Tag Archives: celeb news

The Rob Kardashian and Blac Chyna Feud Isn’t Just About ‘Revenge’

by Tasbeeh Herwees

Whether or not you’re attuned to the ongoing dramas of the Kardashian krew, you’ve likely heard by now that Rob Kardashian (brother to Kim; sock entrepreneur) spent much of his Wednesday posting a series of nude photos, presumably sent to him privately, by his ex-fiancée and mother of his child, Blac Chyna (formerly Angela Renee White; model; makeup entrepreneur). Because the social media spree took place after he’d discovered that Chyna had apparently cheated on him, Kardashian’s act has been roundly deemed by celebrity gossip mongers like TMZ as “revenge.”

Indeed, celebrity attorney Lisa Bloom (daughter of famed civil rights lawyer Gloria Allred) confirmed this reading of the events when she announced Friday morning that she’d be representing Chyna in court as she pursues a restraining order against her raging ex. Bloom — who helped actress Mischa Barton get a restraining order against an ex-boyfriend who was threatening to sell her sex tape — told The New York Daily News that what Kardashian did constituted “revenge porn,” stating: “Revenge porn is illegal in CA and it certainly appears to me that Rob has violated this criminal law.”

California passed its revenge porn law in 2013. Today, more than half of U.S. states have similar laws. The very language with which we use to talk about “revenge porn” reveals a lot about how we approach the issue, casting it in terms of personal drama rather than as a violation of personhood. Iowa-based Drake University law professor Shontavia Johnson says the popular phrase is misleading. “Revenge porn is really about privacy, about protecting our personal information and having a right to do that,” she says. “We use the term ‘revenge porn,’ which makes it sound like it’s about the perpetrator, but it’s really about the privacy of the individual victim, and whether or not an unsuspecting victim can in some way stop this picture or video from being placed online.”

Read Full – https://www.good.is/articles/rob-kardashian-blac-chyna-drama-twitter-instagram-revenge-porn

Cosby team triumphant, but sex crime retrial, lawsuits loom

In one of the more unusual scenes to play out at Bill Cosby’s sexual assault trial, the judge questioned Cosby under oath as jury deliberations wore on to be sure he knew the mistrial he sought could lead to a second trial.

Cosby, the actor and comedian known as “America’s Dad,” turns 80 next month facing just that ordeal. Legal experts believe prosecutors will reshape their case for Round Two, although it’s not yet clear why jurors couldn’t reach a verdict, or how close they came.

District Attorney Kevin Steele could ask the judge to let more of Cosby’s 60 accusers testify or disclose to jurors that accuser Andrea Constand is gay. That never came up in her seven hours of testimony. The defense had hoped, if it did, to introduce evidence she had previously dated a man.

Read Full – http://www.miamiherald.com/entertainment/celebrities/article156821314.html

How celebrities’ ‘golden glow’ shines on public health

Updated 12:20 PM ET, Thu May 18, 2017

(CNN)When celebrities speak, it seems, the world listens — even when it comes to personal and public health.

Just look at what happened after Charlie Sheen’s HIV disclosure two years ago, said John Ayers, a research professor at San Diego State University.

 

Sales of in-home HIV testing kits reached record highs around the same time the actor announced that he had been diagnosed as HIV-positive in 2015, according to a study published in the journal Prevention Science on Thursday. Ayers was a co-author of the study.

 

About the same time, “in record numbers, people were going online, seeking out information on what the signs of HIV are, on how to find and appropriately prevent HIV with devices such as condoms and also how to get tested,'” Ayers said. “We’ve seen this … many times over.”

 

For the new study, Ayers and his co-authors monitored weekly sales of OraQuick, the only FDA-approved at-home oral HIV testing kit available in the United States, from 2014 to 2016.

 

The researchers found that there were 8,225 more sales than they expected the week of Sheen’s HIV status announcement. Elevated sales continued for four weeks after Sheen’s disclosure.
The findings show a correlation, not a direct causation. Yet in a previous study, Ayers and his colleagues also found that Google searches for HIV testing and related topics also spiked after Sheen’s announcement.

 

“The most common reaction is, ‘So what? What does a search really mean?’ Our new study shows not only did Sheen’s disclosure lead people to seek information about HIV prevention, it also corresponded with record levels of at-home rapid HIV testing sales,” Ayers said.

hey are not doctors, many celebrities have had both positive and negative ties to public health in recent years.

 

Court Ruling on Celebrity Photos Raises New Copyright Risk for Websites

Apr 10, 2017

When a gossip site posted a photo of a pregnant-looking Beyoncé, it probably didn’t anticipate the fallout: A major copyright decision that could imperil the site’s business model and undermine a legal defense used by other websites that depend on user content.

The decision, handed down Friday by a federal appeals court in California, came as a defeat for LiveJournal, which hosts the popular blog called “Oh No They Didn’t,” a forum for users to upload news about celebrities and chat about them.

The ruling came after a paparazzi operation called Mavrix, which the court describes as “specializing in candid photographs of celebrities in tropical locations,” sued Live Journal for copyright infringement over the Beyoncé photo and 19 other photos.

Full Read – http://fortune.com/2017/04/10/dmca-ruling-livejournal/

CELEBRITY BURGLARIES JUST PART OF L.A. CRIME EXPLOSION

Hollywood celebrities are being hit left and right by burglars … but as far as the crooks are concerned they’re nobody special, because high-end break-ins are out of control this year.

TMZ broke the story, Dodgers star Yasiel Puig was the latest to be hit, with thieves making off with more than half a mil in jewelry. Other celebs hit include Alanis Morissette, Cesar Millan and Derek Fisher.

Law enforcement tells us … they believe the celebs were not targeted because they flaunted their jewelry and other riches on social media. The sources say these celebs all live in ritzy areas of L.A., and there has been an influx of criminals because California has recently opened the prison doors.

Recent laws have addressed terrible prison overcrowding by ordering the release of a number of non-violent criminals. There are also drug offenses that have been reduced from felonies to misdemeanors.

Our sources say a number of the people released are burglars, and now that they’re out they’re going back to what they know. As a result, there has been an explosion of burglaries in the L.A. area.

And there’s something else. We’re told a number of people who were hit, including some of the celebs who have become victims, did not turn their alarms on because they assumed it wasn’t necessary since they live in what they believed were safe areas.

Read Full – http://www.tmz.com/2017/03/07/burglaries-celebrities-prison-release-los-angeles/