Names and faces
■ Casanova, a rapper jailed in New York in a gang-related federal racketeering case, is facing disciplinary action over a dance challenge video posted on social media. The 34-yearold, whose legal name is Caswell Senior, will be disciplined by officials at the Westchester County jail after a woman recorded him accepting the socalled Junebug challenge during a video visit, the Journal News reported. The challenge asks TikTok users to perform a set of moves in the strangest location they can think of. The woman recorded Casanova dancing in jail and posted it on Instagram, the newspaper reported. Correction Commissioner Joseph Spano said Casanova’s video visitation privileges have been revoked because recording videos and taking pictures during virtual visits are prohibited. “I’m happy to say we don’t have a lot of issues with video visits because inmates know it’s a privilege, not a right,” Spano said. Casanova was among 18 people accused of being members of the Untouchable Gorilla Stone Nation gang and charged with a host of crimes in a federal indictment in December. He’s pleaded innocent to conspiracy to commit racketeering, conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and firearms possession.
■ In a virtual panel session with the Television Critics Association last week about “Hemingway” — a documentary directed by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick to air on PBS in April — Burns was asked about choosing the subjects for his film biographies. A reporter noted they’ve featured prominent white people, including artists and political figures, but focused on athletes when it came to Black people, among them Jackie Robinson, Jack Johnson and, coming this fall, Muhammad Ali. Burns said Louis Armstrong deserves his own documentary but was a central figure in “Jazz,” an example of biography as “one constituent building block” of broader historical films. As for who gets singled out, “it has to be done with your gut,” Burns said, echoing a comment by Novick, his longtime colleague. “As Lynn said, they choose us.” Burns’ series also include “The Civil War,” “Baseball,” “The Vietnam War” and “The Central Park Five.” In a separate session, the chief executive of PBS rejected a filmmaker’s argument that public TV’s 40-year relationship with Burns has come at the expense of diversity. Paula Kerger was asked about an essay by filmmaker Grace Lee, who contended that public TV’s deep attachment to Burns slights viewers of color. “I feel very privileged to have the opportunity to work with Ken Burns, whose legacy is extraordinary,” Kerger said. She said Burns “has a deep commitment to mentoring diverse filmmakers” and that she “respectfully disagrees” with Lee’s arguments, among them that PBS decision-makers and funders have an interdependence with “one white, male filmmaker” who represents “one man’s lens on America.”