Latest news with #Breaker
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Popular MSNBC Host Has Met With Rival Stations And Is Pondering Exit: Report
Ari Melber, the host of one of MSNBC's highest-rated programs, has met with rival networks and is 'in discussions' to leave, Breaker reported Tuesday. The outlet cited two people familiar with the matter, noting that Melber is also deciding whether to launch his own startup. Melber has hosted 'The Beat' since 2017. It ranked fourth in the ratings among the news channel's shows as of Friday. His possible departure comes at time of flux for the station. It's preparing to separate from NBC to join a distinct corporate group under parent company Comcast. Last month, a network rep confirmed that MSNBC's popular poll wonk Steve Kornacki signed with NBC. That essentially severed his connection to the cable news outlet. Melber's loss would also prove costly on YouTube, where clips from his show draw hefty views, Breaker noted. In addition, top-rated host Rachel Maddow's return to a once-a-week schedule is likely to diminish MSNBC viewership, so the loss of a proven personality like Melber could be costly. Melber, an attorney, also serves as MSNBC's chief legal correspondent. He and an MSNBC rep declined comment to Breaker. Neither MSNBC nor an Instagram account for Melber's show immediately returned HuffPost requests for comment. Beloved Reporter Dubbed The 'Crown Jewel' Of Election Coverage Is Leaving MSNBC MSNBC Exposes Trump's Latest Deflection Tactic In 1 Scathing Supercut After Another MSNBC Host Nails The 1 Thing 'Obama People' Must Do In 2025
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Popular MSNBC Host Has Met With Rival Stations And Is Pondering Exit: Report
Ari Melber, the host of one of MSNBC's highest-rated programs, has met with rival networks and is 'in discussions' to leave, Breaker reported Tuesday. The outlet cited two people familiar with the matter, noting that Melber is also deciding whether to launch his own startup. Melber has hosted 'The Beat' since 2017. It ranked fourth in the ratings among the news channel's shows as of Friday. His possible departure comes at time of flux for the station. It's preparing to separate from NBC to join a distinct corporate group under parent company Comcast. Last month, a network rep confirmed that MSNBC's popular poll wonk Steve Kornacki signed with NBC. That essentially severed his connection to the cable news outlet. Melber's loss would also prove costly on YouTube, where clips from his show draw hefty views, Breaker noted. In addition, top-rated host Rachel Maddow's return to a once-a-week schedule is likely to diminish MSNBC viewership, so the loss of a proven personality like Melber could be costly. Melber, an attorney, also serves as MSNBC's chief legal correspondent. He and an MSNBC rep declined comment to Breaker. Neither MSNBC nor an Instagram account for Melber's show immediately returned HuffPost requests for comment. Beloved Reporter Dubbed The 'Crown Jewel' Of Election Coverage Is Leaving MSNBC MSNBC Exposes Trump's Latest Deflection Tactic In 1 Scathing Supercut After Another MSNBC Host Nails The 1 Thing 'Obama People' Must Do In 2025
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hunter Biden threatened to knock out CNN's Tapper amid long-running feud: ‘Go f*** yourself, Jake!'
Years before Jake Tapper decided to write a buzzy tell-all about Joe Biden's cognitive decline, the CNN anchor had a long-simmering feud with the former president's son Hunter that featured a heated confrontation at a Super Bowl and threats of violence. Amid Tapper's non-stop promotional tour for Original Sin, the explosive behind-the-scenes exposé he co-wrote with Axios correspondent Alex Thompson, Biden-world has had the knives out for the veteran journalist – especially over damning accusations of a 'cover-up' to hide the ex-president's fading mental acuity. At the same time, though, there appears to be another reason the Biden family is none too pleased with the CNN star. Last week, Puck's Dylan Byers reported that there had been a tense face-to-face between Tapper and Hunter Biden at Super Bowl LII. Sources told Byers that the incident stemmed from Tapper repeatedly calling Hunter when his brother Beau was dying from brain cancer in hopes of getting the scoop on the time of death. Tapper, meanwhile, told Byers that it was a 'patently false lie' and that he never tried to contact Hunter during that time. 'At no point in my life have I ever called Hunter Biden—I've never even had his phone number—and I would never have contacted a person's immediate family during such a challenging and personal time,' he told Puck. Well, Hunter decided to go on the record this week to refute Tapper's account, telling media newsletter Breaker that the author did indeed try to source him up during his brother's final days. He also confirmed that this was the reason he confronted Tapper at the Big Game. 'It would be impossible to forget or misremember something that upsetting and out of line during one of the toughest moments of my life,' Hunter said. 'It happened. I was furious. And I told him so the next time I saw him, which was at the Super Bowl.' Breaker further reported that while the Biden family was at Walter Reed National Medical Center in May 2015, Tapper continually called Hunter on his cellphone as Beau lay on his deathbed. 'Those calls went unanswered,' Breaker added. 'But then Hunter received a call from a blocked number. So he did pick up. It was Tapper, who allegedly asked Hunter to call him when Beau died. 'Go F*** yourself Jake,' is what those who were present at the time recall Hunter telling Tapper.' When Hunter saw Tapper at the Super Bowl two years later, the incident was still fresh on his mind – and he gave the anchor a tongue-lashing over it. 'At that game Tapper approached Hunter to shake his hand,' Breaker reported. 'But Hunter responded that he was still so enraged about what had happened at Walter Reed that he would knock him out if they were not in a public setting. We are told Tapper would later demand an apology from Biden for his son's behavior.' In response to Breaker's story, Tapper doubled down on comments he gave to Puck last week. 'Hunter did once confront me at a Super Bowl party, but it was over an unrelated issue – coverage he wrongly believed I had done regarding divorce allegations of drug use and using prostitutes, which I actually had never done.' Though Tapper claims he never reported on allegations of drug use by Hunter Biden, a quick search through the Internet Archive shows that he actually did discuss those claims during an October 2014 CNN segment. Meanwhile, others who spoke with Hunter directly after Tapper allegedly tried to call him at Walter Reed recounted that the presidential scion was livid over the situation. 'It was obviously transparent niceties and then right to business as if the one thing Hunter is thinking about as Beau is dying is let me give Jake Tapper an exclusive,' one source said. 'He was furious about it.' A spokesperson for Tapper brushed off the claims made by Hunter and others, however. 'The idea that Jake could do something so heartless—and yet the Bidens would subsequently offer him multiple sit down interviews as well as agree to him moderating the debate, all without anyone hearing about it until now—completely defies logic,' the spokesperson stated. The fact is that Tapper only ever actually interviewed the former president once. This was also a sore spot for Tapper, according to Breaker, which claimed that 'Tapper had long been frustrated with the Bidens over a lack of access' and even had a 'meltdown' when another anchor was given an off-the-record briefing with Biden before the 2024 State of the Union. In a recent interview with Katie Couric to promote his book, Tapper tore into Hunter and claimed he acted as the 'chief of staff of the family' while blasting him on a personal level. 'It's bizarre because I think he is provably, demonstrably unethical, sleazy and prone to horrible decisions,' Tapper declared. 'After his brother died, he cheated on his wife with his brother's widow and then got her addicted to crack. That's just one thing I could say. I don't have a lot of personal regard for him.'
Epoch Times
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Epoch Times
2025 WNBA Season Preview: Top Storylines Include Clark, Bueckers, and Wilson
The NBA Finals are only three weeks away, but the WNBA is just starting. The 2025 season, the league's 29th, gets underway Friday. Last year saw the arrival of Caitlin Clark, record attendance and TV ratings, and the New York Liberty winning their first championship. This year looks to build off that momentum and become the biggest WNBA season ever. Here are some of the main storylines. Welcome to the W The expansion Golden State Valkyries debut Friday night, the first new WNBA franchise since the Atlanta Dream joined the league in 2008. How will they perform in Year One? Despite signing Sixth Woman of the Year Tiffany Hayes and drafting Lithuanian standout Justė Jocytė fifth overall, Golden State is facing an uphill battle just to reach .500. Only one expansion team (the 1998 Detroit Shock) finished with a winning record, and all 10 prior WNBA expansion teams, including that Shock squad, failed to make the playoffs. Bigger and Better Adding a team isn't the only way that the league is getting bigger—it also added four games to the schedule. Each team will play Record Breaker Speaking of records, Clark set lots of those last year—both good and bad. She became the first WNBA rookie to record a triple-double, set a league record for most assists in a season (337), attempted the most three-pointers in a single year (355), and also had the most turnovers in a season (223). Clark helped the Indiana Fever (20-20) end a seven-year playoff drought, and the team has had nearly a complete roster overhaul for her second season. Indiana had the youngest average age last year (25.5) but will have the oldest average age (29) come opening night. The Fever have surrounded Clark with several veterans, as well as new coach Stephanie White, who previously coached Indiana from 2015-16. Inexperience on the Sidelines White is an outlier of sorts, in that she actually has WNBA head coaching experience, while most WNBA head coaches do not. Of the 13 coaches, seven will be making their career debuts this season. Of the seven rookie coaches, three were promoted from assistant positions, three were plucked from the college level, and one comes from coaching overseas. Old Faces, New Places Player movement is a part of every sports league, and several big names will have new digs for the 2025 season. Tops among them is 10-time All-Star and future Hall of Famer Brittney Griner. After a dozen years in Phoenix, Griner joined Atlanta this offseason, while her old team added Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally. Meanwhile, 2012 MVP Tina Charles left Atlanta to join Connecticut, while the league saw a three-team blockbuster trade this offseason. A pair of two-time WNBA champions in Kelsey Plum and Jewell Loyd changed locations, with Plum joining the Los Angeles Sparks and Loyd going to the Las Vegas Aces. Just as the Luka Doncic-Anthony Davis NBA trade was historic as reigning All-NBA players were exchanged for the first time in league history, this WNBA trade marked the first time that a pair of No. 1 overall draft picks were included in the same transaction. Loyd was the top pick in 2015, while Plum went first in 2017. Old Faces … Out the League Someone on the short list of 'Greatest Players in WNBA History' decided to hang up her sneakers: Diana Taurasi retired this offseason. She is the league's all-time leading scorer who spent two decades with the Phoenix Mercury, but she's not the only MVP to head off into the sunset. Elena Delle Donne, a two-time MVP, announced her retirement in April after sitting out last season. Going for History While Taurasi and Delle Donne combined to win three MVP awards, A'ja Wilson has three all by herself, including last year. She joined Lisa Leslie, Sheryl Swoopes, and Lauren Jackson as part of the three-MVP club, and there is no such thing as a four-MVP club. Wilson is aiming to become the first player to win MVP four times, a year after she also set a single season record by averaging 26.9 points per game. Buckets in Big D Before the Dallas Mavericks shockingly won the NBA Draft Lottery—and the right to select Cooper Flagg—the hotshot rookie in the DFW everyone was talking about was Paige Bueckers. The 2021 College Player of the Year at UConn, and the 2025 NCAA champion, went first overall in the 2025 WNBA Draft, and the Dallas Wings are expecting an immediate impact from her in the vein of Clark last year. Bueckers is the only Division I player over the last 20 years with 2,000 career points and 50/40/85 shooting splits, and anything less than winning Rookie of the Year will be seen as disappointing. Since 2004, 14 of the 21 top overall picks (66.7 percent) Related Stories 4/23/2025 4/16/2025
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Goodwill Drops a Cowboy Carter-Inspired Collection Ahead of Beyonce's ATL Show
Beyoncé is slated to bring her 'Cowboy Carter' tour to Atlanta in two months, and local Goodwill locations are helping thrift-loving fans and concertgoers look the part. Goodwill of North Georgia, a division of the international thrift store chain, launched a limited-time capsule collection last Friday dubbed 'Cowboy Goodwill' to align with the artistic and conceptual themes of the megastar's current musical chapter, according to a Goodwill press release. The western and Americana-inspired selection has attracted savvy shoppers assembling giddy-up getups — not unlike the unofficial dress code large swathes of attendees have sported at Cowboy Carter tour stops around the country. Pieces layered with rhinestones, studs, denim, fringes, and faux leather are selling quickly from the collection, which is only available in store. Capital B Atlanta spotted Goodwill employee Devin Breaker on Monday dressing a limbless mannequin in a denim top with cutoff jean shorts and a fringe belt. He said the response to 'Cowboy Goodwill' has been great, as he has noticed shoppers seeking out and buying items from the collection and capturing their finds via photos and videos. 'I'm amazed on how cute this stuff is,' wrote TikTok user @foreverzoria, who shot a clip showing several pieces from the collection. Breaker, the assistant manager at the discount store located on Piedmont Road, is rushing to meet demand. 'I've been restocking for the last two days,' he said. 'I'm down to two more boxes, so once I put that on the floor, I'm more than confident that we're not gonna have anymore.' 'Cowboy Goodwill' does not include the Levi jeans Beyoncé sings about on her Cowboy Carter album, nor will you find the Houston native's name on any product packaging or labels, as this is not an official collaboration. A representative for Beyoncé's record label, Parkwood Entertainment, did not respond to Capital B Atlanta's request for comment on the collection. The 'Cowboy Goodwill' collection features Stetson hats that are often associated with cowboy culture. The brimmed headwear is adorned with fringes, rhinestones, and/or reflectors that resemble a disco ball. Additionally, there are black and white fringe belts, and a tinsel jacket and vest. Pieces in the collection range in price from $12.99 to $34.99. 'Cowboy Carter under a budget,' wrote @leotravels2 in a TikTok caption. While the bulk of Goodwill's inventory features previously owned items donated for resale, 'Cowboy Goodwill' is made up of new items. 'I like the collection because it's transitional,' Breaker said. 'You can pair it up with a lot.' Participating Goodwill of North Georgia locations include Buckhead, Decatur, Fayetteville, Metropolitan Parkway, Morrow, Northside, Piedmont, and Snellville. The Beyhive still has time to let Goodwill upgrade their wild-wild-west wear before Beyoncé hits the stage. The Cowboy Carter tour, which kicked off last month in Los Angeles, is scheduled to mosey on down to Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium for four dates: July 10, 11, 13, and 14. The post Goodwill Drops a Cowboy Carter-Inspired Collection Ahead of Beyonce's ATL Show appeared first on Capital B News - Atlanta.
