Latest news with #cancelCulture
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Venue cancels Marilyn Manson's performance following campaign
A Brighton venue has cancelled rock star Marilyn Manson's show, following pressure from a campaign group and an MP. Manson – real name Brian Warner – was set to kickstart the UK leg of his One Assassination Under God Tour at the Brighton Centre on Wednesday, October 29. Now, customers have been informed by Ticketmaster that the event has been cancelled and they will be refunded. An online campaign group, No Stage for Abusers, called on the Brighton Centre, and Brighton and Hove City Council, which owns the venue, to cancel the performance. In January, a year-long investigation into Manson was dropped. California prosecutors said allegations against Manson exceeded the statute of limitations, adding that they cannot prove charges beyond a reasonable doubt. Manson has repeatedly denied the accusations and dismissed the claims as "falsehoods". Known for his eccentric stage persona and provocative statements and behaviour, Manson has long been a controversial figure. Last week MP Siân Berry expressed her concerns about Manson's upcoming performance in an open letter to leader of Brighton and Hove City Council, Bella Sankey. In Siân's letter she urged the council to consider cancelling the event as she believes it goes against 'the city's well-renowned values'. One person told The Argus: "This is cancel culture nothing more, and it'll backfire when artists don't add a Brighton and Hove date to their tours and stick to London, which incidentally haven't banned Marilyn Manson from their city. Set a very worrisome precedent."
Telegraph
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
BBC staff told impartiality means they must represent ‘unpalatable views'
BBC staff have been told they must be willing to represent 'unpalatable' views. The broadcaster has released updated editorial guidelines stating that a range of views, including 'minority' opinions, should be taken into account to ensure output is impartial. Updated clauses tell staff to be aware of potentially silenced opinions that the public may be 'reluctant to express', or opinions rarely expressed because 'opportunity to do so is limited'. Staff have been told to do so even if some groups might find these opinions offensive. The guidance reminds journalists that impartial output may 'require the inclusion of opinions which some […] communities or groups may argue ought not to be included, because they find them unpalatable or offensive'. The revisions update 2019 guidance, and come after years of 'cancel culture', which some believe enforced a mainstream consensus on issues such as immigration and gender identity. The BBC itself upheld a complaint against presenter Justin Webb in 2024 when he called trans women 'males' on air, a biological definition of gendered terms which has since been supported by a Supreme Court ruling. Last year the Migration Observatory in Oxford urged the BBC to better reflect the public views on immigration. The organisation claimed that some BBC journalists were anxious that reporting on concerns about migration could appear 'hostile' to migrants. It comes after the BBC backed Martine Croxall, the news presenter, when she corrected her script from 'pregnant people' to 'women' live on-air. The UK Supreme Court ruling in April was said to have encouraged staff to speak up for women. Earlier this month, BBC bosses met to discuss how best to rebuild trust with Right-leaning audiences. This followed Reform UK's success in the local elections, and immigration becoming a key political issue after both legal and illegal migration reached record highs. BBC staff have been told in fresh guidance that they should be aware that 'opinion may change over time', and to try to accurately reflect altered public opinion in their coverage However, guidance makes clear that while the consensus should be questioned and not presumed, fringe opinions do not need to be given the same weight as viewpoints that are backed up by greater evidence. The new editorial guidelines, updated roughly every five years, have been welcomed by Tim Davie, the director-general. He said that they would 'provide editorial values and standards that make the BBC distinctive and reliable'. He added in a foreword: 'The BBC is committed to freedom of expression but this doesn't mean that anything goes. In a world of misinformation and disinformation, the BBC's editorial values of accuracy, impartiality and fairness are more crucial than ever. 'So too, in the context of the ugliness of much social media, is the fundamental decency embodied in sections like Harm and Offence or Children and Young People.' These sections continue to warn staff to be mindful of broadcasting views that could be considered offensive, and to ensure there are appropriate content warnings on iPlayer. Reflecting the emergence of new technology, the guidance also contains new rules on the use of AI. One new rule stipulates: 'A senior editorial figure must be responsible and accountable for overseeing the deployment and continuing use of any AI. 'They should seek advice from Editorial Policy, who may consult the AI Risk Advisory Group, before any decision to deploy the AI.'
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The Internet is Pointing Out This Massive Flaw in Johnny Depp's #MeToo 'Crash Test Dummy' Argument
Johnny Depp would like you to know that he's not staging a comeback — mostly because, as he told The Sunday Times on Saturday, 'I didn't go anywhere.' He's been busy directing films, painting skeletons, sipping red wine under a Hunter S. Thompson poster in Soho, and, more recently, positioning himself as a victim of cancel culture and, somehow, the #MeToo movement. 'I was like a crash test dummy for MeToo,' he told the paper. 'It was before Harvey Weinstein.' The quote came buried under layers of aesthetic melancholy and disdain for modern Hollywood, but it didn't take long for the internet to call out what many saw as the core problem with Depp's narrative: it simply doesn't hold up. More from SheKnows Does Amber Heard Have a Partner? Inside Her Dating Life After Welcoming Twins Let's break this down. Depp's ex-wife, Amber Heard, accused him of abuse in 2016 — a year before The New York Times published its Pulitzer-winning exposé on Weinstein, the catalyst most historians of the movement consider its public launch. But even setting aside that timeline, Depp's assertion doesn't square with his own story. In court, he claimed that Heard weaponized her accusations to gain #MeToo relevance. If she was, as he argued during the 2022 Virginia trial, 'seeking fame,' how could Depp simultaneously have been the movement's unknowing test subject? This is what people online have latched onto in the wake of his new interview. As one X user wrote, 'Weird how during the trial, he claimed that Amber wanted MeToo fame… and now it's that he was a pre-test crash dummy. Cannot keep his narrative straight even now, just says whatever he needs to so he can victimize himself.' The victim claim also rings false to many who observed Depp's life during and after the trials. Yes, he lost his Fantastic Beasts role in 2020. But even in the thick of it, Depp was still starring in movies (Minamata, Jeanne du Barry), fronting Dior campaigns, playing guitar with his band Hollywood Vampires, and being awarded lifetime achievement prizes in Spain. In 2025 alone, he's directed a new film, Modi, acted alongside Penélope Cruz in Day Drinker, and booked five different projects — all filmed in Spain, which also happens to be where Heard now lives. Some fans have even raised concerns about the frequency of Depp's appearances in her adopted country, calling it, quote, 'extremely creepy.' Meanwhile, Heard — who moved to Madrid in 2023 to focus on raising her daughter — has largely stayed out of the public eye. She was awarded $2 million in her countersuit against Depp's attorney, but endured widespread harassment online and in person, with Depp's fans reportedly camping outside courtrooms and screaming threats. This context has not been forgotten. Reddit commenters have responded to Depp's latest claims with blunt disbelief: 'Can this man just go away please,' one wrote. 'You won one of your lawsuits in the most heinous and retrograde way possible. Why do you still have to paint yourself as some wronged victim??' And yet, that's the through-line of Depp's narrative — a story shaped less by consistency than by a persistent desire to cast himself as misunderstood, unfairly judged, and deeply wronged. Even as his Dior ads air, his artwork sells for millions, and Hollywood producers line up to toast him, he insists on seeing his career as a cautionary tale. Which, to be fair, it might be. Just not in the way he of SheKnows 23 Age-Gap Couples Who Met When One of Them Was Still a Child Everything to Know About Leonardo DiCaprio's 27-Year-Old GF Vittoria Ceretti A Look Back at Prince William's Sexiest Photos in Celebration of the Future King
Daily Mail
20-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Labour's work to devise official definition of 'Islamophobia' should be suspended IMMEDIATELY as it risks worsening grooming gangs scandal, report warns
Labour moves to draw up an official definition of Islamophobia would shut down efforts to combat grooming gangs, a new report warns. The Policy Exchange think-tank said the work of the Government's 'Anti-Muslim Hate/Islamophobia Definition Working Group', set up earlier this year, should be immediately suspended. Devising a government-backed definition of Islamophobia – even though it would not initially have any force in law – would 'almost certainly turbocharge cancel culture ', it said. Policy Exchange's warning came days after a long-awaited review by Whitehall troubleshooter Baroness Casey found public bodies covered up sickening evidence about Asian grooming gangs 'for fear of appearing racist '. Councils, police forces and the Home Office repeatedly 'shied away' from dealing with 'uncomfortable' questions about the ethnicity of rapists preying on thousands of vulnerable girls. In the wake of the Casey review, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper promised to 'root out' the grooming gang 'scourge'. But Policy Exchange's report warns: 'At the same time, ministers are pursuing a policy which will have the opposite effect. 'It would have made exposing the grooming scandal even harder and slower than it already was. It will make rooting out the scourge more difficult. It will give perpetrators a new place to hide.' Ministers said in March that the move to devise a definition would 'seek to provide the government and other relevant bodies with an understanding of unacceptable treatment and prejudice against Muslim communities'. It would not carry statutory power, at least initially, but there have been widespread concerns that it would lead to Islam being given protections beyond those afforded to other religions. The work is being led by former Tory attorney general Dominic Grieve KC. Policy Exchange senior fellow and former British ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Sir John Jenkins, said in a letter to Mr Grieve: 'Whatever form of words is chosen, and whatever legal status it has to start with, any definition will have serious consequences. 'It will almost certainly turbocharge 'cancel culture'. 'Even without the force of an official definition, claims of Islamophobia are already used to close down legitimate debate and deter investigation of alleged wrongdoing, as in Rotherham or Batley, with disastrous results all round, including for the wider Muslim community itself.' He added: 'Unless it literally restates the existing legal protections covering all faiths, any official Islamophobia definition will be an undeniable act of two-tier policy, creating special status and protection for members of one faith alone. 'It is unlikely to alleviate Islamist discontent – it will stoke it, creating new opportunities for grievance politics, challenge and attack in every institution and workplace.' Sir John said the working group 'may have begun its work with its conclusions pre-determined', adding that he had 'little confidence' it would approach key issues with an open mind. The report said the government's work should be put on hold until the end of a national inquiry on grooming gangs, which Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer belatedly ordered in the wake of the Casey review. Dr Paul Stott, head of security and extremism at Policy Exchange, said: ''A danger going forward is that the proposed 'Islamophobia' definition could shut down discussion on grooming gangs and if accepted by Government restrict debate on this and on other issues vital to our social cohesion.' He added: 'This week has demonstrated the need to move on from the view that concern about grooming gangs is in some way racist, Islamophobic, or a far-right issue. 'It is clearly not and it never was.'
The Sun
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Axed Love Island star slams online death threats after being kicked off the show for racist slurs
AN axed Love Island star has slammed online death threats after being kicked off the show for racist slurs. Yulissa Escobar, 27, was cut from the villa off-camera in just the second episode of the season, before any of her fellow Islanders had even woken up. 4 She had been an original islander on season 7 of Love Island USA, which launched earlier this month. Her exit came after old podcast clips emerged on Reddit, showing Yulissa using the N-word while talking about her ex-boyfriends. The former islander has now fired back at online trolls, in an Instagram post titled "Accountable, Not Erased". She penned: "People swear cancel culture is about accountability... But now it's just viral hate." Continuing, Yulissa explained how she had received death threats along with "messages saying I should kill myself". She added: "That video doesn't define me. This isn't "woke". It's abuse." Yulissa also reiterated her determination, telling followers "this is NOT where my story ends." She said: "One mistake does not define a human. And that moment? Was four years ago. I've clearly grown and I'm just getting started." One person commented: "All the playbook move to become the victim after owning it people truly cannot resist this move, hilarious and so predictable." Another remarked: "But why were you saying the n word in 2021? You're grown enough." Inside Love Island USA's villa featuring a speakeasy, sauna and hideaway stocked with condoms and handcuffs- Others showed support towards Yulissa, as one shared: "Love you yuli. No one deserves this kind of hate, those who know you love you PERIOD." Another chimed in: "I felt every word of this. I can definitely relate! "The way online hate can consume and distort reality is terrifying. Thank you for speaking out with so much honesty and courage." After the podcast clips resurfaced, furious fans flooded her Instagram, vowing to get her booted off Love Island. Yulissa issued a lengthy apology, posting under the caption: "Owning my mistakes, speaking my truth." She wrote: 'First, I want to apologize for using a word I had no right in using. 'Podcast clips from years ago have recently resurfaced, and I want to address it directly. 'In those clips, I used a word I never should've used, a racial slur. I used it ignorantly, not fully understanding the weight, history, or pain behind it. "I wasn't trying to be offensive or harmful, but I recognize now that intention doesn't excuse impact. And the impact of that word is real. It's tied to generations of trauma, and it is not mine to use. 'At the time, I was speaking casually in conversation, not thinking deeply or critically about what I was saying. But that doesn't take away from how wrong it was. "The truth is, I didn't know better then, but I do now. I've taken the time to reflect, to learn, and to grow from that moment. 'I've changed a lot since then, not just in how I speak, but in how I show up, how I carry myself, and how I honor the experiences of others. "Growth means recognizing when you were wrong, even if it's uncomfortable, and choosing to move forward with humility and accountability. 'There have also been fake statements circulating, things written or said by others that don't reflect me or my heart. I want to clarify that this is my voice and my words. I don't need anyone to speak for me. "I'm choosing to speak for myself because I take full ownership of my actions. Do not listen to the fake statements. This is my official statement. This is me, speaking directly to you. 'To those who are disappointed or offended, I understand and I apologize. I am sorry.' 4 4
