-body connection
Through her research and other studies in the field, Wise has ultimately found that, "This distinction we make between the mind and body is really a very arbitrary one."
One of the best ways to embrace this in a way that engages your erotic fantasy life in is through something called mindful sex.
This increasingly popular branch of sex therapy describes a bunch of different practices and exercises that add a layer of sexuality to mindfulness, to help you stay present in your body while experiencing pleasure, train your mind to focus on whatever arouses you, and engage in a non-judgmental curious sexual mindset. Try out basic exercises like pleasure mapping (which Dipsea has a guide for), mindful masturbation (which you can read about here), and sensate focus (which you can read about here).
Wise also suggests a very simple exercise for getting your imagination more connected with your genitals on a neurological level: Just start by tapping or pleasurably touching your genitals, then stop, then think back on the sensations you felt while touching them. Try to recall and summon them back in your body: What did it feel like in your body when the stimulation was building, then dissipating?
At first, it might not feel like much at all and the pleasure may be pretty mild compared to what you're used to while using more immediate erotic visual aids like porn.
“But you’ll slowly start to develop a better connection to that pleasure sensation channel in your brain,” she said.
Use your imagination during partnered sex
While sexual fantasies are a great way to enhance self-love, learning how to engage with them during partnered sex can also do wonders to get people over the edge and into orgasm.
At this point though, you might be wondering: Is it even OK to fantasize about other situations — or maybe even other people — while having sex with a partner?
“It doesn't matter where you get your appetite, as long as you'd come home to eat.”
“Yes, it’s an unequivocal yes! Because thinking about stuff is not the same as doing it,” said Wise. As the famous saying goes, “It doesn't matter where you get your appetite, as long as you'd come home to eat.”
It’s totally normal for your mind to desire novelty, especially if you're not in a new relationship anymore. In fact, Wise found that one of the best ways to ensure a couples’ longevity is precisely this kind of openness and understanding that people need to fuel their erotic imagination with new stuff.
“If we can get over these kind of hang ups, get past this fear of our partners having a fantasy about somebody else while they’re with us, and instead use it as an opportunity talk about: What would you like? What haven't we tried? What are you afraid to tell me? Because that's hot. That's really hot,” said Wise.
Or maybe instead of thinking about someone else, you'd simply rather use your imagination during partnered sex to transport you both to a setting or scenario that heightens your arousal even more.
In the end, what you do with your erotic imagination is up to you. You can share it if you'd like — or keep it all to yourself. That’s what’s so great about sexual fantasies you cut from your own cloth: They’re all yours, and no one else's.
Childish Gambino warned us in 2018. This is America, right?
It's been a brutal week for anyone who doesn't live with their eyes closed. The proof is right there on Twitter and other social platforms. It used to be that we relied on police bodycams to hold officers accountable for their actions. But in this difficult moment, citizen journalism is carrying that bucket instead.
Something snapped in the United States as former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee against George Floyd's neck until he died on May 25. Floyd was black and Chauvin is white. It was a sadly familiar scene of what looks to rational observers like a clear case of police brutality.
But this time, we hit a breaking point. The gruesome reality of Chauvin's actions as captured on camera is certainly part of it. He held his position on Floyd's neck for almost nine minutes, until after the restrained man died. The camera captures it all in vivid, horrifying detail. Add to that the ongoing pandemic, and historic levels of unemployment. People's nerves are frayed and the callous inhumanity of Floyd's death was a last straw.
So cities exploded over the weekend with widespread protests and grim scenes of violence. Even as much of the country outside of major cities continues to hunker down behind stay-at-home orders, social media has brought all of us to the front lines through citizen journalism and shared news reports.
These ongoing protests are about stopping racial violence and police brutality, and they're hundreds of years in the making. I think the images and videos, and the actions of the people portrayed therein, tell the whole story. Thank you to all of the protesters and members of the press who are out there doing your part to make sure the realities of this moment won't soon be forgotten.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
It hasn't all been as completely terrible as the above visuals suggest. Protesters are out in force and many of them are skipping the violence in favor of working to send a message, lift up the people in their community, and generally just keep the peace. Many others are just doing the best they can to peacefully work through the days, weeks, months, decades of pent-up anger they've been carrying.
They've even been joined in a few cases by police officers and departments that have managed to maintain a level of trust with their local communities.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
SEE ALSO:
How to demand justice for George Floyd and support Minneapolis protesters
I don't know what else to say. Take care of yourselves, folks. And please, keep on documenting this moment in any way that you can.
Police scanner app catapults to the top of the App Store
Protesters just made a police scanner the most popular paid iOS app in the country.
On Monday, 5-0 Radio Police Scanner(Opens in a new tab), which costs $5, was the number one paid app in the App Store. A pared-down version with ads was the number two paid app, surpassing TikTok and second only to the suddenly popular Zynn app. Vice first reported(Opens in a new tab) on the app's rise.
Protesters clashed with police in Minneapolis, Louisville, Los Angeles, Philadelphia(Opens in a new tab), and other U.S. cities over the weekend. They are demanding an end to police brutality after George Floyd was killed by a police officer.
A look at the top paid apps.Credit: screenshot / mashable
Also popular as a free app.Credit: Screenshot / mashable
Scanner apps let protesters listen to live police radio feeds. App analytics firm Apptopia found the top five police scanner apps, such as 5-0 Police Scanner(Opens in a new tab) and Police Scanner(Opens in a new tab), were downloaded 213,000 times over the weekend. That's a 125 percent increase from the weekend before — a record for police scanner apps. 5-0 Police Scanner was downloaded 40,000 times between Friday and Sunday in the United States.
Other related apps saw download surges as well, like the encrypted messaging app Signal. It was downloaded 37,000 times this weekend, a record for the app. Same for community alert app Citizen, which was downloaded 49,000 times during the same period, according to Apptopia(Opens in a new tab).
Elizabeth Warren and her very good dog Bailey joined the Washington D.C. protests
Less than half an hour before the official curfew started in Washington D.C., thousands of protesters were still walking peacefully in the streets of the capital. Among them were Sen. Elizabeth Warren, her husband Bruce Mann, and their dog Bailey.
Dressed in sensible beige shorts, sneakers, and a basic blue face mask, the last female candidate to suspend her campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination was quickly spotted by her fellow protesters as she joined the throng in Lafayette Square. Many were clearly thrilled to see her, cheering as she told reporters President Donald Trump had been "wrong" to deploy the National Guard in the city.
"He is imposing violence on our people," she told one reporter(Opens in a new tab). "People are here to protest peacefully.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Warren also called for Attorney General Bill Barr to resign after reports that he had ordered the violent removal of protesters near the White House, and tweeted her support for her colleague Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's bill to criminalise the use of chokeholds by police. Gillibrand was also in the presidential race until last August.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Widespread protests have emerged in cities across the U.S. in a furious response to the death of George Floyd — who died after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes — as well as other recent police killings, including Louisville woman Breonna Taylor and Florida man Tony McDade. These names are only the latest to be added to a shamefully long list of black Americans killed by police.f
Trump's response to the protests, in particular the order to disperse peaceful demonstrators near the White House using tear gas and rubber bullets for a Trump photo op, has drawn criticism from members of both parties(Opens in a new tab).
Other politicians who have appeared at protests include Reps. Ayanna Pressley(Opens in a new tab), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez(Opens in a new tab), and Joyce Beatty, who was pepper sprayed by police at the Columbus, Ohio event(Opens in a new tab), as well as Sen. Kamala Harris (Opens in a new tab)
Every police department should have to hear our rage via Zoom call
Yesterday, the Los Angeles Police Commission held a Zoom call with citizens — of Los Angeles and the surrounding areas, as well as some former residents — and watched with blank faces as citizens berated them mercilessly for eight hours.
The call came not only after several nights of protests in Los Angeles, but also after LAPD chief Michael Moore blamed the death of George Floyd(Opens in a new tab) on the city's protestors and looters. (Moore walked back on the comments(Opens in a new tab) after backlash.)
But that's just the tip of the iceberg: LAPD has a long history of violence against black people — next year will be 30 years since LA officers beat Rodney King(Opens in a new tab).
After many people were initially left out of the call(Opens in a new tab) because it capped at 500 people — and after the boomers on the commission figured out how to work Zoom — the commission said their statements.
Then, the real show started. The public unleashed their fury on the LAPD for hours on end. They demanded Moore's resignation or firing, as well as to defund the LAPD and support the people's budget(Opens in a new tab). Some spewed incredible insults(Opens in a new tab), while others broke down in tears. Several impassioned callers, like this one, went viral:
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
After watching this call, I'm convinced that every police department needs to have a Zoom call like this one.
While the LAPD is notorious for its racism, so are many other departments across the country — including the Minneapolis police(Opens in a new tab), who are responsible for the killing of George Floyd. He died after three police officers pinned him down, one kneeling on his neck for nearly 9 minutes.
Police departments across the nation should be subjected to people's rage. In many cities, they're beating up peaceful protestors who they are sworn to protect, all while we — the taxpayers — pay their salaries. Police commissions are supposed to be working for us, the civilians, and we should be able to scream and cry and drag our cops just like the residents of LA did yesterday. (And then I think we should defund the police(Opens in a new tab), but that's a different story.)
Public meetings with police departments aren't new. As some activists mentioned on the call, they've been raising the same concerns about the police for years. But now thanks to technology not afforded previous generations, these meetings can be online (and the current pandemic pretty much mandates that, anyway). Virtual meetings can not only be more accessible to people who can't make them in-person, but allows these meetings to go viral and be seen by thousands, both in the department's jurisdiction and beyond.
The total impact of the LAPD call has yet to be seen. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti didn't make any promises about changing the budget(Opens in a new tab), and as of publication the LAPD chief has not resigned.
But that doesn't mean this call didn't have an impact. Hundreds of people were able to express anger that has possibly been pent up for years. People around the country — like me, in New York — stayed tuned for hours and are now inspired to tell our police departments our similar demands (and probably insults). Like protesting, donating money, and calling our reps, being able to rip into our respective police departments can be just another action to elicit change, and it's a cathartic one at that.
Police commissions and departments have a duty to their citizens to let their voices be heard. We are all owed a more modern-day public forum. Americans everywhere should be able to call out their police chief's racist eyebrows.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Mashable has reached out to LAPD for comment and will update if received.
Even Piers Morgan thinks Rudy Giuliani sounds completely barking mad
Listen, let's not give Piers Morgan — a British TV presenter who's dabbled in racist tropes(Opens in a new tab) and transphobia(Opens in a new tab) — a gold star. But even he has realized Rudy Giuliani seems a little off.
Giuliani, the former NYC mayor and current personal lawyer for President Donald Trump, appeared on Thursday on ITV's Good Morning Britain, which Morgan co-hosts. The appearance, which took place in the middle of the night in the U.S., turned into a shouting match between two old white guys about who was more discredited.
The fight began when Morgan criticized Trump's tweet about "when the looting starts the shooting starts" in regards to the protests surrounding the police killing of George Floyd. But the argument soon devolved into a barrage of personal attacks.
"You sound completely barking mad, do you know that?" Morgan said.
Giuliani fired back, "No, I don't. You sound like a big liar."
But Morgan kept going after the former mayor, firing off wonderfully British insults.
"You've lost the plot. And it's sad to see," the host said.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Taking a page from his boss's playbook, Giuliani stumbled through a few insults about Morgan's failed CNN show and its poor ratings. At some point, Giuliani either tells Morgan he "sucked up" or "fucked up" — it's tough to tell because Giuliani's words are a bit slurred — but either way Morgan apologizes for the language before twisting the knife further into his guest.
"When I used to interview you, you were an intelligent, reasonable man and you've gone completely mad," he said. "And you sound deranged. You're abusive. And it's really sad to see what's happened to you."
A viral clip from the interview goes on in a similar fashion for a few more minutes. It does represent a shift from Morgan — a former winner on Celebrity Apprentice who had a largely friendly (if bonkers)(Opens in a new tab) interview with Trump this time last year.
But definitely watch the entire clip from Thursday, if only to see co-host Susanna Reid deliver an absolutely perfect, "OK," to end the wild segment.
Fox News host says John Lennon — who was killed in New York — wouldnt be safe in the city right now
Days after an NYPD car floored it into a group of protesters(Opens in a new tab) — just one of many instances of police violence in the city(Opens in a new tab) — New York City mayor Bill de Blasio responded with...John Lennon lyrics.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
"I don't mean to make light of this but I'm reminded of the song 'Imagine' by John Lennon," said de Blasio, according to journalist Jack Mirkinson. He went on to say that defunding the police, a rallying cry of the George Floyd protests, was "not the way forward."
De Blasio was subsequently roasted by social media(Opens in a new tab) and traditional(Opens in a new tab) media(Opens in a new tab) outlets(Opens in a new tab), and then Fox News got ahold of the quote. On Fox & Friends Thursday morning,Brian Kilmeade thought he was delivering a brilliant zinger about the mayor:
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
"John Lennon wouldn't be safe in this city right now," said Kilmeade. "He'd be hiding in his apartment."
For those who are unaware (like Kilmeade, apparently), John Lennon was murdered in New York(Opens in a new tab) in 1980. His killer, Mark David Chapman, shot him four times outside his luxury Manhattan apartment. He's still in prison and his eleventh parole hearing is scheduled for this August(Opens in a new tab).
Maybe Kilmeade should do some fact-checking. Imagine that?
Singer performs Bunker Boy, a catchy tune about Trumps time in the bunker
There's a new song inspired by Donald Trump's recent and somewhat confusing trip to the White House bunker, and honestly? It's catchy as hell.
On Monday, days after it was reported that Secret Service rushed the president to the White House bunker(Opens in a new tab) amidst D.C. protests, singer Courtney Jaye (@TropicalJaye(Opens in a new tab)) penned and performed the tune, titled, "Bunker Boy."
Jaye shared a video of herself performing the song to social media, and on top of her gorgeous guitar playing and sweet-sounding vocals, the lyrics are truly something.
"Bunker Boy, don't lie. You got scared and hid in the basement in the middle of the night," Jaye sings. "You're not so tough, no. It's a sorry sight. So take your bible, shove it up your ass, and turn on the fucking lights."
Jaye ends the song with the lyrics, "Bunker Boy, Bunker Boy, November's coming and we hope you're terrified, Bunker boy," before taking a big exhale and letting out an exhausted eye roll. A real mood.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
SEE ALSO:
Stephen Colbert slams Trump's hypocritical Bible photo op
For those who haven't been closely following Trump's bunker saga, let's recap.
On Friday night, hundreds of people gathered outside the White House gates to protest racism, police brutality, and the death of George Floyd, a black man who died on May 25, after a Minneapolis police officer kneeled on his neck for nearly 9 minutes.
Reports stated that when protests escalated Friday night, Secret Service ushered Trump — along with Melania and their son Barron — to the underground presidential bunker, where they allegedly remained for nearly an hour(Opens in a new tab).
After Trump received some backlash for retreating to the bunker amidst a national state of unrest, he said that he didn't go to the bunker to get away from the protests, rather he was merely inspecting the bunker.
"I was there for a tiny, short little period of time," Trump told Brian Kilmeade on Fox News Radio. He then stated his bunker visit was "more for an inspection," and that he'd been been to the bunker previously. He said he's gone "two and a half times," whatever that means.
Trump's bunker comments sounded a bit absurd to many people, including Jaye, which is why she decided to use the gift of song to hilariously call the president out on his suspicious story.
Jaye tweeted her video and made sure to tag Trump's Twitter handle — and the song has been quite a hit since. At the time of writing this piece, Jaye's tweet had more than 60,000 likes, and celebrities like Sophia Bush have even praised the blunt and catchy tune.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Jaye is no stranger to writing songs about President Trump. On June 1, she also shared another potential hit, called "fuck this fucking president," which has been viewed 174,000 times.
In it, Jaye shares her true feelings about the president, and urges people to get out and vote for the November election.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
I only wish Jaye had been cranking out these political hits back in 2018, when former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer was hiding in (or among) bushes. I bet "Bushes Boy" would have been a real banger.
Reddit co-founder, Alexis Ohanian, resigns to make room for a black board member
The co-founder of Reddit just put the rest of the tech world on notice.
Alexis Ohanian announced Friday(Opens in a new tab) that he was resigning his Reddit board seat, and "urged" the rest of the board to fill his spot with a new black board member. He will also be donating all future gains on his Reddit stock to "serve the black community," and is immediately giving $1 million to Colin Kaepernick's racial justice charity.
Yes, take that in. Ohanian just set the bar for using power and privilege for racial equity by transferring not only resources, but also power to people of color.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
The tech world has been looking for ways to support racial equality amid Black Lives Matter protests across the world. The leaders in efforts to promote diversity in tech say that one of the best ways tech leaders in particular can help is by investing in black businesses and venture funds, hiring black employees, and putting black people in positions of power within the tech world.
"Tech companies should be hiring [people of color] at all levels, from the board room to the boiler room," Rodney Sampson, a leader in tech diversity and founder of the accelerator OHUB(Opens in a new tab), said. "If you’re a venture-backed tech company, you should be looking to put someone black on your board of advisors."
Ohanian called his move "long overdue." He explained that he had made his decision so that he could answer his black daughter (Ohanian's wife is Serena Williams) when she asked: "What did you do?"
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Williams expressed support for her husband in a tweet that may have made this reporter choke up.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
In the background of Ohanian's actions are the stark realities of Reddit, which Ohanian said he founded "to help people find community and a sense of belonging." Anyone who has spent even a passing moment on Reddit knows that it can be a quagmire of divisive vitriol. Amid the protests, some Reddit communities protested what they see as Reddit's failure to take stronger action against hate speech on the platform by making their communities private. Ellen Pao, a former VC, and one-time interim CEO of Reddit who now runs a tech diversity organization, called out Reddit's hypocrisy on Twitter:
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
There is, of course, no guarantee that Reddit leadership will take Ohanian up on his request to fill his seat with a black board member. But this is an opportunity to set an example for the rest of the tech and business world. Currently, around 11 percent of Fortune 100 board members are African American, according to a recent study(Opens in a new tab) by the Alliance for Board Diversity.
Mashable has reached out to Reddit to learn whether it intends to follow through with Ohanian's call to action, and Reddit said it would be responding "later today."
Trump lies about elderly protester injured by police, hits another new Twitter low
Every time you think Donald Trump has hit a new moral low, he manages to outdo himself.
On Tuesday morning, Twitter users saw yet another exceptionally distressing and unpresidential display from Trump. The president tweeted outlandish lies about Martin Gugino, the injured protester who was shoved to the ground by Buffalo police officers last week. Even for someone prone to spreading false conspiracy theories, this was a shocking thing to say.
After video of the Buffalo police officers pushing the 75-year-old man to the ground went viral, public outrage led to the suspension of two officers directly involved and the resignation of the 57 other officers(Opens in a new tab) from Buffalo New York's emergency response team. Those officers who resigned from the team remain on the force.
As Gugino — whose head could be seen smacking the pavement in the video and then was bleeding from his ears — remains in serious but stable condition, Trump suggested to nearly 82 million Twitter followers that the 75-year-old man was "an ANTIFA provocateur" who was trying to tamper with police equipment and exaggerated the severity of his fall.
"Buffalo protester shoved by Police could be an ANTIFA provocateur. 75 year old Martin Gugino was pushed away after appearing to scan police communications in order to black out the equipment. @OANN I watched, he fell harder than was pushed. Was aiming scanner. Could be a set up?" Trump tweeted.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
SEE ALSO:
Protesters turned Donald Trump's #BabyGate fence into something beautiful
The tweet not only publicly targets a citizen, but also attempts to destroy his reputation as a peaceful activist(Opens in a new tab). And though Trump continually flings insults and spreads misinformation on Twitter, many people were genuinely taken aback by the harmful nature of this conspiracy theory.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Trump seems to have gotten this conspiracy theory in his head from One America News, the conservative, far-right news network that previously claimed Dr. Fauci had ties to the Deep State, George Soros, Bill Gates, and the Clintons(Opens in a new tab).
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Trump has proven time and again that he's not above lying to rile up his base and change the conversation. So it's imperative now more than ever that you research whatever he says before you even consider believing it.
Viral TikTok air fryer popcorn hack technically works but has one glaring problem
Welcome to AirFryDay, where — you guessed it —every Friday Mashable covers the latest trends, dispenses advice, and reviews recipes for yourair fryer.
Here's a sentence someone who works on the internet never expects to write: I should've read the comments first. But damn, it would've saved me a fair bit of time, a lot of cleaning, and an acrid smell overtaking my apartment if only I'd read the comments before testing a viral TikTok air fryer hack.
That's because the comments pointed out something obvious about cooking popcorn in an air fryer. If you toss loose popcorn kernels in the basket of a heated air fryer, they will certainly pop. But they will pop and fly upward, sometimes careening into the heating element of an air fryer, which is typically placed right above the basket, totally exposed. Some kernels might even get lodged in the heating element, which would certainly not be good...
But we're getting ahead of ourselves. First, here's the viral TikTok in question(Opens in a new tab), published by user ameerah_mh(Opens in a new tab), which garnered about three quarters of a million views. It's super basic: Put loose kernels in air fryer, blast at 200 degrees Celsius — that translates to 392 degrees Fahrenheit — and cook for five to six minutes. Here's how their product looked.
How the popcorn hack was supposed to go.Credit: screenshots: tiktok / Ameerah_mh
While it might seem pointless — since, you know, microwave popcorn exists — I can actually see the utility in this recipe. Using loose kernels, you choose exactly how much popcorn you make, which is helpful if you don't want a whole bag. The recipe also doesn't use any oil or butter — no added fats at all — which makes it an especially low-calorie snack for folks who want that. If you make loose kernels on a stovetop pot, you absolutely must use at least some oil to prevent burning and most microwave popcorns have at least some butter or oil. I can see the promise in tossing kernels in an air fryer basket, walking away, then having neatly contained popcorn in the basket five minutes later.
So I set about testing the recipe for this week's iteration of AirFryDay.
One issue: The air fryer in ameerah_mh's TikTok had a mesh basket. Mine has a nonstick grate, set inside the basket. Popcorn kernels would likely fall through the grate, and thus not receive hot, circulated air from all sides. To correct this, I lined my grate with aluminum foil and poked holes through it, which would allow hot air to circulate underneath the kernels while also keeping them off the bottom of the basket.
From there I preheated the air fryer to about 400 degrees, set the timer to six minutes, dumped a handful of kernels into the foiled basket, and started the cooking process.
Foil with holes and uncooked kernels, ready for the heat.Credit: mashable / tim marcin
About one minute in, a few kernels popped. From there, I listened closely because the best way to cook popcorn is to pull it when the popping slows to a crawl. The popping increased until about 3 minutes were left, when kernels really started clanging around. For lack of a better term, the popping sounded violent. Then the smoky smell started leaking out. Shit, I realized, it's probably ricocheting off the heating element.
Is this the end for my air fryer? I wondered.
Eventually the popping slowed and I turned the heat off with more than a minute left on the timer.
When I pulled the popcorn out, I was pleasantly surprised, considering the burning smell. There was a decent bounty of well-popped, stark white popcorn. No oil, no muss, no fuss. Sure, there were a number of un-popped kernels, but such is life with popcorn.
Not a great pop ratio, but not terrible.Credit: mashable / tim marcin
I dumped the product into a bowl, enjoyed a few kernels, then salted the whole thing and crunched a big handful. Not bad! In a pinch, it was a healthy, easy snack.
Popcorn, up close.Credit: mashable / tim marcin
But then I inspected the heating element and yikes, it was not good. A fair number of pieces of popcorn had popped, shot into the heating element, and lodged themselves into the element itself. The popcorn was charred and still smoking. Frankly, it looked like a mess that was going to suck to clean.
Not great!Credit: Mashable / tim marcin
Never great when your air fryer starts smoking, even though it is turned off.Credit: mashable / tim marcin
Sheepishly, I went to the comments of the viral TikTok to see if other folks had run into this issue. To my dismay, people pretty much predicted this would happen. "What about the element," wrote one commenter. "Don't do it. I have exactly the same air fryer and the popcorn burns on the element," wrote another. "If any gets in the fan that's a problem," wrote a third.
Well, don't I feel silly. So, yes, while this popcorn air fryer hack technically does work — heat pops popcorn, duh — there is no way I'd recommended anyone try it. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a heating element to clean.
Hillary Clinton hitting a Zoom limit on TV is a 2020 mood
Even former presidential candidates have to deal with Zoom's time limits.
From office happy hours to college classes, the world has had to adjust to meeting virtually during the pandemic — even former Secretary of State, FLOTUS, 2016 presidential candidate, and feminist trailblazer Hillary Clinton.
Clinton appeared on MSNBC ahead of the first presidential debate on Tuesday, declaring that Trump's "series is about to be canceled." Her insight, however, was interrupted by an all too familiar pop up: "Your meeting will end in 10 min."
It seems that neither Clinton nor MSNBC upgraded their Zoom accounts for unlimited meeting time.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Twitter users found the unfortunate moment a bit too relatable in this socially distanced hell.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
In response to the screenshots posted to Twitter, Clinton conceded to upgrading her account to Zoom Pro.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
China could punish people for liking social media posts
China is continuing to crack down on internet use against its citizens amid massive protests that have been sweeping the nation.
The Cyberspace Administration of China published a new set of guidelines, going into effect on Dec. 15, that would make internet users in China liable for simply liking posts that the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission chaired by leader Xi Jinping deem illegal or harmful, according to CNN(Opens in a new tab).
SEE ALSO:
Protests erupt at Foxconn's iPhone factory in China over working conditions, pay
This comes as street protests erupted in cities across the nation over the weekend against the "dynamic zero COVID" policy. The anti-COVID measure include strict lockdowns imposed by local authorities, mass testing, forced isolation and quarantines, closing businesses, shops, and schools, and maintaining lockdowns until there are no new infections reported, according to the BBC(Opens in a new tab). Tens of millions of people are living under some kind of lockdown, and some workers have been forced to sleep inside factories so they can continue to work while being quarantined.
A social media post that was forwarded widely quoted former Chinese leader Xi Zhongxun, the late father of Chinese President Xi Jinping, as saying "the people should be allowed to speak and encouraged to care about state affairs," NPR reported(Opens in a new tab). The country has two options, according to the news outlet: dropping the policies altogether and triggering an increase of COVID cases, or to double down on their zero-COVID policies, escalating lockdowns and political repression.
As a result of the zero-COVID policies, China has been stepping up internet regulation because of the online public anger against the policies. According to The New York Times(Opens in a new tab), users "are also flipping videos on their side, using filters on them, or recording videos of videos" in order to evade algorithms made to flag content and take it down.
The new guidelines are similar to guidelines published in 2017, but these now regulate "likes" of public posts and other types of comments. It's making people fearful that the nation might begin to crack down on social media even more than it has in the past.
"The authorities are very concerned with the spreading protest activities, and an important means of control is to stop the communications of the potential protesters including reports of protest activities and appeals of joining them," Joseph Cheng, a retired professor of political science at the City University of Hong Kong, told CNN. "This cyberspace control is an important lesson absorbed from protest activities like the Arab Spring."
How transformative building kits could solve an old-school problem across Europe
We’ve all grown understandably weary of the term “shortage” these days, but the lack of suitable school buildings(Opens in a new tab) for a surging numbers of school-age children should top the list of parents’ most pressing concerns.
Growing populations(Opens in a new tab) of primary and secondary pupils means that many UK and European schools simply don’t have space to house their growing student body comfortably. This has led to a slew of difficult decisions, including “temporary” structures that sometimes end up in use for years, or cramped classrooms where students are packed together like sardines.
At the same time, skyrocketing fuel prices are forcing some school officials to reconsider their antiquated buildings’ use of heat, water, and electricity — as well as their larger carbon footprint. These considerations are likely to continue to be a factor in school boards’ short- and long-term plans, as the dual crises of climate change and rising energy costs converge.
Stora Enso(Opens in a new tab), a leader of solutions within wood construction, packaging, and biomaterials, has a proposed solution with potential to address both these problems at once: an easy-to-build kit called Sylva(Opens in a new tab) (Latin for “woodland” or “forest”). The kit, made of wood and consisting of pre-manufactured, custom-made components including walls, floors, roofs, stairs, beams, columns, and rib panels, promises not only to help schools keep up with rising demand for new classrooms, but also to cut down on the carbon emissions associated with construction of such structures.
“The benefits of building with timber are extensive, not least when it comes to schools because they are built for future generations,” said Lars Völkel, executive vice president of Stora Enso Wood Products, in a recent press release(Opens in a new tab).
A sustainable solution to dual problems
As reported by the World Economic Forum(Opens in a new tab), the “built environment” — closely tied to the construction industry — is responsible for a whopping 39 percent of all global greenhouse gas emissions. As corporations and governments look for new opportunities to meet ambitious climate and energy goals, many are paying close attention to the construction sector.
When it comes to school construction, many of today’s current buildings are made of concrete and steel. These materials are associated with a massive carbon footprint. In fact, concrete has been called “the most destructive material on earth(Opens in a new tab).” Meanwhile, studies have found that every cubic meter of wood is capable of storing around 1 tonne of CO2(Opens in a new tab). (Even once a tree is cut down, the carbon stored in the wood remains locked in the raw material.)
Sylva, which consists of massive wood(Opens in a new tab), reportedly provides up to 70 percent less carbon dioxide emissions than concrete buildings. What’s more, Stora Enso explains that even a small, 1,200 m² school concept building can store up to 50 tonnes of carbon(Opens in a new tab) throughout its lifecycle.
These are all important considerations, given that growth of education construction projects is projected(Opens in a new tab) to spike 14 percent in the next year.
“We are making it as easy as possible to plan, design, and build a mass timber school,” said Sebastian Hernadez, R&D manager of building concepts with Stora Enso. “It shouldn’t be hard to build sustainably.”
Stora Enso has a long history of sustainably managed timber; today, it’s one of the largest forest owners in the world. “Mass timber” more generally has become a hot topic in recent years as architecture firms and construction entities consider ways to both cut costs and curb their carbon impact. Companies like Stora Enso, whose wood products are third-party certified by traceability and various chain-of-custody systems, are an increasingly attractive solution. All Sylva products made in Europe are produced with renewable-only electricity and fossil-free energy.
Benefits beyond sustainability
Sylva building kits have a number of benefits for budget- and time-pressed school boards that go beyond the basic carbon and cost savings, including faster installation time — around 30 percent less time spent(Opens in a new tab) on construction sites — and less environmental impact than traditional construction methods. There are ancillary benefits of pre-fabrication as well, including a potentially reduced need for construction labour, which is critical amidst the current labour shortage (there’s that word again).
Finally, because wood weighs about five times less than concrete, it requires a fewer number of deliveries, which means lower transportation costs and emissions.
In addition to being used for schools, Sylva could be a game-changer for offices, commercial spaces, and even multi-story residential buildings. On top of being a more sustainable option than steel or concrete structures, wood buildings are also associated with a host of health and wellness benefits. “Biophilic design(Opens in a new tab),” or design that mimics nature, has been shown to improve mental health and cognitive capacity. It’s also associated with improvements(Opens in a new tab) in indoor air quality. And finally, when it’s time to adapt, renovate, or tear down one of these buildings in the future, parts can be reused or recycled with minimal environmental impact since they’re made from wood.
“We see an increasing demand from building developers for healthy interior spaces, driven by multiple research reports showing health impacts of biophilic design. This is a trend that we are likely to see more and more of,” said Johanna Pirinen, the SVP of sustainability and wood products at Stora Enso.
Learn more about Sylva — and the many benefits of building using mass timber — by visiting the Stora Enso website.(Opens in a new tab)
Meet the McElroys: How podcastings first family can help you find your voice
There are a lot of entry points to the McElroy brothers universe; almost as many as there are to the Marvel equivalent. Maybe you've heard the chart-topping podcast these three lovable goofballs started in 2010, My Brother, My Brother and Me(Opens in a new tab). (The formula: Justin, Travis, and Griffin try to answer offbeat requests from Yahoo Answers, or from listeners, succeeding only in cracking each other up). Maybe you jumped aboard on the advice of a fanboy named Lin-Manuel Miranda(Opens in a new tab), or saw one of the many(Opens in a new tab) fan-made animations(Opens in a new tab) of MBMBaM's best bits(Opens in a new tab) on YouTube; one or two of you may even have caught their short-lived TV show(Opens in a new tab).
Maybe you entered via one of the McElroy spin-offs, which can often be better than the original. I adore the hilarious and compelling Dungeons & Dragons podcast they've done with their dad since 2014, The Adventure Zon(Opens in a new tab)e(Opens in a new tab), and its bestselling series of graphic novels(Opens in a new tab). My wife devours one of the many podcasts the brothers do with their spouses (in this case Sawbones(Opens in a new tab), Justin and Dr. Sydnee McElroy's tour of medical history). There's a chance you heard them first in Trolls World Tour, in which the brothers appeared because they lobbied for roles by — you guessed it — starting yet another podcast(Opens in a new tab).
It's hard not to be envious of their idea factory, even if you're one of the millions who've never heard a McElroy goof in your life. (The trio know they're merely "podcast famous," or, as Travis puts it, "balloon-boy famous.") Envious, more to the point, of the creative energy to actually turn all these ideas into things. The next best thing to bottling and selling what they have is to get it down in print, which is what the McElroys have done with the just-released book Everybody Has a Podcast (Except You): A How-to Guide from the First Family of Podcasting(Opens in a new tab).
It isn't the most comprehensive or most business-focused guide ever written on the topic, and the brothers freely admit that some of its technical advice is questionable — such as Griffin's insistence, even now, on using clunky-but-free editing software Audacity(Opens in a new tab); Justin and Travis vehemently denounce him in sidebars. But it is probably the most fun, definitely the most readable, and one hell of a pep talk to boot. If you haven't started work on the podcast idea burning in your brain by the time you reach the last page, you likely never will.
SEE ALSO:
Best podcasts for achieving your 2021 New Year's resolutions
The book's most salient advice: Don't worry about the tech, not at first. Don't worry about your title (they would not have chosen My Brother, My Brother and Me if they'd fretted over SEO). Don't even worry so much about your topic, although it is an excellent idea to have an obsession you can't stop gabbing about. Just do the podcasting equivalent of punk rockers playing three chords in a garage. Grab a phone with a voice recording app, grab a family member or friend (virtually, in this day and age), hit record and go.
Then cringe as you listen back over the conversation. Then do it again. Learn. Get better. Wash, rinse, repeat.
"We had fun doing it, that was it," says Justin of MBMBaM's origins. The show began life as a way to force the three of them to sit down together remotely for an hour once a week — Justin was in their hometown in West Virginia, Travis and Griffin were in Ohio. And what do you talk about when you get together? "The house we grew up in, putting the energy into making someone laugh was a way of saying 'I love you.'"
That, in podcasting terms, is what you might call a competitive advantage. Comedy-loving dad Clint McElroy was a veteran radio DJ who would do occasional on-air skits with the kids. At home their essential education was not neglected: Marx Brothers, Mel Brooks, Mystery Science Theater, a modicum of Monty Python. The rambunctious patter they developed around the dining table is at the root of their appeal. Listeners feel like part of the family.
At its best, MBMBaM is an inside joke and catchphrase-creating improv machine, a triple act with no straight man. While Justin and Travis describe themselves as "buffoons" who delight in provoking the youngest, most strait-laced brother (Griffin) into exasperated outbursts, Griffin is often the one to hit the next level of a gag (like his recent take on (Opens in a new tab)Ratatouille(Opens in a new tab) with rats under every chef's hat). "We're all collaborating to build a bit to its funniest point," he says. "Nobody can really sit out on that process, or the bit doesn't make it on the show."
'Just say some garbage'
That process of going from pretty good to great can take literally hundreds of episodes, even when you have a family history of chasing the funny. Think you're embarrassed by your early podcast episodes? Guess what, so are the first family of podcasting. "Real listeners don't start until episode 250," says Travis, who is less than half joking. (MBMBaM is now closing in on episode 450; keeping up with the McElroys and their millions of inside jokes is a full-time job.)
In the very early episodes, before joining the Maximum Fun network, the brothers made all sorts of mistakes, such as using an unlicensed ABBA track for the theme tune. The next theme, which musician and podcaster John Roderick let them use for free, was hastily dropped in January 2021 when Roderick became infamous online one Saturday as Bean Dad.
True to his hey-kids-let's-put-on-a-show spirit, Griffin sat down at his piano on Sunday, and took 16 minutes to concoct a new theme. One running joke is that the only thing Griffin knows how to play is the theme from Rugrats. So he played it, "dropped a three-legged drum beat loop on it, and just said some garbage."
Just say some garbage, in fact, might be the perfect alternate title for the book. Say your garbage, say it with gusto and love, say it until the garbage gets good. Delight your audience by being delightfully yourself, not by cookie-cutting yourself into some pre-defined media-friendly shape.
The McElroys, despite their Trolls adventure and an animated Adventure Zone series in the works at Peacock, have retained rough edges that resist Hollywood-ization. They find their hilarity in mundanity. They've had talks with agents who want to slot them into branding categories by asking them, say, what kind of event TV aftershow they'd enjoy hosting, doubtless expecting an answer like Game of Thrones or The Walking Dead. "I would say it's going to be an aftershow where we talk about Ellen and discuss fan theories," deadpans Justin.
That's one idea unlikely to enter the McElroy cinematic universe. But given that we're talking about the co-creators of a podcast about cereal(Opens in a new tab), an abandoned podcast about the Bachelorette, and an annual Thanksgiving podcast devoted to repeated reviews of (Opens in a new tab)Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2(Opens in a new tab), you probably shouldn't count out the possibility altogether.
In the meantime, if your podcast passion happens to be Ellen recaps or anything else, the brothers say: Go for it. Good luck. Great job(Opens in a new tab).
TikToks first commissioned musical is taking center stage
This past week, a TikTok musical won a Grammy. Now, riding on the wave of this success, the social platform has commissioned its first musical.
TikTok's first officially commissioned musical,(Opens in a new tab) entitled For You, Paige, is being led creatively by Daniel Mertzlufft, who was also behind the phenomenon that was Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical(Opens in a new tab). Mertzlufft(Opens in a new tab) is a composer and self-proclaimed "musical theatre fanatic," who has been sharing behind-the-scenes bits from his upcoming musical on TikTok, including a cast reveal(Opens in a new tab) and recording sessions(Opens in a new tab).
For You, Paige is a musical "written by TikTok, for TikTok," as the company's announcement deems, so it's only natural that its story finds roots in TikTok itself. In the musical, Landon, a teenage "music nerd" (played by Roman Banks(Opens in a new tab)) joins forces with his best friend Paige (played by Sri Ramesh(Opens in a new tab)), on a TikTok song that goes viral. What ensues is a TikTok community production, teeming with references to TikTok trends, subcultures, and other viral moments (think: a nod to #BookTok).
SEE ALSO:
What does a memory sound like? TikTok remembers.
The production will star other TikTok stars, including James Henry(Opens in a new tab), Krystina Alabado(Opens in a new tab), and JJ Niemann(Opens in a new tab). All songs are written by Mertzlufft, Julia Riew(Opens in a new tab), Katherine Lynn-Rose(Opens in a new tab), RJ Christian(Opens in a new tab), Blake Rouse(Opens in a new tab), Morgan Reilly(Opens in a new tab), Alex Engleberg(Opens in a new tab), Kate Leonard(Opens in a new tab) and Gosz & Fotos(Opens in a new tab).
For You, Paige will be performed live at a theatre in New York, but will be available to watch globally on @TikTok(Opens in a new tab) on April 14 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
This was my Multiverse of Madness but its actually just Twitter memes
One thing about people on Twitter is that they are never going to let the media that defined their youth go. Nostalgia is their life force.
The latest iteration of this trend is the "this was my Multiverse of Madness" meme that's currently all over the timeline, which references Marvel's latest epic, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The concept of the multiverse — a.k.a. the existence of multiple alternate realities — is at the forefront of the internet's mind, thanks to both the new Doctor Strange movie and the indie hit Everything Everywhere All At Once.
Following this trend is simple. It's typically the phrase "this was my Multiverse of Madness" accompanied by an image of what the user considers to be a chaotic assembly of characters and story lines — so anything from an image of a Disney Channel crossover episode to an unhinged map of a cinematic universe. (This concept stands on the shoulders of the "most ambitious crossover event(Opens in a new tab)" meme.) The phrase "multiverse of madness" is so absurd and serious that applying it to anything is funny.
"This was my multiverse of madness" comes at the heels of another trend that follows the same formula: "this was my Heartstopper." Heartstopper is a tender queer romance on Netflix based on a web comic, and it's been making the internet cry happy since since its release a few weeks ago. The Heartstopper meme reminds us of just how little queer representation we've had in the past, but that doesn't mean the tweets aren't hilarious and even heartwarming with people suggesting progressively more outlandish, obscure, and obviously straight pop culture moments as their Heartstopper. The less like Heartstopper the reference, the more entertaining the meme.
Here are a few of our favorite "this was my" memes.
The only mind map that matters
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
I've always loved the way they love
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Taylor Swift actually invented the multiverse with the "Look What You Made Me Do" music video
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Skins is always relevant
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
The reboot could never
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Ice princes of my heart
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Grabbing my popcorn
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
The late Stan Lees Twitter account is being used to hawk NFTs and people are pissed
NFTs have already felt the wrath of gamers.
Now, comic book lovers, superhero movie fans, and Marvel aficionados alike are lashing out against NFTs, too.
On Tuesday morning, the late Stan Lee's Twitter account sent out a tweet promoting NFTs of the Indian superhero Chakra the Invincible that will be sold in the coming weeks. The link in the tweet, "chakraverse.io," sends users to a website belonging to Orange Comet, a company that creates NFTs for brands and sports teams.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
"From championing diversity to embracing new tech, Stan was 1 step ahead of the curve," reads the tweet. "To honor his innovative spirit, Stan's 1st Indian hero, Chakra The Invincible, debuts in his own NFT (digital art) collection from 7:30pm PT 12/27-12pm PT 12/29! Sign up: http://chakraverse.io(Opens in a new tab)"
The backlash to this promotional tweet being sent from Stan Lee's Twitter account was swift and unforgiving.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
"Can't believe Stan Lee came back from the dead just to promote an NFT," replied(Opens in a new tab) popular YouTuber Dolan Dark.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
"Using Stan Lee’s twitter account to promote an NFT gets you sent straight to hell," tweeted(Opens in a new tab) Twitter user @Ter0me.
"The fact they never retired his Twitter after his passing is one thing, but using him to promote something like NFTs is absolutely disrespectful…" said @SuperiorArtemis while sharing a meme quoting Stan Lee's line from his cameo in Spider-man: Homecoming.
"Don't make me come down there, you punk," reads the meme.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Even the official Dictionary.com Twitter account got in on the NFT dunking.
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
What makes this particular advertisement more distasteful is that it's being promoted as something being done in memory of Stan Lee.
"Honoring what would have been Stan Lee’s 99th birthday on December 28th, we are inviting all of Stan’s fans to celebrate his amazing legacy with us by sharing ownership in a limited NFT collectible around one of his first international superheroes," reads(Opens in a new tab) the Orange Comet website.
SEE ALSO:
Does your WiFi suck lately? These boosters can help.
Stan Lee was the mastermind behind some of Marvel Comics' most beloved superheroes, such as Spider-man, Fantastic Four, The Avengers, and X-Men, among many others. He was such a beloved figure in the comic book world that he made cameos in every Marvel Universe film from Iron Man all the way up until Avengers: Endgame.
Sadly, Stan Lee passed away in November 2018 at the age of 95.
NFTs, or non fungible tokens, are basically digital collectibles, usually in the form of digital art. When buyers purchase an NFT, they aren't actually purchasing the actual art but the token that's connected to the art, which gets recorded to the blockchain, basically to prove they "own" the piece on the blockchain.
The NFT market has exploded over the past year along with the rest of thee cryptocurrency industry as buyers look to invest in speculative assets. The digital artist Beeple, for example, sold an NFT of his work at auction in May 2021 for $69 million.
However, NFTs are gradually experiencing more of a pushback from the average internet user.
Critics complain that much of the art made for the purpose of NFTs are quite ugly. Many NFT projects consist of just a few original art assets which are then combined via computer generation to automatically create thousands of "unique" pieces. Some critics find NFTs to be exploitative – basically, NFT advocates are looking to commodify anything and turn everything into a speculative asset like a stock. NFTs are also incredibly bad for the environment, as the majority of the industry is based on the energy-wasting Ethereum network.
According to Orange Comet's website, the Chakra NFT drop will include 6,880 different NFTs at a yet to be determined price. The NFTs will be released on the Polygon network, which is more energy efficient than the incredibly wasteful Ethereum network.
It should be noted that Marvel is not involved with this NFT project. Stan Lee did create Chakra the Invincible, but Marvel was not involved with this particular character.
As NFTs spread into different internet cultures, they seem to meet(Opens in a new tab) heavy resistance at every turn. However, just like with the rest of cryptocurrency, there's big money in the form of venture capitalists, brand marketers, and other wealthy techies who will continue to push NFTs where they're generally not wanted.
So, hang in there, true believers. You'll likely be seeing a lot more of NFTs invading your favorite fandoms.
March Mindfulnessis Mashable's series that examines the intersection of meditation practice and technology. Because even in the time of coronavirus, March doesn't have to be madness.
The first time I encountered Tai Chi was in 2002, via one of the hottest technology formats of the age: DVDs. I bought Tai Chi for Weight Loss on Amazon, and was surprised by how its exercises felt easier and more effective than my prior purchases, Yoga for Weight Loss and Pilates for Weight Loss. Instead of requiring you to stay still in painful positions, Tai Chi offered a light, smooth, steady flow between them that felt like slow-motion dancing.
I wore the Tai Chi DVD out; the others gathered dust on the shelf. Its teacher, Scott Cole, was a friendly young guide with a soft voice and a shirtless six-pack, introducing moves with fantastic names like Wave Hands Like Clouds and Golden Rooster Stands On One Leg, steadily building up to a surprisingly sweat-inducing workout on a blissful Hawaiian shoreline.
This was right at the beginning of the U.S. yoga boom: model and philanthropist Christy Turlington had appeared in a pretzel position on the cover of TIME(Opens in a new tab), while Lululemon had opened its first couple of stores. I remember expecting that Tai Chi's popularity would boom in tandem alongside that of yoga. After all, there's a lot that unites the two practices.
Both are kinds of physical meditation that demand focused attention. Both were practiced for thousands of years (yoga in India, Tai Chi in China) in multiple forms. Simplified versions of both practices reached the west in the 20th century. And yes, as those DVDs promised, both have a long list of proven health benefits(Opens in a new tab), including losing weight at a steady clip if you keep up the practice over time.
HOLLYWOOD, CA.,OCTOBER 11, 2012: Kay D'Arcy practices Tai Chi in the garden of her Hollywood apartment October 11, 2012. D'Arcy is an 80-year-old retired nurse from England who decided to start over and try her luck in Hollywood. The petite octogenarian plays a karate-chopping, knife throwing assassin in the Kickstart video pilot, Agent 88. (^^^/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images).] *** [] (Photo by Mark Boster/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)Credit: Mark Boster/ Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Fast forward two decades, however, and the two practices are clearly far from equal in the eyes of 2020s tech culture. Google "yoga" and you'll get 1.4 billion hits; "tai chi" returns half of that. YouTube's top yoga beginners' video(Opens in a new tab) has 38 million views versus 8.1 million for the Tai Chi equivalent(Opens in a new tab). There are more than a hundred English-language yoga podcasts on Spotify, and only two for Tai Chi.
The same disparity can be found in both major app stores. You can download dozens of yoga apps with slick, professional-looking interfaces. Of the handful of Tai Chi apps, most are collections of amateur drawings and re-skinned YouTube videos. I've seen several good apps drop out of Apple's App Store as they failed to keep up with iOS updates.
The only ones I use on a regular basis are 7 Minute Chi — Meditate and Move(Opens in a new tab) and Tai Chi Temple(Opens in a new tab), both by a Belgian developer called Zhen Wu. And even the latter has problems, such as the fact that it cuts off some of the video of its tiny Tai Chi master. Neither quite hit the spot, which is why I've digitized that old Tai Chi DVD, uploaded it to my iPad, and still use it to this day.
Why the imbalance between the ancient arts? In part, it's because Tai Chi has a definition problem. There's a lot of overlap with Qi Gong, a somewhat lighter, easier form of exercise, and with hardcore martial arts like Kung Fu. Is Tai Chi a fast form of moving meditation or a slow form of self defense? The answer is that it's kind of both — which helps explain why Tai Chi is closely related to the taijitu, better known as the yin and yang symbol. But things with fluid definitions are not always easily embraced in western culture.
Tai Chi also has an image problem. Think "yoga" and you're probably picturing a room full of lithe, glowing young gym rats in flattering outfits moving into warrior pose. But traditional Tai Chi uniforms, chosen for ease of movement rather than looking good on Instagram, look more like shapeless silk pajamas. In the U.S., Tai Chi is most commonly seen practiced in parks by the elderly, spreading a false perception that it's something you should only bother taking up in your later years, when you're trying to keep arthritis at bay.
To be fair, Tai Chi is indeed great for arthritic pain.(Opens in a new tab) But it has also been shown to help with a wide range of other conditions that afflict us at every age, including stress(Opens in a new tab), lower back pain(Opens in a new tab), and my nemesis — occasional bouts of vertigo. (This 2009 study says(Opens in a new tab) that improving your balance with tai chi poses helps calm things down in your inner ears.)
If Tai Chi is seen in movies at all, it's either as a martial art in a Hong Kong-style action epic (such as Keanu Reeves' 2013 directorial debut, Man of Tai Chi), or it's meant to signify that someone is old and a little out of touch. Such as Robert DeNiro's 70-something title character in The Intern, practicing Tai Chi with his peers in Brooklyn's Prospect Park, or The Farewell, in which a Chinese-American woman laughs through(Opens in a new tab) her grandma's serious attempts to practice.
And then there's The Big Lebowski, in which The Dude (Jeff Bridges) practices awkward tai chi forms on the rug that really tied the room together, White Russian in hand.
Via Giphy(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Perhaps, in the hyper-stressed 2020s, Tai Chi's time has finally come. There are a number of Tai Chi apps for virtual reality systems, such as Guided Tai Chi(Opens in a new tab) on Oculus Quest. The practice makes sense for VR in a way that yoga does not. In Tai Chi, you're almost always on your feet and moving your arms around with precision — a natural fit for VR controllers, which can show your hands where to go, whereas you'd have to put them down for yoga poses like Downward-Facing Dog.
But while I wait for app entrepreneurs to catch on, I'll be over here in my lockdown-friendly tai chi pants, once again firing up a 20-year-old video and mindfully blissing out on the shores of an imaginary Hawaii. No White Russian required.
Read more about mindfulness
No, you don't need a guide to meditate
Buddhists offer their own form of online meditation — and it's nothing like the apps
Why ADHD and mindfulness make for unexpected but perfect bedfellows
4 beginner mindfulness exercises you can do without an app
Twitter users get creative with emoji thanks to the If I text you meme
Wonder why your timeline is flooded with random emoji? We've got you covered.
The latest Twitter meme combines two of my favorite things: emoji and wordplay. Users are tweeting "when I text you [insert emoji] know it means..." followed by a clever or outlandish meaning for that emoji.
The trend treats emoji as a jumping off point to make a joke, and some of the most popular examples reference the internet's best inside jokes. It also spotlights many underutilized emoji, and we all know the weirder the emoji, the better.
According to Twitter, the phrase "when I text you" has been tweeted over 200,000 times in the past week. This isn't the first time emoji have been reclaimed for something other than their intended use. Emoji have become their own language with each generation and various social circles assigning emoji different meanings. Gen Z famously uses 😭 and 💀 for laughing rather than the more Millennial 😂. Not to mention, all the emoji that have become synonymous with thirst and horniness.
This meme allows chronically online wordsmiths to show off their creativity and will hopefully spark a renaissance in bizarre emoji use. Here are some of my favorite examples of the meme.
A calendar has never been more threatening
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Finally, a use for the accordion emoji
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Brb sending everyone I know mangos
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
For the TwiHards
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Lights, camera, action!
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
IYKYK
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
Yeah we are
Tweet may have been deleted
(opens in a new tab)(Opens in a new tab)
