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  • Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023
Senate panel subpoenas CEOs of Discord, Snap and X to testify about children's safety online
Elon Musk, left, speaks with Linda Yaccarino, chairman of global advertising and partnerships for NBC, at the POSSIBLE marketing conference, April 18, 2023, in Miami Beach, Fla. A Senate committee has issued bipartisan subpoenas to the CEOs of Discord, Snap and X, demanding that the heads of the three companies testify at a December hearing on protecting children online. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin and Rep. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., announced Monday, Nov. 20, that they had issued the subpoenas to Discord CEO Jason Citron, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of X, formerly known as Twitter. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)
By Mary Clare Jalonick & Barbara Ortutay
WASHINGTON (AP) -- 

A Senate committee has issued bipartisan subpoenas to the CEOs of Discord, Snap and X, demanding that the heads of the three companies testify at a December hearing on protecting children online.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, the top Republican on the panel, announced Monday that they had issued the subpoenas to Discord CEO Jason Citron, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel and Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of X, formerly known as Twitter, "after repeated refusals to appear" during weeks of negotiations.

"Big Tech's failure to police itself at the expense of our kids cannot go unanswered," the two senators said in a statement about the Dec. 6 hearing, which will focus on child sexual exploitation online.

The committee said that "in a remarkable departure from typical practice," Discord and X refused to accept service of the subpoenas and the panel was forced to enlist the U.S. Marshals More

  • Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023
CEO of Fortnite game maker casts Google as a bully in testimony during Android app trial
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney exits a courtroom at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Nov. 14, 2022, in San Francisco. Sweeney portrayed Google as a bully that resorts to shady tactics to maintain a predatory payment system during Monday, Nov. 20, 2023, testimony in an antitrust trial focused on his company's attempt to upend Google's store for Android phone apps. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File)
By Michael Liedtke, Technology Writer
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- 

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney on Monday portrayed Google as a ruthless bully that resorts to shady tactics to protect a predatory payment system.

His portrayal came in testimony in an antitrust trial focused on Epic Games' attempt to upend Google's store for Android phone apps.

Sweeney's more than two-hour stint on the witness stand in San Francisco came less than a week after Google CEO Sundar Pichai defended before the 10-member jury the way his company runs its Play Store for Android apps. It's one of two antitrust cases against Google, whose tech empire valued at $1.7 trillion is being threatened by legal attacks seeking to break it up.

Testimony in the Android phone app case is scheduled to finish before Christmas.

The other case, focused on Google's dominant search engine, ended last week, but won't be decided by a federal judge in Washington, D.C., until next year.

While Sweeney sought to depict Google as a greedy More

  • Monday, Nov. 20, 2023
Ed Ulbrich named chief content officer & EVP of production at Metaphysic
Ed Ulbrich

AI software company Metaphysic has appointed visual effects expert Ed Ulbrich as its chief content officer and EVP of production. With 30 years of experience in the VFX, film, TV and advertising production industries, Ulbrich will oversee all production, new business opportunities and content partnerships, with specific responsibilities including group level and hands-on strategic, creative, operational, and financial management.

As an experienced professional innovating how content is made using artificial intelligence, Ulbrich will support Metaphysic as it approaches new projects and expands product and service offerings. 

“The advent of generative AI has rapidly transformed how Hollywood will produce films and television, and Metaphysic has established itself as a trusted partner in navigating this new paradigm in entertainment,” said Thomas Graham, CEO of Metaphysic. “We are thrilled to welcome Ed to Metaphysic to support our efforts More

  • Friday, Nov. 17, 2023
Golden Globes find new home at CBS after years of scandal
In this Jan.. 6, 2009, file photo, Golden Globe statuettes are seen during a news conference at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. The 2024 Golden Globe Awards will be broadcast on CBS. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, File)
By Jake Coyle, Film Writer
NEW YORK (AP) -- 

The Golden Globes have found a new broadcast home at CBS after the troubled awards show lost its longtime home at NBC and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association was dissolved after years of scandal.

The 81st Golden Globes will air live on CBS and stream on Paramount+ on Sunday, Jan. 7, CBS and the Globes announced Friday. The show will also be available on the CBS app.

The network declined to comment on the terms of the deal, including how long the agreement runs for.

NBC broadcast the 2023 Globes on a one-year basis after the 2022 edition was essentially canceled. After a 2021 report revealed the Hollywood Foreign Press Association had no Black members, stars and studios boycotted the Globes before returning for this year's awards.

After the 2023 broadcast, held on a Tuesday evening, NBC opted not to renew its contract. A near-record low of 6.3 million viewers tuned in, according to Nielsen.

The Hollywood Foreign More

  • Friday, Nov. 17, 2023
DeSantis appointees seek Disney communications about governor, laws in fight over district
By Mike Schneider
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- 

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' board appointees are seeking communications between Disney and local media, as well as documents related to the company's position on Florida's so-called "Don't Say Gay" law, as part of a state court fight over control of the district that governs Walt Disney World.

The request for documents and communications was made Thursday by the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, now controlled by DeSantis appointees. It sued Disney this year over control of the private government which regulates design and construction and provides municipal services such as mosquito control and road repairs at the Florida theme park resort.

The district wants all Disney communications about DeSantis, as well as communications dealing with laws passed by the Republican-dominated Florida Legislature that switched control of the district from Disney supporters to the governors' appointees and nullified deals the company made with More

  • Friday, Nov. 17, 2023
IBM, EU and Lionsgate pull ads from Elon Musk's X as concerns about antisemitism fuel backlash
An "X" sign sits atop the social media platform's headquarters, in San Francisco, on July 28, 2023. IBM has stopped advertising on X after a report said its ads were appearing alongside material praising Adolf Hitler and Nazis. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)
By Kelvin Chan & Haleluya Hadero

Advertisers are fleeing social media platform X over concerns about their ads showing up next to pro-Nazi content and hate speech on the site in general, with billionaire owner Elon Musk inflaming tensions with his own posts endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory.

IBM and Comcast said this week that they stopped advertising on X after a report said their ads were appearing alongside material praising Nazis — a fresh setback as the platform formerly known as Twitter tries to win back big brands and their ad dollars, X's main source of revenue.

The liberal advocacy group Media Matters said in a report Thursday that ads from Apple, Oracle and NBCUniversal's Bravo network also were placed next to antisemitic material on X.

"IBM has zero tolerance for hate speech and discrimination and we have immediately suspended all advertising on X while we investigate this entirely unacceptable situation," the company said in a statement. A More

  • Friday, Nov. 17, 2023
NATAS unveils Gold and Silver Circle inductees; honorees to be feted at Children’s & Family Emmy Awards
NEW YORK & LOS ANGELES -- 

The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences has unveiled the 2023 Gold and Silver Circle inductees who will be feted at the Second Annual Children’s & Family EmmyⓇ Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday, December 17. These honorees are an elite group of professionals who have significantly contributed to children’s television.

The Gold and Silver Circle is a society of honor. Inductees have performed distinguished service within the industry, setting standards for achievement, mentoring, leadership, and professional accolades for 50 or 25 years, respectively. They represent the best and the brightest in the television community.

Gold Circle - 2023 Children’s & Family Inductees:

  • Peter Engel, Producer/Executive Producer (“Saved By The Bell,” “One World”)
  • David Newell, Actor/Producer/Public Relations Director/Props/Manager/Talent Booker (“Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” “My Tale of Two Cities More
  • Friday, Nov. 17, 2023
IBM pulls ads from Elon Musk's X after report says they appeared next to antisemitic posts
A view of a laptop shows the Twitter sign-in page with their the new logo, in Belgrade, Serbia, Monday, July 24, 2023. IBM has stopped advertising on social media platform X, Thursday, Nov. 16, after a report that its ads were appearing alongside material praising Adolf Hitler and the Nazis, in a fresh setback for the company's plans to win back big brands and their ad dollars. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic, File)
By Kelvin Chan

IBM has stopped advertising on social media platform X after a report said its ads were appearing alongside material praising Adolf Hitler and Nazis — a fresh setback as the site formerly known as Twitter tries to win back big brands and their ad dollars.

The U.S. tech company made the decision after a report Thursday by the liberal advocacy group Media Matters said ads from IBM, Apple, Oracle, NBCUniversal's Bravo network and Comcast were placed next to antisemitic material on X.

"IBM has zero tolerance for hate speech and discrimination and we have immediately suspended all advertising on X while we investigate this entirely unacceptable situation," the company said in a terse statement.

Billionaire owner Elon Musk sparked outcry this week with his own tweets responding to a user who accused Jews of hating white people and professing indifference to antisemitism. "You have said the actual truth," Musk tweeted in a reply Wednesday More

  • Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023
4 Virtuosos Award recipients set for Santa Barbara Film Fest
Virtuosos Award recipients (l-r) Lily Gladstone, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Greta Lee and Charles Melton
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- 

The Santa Barbara International Film Festival has revealed the first group of recipients to receive the Virtuosos Award, an honor created to recognize a select group of talent whose noteworthy performances in films this season have elevated them into the national cinematic dialogue. Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon), Da’Vine Joy Randolph (The Holdovers), Greta Lee (Past Lives), and Charles Melton (May December) will discuss their work and receive their awards in-person on Saturday, February 10 during the 39th Santa Barbara International Film Festival. The evening will be moderated for the 14th year by Dave Karger, Turner Classic Movies host and Entertainment Weekly awards correspondent. The second group of Virtuosos Awards recipients will be announced next month by the festival. 

“Our first four Virtuosos honorees are among the most interesting and exciting performers working today, and they all play More

  • Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023
FCC adopts rules to eliminate "digital discrimination" for communities with poor internet access
The seal of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is seen before an FCC meeting to vote on net neutrality, Dec. 14, 2017, in Washington. On Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023, the FCC enacted new rules intended to eliminate discrimination in access to internet services, a move which regulators are calling the first major U.S. digital civil rights policy. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)
By Matt Brown
WASHINGTON (AP) -- 

The Federal Communications Commission has enacted new rules intended to eliminate discrimination in access to internet services, a move which regulators are calling the first major U.S. digital civil rights policy.

The rules package, which the commission ratified on Wednesday, would empower the agency to review and investigate instances of discrimination by broadband providers to different communities based on income, race, ethnicity and other protected classes.

The order also provides a framework for the FCC to crack down a range of digital inequities including the disparities in the investment of services for different neighborhoods, as well as the "digital divide," a term experts use to describe the complete lack of internet access many communities experience due to regional or socioeconomic inequality.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said that Congress required the agency to adopt rules addressing digital discrimination, More

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