The Daily Show on Harris replacing Biden and the Presidential contest becoming 'weird'

I ended Vox says 'Most Americans are wrong about crime' with a question for my readers: "Stay tuned for the final post of July tomorrow, which will be a surprise to me. Any suggestions?" I didn't get any, but I didn't need them, as I realized it was time to resume writing more topical posts for the new month. Time for the late-night talk show hosts!

Only one of my regular sources has been producing new content this week, The Daily Show, so watch Jon Stewart on Why GOP Doesn't Know What To Do With Kamala Harris Replacing Biden.

Jon Stewart tackles Joe Biden's withdrawal from the presidential race, new presumptive nominee Kamala Harris, and the reactions on both sides, from a re-energized Democratic party to flailing Republicans' flimsy coup claims. Plus, Josh Johnson on the right's new strategic talking points against Harris, which range from sexist all the way to racist.

I'm surprised that the Republicans were caught flat-footed when Biden dropped out. It had been a topic for weeks. Despite my best efforts to ignore the issue, I still wrote about it on July 9th in Closer looks at Project 2025 and President Biden post-debate as Meyers, Colbert, and Stewart return from break. It seems the Democrats were thinking about "what if" Biden drops out and "what next" if he does, while the Republicans didn't consider either of those questions, even while they were talking about a resolution asking Harris to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Biden. Oops. As I warned most recently in PBS Terra asks 'What Happens When Demographics Change Forever?' "Be careful what you wish for; you might get it."


The same could be said about the Democratic donors and leadership urging Biden to drop out, but the rapid response of the party to consolidate around Harris and the enthusiastic response of the voters has shown that's working out well so far. Democrats in array!

While the Republicans are flailing in attacking Harris, the Democrats have found a surprisingly simple yet effective response to Republicans, calling them "weird." Watch Kamala Gets Everyone on Zoom & Dems Slam JD Vance for "Weird" Cat Lady Comments.

Ronny Chieng zooms in on the white guys who are fired up for Kamala Harris and finds out why the Democrats are calling Donald Trump & JD Vance "weird." Plus, Grace Kuhlenschmidt gets the scoop on those childless cat ladies Vance has been trash-talking.

Democrats have found a new eye to work besides Project 2025, Republicans being weird. I hope that doesn't upset "Weird" Al Yankovic.

I close with Pete Buttigieg on Kamala Harris’s Campaign, VP Vetting, & JD Vance.

“What’s the point of having a conversation if you’re not speaking to people who don’t already agree with you?” Pete Buttigieg talks to Jon Stewart about why he goes on Fox News, the significance of President Joe Biden stepping aside to make room for Kamala Harris as the presumptive Democratic nominee, the possibility of being vetted for vice president, and his thoughts on Trump’s own VP pick, JD Vance.

Watching Buttigieg reminds me that I can compose 2024 versions of Democratic Vice-Presidential contenders from left to center according to Voteview and On The Issues' take on Democratic Vice-Presidential contenders from left to center now that the Democrats will nominate a new VP candidate. Stay tuned for that after I observe Earth Overshoot Day tomorrow.

Vox says 'Most Americans are wrong about crime'

I closed 'Incredible Animal Journeys' leads Outstanding Nature Documentaries at the News & Doc Emmy Awards for International Tiger Day by writing "I don't know what I'm blogging about next, so stay tuned to see what I write about tomorrow!" Because of several minor mishaps, I've decided to follow through on the easiest idea I could, revisiting my remark in the middle of 'Jon Stewart Debunks GOP’s City Crime Narrative' plus 'The Daily Show's Emmy nominations.*

Finally, the crime stats show violent crime is indeed down after spiking during the pandemic, which happened when Hoover Cleveland was President, but the crime rhetoric from the Right continues. "Fvck the facts," indeed. I have two more videos that examine that phenomenon I'm saving for future posts, so stay tuned.

The first video is Vox telling its viewers Most Americans are wrong about crime.

But they’re right that something has changed in American cities.
...
In 2020 and 2021, amid a pandemic that wreaked general havoc on the social fabric of the United States, violent crime rose. Today, most Americans believe that crime in the US has come roaring back — maybe even to the levels of the 1980s and ’90s.

But a look at the data shows a very different story. Nevertheless, the feeling that our cities are less safe is at least partly coming from something real. Something has changed in American cities, particularly since the pandemic. So what’s different, and what is the truth about crime in America right now?

First, Americans consistently believe that crime is a major problem and is increasing, even when it's not. Second, their worry about crime is misplaced. It's not that high where they are concerned about it, in downtowns. I can say that downtown and midtown Detroit is actually pretty safe. The rest of Detroit may have high crime rates, but I think the parts of Detroit that scare me most are empty, which creeps me out, not violent. Third, there's a lot of media attention on crime. If it bleeds, it leads, and crime is high enough that there is always some story for the news. Finally, what Americans are responding to aren't particular crimes, but homelessness, which creates a sense of public disorder. To the extent that homelessness is being criminalized, yes, there's crime, but the stats show that major crimes are down. Still, it doesn't matter if people don't believe it. Sigh. It makes me glad that former prosecutor Kamala Harris is running instead. The prosecutor versus the felon! Maybe Americans will think she's better on crime than Joe Biden.

The second video is CityNerd doing his best Law & Order impression in "Urban Crime Wave": Facts vs. Hype.

Welcome to a new episode of the "Which city should I move to?" series, which kicked off with my earlier video, "Affordable Cities: 10 US Metro Areas With Underrated Livability, Walkability and Transit."

This time we're delving into a question which always sparks a lot of discussion in the comments: urban crime, and violent crime in particular. Acknowledging the serious trauma that comes with being a crime victim, this video starts with the assumption that many people -- probably the majority -- avoid certain cities because of their reputation for high crime rates.

The video attempts to break the question down geographically. Is the city the right geographic unit at which to measure? Does it mean anything to say St. Louis, Memphis, Detroit, and Albuquerque have some of the highest crime rates among US cities? Well...maybe not.

Ray "CityNerd" Delahanty made the same point about crime being concentrated in certain neighborhoods and not spread throughout the city, using the same example of Chicago to illustrate the point. He did acknowledge Albuquerque's downtown being one of the more high-crime neighborhoods, but that didn't scare him off from moving there from Las Vegas. Good for him. At least he likes Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, even if they add to Albuquerque's reputation for crime.

That's a wrap for today's post. Stay tuned for the final post of July tomorrow, which will be a surprise to me. Any suggestions?

*First, my desktop's ability to connect to Wi-Fi malfunctioned, so I had to buy an Ethernet cable. Before I could do that, I got a flat tire from hitting a pothole and had to get it replaced. Finally, it rained on me when I refueled. At least I corrected some papers while I was waiting for roadside assistance, so I got something useful done in addition to all the things circumstances forced on me today.

'Incredible Animal Journeys' leads Outstanding Nature Documentaries at the News & Doc Emmy Awards for International Tiger Day

Happy International Tiger Day! As I promised yesterday, I'm examining nominated nature documentaries like I did last year. I'm focusing on the only nominee for Outstanding Nature Documentary with multiple nominations, Incredible Animal Journeys | Official Trailer | National Geographic.

We might think we are the world's greatest explorers, but we're not. INCREDIBLE ANIMAL JOURNEYS narrated by Jeremy Renner premieres Nov. 19th at 9/8c on National Geographic, streams next day on Disney+ and Hulu.

I'm repeating what I wrote yesterday.

Incredible Animal Journeys has four nominations total to be the most nominated member of this field, Outstanding Nature Documentary, Outstanding Cinematography: Documentary, and Outstanding Promotional Announcement: Documentary, in addition to Outstanding Sound: Documentary. It's my preliminary pick for Outstanding Nature Documentary.

I can see why this trailer earned its nomination for Outstanding Promotional Announcement: Documentary. It has a decent chance of winning, too, as 'Super/Natural' won Outstanding Promotional Announcement last year. I'll have more to say after I watch the rest of the nominees in that category.

Follow over the jump for the trailers for the rest of the nominated nature documentaries at the News & Doc Emmy Awards.

Grammy nominee 'Little Richard: I Am Everything' among Emmy nominees for Outstanding Arts and Culture Documentary

I closed 'Jon Stewart Debunks GOP’s City Crime Narrative' plus 'The Daily Show's Emmy nominations with a program note.

I think I'll stick to awards coverage for tomorrow's Sunday entertainment feature, but something less time-intensive, like the 45th News and Documentary Emmy Awards nominations. One of the nominees earned a Grammy nomination, so it fits the theme. See you then!

This is what I wrote about the Grammy nominee in February: "One other nominee in this category earned a nomination for Best Music Documentary at the Critics Choice Documentary Awards, I Am Everything." Little Richard: I Am Everything got another chance at awards glory from the 45th News and Documentary Emmy Awards, so it's the featured documentary today. Watch Little Richard: I Am Everything - Official Trailer | Documentary by Lisa Cortés from Magnolia Pictures & Magnet Releasing.

Produced by Bungalow Media + Entertainment for CNN Films and HBO Max, in association with Rolling Stone Films, director Lisa Cortés’ Sundance opening night documentary LITTLE RICHARD: I AM EVERYTHING tells the story of the Black queer origins of rock n’ roll, exploding the whitewashed canon of American pop music to reveal the innovator – the originator – Richard Penniman. Through a wealth of archive and performance that brings us into Richard’s complicated inner world, the film unspools the icon’s life story with all its switchbacks and contradictions. In interviews with family, musicians, and cutting-edge Black and queer scholars, the film reveals how Richard created an art form for ultimate self-expression, yet what he gave to the world he was never able to give to himself. Throughout his life, Richard careened like a shiny cracked pinball between God, sex and rock n’ roll. The world tried to put him in a box, but Richard was an omni being who contained multitudes – he was unabashedly everything. Directed by Lisa Cortés, LITTLE RICHARD: I AM EVERYTHING is produced by Robert Friedman, Cortés, Liz Yale Marsh and Caryn Capotosto and Executive Produced by Dee Rees.

In the absence of Gold Derby odds — the News and Documentary Emmy Awards aren't big enough for them* — I go by other awards and nominations, trailer views, and general impression of the trailer and subject matter. Little Richard: I Am Everything's awards and nominations page is helpful, but I found it incomplete. Yes, it shows wins at the Black Reel Awards and Guild of Music Supervisors Awards and nominations by the American Cinema Editors, Cinema Audio Society, GLAAD Media Awards, Satellite Awards, NAACP Image Awards, International Documentary Association, GALECA, Hollywood Music in Media Awards, and Astra Film Awards along with its Critics Choice Documentary Award nomination, but it lacks both its Grammy nomination and News and Documentary Emmy Awards nominations. For what it's worth, Moonage Daydream's IMDB Awards and nominations page lacks its Grammy Award as well. Hmph. The Environmental Media Association Awards aren't the only incomplete awards on IMDB.

Speaking of other nominations, Little Richard: I Am Everything also has a nomination for Outstanding Editing: Documentary. It's not the only nominee for Outstanding Arts and Culture Documentary with a second nomination; The Legacy of J. Dilla also has a nomination for Outstanding Sound: Documentary, so I'm sharing The New York Times Presents: The Legacy of J Dilla | S2E5 Sneak Peek: The Life of a Visionary | FX.

Rapper, producer, and visionary J Dilla had huge ambitions in life. Inside this episode, we dive deeper into the late musician's legacy.

This trailer has 8,536 views, while a teaser uploaded by Dis Times has 3,018, so fewer than 10,000 YouTube viewers have seen either. In contrast, I found four trailers for Little Richard: I Am Everything on YouTube with total of 364,431 views. The one I shared has the second most with 150,467 views. Rotten Tomatoes Indie's upload has 202,404 views. HBO and Max's trailers make up the rest of the views. People are watching them! Then again, the number of views and my impression of the trailers misled me last year when I proclaimed 'IS THAT BLACK ENOUGH FOR YOU?!?' likely favorite to win Outstanding Arts and Culture Documentary after 'Roadrunner' removed. Nope. Art & Krimes by Krimes won instead. I would be surprised if that happens this year, especially since IMDB's awards and nominations page for The New York Times Presents lists no nominations for this episode, including its News and Documentary Emmy Awards nominations. On all the above criteria, I'm declaring Little Richard: I Am Everything the favorite.

Follow over the jump for the trailers for the rest of the nominees, which are only nominated in this category, and a brief look at the other nominations for Little Richard: I Am Everything and The Legacy of J. Dilla.

'Jon Stewart Debunks GOP’s City Crime Narrative' plus 'The Daily Show's Emmy nominations

I made a promise in the middle of John Oliver debunks 'Migrant Crime' in the middle of covering the RNC on 'Last Week Tonight'.

All the statistics about how crime in general has declined reminds me that I have three videos on the subject to share. I'll get to them in future posts.

One of those videos is Jon Stewart Debunks GOP’s City Crime Narrative | The Daily Show.

Trump called the RNC host city of Milwaukee a horrible place and is now trying to pass the insult off as a concern about crime. Jon Stewart digs into the Right's fearmongering obsession: crime in big cities. Republicans want you to believe that "lawless" Democrats are to blame, but when it comes to Democrat-run city crime, it turns out the guns are coming from red states.

I'm recycling the rogues gallery I featured in Closer looks at Trump's probation interview and Las Vegas rally from Meyers, Colbert, and Fallon to reinforce Jon Stewart asking convicted criminal Hoover Cleveland, "Are you talking about now, sir, or when you and your felonious friends come to town?"


As I wrote when I reused this image in MSNBC examines Project 2025, part 1, "Jailbirds of a feather flock together." Before Joe Biden dropped out, he called Hoover Cleveland a one-man crime wave. It makes me glad that former prosecutor Kamala Harris is running instead. The prosecutor versus the felon!

As an aside, Hoover Cleveland's impression of gunfire reminds me that I still think he sounds like Crazy Frog when he goes "bing, bing."

Finally, the crime stats show violent crime is indeed down after spiking during the pandemic, which happened when Hoover Cleveland was President, but the crime rhetoric from the Right continues. "Fvck the facts," indeed. I have two more videos that examine that phenomenon I'm saving for future posts, so stay tuned.

I wrote "I have Emmy nominations penciled in. Stay tuned" to close Vox asks 'Can Paris fix its poop problem before the Olympics?' Follow over the jump for The Daily Show's Emmy nominations.

Vox asks 'Can Paris fix its poop problem before the Olympics?'

The Olympic Games begin in Paris today, so I'm taking a break from both the Emmy nominees and working the eye of Project 2025, sometimes simultaneously, to feature Vox asking Can Paris fix its poop problem before the Olympics?

A key promise in Paris’s bid to host the 2024 Summer Olympics was that its famous river, the Seine, would be cleaned up in time to host open water swimming events: the triathlon, para triathlon, and marathon swimming. But swimming has been banned in the Seine for a century because the Paris sewer system is designed to dump wastewater into the river during heavy rain, when the sewers get overwhelmed by stormwater.

When that happens, levels of E. coli, a bacteria associated with fecal matter, spike in the river, making it too contaminated to swim in. In order to make good on its promise to clean the river, Paris officials took on a $1.5 billion USD infrastructure project that includes a massive underground tank and tunnel system meant to hold excess sewage during heavy rain and prevent further contamination of the Seine.

Water quality testing will be done daily ahead of the Olympic games this summer, and Paris officials are hopeful their ambitious plan to host swimming in the famously polluted river will succeed.

I hope the answer was yes.

I'm about to lecture on sewage treatment Monday night, so I'm considering showing this video to my environmental science class as a timely example of why the topic is relevant. The only concern I have is the BetterHelp promotion in the middle. Nearly every comment on the video complained about it, so I'll have to skip past it. I had no idea how many people dislike BetterHelp!

I might return to Olympics-related posts while the Games take place, but probably not tomorrow; I have Emmy nominations penciled in. Stay tuned.

John Oliver debunks 'Migrant Crime' in the middle of covering the RNC on 'Last Week Tonight'

John Oliver returned from a lengthy break after examining 'Trump’s Second Term' AKA Project 2025 with RNC & ”Migrant Crime”: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO). Watch.

John Oliver discusses the wave of people claiming there’s a wave of “migrant crime,” where the term came from, and what we can do next.

I begin my reaction by recycling what I wrote on World Population Day when I quoted CNBC asks 'Is The U.S. Running Out Of People?'

[I]f not enough babies are born in the U.S. to meet our job demand, the country can allow more immigration. I'm O.K. with that, but Donald Trump became president in large part because many Americans weren't and still aren't. That's why, when one of my students asked in 2015 if the U.S. would ever adopt Chinese population policies, I responded no, that's not the American way. If the U.S. thinks it has an overpopulation issue, it would restrict immigration.

Even if the country does not have an overpopulation issue, it might still think it has a different kind of demographic problem, which would still lead it to restrict immigration. In fact, the second chart I included in MSNBC examines Project 2025, part 5 lists even more extreme positions beyond restricting immigration: "Mass deportation of immigrants and incarceration in 'camps'" and "End birth right citizenship." Yikes, especially the second, which attacks the currently accepted idea of who is an American and will affect citizens and others here legally, not just undocumented immigrants.

I couldn't resist another opportunity to work the eye again!

All the statistics about how crime in general has declined reminds me that I have three videos on the subject to share. I'll get to them in future posts. In the meantime, this video has inspired me to resume my Emmy Awards coverage. Follow over the jump for Last Week Tonight with John Oliver's Emmy nominations from Wikipedia.

MSNBC examines Project 2025, part 6

I closed Entertainment and true crime the themes of Emmy nominees for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series by wondering if I'd be up for more Emmys coverage today. I'm not. Writing yesterday's entry wore me out and frustrated me, as I didn't get to the other nominations for documentary and nonfiction series. Maybe tomorrow. Instead, I'm returning to CityNerd explaining 'What Project 2025 Means for Our Cities' can drive one to drink, which reminded me that I've promised a part 6 of MSNBC examining Project 2025. Time to work the eye again!

I'm sharing the four most recent videos from MSNBC on the subject, beginning with The 'evil genius' of Project 2025 and its attack on American freedom.

The most disturbing policy proposals for a second Trump presidency are all found in Project 2025, including a plot to destroy civil rights protections and deny the existence of racism in America. Michael Harriot and Jonathan Capehart discuss how the creators of the 900-page document plan to upend many American lives.

I have the same reaction to ceasing collection of data on race that I had to prohibiting funding of gun violence research at the CDC and NIH; it's an act of scientific censorship and I oppose it. One of these decades, it might no longer be necessary, but the U.S. is not there yet.

Next, 'Terrible policy and politics': Rattner breaks down Project 2025.

MSNBC Morning Joe economic analyst Steve Rattner dives into the potential financial consequences of Project 2025, the 920 page policy manifesto by the conservative group the Heritage Foundation: higher taxes for lower-income Americans, increased student loan payments, and major cuts to Medicaid.

Those are all bad things and the "higher taxes for lower-income Americans" is something baked into the 2017 tax "reform," which I examined in The tax bill and the U.S. economy in 2018 and beyond, when I wrote "The tax cuts will expire exactly in the middle of that span in 2027." That's very bad timing and the tax plan in Project 2025 would make it permanent.

Stephanie Ruhle returned to the proposed tax rates and their effects in last night's Trump's Project 2025 tax plan is ‘coming for the people already struggling’.

VP Harris called out Project 2025 at her first campaign rally in Milwaukee today. Stephanie Ruhle breaks down exactly how the proposed tax plan will impact everyday Americans with Juanita Tolliver and Stuart Stevens.

As Steve Rattner pointed out and Stuart Stevens repeated, Project 2025's tax proposal is not popular. That's worth reiterating. Work that eye!

I close with a clip that isn't directly about Project 2025, but which the interviewee tied to it, saying her situation is ‘A preview to Project 2025’ in FL: The undermining of elected state prosecutors.

Monique Worrell was suspended from her position as the elected State Attorney in Orlando after Florida Governor Ron DeSantis made baseless accusations against her, claiming without any reason that her policies led to an increase in violent crime. Last month, the mostly DeSantis-appointed Florida Supreme Court refused to reinstate her. “What we’re seeing here in Florida is a preview to Project 2025,” says Worrell. Her removal, she argues, effectively disenfranchises everyone who voted for her and reverses years of progress.

Ugh, Ron DeSantis. His "anti-woke" actions are still causing trouble long after he dropped out after finishing second in Iowa. They also serve as proof of concept for Project 2025's proposals to reshape government. That makes him a bad example.

The third video mentioned Kamala Harris ascending to the top of the Democratic ticket. That reminds me of Democratic Vice-Presidential contenders from left to center according to Voteview and On The Issues' take on Democratic Vice-Presidential contenders from left to center. That's something else I can do now that the Democrats will nominate a new VP candidate. Stay tuned for that and a part 7 of this series.

Entertainment and true crime the themes of Emmy nominees for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series

I'm continuing my examination of the 76th Primetime and Creative Arts Emmy Awards with the nominees for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series, Beckham, Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, Stax: Soulsville U.S.A., Telemarketers, and The Jinx - Part Two. The common themes of the nominees are entertainment, including sports, and crime and one nominee is about crime in entertainment.
I'm sharing the trailers first, beginning with 'BECKHAM' Documentary Series | Official Trailer | Netflix.

'BECKHAM' is a four-part Documentary Series Directed by Academy Award® Winner, Fisher Stevens and Produced by Academy Award® Winner, John Battsek - launching October 4 2023, only on Netflix. It features a mixture of never-before-seen personal archive footage from the last forty years, candid current-day moments, and interviews with the family, friends, and footballing figures who have been part of his journey.

This is the second most popular trailer with 3,223,214 views on YouTube. It also has the most nominations, five, including Outstanding Cinematography for a Nonfiction Program, Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program, Outstanding Music Composition for a Documentary Series or Special (Original Dramatic Score), and Outstanding Picture Editing for a Nonfiction Program, in addition to the series category. If a viewer wants a fun story of celebrity, this might be the show to watch. I don't know if that's enough for it to win.

Next, Quiet On Set: The Dark Side Of Kids TV | ID.

#QuietOnSet pulls back the curtain on an empire, built by creator Dan Schneider, that had an undeniable grip on popular culture. Series such as All That and The Amanda Show, among others, were obsessively consumed by children across the country and defined comedy for a generation. But behind the upbeat onscreen presence on these shows with questionable jokes and over-the-top sketches, QUIET ON SET reveals an insidious environment rife with allegations of abuse, sexism, racism, and inappropriate dynamics with its underage stars and crew.

QUIET ON SET: THE DARK SIDE OF KIDS TV will premiere across two nights on ID from 9PM-11PM ET/PT on Sunday, March 17 and Monday, March 18.

This is the nominee that combines both themes for an exposé of true crime in entertainment. Worse yet, both target kids. Yikes! That makes it personal for the electorate, which prefers well-done stories about itself, no matter how disturbing they are. As I repeat nearly every time I wrote one of these entries, electorates matter.

That's a good thing for Quiet On Set: The Dark Side Of Kids TV's chances, as its only other nomination is for Outstanding Picture Editing for a Nonfiction Program and its trailer sits in third place for views with 781,553. If the public were voting, this series might have an uphill road to win.

STAX: Soulsville U.S.A. | Official Trailer | HBO is the only nominee that primarily focuses on entertainment through history.

#STAX: Soulsville U.S.A., an @HBO Original Documentary Series that captures how an underdog record label launched a movement and superstar musicians like Isaac Hayes and Otis Redding, premieres May 20 on @StreamOnMax.

Appropriately for a series about music, its other nomination is for Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Nonfiction Program (Single or Multi-Camera). Its subject only makes the trailer only moderately popular with 130,728 views on YouTube.

Several YouTube accounts have uploaded trailers for Telemarketers, so I'm sharing the one I like best, Telemarketers Documentary Series Trailer from Rotten Tomatoes TV.

US Air Date: August 13, 2023
Starring: Sam Lipman-Stern, Pat Pespas
Network: HBO
Synopsis: TELEMARKETERS chronicles the darkly comedic, unexpected 20-year journey of two unlikely office buddies, who stumble upon the murky truth behind the work they’ve been doing at a seedy New Jersey call center – persuading people to give money to charities – and vow to expose the crooked American telemarketing industry from within. As amateur sleuths looking to shine a light on the billion-dollar scam, with raucous insider access, raw eyewitness footage, and a comedic cast of call center characters, the film is a madcap story of an unruly, low-wage environment and two long-time office buddies who find themselves hot on the trail of a sobering look at the dark side of American capitalism and the misuse of consumer trust.

When Sam Lipman-Stern began a telemarketing job in New Jersey in the early 2000s as a 14-year-old high school drop-out, he believed he was raising money for police and firefighter charities, unaware that most of the money was ending up in the pockets of his crooked employers. With his video camera, Sam documents the riotous office as he and a motley mix of ex-cons, drug dealers and veteran telemarketers work the phone lines in an anarchic boiler room filled with booze, drugs, and debauchery, bound by humor and camaraderie. When the federal government shuts the company down after an investigation into its shady practices where they falsely told consumers that 100% of the money went to the charity (when in fact only 10-15% went), Sam and Pat Pespas, a larger-than-life top salesman struggling with addiction, begin to question the industry’s business practices. They realize they are unwitting cogs in a wheel perpetuating a massive scam on unsuspecting Americans. With rowdy humor and dogged enthusiasm, TELEMARKETERS follows Sam and Pat as they emerge from the bottom rung of the hourly workforce to become tenacious, self-appointed whistleblowers who make their way to the halls of the United States Senate, determined to expose an industry gone awry from the inside.

This is the only nomination for for Telemarketers and the combined page views for all trailers barely add up to ~78,000, so this is the weakest of the nominees on those criteria.

The last trailer for this category is The Jinx Part Two | Official Trailer | Max.

THE JINX – PART TWO is a new six-episode continuation of the groundbreaking Emmy®-winning documentary series "The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst," from Andrew Jarecki, which debuted on HBO in 2015. In Part Two, the filmmakers continue their investigation for the next eight years, uncovering hidden material, Durst's prison calls, and interviews with witnesses who had not come forward until now.

This is the most popular trailer with 5,024,572 views on YouTube, so if this were up for popular vote, it would be my choice to win. It's also the second most nominated entry in the field with nominations with three, Outstanding Picture Editing for a Nonfiction Program and Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Program in addition to the series nomination. The first season is also a previous winner of Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series and Outstanding Picture Editing for Nonfiction Programming, which leads me to the nominations at other awards shows. Follow over the jump for that analysis.

'Beyond Utopia,' ' Going to Mars,' and 'Stamped from the Beginning,' Emmy nominees for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking

Today's installment examines the nominees for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking, Beyond Utopia, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, and Stamped from the Beginning. All three fit one of my major motivations for covering entertainment in general and documentaries in particular, how entertainment depicts politics. I begin with Beyond Utopia - Official Trailer from Madman Films.

A suspenseful look at the lengths people will go to gain freedom, #BeyondUtopia follows various individuals as they attempt to flee North Korea, one of the most oppressive places on Earth, a land they grew up believing was a paradise.

At the film’s core are a mother desperate to reunite with the child she was forced to leave behind; a family of five — including small children and an elderly grandmother — embarking on a treacherous journey across the Yalu River and into the hostile mountains of China; and a man of God on a mission to help these desperate souls. Leaving their homeland is fraught with danger — severe punishment if caught and possibly even execution — as well as potential exploitation by unscrupulous brokers. Family members who remain behind also may face retribution. Yet these individuals are driven to take the risk.

Gripping, visceral, and urgent, Madeleine Gavin’s film embeds the viewer with these family members as they attempt their perilous escape, palpably conveying life-or-death stakes. The result is a singular, illuminating, and unforgettable experience.

This is a theatrical trailer, but this movie qualified for the Emmys as an episode of Independent Lens on PBS, which I usually see nominated at the News and Documentary Emmy Awards. Congratulations on being noticed by the Primetime and Creative Arts Emmy Awards!

Next, Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project | Official Trailer | HBO.

“I remember what’s important and I make up the rest. That’s what storytelling’s all about.” GoingtoMars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, an HBO Original Documentary featuring the voice of Taraji P. Henson, follows the legendary poet, activist, and educator’s ascendance and impact on American culture.

I enjoyed the music, the hopeful tone in the face of adversity, and the conceit of the space theme in the poem and title. Here's to the movie being just as fun while exploring serious themes.

Speaking of serious themes, I'm sharing Stamped from the Beginning | Official Trailer | Netflix.

Oscar-winning director Roger Ross Williams brings Dr. Ibram X. Kendi’s best-selling book Stamped From the Beginning to life, using vivid animations and leading female scholars to explore the history of anti-Black racist ideas.

If the general public voted for these awards, I'd say Stamped from the Beginning would have the advantage, as this trailer has 260,847 views, more than twice the combined views of all the different trailers for Beyond Utopia and three times the views for the trailer for Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, but the general public isn't voting, the Television Academy is. They are likely to take their cues from the guilds and critics.

Beyond Utopia earned nominations from BAFTA, the Directors Guild of America (DGA), the Producers Guild of America (PGA), the Cinema Eye Honors Awards, the Gold Derby Awards, the Critics Choice Documentary Awards, and a bunch of local critics associations and film festivals, including Sundance, to be the most nominated of the nominees. Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project earned nominations from the Film Independent Spirit Awards, International Documentary Association, Cinema Eye Honors Awards, and Critics Choice Documentary Awards, plus won awards at several local critics associations and film festivals, including Sundance to be the winningest of these nominees. Stamped from the Beginning earned nominations from the Satellite Awards, NAACP Image Awards, Writers Guild of America (WGA), Black Reel Awards, Cinema For Peace Awards, Critics Choice Documentary Awards, and Guild of Music Supervisors Awards, and won Best Documentary from the African-American Film Critics Association. The entertainment professionals most love Beyond Utopia, so I'd say it's the favorite on that basis.

The prognosticators at Gold Derby agree. Right now, Eight editors have voted for Beyond Utopia, while one each have Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project and Stamped from the Beginning as their choices. The three experts who've voted so far have all picked Beyond Utopia while 20 of the top 24 users have climbed aboard the Beyond Utopia bandwagon. I'd say it's a safe bet to win.

Stay tuned for more Emmys coverage tomorrow.

Previous posts about the 76th Primetime and Creative Arts Emmy Awards

• Gold Derby's predictions for Emmy-nominated shows
• How did Gold Derby's Emmy nominations predictions fare?
• Sandy Hook Promise's 'Just Joking' the sole PSA among Emmy nominees for Outstanding Commercial

Sandy Hook Promise's 'Just Joking' the sole PSA among Emmy nominees for Outstanding Commercial

As I've promised three times, I'm examining this year's Emmy nominees for Outstanding Commercial for the Sunday entertainment feature. I begin with the sole Public Service Announcement (PSA) among this year's nominees for Outstanding Commercial, Just Joking | Sandy Hook Promise.

80% of school shooters tell someone about their plans. But too often, people think they’re “just joking.” Always take threats of violence seriously. Watch and share our new PSA.

The comedians are funny people. The threats they are repeating definitely are not funny at all. Here's to their star power getting the message across.

Follow over the jump for the rest of the nominees, which are selling products, not just ideas.

PBS Space Time asks 'Why Is The World Rushing Back To The Moon?' for National Moon Day 2024

Happy National Moon Day, the 55th anniversary of Apollo 11 landing on the Moon! For this year's celebration, I'm revisiting CNBC explains 'Why The World Is Rushing Back To The Moon' with PBS Space Time phrasing the subject as a question, Why Is The World Rushing Back To The Moon?

The Moon has been one of the most important theoretical stepping stones to our understanding of the universe. We’ve long understood that it could also be our literal stepping stone: humanity’s first destination beyond our atmosphere.

PBS's video is definitely more focused on the science than CNBC's, but it did examine the geopolitics enough for me to repeat what I wrote in January: "I'll take a space race between the U.S. and China if it motivates the U.S. to return to the Moon and spurs us to go on to Mars." Also, it let its geek flag fly with the Dune and Star Wars references. I'm O.K. with that.

Host Matt O'Dowd mentioned a lunar telescope, so here's the video for it, PBS Space Time asking What NEW SCIENCE Would We Discover with a Moon Telescope?

In order to see the faint light from objects in deepest space, astronomers go to the darkest places on the planet. In order to listen to their quite radio signals, they head as far from any radio-noisy humans as possible. But there’s nowhere on the earth, or even orbiting the Earth, that’s far enough to hear to the faint radio hum from the time before stars. In fact, we may need to build a giant radio telescope in the quietest place in the solar system—the far side of the moon.

As O'Dowd pointed out, scientists and others have been proposing radio telescopes on the far side of the Moon since the 1960s. They even appear in Larry Niven's Known Space stories (longtime readers should have expected me to mention that). Just the same, O'Dowd described a scientific reason for building them that I hadn't heard before, so I learned something new. As I'm fond of writing, it's always a good day when I learn something new.

O'Dowd also mentioned the formation of the Moon as the result of the collision of a Mars-sized planet with the very early Earth. The NEW SCIENCE of Moon Formation describes the latest ideas about this in detail.

Einstein once asked whether “the moon exists only when I look at it?". It was rhetorical objection to the idea that measurement in quantum mechanics causes reality to become real. But there was a time when the moon didn’t exist, and then hours later suddenly did. At least, according to the latest simulations of its formation.

I've already watched this video and shown it to one of my geology classes as an example of the power of modeling, so I hope my readers learn something new from watching it.

That wraps up this year's celebration of Moon Day. Here's to sharing more progress on returning to the Moon for next year's observance. In the meantime, stay tuned for an examination of this year's Emmy nominees for Outstanding Commercial as the Sunday entertainment feature.

CityNerd explaining 'What Project 2025 Means for Our Cities' can drive one to drink

I told my readers "I've decided I'm not examining Cuba for National Daiquiri Day tomorrow; I have more pressing matters to cover that will be worth sharing next month, but I still plan on sharing a cocktail recipe, as we have plenty to drive us to drink" to close How did Gold Derby's Emmy nominations predictions fare? Instead, I decided to work the eye of Project 2025 beginning with Ray "CityNerd" Delahanty explaining What Project 2025 Means for Our Cities.

Republicans don't plan to waste time remaking the US government if their guy wins in November. The playbook is "Mandate for Leadership: the Conservative Promise," aka Project 2025, and it's chock full of amazingly terrible ideas when it comes to cities.

Please vote in November, and do more if you can. Here are a couple ways to get involved. (We send postcards to swing states in our household!)

This is all really distressing. About the only positive thing I can see coming out of this for housing policy, and it's only barely positive, is the policy plank about encouraging single-family housing might result in lifting or repealing the cap on deductions for state and local taxes (SALT). That punishes well-off residents of high-tax states who have been voting Democratic, which I think is actually the point. People who use ride hailing services (taxis, Uber, and Lyft) might like having those subsidized (again, this time by government instead of venture capitalists), but that will come at the expense of actual public transit, to say nothing of the climate. Ugh.

As I wrote yesterday and repeated above, Project 2025 is enough to drive one to drink. Since today celebrates a cocktail, I'm sharing How to make a JFK daiquiri: All the Presidents' Drinks from the Washington Post.

JFK loved Jackie's daiquiris. Presidents’ favorite cocktails, and how to make them, on All the Presidents' Drinks with Food Video Host and Editor Mary Beth Albright.

That's a surprisingly fun video from an unexpected source. It's part of a series that I had no idea existed and looks like a good example of well-produced content made during the pandemic. I might return to it for future posts.

All the above reminds me that I've promised a part 6 of MSNBC examining Project 2025. I'll get to it after Moon Day tomorrow and this year's Emmy nominees for Outstanding Commercial as the Sunday entertainment feature. In the meantime, happy National Daiquiri Day!

How did Gold Derby's Emmy nominations predictions fare?

I closed Vox and PBS ask 'Why do we have grass lawns?' with a program footnote.

I'm once again blogging about more evergreen topics that will be good to share in August, like the environmental cost of lawns. This also includes this year's Primetime and Creative Arts Emmy Awards, which will be announced later this morning. Look for me to write about them, beginning with examining how Gold Derby's predictions for Emmy-nominated shows fared tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Time to check the predictions against reality beginning with the Television Academy announcing 76th Emmy Nominations: Comedy Series.


The Gold Derby editors' and experts Emmy nomination predictions for eight comedy series were The Bear, Hacks, Abbott Elementary, Only Murders in the Building, Curb Your Enthusiasm, What We Do in the Shadows, Palm Royale, and Reservation Dogs. Those all came true. Congratulations! On the other hand, the top 24 users thought The Gentlemen would knock out Palm Royale. My reaction was "The former may be funnier, but the latter has more star power, which makes me think it has the advantage, at least among the actors." That's apparently what happened. Don't underestimate the power of the Television Academy's equivalent of the Actors Branch. Remember, electorates matter.

Predictions first for the next category.

Gold Derby's next category is drama series, the top eight among the editors consists of Shogun, The Crown, The Morning Show, The Gilded Age, Fallout, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Slow Horses, and The Curse. Shogun moved from limited series to drama series just in time to make the ballot in this category, unseating The Crown as the favorite and knocking 3 Body Problem out of the predicted top eight.

That was Friday night. By Wednesday morning, the editors switched 3 Body Problem and The Curse, which turned out to be a smart move. Watch 76th Emmy Nominations: Drama Series to see why.


The editors got it right at the last minute, so congratulations. That's more than can be said about the experts or users, who kept The Curse in their top eight. Since my wife and I enjoyed 3 Body Problem but didn't continue watching The Curse, I can see why the former earned this nomination while the latter was skunked — no nominations at all! I don't know if I will suggest The Curse to the Saturn Awards, but I'm definitely passing on 3 Body Problem along with Shogun, Fallout, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and Slow Horses.

Gold Derby's editors, experts, and top 24 users all predicted Baby Reindeer, Fargo, Lessons in Chemistry, Ripley and True Detective: Night Country. Those were exactly the nominees for 76th Emmy Nominations: Limited or Anthology Series.


Congratulations to both the nominees and Gold Derby prognosticators!

On the other hand, none of the three groups perfectly predicted the next category.

The Gold Derby editors have a statistical tie for the fifth Emmy nomination in television movies, giving both The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial and Scoop five votes each. The last slot may be even more unsettled, as No One Will Save You has four editor votes. The editors' top four consists of Mr. Monk's Last Case, Red, White and Royal Blue, Quiz Lady, and The Great Lillian Hall. The experts and top 24 users disagree, thinking both The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial and Scoop will make the top five while The Great Lillian Hall won't. This will be another category worth watching.

The Television Academy didn't create a clip for TV Movie, but they did tweet out this image.


The editors picked three, Mr. Monk's Last Case, Red, White and Royal Blue, and Quiz Lady,, while the experts and top 24 users correctly chose Scoop. None of the editors or users voted for Unfrosted to be nominated, landing it in 18th by default, but four of the experts did, placing it eighth. Congratulations to those experts. Like Palm Royale in Comedy Series, I'm chalking Unfrosted's nomination up to star power and the actors voting for it. Again, electorates matter.

Follow over the jump to see how Gold Derby's predictions fared in the remaining four categories.

Vox and PBS ask 'Why do we have grass lawns?'

Today is Prime Day, but I'm not feeling like recounting a tale of the Retail Apocalypse the Retail Apocalypse that involves Amazon.* Instead, I'm continuing with the theme of how humans change the environment I explored in yesterday's PBS Terra on 'the invasive Burmese Pythons of the Everglades' for World Snake Day. That was an accidental introduction that produced an invasive species. Today, I'm examining a deliberate change in the landscape, Vox asking and answering Why do we have grass lawns?

Lawns aren’t natural. Why do so many Americans have them?
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Grass lawns are so ubiquitous in the US you would assume that they're the most natural and obvious choice for what to put in our yards. But turf grass is not only not native to the US, but it takes a lot of time, money, and resources to maintain.

Today, some cities are offering "cash for grass" programs and giving residents as much as $25,000 to replace their turf grass lawns with more environmentally sustainable options.

But some people still like green grass lawns and enjoy maintaining them, so what should they do? In this video we go through the multitude of options that yard owners have and talk to experts to see what they have to say.

I have a lawn, but I inherited it when I bought the house and I live in Michigan, where I don't have to water it. If I still lived in southern California and owned a house there, I'd have replaced any lawn on the property with something more water-conserving and sustainable, like the landscape Sara Bendrick planted.

Speaking of southern California, PBS returns there to examine turf grass, both on lawns and golf courses, as it explains How Lawns Became the Status Symbol of the United States.

How much do you really know about the grass beneath your feet? It turns out, there's a whole lot more to it than meets the tee. Shane ventures beyond the green lawns and learns about the costly and cultural resources at play when it comes to maintaining this so called "crop."

Hearing about the regulatory environment that promotes lawns reminds me of what I wrote in Oak Park Woman plants vegetable garden; city objects 13 years ago.

If you're interested in sustainability on the local and personal levels, your biggest obstacles will be homeowners associations, zoning boards, and city councils. Those people will be wedded to business as usual long after it becomes apparent to early adopters that BAU just isn't working any more. Watch those local governing entities hang onto the past like adherents of a cargo cult.
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When it comes to enforcing business as usual (BAU) norms of middle-class respectability as a way of maintaining property values, Oak Park does not play. Oak Park is so afraid of catching what they think Detroit has, which is blight, that they restrict what property owners can do more than neighboring cities and enforce their will with a vengeance. Put your trash cans out too early or leave them out too long and the police will ticket you. Let your grass grow too high and the city will mow your lawn for you and then bill you. You can only hold two yard sales per year and you have to inform the city in advance. If you want to drink wine while dining in the city, you're out of luck; there are no restaurants with liquor licenses. The list goes on and on.

Of course, the people who live there and like it make a point of saying that the police will arrive before you hang up your call to 911, but all the above is the flip side of what the locals praise as "great city services." I hope their property values and middle-class sensibilities are worth it.

Remember, that controversy was about replacing a lawn with a vegetable garden, something more useful and productive.

Also, watching the scenes of suburbia reminds me that this was the week I used to show The End of Suburbia and now show Treasures of the Earth: Power. I no longer require my students to watch James Howard Kunstler and the rest of the Prophets of Doom, but they can still watch The End of Suburbia for extra credit. After all, I conserve my resources.

*I'm also not posting anything involving current events. That's because my blog passed its monthly page view goal just before Noon on Monday, so I'm once again blogging about more evergreen topics that will be good to share in August, like the environmental cost of lawns. This also includes this year's Primetime and Creative Arts Emmy Awards, which will be announced later this morning. Look for me to write about them, beginning with examining how Gold Derby's predictions for Emmy-nominated shows fared tomorrow. Stay tuned.

PBS Terra on 'the invasive Burmese Pythons of the Everglades' for World Snake Day

Happy World Snake Day!

World Snake Day on July 16th urges increased awareness of the wide variety of species around the world. With around 3,500 species, finding a snake that fascinates you or that was unknown to you previously won't be difficult.

I have just the snake story for today, Human Footprint on PBS Terra explaining Giant Pythons Have Overrun Florida. Here’s Why.

Ever heard of the phrase "when pet pythons outgrow their owners"? Well, host Shane Campbell-Staton is about to take us on an adventure to find out what happens next in this episode of Human Footprint. Join Shane as he meets bounty hunter Donna Kalil, exotic animal trader Hillary Dupont, and biologists Matthew McCollister and Kristen Hart as they battle the invasive Burmese Pythons of the Everglades.

While I first wrote about invasive pythons in Florida during the first year of the blog, I haven't examined the subject in any depth since 2017, seven years ago and haven't mentioned the topic since 2022. It's about time I revisited it.

'The Daily Show' at the Republican National Convention over the years

The Republican National Convention begins today, so I'm sharing The Daily Show's retrospectives of their coverage of past events, beginning with Small Town Values & Absent Diversity at the RNC's of Yore.

It's a Daily Show tradition to attend the national conventions every year, and the RNC always promises a good time. Take a look at some of the Best F**kin' News Team's best f**kin' moments at the RNC, from learning about small-town values to searching out any Black or Latino people, to finding out the last year America was great.

Jordan Klepper, Aasif Mandvi, John Oliver look so young in these clips. Also, seeing Samantha Bee makes me realize how much I miss her show. Altogether, they remind me how The Daily Show was and still is a great cultivator of talent.

The fun continues in RNC Throwbacks: Bristol Palin's Right to Choose & John Oliver Audits Red States.

Take a look back at some of the Daily Show's most memorable moments with Samantha Bee, Ed Helms, and John Oliver on the ground at the RNC.

Ah, when Republicans were the more anti-Russian party! I miss those days. On the other hand, they've become even more anti-choice, despite what their platform does, or even more importantly, doesn't say. As for running government like a business, I've seen what that was like under Rick Snyder. No thank you. It's even worse if they want to run the U.S. government like convicted criminal Hoover Cleveland's businesses!

Here's to this year's convention creating as many funny moments as these. If so, it might just be the best thing to come out of it!

ETA: This year's RNC may create funny moments, but they won't be captured by a team in the field. Variety reports ‘Daily Show’ Cancels On-The-Ground RNC Plans After Trump Assassination Attempt.

Jon Stewart and the team from “The Daily Show” will be staying close to home during the Republican National Convention.

After planning to cover the event with a satirical lens in host city Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the Comedy Central mainstay canceled its plans Sunday and noted the show would hold forth instead from its usual base in New York City. Monday’s broadcast of the show, typically hosted by Stewart, will not air, and the late-night series will pick up Tuesday through Thursday.

Saturday’s assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump appears to be the issue. A message posted via Instagram and X offered “apologies for the inconvenience,” citing “logistical issues and the evolving situation in Milwaukee” for a “need to reschedule our events on the ground in Wisconsin.” A spokeswoman for the show did not elaborate on the statement.

Thanks to King of Pies on X/Twitter for telling me this. Just the same, darn.

Olympic flame presented to Macron on Bastille Day

Happy Bastille Day, the third patriotic holiday in July I observe on this blog! I begin today's celebration of "Fête Nationale Française" with France 24 English showing Bastille Day parade: Col. Thibault Vallette presents Olympic torch.

France's annual Bastille Day parade wrapped up Sunday with the arrival of the Olympic flame, escorted by riders on horseback, 25 torchbearers, and cadets forming the shapes of the Olympic rings. The main torchbearer is Col. Thibault Vallette, equestrian gold medalist in the 2016 Rio Olympics. Lieutenant-colonel Lucile, Chief operating officer, Land force army command for Europe explains.

I had other plans for today, but saw this story and immediately decided how the Olympics changed the parade to be the theme. That was also the story for France 24 English reporting Bastille Day celebrations: Annual military parade moved due to Olympics.

Thousands of soldiers, sailors, rescuers and medics are marching in Paris Sunday beneath roaring fighter jets to mark Bastille Day. The traditional military parade has however been moved from its traditional route on the Champs Elysees due to preparations to host the Olympic Games, and a smaller military contingent will instead march on the nearby Avenue Foch – one of the most prestigious streets in Paris and one of the most expensive addresses in the world. FRANCE 24’s Sophie Lamotte reports.

At least the parade retained the view of the Arc de Triomphe in the background, even though the participants are marching west by southwest instead of southeast.

France 24 English wrapped up its coverage with French National Day: Bastille Day parade meets Olympic torch relay.

France celebrated military victories of the past at its annual Bastille Day parade Sunday as Paris welcomed the Olympic flame to the city. FRANCE 24's Selina Sykes reports.

Vive la France!

Gold Derby's predictions for Emmy-nominated shows

I closed Colbert, Meyers, and 'The Daily Show' take more closer looks at Project 2025 by writing "I might move up the Sunday entertainment feature to tomorrow because Sunday is Bastille Day." Since the Emmy nominations will be revealed next week, I'm sharing the Gold Derby editors' Emmy nomination predictions for series and TV movies.


Gold Derby's Emmy nomination predictions begin with comedy series, so that's were I begin as well. As of last night, the the top eight comedy series were The Bear, Hacks, Abbott Elementary, Only Murders in the Building, Curb Your Enthusiasm, What We Do in the Shadows, Palm Royale, and Reservation Dogs. The Gentlemen and Colin from Accounts effectively tie for ninth, while one editor each thinks Ghosts and Girls5Eva will earn nominations. The experts agree on the top eight, while the top 24 users think The Gentlemen will knock out Palm Royale. The former may be funnier, but the latter has more star power, which makes me think it has the advantage, at least among the actors.


Gold Derby's next category is drama series, the top eight among the editors consists of Shogun, The Crown, The Morning Show, The Gilded Age, Fallout, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Slow Horses, and The Curse. Shogun moved from limited series to drama series just in time to make the ballot in this category, unseating The Crown as the favorite and knocking 3 Body Problem out of the predicted top eight. The experts and top 24 users agree with the editors' top eight, although the users think Ahsoka will be the series knocked out by the addition of Shogun; they have 3 Body Problem in tenth and Loki in eleventh.


Moving Shogun out of limited series helped Baby Reindeer, which is now favored to win, and Ripley, which is now in fifth by a hair. The rest of the limited series field predicted by Gold Derby's editors, experts, and top 24 users are Fargo, Lessons in Chemistry, and True Detective: Night Country. The editors and experts think Fellow Travelers will be the show that just misses the cutoff, while the users think it will be Masters of the Air.


The Gold Derby editors have a statistical tie for the fifth Emmy nomination in television movies, giving both The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial and Scoop five votes each. The last slot may be even more unsettled, as No One Will Save You has four editor votes. The editors' top four consists of Mr. Monk's Last Case, Red, White and Royal Blue, Quiz Lady, and The Great Lillian Hall. The experts and top 24 users disagree, thinking both The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial and Scoop will make the top five while The Great Lillian Hall won't. This will be another category worth watching.

Follow over the jump for the remaining four show categories.

Colbert, Meyers, and 'The Daily Show' take more closer looks at Project 2025

I telegraphed today's topic to conclude U.S. birth rates resume falling while life expectancy increases for World Population Day 2024.

I promise to return to Project 2025 tomorrow now that I've finished celebrating three holidays over two days. Stay tuned.

I'm revisiting Closer looks at Project 2025 and President Biden post-debate as Meyers, Colbert, and Stewart return from break with more from the late-night talk-show hosts. Time to work the eye!

I begin with Stephen Colbert at his desk explaining Project 2025 Is Trump's Blueprint For A Radical Conservative Takeover Of The U.S. Government.

Donald Trump claims to know nothing about Project 2025 but the truth is that over 200 of his former staffers are laying plans for a far-right takeover of the entire federal bureaucracy should the GOP candidate win in November.

Stephen, tell us what you and your writers really think!

Seth Meyers featured both convicted criminal Hoover Cleveland and the Project 2025 logo in the preview image for Trump Returns to Campaign Trail with Deranged FL Rally, Dems Meet on Biden's Future: A Closer Look even though it's not in the title.

Seth takes a closer look at Trump reappearing on the campaign trail with a deranged speech in Florida while Democrats are predicting doom in November.

It's been a long time since I mentioned Ben Carson AKA Doctor Pyramid here, so thank you, Seth, for giving my readers and me another chance to laugh at him, especially since he's one of the authors of Project 2025. Hoover Cleveland can't run away from Project 2025 the way Doctor Pyramid ran away from the reporter.

The Daily Show also examined Trump's Confusing Project 2025 Response & W.H. Dismisses Biden Neurologist Visit.

Desi Lydic & Jordan Klepper cover Trump’s contradictory tweet about Project 2025, President Biden’s Parkinson’s panic, and Gwyneth Paltrow’s shitty house guest. Michael Kosta also helps Desi & Jordan get to the bottom of all of Biden’s medical house calls.

While I'm glad Desi Lydic and Jordan Klepper made Project 2025 the core of this opening segment, they, like Colbert and Meyers, couldn't resist or avoid the drama around President Biden's candidacy. At least Klepper and the show's writers came up with something useful, "Google Ghislaine Maxwell." Hoover Cleveland wished her well, too.

I conclude with my recycled reaction from MSNBC examines Project 2025, part 5.

"I know nothing about Project 2025" — Convicted criminal Hoover Cleveland is doing his best Sergeant Schultz impression about Project 2025.

That means what John Oliver, MSNBC, and bloggers like me have been doing is working. Good. That encourages me to keep it up. As Tom Sullivan at Digby's Hullabaloo says, Time To Work The Eye.

As for Hoover Cleveland (un)truthing "I have no idea who is behind [Project 2025]," check out MSNBC's list of chapter authors.

All of them have worked for him, so of course he's lying. He's not fooling anyone but himself and his most devoted followers.
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I leave my readers with the following list Digby embedded in Incomplete Cheat Sheet.

As I've written before, yikes! No wonder it's unpopular!

I promise to keep working the eye, but it might not be until Monday, as I might move up the Sunday entertainment feature to tomorrow because Sunday is Bastille Day. I already have plans for the last of three patriotic holidays I celebrate on this blog during July. Stay tuned.