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Winners of the 2024 World Press Photo Contest
The winning entries of the annual World Press Photo Contest ​have just been announced. This year, according to organizers, 61,062 images were submitted for judging, made by 3,851 photographers from 130 different countries. World Press Photo was once again kind enough to share some of this year’s global and regional winners, gathered below.
theatlantic.com
What Do We Owe Child Actors?
During Nickelodeon’s golden era, the network captivated young viewers by introducing them to an impressive roster of comedic talent—who happened to be kids, just like them. Starting in the mid-1990s, actors such as Amanda Bynes, Kenan Thompson, and Ariana Grande became household names, as popular children’s shows including All That, Drake & Josh, and Zoey 101 helped propel Nickelodeon to astronomical ratings. For nearly two decades, the network dominated not just kids’ programming, but the entire cable-TV landscape.A new docuseries argues that at least some of this success came at a great cost. Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV explores troubling allegations of child abuse and other inappropriate on-set behavior during this run at Nickelodeon. The documentary builds on a 2022 Business Insider investigation into programs led by the prolific producer Dan Schneider, and on details from a memoir published earlier that year by the former child star Jennette McCurdy. (McCurdy, who doesn’t identify Schneider by name in her book but describes an abusive showrunner widely believed to be him, was not involved with the documentary.) Over its five episodes, the series offers an important record of how the adults working on these shows—and Hollywood as a whole—repeatedly failed to protect young actors. But Quiet on Set also, perhaps unintentionally, ends up creating a frustratingly tidy narrative that elides some crucial complexities of abuse.The series spends its first two episodes painting a picture of the toxic environment that Schneider allegedly cultivated for adults and children alike. Two former Amanda Show writers say that Schneider harassed female employees; former All That actors recall their discomfort performing sketches full of racial stereotypes and sexual innuendo. Several interview subjects described a culture of deference to Schneider, one in which they felt afraid to raise their concerns.In a video response to the series, Schneider apologized for requesting massages from female staffers, said that he wished he could go back and change “how I treat people,” and conceded that he would be willing to cut any upsetting jokes from his shows that are streaming. (At the end of every Quiet on Set episode, a title card relays Nickelodeon’s response to the producers’ questions: The network said it “investigates all formal complaints as part of our commitment to fostering a safe and professional workplace … We have adopted numerous safeguards over the years to help ensure we are living up to our own high standards and the expectations of our audience.”)[Read: What tween TV teaches kids]Quiet on Set shows how the culture of silence created work environments that endangered young performers. The documentary covers multiple harrowing cases of child sexual abuse perpetrated by individuals who worked in close proximity to Nickelodeon’s underage actors. Jason Handy, a production assistant on All That and The Amanda Show, was arrested for lewd acts with children in 2003 and later pleaded no contest to two of the felony counts and one misdemeanor charge. He was sentenced to six years in prison and later arrested on new sex-abuse charges in 2014. In the documentary, the Business Insider journalist Kate Taylor reads stomach-churning quotes from Handy’s journal, before revealing that another Nickelodeon crew member was arrested just four months after him: Brian Peck, a dialogue coach and an occasional actor on All That, was charged with 11 counts of child sexual abuse. After pleading no contest, Peck was convicted of two of the counts against him and sentenced to 16 months in prison.The documentary’s most shocking revelation is that the unnamed victim in Peck’s case is now an adult who wants to tell his story: The Drake & Josh star Drake Bell, speaking publicly about the abuse for the first time, explains how Peck integrated himself into Bell’s life after the two met at an Amanda Show table read. “In hindsight, I should’ve been able to see,” Bell says. “But as a kid, you have no clue.” Bell’s chronicle of the abuse is wrenching, in no small part because it underscores how adults failed to keep him and the other children in Nickelodeon’s studios safe from predators.Quiet on Set argues that Peck’s on-set behavior fits within a larger pattern on Schneider’s shows: boundary-crossing behind the scenes and inappropriate sexual innuendo on the air. In a clip from an old All That episode, a celebrity guest complains of hunger, and Peck’s recurring character, known as “Pickle Boy,” hands him a pickle to eat through a hole in the dressing-room door. The camera zooms in to capture that visual, which clearly evokes a pornographic trope. One former All That actor recalls that, during downtime, Peck would play video games with the children; another reads an old note in which Peck thanked her for walking on his back. The former child actors repeatedly emphasize that although other grown-ups were present on set for many questionable incidents, no one from Nickelodeon ever stepped in. (In his video statement, Schneider says that he didn’t hire Peck and was devastated to hear the allegations of abuse.)In making many of these stories public for the first time, Quiet on Set is the latest project to expose the ways in which Hollywood enables child sexual abuse—and to call for industry reforms. The former actors speaking in the new series echo many of the sentiments expressed in Dear Hollywood, an incisive podcast by the former Disney Channel ingénue Alyson Stoner. Three years ago, Stoner wrote about a phenomenon they called the “toddler-to-trainwreck pipeline,” describing it as a profitable system that has continued apace since the 19th century by “censoring the harm happening behind the scenes, manicuring aspirational lifestyles and outcomes, and then watching young lives tragically implode.” In their writing and on their podcast, Stoner presents disturbing personal testimony and discusses issues that child stars face, such as the prevalence of eating disorders, fractured family dynamics, and the psychological toll of fame. Stoner also offers concrete steps the industry should take, such as requiring a qualified, third-party mental-health professional on every set.Last week, Quiet on Set, which was originally billed as a four-part series, released a bonus fifth episode that explores tangible solutions. Shane Lyons, a former All That cast member, said that the first place to start would be updating the law “so that no individual who is a convicted child molester can ever get on a Hollywood set again.” That may sound like an obvious fix. But the California law that details protections for children in the entertainment industry, and which mandates background checks for many professionals who work with child actors, has a major loophole: It doesn’t apply if a parent or guardian is always present with their child on set.[Read: Don’t judge I’m Glad My Mom Died by its title]The show makes the limits of this provision—and the stakes of leaving it unchanged—incredibly clear. Even if the onus is on parents to protect their kids, abusers frequently conceal their predatory actions from other adults. What’s more, parents who try to advocate for their kids can end up ostracized, putting their children’s career (and self-esteem) on the line.The docuseries creates a startling and horrifying picture of how Hollywood’s systemic flaws have long put children at risk. But Quiet on Set also has its shortcomings. The series isn’t always careful with its depictions of alleged victims or of former child stars, especially those who chose not to participate in the project. Amanda Bynes was a key part of Nickelodeon’s rise, but the documentary’s commentary about her closeness to Schneider and her later mental-health struggles sometimes registers as cursory speculation without Bynes there to speak for herself.[Read: The hard lessons of Amanda Bynes’s comeback]Parts of Bell’s story are similarly under-contextualized, despite the actor’s heavy involvement in the series: Quiet on Set publicizes the names of several industry figures who wrote letters of support for Peck after his conviction. (These letters were previously sealed, along with other court documents.) Excerpts from some of the 41 letters show just how much backing Peck had in Hollywood, but in its eagerness to implicate others, the series overlooks how Peck may have wielded authority over some of the signatories.Throughout the series, Peck is described as a master manipulator, someone who infiltrated Bell’s life when the actor was a teenager partly by earning his mother’s trust. But the documentary never meaningfully addresses the fact that some of the performers who wrote letters of support for Peck had met the much older dialogue coach while they, too, were teens. This doesn’t necessarily absolve them of criticism. But the series could have examined how such unequal dynamics can influence young people’s behavior in an ecosystem as insular as children’s programming, and considered the possibility that Peck’s manipulation extended further. Even including the detail of the letter signers’ ages along with this commentary would have provided valuable information to viewers attempting to make sense of the case and how it was perceived at the time.In the weeks since the documentary began airing, former Nickelodeon fans have criticized many Hollywood figures, including former child actors, for having shown support for Peck. And some of the network’s former actors have faced backlash for simply not speaking up—whether in solidarity with Bell or to publicly share their own negative experiences. In last week’s bonus fifth episode of Quiet on Set, Bell asked that fans be more compassionate toward his mom and reiterated an earlier request for fans to “take it a little easy” on his former co-star Josh Peck (who is no relation to Brian Peck).In another unfortunate misstep, Quiet on Set avoids wrestling with the full reality of Bell’s life after Peck’s abuse. In 2021, Bell himself pleaded guilty to felony attempted child endangerment and a misdemeanor charge of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles in a case involving a 15-year-old girl, when Bell was 31. The documentary largely brushes past this, allowing Bell to obfuscate the details of these allegations by conflating the case with his other “self-destructive behavior” and suggesting that the media have spread “misinformation” about him.These oversights undermine the docuseries’ attempts to rigorously confront the pernicious nature of abuse, and instead present viewers with clearly delineated camps of good and evil, perpetrator and victim. This flawed framing has also left Bell’s accuser vulnerable to heightened public scrutiny: After the series premiered, fans began creating TikTok videos discussing the 2021 case. There, and on other social-media platforms, some people shared the accuser’s real name or suggested that she had been lying. People also harassed Bell’s former girlfriend, who in 2020 accused the actor of physical and emotional abuse during their relationship—allegations that Bell has flatly denied as “offensive and defamatory.” Just last week, Bell insisted that he was innocent in the 2021 case (despite already having pleaded guilty) while speaking about Quiet on Set on a podcast, which further emboldened these fans.Many of these more recent updates couldn’t possibly have been accounted for in a documentary that had already finished filming. But the bonus episode—a coda of sorts—offered a chance for Quiet on Set to reckon with the sad fact that it’s not uncommon for abuse victims to become offenders in adulthood. True intervention requires understanding abuse in ways that aren’t binary, and the show would have benefited tremendously from asking a mental-health expert to talk about these cycles. Protecting children in Hollywood and beyond is a collective effort, one that demands seriously engaging with even the most uncomfortable truths. Quiet on Set marks one important step in that direction, but there’s so much more left to do.
theatlantic.com
13 Dems vote against resolution condemning Iran after Israel strike
The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a measure to condemn Iran's airstrikes on Israel, but 13 Democrats and one Republican voted against it.
foxnews.com
Cyber fraud network stole personal data from thousands, UK police say
The Metropolitan Police in London have disrupted a website called LabHost, which facilitated cyber fraud by allowing criminals to create phishing sites.
foxnews.com
G7 leaders talk Ukraine defense support as Russia targets key infrastructure
The G7 leaders heard from the Ukrainian foreign minister as they discussed how to support Ukraine against the Russian invasion, as well as tensions between Israel and Iran.
foxnews.com
Why Taylor Swift fans think this song from the ‘TTPD’ leak is about Travis Kelce
Swift’s upcoming song, “The Alchemy,” allegedly references touchdowns, warming benches, winning streaks, trophies and being the greatest in the league.
nypost.com
‘The View’s Whoopi Goldberg Says Her Mom Called Her “Dumb” For Getting Married: “She Was Right — All Three Times”
"My mother said to me, 'Just get in the car. I can see you don’t want to do this,'" Goldberg recalled.
nypost.com
Mortgage rates jump past 7% for the first time in 2024, posing big dilemma for homebuyers
Mortgage rates have now risen three weeks in a row, a setback for home shoppers this spring homebuying season.
nypost.com
BetMGM Promo + Bet365 Bonus Code: Use $2.5K in Bonuses for NHL, MLB, NBA
Sign up using our BetMGM promo + bet365 bonus code to use up to $2,500 in bonuses for NHL and NBA games.
newsweek.com
Two jurors excused from Trump trial as jury selection continues
Jury selection continues Thursday in former President Donald Trump's hush money criminal trial. Follow here for the latest live news updates.
edition.cnn.com
Trump juror previously arrested for ripping down right-leaning political ads dismissed from trial
A second juror was excused from the jury in former President Trump’s criminal trial on Thursday after it was revealed that he was arrested for tearing down right-leaning political advertisements.
foxnews.com
Ashanti and Nelly confirm they're engaged and having a baby, baby, baby, baby, baby
Ashanti and Nelly confirmed months of pregnancy rumors in an ad for their diagnostics company. The R&B star also separately confirmed that they're engaged.
latimes.com
Single Woman Celebrates All Friends' Milestones—Here's How They Honored Her
The woman is finally being celebrated with the trip of a lifetime.
newsweek.com
Shopper sparks outrage after ‘paying $7 for a single apple:’ ‘What economy are we all f–king living in’
An apple a day keeps the doctor away — but at this point medical bills might be cheaper.
nypost.com
Your Fast Food Is Already Automated
The founder of Chipotle wants to reinvent lunch with robots. Is that really a reinvention at all?
theatlantic.com
NPR boss Katherine Maher opposed ‘free and open’ approach at Wikipedia: ‘White male Westernized construct’
Maher's "woke" social media posts came to light following the damning essay written by ex-NPR journalist Uri Berliner about liberal bias at outlet.
nypost.com
Once a fringe Indian ideology, Hindu nationalism is now mainstream
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, one of India’s most beloved and polarizing political leaders, has advanced the cause of Hindu nationalism.
latimes.com
Latest version of House TikTok bill gets crucial support in Senate
Sen. Maria Cantwell is backing an amended bill that could lead to a ban of TikTok in the U.S.
1 h
cbsnews.com
Mike Myers’ glam NYC home next to the High Line can be yours — for less
At 505 W. 19th St., the famed Canadian comedian is looking to part ways with his handsomely designed home, with a $2.5 million reduction.
1 h
nypost.com
Nearly 30 Silversea Cruise passengers sickened by outbreak on board
Twenty-eight passengers and one crew member fell ill with a stomach bug on Silversea's luxury Silver Nova cruise liner, the CDC reported.
1 h
foxnews.com
Ilhan Omar’s daughter, Isra Hirsi, suspended from Barnard College for her involvement in anti-Israel protests
Isra Hirsi, the daughter of Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar said Thursday that she has been suspended from Barnard College for her involvement in anti-Israel protests on Columbia University’s campus. “i’m an organizer with CU Apartheid Divest @ColumbiaSJP, in my 3 years at @BarnardCollege i have never been reprimanded or received any disciplinary warnings,” she wrote...
1 h
nypost.com
Latinx Files: Introducing the Latinidad Stage
From the power of the Latinx vote to first-generation experiences to poetry, here's what to expect at the Latinidad Stage at the L.A. Times Festival of Books.
1 h
latimes.com
Baby's Face Lights Up Upon Seeing Dad Returning Home From Work: 'Pure Joy'
Rebekah Dolling said her six-month-old son JJ "will hear the keys in the door and smile knowing his dad is about to walk in."
1 h
newsweek.com
Couple Adopts Rescue Dog From Shelter and Put 'Permanent Smile' on Her Face
Footage of the pup back at the shelter shows her looking miserable, but since being adopted she's a totally different dog.
1 h
newsweek.com
Sweeping gun legislation approved by Maine lawmakers following Lewiston mass shooting
The Maine Legislature has approved sweeping gun safety legislation nearly six months after the deadliest shooting in state history.
1 h
latimes.com
Meghan Markle continues to lean into quiet luxury looks as American Riviera Orchard drops first product
The duchess has had quite a busy (and stylish) week, attending a charity polo match with Prince Harry and soft-launching her brand's new jam.
1 h
nypost.com
Hailey Van Lith transferring to TCU after frustrating LSU season
Van Lith averaged 11.6 points and 3.6 assists per game with LSU this past season.
1 h
nypost.com
Texas Is Headed for a Water Problem
The most recent drought outlook revealed concerning news for western Texas.
1 h
newsweek.com
Simone Biles says she ‘broke down’ after husband Jonathan Owens’ viral interview
Simone Biles has finally revealed how the viral interview of her husband, Jonathan Owens, really made her feel. On “Call Her Daddy,” the gymnast admitted that the backlash he faced after saying he didn’t know who Simone was before they started dating, took a serious toll on her mental health. While she did publicly support...
1 h
nypost.com
Will Caitlin Clark's WNBA Arrival Lift the Visibility of Other Women's Pro Sports?
Women's pro sports have fought an uphill battle for visibility, but the path seems to have leveled in recent years. Caitlin Clark's arrival in the WNBA helps.
1 h
newsweek.com
Is ‘Abigail’ Streaming On Netflix Or HBO Max?
Abigail is the final film starring the late Angus Cloud.
1 h
nypost.com
Nigerian army rescues woman who was abducted a decade ago and her 3 children
Nigerian soldiers rescued a pregnant woman who was abducted by extremists a decade ago while she was a schoolgirl in the village of Chibok, officials said.
1 h
foxnews.com
‘DWTS’ Alum Cheryl Burke Admits She’s Had Three “Showmances” With Previous Partners
"One of them basically professed his love to me on Ellen DeGeneres."
1 h
nypost.com
Two jurors booted from Trump trial, including NYC nurse who said she couldn’t be ‘unbiased,’ man accused of lying about criminal past
A nurse who was seated as a juror in Donald Trump's "hush money" case earlier this week was let go Thursday after she said she can't be "fair an unbiased."
1 h
nypost.com
Hearts Melt As 17-Year-Old Dog Carried Home From Walk—'No Strength Anymore'
A woman has shared a video on TikTok of her father having to help their elderly pet as she had run out of energy.
1 h
newsweek.com
In one photo, a naked depiction of the bravery of motherhood
Rineke Dijkstra’s 1994 photo portrait “Julie” is one of a series showing women in the immediate aftermath of giving birth.
1 h
washingtonpost.com
Dog 'Falls In Love' With Owner's Boyfriend, Protects Him At All Costs
The heartwarming video has racked up 3.7 million views on TikTok.
1 h
newsweek.com
Justin Bieber styles two pairs of sweatpants with $2,470 Louis Vuitton slippers for sushi dinner
The singer, 30, chose a comfy, cozy ensemble that included double the four-figure sweatpants and fuzzy designer footwear for an outing in West Hollywood.
1 h
nypost.com
Trader Joe's pulls fresh basil in 29 states after salmonella outbreak
Health officials are warning consumers not to consume the Infinite Herbs basil sold at Trader Joe's after 12 people were sickened.
1 h
cbsnews.com
Florida kicked their son off Medicaid in the 'unwinding' but not their daughter
Nearly 1-in-4 adults who lost Medicaid coverage in the past year are now uninsured, according to a new survey. As states winnow the rolls, many families are caught in confusing red tape.
1 h
npr.org
Kennedy family to make major endorsement in 2024 presidential race as Dem panic grows over RFK Jr: Report
Members of the Kennedy family are expected to endorse President Biden, effectively snubbing Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who panicked Democrats say could spoil the election.
1 h
foxnews.com
Congressional Progressive Caucus releases extensive 2025 policy agenda — here's what's on it
The Congressional Progressive Caucus has released its policy agenda as its leader is raising concerns about "momentum" ahead of November's elections.
1 h
foxnews.com
Drunk Driving Bill Could Change Law for Millions
Campaigners are calling on lawmakers to lower the blood alcohol content (BAC) limit for driving to 0.05 from 0.08, citing the rising fatalities.
1 h
newsweek.com
Man convicted of murdering 2 Dartmouth professors in 2001 granted parole
A man who spent more than 20 years in prison for murdering two married Dartmouth College professors back in 2001 has been granted parole.
1 h
cbsnews.com
Germany arrests 2 it accuses of spying for Russia, plotting sabotage to undermine Ukraine aid
Two German-Russian men arrested in Germany on suspicion of espionage for Russia, planning sabotage to undermine aid for Ukraine, prosecutors say.
1 h
latimes.com
Son Who Allegedly Drowned Banker Dad During ‘Exorcism’ Faces Jury
David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via GettyA trial is underway for 22-year-old Jack Callahan, two years ago after he was accused of drowning his father during what he described to investigators as an exorcism.In June 2021, police in Duxbury, Massachusetts, received a call from Callahan’s mother saying her 19-year-old son was acting erratically and that her ex-husband was missing, according to a press release from the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office.Police arrived on the scene, and Jack Callahan told them he’d gone in a ride-share to pick up his father, Scott, from a bar in Boston. At the time, the 57-year-old banker was supposed to be receiving treatment for alcohol addiction but had checked himself out, according to The Independent.Read more at The Daily Beast.
1 h
thedailybeast.com
Woman Shares Her Labrador Retriever's Biggest 'Red Flags' in Hilarious Clip
While some of these warnings are just normal dog behaviors, others can be corrected through positive reinforcement.
1 h
newsweek.com
Allman Brothers guitarist Dickey Betts dead at 80
The Allman Brothers Band founding member, guitarist and singer Dickey Betts passed away at 80 years old.
1 h
foxnews.com