Latest news with #Disclosure
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'Heightened Scrutiny' details the high-stakes Supreme Court case over trans health care
The Supreme Court is expected to issue a decision in the next few weeks in a high-stakes case that could affect transgender people's access to transition-related care nationwide. The case, U.S. v. Skrmetti, concerns a law in Tennessee that prohibits certain care for minors, including puberty blockers and hormone therapy, and whether the restrictions are discriminatory on the basis of sex and transgender status. A new documentary, 'Heightened Scrutiny,' follows Chase Strangio, an American Civil Liberties Union attorney, as he represents trans youth, their families and a doctor who filed suit against the law in April 2023. Strangio became the first openly trans person to argue in front of the Supreme Court during oral arguments in December. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year and will show at NewFest, a queer film festival in New York, on May 29, and then at other film festivals across the country. The film's director, Sam Feder, said it is a follow-up to another documentary he directed called 'Disclosure,' which was released in 2020 and evaluated how trans people are depicted in film and television. 'The motivation to make that film was to explore how the rise in visibility could lead to backlash,' Feder said. 'I did not know it would be as terrifying as it is now.' 'Heightened Scrutiny' features interviews with trans activists including actress Laverne Cox, and with journalists including Jelani Cobb, dean of the Columbia Journalism School and a writer for The New Yorker; Lydia Polgreen, a New York Times opinion columnist; and Gina Chua, one of the most high-profile trans media executives. Much of the documentary focuses on the effects of increasing media coverage, particularly from The New York Times, on minors' access to transition-related care. Julie Hollar, a senior analyst at the media watchdog group FAIR, says in the documentary that she evaluated the Times' front page coverage for 12 months, and during that time, she said, the Times 'actually published more front page articles that framed trans people, the trans movement, as a threat to others than they did articles about trans people being threatened by this political movement.' The New York Times did not respond to a request for comment. Amy Scholder, who produced both 'Heightened Scrutiny' and 'Disclosure,' said that while researching media coverage of trans people over the last few years, she was astonished by how quickly much of the public appeared to go from celebrating trans visibility after 'Disclosure' to questioning it. 'It was disconcerting how many avowed feminists were questioning health care for trans adolescents and questioning the participation of trans people in sports, and especially adolescents in sports — things that just seemed so against my understanding and experience of what it means to be a feminist,' she said. She compared the public response to laws targeting trans youth to what she experienced during the AIDS epidemic, when people distanced themselves from the crisis because they didn't think it affected them or didn't want it to. 'Then the irony is,' Feder said, 'people thought it didn't affect them, but you chip away at anyone's bodily autonomy and you're chipping away at everyone's bodily autonomy.' The documentary shows that media coverage that is critical of transition care for minors has been referenced by state legislators trying to pass laws to restrict the care, and by states that are defending those laws in court, with Strangio saying at one point during the film that he had never previously seen news articles referenced so regularly as evidence in lawsuits. Feder said the film was originally going to focus entirely on media coverage, but Strangio's story allowed them to show viewers the real-world consequences of that coverage. They followed Strangio from July, just after the Supreme Court announced that it would hear the Skrmetti case, to Dec. 4, the day Strangio argued the case. The film shows Strangio the day after the election, a month before his oral arguments at the high court, when he says he's 'had moments of 'I can't do this again,' but then I wake up this morning and I think, 'F--- it, we fight.'' 'That's part of what is so extraordinary about him — he has that fight in him,' Scholder said. 'He knows how to be strategic, and he's such a brilliant legal mind and has always reminded us that we're going to take care of each other, and that these laws, for better or worse, will never actually take care of us.' Feder said that going forward, he hopes the film provokes conversations about how laws restricting transition-related care could have widespread effects outside of the trans community. He also said he hopes people will 'examine and understand how they want to be able to make decisions about their own body.' 'We're seeing state after state ban abortion, and soon it's going to be all contraception, and then it's who are you going to be able to marry, do you have any privacy in your own home? It's going there. This is one example of how we are a moment of complete civil liberty freefall,' he said. This article was originally published on
NBC News
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- NBC News
'Heightened Scrutiny' details the high-stakes Supreme Court case over trans health care
The Supreme Court is expected to issue a decision in the next few weeks in a high-stakes case that could affect transgender people's access to transition-related care nationwide. The case, U.S. v. Skrmetti, concerns a law in Tennessee that prohibits certain care for minors, including puberty blockers and hormone therapy, and whether the restrictions are discriminatory on the basis of sex and transgender status. A new documentary, 'Heightened Scrutiny,' follows Chase Strangio, an American Civil Liberties Union attorney, as he represents trans youth, their families and a doctor who filed suit against the law in April 2023. Strangio became the first openly trans person to argue in front of the Supreme Court during oral arguments in December. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year and will show at NewFest, a queer film festival in New York, on May 29, and then at other film festivals across the country. The film's director, Sam Feder, said it is a follow-up to another documentary he directed called ' Disclosure,' which was released in 2020 and evaluated how trans people are depicted in film and television. 'The motivation to make that film was to explore how the rise in visibility could lead to backlash,' Feder said. 'I did not know it would be as terrifying as it is now.' 'Heightened Scrutiny' features interviews with trans activists including actress Laverne Cox, and with journalists including Jelani Cobb, dean of the Columbia Journalism School and a writer for The New Yorker; Lydia Polgreen, a New York Times opinion columnist; and Gina Chua, one of the most high-profile trans media executives. Much of the documentary focuses on the effects of increasing media coverage, particularly from The New York Times, on minors' access to transition-related care. Julie Hollar, a senior analyst at the media watchdog group FAIR, says in the documentary that she evaluated the Times' front page coverage for 12 months, and during that time, she said, the Times 'actually published more front page articles that framed trans people, the trans movement, as a threat to others than they did articles about trans people being threatened by this political movement.' Amy Scholder, who produced both 'Heightened Scrutiny' and 'Disclosure,' said that while researching media coverage of trans people over the last few years, she was astonished by how quickly much of the public appeared to go from celebrating trans visibility after 'Disclosure' to questioning it. 'It was disconcerting how many avowed feminists were questioning health care for trans adolescents and questioning the participation of trans people in sports, and especially adolescents in sports — things that just seemed so against my understanding and experience of what it means to be a feminist,' she said. She compared the public response to laws targeting trans youth to what she experienced during the AIDS epidemic, when people distanced themselves from the crisis because they didn't think it affected them or didn't want it to. 'Then the irony is,' Feder said, 'people thought it didn't affect them, but you chip away at anyone's bodily autonomy and you're chipping away at everyone's bodily autonomy.' The documentary shows that media coverage that is critical of transition care for minors has been referenced by state legislators trying to pass laws to restrict the care, and by states that are defending those laws in court, with Strangio saying at one point during the film that he had never previously seen news articles referenced so regularly as evidence in lawsuits. Feder said the film was originally going to focus entirely on media coverage, but Strangio's story allowed them to show viewers the real-world consequences of that coverage. They followed Strangio from July, just after the Supreme Court announced that it would hear the Skrmetti case, to Dec. 4, the day Strangio argued the case. The film shows Strangio the day after the election, a month before his oral arguments at the high court, when he says he's 'had moments of 'I can't do this again,' but then I wake up this morning and I think, 'F--- it, we fight.'' 'That's part of what is so extraordinary about him — he has that fight in him,' Scholder said. 'He knows how to be strategic, and he's such a brilliant legal mind and has always reminded us that we're going to take care of each other, and that these laws, for better or worse, will never actually take care of us.' Feder said that going forward, he hopes the film provokes conversations about how laws restricting transition-related care could have widespread effects outside of the trans community. He also said he hopes people will 'examine and understand how they want to be able to make decisions about their own body.' 'We're seeing state after state ban abortion, and soon it's going to be all contraception, and then it's who are you going to be able to marry, do you have any privacy in your own home? It's going there. This is one example of how we are a moment of complete civil liberty freefall,' he said.
Miami Herald
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
‘That's called being a natural': ARod makes the perfect shot in a game of cornhole
Alex Rodriguez showed off some impressive moves in Minneapolis on Wednesday, and they had nothing to do with baseball. The retired slugger shared an Instagram video of him walking on the street outside Target Center on his way to game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals. The matchup was between the team he co-owns, the Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Golden State Warriors (final score 121-110). Rodriguez, wearing all white just like the fans, passes by a child playing a cornhole game on the grass outside the stadium. The inspirational song 'Latch' by electronica duo Disclosure plays in the background. A-Rod stops, has the boy throw him the bag, which he then tosses up in the air a few times, seemingly gauging its weight. He then studies the distance to the target, which appears to be about 20-25 feet away. The Westminster Christian alum, 49, winds up his famous right arm and one hands it, chucking in the bag in on the first try. (The move is called an 'Air Mail' to those in the know.) The MLB great (who can also play a mean game of hoops) raises his hands triumphantly as the crowd cheers and a bystander swarms him for a selfie. 'Can't believe this just happened,' read the text over screen. ARod's Instagram followers were duly impressed (including girlfriend Jaclyn Cordeiro, who left a pair of heart emojis): 'That's called being a natural in any sport.' 'Sweet! But not that surprising given you're one of the greatest athletes of all time.' 'He's a baller!' Even the former Yankee's critics from his scandalous days couldn't bust on the heartwarming clip. 'I hated has turned it around and I like the person he seems to have become,' posted the convert. 'The skill was never questioned.'
Fast Company
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Fast Company
30 years ago, ‘Hackers' and ‘The Net' predicted the possibilities—and horrors—of internet life
Getting an email in the mid-'90s was kind of an event—somewhere between hearing an unexpected knock at the door and walking into your own surprise party. The white-hot novelty of electronic mail is preserved in amber by a ridiculous 1994 film: reverse sexual-harassment thriller Disclosure. It opens with a little girl perusing what was once known as a 'family computer' before casually shouting, 'Daaaad, you got an email!' Her announcement is as much for the benefit of 1994 viewers as it is for Michael Douglas's character, an executive in the Seattle tech scene, letting them know they're witnessing their imminent future. At that point, the majority of Americans had never seen an email. According to a contemporary Pew Research poll, 42% had never even heard of the internet. Still, the early '90s thrummed with the propulsive drum line of digital revolution. The internet had existed in more esoteric forms for ages, but now America Online had terraformed it for normies, and Netscape's landmark IPO in 1995 began fueling the frenzy of the dot-com boom. Things changed fast, and The Net and Hackers dragged online culture center stage. Released as summer bookends, The Net stars Sandra Bullock as a tech worker whose identity is stolen, while Hackers, featuring Angelina Jolie in her first major role, follows a squad of elite high school coders as they get caught up in a corporate conspiracy. Looking back now on the flag-planting internet movies of 1995, it's incredible how well they predicted the possibilities and horrors on the horizon. Fast Company talked to the filmmakers behind both about all that's changed in the 30 years since. Neither '90s movie was a blockbuster, exactly. The Net proved a modest success, earning $110 million worldwide and spawning a short-lived TV adaptation a few years later, while Hackers flopped, making back less than half of its reported $20 million budget. Both gained long tails of notoriety and cult-classic status, however, in part for having depicted the internet on-screen at the precise moment most filmgoers were discovering it at home. The concept of connectivity had, of course, graced movie theaters before. Matthew Broderick plays a crafty teen who tweaks his high school computer system from home in both 1983's WarGames and again three years later in Ferris Bueller's Day Off. A ragtag team of techies spends the entire run time of 1992's hacking romp, Sneakers, spelunking in a shadow realm of digital information. As technology rapidly evolved, though, and '90s news anchors began talking about chat rooms and using terms like cyberspace, it had to evolve in pop culture as well. Several studio releases from 1995 were lumped together as 'internet movies,' with critics cross-referencing them in reviews. Among them were Virtuosity, in which Russell Crowe plays a computer-generated killer, and Johnny Mnemonic, which is mostly remembered as the cyberpunk action flick Keanu Reeves made before The Matrix. Both are set in the speculative sci-fi future—1999 for Virtuosity, 2021 for Johnny Mnemonic —while paranoid thriller The Net and teen comedy Hackers are dialed into reality on the ground and online. 'At that point, no one had yet to really make a movie that was anywhere in that world,' says Jeff Kleeman, the executive producer who oversaw the development of Hackers. 'Part of the reason I was excited about it was I felt like, for some reason, nobody is doing this. And I just thought, somebody ultimately is going to do this and I hope it's me.'
Scoop
28-04-2025
- Business
- Scoop
BARNZ Supports MBIE's Review Of Airport Regulation
Press Release – BARNZ Auckland, 28 April 2025 – The Board of Airline Representatives of New Zealand (BARNZ) welcomes the review of airport regulation being conducted by the Ministry of Business, Immigration and Employment's (MBIE) Competition Policy team. 'The landscape for airports has substantially changed since airport regulation was first put in place. Auckland Airport (AIAL) is now New Zealand's largest monopoly airport – receiving more than 75 per cent of all aircraft flying into, out of and around New Zealand,' says Cath O'Brien, Executive Director at BARNZ. 'In addition, Auckland Airport now owns 25% of Queenstown Airport Company (QAC). QAC has seen greater growth than any other New Zealand Airport post-pandemic, but is not regulated at all, despite having substantial capital plans of its own.' As New Zealand's greatest monopoly airport, Auckland Airport has taken decisions to spend some $5.9 billion dollars of aeronautical capital between 2023 and 2032 – and took decisions on this before 'consultation' with its airline customers was concluded. 'Having the right regulation in place is important,' says O'Brien. 'Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch Airports are regulated using Information Disclosure. This monitoring regime is the weakest option available in the Commerce Act. Unfortunately, it is backwards looking – which is why the Commerce Commission Report on AIAL prices struck in 2023 is not published until 2025. When airports need to make substantial capital investment which all travellers must pay for, there is no oversight of that spend in the planning – only analysis after the fact.' O'Brien says the Information Disclosure regime as applies to airports rewards capital expenditure. 'Because airports can set their own return for any capital costs – the higher the proposed capital cost is, the greater the financial reward for airport shareholders. When AIAL sets a capital cost of $5.9 billion dollars – its eyes are focused on their target return. Prices for this period were set targeting 8.73%; a number the regulated monopoly felt it could get away with despite being out of step with the Commission's Input Methodologies.' AIAL's landing charges have risen substantially since 2023. AIAL has increased landing charges for airlines flying regional routes by 60% between 2023 and 2024. O'Brien says the campaign against the cost of regional flying by airport companies should look closely at the costs being brought to bear on the system by Auckland Airport. 'Prices for all airlines have risen, and will rise further. AIAL's price rises are putting substantial pressure on the aviation system as a whole, and consuming the capacity of airline customers to pay. This makes it more challenging to pay for air traffic control from Airways New Zealand, for Civil Aviation Authority costs, or for the costs of Customs and Biosecurity. Passengers are ultimately payers for all this unchecked spend.' O'Brien also highlights why the Information Disclosure regulation is not sufficient oversight for substantial capital costs. 'The review of prices completed under Information Disclosure examines things like cost of capital in detail – but does not examine or permit capital spend. 'There are other regulatory tools available in the Commerce Act which do offer options for review of capital expenditure. One of these is an Independent Price Path (IPP), as applies to Transpower. An IPP is the right tool to plan large investments in New Zealand's electricity system – the same consideration should apply to aviation.' BARNZ also welcomes MBIE's comments about whether the 'dual till' settings are appropriate in the context of capex like AIAL's $5.9 billion dollars. 'New Zealanders might assume that income that AIAL earns from property leasing, car parking, or retail would contribute to the capital costs AIAL tells travellers are needed. 'Unfortunately, this income is not regulated and does not contribute to aeronautical costs – excluding an imbalanced allocation which applies to shared services.' BARNZ believes Auckland Airport's capex would be much more affordable if the airport company's commercial earnings contributed to the costs. 'Under current regulatory settings – all capital costs are charged to travellers while AIAL's shareholders enjoy a healthy regulated return,' says O'Brien. 'On behalf of airlines doing their best to make their businesses work in a high-cost market like New Zealand, BARNZ is pleased to see these questions being asked,' says O'Brien. 'We remain in regular conversation with officials and Ministers to ensure New Zealand's regulatory settings are able to respond well to the significant capital plans of monopoly airports. We need to make sure charges for outsize airport investment do not create a permanent cost burden for our aviation system – risking New Zealand's tourism and economic recovery.'
