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Jess Smith

Jess Smith is a journalist who's passion for writing spans all the way to when she was only 7-years-old and was making up news stories for her neighbors. Fast forward to age 22 and she has written for many publications including the EDM based, Elektro Magazine.

Sydney Leathers continues to be a mosquito on Anthony Weiner

Sydney Leather makes an appearance at Anthony Weiner’s election party

 

Sydney Leathers continues to be an unrelenting succubus, leeching onto the failed campaign trail of New York mayoral candidate, Anthony Weiner.  Anthony Weiner’s 23-year-old sexting partner and her brand new breast implants decided to make an appearance at Weiner’s election party on Tuesday night. 

Anthony Weiner was gaining a lot of momentum during the beginning of his campaign, becoming a promising competitor for the Mayor seat in New York. Weiner’s winning streak met a block when Indiana native, Sydney Leathers came forward and revealed explicit text messages that shined a light on Weiner’s deviant behavior.

“We had the perfect ideas,” said Anthony Weiner at his election party Tuesday night, after solemnly accepting his defeat in the mayoral race.  “Sadly, I was an imperfect messenger.”

Weiner’s conceding speech was a half hour late, due to the candidate having to make his way through a McDonalds and then into the Connolly’s Pub where the election party was held so he could avoid having his first meeting with his longtime sexting partner unravel in front of hundreds of cameras.

Wearing a skintight dress that left nothing to the imagination, Sydney Leathers waited outside the Midtown pub, waiting for Weiner to further extend her cheap fifteen minutes of fame.

Sydney Leathers let reporters know why she decided to attend Weiner’s election party. “ I just felt like I should. I felt obligated after being involved in the situation.”

Earlier on Tuesday, Leathers stood outside of Anthony Weiner’s campaign headquarters with a sign that not only bashed Weiner, but of course included some shameless self-promotion. The stenciled sign read “Don’t vote Weiner. Download Weinerizer”, which refers to her parody of Britney Spears’ “Womanizer.”

While standing with the sign at his headquarters, she told reporters “I’m outside of Weiner headquarters just as a reminder of his impulse control problems and why he shouldn’t be mayor. I’m a physical reminder of that.”

It came as no surprise that Weiner’s wife, Huma Abedin, was noticeably absent at the primary event at Connolly’s pub considering the multiple appearances by Sydney Leathers throughout the day.

Sydney Leathers doesn’t plan on disappearing any time soon, judging by her answer from a reporter who inquired if she would return if Weiner decided to campaign again. “Of course, why not? He’s going to continue this behavior. If it is not me, it is going to be another.”

Twerking shouldn't be the focus of the Jimmy Kimmel prank

Jimmy Kimmel’s twerking prank reveals the faults of the mainstream media

Twerking has become a pop culture virus that has infiltrated the veins of mainstream America and late-night TV host Jimmy Kimmel decided to capitalize on the lewd dance by collectively pranking the entire Internet at once. If you haven’t seen the video “Worst Twerk Fail EVER,” you might have been living under a rock for the past week.

The video that has received over 9 million views, depicts a girl getting in the standard twerking position with her hands on the ground and her legs in the air, then she proceeds to fall onto a glass table full of candles and catch on fire when someone opens the door.

After a week or so of letting the views multiply into the millions, “Live!” host Jimmy Kimmel unleashed the knowledge on everyone that the entire thing was a prank when he had the alleged “twerker” Caitlin Heller on the show. Caitlin Heller explained that she was actually Daphne Avalon, an accomplished stuntwoman.

“We shot the video about two months ago.” Kimmel explained. “We put it up and didn’t send it to any TV station. I didn’t tweet it, we didn’t put it on any websites. We just put it up on YouTube and let the magic happen.”

In the extended cut, Kimmel comes into the bedroom dressed in the same pink t-shirt and yoga pants that Heller was wearing and puts out the fire with a fire extinguisher. After telling the world they had just been tricked, Kimmel proceeded to show a montage of news outlets all over the country reporting on the video as fact.

What Kimmel did wasn’t just a fast one pulled on the entire country. It was essentially the late-night host holding up a giant mirror to the mainstream media and showing that outright drivel that our “serious” outlets report on. If you were to ask a person on the street their opinion on the horrific situation in Syria, they would most likely look at you with a blank expression, but if you were to ask their opinion on this infamous “Worst Twerk Fail EVER” video then they would know exactly what you are talking about.

The entirety of the media has become a caricature. The satirical humor in The Onion has become a reality.  News that should be reserved for niche media outlets such as The National Enquirer and E News are being reported in The New York Times and CNN. We live in a world where Miley Cyrus’ next embarrassing move is more important then a possible war outbreak that can affect future generations. Twerking isn’t the problem, but the media’s misplaced priorities are.

Amy Winehouse will be commemorated with exhibit at London Jewish Museum

Amy Winehouse will be celebrated with exhibit and various celebrations for her birthday

Amy Winehouse will not only continue to be engrained within the impassioned harmonies she sang, but she will also be remembered by an exhibit in London’s famed Jewish Museum that will be administrated by her brother, Alex Winehouse. Back in July of 2011, Amy Winehouse was found dead in her bed in Camden, marking a tragedy within the music scene and for those who were close to the late songstress.

Winehouse has had an infamous history of drug and alcohol abuse that threatened her career and ultimately threatened her life. Amy’s bodyguard discovered her body on July 23 back in 2011 after he became concerned that she had been sleeping in the same position for too long and found that the singer had stopped breathing. Three bottles of Vodka were discovered at the scene.

After ambulances arrived at her Camden home, Amy Winehouse was pronounced dead at the young age of 27, putting her in the infamous “27 Club”, along with fellow overdose victims and legends, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain and Jean Michel-Basquiat.

Although the end to her life was devastating, the exhibit will allow fans to relish in all of her amazing accomplishments acquired throughout her career with some of her possessions, including her guitars, immense record collection and some of her retro stage outfits. The exhibit will also focus on her prominent Jewish heritage.

Her brother explained why he chose the Jewish Museum as the perfect location for the exhibit. “Amy was someone who was incredibly proud of her Jewish-London roots…We weren’t religious, but we were traditional. I hope in this most fitting of places, that the world gets to see this other side, not just to Amy, but our typical Jewish family.”

In addition to the exhibit, Amy Winehouse’s memory was going to be cemented inside of a statue that was supposed to have been revealed at the Roundhouse, later this month. However, Mitch Winehouse, Amy’s father decided it wasn’t up to par with his expectations, so he stopped the ceremony. The “Amy Winehouse Memorial Statue”, depicted a life-size version of the singer wearing a vintage-style tube dress and leaning against a wall.

Winehouse’s late boyfriend, Reg Traviss, revealed to The Mail that the songstress’ father doesn’t want to put up anything that isn’t perfect. “He doesn’t want anything to go up that he’s not completely satisfied with. But obviously it’s never going to look exactly like her.”

Although the statue hasn’t reached Mitch Winehouse’s expectations, he will go through with celebrating her September 14 birth date with month long commemorations that will happen in her hometown of Camden. The celebrations will happen in different establishments in Camden, including an exhibition at Proud Galleries that will happen from September 11 to October 6.

iPhone fingerprint authentication rumored to be included in 5S model

iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C to be revealed September 10 at Apple event

iPhone fingerprint authentication may be the newest addition to come to the iPhone 5S, making the dream of nearly every sci-fi movie become a futuristic reality. The official disclosure of the brand new product will be happening September 10, but supposed images of the iPhone 5S packaging were leaked on a Chinese website called C Technology which unveils a brand new circular home button with a silver ring around it.

Not only would this brand new round home button be a sleek change from the notorious Apple square button, but it looks like the silver ring around the home button may be a part of the iPhone fingerprint sensor that will identify the owner of the iPhone 5S by their fingerprints. This opens up vast possibilities for Apple including increased security. Rather than swiping and entering a four-digit pin, the full home screen of the iPhone 5S will appear when the new technology recognizes the owner’s fingerprint.

The Apple invitation for the reveal at the Apple inc. headquarters in Cupertino, California also fuels the rumors of the iPhone fingerprint sensor with three silver rings amongst various colored polka-dots, which coincide with C Technology’s leak.

Sebastien Taveau, chief technology officer of Validity Sensors, mentioned that this is just the kind of feature that the late Steve Jobs would have wanted. “The swipe and PIN was one of the things Steve Jobs hated. It was in the way of the user experience,” he said.

In addition to increased security, the new iPhone fingerprint authentication can make huge moves within the consumer market with the use of mobile payments and enterprise commuting.

“Within the next two years the vast majority of high-end smart phones will have biometrics and mainly fingerprint logins. It’s going to be very useful for payments,” said David Marcus, president of PayPal.

In an interview last month, Fox News and app developer Clayton Morris revealed that the upcoming iPhone 5S would have a silver ring around it during an interview he did last month. He also divulged that the button will be used for an imbedded fingerprint sensor, giving further merit of the alleged leaked pictures of the new Apple technology. Morris also revealed in a tweet that the iPhone 5S will be 31% faster than the iPhone 5 due to a fast A7 processor.

The ring is also thought to be able to change colors, which would act as a notification system. Some other rumored changes to the iPhone 5S will be a more efficient camera that will be able to record videos at a rate of 120 frames-per-second, and a set of two flashes that will make the camera appear closer to higher grade professional cameras.

At the September 10 Apple event, a cheaper version of the iPhone that will be plastic and available in various colors is also going to be unleashed on the public.

Serena Williams becomes queen of the court with US Open win

Serena Williams won her 17th grandslam title in New York

Serena Williams became one of the most undeniable forces in sports when she reclaimed her crown as queen of the court upon her win of the 2013 US Open yesterday. Serena Williams had two opponents during the match. Not only did she have to battle the world’s number two player Victoria Azarenka, but she also had to battle the abrasive gusts of wind at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing, New York.

Williams expressed her frustration after her first miss when she said, “I can’t play in this wind.” Serena Williams’ intensity increased as the game raged on, but her taking the title almost slipped from her grasp with Azarenka breaking Serena’s serve for the match at 5-4 and 6-5, but Serena W      illiams quickly reclaimed the match for herself when she amped up her game to full capacity during the third set.

“In the third set, Serena really found a way to calm down and restart from zero and quickly erase what happened,” said Patrick Mouratoglou, Williams’ coach.

Although Azarenka was clearly disappointed with the results of the match, she remained humble and exhibited true sportsmanship. “It is a tough loss, but to be in the final and play against the best player who deserves to win today- it’s incredible,” the Belarus native said. “I gave it all today. We showed our hearts. We fought hard.”

Serena Williams took the title for her own after the 2 hour 45 minute match, and made history with the win. This marks the 17th Grand Slam single title for Williams, with her winning her first title in 1999 when she was just the ripe age of 17. Williams weighs in at five US Open titles, five from Wimbledon, five from the Australian Open and two from the French Open. This gives Serena Williams the sixth most titles in history, and with her unrelenting determination there is a high possibility she may have the most in history.

“I’m already thinking about what I could have done better. I think I’m a little crazy in that way, like something must not be right, because I don’t even relish in the moment enough,” explained Williams. “I just automatically think: what’s next?”

Serena Williams’ win also helped her make history with her current salary. Serena Williams collected a $3.6 million prize and a $1 million bonus for her wins during the North American hard-court circuit leading to the U.S. open. This makes Serena the first woman to top $50 million in career earnings.

The trophy comes as an early birthday present for Williams who turns 32 in two weeks.

Lamb of God guitarist issues statement after Malaysia cancellation

Lamb of God receives death threats in Malaysia for offensive lyrics

It looks like the distinct growl of Lamb of God vocalist Randy Blythe won’t be heard in Malaysia since the Malaysian government refused to let the metal band perform. The show scheduled to happen on September 28 had wildly successful ticket sales with over 1,500 tickets already being sold for the concert in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Even the success of the concert wasn’t enough for the Malaysian government to issue a permit for the show. The publication The Star reported that the permit was not issued because the band’s songs “were found to infringe on religious sensitivities and cultural values of Malaysian society.”

Death threats have also been made to the band after the Malaysian government pointed out lyrics that directly reference the Quran and lyrics that they found offensive. The promoter for the Lamb of God tour released a statement on their disgust with the death threats.

 “We condemn in the strongest possible terms these threats that were made. Malaysia is a country of peace and we are sure that we speak on the behalf of all Malaysians when we say we are appalled that certain individuals who think it’s perfectly fine to threaten the life of others. No one deserves that regardless of his or her religious, political, or even musical preference.”

Lamb of God’s guitarist Mark Morton also issued a statement on the cancellation and discusses his frustration about the decision.

“It is very evident (and a bit frustrating) that the groups, parties and powers that have taken the most offense to our music and lyrics, have themselves only made a passing glance at the content of those songs. We would invite anyone offended by our music to engage in a discussion regarding the true motivations behind our work, especially before publicly slandering us based on assumptions and shallow misinterpretation. We sincerely apologize to our amazing fans in Malaysia for the cancellation. Many thanks to all who have spoken out in support of us through this.”

The shows that have been scheduled in New Zealand, Australia and Thailand will still be performed.

North Coast Music Festival 2013 Review

Rain didn’t stop Chicagoans from partying it up at North Coast Music Fest

Ah, Labor Day weekend, that time of year where dreadlocked, tie dyed, neon clad and ironic eyeglasses-wearing individuals all pile onto the green line of Chicago’s “L” train and head over to North Coast Music Festival. Now on its fourth year, the festival once again made its way into Union Park for a whimsical three days where people survive on good vibes, music and vendor food.

This year started off with a bang literally. My arrival was met with plenty of confused looking festival goers standing on the corner and ominous clouds hanging over the fest. North Coast Music Festival had been evacuated and sure enough the storm came and took Passion Pit’s equipment with them, prompting the live electronic band to reduce their show to a DJ set. However, the show still went on for Mac Miller who performed a couple songs from his mixtape Kids and his album Watching Movies with the Sound Off. He took a break from his album to give his offerings to the Based God  by playing Lil B’s “I’m God” and rapping along to it, giving me a flashback of when Lil B performed at that very same stage a few weeks earlier at Pitchfork Music Festival.

The highlight of the night was definitely legendary producer Just Blaze’s set who was at the small Dos Equis stage even though he was way more deserving of the bigger stage. Just Blaze is responsible for producing classic songs by Jay Z, Memphis Bleek, Joe Budden and many others while turning up the Dos Equis stage to full energy when he went through songs like Joe Budden’s “Pump it Up” and Kanye West’s “Touch the Sky”, which was a breath of fresh air from the constant trap sets that were taking over the Dos Equis stage that day.

Day two came quickly and rain free, with the acid-rap group Flatbush Zombies. Their crude lyrics and warped productions thumped into the grounds of the Last Stand Stage. Things got eerie when audio of the 9-11 call of the Miami face eating zombie was heard before the group broke into their ASAP Mob collaboration, “Bath Salts.” After Flatbush Zombie’s set, British DJ/production duo Bondax hit the decks for an eclectic set that gave off a Disclosure/Hot Chip vibe with their own penetrating bass pounds and stabbing piano chords. Their neon background visuals acted as a time machine that took the whole crowd to the 80’s. Big Gigantic ended the night at the Coast Stage with their signature live dubstep set, with their instruments adding a nice touch to the thick dubstep wobbles that sent shockwaves through the crowd.

The last day of NCMF arrived with by far the most people in attendance this day, obviously to see the eminent hip hop group Wu Tang Clan hit the Coast Stage. I have never seen so much Wu Tang Clan apparel in my life, even spotting a little baby with the famous yellow and black “W” displayed across its onesie. Before Wu Tang, moshpits broke out at Datsik’s heavy dubstep set, which brought me back to the classic sounds of UK dubstep, rather than the annoying car alarm sounds of the Skrillex dubstep trend. Rock/Reggae hybrid group Rebelution calmed everyone down with a euphoric set at the North Stage that brought the good vibes of some reggae with a nice sound that is similar to that of Matisyahu’s. Purity Ring hit the same stage once night fell and put the packed stage in a trance with Corrin Roddick’s sensually creepy production meshing perfectly with Megan’s angelic voice. Their famous lighting cocoon stage set up synchronized perfectly to Corrin’s live mixing, making the experience even more ethereal.

As a cloud of suspicious smoke rose above the Coast stage and chants of “Wu Tang” and “Wu Tang Clan ain’t nothin’ to fuck with” took over Union Park, it was time for the highlight of the weekend. RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God and Mastah Killah burst onto the stage breaking out into “Bring da Ruckus” prompting everyone to start dancing and rapping along, including the previously stoic-faced security posted up at the front of the stage. Wu Tang Clan brought the same energy that they would have a decade ago and went through everyone’s favorites including “C.R.E.A.M” and of course “Wu Tang Clan Ain’t Nuthing ta F With.”

 A bittersweet moment was the group’s dedication to Ol’ Dirty Bastard, as they prompted the hyped crowd to chant his name over and over again in memory of the deceased member. Weather took over again when Ghostface Killah’s microphone cut out and audio saying “The National Weather Service has informed us that a storm will be headed here in thirty minutes. We need you to evacuate the park immediately.” Wu Tang’s set was cut 15 minutes short and festies piled onto the green line only to see what North Coast Music Festival 2014 has in store for them.

Into the Wild inspires second teen's disappearance in Oregon wilderness

Teen found dead after engaging in an Into the Wild inspired journey

“Into the Wild” seems to be the inspiration for another tragic incident in the southern Oregon wilderness. Eighteen year old Jonathan Croom was the second young man to disappear into the wilderness this year after reading the book “Into the Wild.” Croom was found dead Tuesday near his abandoned vehicle near Riddle, Oregon. The death is being observed as a suicide and Croom is thought to have gotten this idea from the novel written by Jon Krakauer. “Into the Wild” depicts the story of Christopher McCandless, a man who embarks on a journey into the Alaskan wild and ultimately dies there after 119 days.

Croom talked to his parents a lot about “Into the Wild” and even specifically mentioned Christopher McCandless’ journey before taking off on his own journey into the Oregon wilderness. Jonathan Croom’s father David Croom said Jonathan’s sudden disappearance was due to the end of a relationship. “He was a young man who had a broken heart and headed out and tried to find himself,” he said. “We’re looking forward to finding out exactly what happened.”

When first looking for Jonathan Croom, Douglas County sheriff said that crews were calling his name and making noise, hoping he would respond. The investigation ultimately took a turn when they discovered text messages that were of a suicidal tone. “That led us to believe that he was probably going to do this,” said Hutson. “In these kinds of cases some people leave us very detailed notes and instructions. Sometimes, you don’t.”

This happens a few months after a 19-year-old Oklahoma teen named Dustin Self went missing back in March after he had watched the film adaptation of the novel “Into the Wild”, which starred Emile Hirsch as Christopher McCandless. Self had planned to check out churches in Oregon that engage in the practice of a South American religion that uses hallucinogenic tea as a sacrament.

Self was thought to have been hallucinating at the time he went missing, and access to his laptop revealed he was researching PCP and peyote before he left. Sherrif Dave Glerup believes Self is either dead or walked off of the Steens Mountain and hitchhiked to receive a ride somewhere after his truck got stuck on a backcountry track. The last search for Self was in the spring after the snow had melted, but traces of his whereabouts are still unknown.

"I Have a Dream" speech still engrained in the heart of America 50 years later

Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech turns 50-years-old today

The “I Have a Dream” speech still resonates in people’s hearts and minds as Martin Luther King’s stunning words turns 50 years old. Given at the Lincoln Memorial during the peak of the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King pushed America in the right direction with his brave words of wisdom, courage and perseverance. Now five decades later, a man of African American descent now resides in the Oval Office as the current president of the United States.

Obama is still impacted by this speech and touched on the subject in a radio interview he did on Tuesday. “When you are talking about Dr. King’s speech at the March on Washington, you’re talking about one of the maybe five greatest speeches in American history.” He added, “And the words that he spoke at that particular moment with so much at stake, and the way in which he captured the hopes and dreams of an entire generation I think is unmatched.”

Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech is probably one the most memorized speeches; however, you will not be seeing this speech being reprinted or aired in it’s entirety due to the 1909 Copyright Act. King gained rights to the speech after he sent a copy of it to the U.S. copyright office. On it he wrote “work not produced for sale.” Shortly after sending the “I Have a Dream” speech to the copyright office, King sued two publishing companies, Mister Maestro Inc and Twentieth Century Fox Records Company to stop sales that were unauthorized.

Since the “I Have a Dream” speech was born, Dr. Martin Luther King’s estate currently has strict control over using the speech and using Dr. King’s image. The only way people can use the speech or his likeness until the speech is in the public domain in 2038 is to pay for a licensing fee. Excerpts of the speech can still be considered fair use of the material, but what “fair use” entails is all up to King’s estate.

Regardless of being able to use the full speech, there are many ways that Americans will remember this landmark time in history. Freedom will ring all around the U.S., when churches in nearly 300 sites in every state will ring church bells at 3 p.m. EDT, which was the exact hour that the “I Have a Dream” speech was given.

President Obama will speak at the “Let Freedom Ring” commemoration today, during this 50th year anniversary of the civil rights march.  In addition to President Barack Obama, speakers for this historical event includes: Former President Jimmy Carter, Former President Bill Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, Forest Whitaker and Jamie Foxx.

Bryan Cranston inflames blogosphere with rumors of Lex Luthor Casting

Breaking Bad star Bryan Cranston is in talks to play Lex Luthor

Bryan Cranston might be keeping his signature bald head via his hit show Breaking Bad for a lot longer because there are many rumors a float that he will be taking the roll of follicle-challenged super villain, Lex Luthor in the upcoming Man of Steel sequel.

This news has circulated the web the past couple of days, even getting to Rolling Stone, who’s article “Report: Bryan Cranston Cast as Lex Luthor in ‘Man of Steel’”, garnered tons of attention in the blogosphere. Cosmic Book News first broke the story with an article posted on Sunday that gives many specific details on the upcoming Man of Steel deal. The article says that Bryan Cranston would be cast as Lex Luthor in a “six appearance” deal that may even be as high as ten appearances.

 Much to many fanboy’s dismay, Ben Affleck has been officially cast as Batman for the same sequel, and Cosmic Book News also reports that he will have a thirteen appearance deal with DC Comics. Twitter’s reaction to the casting was mostly negative with celebrities weighing in on the decision. Actor Wil Wheaton questioned Ben’s past acting roles by tweeting out “Really looking forward to seeing Affleck bring the depth and gravitas to Batman that he brought to Daredevil and Gigli.” Comedy Central weighed in tweeting “Casting Ben Affleck as Batman sounds like something the joker would do to create a distraction at the nerd bank.”

Henry Cavill who portrayed Superman in the first Man of Steel, will continue to play the extra terrestrial super hero in the sequel.

Although there is much excitement a float with this current announcement, many other websites are calling BS on the rumor. Mike Sampson at Screen Crush wrote an article debunking the rumor where he says “As far as we know, there haven’t been any talks between the sides other than Cranston jokingly telling a reporter, ‘Give me a call, I like Lex Luthor.’ All that there is that Bryan Cranston shaved his head for Breaking Bad and Lex Luthor is also bad.”

Another actor that has been in talks to play Lex Luthor is Mark Strong who has a lot of practice in the art of villainy. Appearances in comic book adapted films such as Kick Ass and Green Lantern make him super qualified for the job. Comic Book News suspects the official announcement of the Bryan Cranston casting will come on the heels of the series finale of Breaking Bad.