Here at Flavorwire, we pride ourselves on not only writing some of the best content on the Internet, but keeping an eye on all of the great writing that other folks on the ‘Net are doing, too. Today, there is, appropriately, a whole lot of Oscar talk, as well as some new developments on Making a Murderer and the Planned Parenthood media scandal.
Buzzfeed’s Dan Vergaro reports on Planned Parenthood’s recent lawsuit against the folks behind those “undercover” videos that claimed to expose the group’s illegal fetal tissue sales and illegal abortions:
Back in July, the anti-abortion organization Center for Medical Progress released an edited video which alleged that Planned Parenthood was illegally selling fetal tissues and performing illegal abortions. Now, Planned Parenthood has countered back by filing a racketeering lawsuit against the organization, referring to them as “anti-abortion extremists.”
“Racketeering lawsuits typically ask for triple damages, and the lawsuit asks for payments for Planned Parenthood’s increased security costs and penalties for violation of confidentiality agreements. Three people died in a shooting at a Colorado clinic in November, and Planned Parenthood cited death threats as a result of the videos.”
The Hollywood Reporter’s Stephen Galloway explains why the Academy’s diversity initiatives may take a few years to actually make a change:
After another white-washed Oscar nomination list (Michael B. Jordan was robbed!) was unveiled this morning, it was easy to question how the Academy could possibly be getting “more diverse.” Galloway suggests all that is needed is time for the new members to completely replace the old ones.
“Some insiders argue that the apparent diversity isn’t as widespread as it seems, and that the bulk of new members are entrenched in the Hollywood establishment. They’re right — this is still a relatively small contingent. Diversity is starting to happen, but it’s slow and its effects may not be felt fully for several years to come, or until the industry itself is more diverse.”
The Daily Beast’s Jen Yamato reports on Nancy Grace’s game-changing interview with Steven Avery’s ex-wife, Jodi Stachowski:
Since first appearing on Netflix almost a month ago, Making a Murderer has changed the way that we think about the criminal justice system as a whole. But how does the show’s ethos change when Steven Avery’s most vocal supporter, his ex-wife, admits that she has been lying? Stachowski reveals that she was abused by her ex-husband and that Avery is a “monster” guilty of murder.
“‘It was all an act,’ said Stachowski, who hasn’t seen Making a Murderer. She now claims that she pretended to be supportive of Avery because she was afraid he would hurt her otherwise. ‘He told me how to act. He said smile, be happy. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to get hurt.'”
Pitchfork’s Jeremy Gordon spoke with ANOHNI (f.k.a Antony) about her surprise Oscar nomination for Best Original Song:
The singer revealed that she had no idea that the nomination was coming and talked more about her connection to the song and its accompanying film (2015’s Racing Extinction).
“The songwriter Josh Ralph asked me to write a track that he did for a film by the people that made The Cove, and I was a fan of the film The Cove. […] He showed me some footage from the film, and I thought it was quite provocative—about how manta rays have been, in the last two years, hunted for the Chinese traditional medicine market, for their gills. It was kind of a provocative section of the film that he showed me, and then I just responded with the lyrics and the melody.”