Gawker
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crime
Did Julia Allison Break the Law in Search of Facebook Fame?
Former dating columnist Julia Allison, an Internet microcelebrity now famous for not being particularly famous, has finally gone too far in her attempt to acquire Facebook fans. She may even have broken the law.
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By Owen ThomasComment by resipsaloquacious: Ptr Nrth, jst ff cmr, nd h s bt t "nnnt" ths clssy lds n hs wn spcl wy. 8 Responses | Other threads
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endorsements
Esquire: GM should hire Apple CEO Steve Jobs, assuming he doesn't die and stuff.
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endorsements
Child-Enslaving Murderer Prefers Our Brand—Shouldn't You?
The man you see hiding behind the blue binder is Josef Fritzl, the sick Austrian who plead guilty to enslaving his daughter for 24 years in his own rape dungeon. But what about the binder company??? More »
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Comment by saythatscool: I thought he would have preferred a Trapper Keeper. 10 Responses | Other threads
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public relations
Michael Phelps Assures China: Mazda is Better than Weed
Ha: Mazda, the corporate owner of merman Michael Phelps, made Phelps apologize to the entire nation of China for inhaling THC-laden smoke, from a bong. Just imagine the devastating effects that had, on China. More »
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Comment by Kid Twist: Wait a minute. Didn't they just find, like, 3,000-year-old weed in China? Maybe the Chinese should be apologizing to Michael. 4 Responses | Other threads
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surly adopter
Even the Taliban Now Loves the iPhone
We doubt Apple will sign this guy up for an endorsement deal, but Mullah Zaif, a former Taliban official, raved about his iPhone to Al Jazeera correspondent Hamish McDonald during a visit in Kabul. More » -
branding
No, You Can't Commercialize Obama
President Change's message of fresh hope sounds like just about every new-and-improved TV commercial. No surprise, marketers are jumping on the Barack bandwagon. But now the feds have cracked down on Obama-branded schwag. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by mentir: Why the Department of Homeland Security? 2 Responses | Other threads
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youtube
Real Hip Hop Head Perched in Front of 'South Park' Poster Calls Out 50 Cent
This Canadian tween totally calls out 50 Cent for "whoring" himself with all his endorsement deals, and not keeping it real. His action figures and 'stache say: listen up, Fif. More » -
endorsements
Top Five Kellogg's Recipes For Stoners
As Seth Meyers pointed out on Saturday Night Live last night, Kellogg Company's image is closer to that of bong-smoking Olympian Michael Phelps than the cereal maker likes to admit. More »
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By Ryan TateComment by Private Hangnail: I think looking at those foods has just give me diabetes. 2 Responses | Other threads
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flackery
Kellogg, Subway Doing Backstroke Over Michael Phelps Bong Scandal
After the media assault comes the inevitable counterspin: Kellogg flacks are saying it did not drop benighted Olympian merman Michael Phelps over a photo of his lips pressed to a bong. Even though it did. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Private Hangnail: Dudeflesh? I guess I have a new shameful favorite website. 4 Responses | Other threads
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endorsements
Subway Distancing Themselves from Michael Phelps, Too (Fools)
Kellogg dumped merman Michael Phelps after finding out he smokes weed, even though everyone knows Frosted Flakes are so good, toasted. Now it looks like Subway—also great toasted!—is making the same mistake. [Update: Subway statement.]
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Comment by Smitros: Twinkies and 7-11 need to talk to Phelps' agent STAT. Dude knows about munchies. 17 Responses | Other threads
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endorsements
Michael Phelps Bong Pic to Sink Kellogg Deal
Kellogg, in the most boneheaded move in the entire history of all celebrity endorsements ever, is dumping Michael Phelps over his pot photo. Has any brand ever been more out of touch with its customers? More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by COOKEDinLA: When I read Michael Phelps apology for being caught on camera smoking a bong, I felt a bit wonky myself.... 6 Responses | Other threads
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recessionomics
Economy's Innocent Victim: Celebrity Vanity Fashion Lines
Every celebrity believes that if they unleash their genius unto the world in the form of a fashion line or fragrance, their many fans will make it a natural hit. They're so wrong. More »
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Comment by TheHonJudgeSmails: Have you ever been bitten by a horse? Not a pleasant experience. 26 Responses | Other threads
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marketing
Michael Phelps Must Embrace His Inner Rock Star, However Imperfectly
Oh no, Michael Phelps and the demon weed marijuana! He's going to lose all his endorsements and his motivation, besides! Relax, people. This can all work out to the advantage of his nerd-ass reputation.
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Comment by MisterHippity: Well, if all of Michael Phelps' other deals fall through, he can always endorse this product: 10 Responses | Other threads
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michael phelps
Michael Phelps Will Endorse Anything That Tastes Sweet
Hey Michael Phelps, America is transfixed by your endorsement deals for some reason! The golden fishboy should, by all rights, have fallen out of the spotlight by now. It's been what, like, four months since he won any Olympic medals? Old news. But by god people just love this goofy ass-grasper, so we and the rest of the media will continue to tell you exactly what he is formally recommending for public consumption. Today, the story of how one tiny company swindled the unsophisticated manchild into ongoing indentured servitude:
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Comment by Truculent: He's gotta make money somewhere. Wheaties only pays 10-grand for your face on the box 2 Responses | Other threads
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michael phelps
Cheerio Outrage
60 Minutes caught golden Mer-man Michael Phelps with a box of General Mills' Honey Nut Cheerios—even though Phelps endorses rival Kellogg's! In his defense: that little bee is quite charismatic. [Ad Age]
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Comment by scroll_lock: The Honey Nut bee's got nothing on the worldy, cosmopolitan Nasonex bee. 9 Responses | Other threads
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gm
GM Fires Tiger Woods, Pencil Suppliers
Floundering maker of autos GM got slammed for flying its executives to Washington on private jets to beg for a government bailout. They were denied, so now they've decided to cut back on every last unnecessary expense. And today, the company announced that it's going to end its $8 million per year endorsement contract with Tiger Woods. Though GM swears that, hey, this has nothing to do with their desperate quest for a bailout—"the timing...is purely coincidental." (Bullshit, judging purely on outward appearance). Where else is the company cutting costs? Everywhere, starting with the paper towels!: More »
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Comment by American Dreamer, Again, Some More: They should let the entire U.S. auto industry go bankrupty and then create tax incentives for much better run foreign... 4 Responses | Other threads
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michael phelps
Michael Phelps, Jared From Subway Form Goofy Coalition
After he won 84 Olympic gold medals in Beijing and celebrated with a firm grip, Michael Phelps got a little screwy with his endorsement deals. He endorsed McDonald's, which made him seem insensitive to fat Americans who don't spend hours doing swimming drills every day, and he endorsed Frosted Flakes, which, you know, ditto. Some of his other endorsement choices came dangerously close to painting him as a nerd. But he's signed on with Subway now—a healthy choice! Screw McDonald's! But this causes as many problems as it solves for Fish Boy: More »
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Comment by Kid Twist: They'll be lining up to try Michael's foot-long, if you know what I mean. And you do. 11 Responses | Other threads
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video games
Jocks Cede Role Model Status To Nerds
Remember in the olden days when pro athletes and Olympians would grace our soft drink ads, urging us to guzzle the nutritionally barren sugar water in order to be a champion like them, cognitive dissonance be damned? Yea, if you listen to athletes now, you are old and laughable. The new (and far more appropriate!) face of Dr. Pepper is a 21-year-old kid who makes a quarter of a million bucks playing video games. Why I never! Lazy kids nowadays! There is simply no way not to sound like some parody of Dave Barry making "these kids!" jokes while writing about this development. But what you need to know is that if you have skills with a Wii controller, you better watch out for the geek paparazzi: More »
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Comment by Phyllis Nefler: Curses! Embedding disabled! WTF? Okay, so how about this instead: THE POWER CLAW. + Watch video 5 Responses | Other threads
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john mccain
Depressed Journal Can't Bring Itself To Endorse McCain
Neocons the nation over got a little thrill up their legs this spring, when News Corporation overlord Rupert Murdoch said he might uncage the editorial-page pitbulls at his Wall Street Journal to issue presidential endorsements for the first time since Herbert Hoover was president (!). Sure, newspaper endorsements are useless in presidential races, but the Journal's frenzied rantings would have been kind of fun to read, assuming they did not give you rabies. But when the Journal issued its big McCain editorial this weekend, it was just all, "Meh, he's OK." More »
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By Ryan TateComment by American Dreamer: Good morning from Espoo my American friends! It is a bright morning here but to be even more bright morning... 11 Responses | Other threads
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michael phelps
Michael Phelps And The Nerdy Endorsement Trap
Dolphin-like Olympic champ Michael Phelps is like that dude in the poem who has come to two roads that diverge in the woods. Except Michael Phelps has far more money at stake than that guy. Now that Phelps has won the races and gripped the strippers, his full-time job is endorsing products in return for sweet cash, the nectar of life. Even his mom is in on it! But Phelps is already screwing up. Now is when you determine whether you're the next Tiger Woods or the next [obscure swimmer], Mike. We're here to help, for a small cut.
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Comment by JessicaLovejoy: Laughing, riding, cornholing!: Any idea how much it'd cost per minute to keep him silently standing in this? I'll pass the hat around. 7 Responses | Other threads
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wall street journal
WSJ To Endorse Obama? (Or: Matt Drudge Drunk?)
The Wall Street Journal does not, historically, endorse presidential candidates. But the newspaper has a new owner since the last election, Rupert Murdoch, who said he was considering changing that policy. It's hard to imagine the rabid right-wingers of the Journal editorial page jumping in the tank for Democratic nominee Barack Obama. But if the WSJ were to be planning an Obama endorsement, it would seem natural for conservative blogger Matt Drudge to get ahold of the news first, as he seemed to be implying in one of tonight's headlines, pictured at left. (The graphic reads "Presidential Material/Barack Obama.") More »
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By Ryan TateComment by bjonston: Wow. So, either Matt Drudge is getting sloppy with the facts or he is totally in the tank for... 12 Responses | Other threads
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election
Scott McClellan Endorses Obama
The White House press secretary hinted he would do it in May, and now Scott McClellan has finally pulled the trigger, telling CNN's D.L. Hughley "I will be voting for Barack Obama... I am going to support the candidate that has the best chance for changing the way Washington works and getting things done." This scenario looks familiar, and may presage more last-minute Obama endorsements to come. More »
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By Ryan TateComment by eatsshootsleaves: On the other hand, if Rush Limbaugh freaks the fuck out about this, all will be forgiven with this guy. 10 Responses | Other threads
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barack obama
Barack Obama President Of Newspaper Endorsements
Good news, Barack Obama supporters: Your Democratic presidential nominee is winning the campaign for newspaper endorsements in a landslide, with 112 newspapers to rival John McCain's 39! By circulation it's 13 million to 4 million. Sadly, however, those endorsements are almost definitely useless. More »
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By Ryan TateComment by MisterHippity: Remember, all of these newspapers are based in cities, and a majority of their readership live in cities too. Urban... 9 Responses | Other threads
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endorsements
Addendum: acid-damaged violent PBR enthusiast Dennis Hopper joins Christopher Hitchens in supporting Barack Obama! [Wonkette]
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endorsements
Hitch Joins All-Star Roster of Anti-McCain "Smart" Republicans
Noted Bush-supporting former Trotskyite Christopher Hitchens has endorsed Democrat Barack Obama for president! In Slate today, the beloved British alcoholic raves about how Obama isn't a sad old man, like McCain, or an offensive joke, like Sarah Palin. Hitch, like a Nader voter, declares that there are no substantial differences between the candidates, but McCain's temperament is too unstable, and Obama's is much more reassuring. This is basically the argument of a number of noted conservative intellectuals who have, in recent weeks, either endorsed Obama, resigned themselves to an Obama presidency, or simply unendorsed McCain. As the intellectual conservatives abandoned Bush, now they find themselves abandoning the GOP.
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By PareeneComment by gawkimo: No substantial differences? Let's see: McCain wants to give me $2,500 to pay for $5,000 worth of annual health coverage with a... 13 Responses | Other threads
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rupert murdoch
Fickle Rupert Murdoch Gets Cozy With Palin
Rupert Murdoch seems to have transferred his politician crush from Barack Obama to Sarah Palin. His tentative support for Palin (and her obscure running mate) on the financial meltdown tonight evolved into a "quite chummy" run-in at a charity gala for the Manhattan media elites Palin claims not to care about. Murdoch gave Palin a pat on the back and said "thank you very much" as Palin left the gala, while Palin wore the "radiant smile" of not caring, according to a media pool report summarized by Politico. And to think that just four months ago Murdoch called Obama a "rock star." What happened? More »
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By Ryan TateComment by blix: That pose makes him look like he should be on a ventriliquist's lap. 1 Responses | Other threads
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campaigns
Sarah Palin Scares Ed Koch
Ed Koch, lovable weird old probably gay former New York mayor, is a Democrat, yes, and wrote a book about how much he hated Rudy Giuliani, but lately he's been talking a lot about how great the Bush administration is (when he is not reviewing movies), so most people assumed he'd endorse ol' John McCain for president this year. But then something funny happened! McCain selected this woman named Sarah Palin to be his Vice President. So today, Koch endorsed Barack Obama! What's up with that? More »
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By PareeneComment by Triborough: But Ed Koch is scary in his own way. Or maybe it is childhood memories of the city going to... 23 Responses | Other threads
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fashion
Michael Phelps' Mom Has Her Own Frumpy Endorsement Deal
Is America ready for fashion endorsements from regular people? To clarify, "regular" means "A person who is famous in some way, but not pretty." It's a heartwarming concept, but the answer is "no." Americans will never relinquish our devotion to models (though we have been known to tolerate slightly less anorexic models). But! What if said "regular person" is the woman who spawned superhuman American fish hero Michael Phelps? Still no: More »
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Comment by brookster: Are we seriously knocking a "normal-looking" woman for getting an advertising deal? Shouldn't we be celebrating this (admittedly very... 14 Responses | Other threads
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michael phelps
Heroic Phelps Inspires World To Gorge On McDonalds
Are you sick of hearing by now how Michael Phelps eats 12,000 calories a day to fuel his superhuman championship swimming for the gold? Too bad dude! Because what has not been adequately discussed by the media is how awesomely all-American Michael Phelps' calories are. He eats McDonalds! And you can follow his championship diet, too! Allow one of our nation's most prominent journalists to tell you all about it: More »
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Comment by SeeingI: It will be intriguing to see him get super-obese as he stops exercising but keeps up the eating out of... more » | Other threads
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michael phelps
Michael Phelps, The $100 Million Man
The glow from Olympic victory is notoriously short-lived. Prudent, then, that champion swimmer Michael Phelps is moving quickly to convert his Olympic buzz into sweet endorsement cash. Over the next week, Phelps will promote his existing sponsors. Then he's off to London and, several days later, New York, reports the Wall Street Journal. The athlete is estimated worth upwards of $40 million to Nike alone, assuming he switches to their swimwear from Speedo, and his agent estimates he can take in $100 million over the course of his lifetime. That aggressive number still values each of Phelps' 14 gold medals (eight this Olympiad alone) well below the going rate for top celebrity babies. And reaching the payday has been infinitely harder for Phelps, not to mention more tricky. Look at all the sometimes wacky and ill-considered endorsement possibilities he'll have to carefully navigate, lest he tarnish his brand: More »
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By Ryan TateComment by ErikAndres81: Michael Phelps will be swimming to the UK then back to the US from China. Amazing! more » | Other threads
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perez hilton
Brand Perez
The Perez Hilton brand is becoming an empire! Well, sort of. The off-putting celebrity blogger has been stamping his name on shitty clothing, he might be getting his own record label, and now he's had a damn musical written about him. Is he really becoming an unstoppable juggernaut corporation, or is it just hooey? We'll take a closer look at the corpulent stain-artist's side projects after the jump. More »
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Comment by el smrtmnky: even World of Wonder, who are down the street from HiHo, reported it as dead in the water. guess they... more » | Other threads
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marketing
Magical Oprah Endorsement Secrets Revealed
Oprah is the most important person in the world, singlehandedly driving American book-buying and butt cream choices. Ad Age has a monster article today about "How to Get Your Brand on 'Oprah,'" which is the most important task facing American marketers everywhere at any given time. And after thousands of words, the magazine nails the secret to landing your widget in this "pinnacle of product publicity": get Oprah to like you, or something! More »
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Comment by fileunder: Oprah likes it if your Berkus is Greene, but hates it if your Angelou's in Oz. more » | Other threads
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the way things work
Hollywood's New China Rule
Sharon Stone has finally apologized for her "inappropriate" comment that the recent massive Chinese earthquake was a product of "bad karma" for the country for its treatment on Tibet. She's sorry, okay! Nevertheless, fashion house Christian Dior announced that it's pulling all of its ads featuring the actress from all department stores, and the entire country of China. Though the comment itself was stupid, Stone's hasty retreat from her brash Tibet-championing—and Dior's even harsher public rebuke of her—are a great illustration of what is becoming the New China Rule: "Do Not Talk About The New China Rule." It's been de rigeur for top stars to prove their class by endorsing luxury brands, and to prove their morality by pontificating about Tibet. But guess what: pretty soon you're going to have to pick one or the other, Hollywood. And it's not looking good for the Dalai Lama.
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endorsements
Songsmith Has "Reason to Believe" In Obama!
Bruce Springsteen endorsed Barack Obama, leading to terrible headlines across this great nation and plenty knee-jerk hipster Boss-hate. Whatevs, guys, Tunnel of Love is a desert island disc. The political question: does it matter? Does Bruce still have blue-collar cred? He's wasted a bit less of it than some celebs have by not blogging on HuffPo or whining about dead polar bears, but he also appeared with John Kerry back in 2004 and we all know how that turned out. Anyway, biggest endorsement since Oprah! But endorsements still don't really matter! Bruce says Barack "speaks to the America I've envisioned in my music for the past 35 years," which is a reference to white people made bitter after their jobs disappear and clinging to god and guns. Those are pretty much the people Bruce sings about when not singing about his wives. After the jump, a collection of utterly terrible Springsteen lyric jokes we removed from this post. More »
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By PareeneComment by a boy and his dog: @Mediahohoho: As in "Just ignore him and he'll go away?" I suppose my real complaint is with new york public radio,... more » | Other threads
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marketing
Your President And Fashion Leader
It's bad enough that we have to be subjected to the ordeal of companies using our dead heroes to endorse their brands. Now, the real marketing coup is securing an actual (live) world leader to wear your luxury shit for free. French president Nikolas Sarkozy has a Rolex and aviator shades. Puppet Russian president Dmitry Medvedev flaunted his collection of Franck Muller watches in a magazine spread. Socialista Venezuelan populist Hugo Chavez likes designer clothes and jewelry. Even George-freaking-Dubya goes to a special Texas cobbler for his precious "cowboy" boots [Guardian via Agenda Inc.]. Christ, next thing you know world leaders will be turning into luxury pitchmen to finance their cushy retirements! Oh yea, that already happened. More »
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Comment by French Press: Sarkozy has the best endorsement deal -- he gets to wear a designer model on his cock. more » | Other threads
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endorsements
Tina Fey Endorses "Bitch" Clinton
Tina Fey hosted the first post-strike SNL this weekend. We didn't watch, obv, but we shall risk incurring the wrath of Alex Balk by mentioning Fey's uncharacteristically sincere endorsement of Hillary Clinton, one of the very few convincing ones to be found in the national media of late (we just caught it online, the way everyone else will). Fey, SNL's first female head writer, may convince a few of those Barack-loving youngs to support America's potential first female president. (SNL's first black head writer could not be reached for comment, because that'll be the day.) Clip after the jump! More »
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By PareeneComment by GodotShowsUp: Thank God. I love the Daily Show but Jon Stewart's licking Obama's shoes every chance he got was getting... more » | Other threads
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defamer
Nothing Gets Between Matthew McConaughey And His Shirtlessness Except Dolce & Gabbana Cologne
When you think about it, there was really nowhere else for Matthew McConaughey to go with his career besides fragrance pitchman. Having already drained Hollywood of every last romcom spec requiring frequent toplessness of its male lead, the Texan matinee idol is now veering into entirely new multi-million-dollar payout realms to further explore his torso-exposing art. More » -
endorsements
Jeter Bringing Poor Performance To A Sports Club Near You
Yankees shortstop and and King of New York Derek Jeter is lending his image to 24 Hour Fitness, which plans to open three Jeter-themed gyms in the city. He'll be helping to design everything down to the tile! The timing of the announcement is impeccable, since just yesterday Jeter was revealed to be the worst fielding shortstop in baseball by a scientific study from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania. Learn to boot ground balls and miss line drives because of your poor range, only at 24 Hour Fitness! The Post, however, found a clever rebuke for those pointy-headed scientists: "'I don't know what they're smoking down at Penn,' said Yankees fan Mike." Check and mate! [NYP] -
endorsements
Obama Gets the Only Endorsement That Really Counts
Though Sen. Hillary Clinton won the Florida primary, Barack Obama is still riding high after receiving perhaps the most endorsement of this campaign season. No, it's not the Kennedy imprimatur. It's the endorsement of street art dude Shepard Fairey, the guy who did those Andre the Giant Obey stencils. Recently, Fairey released a "limited edition" Barack Obama poster in which the starry eyed tricolor Senator is gazing into the distance whilst the word Progress is written across his chest and he appears to wear a lapel that is a mashup of the always mutable Obama logo and Andre the Giant. In the spirit of fairness, we've done a similar poster for Hillary Clinton which you can see and download after the jump.
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By Joshua SteinComment by Brian Sherwin: Shepard Fairey was introduced to the Obama campaign by Yosi Sergant. Sergant was working with Evolutionary Media Group as media... more » | Other threads
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the blowhard primary
Much-Anticipated Graydon Carter Endorsement Announced
The New Republic polled the people who really matter for their endorsements in the ongoing primary battle. Yes, finally, we shall get to hear the thoughts of two noted media recluses: famous lawyer Alan Dershowitz and Vanity Fair editor/Canadian Graydon Carter! Dershowitz endorses Hillary Clinton, because Barack Obama is a Muslim. Graydon Carter endorses Barack Obama because Hillary Clinton is not sufficiently yar. [The Star]
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By PareeneComment by ireadvanityfair: Does my old chap Graydon really host fund-raising parties with Jann Wenner? Say it ain't so! more » | Other threads
endorsements
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Transformers blows up this weekend. Need to know more? io9 gets down and dirty with the superbots.
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Gizmodo's just reviewed two great smartphones, the Palm Pre and the iPhone 3GS. Here's a guide to help you decide which is better for you.
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