- 'Sup you beautiful bastards.
Welcome back to the "Philip DeFranco Show."
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With that said, buckle up, hit that like button,
otherwise I will punch you in the throat
and let's just jump into it.
You know before we start today,
I'm actually coming back from Texas.
I was at the premier of "Under the Influence"
at South by Southwest.
It's the Casey Neistat documentary about David Dobrik
and I just...
Wow.
I cannot diagnose anyone, but watching this documentary
it's hard not to look at David Dobrik and be like,
"Oh you are a scumbag sociopath.
"You've said what you've said publicly
"but you behind the scenes,
"you still truly see yourself as the victim
"of your controversies."
Right, and so with this, I don't wanna do
like a play-by-play of the movie.
It premiered at South by Southwest.
I don't know if it's been purchased yet.
I don't know when it's gonna be publicly consumable,
but what starts as something that's meant
to kind of showcase the rise of this YouTuber
ends up focusing on the essay, Durte Dom accusations,
as well as the Jeff Wittek crane incident.
So what's really interesting
is a lot of public reaction right now
is kinda just based off of people
sharing their initial reviews of their
like South by Southwest screeners.
And so depending on where you're scrubbing
on the internet, there are places that are like,
"Oh my God, you can tell Casey Neistat
"was never really David Dobrik's friend.
"He was just trying to use him waiting to stab him
"in the back."
And then you got to another comment section
they're like, "Fuck, I knew it.
"Casey is David Dobrik's friend.
"He's really trying to protect David."
Which I will say I don't know what movie
those people fucking watched though, with that, I will say
I understand some of the critiques that I do...
I hope that whoever buys this movie allows Casey
to address for the public release.
And so this is how I'll say it,
one, I think the documentary itself is fantastic.
In my opinion, it is the first and only
documentary involving like the YouTube social media
influencer space that actually still mattered
by the time it was released.
A lot of the times the subject matter of those docs
are no longer relevant in the mainstream or even online.
That is obviously not the case here.
Two, I think this is gonna get really good reviews,
as far as critics, I've only seen really,
really positive, right, but of course,
I'm just talking about mainstream critics there.
Also, that 90% number is not gonna include David stands.
They will protect him from everything.
And three, I think the main critiques you're gonna see
from non-David stands are from people that are very
hyper aware of the David Dobrik situation.
I think some people are gonna take aim at Casey
and say, "Why didn't he focus on more controversies?"
Right, there was more than just the two.
There was the bullying stuff.
There was the racism stuff.
Though Casey actually addressed that during the public Q&A
saying, "Hey, there is a 12 hour version of this movie,
"but to make something, you know
"that's around two hours, that's very consumable.
"We had to focus on two things."
As well as the critique and I feel like
this one's more justified and I hope
that Casey is able to kind of at least provide
like three minutes of update footage.
I think the documentary could benefit from Jeff Wittek's
more recent, more blunt statements
about David Dobrik being a liar.
Like if you just look at the section by itself,
you could be like, "Oh, the documentary kind of left
"it up to the viewer to decide who they believe."
But then you look at the rest of the documentary
and you're like, "Oh no, David just seems
"like a fucking horrible person."
Yeah, that's ultimately where I'll leave it.
'Cause I don't wanna ruin the documentary.
Hopefully this thing gets bought up by like
maybe a Netflix soon so that this can get out
in front of a ton of people.
Also, 'cause unfortunately until then
everyone's like basing their reactions off of something
they haven't seen, but they're hearing even this,
you know, third party.
And then let's talk about the massive updates
around Jussie Smollett or as Dave Chappelle
calls him Juicy Smollett.
With this starting back on Thursday
when a judge sentenced him to 30 months of felony probation
including 150 days in jail, over his five convictions
for staging and lying to police about a hate crime.
On top of that, he has to pay over $120,000
in restitution to the city of Chicago,
as well as a $25,000 fine.
With Judge James Linn saying of Smollett
- You just a charlatan pretending to be a victim
of a hate crime.
And that's shameful.
You knew this was a country that was slowly trying to heal
past injustices and current injustices
and trying to make a better future for each other.
And it was a hard road and you took some scabs
off some healing wounds and you ripped them apart
for one reason, you wanted to make yourself more famous.
And for a while it worked.
- But still with that, as he's been doing this whole time
Jussie defended himself claiming that he was innocent.
- If I did this, then it means that I stuck my fist
in the fears of Black Americans in this country
for over 400 years and the fears of the LGBTQ community.
Your Honor, I respect you and I respect the jury,
but I did not do this and I am not suicidal.
And if anything happens to me when I go in there
I did not do it to myself and you must all know that.
- You also had several statements read during the sentencing
in support of Jussie.
Some of which argued that his race, sexuality
and Jewish heritage could put him at risk in prison.
But Judge Linn said, all of that was taken
into consideration and argued that what Jussie has done
to himself is actually worse than anything
that might lie ahead.
The story then continued into the weekend
because Juicy's brother Jocqui Smollett
posted a video to Jussie's Instagram saying
that the actor is in a psych ward at Cook County Jail.
And adding,
- What's very concerning is that there was a note attached
to his paperwork today and put on the front of his jail cell
saying that he's at risk of self-harm.
I wanna just make it clear to folks
that he is in no way shape or form at risk of self-harm.
And he wants to let folks know that, that he is very stable.
He is very strong.
He is very healthy and ready to take on the challenge
that ultimately has been put up against him.
- You also have his sister and actress Jurnee Smollett
posting a Free Jesse image on her Instagram this weekend,
writing, Black Americans are incarcerated
in state prisons at nearly five times
the rate of white Americans.
Jussie is innocent and you don't have to believe
in his innocence to believe he should free.
As well as his former co-star Taraji P. Henson
sharing that same image and writing,
I am not here to debate you on his innocence,
but we can agree that the punishment does not fit the crime.
Emmett Till was brutally beaten and ultimately murdered
because of a lie and none of the people involved
with his demise spent one day in jail.
And that no one was hurt by what Jussie did and arguing,
to me as an artist not able to create that in itself
is punishment enough.
He can't get a job.
No one in Hollywood will hire him.
And again, as an artist who loves to create that is prison.
My prayer is that he is freed and put on house arrest
and probation because in this case, that would seem fair.
You know, with sharing her words.
I do feel like I need to point out that I think
her argument makes no sense.
Like Emmett Till was a 14 year old boy who was actually
the victim of a hate crime, a horrible murder
that people try to justify with lies.
That feels like an immense disservice to Emmett Till.
Emmett Till is a martyr, a child martyr
and unwilling martyr.
Jussie Smollett tried to fake a hate crime
to be a living martyr.
I don't know what's hard to understand
about when you fake a hate crime,
you make it so much harder for the real victims
that are out there, who are actually out there.
So forgive me if I don't think, oh he is not gonna be able
to book an acting gig as the proper punishment.
But hey, this is the "Philip DeFranco Show,"
I gave you the news.
I gave you a little bit of my reaction to it.
And now I pass the question off to you.
What are your thoughts here?
What are your thoughts regarding anyone
defending Jussie here?
What do you think about his sentencing?
Is it fair, too little, too much any and all thoughts
you got on this, I'd love to know what you're thinking
and why.
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And then of course we need to go through a weekends worth
of updates regarding the war in Ukraine.
So first off Russia has managed to only capture
about two larger cities and installed a puppet mayor
in one of them.
Beyond that, Russia advances seemed to have stalled
with Putin seemingly growing frustrated
over what was supposed to be an easy victory
and sacking generals and intelligence officials.
And their current efforts seem to be centered
around circling Kyiv as well as continuously shelling
other cities.
But at the same time, there's this constant flow
of videos and pictures showing captured
and abandoned Russian vehicles.
As far as casualties go, the UN has confirmed
at least 596 civilian deaths and over 1000 wounded
since the conflict began.
However, UN officials still think that the actual casualties
are considerably higher.
Which makes sense it is difficult to confirm every death
in the middle of a war zone.
As far as those deaths, most of them have been attributed
to weapons that affect wide impact areas which make
their destruction hard to control, right.
You have things like rockets, heavy artillery,
missiles and airstrikes.
As far as military deaths, President Zelenskyy
said on Sunday that at least 1300 Ukrainian soldiers
have died.
Although American military authorities estimate that number
to be 2000 to 4,000.
And those who have died fighting range
from all walks of life from some of Ukraine's
poorest classes to even one of its most famous actors.
And then regarding the Russian side
you have Ukraine claiming the 12,000 Russians
have died so far though, American military authorities
say, "Hey we think that number between 5,000 and 6,000
"that have died."
The war has also led to a huge wave
of refugees with that number down ballooning
to nearly 3 million people with many more expected
to flee especially as Russia begins to heavily target
locations in the relatively peaceful parts
of Western Ukraine.
And that last part has actually led
to some serious worries about the war escalating
into a conflict between NATO and Russia, right?
Russia was targeting places in Western Ukraine
to try and stop supplies coming from places like Poland.
And the issue is that some of the targets are only
like 15 miles away from the Polish border with Russia
claiming that it destroyed a cache of weapons supplied
by the West alongside 180 foreign mercenaries,
which quickly on that note, it's estimated
that nearly 20,000 foreigners with military experience
are fighting for Ukraine now, which is a very big deal
because Ukraine has very little time
to properly train domestic volunteers.
And hey, it is pretty rare for a rocket
or a missile to miss by miles.
But NATO has been very clear that if a single Russian
toe crosses the border, or a single bullet
somehow finds its way across.
Then there is going to be hell to pay.
So Russia is gambling a lot by hitting targets
so close to NATO.
However, in some ways Russia is already at war with NATO.
An economic one, right?
We've known about the sanctions effectively cutting
off Russia from the world economy.
Though even with that, there are some ways
that Russia could escape sanctions things,
you know, like buying stuff through third parties,
such as Israel and China.
But for its part, Israel just announced
that it wouldn't be helping Russia to do that.
And US officials are meeting with Chinese counterparts
in Rome to try and convince them in joining the sanctions.
Also warning that China could face consequences
if it helps Russia dodge the international sanctions.
The economic war may have also taken its turn for the worse,
if your Russia, after oil prices dropped
over the weekend to just over a $100 a barrel
as of this morning, helping the Dow open up
400 points higher.
Though to be clear, commodity prices can be very volatile.
So right now we don't know if this is a temporary thing
or you know the trend is going to continue
around the corner.
But if it is a trend that continues
that would mean that Russia's threat to cut off
other commodities is not as effective as they've hoped.
Then as far as everyday Russian people
they might not even know why their economy is so
in the garbage right now, or at least the real reason.
And I say that because Russia has moved
to ban social media platforms and news sources
that don't spread Russian propaganda.
Facebook and Twitter are already largely cut off
in the nation.
Now Instagram was just banned
cutting off 80 million Russians,
which is a no way surprising as reportedly 80%
of Russian users followed accounts outside of Russia.
On top of the fact that it was widely used
to show dissent from the war including
from Russian oligarchs and their families.
However, it's not just the Russian people being hit
with Russian misinformation.
Here in the US, we've seen the usual suspects
pushing around the claim that the United States
is funding secret bio weapons labs in Ukraine.
Now, very notably here, propaganda is actually
we're spreading this claim as early as the literal first day
that Russia officially invaded Ukraine in an attempt
to justify the move.
And shortly after that the misinformation was then amplified
by infowars and beginning to take hold
in fringe far right conspiracy groups
including COVID-19 conspiracy theorists and QAnon.
But the false claim really began to take hold
after Senator Marco Rubio asked Victoria Nuland
the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs,
whether Ukraine has biological or chemical weapons
during a congressional hearing to which she responded.
"Ukraine has biological research facilities,
"which in fact we are now quite concerned
"Russian troops, Russian forces may be seeking
"to gain control of."
And adding that the US was working with Ukrainians
to prevent them from gaining control
of the research materials.
And some of the key things here are specific words
and specific things that are getting referenced to, right?
The State Department later clarifying
that Nuland was referring to diagnostic
and biodefense laboratories, which not only are different
from biological weapons facilities
they're meant to counter biological threats.
But even Rubio himself, making that same exact distinction
in another hearing on Thursday, noting that quote
"There's a difference between a bioweapons facility
"and one that's doing research."
But despite this a Russian foreign ministry spokesperson
quickly used Nuland's remarks to claim
that the comment was proof of America's illegal
and criminal activity on Ukrainian soil.
A claim that was then spread by numerous conservatives,
including Cucker Tarlson, who echoed the Russian talking
point the same night on his show.
With Russian state TV then featuring Carlson's segment
the next day.
But Carlson wasn't alone here.
We also saw Tulsi Gabbard going on his show
to discuss the matter, suggesting at one point
that there was a possible coverup aimed
at hiding dangerous pathogens in the Ukrainian labs.
But they're also doubling down on those Russian talking
points on Twitter yesterday claiming that there
were US funded Biolabs in Ukraine, which if breached
would release and spread deadly pathogens
to the US or world.
Trump Jr. also tweeting out the conspiracy
to his 7.4 million followers
as did sitting Congressman Thomas Massie.
Though, we did see some pushback, like that from Mitt Romney
who tweeted Tulsi Gabbard is parroting
false Russian propaganda.
Her treasonous lies may well cost lives.
As well as the propaganda began to spread
we quickly saw Ukrainian President Zelenskyy,
the White House, the Pentagon and the State Department
all debunking the claim, noting that like basically
every country on earth Ukraine has public health
laboratories that work to research
and prevent the spread of dangerous diseases.
Some of those labs also received funding from the US,
the EU and the WHO which again is the case
with many other countries, right?
According to a fact sheet released by the DOD on Friday
in 2005, the agency under the Republican George W. Bush
administration, began providing backing for institutions
in Ukraine to quote, "Support peaceful and safe
"biological detection and diagnostic capabilities.
"And to reduce the threats posed by pathogens."
And adding that since then, the US
has invested approximately $200 million
supporting 46 Ukrainian laboratories,
health facilities, and diagnostic sites.
With it going on to note that when Russia declared war,
Ukraine's Ministry of Health ordered the safe
and secure disposal of samples, limiting the danger
of an accidental release of pathogen
should Russia's military attack the laboratory.
So not a coverup, as definitely not a Russian asset,
Tulsi Gabbard has claimed.
But rather a government directive
to ensure that the outbreak she falsely was warning
about does not happen.
Additionally, the same year that the US began this program
the DOD signed an agreement saying "That it would assist
"the health ministry to make sure that the country's lab
"studying disease would not be used
"to make biological weapons."
And beyond that, the assertion that these
US backed labs are somehow secret and hidden
from the public.
It's a total lie.
They are literally part of the biological
threat reduction program and initiative
with the goal of reducing deadly outbreaks.
And the US embassy of Ukraine literally has the information
about them on their website.
But despite all this evidence the misinformation
is still spreading, showing the power of Russian propaganda,
which I mean to a certain degree makes sense.
For years Russia has been planting seeds for this claim
that former Soviet Union nations make biological weapons
at US funded labs.
Despite the fact that experts and journalists
have never found evidence.
But ultimately that is where that story
and today's show ends.
As always thank you for watching, liking, subscribing
for these daily dives into the news.
Also friendly reminder, you only got about
eight hours left to jump in
on the Beautiful Bastard March drops.
So snag it while you can because it's about to go away.
But as always, my name's Philip DeFranco
you've just been filled in.
I love ya'll faces and I'll see you tomorrow.