News Round-Up: August 16, 2018

Andrew Serkin (via Instagram)

Some news items you might have missed:

• Miami-based InstaHunk Andrew Serkin (above) took a break from the sun. #LuckyUs

• An Oklahoma school district briefly shut down this week after people purporting to be parents of students used social media to make violent, epithet-filled threats against a transgender girl. “If he wants to be a female, make him a female,” one user wrote. “A good sharp knife will do the job really quick.” Another post read, “You know we have open hunting seasons on them kind. Ain’t no bag limit either.”

• Regarding the still-unfolding and massive molestation scandal wracking the Catholic Church in Pennsylvania, Catholic League president Bill Donohue today told followers the alleged victims were not raped: "they were groped or otherwise abused, but not penetrated, which is what the word 'rape' means." #SRSLY

• A new twist in the #MeToo movement: An 11-month Title IX investigation recently found New York University Professor Avital Ronell responsible for sexually harassing her gay student, Nimrod Reitman.

• GQ Magazine got in hot water for calling these guys "stocky."#Stocky???

How the hell are these guys considered “stocky”???? https://t.co/MwkIkYFl7E

— just Gabe (@gabester089) August 10, 2018

• Omarosa Manigault Newman‘s tell-all Unhinged claims that Ivanka Trump hated the Saturday Night Live sketch that labeled her “complicit” in March 2017. According to Omarosa, Ivanka was "thin-skinned and could not seem to take a joke.”

• The California Senate has approved AB 2943, a bill that could protect LGBTQ people statewide from undergoing gay conversion therapy. The bill passed in the state Assembly in April. After heading back to the Assembly for a concurrence vote, the bill will hopefully be signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown.

• Donald Trump’s military parade this fall is shaping up to cost $80 million more than initially estimated. The parade, slated for Nov. 10, is now estimated to cost $92 million, blowing way past the original $12 million estimate.

• Queer artist Anthony Starble recently teamed up with The Klassiks to create an sexy EDM remix of his latest single, "Paperweight." The new mix adds a catchy synth line and bass drops that kicks up the intensity from the original.

I like. Listen below and then head to iTunes for more from Starble here.

Kevin Spacey's Agents & Publicist Jump Ship As More Sexual Assault Allegations Add Up

Kevin Spacey

More bad news for Kevin Spacey as the sexual harassment allegations continue to add up.

From JustJared:

Kevin Spacey has been dropped by both his talent agents at CAA and his publicist Staci Wolfe at Polaris amid allegations that he has sexually harassed and assaulted several men, some underage, over the years, according to Deadline.

The two-time Oscar-winning actor is in the midst of a very public scandal right now after actor Anthony Rapp came forward with an allegation of sexual assault when he was only 14.

In his response to the accusation, Spacey said he didn’t remember the incident and then came out as a gay man.

More people have come forward with allegations of sexual assault and harassment since then, including eight people who have worked on House of Cards.

Production on the hit Netflix series has been suspended indefinitely while the accusations are investigated.

Megyn Kelly: I Know Women Complained About Bill O'Reilly At Fox News Because I Complained About Him

Megyn Kelly, the former Fox News star, told her Megyn Kelly Today audience on NBC that while Fox News Corp. promised many that the work environment for female workers would improve after ousting network head Roger Ailes, and hosts Bill O'Reilly & Eric Bolling, no real change has happened.

In an emotional address, Kelly confirmed to her viewers, "O’Reilly’s suggestion that no one ever complained about his behavior is false. I know because I complained."

Kelly also shared that victims are often bullied into silence through “fear of public shaming, including through the media.” She named names and pointed fingers at Irena Briganti, Fox’s media relations chief, who she says “is known for her vindictiveness.”

“To this day [Briganti] pushes negative articles on certain Ailes accusers like the one you are looking at right now,” Kelly said.

Watch below.

Kelly’s monologue comes on the heels of a bombshell report in the New York Times which revealed that O’Reilly paid a $32 million settlement to one woman, Lis Wiehl, just before Fox News resigned him to a huge new contract. Fox News was aware of the basic terms of the settlement, if not the exact amount.

“O’Reilly’s suggestion that no one ever complained about his behavior is false. I know because I complained.” @megynkelly on Bill O’Reilly pic.twitter.com/BO8ifQcJbu

— TODAY (@TODAYshow) October 23, 2017

Speaking on Glenn Beck's radio show today, Bill O’Reilly proclaimed he’s being attacked for political purposes and that it’s been a “horror show” for him and his family.

This past weekend, The New York Times reported that O'Reilly agreed to a $32 million settlement to a former legal analyst who had accused O’Reilly of harassment.

As has been said elsewhere - no one pays $32 million over false allegations.

Fox News Renewed Host Bill O'Reilly's Contract One Month After His $32 Million Harassment Settlement

Bill O'Reilly

Just six months after Fox News head Roger Ailes was ejected from his lofty position at the conservative news network, prime-time host Bill O'Reilly agreed to pay a $32 million settlement to a network analyst over new sexual harassment allegations.

That's $32 million to one person.

According to The New York Times, Fox News was aware of the woman's complaints.

This was at least the sixth such agreement O'Reilly or the network had agreed to in order to quell such allegations against O'Reilly.

One month later the network renewed O'Reilly's contract to the tune of $100 million over four years.

The obvious question remains: why was O'Reilly allowed to remain in the workplace after so many expensive settlements?

Read the full account at The New York Times.

Nobody pays $32m for false allegations - nobody https://t.co/qB3njcHHuy

— Gretchen Carlson (@GretchenCarlson) October 21, 2017

Show of hands pls...Amy I the only one who can’t stop wondering what EXACTLY someone would have 2do2 warrant a $32MILLION DOLLAR SETTLEMENT?

— Stephanie Ruhle (@SRuhle) October 22, 2017

#OreillySettlement There’s 1 reason a man pens a $32 million check. He doesn’t want to do 32 yrs in the pen. @GretchenCarlson

— Charles Adler (@charlesadler) October 22, 2017

I hate to be crude, but a $32MM settlement suggest a lot worse than "garden variety" harassment. #OReilly #SexualAssault

— Eric Loechle (@ericloechle) October 21, 2017

Odd silence from RNC and Spicer and Don Jr and others on this O’Reilly story

— Sam Stein (@samstein) October 21, 2017

My "Me Too" Interview With NBC News - LGBT Sexual Harassment In The Workplace

In the aftermath of the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment/assault stories, social media created the #MeToo campaign to encourage those folks who have been assaulted or harassed in the workplace to come forward; to show how widespread the issue truly is.

I joined that campaign posting "Me too" on my Facebook wall a couple of days ago. I had been the target of sexual harassment years ago when I was working in NYC in my first Broadway show.

A journalist from NBC Out sent out a request looking for LGBTs willing to share their stories. I paused thinking long and hard about this.

I've never shared this with anyone other than two people at the time: my husband, Michael, and one other cast member of the show.

I'm hoping, by my sharing, others - especially men - will know they aren't the only ones. And that there are degrees of harassment that vary that can make you question whether something was or was not "harassment."

After living with the story for so many years, it's surprisingly uncomfortable seeing it in print. I can only imagine what the women who dealt with Harvey Weinstein felt.

From John Paul Brammer at NBC Out:

Randy Slovacek, a former Broadway performer and a working choreographer, said his experience with sexual harassment negatively impacted his career.

"My first Broadway show was the last revival of 'Hello Dolly' with Carol Channing. I was 31, and a little naive about my stage manager making passes at me," Slovacek said. "At first, I thought it was just silly, the way gay guys can be. Then it got more overt and heavy-handed."

Slovacek said he met his husband, Michael, while recording the Broadway cast album for 'Hello Dolly.' He said his stage manager noticed him looking at Michael and pulled Slovacek onto his lap.

"It was almost territorial," Slovacek said. "It was forceful and in front of a lot of people. I was like, 'What are you doing?' And he did it three times."

But the worst, Slovacek said, happened after he was late to a curtain call in Boston. He had been a model employee, he said, and he ran to the office to apologize to the stage manager who, to Slovacek's surprise, immediately waived it off. But then, Slovacek said, the stage manager turned the discussion to the jacuzzi in Slovacek's Boston apartment.

"He knew the place, and he said, 'That's the place with the jacuzzi. When am I going to come over?'" Slovacek said. "I kind of laughed it off, but he kept pushing. I finally found a way to gracefully exit, but then I got a letter saying I had been written up for being late, and it was a serious violation."

Slovacek said the stage manager, who is now deceased, declared Slovacek late again to another performance in D.C. by a minute, even though Slovacek said he was on time, and sent him home. "Who gets sent home for one minute?" Slovacek said. "I thought, 'This guy is really after me.'"

Munoz, Slovacek and Brown all said they struggled to report and come to terms with their experiences. Munoz and Slovacek said they frequently second-guessed if what had happened to them would be considered harassment at all, but the Weinstein story made them reflect.

"This week, having people speaking out, it might seem like a small thing, but it makes other people more willing to speak out," Munoz said. "It's powerful, those moments of people being willing to examine their experience and decide they have something to say."

Slovacek echoed that sentiment and said what needs to happen, in both the gay community and beyond, is people need to be willing to challenge their peers.

"If your buddy comes back after cracking a joke or doing something inappropriate, especially if they're in a place of authority, you need to say that's not cool," Slovacek said. "Or if someone tells you a story about something they've done, you need to tell them to not do that."

"Somebody has to say something," Slovacek said.

I encourage you to read the full article at NBC Out.

#Forward

Eric Bolling Out At Fox News

Far-right conservative blowhard Eric Bolling is out at Fox News.

HuffPost has the details:

Fox News has parted ways with host Eric Bolling, the network confirmed Friday, just over a month after an exclusive HuffPost report revealed Bolling sent inappropriate text messages to current and former female colleagues.

News of the departure comes after two HuffPost reports revealed a pattern of inappropriate behavior by Bolling, who co-hosts “Fox News Specialists.” Fox News will cancel the program, it said in a statement.

“Eric Bolling and Fox have agreed to part ways amicably,” the network said. “We thank Eric for his ten years of service to our loyal viewers and wish him the best of luck.”

HuffPost’s report, which was based on 14 sources, revealed that at least three current and former Fox colleagues said they had received inappropriate text messages from Bolling, including photos of male genitalia.

You may recall that Bolling filed notice that he intended to sue the reporter, Yashar Ali, who initially broke the story. Bolling had threatened a $50 million lawsuit.

News Round-Up: July 7, 2017

Some news items you may have missed:

• When Brock O'Hurn (above) talks about a "late night workout," but then pulls out dumbbells for some reason... #NotThatKindOfWorkout

• The World Health Organization says Gonorrhea is becoming tougher, and in some cases impossible, to treat.

• A Connecticut man, kicked and beaten by three attackers in New Haven, was ignored by several passersby as he lay bleeding after the hate crime.

• Donald Trump gets moved to the end of the line at G20 summit "family photo."

• Another host at Fox - Charles Payne - has had sexual harassment charges leveled at him. This time from Trump super-supporter Scottie Nell Hughes.

• A moment of shared experiences as a 78 year-old gay man sits down to chat with a 13 year-old gay boy about what's it's like for each of them to be gay. The video was released ahead of the 50th anniversary of the decriminalization of homosexuality in England and Wales. Watch below.

NY Magazine: Fox News To Drop Bill O'Reilly Over Sexual Harassment Allegations & Lawsuits

New York Magazine is reporting this morning that Fox News has decided to cut ties with beleaguered host Bill O'Reilly in light of the many allegations of sexual misconduct leveled at him.

The Murdochs have decided Bill O’Reilly’s 21-year run at Fox News will come to an end. According to sources briefed on the discussions, network executives are preparing to announce O’Reilly’s departure before he returns from an Italian vacation on April 24. Now the big questions are how the exit will look and who will replace him.

Wednesday morning, according to sources, executives are holding emergency meetings to discuss how they can sever the relationship with the country’s highest-rated cable-news host without causing collateral damage to the network. The board of Fox News’ parent company 21st Century Fox is scheduled to meet on Thursday to discuss the matter.

Inside sources say Rupert Murdoch was leaning to keeping O'Reilly as recently as last week, but his two sons have apparently lobbied hard to drop the conservative TV host as news spread that O'Reilly had paid out more than $13 million to end sexual harassment lawsuits.

According to the above article, the powers that be may not give the 21-year Fox News veteran a sign-off show.

More Advertisers Drop Bill O'Reilly In Light Of $13 Million Settlements In Alleged Sexual Harassment

More and more advertisers are fleeing Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor in the aftermath of the news that Bill O'Reilly had settled sexual harassment charges from 5 women to the tune of $13 million.

From The New York Times:

At least seven more marketers said they were withdrawing ads from “The O’Reilly Factor,’’ making a total of at least nine that have suspended sponsorship in the last 24 hours. Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai announced their decisions Monday night, and on Tuesday they were joined by BMW of North America; GlaxoSmithKline; T. Rowe Price; Allstate; Constant Contact, an online marketer; Untuckit, a men’s clothing distributor; and Sanofi Consumer HealthCare, which advertised products like ACT mouthwash on Mr. O’Reilly’s show.

The decisions come after The New York Times published an investigation last weekend that found that five women who had accused Mr. O’Reilly of sexual harassment or inappropriate behavior received settlements totaling about $13 million.