Nick Cannon issues apology
LOS ANGELES — Nick Cannon apologized late Wednesday for “hurtful and divisive” anti-Semitic comments that led ViacomCBS to cut ties with the TV host and producer.
“I extend my deepest and most sincere apologies to my Jewish sisters and brothers for the hurtful and divisive words that came out of my mouth,” Cannon said in a series of tweets addressing his remarks on a podcast that was released last month.
He issued the apology hours after demanding an apology from ViacomCBS, which late Tuesday condemned him and said it was cutting ties with the host, with whom it had a more than 20-year working relationship.
Cannon said his apology came after discussions with Jewish leaders and he vowed to become more informed. “I am committed to deeper connections, more profound learning and strengthening the bond between our two cultures today and every day going forward,” he said on Twitter.
ViacomCBS cut ties with Cannon in response to his remarks on a podcast in which he and Richard “Professor Griff ” Griffin, the former Public Enemy member, discussed racial bias. The podcast was recorded in May 2019 and released June 30.
The apology seemed to satisfy Fox, which noted it in a statement confirming Cannon will remain host of “The Masked Singer.”
Michelle Obama to host weekly podcast: Former U.S. first lady Michelle Obama will host a podcast for Spotify Technology SA. Obama will interview friends, family and celebrities, including her brother and mother, as well as comedian Conan O’Brien and journalist Michele Norris, the online music company said Thursday.
Spotify will release the first of nine episodes of “The Michelle Obama Podcast” on July 29 to its nearly 300 million users and release subsequent episodes weekly. This is the first program to come out of a deal between Spotify and Higher Ground, the company she runs with her husband, former President Barack Obama.
Diversity of LGBTQ characters in film declines, study finds: Last year saw record representation of LGBTQ characters in the 118 films released by major studios, according to a new study by GLAAD.
But for the third straight year, the racial diversity of LGBTQ characters has waned and transgender characters again went unseen.
GLAAD called the decrease in nonwhite LGBTQ characters “concerning.” In 2019, 34% of LGBTQ characters were people of color. That’s down from 42% in 2018 and 57% in 2017.
“GLAAD is calling on the studios to ensure that within two years at least half of their LGBTQ characters are people of color,” said the advocacy group that tracks representation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the media.
For the third year in a row, transgender characters were also absent from major studio releases. But overall, GLAAD found higher rates of inclusion than it has in the eight years its been tracking studio films. Of the 118 films studied, 22 (18.6%) included lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer characters. That’s a slight increase from 18.2% in 2018.
July 17 birthdays: Actor Donald Sutherland is 85. Actress Lucie Arnaz is 69. Actor David Hasselhoff is 68. Singer Regina Belle is 57. Actor Andre Royo is 52. Rapper Solé is 47. Singer Luke Bryan is 44. Actor Tom Cullen is 35. Singer Jeremih is 33. Actress Billie Lourd is 28.