The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 2.8 WOW! Zendaya Fires Back At Euphoria D.A.R.E Controversy, The OTHER Spotify Scandal, &

Starting point is 00:00:00 Sup, you beautiful bastards! Welcome back to the Philip DeFranco Show, and just quick things. I'm obviously not in my office today, I just couldn't deal with the idea of locking myself in a windowless room to talk about depressing news, but I still wanted to do the show. And two, yes, I am one of those people.

Starting point is 00:00:12 I keep my Christmas tree up for like five months out of the year. Deal with it! You don't really get snow in LA, so I'm swapping quality of Christmas with quantity of Christmas. But with that said, hey, hit that like button to help support some common sense news coverage,

Starting point is 00:00:23 and let's just jump into it. You know, the first thing that we're gonna talk about today is this controversy around Euphoria, and it's actually kind of like an addition to what we've talked about previously. Right, drug abuse resistance education, better known as D.A.R.E., accused the show of glamorizing drug use. And drug use is a big and heavy part of the show, especially when it comes to Zendaya's character, Rue. And as we talked about last time, D.A.R.E. doesn't think HBO and Euphoria handle the subject well. Claiming the show chooses to misguidedly glorify and erroneously depict high school student drug use, addiction, anonymous sex, violence, and other destructive behaviors as common and widespread

Starting point is 00:00:46 in today's world. And saying this HBO-rated R show could have potential negative consequences on school-age children who today face unparalleled risks and mental health challenges, which at that time prompted discussion about what people think the show is trying to do, how it's trying to tell the story of addiction, and if it's doing it well. And the general consensus from you beautiful bastards when we last talked about this was D.A.R.E. needs to shut the fuck up. If anything, it does not glamorize drug use, and if anyone's glamorizing drug use, it's been glamorizing drug use it's been dare in the past but the big news today is that zendaya has now spoken on the topic in an interview with entertainment weekly when they asked her about dare's criticism she said our show is in no way a moral tale to teach people how to live their life

Starting point is 00:01:13 or what they should be doing if anything the feeling behind euphoria or whatever we have always been trying to do with it is to hopefully help people feel a little bit less alone in their experience and their pain and maybe feel like they're not the only one going through or dealing with what they're dealing with with zendaya going on to talk about this week's episode specifically, which, no spoilers, but it does deal heavily with Rue's struggle with addiction, and saying, when it comes to that episode in particular, my biggest hope is that people are able to connect to it and those who need to heal and grow with Rue, hopefully by the end of the season, feel that hope and feel that change in her. I've had a lot of people reach out and find so many

Starting point is 00:01:36 parallels from all ages, all walks of life, so many parallels with Rue and her story, and Rue means a lot to them in a way that I can understand, but also maybe in a way that I could never understand, and that means the most to all of us. And adding that if people can still feel for Rue after this episode, then she hopes that this means that they can be more understanding and empathetic to those dealing with addiction in real life. And if you just scrub through the online reactions to that episode, it does seem like a lot of people kind of resonate with this take, that it's this honest depiction of drug use that in a very real way is scary. With people saying things like, dare said Euphoria glorifies drugs, meanwhile the episode could be

Starting point is 00:02:02 played at an anti-drug seminar. As well as anyone who thinks Euphoria glorifies drugs has never seen an episode of the show and should be forced to watch tonight's episode handcuffed to a chair with their eyelids glued open. And personally, at the risk of repeating myself, I agree with Zendaya here. I mean, I was saying this before, but I agree. I think it is a genuinely insane idea to watch Euphoria and think, hey, they are recommending this behavior. Like some of the stuff in the show, sometimes it's depressing. Sometimes it's just horrific. And I agree with the notion that it really could be an anti-drug PSA. Like who watches Rouge Journey and they're like,

Starting point is 00:02:26 I want to destroy my life like this and alienate all the people around me. But also I'm just one guy, those are my thoughts. And I'll pass the question off to you, whether you agree or disagree, what are your thoughts on this one? And then we just poked out one of Big Brother's eyes and yes, while Big Brother has millions of others,

Starting point is 00:02:39 baby steps. Last year we saw the IRS saying it would start using facial recognition software to verify some people's identities when they log into the website. Now notably here, this program wouldn't apply to everyone who filed their taxes or wanted to check their returns, just people who needed to create online accounts with the IRS to look up records and get information about stimulus payments or child tax credits. Right, you take a video selfie as well as give other information so they can make sure it's really you. And as someone that does my taxes exclusively in the nude, this was already concerning enough.

Starting point is 00:03:00 But to ratchet up the creepiness factor from Joe Goldberg to Hannibal Lecter, they're taking your picture with a third-party service called ID.me, which is a company that specializes in this kind of thing, and they don't just want your beautiful bastard face. People who use the IRS system are also required to upload other personal information, like social security numbers. While the company said it only shares this data with government entities and law enforcement in response to a subpoena or other legal request,

Starting point is 00:03:17 or to prevent fraud, how do we really know that's true? I mean, it wouldn't be the first time a private company with a mountain of incredibly valuable data did something bad. It was essentially just a second ago when Facebook gave data on over 87 million users to Cambridge Analytica and then got slapped with a $5 billion fine for a variety of privacy violations. Not to mention the hacks, leaks, and data breaches that happen all the time, especially now when cybersecurity is such a dire issue. Also, privacy isn't even the only problem, or for some, the most important one.

Starting point is 00:03:38 Studies have found that facial recognition systems, including those used by ID.me, frequently misidentify black and brown faces. And hell, Amazon software even misidentified 28 members of Congress as convicted criminals, six of whom were members of the Congressional Black Caucus. And now the big news is that we're learning that the IRS is slowly transitioning away from ID.me while it develops another verification system that doesn't use facial recognition. And so with that, the change should take around a few weeks and you'll still be able to file your return or pay taxes normally. Well, the agency has come under a ton of fire recently, especially since the story caught traction last month. You have Democrats and

Starting point is 00:04:03 Republicans taking swings at this issue, with Democrats criticizing the agency right up through Monday just before the announcement, with several lawmakers, including Ted Lieu, writing a letter saying millions of Americans use the IRS website annually for a variety of vital functions. And as a result, each of them will be forced to trust a private contractor with some of their most sensitive data. With Lieu adding, I could do banking transactions right now without having to have facial recognition. Why does the IRS need to have facial recognition to allow Americans to simply use their portal? And with that, you had agency commissioner Chuck Reddick saying, the IRS takes taxpayers' privacy and security seriously,

Starting point is 00:04:26 and we understand the concerns that have been raised. But also, while this story is about the IRS, the problem is much bigger than just that one agency. Last year, a government accountability office report found that 18 of the 24 U.S. agencies surveyed are using facial recognition technology in some way. And another report by the same office found that at least 41 states and D.C. use these systems as well. And while there are some state-level restrictions in place, there are literally zero federal regulations for how this data collected by private contractors can be used or shared. And we haven't even mentioned the countless businesses apart from the government that do the same thing. But in the meantime, I just want to say a big thank you to

Starting point is 00:04:52 the IRS, to the government, understanding my need to do my taxes naked. Because at the heart of it, isn't that what really America is all about? But also with this story, I do want to know your thoughts. Do you care or do you not care about the privacy concerns here? And also like really sit and think about it. Because I do believe there are a lot of people that say I care about privacy, but then their actions say otherwise. Like for you, what camp are you in? Is the privacy aspect of this still very important to you? Have you kind of just gotten in your mind that at some point there's really no such thing as privacy anymore? Are you somewhere in the middle? Let me know what you're thinking and why in those comments down below. But from that, I want to take a second

Starting point is 00:05:20 to thank the sponsor of today's show, Squarespace. You know, I've been partnering with Squarespace for years now, and I have to say, if you're getting your business off the ground or creating a place to share your homemade goods, new favorite hobby, current obsession, or even a personal blog to get all those thoughts out of your head, no matter what it is you're doing, Squarespace is there to help. It's so easy, there's nothing to install,

Starting point is 00:05:34 patch, or upgrade ever. And creating a beautiful website with Squarespace's all-in-one platform has never been so simple. It's extremely intuitive and easy to use. With their mobile-optimized websites, your content automatically adjusts so your content looks great on any device.

Starting point is 00:05:43 Plus, with Squarespace, you get access to all their marketing tools and analytics and their award-winning customer care team via email or live chat 24-7. So if you want to check it out, see why so many others have loved it, see if it is right for you, go to squarespace.com slash fill. When you realize you love it, make sure you enter an offer code fill for 10% off your first purchase. And then let's talk about the latest Spotify protest, which actually doesn't deal with Joe Rogan for the most part. And when you say it that way, this is kind of a win for Spotify, but this does relate to how Spotify pays royalties. Because while it's not a new topic, a lot of people

Starting point is 00:06:07 in the industry, a lot of artists say Spotify pays horrible, the specific thing we're talking about today is an indie band called the Pocket Gods and 30 Second Songs, because they're releasing a 1,000 track album that consists of 30 second songs called 1,000 x 30, Nobody Makes Money Anymore. And if you're understandably wondering why the hell would they do that, well, back in 2015, The Independent published an article noting that Spotify only pays out royalties for a song after it plays for 30 seconds. And in a recent interview, Mark Christopher Lee, the frontman of the Pocket God, said, I saw the article and it made me think, why write longer songs when we get paid little enough for just 30 seconds?

Starting point is 00:06:32 And adding, of the thousand songs, each is just a shade over 30 seconds long for the album, with the longest being 36 seconds. And saying it's designed to raise awareness about the campaign for fair royalty rates. So the band basically just doing what members of Congress do every day, wondering, why do more than the bare minimum if it doesn't get more money in my personal pockets? Though with this, Lee notes that he is playing with fire, noting that because of this move, they run the risk of being thrown off the platform. Also, as far as what they actually get paid, according to Lee, the Pocket Gods made just.002 pence per song play on Spotify,

Starting point is 00:06:55 but also adding that rate is even lower than usual, saying we used to get paid.007 pence a play. Still a pence, but it seems to have been cut since Spotify bought the Joe Rogan Experience podcast for 100 million. Though, notably regarding the whole Rogan side of things. They did add Spotify is a great musical resource and it allows indie bands like us to upload our music without record companies. And saying, I also believe in free speech, even though I'm a massive Neil Young fan, so I don't support the boycott. We just want to raise awareness of the royalties issue. So ultimately we'll have to wait and see. Does this move get people's attention?

Starting point is 00:07:17 I mean, outside of us covering it. Will it also push Spotify to address how it pays royalties? I mean, I'm sure they're more than happy to talk about anything else than what they're having to talk about right now. And also it'll be interesting to see if the pocket gods actually get way more money than usual. Like, the way people get paid out has changed how music is. You've noticed that songs recently are much shorter than they used to be. So this is kind of just the most extreme version of that. And then, on the heels of the massively successful theatrical release of Spider-Man No Way Home, there's a big conversation of,

Starting point is 00:07:38 is Hollywood coming back? But also, there's still a lot of anger in the industry regarding hybrid releases. Right, coming out of the lockdowns in 2021, the hybrid release model became very popular. Studios sending their movies to theaters and at the same time going on to streaming services the same day or relatively close. And while it's been great for consumers, it's gotten a ton of backlash from tons of people in the industry. Leading to rifts with talent and producers, right? You had Warner Bros. giving Gal Gadot a $10 million payout after putting Wonder Woman 1984 on HBO Max the same day it hit the big screen. There have also been lawsuits including from Scarlett Johansson who sued Disney for the hybrid release of Black Widow, claiming that it violated her contract and cost the picture some cash.

Starting point is 00:08:07 With that lawsuit getting settled for an undisclosed amount, but it's also not the final lawsuit. And this time around, it's Village Roadshow Entertainment suing Warner Bros. for changing the theatrical release date of The Matrix Resurrections and releasing it on HBO Max the same day. Village Roadshow co-produced the movie, which ended up only making $153 million worldwide so far.

Starting point is 00:08:20 With the producer saying in the suit, WB's sole purpose in moving the release date of The Matrix Resurrections forward was to create a desperately needed wave of year-end HBO Max premium subscriptions from what it knew would be a blockbuster film, despite knowing full well that it would decimate the film's box office revenue and deprive Village Roadshow of any economic upside that WB and its affiliates would enjoy especially as compared to a 2022 exclusive theatrical release, with the suit also bringing up the box office success of Spider-Man No Way Home, which came out roughly the same time

Starting point is 00:08:41 as the Matrix sequel and so far has made $1.7 billion worldwide, with the lawsuit arguing, notably, Spider-Man was not a day-and-date release. Instead, Sony and Marvel released the film exclusively in theaters, as has been the industry's practice for decades. And adding that film's starkly different financial success speaks volumes about WB's day-and-date release strategy. With the suit also saying this isn't just about one movie. And adding there can be no doubt that the abysmal theatrical box office sales figures from the Matrix Resurrections dilute the value of this tentpole franchise as a film's lack of profitability generally prevents studios from investing in additional sequels and derivative films in the near future. Now, in response to the suit, a WB spokesperson released a statement saying,

Starting point is 00:09:09 this is a frivolous attempt by Village Roadshow to avoid their contractual commitment to participate in the related arbitration that we commenced against them last week. We have no doubt that this case will be resolved in our favor. And then, let's talk about some major changes to COVID mask mandates. So yesterday, we saw five states joining in what has been described as one of the biggest rollbacks of statewide health protocols since the pandemic began. But unlike the times we've seen pandemic protections being cut short in the past, all the efforts made yesterday were from Democrats who announced that they would be lifting some restrictions on some masking rules. New Jersey Governor Philip Murphy, who imposed some of the toughest pandemic restrictions, led the wave of

Starting point is 00:09:34 rollbacks, declaring that starting the second week of March, students and school employees will no longer be required to wear face coverings. And that was quickly followed by declarations from four other states. Oregon ending its indoor mask requirement for public spaces and schools at the end of March. Delaware has the same timeline for school mask mandates, but it's lifting its general indoor requirements by the end of this week. And before February is even over, Connecticut is ending its school mask mandate, while California is stopping its statewide indoor requirements. Though there, masks will still be required for the unvaccinated and high-risk settings like schools. Los Angeles County reportedly will be keeping their mask mandate in

Starting point is 00:09:59 place, and other cities in these states will be able to make similar calls if they choose. But, main thing, these moves to eliminate mask mandates in these states come as the number of new reported cases has fallen to its lowest level since Omicron first started spreading back in December, driving record highs. As of yesterday, the daily average of new U.S. cases has plummeted to around 250,000, which is actually its lowest since late December. Average daily hospitalizations have steadily dropped since their peak on January 20th, but at least for now, daily average deaths, which usually lag behind the other COVID figures, has remained the same for the last few weeks, lingering around 2,500 per day. And while it seems like things are finally looking up

Starting point is 00:10:25 after the horrendous Omicron surge, these latest efforts also appear to contradict and even undercut what federal officials are saying. Right, even while all of this is happening, the CDC still recommends universal masking in all schools, although the agency has not said anything about these states' decisions. But that recommendation was also echoed

Starting point is 00:10:38 by Press Secretary Jen Psaki yesterday when asked about the rollback. Our responsibility as the federal government is to rely on the data and the science that is being analyzed by our public health experts and we'll continue to rely on that for what recommendations we're making. So with all this, you have many saying that these latest moves from states emphasize the need for the CDC to update its guidance and improve its communications with state leaders. Which unfortunately flies in the phase of the current strategy, which is the

Starting point is 00:10:58 CDC committing to making things more confusing than ever whenever they can. So for now we'll have to wait and see, but I do want to pass the question off to you, what are your thoughts here? For those of you that have continued to take COVID seriously, does this feel like, hey, there is finally a light at the end of the tunnel? Or have the last two to three years kind of just beaten you down and you're kind of Charlie Brown trying to kick the football and you're like, maybe this time, maybe this time she'll hold it. For me personally, I'll continue with the hope for the best, prepare for the worst strategy. But ultimately, that is where that story and today's show ends. As always, thank you for watching, liking, hitting that

Starting point is 00:11:23 subscribe button to join the family for these daily dives in the news. I love your faces and I'll see you tomorrow.

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The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 2.8 WOW! Zendaya Fires Back At Euphoria D.A.R.E Controversy, The OTHER Spotify Scandal, &

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