The Daily Sting, Monday: Taylor Swift (Finally) Gets Political, WTF Is Happening in Brazil?
So much happened over the weekend, but how do you uncover the few must-read stories from the hundreds of headlines you missed? That’s where we come in, with a handy guide to the stories you need to know, starting with Taylor Swift breaking her silence on which way she leans politically.
A certain CNN contributor has found herself in hot water due to some gross, homophobic tweets. Things aren’t looking good for the planet according to climate change scientists. And WTF is happening in Brazil, where a far-right candidate has taken the lead in the country’s presidential elections?
From Taylor Swift ‘coming out’ to a scary climate change update, here are the day’s top headlines:
1. Taylor Swift Breaks Political Silence, Endorses Midterm Dems (Celebrities, Politics)
Taylor Swift is on many people’s lips Monday after an Instagram post she made Sunday that saw her (for the first time ever) get political. In addition to urging all Americans to vote in the midterm elections, she took the opportunity to endorse Democratic candidates for Senate and the House of Representatives in Tennessee (where Swift will be voting). Among the issues close to her heart, she calls out women’s rights and LGBTQ rights.
Naturally, in addition to liberal Taylor Swift fans applauding the 10-time Grammy winner’s ‘coming out,’ alt-right trolls have officially lost their damn mind. In addition to the anticipated calls of “shut up and sing” that get lobbed at any celebrity who gets political, 4chan users were particularly upset after they’d anointed Taylor Swift (unwillingly) as their White Nationalist Princess.
2. Leading Scientists Say We Have 10 Years to Fix Climate Change (News)
Just this morning, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which includes some of the world’s leading scientists, released a report warning that “unprecedented changes in all aspects of society” are needed to keep climate change at bay. The best summation comes courtesy of Greenpeace representative Kaisa Kosonen: “Scientists might want to write in capital letters, ‘ACT NOW IDIOTS,’ but they need to say that with facts and numbers, and they have.”
Read the full story by the BBC here.
3. Brazil Just Watched Its Far-Right Candidate Nearly Become President (News, World)
He’s Brazil’s version of Donald Trump, and he nearly won the country’s presidential election yesterday. Jair Bolsonaro has praised Brazil’s one-time military dictatorship and has said offensive things about gays, women and people of color. In Sunday’s first-round presidential election he would have needed 50% of the vote to avoid a runoff and claim the title of President. Luckily he only received 46% of the vote, meaning on Oct. 28 he will face off against Fernando Haddad, a leftist candidate from the Workers’ Party. It’s worth noting that Leftists have won the presidency in every election since 2002.
Bolsonaro has said in the past that gay children are what happens when not enough “beatings” are administered, and said of a female rival she was “too ugly” to rape. Wow, Brazil. Just wow.
4. A CNN Correspondent Has Been Busted for Homophobic Past Tweets (News, TV)
CNN White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins made headlines in June when Donald Trump banned her from a press event (for asking questions, naturally), but now she’s finding herself in headlines for a different, not-so-great reason. American Conservative gay group the Log Cabin Republicans have uncovered tweets from Collins’ college years in which she said some gross things seven years ago. In addition to calling someone a “fag,” one tweet reads, “[I don’t know] if I wanna room with a lesbian.” She quickly responded with an apology: “When I was in college, I used ignorant language in a few tweets to my friends. It was immature but it doesn’t represent the way I feel at all. I regret it and apologize.”
Read the full story here.
5. New York Comic Con Has Left Us With a Ton of Great New Trailers (Film, TV)
Sunday marked the very last day of New York Comic Con 2018, which saw people gather at the Javits Convention Center in Manhattan for four days of cosplay, panel discussions and sneak peeks at some highly anticipated projects. Among the new trailers to have emerged from the con include an “extended video” clocking in at five minutes for December’s Aquaman, a full-length trailer for the upcoming Netflix series The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and sneak peeks at the new seasons of Daredevil, American Gods and Star Trek: Discovery.
Watch several more trailers straight from NYCC at Entertainment Weekly here.
