Head Yahoo Reporter Fired After Racist Comment Caught On Audio The GOP ratchetness is at an all-time high as the Republican National Convention continues. Just days after an RNC attendee threw peanuts at a black reporter while saying “this is how we feed animals,” a chief Yahoo reporter was fired after making highly insensitive comments about “black people drowning” (due to hurricane Issac) while Money Mitt and the RNC party on. Yahoo News has fired its Washington bureau chief after he was caught on a microphone saying Mitt Romney and his wife were “happy to have a party with black people drowning.” Company spokeswoman Anne Espiritu said Wednesday that David Chalian’s remark was inappropriate and does not represent Yahoo’s views. She says Yahoo is apologizing to the Republican presidential candidate and his supporters, and has reached out to the campaign to convey the message. Chalian made the remark during a moment before Yahoo began its live coverage of the Republican convention on Tuesday evening. Yahoo is streaming coverage in association with ABC News. The remark is an apparent reference to the Republican convention happening as Hurricane Isaac hits the Louisiana coast. The hits just keep on coming …. Source
A community of survivors exists on the outskirts of a Louisiana levee, where a six-year-old girl with a boundless imagination and a deep connection to the world around her lives with her father. In Movieline’s exclusive clip, enter the world of Benh Zeitlin’s impressive feature debut/Sundance hit Beasts of the Southern Wild (in limited release this week), as seen through the eyes of the film’s pint-sized heroine, Hushpuppy (played with tremendous fearlessness by discovery of the year, Quvenzhané Wallis). Beasts of the Southern Wild debuted at the Sundance Film Festival in January, where it won the Grand Jury Prize and the Cinematography Award before nabbing four honors at Cannes , including the FIPRESCI Prize and the Caméra d’Or. Zeitlin’s magical-realist fable is a deeply emotional experience, thanks in great part to Wallis’s central turn as the fierce Hushpuppy, whose relationship with her troubled father Wink (local chef/baker Dwight Howard, in his acting debut) anchors the film. Plucked from over 4,000 prospective actresses, Wallis, who was just five years old when she auditioned, commands the screen with an impressive intensity and naturalism. “When she first walked in, she was defiant towards me,” director Zeitlin told Movieline . “Most of the times you figure you can easily puppeteer a kid, but she was not like that at all. She was refusing to do this thing that I asked her to, because she didn’t it was right. I wanted her to throw something at somebody, and she said, ‘No, that’s not right to throw something at somebody you don’t know.’ Filmed on location in Louisiana, Beasts began principal photography on April 20, 2010 — the day of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the impact of which mirrored the plight of the residents of the Bathtub within the film. The story celebrates the resilience of a community in the face of disaster, highlighting the spirit of the people who remain. Beasts of the Southern Wild is in limited release today. Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Singer is photographed at LAX heading to Louisiana to see her beau on the set of ‘Empire State.’ By Jocelyn Vena Liam Hemsworth and Miley Cyrus Photo: Getty Images Twenty hours after news broke that Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth are getting married, the singer was spotted leaving Los Angeles on Thursday to reportedly jet off to visit her fianc
‘It sucks having a lot of pressure on you, knowing that you have to do this and that,’ ‘Idol’ castoff tells MTV News. By Kelly Marino Joshua Ledet Photo: MTV News “American Idol” finalist Joshua Ledet won’t be taking anyone to church during this season’s finale next week, leaving bluesy rocker Phillip Phillips and budding diva Jessica Sanchez to compete for the title. The 20-year-old powerhouse received a record number of standing ovations from the panel and has been proclaimed as one of the best contestants in the history of the show. So, coming in third place with the lowest total of the 90 million votes cast this week might come as a shock to some, but Ledet says it was more like a relief. “I just felt relief,” the soulful singer told MTV News backstage after the show. “As soon as they said Phillip was going on, I felt a lot of pressure came off of me and I was — I’m not going to say I was happy — but it sucks having a lot of pressure on you, knowing that you have to do this and that and this and that. But when they said I wasn’t going on, I was just like, ‘OK. Now I can get this song out of the way and then go home and go to sleep or do something fun.’ ” But make no mistake: It wasn’t just about getting his farewell song out of the way. After belting out “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World” by James Brown, the Louisiana native claims he was so overwhelmed, he couldn’t fully recall what the judges were saying to him when they came to console him after the show. “I honestly don’t remember what they were saying because I think I was so emotional,” the preacher’s son explained. “I just remember Jennifer [Lopez] telling me never to give up and that my career is going to go higher from here on out and to just keep believing in myself. “Definitely, it gives me a lot of hope seeing Jennifer Hudson and Adam Lambert and Katharine McPhee, Chris Daughtry. All of these people that didn’t win have had a lot of huge careers, so hopefully that can happen for me.” That being said, Ledet’s career probably could take off if Jimmy Iovine has anything to do with it. For weeks, the show’s music mentor has continuously hinted at signing the singer, even claiming to know the exact type of album he should make — a bit ironic, considering the Interscope head admitted wrongdoing by picking Mary J. Blige’s “No More Drama” for the gospel sensation to perform before being voted off. Thankfully, though, Ledet has no regrets. “I don’t regret any performance that I’ve done on the show,” Ledet said. “People can say one thing, but it’s what I feel in my heart and how I feel about something. So, I don’t think I’ll let people tell me what to do as a person if it’s not true to me in my heart. “I definitely did like the ‘No More Drama’ song,” he added. “It’s not a lot of melody, but I don’t think it’s a competition song. It’s just one of those great songs that you can perform at the Grammys or something.” Get your “Idol” fix on MTV News’ “American Idol” page , where you’ll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions. Do you agree with Joshua Ledet’s elimination? Sound off below! Related Photos ‘American Idol’ Season 11 Performances
‘It sucks having a lot of pressure on you, knowing that you have to do this and that,’ ‘Idol’ castoff tells MTV News. By Kelly Marino Joshua Ledet Photo: MTV News “American Idol” finalist Joshua Ledet won’t be taking anyone to church during this season’s finale next week, leaving bluesy rocker Phillip Phillips and budding diva Jessica Sanchez to compete for the title. The 20-year-old powerhouse received a record number of standing ovations from the panel and has been proclaimed as one of the best contestants in the history of the show. So, coming in third place with the lowest total of the 90 million votes cast this week might come as a shock to some, but Ledet says it was more like a relief. “I just felt relief,” the soulful singer told MTV News backstage after the show. “As soon as they said Phillip was going on, I felt a lot of pressure came off of me and I was — I’m not going to say I was happy — but it sucks having a lot of pressure on you, knowing that you have to do this and that and this and that. But when they said I wasn’t going on, I was just like, ‘OK. Now I can get this song out of the way and then go home and go to sleep or do something fun.’ ” But make no mistake: It wasn’t just about getting his farewell song out of the way. After belting out “It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World” by James Brown, the Louisiana native claims he was so overwhelmed, he couldn’t fully recall what the judges were saying to him when they came to console him after the show. “I honestly don’t remember what they were saying because I think I was so emotional,” the preacher’s son explained. “I just remember Jennifer [Lopez] telling me never to give up and that my career is going to go higher from here on out and to just keep believing in myself. “Definitely, it gives me a lot of hope seeing Jennifer Hudson and Adam Lambert and Katharine McPhee, Chris Daughtry. All of these people that didn’t win have had a lot of huge careers, so hopefully that can happen for me.” That being said, Ledet’s career probably could take off if Jimmy Iovine has anything to do with it. For weeks, the show’s music mentor has continuously hinted at signing the singer, even claiming to know the exact type of album he should make — a bit ironic, considering the Interscope head admitted wrongdoing by picking Mary J. Blige’s “No More Drama” for the gospel sensation to perform before being voted off. Thankfully, though, Ledet has no regrets. “I don’t regret any performance that I’ve done on the show,” Ledet said. “People can say one thing, but it’s what I feel in my heart and how I feel about something. So, I don’t think I’ll let people tell me what to do as a person if it’s not true to me in my heart. “I definitely did like the ‘No More Drama’ song,” he added. “It’s not a lot of melody, but I don’t think it’s a competition song. It’s just one of those great songs that you can perform at the Grammys or something.” Get your “Idol” fix on MTV News’ “American Idol” page , where you’ll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions. Do you agree with Joshua Ledet’s elimination? Sound off below! Related Photos ‘American Idol’ Season 11 Performances
Baton Rouge rapper Lil Boosie has been found not guilty of murder. The jury deliberated for about an hour and a half. The prosecution offered its closing first starting around 9:30 a.m. In its closing, the prosecution said the evidence speaks for itself. Prosecutor Dana Cummings said Michael Louding, known as “Marlo Mike,” admitted on interrogation tape that Hatch gave him $2,800 in $20s after the murder. She said Carvis “Donkey” Webb and Hatch worked on Louding to get him to tell the “truth.” According to Cummings, during phone calls to Louding, Webb told him, “Follow my lead and you coming home Marlo.” She also told the jury Hatch wrote in a letter to his mother that he might have said some things that incriminate him. Cummings said the lyrics in Hatch’s songs again prove his intent. She said in the phrase “Yo Marlo” he even calls out his hit man. “That’s billboard strong,” Cummings said. The defense then gave its closing. Hatch’s lawyer said detectives called Louding the “ace in the hole.” Attorney Jason Williams pointed out that’s a poker saying. He said poker is a game of deceit. He added the detective testified he’s skilled at deceit and that’s what this case is about. He told the jury to notice investigators said they preserved computers with lyrics on them for jurors to see, but police didn’t preserve 10 hours of interrogation tape for jurors to see. “This case not about Boosie, but who’s being tried first?” Williams asked. “Not the man who says he killed six people.” He went on to state there is no proof Hatch had beef with Terry Boyd. He said the task force that was created needs a big arrest to keep going and then asked, “What’s bigger than a rapper going down for murder?” He told the jury no one followed up on the lead Terry Boyd’s mother gave, until last year. By that time, the man she told them to talk to was dead. Officers also said they never read the Terry Boyd file, but they were investigating. Boyd had 15 old scars on his body from bullet wounds. An old bullet was found in him. Williams posed the question, “Was someone coming back to finish what they started?” He said this all started over a letter Lee Lucas supposedly sent telling Hatch that, “Boyd was getting out of prison and he said he’s going to ‘jack and slap you.’” “Where is that letter? Why didn’t Lee Lucas testify?” the attorney asked. He also stated lots of lyrics were played, but prosecutors didn’t play the one that said f— Hillar Moore. “Why?” he asked. Prosecutors were given a chance to speak to the jury one last time and finished around 2 p.m. The judge then gave jurors instructions and they were sent to deliberate the case. Defense attorneys for Hatch rested their case Thursday afternoon without calling any witnesses. Attorney Jason Williams told jurors Thursday the defense was resting its case based on the fact the burden of proof lies with the state and based on the testimony of the state’s witnesses. The prosecution had rested its case around 2:44 p.m. after six days of testimony from 27 witnesses. The 29-year-old rapper faces a first-degree murder charge. Prosecutors contend Hatch hired Michael “Marlo Mike” Louding to kill Terry Boyd, 35, who was shot to death through a window while inside his home in 2009. Hatch is currently serving an 8-year prison term on drug charges and is being held in the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. Boosie Bad Azz might have been found not guilty but still has to serve a bid for previous drug charges. How do you think the streets will react? Source