What Rylan Clark tells us about the failure of government communication
The presenter’s stance on immigration has caused widespread backlash. But is the response a sign that the immigration debate is shifting? When Rylan Clark first appeared on the X Factor in 2012, sporting a set of blinding white veneers and a wotsit shade of spray tan, it was hard to...
Current in Media
‘The Voice of Hind Rajab’ gets standing ovation at Venice Film Festival
The docufilm reconstructs the final moments of a five-year-old Palestinian girl, Hind Rajab, as she was killed by Israeli forces in Gaza along with six other members of her family. On Wednesday night at the Venice Film Festival, a sobbing audience gave a 23-minute standing ovation to a new docufilm...
Opinion – nobody can relate to TV’s mega-rich
Almost everywhere we look, TV and film are hell-bent on portraying characters with exorbitant amounts of wealth. I’m tired of it. And Just Like That, the Sex and the City reboot, has had largely negative – if not heavily mixed – reviews since it premiered a few years ago. And for...
Will Smith appears to use AI generated crowd in tour videos
As part of the promotional material for his ongoing tour, Will Smith has been accused of posting AI generated images of crowds. The videos show hands with extra fingers and additional limbs. Actor and musician Will Smith has been facing criticism online for what appears to be AI generated...
Lil Nas X arrested and hospitalised for ‘possible overdose’
The pop star and singer was found wandering the streets in LA in his underwear, before charging at police officers who attended the scene. He has been hospitalised for a ‘possible overdose’ with his second album scheduled to release later this year. Rapper, singer and musician Lil Nas X...
Kai Cenat and the influencer charity controversy
Kai Cenat is under scrutiny again, but this time it’s not about setting off fireworks in his room or being shite at Elden Ring. It involves a school in Nigeria, and we’re trying to find the line between philanthropy and clout chasing. Earlier this year, Kai travelled to Nigeria with...
Cancelling ‘The Late Show’ is a sign of troubling times
Stephen Colbert’s exit marks more than TV’s end. It signals the unsettling ‘Trumpification’ of mainstream media under political pressure. CBS’s decision to cancel The Late Show with Stephen Colbert – a late-night institution that, in Colbert’s own words, ‘isn’t being replaced’ – marks the end of a 33-year legacy and a moment of uneasy reflection for American media in the time of Trump. The network attributes the cancellation to longstanding financial...
Bad Bunny redefines what it means to tour
Instead of travelling the world and to perform in a new city every night, Latinx artist Bad Bunny is telling fans to come to his home country Puerto Rico. Earlier this year, Bad Bunny released his massively successful seventh studio album ‘DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS’ (translated in English to ‘I should’ve taken more photos’) and announced he would be going on tour. But when the time came, he decided...
Is this summer’s Love Island UK the most misogynistic yet?
The show’s male contestants have repeatedly bullied, belittled, and gaslit. On a show plagued by mental health crises and online abuse, how thin is the line between entertainment and intervention? I love staying in the loop. Maybe it’s the nature of my job, but keeping up with current affairs is a major part of my daily routine. That might mean reading the newspaper or listening to The Rest is Politics...
Understanding Africa’s cultural crescendo
Africa's creative wave is the strongest it's ever been, and the world is paying attention. As the pandemic ended, a global appetite for rawness and newness emerged, and Africa's artistic expressions are breaking away from the tired stereotypes to tell a different story, from the nightclubs of Lagos to the fashion houses of Paris, and everyhere in between. African music, fashion, and art are coming into their own, changing the global...
