My friend Tara posted this Conan clip of Anne Hathaway rapping about her problems with the paparazzi. I didn’t think Hathaway could get any hotter. I was wrong. Wow.
Voula Papachristou: Greek Olympian Banned For Tweet
Triple-jumper Voula Papachristou was booted off Greece’s Olympic squad for a racially insensitive comment posted on her Twitter account. Here’s the deal according to the NY Daily News:
While gearing up for her first Olympic games on Sunday, Papachristou commented on the reported influx of West Nile mosquitos in Athens. She tweeted in Greek, “With so many Africans in Greece, the West Nile mosquitoes will be getting home food!!!” Her tweet provoked a bevy of ill responses, and many Greeks called for her dismissal from the Olympic team.
The reaction her tweet garnered is a testament to the power of social media. I’m sure many Olympians have cracked many questionable jokes over the history of the Olympics, but a tool like Twitter shares inappropriate jokes with the world and leads to expulsion. Giving athletes — many of whom really shouldn’t be addressing millions of people — a platform can be a powerful thing. In Papchristou’s case, a powerful platform led to her demise.
To be completely honest, I had a hard time concentrating on this article. It should be about the power of social media and questioning if Papachrisou’s punishment was just…but the women is stunning! I lost at least an hour “researching” photos of Voula Papachristou. She triple-jumped her way into my heart. *snicker*
Coffee Talk #502: Fake Geek Girls and Olivia Munn
From booth babes to cosplayers to television hosts, I’ve noticed this strange backlash towards women that are considered faux geek. Considering that many of us have nerdy hobbies that we’ve been ostracized for, it’s a little bit funny to hear about nerds complaining about women pretending to be nerds or not being nerdy enough. GeekOut’s Joe Peacock wrote a lengthy rant about ” pretty girls pretending to be geeks for attention”. My favorite part, naturally, was his take on our beloved Olivia Munn…
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the release of OS X Mountain Lion, Cole Hamels’ enormous contract, or your favorite beach, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
From booth babes to cosplayers to television hosts, I’ve noticed this strange backlash towards women that are considered faux geek. Considering that many of us have nerdy hobbies that we’ve been ostracized for, it’s a little bit funny to hear about nerds complaining about women pretending to be nerds or not being nerdy enough. GeekOut’s Joe Peacock wrote a lengthy rant about ” pretty girls pretending to be geeks for attention”. My favorite part, naturally, was his take on our beloved Olivia Munn:
The growing presence of these Olivia Munn types in the geek community is creating dialog that isn’t helping anyone.
You have these models-cum-geeks like Olivia Munn and practically every FragDoll. These chicks? Not geeks. I think that their rise is due to the fact that corporations are figuring out that geeks have money, and they want it. But they can’t abide putting a typically geeky face on camera, so they hire models to act quirky and sell this marketable geekdom.
That bit about Olivia aside, Peacock’s post is interesting and passionate. There’s a lot I agree with, but there are some parts of his argument and overall sentiment that I can’t back. I also think he’s being tough on the Frag Dolls. I’ve met several of them and they were all gamer geeks. My old Reset co-host Kat Hunter was a Frag Doll and currently works for Blizzard, which makes her a geek godess. She would be insulted if someone accused her of being a faux geek…and then she’d own them in Halo.
For the most part, I’m not too bothered by women pretending to be nerds just to get attention. People pretend to be things they’re not all the time. Finding, forming, and accepting an identity is a difficult and fluid thing. One case where it does bother me is when the posers make things more difficult for the real deals. I’ve met a lot of female gamers that have felt unaccepted by some of their male counterparts. Fake geeks just make things harder for them. That makes me sad. Can’t we all just play with our lightsabers and get along?!?
NBA Baller Beats Soundtrack Listing
Majesco has revealed the complete soundtrack for the upcoming NBA Baller Beats. The game features a diverse group of artists including Cee Lo Green, Common, LMFAO, Queen, Young MC, Lady Gaga, Run DMC, Onyx, Kanye West, and more. NBA Baller Beats surprised me at E3 2012. I love the idea of a Kinect basketball game that’s controlled with an actual basketball. What I saw during the demo was lots of fun. Check out the video above to learn more about the game and see it in action. Now onto the soundtrack!
NBA Baller Beats full on-disc track list:
- “Access Hollywood” – Consequence
- “Autobiotics” – Calling All Cars
- “Canon” – Justice
- “Championship Fever” – Najee
- “Disparate Youth” – Santigold
- “Don’t Sweat the Technique” – Eric B. and Rakim
- “Get Ur Freak On” – Missy Elliott
- “It’s Ok” – Cee-Lo Green
- “Music Makes Me Feel So Good” – Static Revenger
- “Night By Night” – Chromeo
- “O.N.E.” – Yeasayer
- “Roll Up” – Wiz Khalifa
- “Satellite” – Rise Against
- “So Good” – B.o.B.
- “Surf Hell” – Little Barrie
Previously announced tracks:
- “Amazing” – Kanye West ft. Young Jeezy
- “Another One Bites the Dust” – Queen
- “Bangarang” – Skrillex ft. Sirah
- “Blue Sky” – Common
- “Bust A Move” – Young MC
- “Chillin” – Wale ft. Lady Gaga
- “C’Mon Catch ‘Em By Surprise” – Tiesto vs. Diplo ft. Busta Rhymes
- “It’s Tricky” – Run DMC
- “Let It (Edit Remix)” – Machine Drum ft. Melo X
- “New Fang” – Them Crooked Vultures
- “Obstacle 1” – Interpol
- “Party Rock Anthem” – LMFAO ft. Lauren Bennett and GoonRock
- “Slam” – Onyx
- “Stylo” – Gorillaz
- “Tightrope” – Janelle Monae
Wednesday Housekeeping: Comments and Tweaks
More changes have been implemented into RPad.TV 3.0! More content, including images and videos, shows up on the front page. There’s a nifty menu bar at the top of the screen. The social media bar now floats on the left of the screen instead of under posts (it appears in individual posts only). Please let me know how you feel about these or any of the new features.
The biggest addition from last night was adding Disqus 2012 comments. On paper, your old comments should return some time this evening. However, I’ve never had a positive experience with comment importing/exporting, so I have zero faith that it’ll happen smoothly or as scheduled. Let’s see. On the plus side, Disqus 2012 has lots of cool features. Kindly play around with the commenting system if you have some time today.
Mariah Carey Getting $18-Million to Judge American Idol?
Mariah Carey recently revealed that she’ll be judging American Idol season 12. Rumor has it that she’ll be getting around $18-million for her criticisms and insights (and insane ramblings). According to People:
“Her deal is rumored to be just under $18 million for one year with an option to renew,” a source familiar with the negotiation tells People.
Season 12 should be quite a departure from the previous two, with Jennifer Lopez and Steve Tyler leaving the show. Mainstay Randy Jackson, the only original judge left, is rumored to be on the fence about returning. While I miss Simon Cowell’s acerbic wit and Paula Abdul’s drug-addled nonsense, Jackson was always the show’s glue. I can’t imagine AI without Randy’s overuse of the word “dog”, as well as his abuse of “blowing it out of the box” and “in it to win it!!!”.
What do you think of Mariah Carey joining American Idol? Any suggestions for a judge that would complement her?
Two Funny Batman Videos
Still riding high from The Dark Knight Rises? If so then you’ll dig these two videos that poke fun at Batman. The first one is a gem sent from my pal Cat. It’s a College Humor tale of how Gotham’s hero (as portrayed by Christian Bale) got his silly voice.
Next is a reenactment of the climactic battle between Batman and Bane…with Burt Ward’s Robin thrown in for a laugh. This fine bit of fighting and flippancy was made by Above Average Network.
After you’ve checked out the videos, please share your thoughts on them in the comments section!
MLB Commissioner Bud Selig Against Uniform Advertising
Shortly after the NBA Board of Governors approved advertising patches on player jerseys, MLB commissioner Bud Selig was asked if baseball players would become walking billboards in the near future. Ever the traditionalist, Selig said no. He told ESPN:
You learn never to say never, but you know, with us, uniforms are really important. They’re history. You can close your eyes, and that Cub uniform, my goodness gracious, I can remember (that from) when I was 10 years old, and that’s a long time ago. And there’s the Yankee pinstripes, and the Red Sox and so on and so forth, so I’ve been pretty consistent on that.
I usually disagree with Selig on many things (not increasing the use of instant replay, expanding the playoffs, etc.), but I’m totally with him here. The major American sports leagues — NFL, MLB, and NBA — shouldn’t put advertising on their jerseys. Yes, there are millions of dollars to be had, but it’s not like that money will be used to lower ticket prices or make small-market teams better. This is one area where I’m (unusually) a traditionalist. Props to Selig for saying no on uniform advertising. It would pain me to see a Yankee jersey with a hot dog ad.
What do you think of Bud Selig’s stance on uniform advertising?
Coffee Talk #501: Your Favorite WWE Raw Moment
Last night was the 1,000th episode of WWE Monday Night Raw. WWE has been cranking out the show since January 1993. There have been so many awesome Raw moments over the last 19 years and I’d love to hear about your favorites. Perhaps you dream about the days when Mr. Perfect put on matches that were…well, perfect. Maybe you long for the “Attitude Era” when “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was king. Some of you probably miss those lovely sing-alongs with The Rock. Please share your favorite WWE moments in the comments section!
As for me, two somber shows were my favorites…
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, exploding DLP bulbs, sexy gymnasts, or Ichiro Suzuki going to the New York Yankees, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
Last night was the 1,000th episode of WWE Monday Night Raw. WWE has been cranking out the show since January 1993. There have been so many awesome Raw moments over the last 19 years and I’d love to hear about your favorites. Perhaps you dream about the the days when Mr. Perfect put on matches that were…well, perfect. Maybe you long for the “Attitude Era” when “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was king. Some of you probably miss those lovely sing-alongs with The Rock. Please share your favorite WWE moments in the comments section!
As for me, two somber shows were my favorites. The tributes to Owen Hart and Eddie Guerrero were beautiful. I loved that WWE talent broke character, showed real emotion, and spoke from the heart. The love and admiration the wrestlers had for these two greats…it was just emotional to watch. It made me appreciate all the times they entertained me and appreciate life in general. It was real and raw.
Now it’s your turn! Please share your favorite WWE Monday Night Raw moments.
Coffee Talk #501: Your Favorite WWE Raw Moment
Last night was the 1,000th episode of WWE Monday Night Raw. WWE has been cranking out the show since January 1993. There have been so many awesome Raw moments over the last 19 years and I’d love to hear about your favorites. Perhaps you dream about the days when Mr. Perfect put on matches that were…well, perfect. Maybe you long for the “Attitude Era” when “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was king. Some of you probably miss those lovely sing-alongs with The Rock. Please share your favorite WWE moments in the comments section!
As for me, two somber shows were my favorites…
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, exploding DLP bulbs, sexy gymnasts, or Ichiro Suzuki going to the New York Yankees, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
Last night was the 1,000th episode of WWE Monday Night Raw. WWE has been cranking out the show since January 1993. There have been so many awesome Raw moments over the last 19 years and I’d love to hear about your favorites. Perhaps you dream about the the days when Mr. Perfect put on matches that were…well, perfect. Maybe you long for the “Attitude Era” when “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was king. Some of you probably miss those lovely sing-alongs with The Rock. Please share your favorite WWE moments in the comments section!
As for me, two somber shows were my favorites. The tributes to Owen Hart and Eddie Guerrero were beautiful. I loved that WWE talent broke character, showed real emotion, and spoke from the heart. The love and admiration the wrestlers had for these two greats…it was just emotional to watch. It made me appreciate all the times they entertained me and appreciate life in general. It was real and raw.
Now it’s your turn! Please share your favorite WWE Monday Night Raw moments.