Outside the Beltway

In what seems like an obvious response to the rise of the #MeToo movement and the cultural changes it has brought about, the Miss America pageant is making a major change.

It may be my favorite Star Wars film since ‘Empire Strikes Back.’

Hours after she unleashed a racist Twitter tirade, Roseanne Barr has had her show canceled by ABC. Of course, ABC knew who it was doing business with well before today.

Former Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has been charged with rape and sexual assault in a New York Court.

Jack Johnson, who was convicted of violating the Mann Act in a case obviously infected with racism, has been pardoned by President Trump.

Does learning that entertainers are bad people retroactively ruin their art?

President Trump’s response to the N.F.L.’s new National Anthem policy is as narrow-minded and divisive as you’d expected it to be.

The N.F.L. has come up with a dumb “solution” to a non-existent problem.

Michael Cohen once threatened The Onion because it published a satirical article about Donald Trump.

New York attorney Aaron Schlossberg found himself on the receiving end of an Internet firestorm this week. His case raises some interesting questions about Internet vigilantism.

Rest in Peace, Lois Lane.

The number of Americans professing no religious affiliation is on the rise. This will have some interesting cultural and political implications.

As has often been the case, the White House Correspondent’s Dinner is arousing some degree of controversy, mostly because of the comedy or lack thereof.

The tragedy of Bill Cosby lies not in the downfall of a man once known as “America’s Dad,” but in the fact that a man who was, in fact, a sexual predator was allowed to evade justice for far too long.

Marking the end of a long fall from grace, the man once known as “America’s Dad” has been found guilty on three counts of sexual assault.

The Donald Trump presidency has some eerie parallels with his run on “The Apprentice.”

Get a will, people.

The star of “Night Court” and “Dave’s World” is gone.

The Director of ‘One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest’ and ‘Amadeus,’ both of which won the Academy Award for Best Picture, has died at the age of 86.

The Marvel superhero film passed ‘Titanic’ in US ticket sales. Unless we adjust for inflation. Which we absolutely should.

Bill Cosby heads back to court for a retrial on the sexual assault allegations against him but it’s not going to be the same as the first.

The JK Rowling-owned fan site is having trouble competing with fan-owned sites.

Stephen Hawking possessed one of the greatest minds in history, but he will likely be most remembered for not letting a debilitating disease stop him from contributing to our understanding of the universe.

Netflix no longer offers President Frank Underwood. They’re lining up a replacement.

The actor best known for his run on M*A*S*H died Saturday after a battle with colon cancer.

“All In The Family” predicted a policy proposal that President Trump and many other conservatives have made in the wake of the Florida school shooting.

The funk legend advocates a melting pot approach in a wide-ranging interview with Rolling Stone.

Here’s one vote for ending this annoying practice.

Some thoughts on the biggest Marvel blockbuster yet. [Modest spoilers]

The new Black Panther movie raises a variant of the central question of the superhero genre. [No significant spoilers]

Bret Stephens thinks so.

Dodge is facing controversy this morning for using the words of Martin Luther King Jr. in a Super Bowl commercial, but they’re not the only party who may have some questions to answer.

The lead story on Yahoo News at the moment, courtesy People magazine (“Robert Wagner Now Considered a ‘Person of Interest’ in Wife Natalie Wood’s Mysterious Death”):

Todd Rogers has been stripped of his world record for the Atari 2600 racing game Dragster.

A government panel has mandated a 50% increase in the revenue share streaming services pay songwriters and music publishers.

Last October, legendary rocker Tom Petty died of a heart attack, at the relatively young age of 66. The medical examiner has now attributed this to an accidental overdose of prescription drugs.

Russia has been barred from participating in the 2018 Winter Olympics after an investigation uncovered extensive evidence of cheating.

Jim Nabors, who became famous as Gomer Pyle on The Andy Griffith Show and Gomer Pyle USMC, has died at the age of  87.

The latest domino to fall in the ongoing wave of sexual harassment and abuse revelations is Matt Lauer.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A huge loss for the world of Rock & Roll.

He had more than three dozen Top 40 pop hits through the 1950s and early ’60s, among them ”Blueberry Hill,” ”Ain’t It a Shame,” “I’m Walkin’,” “Blue Monday” and “Walkin’ to New Orleans.”

The band leader of the Heartbreakers and the Traveling Wilburys is gone.

Hugh Hefner, who became both a cultural icon and a catalyst and reflector of vast social changes, has died at the age of 91.

A loss for the world of comedy.