The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 12.2 Olivia Jade's hi again BACKLASH, Gabrielle Union AGT Controversy, & Hong Kong

Episode Date: December 2, 2019

Go to http://www.MVMT.CC/DeFranco and get up to 30% off for Cyber Monday! Sale ended? No worries. Use link for 15% off + FREE SHIPPING! ALSO Use code “BFCM40” for 40% off http://ShopDeFranco.com merch AND/OR code “BB30” for 30% at http://BeautifulBastard.com Check out the latest A Conversation With MKBHD: https://youtu.be/aUdCojP0yDc Follow On The Podcast Platform Of Your Choice: http://Anchor.fm/aConversationWith Check out the latest Rogue Rocket Deep Dive: https://youtu.be/M863Omk4h9U   ✩ FOLLOW ME ✩ ✭ TWITTER: http://Twitter.com/PhillyD ✭ FACEBOOK: http://facebook.com/DeFrancoNation ✭ INSTAGRAM: https://instagram.com/phillydefranco/   ✩ SUPPORT THE SHOW ✩ ✭Buy Merch: http://ShopDeFranco.com ✭Lemme Touch Your Hair: http://BeautifulBastard.com ✭Paid Subscription: http://DeFrancoElite.com   ✩ TODAY IN AWESOME ✩ ✭ Check out https://phil.chrono.gg/ for 79% OFF “DISTRAINT Combo Package” only available until 9 AM! ✭ RETRO TECH: CAMCORDER: https://youtu.be/kMtN9KJHn5Y ✭ Curb Your Enthusiasm: Season 10 | Official Teaser | HBO: https://youtu.be/ViCeyLHhnrk ✭ Carly Rae Jepsen: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert:  https://youtu.be/NGsgb8m0Yns ✭ ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD – Production Design Vignette: https://youtu.be/Xmp1c5G7cAU ✭ Big Bird Takes a Lie Detector Test: https://youtu.be/KXsRrXvqRro ✭ JUST MERCY – Main Trailer: https://youtu.be/dVJxMUqCUxs ✭ 10 Things Mariah Carey Can't Live Without: https://youtu.be/IXfwJCc9cxc ✭ Secret Link: https://youtu.be/PZHZgrrf9ak   ✩ TODAY’S STORIES ✩ Baby Yoda is More Popular Than 2020 Candidates: https://www.axios.com/baby-yoda-2020-democrats-michael-bloomberg-deval-patrick-b3bf5f78-436a-42a5-8904-7c33ac15b85c.html Pete Davidson Asks Crowd to Sign NDA: https://roguerocket.com/2019/12/02/pete-davidson-nda/ Oliva Jade Returns to YouTube: https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/olivia-jades-return-to-youtube-met-with-mixed-reactions-on-social-media-you-should-have-stayed-gone SAG Investigates Gabrielle Union Controversy: https://roguerocket.com/2019/12/02/gabrielle-union-sag-probe/ China Retaliates Against U.S. As Hong Kong Protests Continue: https://roguerocket.com/2019/12/02/china-sanctions-us-hong-kong-bill/   ✩ MORE NEWS NOT IN TODAY’S SHOW ✩ Utah Teacher Fired: https://twitter.com/TheRogueRocket/status/1201607225581723648?s=20  ———————————— Edited by: James Girardier, Julie Goldberg Produced by: Amanda Morones Art Director: Brian Borst Writing/Research: Philip DeFranco, Lili Stenn, Maddie Crichton, Cory Ray, Neena Pesqueda ———————————— #DeFranco #OliviaJade #BabyYoda ———————————— Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sup you beautiful bastards, hope you have a fantastic Monday. Welcome back to the Philip DeFranco Show and some things to knock out here at the beginning. One, I missed you guys last week. Of course, I took that one week Thanksgiving vacation, which was actually amazing. I got to spend time with my family, really enjoy my children 99% of the time.

The other 1% of the time was when my two-year-old Carter decided he was going to scream and go completely limp on a public bus, which resulted in this picture where we temporarily gave up. Also, no idea how he was going to scream and go completely limp on a public bus, which resulted in this picture where we temporarily gave up also no idea how he was the one rolling around on a public bus and I was the one that got sick. Although that might be connected to the first update.

Yesterday, I turned 34 years old. Thank you to everyone that sent me birthday wishes yesterday. It made me feel like less of an internet fossil. Then update number two, if you're looking for more to watch after today's show, we put out a fantastic new podcast with Marques Brownlee, AKA MKBHD over at youtube.com slash a convo with. It was a really fun, fantastic time.

Check that out after today's show. And then finally update three, we have some in-house Cyber Monday deals. First up here, if you've ever wanted to snag something from shopdefranco.com, the shirts, the socks, the button ups, the whatever. For the next 24 hours, you can take advantage of our deepest site-wide sale ever

if you use code BFCM40 for 40% off your order. And then secondly, for those that wanted to snag something from beautifulbash.com, right where I sell my pomades, my beard oils, hell, my candles, my lip balm. For the next 24 hours, if you use code BB30, you'll get 30% off your order as long as it's not a subscription. And with all of that said, buckle up,

hit that like button, otherwise it will punch you in the throat and let's just jump into it. And the first things we're gonna talk about today are some of the kind of more quickie pieces of news. One, funny enough, I've had a number of people send me this article titled, "'Why Baby Yoda Should Scare Michael Bloomberg "'and Deval Patrick'."

An article that notes that Baby Yoda's introduction coincided with both Bloomberg and Patrick announcing their bids. According to data from Newswhip provided to Axios, Baby Yoda, the juggernaut character from Disney Plus' Star Wars series, The Mandalorian, is driving almost twice as many average social media interactions on news stories about it as any 2020 Democrat.

And a few things I'll say regarding this. One, everyone trying to be president in 2020 should just be so thankful that Baby Yoda could not actually run. I feel like there's a 70% chance we could live out the real life version of the Waldo moment from Black Mirror. But also too, I think it speaks to the power of memes. Right, I mean that passages, you know,

Baby Yoda is this non-offensive, cute, adorable, relatable, me when I'm memeable thing that everyone can get behind. Right, Baby Yoda doesn't have to have an opinion on abortion, gun control, immigration, capital punishment. But also, hell, for political candidates, I mean, you look at President Donald Trump, easily his biggest post on Twitter was this photo, which resulted in the post just getting massive traffic.

There were whole articles written about the thing. It's quick, it's easy to share, it can serve a number of purposes. Whether it be something like this or that photo that just looks so strange of Joe Biden biting his wife's finger. Although regarding that picture specifically, I know there are gonna be a number of people

saying the photo looks super weird, the video is kind of more cutesy, although it still feels a little odd that Joe Biden's solution was like, I'm gonna put some fingies in my mouth. The main point, if you're running for president right now, you need to hire a memer, a shit poster, because memes are hyper powerful unless it comes off lame.

If they're lame, you enter Pokemon Go to the polls territory. Then in the state of comedy is in a kind of weird place news. We're now seeing reports that Pete Davidson is requiring fans to sign not only an NDA when they go to see him perform, but also reportedly in this contract, it states that if it is violated,

that person will have to pay $1 million. And at first, when I saw these reports, I was like, oh, you know, it must be like something to stop people from filming him during a set. Right, comedians are working on material. Ultimately, they're gonna try and sell that whole set. But according to a photo of the alleged contract, it states, in short, by signing this agreement,

you are agreeing not to discuss any details of the show you are about to watch or your experiences at this event, period. This includes blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and any slash all other social media or online outlets. And stating that audience members shall not give any interviews, offer any opinions or critiques.

Now, as I'm recording this video, it doesn't appear that Pete Davidson has commented on this. With that said, I'm very fascinated to see what happens from here. With this, there's of course the question of, well, how enforceable is the document? Is it something that Davidson or whoever would actually follow through with?

Right, because I personally believe that if this is real, right, it's not just kind of a setup for a joke of some kind, that there would likely be a number of lawyers that would take on cases pro bono. But I also can't even imagine just what horrible PR it would be to see Pete Davidson sue's person for $1 million because they tweeted they didn't like his set.

Right, to use a medical term here, you would come off like a bitch baby douche bag. Right, even if some of your frustrations are understandable, like that you don't wanna have to deal with people that are going to your show specifically so they can write outrage pieces after it when you're kind of trying to work on material. Yeah, ultimately we'll have to wait and see there.

We then also had an interesting quickie update regarding the college admissions scandal. Right, and in this scandal that involved a number of celebrities, rich people, top American universities, one of the main fixtures has been Lori Loughlin and her daughter, Olivia Jade. In part, you know, because Lori Loughlin is a celebrity,

she was Aunt Becky, but also because she pleaded not guilty. Whereas a number of the other parents who were indicted took plea deals. And the fact that Olivia Jade was both the benefactor of this scandal, right, getting into the university, as well as being a massive influencer in her own right. Also, there's that really viral clip where she talks about not really caring about college.

I don't know how much of school I'm gonna attend, but I'm gonna go in and talk to my deans and everyone and hope that I can try and balance it all. But I do want the experience of like game days, partying. I don't really care about school. And also later when she put up that post where she was giving outlets covering the story of like game days, partying. I don't really care about school. And also later when she put up that post where she was giving outlets covering the story of the middle finger.

Right, main point being there were a number of reasons why there was a focus here. And the update regarding this focus is actually that of Olivia Jade who has returned to YouTube. Putting out a video called, Hi Again. As of recording this video, it has 1.58 million views. It's number one trending on YouTube. And inside this video, there's actually not a ton of substance.

It's relatively quick. She states that she's missed putting out content. Regarding the college admissions scandal, she says that legally, she can't really say anything right now. Just says she hopes people enjoy the future vlogs and adding, I'll see you soon. And as far as public reception, right?

If you look at the video now, you could say that the reaction is mixed, right? 78,000 likes, 48,000 dislikes. Quickly looking at the top comments, almost all of them are negative, but that also only paints part of the picture. And I say that because before this video blew up, before it popped up on trending,

before all these people that were not fans of Olivia Jade found out about the video, the number of likes to dislikes was heavily, heavily in the favor of likes. And so as far as her core audience here, it doesn't appear that she's actually that damaged. Will it hurt her outside of her bubble, right? Future brand deals, opportunities, stuff like that?

Maybe. That said, it will be interesting to see how things move forward, right? Is Olivia Jade going to start up this vlog while her mom is still facing charges? Also, will we learn more specifics regarding Olivia Jade's involvement? Because I think when it comes to the number

of people supporting her, it appears to be from one of two places. One, people believing that she's kind of just the victim in this, her parents did this, she was unaware. Or two, people in the camp of, you know, sometimes people just make mistakes. Right, young girl did wrong thing, possibly just followed the parents.

But regarding that first thing, I mean, there is the question of, well, how involved was she? And I say that because in the legal complaint regarding Laughlin, it noted that there was an email that Laughlin was on that specifically requested a photograph of Olivia Jade rowing. This so they could help her get into USC by falsely claiming that she rowed crew.

And they specifically reference an ergometer, an ERG, an indoor rower. And then reportedly several days later, they emailed back a photograph of Olivia Jade on one. Right, so there's this question of, well, okay, so did Olivia Jade know what that was for? Did they trick her? Also according to reports, later in 2017,

a guidance counselor at Olivia Jade's elite all girls Catholic high school asked her about being a USC crew team recruit. Right, but for now we have what we have and we'll wait to see what else comes out. Whether it be something that comes out from the case or something after maybe from Olivia Jade. And then let's talk about this controversy

surrounding NBC and Gabrielle Union. And the story actually started last week when it was reported that Gabrielle Union and Julianne Hough, who had recently finished their first season as judges on America's Got Talent, were not being brought back to be on the next season. And then the next day we saw Variety reporting that Union had actually been very vocal

about issues on the show's set and had urged people to report things to HR. This reportedly including things like a joke made by Jay Leno, who was a guest judge on one episode. Four people telling Variety that while taping, he pointed to a photo of Simon Cowell surrounded by his dogs and said that it looked like something on the menu at a Korean restaurant.

Some of the workers there reportedly found this joke to be offensive to Asian cultures. Following that, Union allegedly encouraged producers and an NBC executive to report the joke to human resources, but nothing ever came of it, although the joke never made its way into the episode. But also, this wasn't the only instance where Union found the culture of the show

to be discriminatory. During an audition taping, while a white contestant was impersonating celebrities, he was reportedly doing rapid costume changes. And when he appeared as Beyonce, it was said that his hands appeared black. This again prompted Union to speak to producers, this time telling them the contestant

should be removed from the lineup. But producers went forward with it, telling Union what was reportedly a common phrase on set, "'We'll take it out later.'" Ultimately, the contestant did end up going on stage, though his audition did not make it to TV once again. Variety's report also said that Union and Hough, the only two women on the judges panel,

received excessive notes about their appearances, like their hair and their makeup, with Union specifically saying that she was told half a dozen times that her rotating hairstyles were, quote, too black for America's Got Talent's audience. Regarding this, though, one executive denied the volume of notes, also saying that the hair continuity was a note for both Union and Hough.

Also, at this time, Hough, who has a few more projects at NBC coming out soon, released a statement where she only spoke positively about America's Got Talent, saying she quote, loved working with the cast, crew and producers, adding, "'I am happy to continue my working relationship with NBC. "'I'm looking forward to what the future holds.'" Following this, we then later saw a second report

from Vulture coming out with more instances. Reportedly, you had Union complaining about Simon Cowell, who's a producer and judge on the show, specifically that he was smoking inside the theater that they taped in and there were no real walls, just curtains, and she's allergic to cigarette smoke. Right, so there was that allergy, and also California law prevents an employer

from allowing indoor smoking. When she told staff about the problem, people had complained about this before, but no one had ever stopped Cowell from smoking inside, this including a fire marshal and NBC executives. Vulture also reporting that producers were irritated by Union asking contestants who were competing in drag for their preferred pronouns, and adding that in a meeting

with producers when discussing a contestant who was a 10-year-old black rapper, Union was told that the show needed to pick an act that quote, "'America can get behind.'" With producers saying that the act could be a white dance troupe from Texas. And so Union quote, felt producers were implying that American audiences couldn't get behind

a 10-year-old black rapper, a viewpoint she felt was racist. Also reportedly after Union was working on the show for two months, Cowell sat her down and said that if she had any concerns, she should bring them up with him and not NBC execs, which Union thought was odd and looked like he was trying to cover things up. With Vulture's report also going on to include sources who said that she was let go from the show

for being quote, difficult. Though regarding this, in Variety's report, NBC said quote, "'America's Got Talent' has a long history "'of inclusivity and diversity in both our talent "'and the acts championed by the show. "'The judging and host lineup has been regularly refreshed "'over the years and that is one of the reasons "'for AGT's enduring popularity.

"'NBC and the producers take any issues on set seriously.'" Now, with all that said, of course, you still had a lot of people standing up for union, calling out NBC online. Or you had people like Ellen Pompeo saying, "'It's unfortunate that NBC, the same network "'that protected disgusting men like Matt Lauer "'and punished women for speaking out

"'or not putting up with it, "'has not changed their practices or culture. "'I support Gabrielle Union's commitment "'to speaking up to injustice. "'It takes courage.'" Ariana Grande sharing some of Pompeo's remarks and telling NBC to be better. Jamila Jamil tweeting,

"'I am lucky to work with really good people at NBC NBC and am sad and angry to know this has been going on in that same network. I stand with Gabrielle Union all the way. They should bring her back with a big raise and remove Simon Cowell instead. And all of that then brings us to the developments we saw in the last 24 hours. NBC releasing a statement saying,

we remain committed to ensuring a respectful workplace for all employees and take very seriously any questions about workplace culture. We are working with Ms. Union through her representatives to hear more about her concerns, following which we will take whatever next steps may be appropriate. But shortly after that, we saw Union share a tweet

about how to apologize correctly. That reading, a solid apology comes in three parts. One, sincerely admit wrongdoing directly to the offended party. Two, be twice as loud correcting your mistake as you were making the mistake. And three, lay out steps to correct your behavior in the future.

Anything less is covering your own ass. Following that, later in the night, we saw SAG-AFTRA, which is the Screen Actors Guild, a labor union that represents actors and other on-screen talent, saying they would investigate the situation. But as far as results, there really aren't any, and reportedly the investigation is very early stages.

And then finally, the latest and possibly most notable reaction to this whole situation came today from Howard Stern and appeared He took a swing at Simon Cowell regarding the treatment of the female host reportedly saying on his show How is it that Simon Cowell has orchestrated this he sets it up that the men stay no matter how ugly they are matter how old They are no matter how fat they are no matter matter how fat they are, no matter how talentless they are. And then reportedly adding, "'It's obvious that AGT continuously switches out "'female judges for, quote, hotter chicks and younger chicks.'" Right, and that was a standout reaction because Howard Stern himself was one of the judges

from 2012 to 2015. Although Howard Stern also hit on the Jay Leno joke situation, with Stern reportedly advising, "'Use them to let Leno live in peace.'" And adding, "'Let's Go On Record' is telling people "'that one million dogs are still eaten annually

"'in South Korea and if Gabrielle Union "'wants to effect positive change, "'maybe focus on the horrors of Korean dog farms "'and let the old irrelevant comic live in peace.'" But ultimately, that's where we are with this story right now. It'll be interesting to see what develops if more comes out.

Until then, of course, I'd love to know your thoughts on this. Do you see this as an example of someone who was fired because they tried to speak up? Or do you think maybe it's kind of more general sexism, kind of like what Howard Stern was hitting on? Or do you see this as NBC wasn't actually in the wrong here? Any and all thoughts, I'd love to see

in those comments down below. Why, why not? And then let's talk about this huge news that involves China, Hong Kong, and the United States. So yesterday in Hong Kong, thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in a fresh round of protests. This after the protesters had generally been laying low for the last week, give or take.

And like we've seen many times before in Hong Kong, the protests started out largely peaceful and then ended in clashes between demonstrators and police later in the day. Police reportedly firing tear gas and pepper spray at protesters with the police claiming that they were responding to demonstrators who threw bricks and smoke bombs.

And as the clashes escalated, protesters reportedly built barricades and vandalized shops that they perceived to be Beijing friendly. Meanwhile, the police continued to use tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the demonstrators. And when you hear that, you probably think, okay, well this sounds kind of like what we've seen again

and again in Hong Kong for nearly six months now. But yesterday's demonstrations were actually very different. And that's because these demonstrations followed two massive victories that the pro-democracy protesters got in the last week or so. The first major victory for the protesters came last Sunday when a record number in Hong Kong turned out

and voted for a record number of pro-democracy candidates in the local elections. According to reports, 71% of eligible voters went to the polls, making it the highest voter turnout since Hong Kong began holding district council elections back in 1999. And as a result, in this election, where there were 452 seats up for grabs,

pro-democracy candidates went from holding just 124 seats to winning 389, giving them more seats than they've ever won before. Meanwhile, the government's allies went from holding 300 seats to winning only 58 seats. So this was a massive deal, an election that was widely viewed as a referendum on both the protests and the government's response to them.

Now, that said, even though the results seem to show widespread support for the pro-democracy movement, it's also unclear how far that support will take the movement. And that's because the district council seats themselves don't have all that much power in Hong Kong's political system. This despite the fact that district councils

are some of the most democratic bodies in Hong Kong with nearly all of the council seats being chosen through direct election. By comparison, only about half of Hong Kong's powerful legislative council is directly elected. Even Hong Kong's chief executive, which right now is Carrie Lam, is also not chosen directly by the voters,

but rather by a committee that is stacked in favor of Beijing. But also, notably here, the results of last week's election will still give the pro-democracy forces more influence on that committee. Although it's not scheduled to choose a new chief executive until 2022. Now regarding the election results the day after,

Lam herself responded, saying in a statement, many have pointed out that the results reflect the public's dissatisfaction with the social situation and deep seated problems. And adding that the government would listen to the views of the public with an open mind and seriously reflect on them.

But also according to reports, Lam has not made any efforts to work with the protesters or address their demands since the election, which a number of experts believe is the reason that pro-democracy activists have started up their protests again. Right, but still all of that was seen as the first victory. a number of experts believe is the reason that pro-democracy activists have started up their protests again. Right, but still, all of that was seen as the first victory, and then of course, the second victory

is something that came on Wednesday when President Trump officially signed two bills known as the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act into law. And among other things, the act requires the State Department to review Hong Kong's special trade status with the US each year. And perhaps most significantly,

it also authorizes the United States to impose sanctions on Hong Kong for human rights abuses. Now Trump had initially been hesitant to sign the bill, saying in an interview that he both supported the protesters but also that Chinese President Xi was a friend. Also arguing that it could hurt the ongoing trade deal negotiations with China. But regarding the choice,

there are a number of Republicans that pointed out that both of these bills passed with veto-proof majorities in both chambers of Congress and said that they would override his veto. But ultimately when Trump did sign these bills, he said in a statement, "'I signed these bills out of respect for President Xi, "'China, and the people of Hong Kong.

"'They are being enacted in the hope that leaders "'and representatives of China and Hong Kong "'will be able to amicably settle their differences, "'leading to long-term peace and prosperity for all.'" China responded by saying, "'That's cool, we get it.'" I'm kidding, of course that didn't happen. China responded by condemning the bills, with China's foreign ministry, that's cool, we get it. I'm kidding, of course that didn't happen. China responded by condemning the bills

with China's foreign ministry saying in a statement, "'This is a severe interference in Hong Kong affairs, "'which are China's internal affairs. "'It is also in serious violation of international law "'and basic norms governing international relations.'" And later adding, "'We urge the US to not continue going down the wrong path "'or China will take countermeasures

"'and the US must bear all consequences. But right, this whole situation resulted in seeing in yesterday's protests a number of people in Hong Kong cheering and celebrating Trump's decision. With protesters even reportedly gathering at a separate event on Sunday called the Gratitude to USA March. And there, protesters were seen waving American flags

and holding signs that said, "'President Trump, please liberate Hong Kong,' and, "'President Trump, let's make Hong Kong great again.'" And all of that, of course, seemed to make China even angrier. In fact, just today we saw China's foreign ministry announced that it was suspending US worship visits to Hong Kong with a ministry spokesperson saying

this was in response to the unreasonable behavior of the US side. The spokeswoman also saying that China would be imposing sanctions on several US based NGOs, including the National Endowment for Democracy, Human Rights Watch and Freedom House, which she also accused of supporting anti-China forces in creating chaos in Hong Kong and encouraged them

to engage in extreme violent criminal acts. Even adding, they have a large responsibility for the chaos in Hong Kong and deserve to be sanctioned and pay the price. Yeah, ultimately that is where we are as of recording this video. As far as what's next, I mean, you have many experts saying these new sanctions won't actually have a big effect

on the United States, right? Some saying that they're largely symbolic and show that China wants to actually move ahead with a trade deal But also we saw last night Axios reporting that according to a source close to US President Donald Trump's negotiating team a trade deal between The United States and China was now stalled because of Hong Kong legislation But ultimately that is where we are with the story It's gonna be interesting to see what this does to US-China relations, the trade deal, what happens in Hong Kong itself. And that is where I'm going to end today's show. And hey, if you liked today's video, be sure to share it.

Also, if you're new here, be sure to subscribe. Definitely tap that bell to turn on notifications. Also, if you're looking for more to watch, you can check out that brand new podcast I did with Marques Brownlee or our latest Rogue Rocket Deep Dive. You can click or tap right there to watch either of those. But with that said, of course, as always, my name's Philip DeFranco.

You've just been filled in. I love yo faces and I'll see you tomorrow.