Jay-Z’s mother gives a touching speech at GLAAD awards

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On Jay-Z’s latest album, 4:44, the rapper discussed his mother’s sexuality for the first time, describing how she came out to him and the family late in life. The track is called “Smile,” and it features a moving poem from Ms. Gloria Carter on living a life in the shadows for too long. 

During the 29th GLAAD media awards this weekend, Carter stepped out of those very shadows to accept the Special Recognition Award for her role in the creation of “Smile,” and gave a touching acceptance speech and her first public remarks on her son’s song. 

SEE ALSO: Beyoncé brings Jay-Z and a Destiny’s Child reunion to ‘Beychella’ Read more…

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Google implementing new election ads rules as midterms approach

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As the fallout from the 2016 election continues and we learn more about how foreign agents (*cough*RUSSIA*cough) interfered in that election by exploiting weakness online, Google is the latest tech giant to announce new transparency measures ahead of the 2018 midterm elections.

SEE ALSO: Facebook isn’t the only one with too much of your data. Just ask Google and Amazon.

On Friday, senior vice president Kent Walker published a blog post that outlined Google’s new efforts, including verification of political ad buyers and transparency reports. According to Walker, for those wishing to publish political ads, Google will “require that advertisers confirm they are a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, as required by law.” Read more…

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‘Avengers: Infinity War’ is officially a billion-dollar movie

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Avengers: Infinity War hit yet another box office milestone this weekend.

On Saturday, the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe adventure crossed the billion-dollar mark at the worldwide box office. It took just 11 days to reach that point, faster than any other film to date.

SEE ALSO: Who’s who in ‘Avengers: Infinity War’

It’s Marvel’s sixth billion-dollar movie and Disney’s seventeenth — meaning the studio’s releases now officially account for half of the 34 movies to ever hit $1 billion at the box office. The weekend also makes Infinity War ($1.16 billion) the #5 super-hero movie of all time at the global box office, behind four other MCU releases. Read more…

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Behold, the newest photos of the Royal Baby

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It’s been a few weeks since the latest royal baby, Prince Louis Arthur Charles, was born into this world and now the royals have shared the first official photos of the young lad since he was presented, on his birthday, to the UK press like Simba. 

SEE ALSO: Prince William is living that new dad life as he fights off sleep during royal function

On Saturday evening, Kensington Palace released two new photos of Prince Louis via Twitter: one, taken on April 26, of the new prince just chilling, and the other, taken on May 2, with his sister Charlotte.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are very pleased to share two photographs of Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

The Duchess took this photograph of Prince Louis on 26 Aprilpic.twitter.com/re1Cd4aDRk

— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) May 5, 2018 Read more…

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Michelle Obama is tired of seeing men ‘fail up’

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When Michelle Obama walked onto the stage of Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium Saturday evening, the crowd let loose screams of joy usually reserved for rock stars. 

Audience members, who’d spent the day talking about gender equality as part of the United State of Women summit, listened raptly for 40 minutes as Obama, in conversation with Black-ish actress Tracee Ellis Ross, shared what amounted to life lessons you’d expect from one of the most beloved first ladies in recent history. And when the discussion turned political, Obama got very real. 

SEE ALSO: Michelle Obama shared the perfect parenting metaphor for Trump’s White House Read more…

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Ava DuVernay invites male directors ‘feeling discriminated against’ to go ahead and sue her

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Ava DuVernay is going to hire women, whether male directors like it or not. And if they don’t? Well, they can go ahead and sue her.

While accepting the Woman of Vision award during Thursday’s Gloria Awards, the Wrinkle in Time director told the audience that she’d once received a call from a male director during which he told her “there [had] been some complaints” about her favoring female directors for her show, Queen Sugar. Her own damn show!

SEE ALSO: Ryan Coogler wrote a lovely letter to ‘A Wrinkle in Time’ director Ava DuVernay

But that classic male audacity didn’t phase DuVernay. “Thank you, friend, thank you for that call,” she said, per Vanity Fair. “I invite you to tell whoever is feeling discriminated against to sue me so that I can sue every studio that has left women out. Because we can do this, if that’s what you want to do.” Read more…

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Thank you, Ariana Grande for reminding me that Jupiter is beautiful

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It’s Saturday – have any big plans? No? 

Great. Join us in looking at photos of the planets with professional pop star and amateur astronomer Ariana Grande. 

SEE ALSO: Ariana Grande references Manchester in uplifting ‘No Tears Left To Cry’ video

The artist fired off a few planetary appreciation tweets on Saturday morning, expressing first her admiration for Jupiter. 

“[N]othing is prettier than Jupiter,” she wrote. True, I guess!

pic.twitter.com/bQ5bs7K6vV

— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) May 5, 2018

nothing is prettier than Jupiter

— Ariana Grande (@ArianaGrande) May 5, 2018

One hour and 25 minutes later, she had a change of heart: “update: Neptune is better”. Read more…

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‘Star Wars’ animated short riffs on a ‘Force Awakens’ deleted scene

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Disney released seven new episodes from its Star Wars: Forces of Destiny series on May 4, the unofficial, annual Star Wars holiday. (May the fourth be with you. Get it?!) One episode in particular stands out for its connection to another recent Star Wars release.

The episode “Perilous Pursuits” retells a chase sequence that we first saw in the collection of deleted scenes included in Star Wars: The Force Awakens home releases. Set on the surface of Starkiller Base, the scene sees Rey and Finn escaping from First Order forces on a stolen snowspeeder.

The Forces of Destiny short doesn’t re-tell the deleted scene so much as it expands on the idea. In the film moment, Rey and Finn switch places — she drives, he shoots — and he uses his sharpshooting skills to blast a turret gunner on a pursuing vehicle.  Read more…

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That viral pickle ice cream isn’t as weird as you think

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The latest viral food dividing our nation? Pickle soft serve, which is available at Lucky Pickle Dumpling Co. in New York City.

The cold, hard truth behind pickle soft serve, though, is that it’s more of a cucumber ice cream than anything else. Per Refinery29’s profile of the dish, the primary ingredient is actually fresh-pressed, un-pickled cucumber. 

The dish’s architects did add a hint of tanginess, though, which makes the ice cream taste like a “half-sour” pickle, or a pickle that hasn’t been brining for very long.

SEE ALSO: Look, adults can drink milk and it’s totally, totally fine

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Deeply committed Big Mac fan eats his 30,000th burger

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Don Gorske of Wisconsin is known for one thing only: his love of and devotion to the McDonald’s Big Mac. On Friday, he reaffirmed that love when he chowed down on his 30,000th order.

Per Wisconsin’s Fond du Lac Reporter, Gorske – who holds the Guinness World Record for Most Big Macs Consumed – ate his landmark burger at the same McDonald’s franchise where he first tried the menu item back in the early 1970s.

SEE ALSO: Salads are better without the leaves

“This one is a biggie for me, something I have been looking forward to,” he told the FDR Reporter.

Big Macs have long been Gorske’s thing – he’s big enough to have a Wikipedia page detailing his history with the fast-food staple.  Read more…

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