Latest news with #TheHungerGames'
New York Post
28-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
College admissions meets ‘Survivor' in creepy new appraisal that rewards groupthink
College admissions offices are asking applicants to jump through a new hoop — a cross between 'Survivor' and 'The Hunger Games' that seems designed to thwart the Supreme Court's ruling on affirmative action in education. High schoolers applying to top schools like Columbia and Vanderbilt are being asked to take part in 'dialogues' via Zoom to compete against other students on their levels of compassion, empathy and 'open-mindedness.' Participants rank each other after 'exchanging views' on trending topics like immigration and climate change, and the recorded session is uploaded as part of the admissions package. Advertisement Imagine your collegiate fate being determined by fellow applicants who don't have your best interests at heart but their own, bringing their own biases and agendas to the table. Other high-school seniors you've never met will judge you not on how well you debate them on controversial ideas, but on your demeanor, your decorum and the views you espouse. Would anyone on a call like that be willing to risk a coveted spot in the freshman class by engaging in a spirited, genuine exchange — or by speaking their own mind, if their views go against the grain? Advertisement Fat chance: More likely, kids will go along to get along, saying whatever they think will make them look better to the others on the call and in the eyes of admissions officers. It almost guarantees progressive groupthink, on everything from critical race theory to Gaza, in the applicant pool. By pitting applicants against each other and allowing them to vote others 'off the island' via rankings on empathy, curiosity or kindness, markers of merit and academic ability that were once the gold standard of college admissions will fade even further. Advertisement The 'dialogues' are moderated by a platform launched by Khan Academy founder Sal Khan, who pitches the Zoom calls as a way for admissions officers to gauge which applicants can earn the respect of their peers. In reality, they'll showcase applicants' ability to choose allies and indulge in ideological shaming. And by viewing applicants' skin tones and hearing their voices, admissions officers will glean information they are no longer legally permitted to request. Advertisement Universities will be able to select students based on diversity, equity and inclusion principles — without anyone being the wiser. Colleges want what the Supreme Court has told them they cannot have: an artificially, intentionally engineered racially diverse student body. And they'll do whatever they have to do to get it. After the court said 'no' to affirmative action in the landmark 2023 decision Students for Fair Admissions vs. Harvard, that Ivy and other colleges said, 'OK, fine' — and started figuring out new ways to tell which applicant is 'diverse' and which isn't. Some implemented identity-based personal essays as part of the admissions process, asking students to discuss a situation in which they had to overcome adversity. 'Adversity,' of course, was just code for 'tell us how white people have discriminated against you because of your racial status.' Other schools have followed suit, with some going as far as requiring photos to accompany the admissions package. Advertisement It seems nothing will convince these schools that admitting students based on race is inherently wrong. Instead, they continue to weaken the value of their own degrees by changing the standards and expectations for obtaining one. The college-admissions industry will start training kids on how to game these group interviews — and these videos will become part of kids' 'permanent records.' Advertisement Who knows how they'll be used to cancel them for wrongthink in years to come. It's been years since colleges aimed to admit students based on their academic merit. Students with means no longer need to hire tutors, learn how to score high marks on admissions tests or even pay someone to write their personal essays to convince schools they're capable of making the grade. Now, all they have to do is practice how to game a Zoom call, how to say the expected, socially approved leftist line and how to make other kids on the call look inferior. Advertisement It's a way to implement a progressive purity test that's more insidious than affirmative action ever was. If it all seems a little barbaric, you're right — it is. Colleges should admit students with academic promise, not those best able to figure out how to manipulate compassion tests. Libby Emmons is the editor-in-chief at the Post Millennial.
Cosmopolitan
25-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Cosmopolitan
Fancy some Regency-era audio porn voiced by Tom Blyth?
It's no secret that modern dating can leave a lot to be desired. Swiping to meet, deciphering confusing texts, navigating the minefield of buzzword bad behaviours. It's no wonder that so many of us are escaping into fantasy RN — whether that's via romantasy novels and monster erotica, closing our eyes and disappearing into an audio porn story, or getting stuck into passionate period dramas like Bridgerton. We're all craving a romantic love story, and ideally one that doesn't involve technology (in the story, that is — headphones and TVs obvs essential for our escapism). If this plight sounds familiar, audio erotica app Quinn might just have the thing for you. The latest iteration of its star-studded Original series is The Muse: a Regency-era romance drama starring The Hunger Games' Tom Blyth. Blyth voices William, a struggling pianist and composer, who takes what he thinks will be a fairly mundane job teaching piano to the adult daughter of a wealthy Lord. As Blyth reveals in the series trailer, though, she's 'not exactly your typical debutante' — rather, Aurelia is 'fiery', 'plays by her own rules', and, as per Quinn, unnerves and inspires William. As their lessons progress, sparks begin to fly. 'The Muse explores the electric tension between teacher and student, the line between discipline and desire, and the transcendent power of artistic connection,' says Quinn. 'This is a story of restraint unraveling — of intimacy, music, and mutual obsession, set against the lush, candlelit backdrop of early 19th-century London.' As is usually the case with Quinn's stories, the listener plays a lead role — this time, you're Aurelia, and Blyth (as William) is speaking directly to you. Yep, it's hot. If you're into fantasies of power, forbidden love, and Blyth's sensual voice whispering in your ear, then you should head over to Quinn now to listen to the first two eps. Don't binge them too quickly, though, as the final episode of the three-part series won't land until next week (31 July). Talk about teasing! And good news: if you join our new Club Cosmo membership, you can get a whole month's subscription for free. The best bit? Club Cosmo is also totally free to join. So there's really no excuse. Plus, if celeb audio porn is what you're after, then Quinn is the place to go. Blyth follows in the footsteps of the app's previous big-name narrators, including Andrew Scott, Emily in Paris' Lucien Laviscount, You's Victoria Pedretti, and many more. To mark the premiere of The Muse, Quinn has shared an exclusive excerpt with us, so you, Aurelia, can try before you buy. Read on for some Regency-era erotica. (And FYI, as William is talking to you, listener/reader, the below is all from his POV.) I feel as if I've been shot out of a cannon and thrust into a beautiful new world. Has London always been this lovely? It feels as if the entire course of my life has been redirected in just a matter of days. First, an unexpected offer of employment from a generous patron, and now… how to even quantify this magnitude of feeling? This outburst of passion for Aurelia… it's all-consuming. Excuse me, good sir! I shall watch my step. What beauty lays before me in this pleasure garden. I don't recall ever stepping foot in this sanctuary. For how long have I been stumbling around London like a blind fool? I suppose I have been ignorant to the casual beauty of everyday life, but now all is transformed, all thanks to Aurelia. William, you are in trouble… Of course, I must preserve my employment with Lord Haddington, if only to be near Aurelia, but whenever I am with her, I lose all sense of myself. I am at the mercy of her hunger, passion, and wit. And her physical form… it's all a potent, all-consuming intoxication. I've never met a woman like her. But her predilection for being discovered could be my… nay, our downfall. Her father could end me, and I do not wish to tarnish her reputation. Please excuse me ladies, do have a lovely afternoon. To think that I would have categorised Aurelia as a dilettante not a few days ago if I were to have passed her in this very garden. I was prepared to sit on my hands, bite clear through my tongue, and tame my racing thoughts… but my passion for her is matched by her passion for… dare I say it… for me. Aurelia is leading me to that sensual life — that life of artistry — I've always craved.
Los Angeles Times
11-07-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
‘Dune' studio Legendary weighs buying Lionsgate Studios
Legendary Entertainment, the independent film and TV studio behind the 'Dune' trilogy and 'A Minecraft Movie,' is considering a takeover of Lionsgate Studios, according to people familiar with the matter. Legendary, which is backed by Apollo Global Management, first approached the company after Lionsgate finalized its separation from the Starz Entertainment Corp. TV network and streaming service in May, said the people, who asked not be named as the information is private. Those talks centered on a potential partnership to produce a handful of films so that Legendary could gauge how the two companies worked together and whether it should ultimately proceed with a takeover offer, the people said. Representatives for Legendary and Lionsgate declined to comment. Lionsgate shares jumped 8.6% after Bloomberg reported the news and ended the day up 20%. Lionsgate, which currently has a market cap of $1.8 billion, owns the rights to popular film franchises including 'John Wick,' 'The Hunger Games' and 'Twilight,' and would provide Legendary with a theatrical distribution network. Lionsgate has also produced TV hits including AMC's 'Mad Men.' 'A Minecraft Movie,' which was co-produced by Legendary and released by Warner Bros. Discovery's film studio in April, is the highest grossing movie at the domestic box office so far this year, having sold $423.9 million worth of tickets in the US and Canada. Legendary's exploration of a Lionsgate takeover 'is sensible, given it's a pure-play studio,' Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Geetha Ranganathan wrote in a note. A deep library of content accounts for a third of Lionsgate's revenue at a high profit margin, she noted. 'We suspect that Legendary's interest could spur others to potentially consider bids.' Josh Grode, Legendary's chief executive officer, said in a 2024 interview with Bloomberg Businessweek that he planned to tap Apollo's finances for takeovers in the entertainment industry that would collectively be worth billions of dollars. Last year, Legendary and Apollo were linked to a potential acquisition of the Paramount Pictures film studio, and were later involved in a potential acquisition of parent company Paramount Global. That business is instead being acquired by David Ellison's Skydance Media. Buckley and Shaw write for Bloomberg.
Los Angeles Times
10-07-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
Letters to the Editor: No, there shouldn't be billionaires while their employees live off food stamps
To the editor: Billionaires should not exist while their employees live off food stamps ('Does America need billionaires? Billionaires say 'Yes!,'' July 8). They already don't pay the same portion of taxes that their employees do. While Jeff Bezos and his ilk were terrorizing a sinking Venice with a display of wealth so egregious that it would make citizens of the Capitol in 'The Hunger Games' blush, his employees were getting their already measly government aid slashed to help pay for more tax cuts for the rich. To everyone complaining about homelessness in L.A.: The tax money that should be helping these people is staying put in billionaires' pockets. The fact that billionaires are only getting richer will just make this problem worse. Sol Taylor, Riverside
Extra.ie
27-06-2025
- Extra.ie
Life in prison for schoolboys murder
A man who went on a rampage with a Samurai Sword in the UK, has this afternoon (Friday) been jailed for 40 years after he murdered a 14 year old boy in Hainault, North East London last April. Marcus Arduini Monzo was sentenced to 40 years behind bars for the murder and other offences last April. The 37 year old former Amazon delivery driver, struck 14 year old Daniel Anjorin with a samurai sword as he walked to school on the morning of April 30th last year, causing unsurvivable neck injuries to the child. He also attacked five other people, including two police officers, during his 'drug fuelled' rampage in the North London suburb. Daniel Anjorin. Pic: Metropolitan Police He was convicted of three counts of attempted murder, wounding with intent, aggravated burglary, and possessing a bladed article. Prior to the attacks on April 30, he had killed and skinned his pet cat, Wizard, after plunging into a cannabis-induced psychosis, thinking the pet cat was trying to control him. After the attacks, Monzo, likened the events to the Hollywood film 'The Hunger Games' and claimed to have an alternative persona as a 'professional assassin'. Marcus Arduini Monzo. Pic: Metropolitan Police Daniel Anjorins father, Dr Ebenezer Anjorin told the court about the hopes they had for their bright, talented son which had been destroyed – 'We will not see him get married or have children. All the normal things parents hope for their children. All these hopes and aspirations have been cruelly snatched away from us through the wicked actions of Marcus Monzo'. 'It has been the worst nightmare experience of our lives. To have to go through the pain of losing a child in such a cruel and savage way. No family should have to go through this.' Metropolitan Police officers attempting to arrest Marcus Arduini Monzo. Pic: Metropolitan Police Sentencing him to life behind bars today, Mr Justice Bennathan told the court hearing it is possible Monzo will never be set free again.
