Kanye West, fully-nude wife show up to Grammys 2025 after trolling…

Kanye West and his wife turned the 67th Annual Grammy Awards red carpet into their own personal runway.

The “Gold Digger” rapper, 47, shocked fans when he showed up at the 2025 Grammys on Sunday, February 2, at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles — but it was his wife who made jaws drop.

Bianca Censori, 30, hit the star-studded night fully nude, rocking a sheer barely-there mini-dress without a bra or underwear.

West’s wife of two years let it all hang out, pushing the fashion needle on music’s biggest night.

Rocking her brunette locks slick back, Censori paired her revealing look with clear heels and confidently stood alongside her man, who already made a ruckus ahead of the awards show. She also brought an oversized black coat to cover up when she wasn’t taking photos.

West wore more than his wife but failed to get dressed up for the big night.

Wearing an all-black attire, including a plain t-shirt, the controversial musician slipped on a pair of dark-colored sunglasses and a silver necklace to accessorize.

West flaunted his wife’s entire body, letting her completely hang out while flashing her exposed front and back to the photographers, allowing them to capture her from every angle.

Hours before the Grammys red carpet, West caused a stir by unfollowing everyone on Instagram, including his wife, except for Taylor Swift.

The “Heartless” rapper and Swift’s frenemy relationship goes back to 2009, when West interrupted her acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards with the famous line: “I’mma let you finish, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time!”

A young Swift was left shocked and embarrassed after the ordeal.

Years later, the two made up but fell out again when she claimed West sabotaged her by allegedly failing to get her approval to call her a “bitch” in the lyrics of his 2016 hit, “Famous.”

The rapper’s then-wife Kim Kardashian inserted herself into the drama by releasing a Snapchat video of West speaking to Swift on a phone call, during which he dictated and discussed the lines of his track “Famous.

The exchange sparked a war, with fans divided on whose side they were on.

Kardashian then took to social media and seemingly called Swift a snake.

“Wait it’s legit National Snake Day?!?!?They have holidays for everybody, I mean everything these days!” the reality star tweeted in 2016.

When Swift was named TIME’s 2023 Person of the Year, she opened up about their feud, revealing the phone recording felt like “a career death” and “took [her] down psychologically to a place [she’d] never been before.”

Fans were not impressed with West’s move to only follow Swift ahead of the 2025 Grammys.

“At this point, it’s restraining order time,” one person wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

“Taylor should block him.. Pls someone tell her that button exists,” another one advised. “This man should not be allowed writhing 500 ft of her,” commented a third upset fan.

It looks like West had a change of heart because, as of this post, he’s only following his wife on Instagram.

Swift is nominated for six Grammy Awards, including the night’s biggest: Album of the Year, Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

West is also nominated for a Grammy.

His collaboration with Ty Dolla $ign “Carnival” is up for Best Rap Song. Here is a full list of tonight’s nominees.

The Grammy Awards are airing on CBS at 8:00 p.m. ET. For more ways to watch, click here.

How to watch the 2025 Grammys: Date, time, streaming, nominees

Table of Contents Table of Contents Watch the 2025 Grammys: Date, time, channel Can you stream the 2025 Grammys? 2025 Grammys: Presenters 2025 Grammys: Performers 2025 Grammys: Nominees

All eyes will be on the music industry as the top stars gather under one roof for the 2025 Grammys. This year marks the 67th Grammy Awards, which will be held at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California. Comedian Trevor Noah will host the ceremony for the fifth consecutive year.

Beyoncé leads the field with 11 nominations. Is this the year the Cowboy Carter singer finally wins her long-overdue Album of the Year award? Charli XCX and Post Malone have eight nominations, followed by Billie Eilish and Kendrick Lamar with seven. Will Sabrina Carpenter or Chappell Roan take home the award for Best New Artist? Find out how to watch the 2025 Grammys.

Recommended Videos Watch the 2025 Grammys: Date, time, channel

Join us for #GRAMMYs Sunday on Feb. 2nd as we honor the music of this year and support the Los Angeles’s wildfire relief efforts.

✨ Premiere Ceremony Presented by @CityNational 3:30 PM ET / 12:30 PM PT at https://t.co/EX7x62eQwc

✨ Red Carpet 6 PM ET / 3 PM PT at… pic.twitter.com/YQUnETa9ov

— Recording Academy / GRAMMYs (@RecordingAcad) January 29, 2025

The 2025 Grammys will air live at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Sunday, February 2, 2025. The show will air on CBS. The ceremony can also be streamed on the CBS app or CBS.com. Make sure to sign in with your TV provider for access.

Watch CBS Can you stream the 2025 Grammys?

If you do not have access to CBS, then stream the Grammys on Paramount+. However, Paramount+ with Showtime is the only plan that offers live and on demand coverage of the Grammys. Paramount+ Essential subscribers will have to wait until the next day to watch a replay of the show.

Paramount+ with Showtime costs $13 per month or $120 per year. Meanwhile, Essential costs $8 per month or $60 per year. New subscribers can sign up for a free trial and experience the service for a week before committing to a paid plan.

2025 Grammys: Presenters

A GRAMMY moment you don’t want to miss! #WillSmith will present the touching tribute celebrating the life and legacy of Quincy Jones at the 67th #GRAMMYs.

Tune in on Feb. 2nd at 8 PM ET / 5 PM PT, only on @CBS and @ParamountPlus: https://t.co/db1G88eD97 pic.twitter.com/Z5z0RWgl4l

— Recording Academy / GRAMMYs (@RecordingAcad) January 31, 2025

2025 Grammy nominee Taylor Swift is set to present at the 67th Grammy Awards. The full list of presenters includes Swift, Gloria Estefan, Will Smith, Cardi B, Queen Latifah, SZA, Olivia Rodrigo, Anthony Kiedis, Chad Smith, and Victoria Monét.

2025 Grammys: Performers

One, here comes the two to the three to the 67th #GRAMMYs with @ShaboozeysJeans taking the stage for the first time ever!

Tune in on Feb. 2nd at 8 PM ET / 5 PM PT, only on @CBS and @ParamountPlus. pic.twitter.com/eVp5UfCLZA

— Recording Academy / GRAMMYs (@RecordingAcad) January 31, 2025

The list of Grammy performers includes Benson Boone, Billie Eilish, Brad Paisley, Chappell Roan, Charli XCX, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, Cynthia Erivo, Doechii, Herbie Hancock, Jacob Collier, Janelle Monáe, John Legend, Lainey Wilson, RAYE, Sabrina Carpenter, Shaboozey Shakira, Sheryl Crow, St. Vincent, Stevie Wonder, and Teddy Swims.

There will be three special tributes on the broadcast. The tributes are the In Memoriam segment, a celebration of life for Quincy Jones, and a touching salute to the city of Los Angeles after the devastating fires. Brad Paisley, Brittany Howard, Bruno Mars, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, Cynthia Erivo, Herbie Hancock, Jacob Collier, Janelle Monáe, John Legend, Lady Gaga, Lainey Wilson, Sheryl Crow, St. Vincent, and Stevie Wonder are set to perform.

2025 Grammys: Nominees

Album of the Year

New Blue Sun – André 3000 Cowboy Carter – Beyoncé Short n’ Sweet – Sabrina Carpenter Brat – Charli XCX Djesse Vol. 4 – Jacob Collier Hit Me Hard and Soft – Billie Eilish The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess – Chappell Roan The Tortured Poets Department – Taylor Swift

Record of the Year

Now and Then – The Beatles Texas Hold ‘Em – Beyoncé Espresso – Sabrina Carpenter 360 – Charli XCX Birds of a Feather – Billie Eilish Not Like Us – Kendrick Lamar Good Luck, Babe! – Chappell Roan Fortnight – Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone

Song of the Year

A Bar Song (Tipsy) — Shaboozey Birds of a Feather — Billie Eilish Die with a Smile — Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars Fortnight — Taylor Swift featuring Post Malone Good Luck, Babe! — Chappell Roan Not Like Us — Kendrick Lamar Please Please Please — Sabrina Carpenter Texas Hold ‘Em — Beyoncé

Best New Artist

Benson Boone Sabrina Carpenter Doechii Khruangbin Raye Chappell Roan Shaboozey Teddy Swims

View the entire list of nominees.

Travis a no show as Taylor gets set to rock Grammys

Music superstar Taylor Swift will surprisingly be without her biggest supporter, boyfriend Travis Kelce, when she hits the stage at the Grammy Awards.

Swift has been nominated for six awards following the release of her latest album, The Tortured Poets Department.

She will also present an award at the show, which will be hosted by Trevor Noah and held at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles

Swift is nominated for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album for the LP, as well as Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Music Video for Fortnight, featuring Post Malone.

However, boyfriend Travis Kelce will be absent from the ceremony.

The NFL star, however, has a good excuse — the Kansas City Chiefs star has to focus on

practice with his team leading up to the 2025 Super Bowl.

The Super Bowl LIX, which will see the Kansas City Chiefs take on the Philadelphia Eagles, on February 9.

Swift will be at the Caesars Superdome to cheer on her boyfriend and his teammates, Page Six has confirmed.

The singer’s seating location at the Grammys has been kept a secret by organisers who released the table plan for the show.

While it’s unclear exactly where the singer will be seated, fans took to X to speculate about the seating plan.

Many predicted that she would most likely be sitting with longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff, who is seated at the same table as Kacey Musgraves, Sheryl Crow and Post Malone.

The Grammy Awards will take place in the wake of the ongoing LA wildfires, with the Recording Academy confirming last month that the ceremony would go on as planned but now be “reimagined.”

Other confirmed presenters include Cardi B, Gloria Estefan, Olivia Rodrigo, Queen Latifah, SZA, Victoria Monet, Will Smith, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers members Anthony Kiedis and Chad Smith.

Among the confirmed performers are Billie Eilish, Charli XCX, and Shakira.

Stevie Wonder and Janelle Monae will headline an in-memoriam tribute to legendary producer Quincy Jones, who died last year. The duo will be joined by Cynthia Erivo, Herbie Hancock, Lainey Wilson, and other artists.

Originally published as Grammy Awards 2025: Taylor Swift to present at show, Travis Kelce to miss awards

With LA’s fires in mind, Clive Davis celebrates 50 years of his annual pre-Grammy gala

LOS ANGELES — Half a century after he threw a small music industry soiree to toast Barry Manilow’s first Grammy nomination for record of the year, 92-year-old Clive Davis on Saturday night celebrated the 50th anniversary of what quickly became his famous annual pre-Grammy gala.

There were drinks. There were speeches. And there was Manilow, still trim and impeccably coiffed at 81, performing his classic “Mandy” as video screens cut between today and clips from an appearance he and Davis made on “The Midnight Special” in 1975.

“Can you believe Clive looked like that?” Manilow asked the crowd of the debonair record executive who helped shepherd him to stardom. “Can you believe I looked like that?”

Held at the Beverly Hilton ahead of Sunday’s 67th Grammys ceremony, Davis’ invite-only party drew a characteristically high-wattage crowd — guests included Jennifer Lopez, Gladys Knight, Alicia Keys, Berry Gordy, Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, Jack Antonoff and Davis’ old pal Nancy Pelosi — for an evening of music and tactical hobnobbing that Jimmy Kimmel likened to “Clive Davis’ bar mitzvah.”

Among the acts who performed at that inaugural get-together, Kimmel joked as he introduced Davis: “Moses with the Bay City Rollers backing him up.”

Yet in the wake of last month’s devastating Los Angeles wildfires, Davis said he’d remade Saturday’s gala as a fundraiser for MusiCares, the Recording Academy’s philanthropic arm; he himself had made a “six-figure donation,” he said, urging the deep-pocketed in the house to contribute what they could to provide relief to music professionals in need.

The night’s entertainment opened with a rock ‘n’ roll supergroup — brothers Chris and Rich Robinson of the Black Crowes, Metallica’s Robert Trujillo, producer Andrew Watt and Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers — cranking through a medley of Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath covers before Michael Bublé took over to pay tribute to the late Quincy Jones with a swinging rendition of “Fly Me to the Moon.”

Four of the Grammys’ eight best new artist nominees performed: Doechii, theater-kid exuberant in “Denial Is a River”; Teddy Swims, who growled his “Lose Control” wearing a bedazzled white suit; Shaboozey, beginning to tire a bit, perhaps, of his inescapable “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”; and mustachioed Benson Boone, new-rock-god resplendent in a leathery jumpsuit as he laid into the high notes of “Beautiful Things.”

Jazz singer Samara Joy, who won best new artist at the Grammys in 2023, did Betty Carter’s “Tight,” while gospel star Yolanda Adams channeled Whitney Houston in a solemn but flowery take on “I Will Always Love You.” (Davis, who signed Houston to his Arista label, almost always takes a moment at his party to remember the singer, who died at the Beverly Hilton in 2012 just hours before the event was set to begin.) Post Malone was there, too: He sang the wistful “Sunflower” — “my only good song,” per his description — in recognition of Universal Music Publishing Group Chief Executive Jody Gerson, who was presented with the Recording Academy’s Industry Icon award.

The high point, as it often is these days, was Joni Mitchell, a longtime Davis confidant, who sat onstage in a glittering throne — blond hair tucked beneath a beret, mischievous eyes hidden behind a pair of shades — and sang “Both Sides Now” and George Gershwin’s “Summertime” with a richness of tone that brought a room full of chatter and gossip to something pretty close to silence.

‘Dog Man’ Bites off $36 Million, Taking No. 1 at Box Office

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Petey, voiced by Pete Davidson, left, and Dog Man, voiced by Peter Hastings in a scene from DreamWorks Animation’s “Dog Man.” (Universal Pictures/DreamWorks Animation via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — DreamWorks Animation’s “Dog Man” fetched $36 million in ticket sales at the weekend box office, according to studio estimates Sunday, making it the biggest debut yet in 2025.

It was a big opening for the Universal Pictures release adapted from the popular graphic novel series by author Dav Pilkey. The big-screen launch for the cartoon canine was produced for a modest $40 million, meaning it will easily coast through a profitable run. Audiences gave it an “A” CinemaScore.

Only one animated film before has had a better January launch: 2016’s “Kung Fu Panda 3.” “Dog Man,” though, was soft overseas, collecting $4.2 million from 29 international markets. The voice cast of the Peter Hastings-directed movie is led by Pete Davidson, Lil Rel Howery and Isla Fisher.

Family movies last year buoyed the box office, with PG-rated films accounting for $2.9 billion, or 33% of all ticket revenue, according to data firm Comscore. So far, they’re lifting 2025, too. The Walt Disney Co.’s December release “Mufasa: The Lion King” topped the weekend box office three times in January. In its seventh week of release, “Mufasa” held in third place with another $6.1 million, bringing its global tally to $653 million.

“The PG animation family film wave that was so prevalent in ’24 continues in ’25,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore.

The horror comedy “Companion,” from Warner Bros. and New Line, also opened well, with $9.5 million in 3,285 locations. Drew Hancock’s sci-fi tinged film set in the near future is about a group of friends on a weekend lakeside getaway.

“Companion,” starring Sophie Thatcher ( “Heretic” ), was lightly marketed and made for just $10 million. It will depend on glowing reviews (94% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and strong word of mouth (a “B+” CinemaScore) to keep drawing moviegoers in the coming weeks.

Last week’s top film, Mel Gibson’s “Flight Risk,” dropped steeply in its second weekend. The action thriller starring Mark Wahlberg fell to fifth place with $5.6 million. Domestically, it has collected $20.9 million for Lionsgate.

One of the early year’s standout successes has been Sony Pictures’ “One of Them Days,” the R-rated comedy starring Keke Palmer and SZA. Though comedies have had a hard time in theaters in recent years, “One of Them Days” has proven a exception. The well-reviewed movie earned $5.6 million over the weekend, bringing its three-week total to $34.5 million – a stellar result for a movie that cost $14 million to make.

Final domestic figures will be released Monday. Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Diddy Was Reportedly Taken From Jail To A Hospital Late At Night

Sean “Diddy” Combs was recently removed from his MDC jail and transported to a hospital late at night.

This comes as he awaits his sex crimes trial scheduled for May 5 after being charged with sex trafficking, racketeering, and transportation to engage in prostitution.

Sean “Diddy” Combs’ latest hospital stint comes a month after it was revealed that he had a “meltdown” in jail during the holiday period.

According to a report, Diddy had to be taken from prison to a nearby hospital on Thursday night.

A law enforcement source close to the situation informed the New York Post that the rapper was transported to the Brooklyn Hospital Center at around 10 p.m.

This late-night movement was allegedly done in order not to draw attention from prison staff or other inmates.

Multiple sources also confirmed to the news outlet that the rapper was taken to the hospital for an MRI scan, a noninvasive test used to examine the organs, tissues, and skeletal system with high-resolution images produced by the MRI machine.

The rapper reportedly did not stay overnight at the hospital and was returned to his cell a few hours later.

Diddy’s reason for going to the hospital is still unclear, as a source told Page Six that he had a knee issue, and another claimed to NYP that the rapper was involved in a prison fight.

Although the music mogul’s team has yet to clarify his hospital visit, a Bureau of Prisons spokesperson said of the situation: “For privacy, safety, and security reasons, we do not comment on the conditions of confinement for anyone in our custody to include medical status or medical trips.”

Diddy has reportedly had a long history of knee issues, previously undergoing four surgeries in two years due to his knee.

In 2020, the music mogul shared on his Instagram Stories that he was prone to having accidents, stating, “I’m clumsy. I trip. I fall. I fall in holes.”

“It’s always been like that,” he continued, per Page Six. “This is my fourth surgery in two years. I’ve had two rotator cuffs, a knee replacement, and now it’s on quad.”

“At the end of the day, this is God’s work to slow me down,” Diddy concluded.

Diddy has seemingly been having a tough time in prison, as his recent hospital visit comes a month after he was reported to have had a “meltdown” over his multiple failed bail attempts.

On Thursday, December 26, the rapper allegedly had a breakdown because he couldn’t believe he was still stuck in the MDC prison months after his arrest on sex crime charges.

According to the Daily Mail, the rapper had expected to be “out on bail by now” due to the “high-powered legal team” he assembled for his defense.

However, the failure of their efforts to secure his release appeared to have taken a toll on him, making “spending the holidays behind bars” a “nightmare.”

Diddy’s team has yet to confirm the occurrence of a “meltdown” since the alleged incident was reported.

Diddy has been in detention at the MDC since his arrest on September 16, 2024, and being locked up in detention appears to have taken a physical toll on him.

Law and Crime reporter Elizabeth Millner reported that during the rapper’s last hearing in January, he looked like he had lost a lot of weight.

The journalist noted that Diddy “appeared just astonishingly thinner” and also “appeared greyer a little bit.”

“A lot different from the luxury lifestyle that he was living before, but he appeared very noticeably thinner, and maybe being locked up in detention is starting to wear on him,” Millner added, per Page Six.

As he awaits his trial in May, the legal issues keep mounting for Diddy. Federal prosecutors recently revised their indictment against him to include the sex trafficking of two new female victims.

The filing, which was made on Thursday in the Southern District of New York, accused Diddy of employing the use of threats to force at least three women “to engage in commercial sex acts’ which the rapper called “Freak Offs.”

“Like the Freak Offs, these commercial sex acts involving Combs and a female victim were prearranged, sometimes lasted multiple days, were sometimes electronically recorded by Combs and often involved Combs distributing a variety of controlled substances to the victim, in part to keep the victim obedient and compliant,” the legal documents read, per Page Six.

Diddy’s lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, has since slammed the revised indictment in a statement, noting that it contains “no new offenses.”

“The prosecution’s theory remains flawed,” Agnifilo said. “The government has added the ridiculous theory that two of Mr. Combs’ former girlfriends were not girlfriends at all but were prostitutes.”

Sean “Diddy” Combs Hospitalized While Awaiting Sex Trafficking Trial – E! Online

Watch: Sean “Diddy” Combs Denies His Former Girlfriends Were Prostitutes

Sean “Diddy” Combs reportedly underwent treatment in a hospital as he continues to await trial on sex trafficking charges.

The 55-year-old was transported from Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, the federal prison where was sent following his September arrest, late Jan. 30 to undergo an MRI and was then soon returned to police custody later that night, Page Six reported. The outlet cited a source as saying that the medical scan was authorized because his “knee was bothering him.”

TMZ cited sources with direct knowledge as saying Combs was taken to a Brooklyn hospital from the Metropolitan Detention Center that day after experiencing pain with his knee.

E! News has reached out to reps for Combs and the Federal Bureau of Prisons for comment and has not heard back.

The Grammy winner’s attorney Marc Agnifilo told TMZ, “I cannot comment on anything related to prisoner movements. Also, I’m not commenting on anything related to possible medical issues.”

Reese Witherspoon Sets the Record Straight About Kate Winslet Feud Rumors – E! Online

Witherspoon is debunking a feud rumor about the two that had recently emerged on social media after she shared that a “very serious, proper actress,” stopped speaking to her after she had roasted the person at a British award ceremony.

“Hey guys…just spoke to my very dear friend for years, Kate W,” the You’re Cordially Invited star wrote on her Instagram Stories Feb. 1. “We laughed about this stupidity. Please do not believe the internet. We are good friends and have never had any falling out.”

In another post, Witherspoon responded to a news article titled, “Fans Think Reese Witherspoon *Roasted* Kate Winslet After Unearthing Hilarious 2007 BAFTA Speech.”

“This is so completely UNTRUE,” wrote the fellow Oscar winner, who had given a speech about the Titanic alum before introducing her as the British Artist of the Year at the 2007 BAFTA/LA Cunard Britannia Awards, “so silly!”

The power of independent journalism: From her Brooklyn apartment, she ‘scooped’ the nation’s media – WTOP News

First word of the Trump administration’s since-rescinded order to freeze spending on federal loans and grants came not from a…

First word of the Trump administration’s since-rescinded order to freeze spending on federal loans and grants came not from a major news organization, but from a woman working alone in her Brooklyn apartment.

Marisa Kabas’ scoop this past week was a key moment for a growing cadre of journalists who work independently to gather and analyze news and market themselves as brands. Many are refugees from legacy outlets while others are scrappy newcomers like Kabas, who found traditional career paths unappealing or out of reach.

“This week has been career-changing,” Kabas said in an interview. “In a sense, my job has changed overnight.”

She was sitting at her kitchen table last Monday, sifting through emails on her laptop, when a source forwarded her a copy of a memo announcing the freeze sent by the Office of Management and Budget’s acting director. Kabas has her own website, the Handbasket, but to give the story wider visibility, she posted a screen shot of the memo on the social media site Bluesky.

Then she waited.

Her stomach was in knots. She calmed herself with a walk on a frigid night. Despite her belief in independent journalism — and her own work — she recognized that to many, news only becomes “real” when it appears in a major outlet. Three hours later, The Washington Post published its story, with a hat-tip to Kabas.

The directive caused such an uproar that the administration walked back its order two days later.

Kabas, 37, kicked around in various journalism and publicist jobs and freelanced for outlets like MSNBC.com, the Huffington Post and New Republic. She started her website in 2022 primarily for personal writing and decided to go “all in” with journalism the next year.

The advantage to going it alone is that “I get to write about things that I care about,” she said. “I don’t have to work on assignments that are given to me that I don’t care about.” The down side is she’s all alone, dependent upon her own hustle.

Kabas wrote on ex-congressman George Santos, the raid on a weekly newspaper in Kansas and Elon Musk, although much of her writing was essays instead of reported work.

Like many in the independent journalism world, she doesn’t hide her opinions. She wrote that the OMB memo was “a truly unhinged document that sounds like it was written by the world’s most petty 4Chan poster.”

“She’s got attitude, she’s got personality,” said Greg Munno, a journalism professor at Syracuse University. “I think attitude and personality help these independent journalists connect with readers and potentially sources.”

A wide variety of independent journalists have made their mark, often working on publishing platforms like Substack and Beehiiv.

Seamus Hughes’ Court Watch pulls together interesting legal documents from around the country. Heather Cox Richardson’s Letters From an American explores the intersection of history and today’s politics. Peter Geoghegan’s Democracy for Sale investigates money in politics.

Casey Newton, a former editor at The Verge, looks at the tech world on Platformer, and this past week urged people worried about the A.I. company DeepSeek to take “a few long, deep breaths.” Molly Knight’s The Long Game writes smartly about sports and even admits to her clunkers, like recently revisiting her prediction that the Texas Rangers would repeat as American League champions.

Oliver Darcy left CNN to break news and offer commentary about the media on his own site, Status. Two former Washington Post journalists have set up their own shops: opinion writer Jennifer Rubin’s site, The Contrarian, boasts the tagline “Not owned by anybody,” and tech writer Taylor Lorenz’s User Mag broke its own news last week on conservative influencer Candace Owens’ new venture.

Days ago, CNN anchor Jim Acosta announced he was setting up shop at Substack after quitting the network rather than accept a transfer to a middle-of-the-night time slot.

“Independent journalism is now the way forward,” Dan Rather, the former CBS News anchor and perhaps quintessential old-school journalist, posted on Facebook Thursday. “Sadly, we can no longer rely on legacy media to hold the powerful accountable.”

Expand the definition of independent journalist more broadly, and you can include the exploding world of podcasts, many of which played a key role in the presidential election, and TikTok or YouTube influencers who comment on the news.

The more that traditional news outlets shrink or die, “something is going to fill that gap,” said Jeremy Littau, a Lehigh University journalism professor. “There is going to be a need for it.”

It’s exciting for those who seek variety and new voices, particularly with legacy media lagging in public esteem. The danger comes in figuring out who to trust in a world where a single person often performs the role of reporter, editor, sales person and business manager.

That’s particularly important with breaking news, Littau said. Who is out there cutting corners, or repackaging things they see online without the standards that a traditional news organization imposes?

Munno is skeptical about how much support there is in the marketplace.

“I don’t think the consumer’s appetite for news is high enough to support a really deep pool of independent journalists that would be able to create an audience and make a living,” he said.

Kabas cobbled together what she considered a typical journalist’s living — translation: modest — before this past week. Her earnings through the Handbasket come through subscribers who pay $8 a month or $80 annually. This week alone, she jumped from 800 paid subscribers to about 1,500.

Her scoop is making her rethink the purpose of her work, that now the pressing need is to report deeply on how the country is changing as the result of its new government. She’s even thinking of hiring another reporter to help.

“I’ve gone from very much taking my time, sitting with my thoughts and writing from a personal perspective to being a breaking news reporter,” Kabas said. “They are very different skills.”

David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social.

Copyright © 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.

Justin Baldoni launches website with information about lawsuit against Blake Lively

As of Feb. 1, the website links to Baldoni’s amended legal complaint and a “timeline of relevant events.”

Justin Baldoni has launched a website with documents related to his lawsuit against his “It Ends With Us” costar Blake Lively.

The site, titled “Lawsuit Info,” features links to two files — Baldoni’s amended complaint, which was filed Jan. 31 in a New York district court, as well as a “timeline of relevant events,” which purportedly summarizes events from January 2019 to January 2025 related to the creation of the movie “It Ends With Us.”

TODAY.com has reached out to representatives for Lively for comment on the launch of the website.

Baldoni and Lively starred in “It Ends With Us,” the 2024 film at the center of a public feud between the two actors.

Fans speculated Baldoni, who directed the film, and Lively were feuding amid the release of the movie in August 2024. Then on Dec. 20, 2024, Lively filed a sexual harassment complaint against Baldoni with the California Civil Rights Department, setting off a series of lawsuits.

On Dec. 31, 2024, Baldoni and his publicists first sued the New York Times for libel for an article published about Lively’s sexual harassment complaint. That same day, Lively filed a federal lawsuit against Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and his publicists, alleging she was retaliated against for reporting sexual harassment.

Baldoni subsequently sued Lively, her husband, Ryan Reynolds, and her publicist for defamation on Jan. 16.

On Jan. 31, Baldoni filed a timeline and amended complaint, which names Lively, Reynolds, publicist Leslie Sloane, Sloane’s company Vision PR and the New York Times as “consolidated defendants.”

The amended complaint includes text messages between Lively and Baldoni, as well as between Reynolds and Baldoni.

Baldoni’s attorney Bryan Freedman said in a statement that the amended lawsuit “was a logical next step due to the overwhelming amount of new proof that has come to light.”

“This fresh evidence corroborates what we knew all along, that due to a blind pursuit of power, Ms. Lively and her entire team colluded for months to destroy reputations through a complex web of lies, false accusations and the manipulation of illicitly received communications,” Freedman said in the statement.

TODAY.com has reached out to Lively, Reynolds, Slone and the New York Times for comment on the amended complaint.

The website launch comes weeks after Freedman released behind-the-scenes footage that he argues doesn’t corroborate Lively’s allegations of sexual harassment on set. In her December legal complaint, Lively alleged that Baldoni improvised scenes of physical intimacy and crossed boundaries.

Her lawyers responded to the footage release in a statement to NBC News, claiming, “The video shows Mr. Baldoni repeatedly leaning in toward Ms. Lively, attempting to kiss her, kissing her forehead, rubbing his face and mouth against her neck, flicking her lip with his thumb, caressing her, telling her how good she smells, and talking with her out of character,” Lively’s legal team said. “Every moment of this was improvised by Mr. Baldoni with no discussion or consent in advance, and no intimacy coordinator present. Mr. Baldoni was not only Ms. Lively’s co-star, but the director, the head of studio and Ms. Lively’s boss.”

Freedman previously said in a January interview on TODAY that his team planned “to release every single text message between the two of them,” referring to Baldoni and Lively.

“There is nothing that in any way is a concern about this entire situation from our perspective, and we want the truth to be out there,” Freedman said at the time.

A U.S. district court judge said Jan. 27 that Baldoni and Lively’s lawsuits will be joined and both cases will go to trial March 9, 2026, according to documents obtained by NBC News.