US actor Mark Salling, known for his role in the TV series Glee, has been found dead near his Los Angeles home, his lawyer confirmed to the BBC.
US media reports suggest he may have taken his own life.
The 35-year-old was expected to get between four and seven years in prison after pleading guilty to possessing child sex abuse images. His sentencing was due on 7 March.
Salling played footballer Noah “Puck” Puckerman on Glee from 2009 to 2015.
He entered into a plea deal last October, avoiding a lengthier prison sentence of up to 20 years.
He was arrested in 2015 after a tip-off that he was in possession of images of children being sexually abused.
Investigators ultimately found thousands of abuse images on his laptop and hard drive.
Salling’s lawyer, Michael J Proctor, said in a statement: “I can confirm that Mark Salling passed away early this morning. Mark was a gentle and loving person, a person of great creativity, who was doing his best to atone for some serious mistakes and errors of judgement.
“He is survived by his mother and father, and his brother. The Salling family appreciates the support they have been receiving and asks for their privacy to be respected.”
WASHINGTON ― President Donald Trump’s first State of the Union speech on Tuesday night will offer an “optimistic” and “forward-looking” view, according to his White House. He will detail the successes of his first year in office. He will reach out to Americans beyond his base.
And, if the past is any guide, within days if not hours, not a word of it will matter in the least.
While past presidents have used their highest-profile address of the year to get the nation’s attention and outline their priorities, Teleprompter Trump’s message will likely be stepped on by Twitter Trump and Random Comments to the Press Trump.
Even Republicans acknowledge it.
“All the talking heads will talk about it,” said one Republican National Committee member, who spoke on condition of anonymity to candidly discuss the president. “Until the next distraction.”
And when would that distraction take place? Wednesday? Thursday? Late Tuesday night?
“Good subject for an office pool,” the RNC member quipped.
Also, if the past is any guide, Trump’s propensity for false statements will keep fact-checkers busy Tuesday night. According to a White House briefing that previewed the speech for reporters last week, Trump will sell the recently passed tax cut plan as “the biggest” ever ― a boast that is not accurate.
Both the 1981 Ronald Reagan tax cuts and the 2001 George W. Bush tax cuts (made permanent by President Barack Obama in 2012) were larger. In all, seven tax cuts have been larger than the recent tax package as a percentage of the total economy, and three have been larger in inflation-adjusted dollars.
Despite this, the senior Trump administration official hosting the briefing last week ― who spoke on the condition of anonymity at the insistence of the White House ― opened his remarks by calling the new law “the biggest tax cut in history.”
The official said the theme of Trump’s speech would be “building a safe, strong and proud America” and that Trump would mention his “record-setting accomplishments.” In addition to bragging about the tax cuts, Trump would also highlight: his infrastructure plan to rebuild roads and bridges; his plan to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and reduce legal immigration while protecting undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children; his views on international trade; and his plan to increase spending on the military while “defeating terrorists around the world.”
Trump spoke briefly about the speech on Monday at a White House photo opportunity, saying he hoped Democrats would work with him on the immigration plan because “the Republicans really don’t have the votes to get it done any other way.”
He called it “a big speech, an important speech,” that would cover “a lot of territory,” adding: “We have a lot of things to discuss and we’ll be discussing them, and I hope you enjoy it.”
Both as a candidate and as president, Trump has enjoyed good reviews with speeches written by his staff that he merely reads off a teleprompter ― despite his frequent ridicule of politicians who used the devices during the GOP primaries.
Trump’s speech to a joint session of Congress last February, for example, brought praise from unlikely sources. “He became president of the United States in that moment,” proclaimed Van Jones, a former Obama adviser and now a CNN commentator.
Yet within days, Trump was accusing Democratic congressional leaders of having ties to Russia and claiming ― with zero evidence ― that his predecessor had wiretapped him at his Trump Tower headquarters in New York City. Controversy after controversy about Trump’s words and actions followed, quickly burying whatever goodwill he’d earned in his speech.
So while previous presidents could rely on days or even weeks of positive publicity for their proposals after their State of the Union addresses, few are expecting Trump’s speech to generate anything similar.
“That won’t happen,” said Republican pollster Neil Newhouse. “This is a different kind of presidency.”
Rory Cooper, a political consultant who worked in George W. Bush’s White House, said the State of the Union address can be a great opportunity to advance an agenda. Bush, in 2003, pushed the AIDS relief program PEPFAR, which a decade and a half later is recognized for its significant accomplishments in places like Africa.
Cooper added, though, that he has no expectation that Trump will follow through on any of his stated goals. “Will President Trump stay on message afterwards and sell the agenda? Of course not,” he said. “But it will be instructive in a way.”
More than 100 child health experts are urging Facebook to withdraw an app aimed at under-13s.
In an open letter to Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg, they call Messenger Kids an “irresponsible” attempt to encourage young children to use Facebook.
Young children are not ready to have social media accounts, they say.
Facebook says the app was designed with online safety experts in response to parental calls for more control over how their children used social media.
It is a simplified, locked-down version of Facebook’s Messenger app, requiring parental approval before use, and data generated from it is not used for advertising.
The open letter says: “Messenger Kids will likely be the first social media platform widely used by elementary school children [four- to -11-year-olds].
“But a growing body of research demonstrates that excessive use of digital devices and social media is harmful to children and teens, making it very likely this new app will undermine children’s healthy development.
“Younger children are simply not ready to have social media accounts.
“They are not old enough to navigate the complexities of online relationships, which often lead to misunderstandings and conflicts even among more mature users.”
In response, Facebook said: “Since we launched in December we’ve heard from parents around the country that Messenger Kids has helped them stay in touch with their children and has enabled their children to stay in touch with family members near and far.
“For example, we’ve heard stories of parents working night shifts being able read bedtime stories to their children, and mums who travel for work getting daily updates from their kids while they’re away.”
The letter questions whether there is a need for Facebook to fulfil such a role, saying: “Talking to family and friends over long distances doesn’t require a Messenger Kids account. Kids can use parents’ Facebook, Skype, or other accounts to chat with relatives. They can also just pick up a phone.”
The letter cites a range of research linking teenagers’ social media use with increased depression and anxiety,” it says.
“Adolescents who spend an hour a day chatting on social networks report less satisfaction with nearly every aspect of their lives.
“Eighth graders [13- to 14-year-olds] who use social media for six to nine hours per week are 47% more likely to report they are unhappy than their peers who use social media less often.”
It also cites a study of 10- to -12-year-old girls who are “more likely to idealise thinness, have concerns about their bodies, and to have dieted”.
Other statistics, quoted from a range of different research, include:
78% of adolescents check their phones hourly
50% say they are addicted to their phones
Half of parents say regulating screen time is a constant battle
The experts also dispute Facebook’s claims that Messenger Kids provides a safe alternative for children who have lied their way on to social media platforms, by pretending to be older than they are.
“The 11- and 12-year-olds who currently use Snapchat, Instagram, or Facebook are unlikely to switch to an app that is clearly designed for younger children. Messenger Kids is not responding to a need – it is creating one,” the letter states.
The letter is signed by a range of child welfare groups, chief among them the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood. Other signees included Massachusetts American Civil Liberties Union and Parents Across America. A host of individuals also signed, including British scientist Baroness Susan Greenfield.
The UK government met social media companies and hardware manufacturers such as Apple in November 2017 and asked them to look at a series of issues – including:
how to prevent under-age users from accessing their platforms
what constituted cyber-bullying and how to address it
whether it was feasible to create pop-up warnings for youngsters who spend a long time online
We’ve got a sneak peek at a new card coming to The Elder Scrolls: Legends. Tullius’ Conscription is an Epic Neutral Action with the following text: “Summon one of each creature from your deck that costs 2 or less.” You can see it in the video above, or just below:
Tullius’ Conscription is one of 12 new promotional cards to be added on January 31 as part of the Forgotten Hero Collection. It will have three unique legendaries card, three epics, and six rares and cost either $10 or 1500 Gold. Purchasing the Forgotten Hero Collection will get one copy of each legendary and three copies of the other nine cards.
thatgamecompany co-founder Jenova Chen talks about his fascinating game development career, from growing up as a gamer in China to what it took to create Journey, as well as his quest to bring games to more people, his new project Sky, and more! Check out the video above for the entire interview!
Here is a preview clip, with Chen explaining how his personal and professional struggles inspired Jou:
And if you missed it, here’s the last episode of Unfiltered, in which former FASA Studio head Mitch Gitelman discusses the ups and downs, in hindsight, of the controversial 2007 Shadowrun first-person shooter for Xbox and PC:
Star Wars Transformers are back, 10 years after their original debut. The iconic Millennium Falcon has been announced, once again transforming into Han and Chewbacca robots.
