Rebel Wilson defamation trial kicks off today
A high-profile defamation trial between Hollywood movie star Rebel Wilson and Bauer Media is due to begin today. The actress arrived in Melbourne last week before the three-week trial, which will be held before a jury. Wilson is suing Bauer Media for defamation over a series of articles she says portrayed her as a serial liar, costing her movie roles. She says the publisher damaged her reputation by printing articles alleging she had used a fake name, claimed she was 29 when in fact she was 36, and had lied about her background.
Fox Sports launches ICC Trophy channel
Fox Sports will launch a 24/7 pop-up channel to cover the ICC Champion's Trohpy in June. The tournament is the most important ODI cricket compeition outside of the World Cup with 15 games in England and Wales from 1 June. It also highlights a commitment to cricket that will do Fox Sports no harm if it tables a bid for Big Bash League broadcasting rights to be negotiated this year. Channel 507 will be used to air the event from Wednesday 31 May, with the live action the following day at 7pm. The coverage will feature former cricket stars Allan Border, Ricky Ponting, Mark Waugh, Brad Haddin and Brendon Julian.
Facebook’s content guidelines leaked
Another week another Facebook saga and now it seems internal Facebook documents which show how the social network's employees moderate postings on the site, have been leaked. The leak follows a series of recent incidents including live murders and 'deceptive news' that have sparked debate about what should be allowed on the platform. According to documents obtained by The Guardian, when it comes to violent images and videos, the moderation team can choose to either take no action, mark content as ‘disturbing,’ or remove it entirely. “Facebook’s policies on graphic violence, non-sexual child abuse and animal abuse reveal its attempts to remain open while trying to ban horrific images,” the Guardian said. All leaked files can be found on the Guardian's website. The leak follows news last week that the EU plans to fine Facebook over WhatsApp acquisition.
Freeview app upgrade supports Chromecast
Following in the footsteps of Channel Nine, the free-to-air TV live streaming and catch-up mobile app from Freeview, now supports Google Chromecast. The new feature means any TV with Chromecast support can deliver one-stop free-to-air TV for both streaming and catch-up, managed simply through a smartphone or tablet. Chromecast allows users to discover and control content from their smartphone or tablet and view it on their TV through either built in Chromecast functionality or the simple addition of a Chromecast dongle. The industry now awaits similar moves from Channel Seven and Channel Ten. UPDATE: Speaking to AdNews, director of product at Yahoo7 Mark Robinson says Chromecast support is live within the Plus7 app for Android users and iOS support for Chromecast will soon follow. Freeview's support for Chromecast, so far as Channel Seven content is concerned, only extends to live content, not VOD/catch-up.
SCA's breakfast host switch
Ash London is currently filling in for Em Rusciano, the main host on The Em Rusciano Radio Show with Harley Breen, on SCA's 2dayFM. The change in talent follows news that Rusciano suffered a miscarriage. The host, who took over the prime time breakfast slot in January, took to her Facebook page to share the sad news. An SCA spokesperson says: “The entire team are thinking of Em and her husband Scotty after hearing the heart-breaking news about Ray. We wish to offer our deepest condolences and ask that Em and her family are given this time to grieve their loss.” London currently presents Ash London Live on the Hit Network.
Twitter co-founder says sorry if site helped elect Trump
Twitter co-founder Evan Williams says he's sorry if the social networking site helped elect Donald Trump, as the president has suggested. According to Cnet, Williams called Twitter's role in Trump's popularity "a very bad thing" – with the president himself saying he believes Twitter helped put him in the White House. When asked about Trump's claim, Williams said, "If it's true that he wouldn't be president if it weren't for Twitter, then yeah, I'm sorry."
Old Spice Made a Giant Robotic Sea Beast
Wieden + Kennedy has created a game for Old Spice. The Shared Quests Uniting Individual Dudes (S.Q.U.I.D) brand extension invites said men across the internet to help the giant mechanical cephalopod learn about school, work and romance, according to which designed the game. Found at OldSpiceTwitch.com, it aims to guide the mythical creature through such rites of passage as driver’s ed, working at a pizza parlour, meeting the date’s parents and other manly life milestones,” the agency says. According to AdWeek, the robot took designers in a secret Brazilian lab more than 10 weeks to create and has roughly 1000 moving robotic pieces.
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