Daily 30: Tue 10.07.2014

Breaking News! 9mo
Ebola travel ban

2 Ebola travel ban Breaking News

Press Secretary Josh Earnest comments on whether a travel ban will go into effect in the wake of the Ebola outbreak.
9mo
Russell Simmons & Rick Rubin Pt. 4

10 Russell Simmons & Rick Rubin Pt. 4 Noisey Raps

In the final segment, Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin riff on the birth of Slick Rick and what he meant to Def Jam, reflecting on the early days. They explain his indefinable charisma and how they knew immediately they needed to work with him.
9mo
Aziz Ansari

11 Aziz Ansari Late Night

Comedian Aziz Ansari tells how Chris Rock persuaded him to perform at Madison Square Garden.
What's Next?! 9mo
The First Bellhop Robot

12 The First Bellhop Robot Forbes

At the Aloft Cupertino, an R2-D2-like robot has joined the staff. The Botlr, designed by Silicon-Valley startup Savioke, delivers amenities to guests as part of a pilot program that may expand to other Aloft Hotels in 2015.
9mo
Turner Broadcasting to Cut 1,500 Jobs

17 Turner Broadcasting to Cut 1,500 Jobs Variety

Turner Broadcasting, the parent company of some of the nation’s best-known cable TV networks, will cut nearly 1,500 jobs or 10% of its 14,000- person work force as part of a broader move by parent company Time Warner to streamline operating costs. In a statement, Turner said approximately 1,475 positions will be eliminated through a mix of buyouts, layoffs and elimination of unfilled slots. Approximately 300 jobs will be eliminated at CNN, or 8.5% of its staff, according to a report posted on the cable-news outlet’s CNNMoney. Turner also operates TNT, TBS, TruTV, HLN and Cartoon Network, among other holdings. The cuts “will come at all levels from across the company’s news, entertainment, kids, young adult and sports networks and businesses, as well as corporate functions, in 18 Turner locations around the world,” the company said in a statement. In 2013, Turner was responsible for the bulk of Time Warner’s operating income – about $3.5 billion, compared with around $1.8 billion from HBO and about $1.3 billion from Warner Bros. Turner Broadcasting has been under the scrutiny of Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes for months. In April, Bewkes told investors that performance at outlets like TNT and TruTV had experienced “a significant drop-off” and that TNT had “lost ground with younger viewers” because its programming was not as edgy as fare that has turned up regularly on competing outlets such as FX and AMC. Since that time, Turner has lost two of its top programming executives, Steve Koonin and Michael Wright. Koonin left to run the Atlanta Hawks while Wright has taken over the chief executive position at DreamWorks Studios. Time Warner has also moved to reduce headcount at its Warner Bros. studio. The company has been under some pressure to demonstrate growth prospects in the wake of an unsolicited bid by Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox. Murdoch said in August he would abandon his efforts to buy Time Warner for $80 billion, a move that sent Time Warner shares soaring when first made public in the summer, then had them settle back down to earth. Turner has made a number of moves aimed at adding spark to its holdings. Under Jeff Zucker, CNN has charted a course of adding more nonfiction programming to primetime that is not based on current events, while sister network HLN is attempting to tie its shows more closely to topics trending in social media. Time Warner had mulled a deal that would give upstart outlet Vice Media some say over HLN programming before scuttling the idea. At its entertainment networks, Turner secured a nine-year renewal of its deal with the National Basketball League Monday and in May renewed its deal with TBS late-night host Conan O’Brien. In coming days, Turner is expected to name Kevin Reilly, the former programming chief at 21st Century Fox’s Fox Broadcasting, to oversee the content efforts at its entertainment networks. It is not clear whether Reilly will report to David Levy, president of Turner Broadcasting or if he will report directly to John K. Martin, the unit’s chief executive, though that has likely been a significant part of the discussions. Turner said employees whose positions are directly impacted would be advised over the next two weeks and offered severance pay for transition.
1y
The Top Ten Richest Druglords

18 The Top Ten Richest Druglords Flip Willson

Top Ten Richest Drug Lords gives you a look into the lives of some of the biggest kingpins of all time. Money was the top priority for these men and they did anything to keep the cash coming.
1y
The Art of 16 Bars

19 The Art of 16 Bars QD3 Entertainment

The Art of 16 Bars features interviews with major hip-hop stars that involve them discussing how they rose to prominence. Among the artists who offer their insights are 50 Cent, Nas, Kanye West, Russell Simmons, and The RZA.
1y
The Godfather Of Comedy

20 The Godfather Of Comedy Paul Mooney

The venomous, no-holds-barred style of standup comedy legend Paul Mooney is on full display in this concert special that finds the vitriolic funnyman sparing no politician or pop culture icon from his scathing wit, including Sarah Palin, Mel Gibson and even golf pro Tiger Woods.
9mo
Visual Style of Southern Hip Hop

23 Visual Style of Southern Hip Hop Noisey Raps

Pen & Pixel churned out thousands of covers in the 90s and early 00s for dirty South artists such as Master P, Ghetto Boys & Lil Wayne, defining the visual style of southern hip hop with its over the top, diamond encrusted covers. They were the ones to invent the term "bling bling". Noisey follows Shawn Brauch, the founder & head designer, from their rise to success, trailblazing digital desktop publication before anyone, and it's fall from dirty south fame.
Must Watch! 9mo
The Fight Against Ebola (Pt. 2)

24 The Fight Against Ebola (Pt. 2) Vice News

In Part 2, through the lens of an Ebola awareness team leader named Archie, we learn one of the main issues that is perpetuating the outbreak — confusion about the virus itself.
9mo
BET Ends ‘The Game’

25 BET Ends ‘The Game’ Deadline

Five months after renewing Mara Brock Akil’s The Game for an eighth season, BET this evening announced that its flagship comedy will be coming to an end. But before it bows out, The Game will get one more season, 9, which will be its last. Filming is underway on both Seasons 8 and 9, which will begin airing in early 2015. The Game was picked up by BET in 2009 when the comedy was cancelled by the CW after three seasons. “All good things must come to an end and after celebrating four successful seasons of The Game on BET, the Network has announced production is underway on the show’s final two seasons,” BET said in a statement on its Web site. “In January 2011 the cult following of The Game proved that the show was a fan favorite with 7.7 million viewers for its premiere debut on BET. With seasons eight and nine, we’re excited to end on a high note by giving Sabers fans a chance to bid farewell to their favorite players on and off the field.”
9mo
Facebook's Mobile Payments System

26 Facebook's Mobile Payments System Daily Dot

facebook-payments-select-method Facebook is trying to cash in on the mobile payments sphere, according to new screenshots that show a payment section in the company's messenger app. Stanford University student Andrew Aude used a jailbroken iPhone and a program called Cycrypt to enable dormant code in Facebook Messenger, and the result is the screenshot you seen below, as shared with TechCrunch. The code suggests that the app only supports debit cards right now. According to Aude, "The mechanism it uses is to debit one account, and then use some magical means to [look up] the bank account number of the recipient and ACH [Automated Clearing House] deposit it, identical to Square Cash." Facebook is far from the only company to begin exploring mobile payments in recent years. Since Google Wallet launched in September 2011, many companies have developed their own mobile-payment software in an attempt to keep users on their platforms for payment transactions. Apple's iOS 8 introduced Apple Pay, which is causing a stir at online payment giant Paypal even before it launches. Although Apple Pay benefits from Touch ID support in the two most recent generations of iPhones, it is Facebook that is best positioned to take advantage of another crucial aspect of the mobile payment game: social. So many people already use Facebook that the addition of a mobile payment feature would kneecap the business model of existing social payment services like Venmo. Venmo and services like it require users to sign up for their services and build entirely new social networks around the payment process. Venmo in particular offers some social payment features that Facebook seems unlikely to incorporate, including its central draw, the option to make limited information about friend-to-friend payments part of a public timeline. Yet Facebook's biggest draw when it adds new features that other services already offer is the convenience of accessing those features inside a service that one already uses. The more Facebook can consolidate the features of startups like Venmo, the better positioned it will be to build a walled garden of the sort that Google has for years strove to construct. Facebook is even planning to one-up Venmo with group payments. In the code for the payment system, Facebook's engineers advise, "In the short term, we will only support single payment attachment. Multiple payment attachments will be supported in the future." TechCrunch notes that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been cautious about his company's plans to implement a mobile payment system. "There's so much groundwork for us to do," he told investors on an earnings call in July. "We're going to take the time to do this in the way that is going to be right over multiple years." Head over to TechCrunch to see more screenshots and a video of the hidden payments feature.
9mo
Kite

27 Kite Anchor Bay Entertainment

A young woman, Sawa, is orphaned following the murder of her parents and is later taken off the streets by a crooked, Svengali-like detective who employs homeless children to do his dirty work. Trained as a killer, Sawa exacts street justice against the detective's chosen targets until she is able to break free of the abusive, manipulative control he has over her.
11mo
Addicted

28 Addicted Lionsgate

Based on the best-selling novel by Zane, ADDICTED is a sexy and provocative thriller about desire and the dangers of indiscretion. Successful businesswoman Zoe Reynard appears to have attained it all - the dream husband she loves, two wonderful children and a flourishing career. As perfect as everything appears from the outside, Zoe is still drawn to temptations she cannot escape or resist. As she pursues a secretive life, Zoe finds herself risking it all when she heads down a perilous path she may not survive.
An Intense Thriller! 9mo
Gone Girl

29 Gone Girl 20th Century Fox

On the occasion of his fifth wedding anniversary, Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) reports that his beautiful wife, Amy (Rosamund Pike), has gone missing. Under pressure from the police and a growing media frenzy, Nick's portrait of a blissful union begins to crumble. Soon his lies, deceits and strange behavior have everyone asking the same dark question: Did Nick Dunne kill his wife?
Powerful! 11mo
Finding Fela

30 Finding Fela Jigsaw Produtions

Alex Gibney's Finding Fela (2014) is a sweeping portrait of the artist as guerilla warrior. Set to the insistent groove of Nigerian superstar Fela Kuti's revolutionary Afrobeat sound, the remarkable story of one man's courageous stand against a corrupt and dictatorial government gives testament to the transformative power of music as a force of social and political unification.