The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 4.6 "IMPEACH HIM!" Bombshell Clarence Thomas GOP Ties Leaked, Ariana & Kim K Deepfake Drama EXPOSED &

Starting point is 00:00:00 Sup you beautiful bastards, it's today again, so let's jump into the news. Starting with, what the actual fuck news? Let's talk about this guy in India who sent his ex-girlfriend a wedding present. With a woman's new husband and his brother opening gifts a few days after their ceremony. It turns out the ex sent them a new sound system, so they're like, oh wow, that's great. They set it up, they plug it in, and then it blows up. With an explosion so powerful, it caused the walls to cave and the roof to collapse, killing the groom and his brother and injuring four others.

Starting point is 00:00:25 With it turning out that the ex-boyfriend had rigged the sound system with a bomb because he was angry about the marriage. And this after the bride had repeatedly refused to marry him following their breakup. And it turns out this jealous psychopath, according to the police, the woman ended the relationship with him when she discovered that he was already married with two kids. With the murderous ex now arrested and currently facing a different kind of lifelong commitment, prison. In entertainment news, we're kind of living in the wild west when it comes to development and use of deepfake and

Starting point is 00:00:48 AI technology. Celebrity deepfakes are popping up everywhere, whether it be meme-y TikTok shit, or I mean there's actually a show in the UK called Deepfake Neighbor Wars, which is a sketch comedy version of Neighbor Wars featuring deepfakes of celebrities. And it's used big names, putting Idris Elba in a feud with Kim Kardashian, turning Nicki Minaj and Tom Holland into a married couple, using the likes of Ariana Grande and Conor McGregor to start some drama. And while that's obviously a comedic use, to the deepfakes there are far more sinister uses out there, which we've talked about on the show before.

Starting point is 00:01:14 And so with all this, we're seeing people like Tom Graham, CEO of the AI company Metaphysic, trying to see if we can have some control over how our likeness is used in deepfakes. With him actually submitting a copyright registration for his own AI likeness to the U.S. Copyright Office, with Graham saying in a press release, Generative AI can create content that looks and feels real, and regular people's avatars can be inserted into content by third parties without their consent. This is not right, and we should never lose control over our identity, privacy, or biometric data. I hope that the copyright

Starting point is 00:01:39 registration of the photorealistic AI-generated version of myself will increase my ability to take action against unauthorized AI impersonations of myself in the future. And adding that he believes that the current laws actually support this, and we should fight to make sure that future laws ensure these rights. But there are questions regarding whether or not this strategy will work, and if his application will be approved. Right in order to file for copyright of his AI likeness, Graham recorded a video of himself on his phone to capture his face, voice, and biometric data, and then used metaphysics to create an AI avatar of himself. With the press release saying that Graham put a lot of effort into creating and curating the training dataset and working with a team of metaphysic to hone in on the AI look that he wanted.

Starting point is 00:02:11 But, according to The Hollywood Reporter, copyright laws don't protect works created by machine alone, with many courts having ruled that the work must be made by a human. So, an application containing AI-generated material can support a claim only if it satisfies a requirement that a human contributed to most of the work. And even though Graham told the outlet that there's a large degree of man-made work and human effort involved in this process, legal experts still question whether it's enough, with one IP lawyer telling The Hollywood Reporter that she's skeptical about the case and explaining, to the extent that there was extensive training for the AI tool to work and create an output,

Starting point is 00:02:38 that won't get you over the hump. With the outlet continuing to say that all these complications highlight the lack of protection against the illicit dissemination of videos and photos in which a person's likeness is duplicated through AI. Right, because like I mentioned, we are in the wild west of it all. You name a celebrity, there's a deepfake of them, whether they okayed it or not. In fact, Graham himself has gotten attention for making many of those viral deepfakes that you may have seen of Tom Cruise. And so Metaphysic has maintained that this copyright process is important in claiming it provides a framework for how other individuals and public figures can take steps to protect their identities,

Starting point is 00:03:05 performances, and brands. But for now, we're gonna have to wait to see what actually happens, and you, just make sure you're subscribed so I can keep you in the loop. And then, NPR is state propaganda, or that appears to be what Elon Musk at least wants you to believe. Right, so earlier this week, NPR was slapped with a state- affiliated media label tag, which at first seemed like it might make sense. You know, it was initially set up by Congress and outlets outside of the U.S. that are explicitly linked to their governments have similar tags like Russia Today. We can also look at Twitter's exact definition, which reads, State-affiliated media is defined as outlets where the state exercises control over editorial content through financial resources, direct or indirect political pressures, and or control

Starting point is 00:03:38 over production and distribution. With Musk even linking to this policy and adding, seems accurate, but when you actually look deeper, it doesn't appear to tell the whole story, and it feels like a case of selective enforcement. So first off, NPR's editorial decisions are not dictated by law or federal agencies. The only influence that the government can seemingly have is through funding, and that gets complicated. NPR will proudly point out that less than 1% of its revenue is directly from the feds. But some might rightfully point out that that 1% figure is slightly misleading.

Starting point is 00:04:03 Because as NPR points out, one of the largest portions of NPR's revenue comes from dues and fees by our member stations. And those stations are partially funded by taxpayers, with about 13% of their money coming from governments and the CPB, which is a federal organization set up to promote public broadcasting. So, indirectly, NPR is getting even more federal money. But, even with that, the total amount of federal funding still isn't that much. If 39% of NPR's money comes from membership fees and those local stations get 13% of their funding from the CPB, federal and local governments, then only about 5% of NPR's total revenue is indirectly from governments. But even with both direct and indirect federal money being considered, this feels like a targeted attack

Starting point is 00:04:37 because there are state-backed outlets out there that do not have this tag despite getting way more direct funding. For example, both Radio Free Europe and Asia, which are supposed to give independent news to repressed countries, get way more money directly from the US government. And the same goes for outside the United States, with the BBC lacking such a tag despite the fact that the vast majority of its funding comes from required tax on British TVs. And according to Twitter, they're exempt from this policy because they have, quote, editorial independence, which if the BBC does, then so does NPR. And ironically, that passage is the one right after what Musk linked to justify his decision to label NPR. And normally, all this would be a much bigger deal, because Twitter puts a fat-ass label on results from state-affiliated outlets that says,

Starting point is 00:05:12 stay informed, and warns about the outlet's links to governments. With that policy being around since 2020, and it's supposed to limit the reach of outlets like Russia Today and the Global Times. However, just as this news about NPR came out, there was also another breaking story that Twitter apparently is just ignoring its own policy. With now these outlets and their links lacking the warning label and only having the small state-affiliated media. So taken all together, it kind of feels like this petty move by Musk and falls in line with a long history of conservatives trying to target NPR. And then, did you know that two out of three guys will experience some form of male pattern baldness by the time they're 35? And maybe you have that friend or that family member that's

Starting point is 00:05:41 dealing with hair loss. And well, thanks to the sponsor today's show keeps, you don't have to just sit around and wait for that to happen to you. Because whether you're looking to prevent hair loss, stimulate hair growth, or just keep better care of the hair that you have, Keeps has you covered. Keeps helps you stop hair loss before it's too late with a scientific and affordable approach to treatments that are up to 90% effective at reducing and stopping further hair loss. And in addition to clinically proven treatments, Keeps is an award-winning all-natural thickening shampoo and conditioner system. And you can get these products delivered directly to your door, meaning no more going in person to the doctor's office for your prescription,

Starting point is 00:06:07 saving you both valuable time and money. Hair loss stops with Keep. So to get your special offer, go to keeps.com slash DeFranco, or just click that link in the description. That's keeps.com slash DeFranco. Then in political news... Clarence, what you doing now? Specifically, I'm talking about Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas,

Starting point is 00:06:22 who has reportedly been secretly accepting insanely pricey luxury gifts from a Republican mega-donor for over two decades. That is what was revealed in a new bombshell investigation by ProPublica published just today. So let's jump into it. So the reporting question focused on the relationship between Thomas and a billionaire real estate magnate and Republican mega-donor Harlan Crowe. And according to the outlet, Crowe has deep connections in conservative politics and has been a major Republican donor for decades. He's given over $10 million in publicly disclosed political donations and contributed an amount we just don't know to dark money groups that keep their donors secret. But Crowe has long supported efforts to move the judiciary to the right, with him giving millions of dollars to groups that fight for a more conservative legal system. And he sits on the board of two conservative think tanks that

Starting point is 00:06:58 publish scholarship-advancing conservative legal theories and sometimes file amicus briefs with the Supreme Court. And according to reports, Crowe and Thomas met just after Thomas became a justice. And the relationship has been reported on some in the past, including back in 2011 when Politico found that Crow had donated half a million dollars to a Tea Party group that Justice's wife, Jenny Thomas, had founded, which also paid her $120,000 salary. But the outlet's saying that the full scale of Crow's benefactions have never been revealed. So drawing from flight records, internal documents distributed to Crow's employees, and interviews with dozens of people, ProPublica discovered that over the last 20 years, Thomas has accepted luxury trips virtually every year from the Dallas businessman

Starting point is 00:07:32 without disclosing them. And adding the extent and frequency of Crow's apparent gifts to Thomas have no known precedent in modern history of the U.S. Supreme Court. Specifically, ProPublica finding that Thomas has vacationed all over the world on Crow's decked out fully staffed super yacht. And the outlet reporting that the Justice, sometimes accompanied by his wife, has taken yacht trips to Indonesia, New Zealand, and Georgia. But also adding that there's evidence there may have even been more trips, noting pictures that Tom is wearing polos that Crowe would actually give his guests, commemorating their trips, including one with the words,

Starting point is 00:07:56 March 2007 in Greek Islands. Which I'm going to guess is based off of watching Succession, very expensive things. In fact, ProPublica reported that if Thomas had chartered the 2019 super yacht trip to Indonesia and the plane that took him and Ginny there, the total cost would have been half a million dollars. But Thomas didn't pay for the boat or to fly on Crow's jet, with the yacht staff telling the outlet that Crow would cover the yacht trips. And that's not all. In addition to the Indonesia trip, the outlet also identified five other instances where Thomas flew on Crow's private jet. And that's also not where it ends, with ProPublica also revealing that Thomas has spent time on Crow's sprawling ranch And that's also not where it ends, with ProPublica also revealing that Thomas has spent time

Starting point is 00:08:25 on Crow's sprawling ranch in East Texas, and, quote, typically spends about a week every summer at Crow's private resort in the Adirondacks. And very notably here, the outlet also reported that it wasn't just Crow who had the unique opportunity to spend days in private with one of the most powerful fucking people on Earth, with Crow sharing his access to Thomas

Starting point is 00:08:39 with other incredibly powerful and influential conservative figures who joined them at his private Adirondacks resort. And the craziest part of this all is that Thomas hasn't reported any of these insane trips in his financial disclosures. Right, and under federal law, justices are usually required to publicly disclose all gifts that are worth more than $415. Now that said, there are exceptions if someone hosts a judge on their own property as well as for free food and lodging. But, as ProPublica explains, while that would exempt things like a fancy dinner at a friend's house, experts say that it's never been applied to transportation like private jets.

Starting point is 00:09:06 And in fact, that was actually made explicitly clear in updated filing instructions for judges. But legal experts are also telling the outlet that the trips on the yacht also required disclosure because it's considered a form of transportation. So, failing to report all those trips as gifts amount to violations of disclosure law. With ProPublica also noting that even his annual trips to the Adirondacks resort may have required disclosure because Crow owned those properties through a company and not personally. Though they're noting that the rule has only been clarified recently. But all of this is a huge deal, right?

Starting point is 00:09:30 I mean, we're talking about potentially millions and millions of dollars in unreported gifts to one of the nine most powerful people in the country. One of the nine people who ultimately decide what is legal or not. And it is a lifelong power and seat. And the money just so happens to be coming from an extremely influential political megadonor. Now, in a statement, the ProPublica Crow acknowledged that he has extended what he called hospitality to Clarence and Ginny Thomas over the years, but claiming they never asked for any of this hospitality, and adding, We have never asked about a pending or lower court case, and Justice Thomas has never discussed one, and we have never sought to influence Justice Thomas on any legal or political issue.

Starting point is 00:10:02 Or generally, I am unaware of any of our friends ever lobbying or seeking to influence Justice Thomas on any legal or political issue. Or generally, I am unaware of any of our friends ever lobbying or seeking to influence Justice Thomas on any case, and I would never invite anyone who I believe had any intention of doing that. These are gatherings of friends. Yeah, just gatherings of super rich and super powerful friends who work in politics and law but never talk about it. Yeah, that adds up. That makes complete sense. Now, my sarcasm aside, Justice Thomas, for his part,

Starting point is 00:10:21 has not yet responded to the report as of recording. But what we're already seeing is a lot of backlash from Democrats and actually even some former GOP lawmakers. And some, including the likes of Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, even calling for him to be impeached. But also, this is America. None of this is surprising. Right, as ProPublica even noted, Thomas' approach to ethics has already attracted public attention. Noting that last year, Thomas didn't recuse himself from cases that touched on the involvement of his wife, Ginny, in efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. And while his decision generated outright, it couldn't be appealed. So, you know, just some blatant, in-your-face sketchiness from one of the most extreme members of the Supreme Court

Starting point is 00:10:54 that will likely not do anything. Welcome to America. And then, the U.S. government has reached a tentative settlement with the families of those lost in a 2017 mass shooting in Texas. Right, this after years of back and forth, the DOJ and the 75 plaintiffs have reached a settlement of $144.5 million. The shooter having been a former member of the Air Force who was court-martialed for domestic violence and received a bad conduct discharge. And in 2021, the Air Force was deemed 60% responsible for the shooting because they failed to input the shooter's history into the background check system, which likely would have prevented the shooter from buying the gun. Now, the government was ordered to pay $230 million to the families. However, which likely would have prevented the shooter from buying the gun. Now the government was ordered to pay 230 million dollars to the families, however,

Starting point is 00:11:27 they appealed the decision back in January of this year, winning criticism from gun control advocates and praise from the NRA. But now new settlement negotiations have gotten us to this point where family members can close the door on this long and brutal legal battle. Notably, once the settlement is fully finished and finalized, it'll be the third time the federal government has ever paid out to the families of mass shooting victims, with it also being one of the highest payouts ever. out to the families of mass shooting victims with it also being one of The highest payouts ever and that in international news did you know that almost a third of English children live in poverty? That's according to a parliamentary report back in January Which found the child poverty in the north of England to be especially bad at 34% But among all the causes of this the single biggest one according to some experts is the UK's to child limit

Starting point is 00:12:01 Reds rule that went into effect six years ago and restricts child tax credits Universal credits and other benefits to the first two children in a family meaning if you have three or more kids born after April of to child limit. Reds ruled that one had to affect six years ago and restrict child tax credits, universal credits, and other benefits to the first two children in a family. Meaning if you have three or more kids born after April of 2017, you're on your own. And according to the Child Poverty Action Group, the policy now affects 1.5 million children, 1.1 million of whom are growing up in poverty. With it adding that the number affected

Starting point is 00:12:18 could eventually grow to about 3 million and those families losing out on up to 3,235 pounds per year. But also when you look past the stats, the lives these people are forced to live, it will infuriate you. You've got families struggling to pay for food, heating, power, clothes, just basic things. The mother's missing meals to feed their kids or returning to work with a baby who's just a few months old and their kids unable to attend school clubs and outings. In one case, you had a woman say she very rarely bathed or read bedtime stories to her three and four-year-old kids because her local supermarket tended to discount food at 7 p.m.

Starting point is 00:12:47 So when you hear all this, you might think, well, why is this rule even a thing? Why is it on the books? Well, when the government first introduced the policy, they argued that it would disincentivize parents from having too many kids and encourage them to take financial responsibility for their families, and adding that there are plenty of certain safeguards, things like exemptions for women who can prove that their third or subsequent child

Starting point is 00:13:04 was conceived through rape or it was a product of multiple childbirth. Even that rape clause is controversial since it compels women to disclose their trauma for benefits. But you have the director of policy for CPAG countering that the intended disincentive just hasn't worked. So what we know actually is that the policies that were introduced at that time have had pretty much no impact on family size whatsoever. Then you have others arguing that effectiveness aside is just cruel to exploit child poverty for policy ends. It's causing untold misery. It's an immoral policy because children are the victims of this policy.

Starting point is 00:13:36 A third child in no way should be punished because they were born. And as you can imagine, the cost of living crisis has just put extra stress on impoverished families. With the number of children in poverty rising by 350,000 last year alone, according to CPAG. And one charity reporting just over a month ago that some parents are changing their babies less frequently due to the rising cost of diapers. And with food prices up 18% year over year as of February, it makes sense that the number of children in food poverty has nearly doubled over the last year to almost 4 million, according to the Food Foundation, which is why you hear growing

Starting point is 00:14:07 calls for the government to fund free school meals. And in some localities, we've actually seen that happen. Like in February, London's mayor announced that all primary school children in the city would be given free lunches for a year from September. Places like Wales also planning to provide free lunches for primary school children by 2024, and Scotland already rolling out the policy. But if you ask CPHE, what is the number one thing the government can do? It's abolishing the two-child limit, which it says would cost 1.3 billion pounds per year and lift 250,000 children out of poverty with a further 850,000 in less deep poverty. And that's where today's show ends. But quick thing, obviously I've been doing shows from the road this week, hence the different backgrounds,

Starting point is 00:14:41 the tiny mic. For the life of me, I don't know where the hell the clip for this thing went. But with everything going on, the only change this week is that there's not going to be a Sunday show just for this week. But then we'll be right back to normal this coming Monday. So that said, my name's Philip DeFranco. You've just been filled in. I love your faces, and I'll see you Monday.

Your Ad Here

The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 4.6 "IMPEACH HIM!" Bombshell Clarence Thomas GOP Ties Leaked, Ariana & Kim K Deepfake Drama EXPOSED &

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.