- Hasan Piker just got banned
for spreading hate on the internet.
Britney Spears is denying recent reports,
and the internet is furious at TMZ.
Politicians and their families are being targeted
by former candidates at their homes now.
AI art lawsuits are getting huge.
You've got all of that and more on today's
brand new "Philip DeFranco Show."
So buckle up, hit that like button.
Otherwise, I will punch you in the throat.
And let's just jump into it.
Hasan Piker just got banned, and I say, good.
Not really, but please send that clip to him outta context.
That dirty lefty commy capitalist
gettin' banned on TikTok,
with honestly, the most amazing thing about this situation
being about what specific content got him banned.
Because whether you agree or disagree with Hasan's politics,
like at different times in his career
he has said some wild shit.
But apparently what got him banned
is he was talking about how Black Lives Matter on MLK Day.
So the alleged video in question
is the fuckin' most TikTok thing I've ever seen.
For the 0.0 second attention span, you have an ASMR video
with some Subway Surfers and then Hasan
watching and reacting to video
where people are talking about whether
they believe Black lives matter or all lives matter.
And you see a black woman saying
she supports Black Lives Matter.
A white man says all lives matter.
And so Hasan talks about the division
between the two sides of the aisle here.
- The extreme in that situation is one side saying,
correctly, that Black people are disproportionately targeted
by the criminal justice system and sometimes even killed
as a consequence of that disproportionate targeting
and systemic racism.
The other side is denying that reality.
- With Hasan's editor also reposting that TikTok on Twitter,
to which Hasan ended up responding,
"Every time a TikTok of mine goes viral
"I get mass reported and permanently banned.
"Nice system, TikTok,"
with that tweet including what appears to be
a message from TikTok saying that his account
has been permanently banned
over repeated community guidelines violations,
with Hasan saying, "I hope someone at TikTok Support
"can explain to me why my account,
"along with my editor, was banned at the same time.
"We routinely have to deal with mass reports from the right
"and now they're even going after fan accounts."
And for a second it seemed like Hasan was in in luck,
with TikTok support seeing those tweets,
responding, saying, hey give us a DM,
and we'll look into this.
Problem solved, right?
No, because Hasan later posted a screenshot
of his DM exchange with TikTok and that account saying that,
"After speaking directly with our suspension team
"the ban will stay due to hateful behavior.
"We apologize we cannot give you better news,"
with Hasan saying, "LOL TikTok did not ban me for a BLM post
"and claim it's hateful misconduct.
"No way."
Now with all that said, before you go,
hey, this is evidence that TikTok
is tryin' to take down big leftists,
my counter to that is no.
Now, I do believe that people in certain groups
do weaponize the reporting system on TikTok.
That is insanely rampant.
And that is a problem they're gonna have to learn to fix.
But rather what I'm saying is,
I just don't think that there is intent
behind what the people at TikTok are doing.
Because in my experience,
and I've been doin' this for 15 years,
I don't know if I've ever seen a more Wild West,
no one knows what the fuck is going on company,
like TikTok before.
I got a billion views on TikTok last year, with a b,
and I don't even have a low level contact at that company.
And in my experience, unless you have an account
that has millions of followers
and you have their check mark,
like you could just be gone tomorrow.
And even for those with massive audiences
and with check marks, it's not gonna not happen.
It just decreases the likelihood or number of times
something like this is going to happen.
Hell, a thing that's happening with me right now,
one of my secondary TikTok accounts
might actually get shut down this week
because they think I'm impersonating me.
Like they got me actively rooting
for YouTube Shorts' success.
But also, last second update,
and fantastic news for Hasan,
his account has actually just now been reinstated.
So let this be your lesson.
TikTok will get it right,
if you also have a massive audience off platform
that you can then complain to and those posts go viral
and there's a lot of attention
and then people start messaging TikTok,
you know something super accessible
and realistic for most creators. (laughing)
And then, some people have been saying it
for the last 15 years.
- Leave Britney alone.
- And today we've got people shoutin' that once again.
And this because of an alleged incident Britney Spears had
at a restaurant in Woodland Hills, California.
Reportedly she was eating at a restaurant
with her husband Sam Asghari,
and people there apparently were quick
to start taking photos of her,
with TMZ reporting that,
"Eyewitnesses say Britney became manic,
"yelling and talking gibberish.
"Not another language, just unrecognizable speech."
The outlet claiming that Sam ended up storming out,
Britney leaving not too long after.
TMZ also getting video of her there,
which has been circulating all around.
But for what it's worth, though,
the music in the restaurant is very, very loud.
It's hard to hear what she's actually saying,
but so you can try and understand the situation yourself.
Here's the video of the TMZ claims is a manic episode.
(indistinct)
She takes the menu to cover her face.
Kind of a classic celebrity hiding from the cameras move.
She appears to be talking to maybe a waiter,
but you also can't hear what she's saying.
So you had a lot of people
that were responding to this report,
slamming the framing of it.
They are saying TMZ and people like them
are trying to spin this as her being manic
without real proof,
and saying this seems like a setup to make her look crazy,
that the video shows nothing.
Others also saying things like,
"Someone filmed Britney without permission
"in a restaurant and sold the footage to TMZ.
"Have we learned nothing from what this woman
"went through in 2007, 2008?
"She's not just here for your fucking amusement.
"She deserved to be able to go out
"without people gawking and filming."
And actually at this point, both Britney and Sam
have responded about this whole situation.
Britney first posting a video of her dancing
and giving the middle finger,
also writing on Instagram that she was, quote,
"A little drunk at the restaurant,"
and slamming the press were following her every move,
and adding, "I'm so flattered they talk about me
"like a maniac, then have the balls
"to talk about all the negative things
"that happened in my past.
"I know y'all are rooting for me and all,
"and make sure you check out the shocking
"'Shrek' picture of me."
with that, likely referring to this unflattering photo
someone took of her that was spreading around the internet.
Sam also giving a statement to TMZ
where he said he didn't storm outta the restaurant,
saying that he just went out to get the car
so they could get outta there.
Saying that the whole situation didn't go down
like it was reported, that she was just frustrated
that so many people were filming her.
- When you sit down to have a meal
and people get their cameras out
and start filming you and stuff, it's disrespectful.
- I'm saying this is something that comes with fame.
You also had an employee at the restaurant
confirming a lotta this to Page Six, saying,
"The disruptor wasn't Britney.
"It was the diner who taunted her
"by taking a video without consent."
And saying Britney "was just understandably upset."
People were responding to all of this
by further slamming TMZ, saying,
"How odd, some random person at a restaurant
"wasn't able to accurately diagnose Britney Spears
"simply by eavesdropping on her dinner from afar.
"It's almost like you had ulterior motives
"in sharing this completely unsupported
"and false information."
You even have some people going as far as to accuse TMZ
of doctoring the video to make Britney sound less coherent.
But right now, that's just unverified speculation.
Though others adding the criticism
should also be directed at whoever
filmed her in the restaurant.
And personally, I'm on the, yeah, fuck TMZ
and the person that filmed Britney train.
Because here's the deal, I agree with outlets like Cosmo
that have written things like,
"The truth is, none of us know what is happening
"with Britney Spears right now.
"What we do know, however, is that her mental health
"has previously suffered because of
"having her privacy invaded and being hounded by the press.
"So isn't time the likes of TMZ backed off
"and refrained from using words like meltdown."
But also with that, I genuinely don't think TMZ
and places like that are ever going to fuckin' stop.
And why would they?
They went from a day where they weren't gonna have a post,
uh-oh, no news to cover, what to do?
Well, let's report this inconclusive, unsubstantiated thing,
because not only do we get to get that post
and that attention and that monetization,
TMZ is then pressuring the subject
of their unsubstantiated piece to respond
and give them another article to report.
They are creating, out of almost thin air,
their own news cycle.
And that ain't new.
That's been the strategy.
They've just framed it differently over the years
to shield themselves from as much criticism
as they used to do like when they fuckin' livestreamed
Britney Spears having a breakdown.
And then, it's a new year,
but I'm gonna remind you beautiful bastards again,
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The majority of the account hacking happens
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Suppose you've used your usual email address and password
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And then an ex-GOP candidate in New Mexico
was arrested this morning for allegedly
orchestrating drive-by shootings targeting Democrats.
So the man in question is Solomon Peña
who lost an election for a State house seat
by a landslide this fall,
losing by more than 73% of the vote.
And now according to the Albuquerque Police,
Peña was the mastermind behind a conspiracy
where four other men shot multiple rounds
at the homes of two county commissioners
and two state legislatures
from December 4th to early January,
police saying Peña paid the men cash
and sent text messages with addresses
where he wanted them to shoot at the homes.
And allegedly he was even present in the car
at the last shooting, which targeted a state senator
and even attempted to shoot an automatic rifle,
but luckily it malfunctioned.
But also the other man he was with
still successfully shot
more than a dozen rounds from a handgun,
including into the room of the lawmaker's daughter.
And while it seems pretty straightforward with Peña,
authorities say it's currently unclear
if all the hired gunmen
knew that the targets were elected Democrats.
Reportedly the investigation is still ongoing.
Some of those involved
have reportedly already been arrested.
Also, the good news being reported
is that despite so many of these shots
actually making their way into the homes,
no one was injured.
But that also should not distract
from how insane and scary this is.
The only reason this is going to be an even bigger story
with more staying power is because the hired shooters
failed to hurt or kill anyone,
which is why it is such a key thing to take away from this.
As far as as motive for this,
Albuquerque mayor Tim Keller confirmed in a statement that,
"These shootings were indeed politically motivated."
I know, shocking, except to anyone
that's fuckin' paid attention to society
over the last however many years.
With people noting he kinda seemed re-amped up
by Trump's decision recently to announce his 2024 run,
with Peña tweeting at that time,
"Trump just announced for 2024.
"I stand with him.
"I never conceded my HD 14 race.
"Now researching my options."
Which now I guess included
paying people to shoot up Democrats's as homes.
Because as far as why he targeted these specific officials,
a police spokesperson claimed that after the election,
Peña visited the homes of three county commissioners
and one of the state senators that he targeted.
And there he complained about his election loss,
claiming that it was rigged,
and tried to get them to sign paperwork
claiming that there was fraud.
But of course, they all declined,
and the spokesperson said they even got into
quite an argument with one of them.
And adding that the shootings happened shortly after,
which kind of suggests why they were targeted,
which is why with this we saw Mayor Keller
describing Peña as, "A right wing radical
"and an election denier who did the worst imaginable thing
"you can do when you have a political disagreement,
"turn that into violence."
And adding, "This type of radicalism
"is a threat to our nation
"and it has made its way to our doorstep."
And one of the final key things here
is the New York Times explains,
"Mr. Peña's arrest comes amid a recent increase
"in threats and attacks against elected officials
"from both parties,
"and is yet another illustration of the danger
"that elected officials in the United States face
"as violent political speech increasingly crosses the line
"into in-person confrontation."
And it's not like this is outta nowhere.
People have such short-term memories.
Wasn't that long ago where
someone attacked Nancy Pelosi's husband,
even though people tried to turn that into
like some lover's quarrel, random conspiracy bullshit.
And it's all just so fuckin' disheartening and scary
that people don't see people as people.
That has become all teams.
Like you should be able to be like,
what happened with Pelosi
and what happened in this recent shooting,
what happened with Steve Scalise, what, five plus years ago,
all of that is fucking wrong.
We shouldn't minimize or dismiss the violent actions
and rhetoric that we're seeing.
And then the robot revolution is here.
The robots are rising up,
and human beings have responded the way they always do.
Lawsuits.
And specifically when I say the robots
I mean AI tools and companies.
We're seein' all sorts of lawsuits pop up.
You've got instances like three artists
suing Midjourney, Stability AI, and DeviantArt.
This is over their use of Stable Diffusion,
which is an AI art generating tool.
And how easily one of the biggest lawsuits right now
is that Getty Images is suing Stability AI,
who are, and this is a very key thing,
the creators of the Stable Diffusion AI art tool,
with Getty Images suing them in a London court
for allegedly using Getty Images products without a license.
Which you might ask,
well how do they know they're doing that?
Well, it doesn't help that it actually recreates
the Getty Images trademark.
Although the real likely reason is
because Stability Diffusion's data training set
is opensource, meaning that people can actually see
that it relied on Getty Images,
with the Getty Images claiming in a press statement
that the company, "Unlawfully copied and processed
"millions of images protected by copyright
"to train its program,"
with Getty CEO going on to say that the issue at hand
"is Stability AI's use of intellectual property of others,
"absent permission or consideration
"to build a commercial offering
"of their own financial benefit."
And say, "We don't believe this specific deployment
"of Stability's commercial offering
"is covered by fair dealing in the UK
"or fair use in the U.S."
And honestly, this isn't too surprising.
Anyone who has worked in digital media knows
there are two groups you try not to fuck with,
and that is Getty Images and Alamy.
Use one of their stock photos without permission,
and you're likely gonna get slapped
with a copyright claim, even if it's fair use.
And while the full details
of this lawsuit are still private,
when asked what Getty Images wants outta this
the company CEO made it clear
that it wasn't about damages or stopping AI art,
instead saying he wants a new legal status quo.
And adding, "I think there are ways
"of building generative models
"that respect intellectual property.
"I equate this to Napster and Spotify.
"Spotify negotiated
"with intellectual property rights holders,
"labels, and artists to create a service."
And while we wait to see
what courts think about all of this,
as far as the the court of public opinion,
these new lawsuits they bring back to the forefront
the ongoing conversation about whether AI art is theft
or at least partly relies on theft,
which a key thing regarding that,
Stability AI is trying to offer a solution
that might actually work for everyone,
saying now it's allowing artists to opt out
at having their art used as a training model.
And that's actually something that you can verify,
as their data set is opensource.
So of course, you have people saying,
"Well it should just be opt in,"
but for now, in general,
we're gonna have to wait to see what happens
with these lawsuits.
Which, like I said, there are many,
but I think the one that stands out the most is Getty Images
because they have a war chest
and the ability to really put the pressure on them.
And then smoking is now banned
in public places like hotels, beaches, and parks in Mexico.
This ban just went into effect on Sunday,
and coupled with a previous ban on smoking in public
indoor places like restaurants and bars,
that means there is a near complete ban
on smoking outside of private homes.
So some key details, the law is part of
the General Law for Tobacco Control reform,
which notably includes a total ban on the promotion,
advertising, and sponsorship of tobacco products.
We've also covered some other provisions in the past,
things like upcoming restrictions
on the sale of e-cigs and vape.
So this change puts Mexico in a small club of countries
with extremely restrictive smoking laws,
and by far the most strict in the Americas.
And this is gonna affect tons of people.
Mexico has a population of like 129 million,
and about 16% of them smoke.
It's meaningful because you're talking about
tens of millions of people,
but also kind of not that many.
If you compare Mexico to other Latin American nations
such as Bolivia and Chile, their numbers are wild.
Nearly 40% of those populations smoke.
Now, while Mexico's changes have been widely praised,
there are some concerns among citizens
about how effective this is actually gonna be.
It's one of the biggest concerns being
that the law is gonna be widely ignored by corrupt cops
and may not actually curb smoking,
as those who want can still do it at home.
But to that point, I mean, I'm super anti-smoking tobacco,
and I'm even against a ban of smoking cigarettes at home.
But for now, we're gonna have to wait
at least a few years to start seeing
the longer term effects of this ban.
But I do hope it's effective, because I mean smoking,
I don't know if people know this,
it's still the leading cause of preventable diseases
in most countries.
And that brings us to the end of today's show.
Be sure to jump into those comments.
Let me know what you're thinkin' about today's stories.
Also get more news you need to know,
if you missed yesterday's show,
or check out this bonus video.
But that's it, as always, my name's Philip DeFranco,
you've just been filled in.
I love yo faces and I'll see you tomorrow.