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Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Ben Shapiro Meets With Pope Leo at Vatican, Gifts Him With Memento From Home
Conservative media personality Ben Shapiro is the latest famous face to secure time with Pope Leo XIV, meeting with the new U.S.-born leader of the Catholic Church at the Vatican on Wednesday. Shapiro, 41, founded the conservative news website The Daily Wire in 2015 as he rose to prominence in the world of right-wing podcasting. He expressed approval of Pope Leo XIV when he was selected as the Catholic leader in May, indicating that he believed Pope Leo would veer away from the liberal stances of his predecessor. On Wednesday, the conservative media personality, who is Jewish, posted an image of the moment on and shared what happened with his 7.8 million followers. More from The Hollywood Reporter Al Pacino Meets Pope Leo XIV, Becoming First Movie Star to Get an Audience With American Pontiff 'The Ritual' Review: Al Pacino and Dan Stevens Slum It in an Exorcism Flick That's Pure Regurgitation Jon Bernthal, Ebon Moss-Bachrach's 'Dog Day Afternoon' Headed to Broadway 'It was an honor to meet His Holiness, @Pontifex in Vatican City today, and to thank him for standing up for Biblical values in a chaotic world…and to present him with a signed 2005 White Sox World Series baseball I had in my collection (we're both fans).' Shapiro wrote on X on Wednesday. It was an honor to meet His Holiness, @Pontifex in Vatican City today, and to thank him for standing up for Biblical values in a chaotic world…and to present him with a signed 2005 White Sox World Series baseball I had in my collection (we're both fans). — Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) June 18, 2025 He added in a subsequent post: 'As I told Pope Leo, he's Catholic and I'm Jewish, but the 2005 White Sox World Series victory is a miracle we can all agree on.' Bradley Bishop, a rep for The Daily Wire, told The Hollywood Reporter by email on Wednesday that Shapiro had requested an audience with the pope and 'was granted a spot quickly.' Shapiro and Pope Leo met on Wednesday in Vatican City's St. Peter's Square, according to a post on The Daily Wire recapping the brief meeting during baciamano, which translates to 'kissing the hand.' While this is traditionally an honor only for heads of state and diplomats visiting the Vatican, Shapiro was waved in and got the meet-up he desired. In the image he posted to Twitter, Shapiro is holding a card and a package in his left and right hands. This was a gift for the new pope. 'He smiled at my remark, and then I handed him a White Sox 2005 team signed baseball. He asked if it was a gift, and seemed surprised and delighted that it was — you can see it on the tape. I believe this is a man who truly lives in joy,' Shapiro said. TDW reported that the conservative media power player described the event as 'beautiful — a reminder that Biblical values span the globe, across languages and borders.' Pope Leo, whose birth name is Robert Prevost, has the distinction of being the first American pope. He was born in 1955 in Chicago and went on to do missionary work in Peru in the 1980s and 1990s and was elected prior general of the Order of Saint Augustine and prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in Rome and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. Shapiro is not the first big name to stand before the new pope. On Monday, cinema icon Al Pacino got some face time with the Holy Father while in Italy shooting a new movie, Maserati: The Brothers, about the famous car designers. The actor gave the new pope a mini Maserati as a gift to commemorate the upcoming film. Best of The Hollywood Reporter Most Anticipated Concert Tours of 2025: Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar & SZA, Sabrina Carpenter and More Hollywood's Most Notable Deaths of 2025 Hollywood's Highest-Profile Harris Endorsements: Taylor Swift, George Clooney, Bruce Springsteen and More
The Hill
08-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
White House dismisses Pride Month as WorldPride gathers in Washington
President Trump's administration has not formally recognized Pride Month this year, but has doubled down on LGBTQ-related actions some advocates deem hostile — even as one of the world's largest Pride celebrations takes place in the nation's capital. Speaking with reporters on Tuesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump has 'no plans' to issue a proclamation recognizing June as Pride Month. Trump declined to issue Pride Month proclamations throughout his first term but briefly acknowledged Pride in a 2019 social media post touting his administration's efforts to decriminalize homosexuality globally and recognizing the'outstanding contributions LGBT people have made to our great nation.' This year, Trump has not acknowledged Pride Month publicly. But the Education Department on Monday said it would instead recognize June as 'Title IX Month' in a nod to the administration's efforts to use the 1972 civil rights law to bar transgender students from girls' and women's school sports, restrooms and locker rooms. 'This is going to come as maybe tough news for the Trump administration to stomach, but June is Pride Month, whether they choose to acknowledge that or not,' said Brandon Wolf, national press secretary for the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest LGBTQ advocacy group. 'And Pride is, and always has been, a protest, whether they choose to acknowledge that or not.' Pride Month marches and celebrations began in June 1970, one year after demonstrators demanded equal rights for LGBTQ Americans at the Stonewall riots in New York. Three decades later, former President Clinton issued the first presidential proclamation designating June 'Gay and Lesbian Pride Month,' the scope of which was expanded under former President Obama to include bisexual and transgender people. Former President Biden issued Pride Month proclamations each of his four years in office. This year's Pride festivities are not only being brushed off by the White House, however. On Tuesday, Rep. Mary Miller (R-Ill.), whom Trump endorsed as a 'champion of our America First agenda' in her most recent re-election bid, introduced a resolution declaring June 'Family Month' in a rebuke of Pride. 'By recognizing June as Family Month, we reject the lie of 'Pride' and instead honor God's timeless and perfect design,' she told the conservative news outlet The Daily Wire. A group of Republican lawmakers, including Miller, also railed this week against a post by the children's television show 'Sesame Street' that acknowledged Pride Month. They accused the nonprofit TV network PBS, on which 'Sesame Street' has long aired, of 'grooming' children, an accusation that opponents of LGBTQ rights have long used to associate LGBTQ identity with predatory behavior. 'This hostile rhetoric, the lengths to which they've gone to punish people for existing as LGBTQ, all of it is a testament to just how much our power scares them,' said Wolf, noting that Washington's pushback against Pride comes as the city hosts WorldPride, an international LGBTQ Pride event that's expected to draw millions to D.C. Within the administration, Trump's Defense Department's actions have made perhaps the biggest splash during the first week of Pride Month. On Tuesday, reported that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered Navy Secretary John Phelan to rename an oil tanker named for the assassinated gay rights activist Harvey Milk, with an official announcement expected next week and planned intentionally for Pride Month. Milk, a Navy lieutenant who served during the Korean War and in 1977 became the first openly gay man elected to public office in California, spearheaded an effort to mobilize California voters to oppose a 1978 ballot measure that would have banned gays and lesbians from teaching in public schools. The proposal to strip the ship of Milk's name drew widespread media attention and criticism. 'I don't agree with it,' Retired Adm. James Stavridis, once floated as a possible candidate for Secretary of State during the first Trump administration, said Friday on 'The Michael Smerconish Program.' He questioned why 'we need to rename this ship' at 'this moment' during Pride Month. The Navy is also considering renaming other ships named after prominent civil rights leaders, according to CBS News, including Harriet Tubman, Thurgood Marshall and Lucy Stone. This week, Senate Republicans blocked a Democrat-led resolution that would have expressed the upper chamber's belief 'that the Department of Defense should not seek to remove these names.' This week, the military also ordered transgender service members to self-identify and start a voluntary separation from the armed forces by Friday, also during Pride Month. In an email, Alex Wagner, an adjunct professor at Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, said Hegseth's recent actions targeting Pride Month and LGBTQ people at the Pentagon 'have made him look petty and silly.' Wagner, who served as assistant secretary of the Air Force under former President Biden, helped organize the Defense Department's first Pride event in 2012 while serving in the Obama administration. 'There is absolutely no question, in my mind and in my experience, that the greatest engine for social justice and civil rights in American history is the U.S. military, and it's provided opportunity for everyone, no matter where they come from and no matter what they look like, to succeed,' Wagner said in an interview. 'To denigrate the service of those who sought a career serving the country … is evidence of someone who has not the right experience, not the right insight.' Hegseth, a frequent critic of efforts to promote diversity, equity and inclusion, has opposed recognizing or celebrating specific identities or differences in the military. 'I think the single dumbest phrase in military history is, 'our diversity is our strength,'' Hegseth said in a February address at the Pentagon. The former Fox News personality and Army veteran also ended the Defense Department's recognition of cultural and heritage months, including Pride Month, Black History Month and Women's History Month, shortly after his Senate confirmation. In guidance titled 'Identity Months Dead at DoD,' Hegseth stated, 'Efforts to divide the force – to put one group ahead of another – erode camaraderie and threaten mission execution.'
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
As Pride Month Kicks Off, Ted Cruz Leads Anti-Abortion Push To Make June 'Life Month'
Sens. Todd Young (Ind.) and Ted Cruz (Texas) are leading Republican efforts to brand June as 'Life Month' during the already celebrated Pride Month, which honors the achievements and culture of the LGBTQ+ community. 'Every human life is worthy of protection, and it is especially incumbent upon Americans and lawmakers to protect the most vulnerable among us,' Cruz said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter. According to Young's statementintroducing the resolution, 'Life Month' is meant to 'recognize the dignity of human life, commends those who promote life, and encourages policymakers to continue providing resources to empower women and families to choose life.' While the senators did have 11 other months they could designate as 'Life Month,' they said the resolution marks June as the anniversary of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wadein June 2022. Cruz and Young's pitch rings similar to Illinois Congresswoman Mary Miller's resolution, which suggested fully replacing 'Pride Month' with 'Family Month.' 'By recognizing June as Family Month, we reject the lie of 'Pride' and instead honor God's timeless and perfect design,' Miller told right-wing news site The Daily Wire. Neither Cruz nor Young said they want to replace Pride Month, but their actions come at a time where the Trump administration has launched aggressive attacks against the LGBTQ+ community. Under his administration, President Donald Trump has erased or altered Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pages focused on the risks of suicide among LGBTQ children, school safety and health disparities. He has also signed executive orders that declared it official U.S. policy that there are only two sexes, male and female, and banned people with gender dysphoria from military service. Earlier this week, Trump's Department of Education also formally declared June as 'Title IX Month.'On Tuesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Navy to rename the USNS Harvey Milk, which honors the slain LGBTQ+ rights icon. This move reportedly was intentionally made during Pride Month. A total of 26 Republican senators co-sponsored the resolution, including Alabama's Tommy Tuberville and South Carolina's Lindsey Graham. 'If we are going to dedicate entire months to recognizing every group under the sun, the least we can do is dedicate June to protecting unborn babies,' Tuberville said on X.
The Hill
03-06-2025
- General
- The Hill
White House: ‘No plans' for Trump to issue Pride Month proclamation
President Trump has 'no plans' to issue a proclamation recognizing June as Pride Month, or dedicate it to any other group or cause, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday. 'There are no plans for a proclamation for the month of June,' Leavitt said during a media briefing at the White House, 'but I can tell you this president is very proud to be a president for all Americans, regardless of race, religion or creed.' Trump declined to issue proclamations recognizing Pride Month throughout his first term, though he briefly acknowledged it on social media in 2019 while touting his administration's efforts to decriminalize homosexuality worldwide, the first Republican president to do so. 'As we celebrate LGBT Pride Month and recognize the outstanding contributions LGBT people have made to our great Nation, let us also stand in solidarity with the many LGBT people who live in dozens of countries worldwide that punish, imprison, or even execute individuals on the basis of their sexual orientation,' Trump wrote on the social platform X, then Twitter, six years ago. 'My Administration has launched a global campaign to decriminalize homosexuality and invite all nations to join us in this effort!' Former President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, issued the first presidential proclamation designating June 'Gay and Lesbian Pride Month' in 1999. A declaration issued in 2011 by former President Barack Obama expanded the scope to include bisexual and transgender people. The White House's decision comes amid a broader backlash against Pride and a political climate that is increasingly hostile to the LGBTQ community, particularly transgender people. Opponents of LGBTQ rights this week criticized U.S. companies that publicly acknowledged Pride with social media posts or by temporarily changing the colors of their corporate logos. A group of congressional Republicans accused PBS of 'grooming' children after 'Sesame Street,' one of the nonprofit TV network's flagship programs, shared a post recognizing Pride Month on Sunday. Rep. Mary Miller (R-Ill.), one of the GOP House members to criticize PBS and 'Sesame Street,' introduced a resolution Tuesday declaring June 'Family Month,' which she said would 'reject the lie of 'Pride' and instead honor God's timeless and perfect design.' 'The American family is under relentless attack from a radical leftist agenda that seeks to erase truth, redefine marriage and confuse our children,' Miller told The Daily Wire, a conservative news outlet, in an interview published Tuesday. On Monday, the Education Department said it was declaring June 'Title IX Month,' after the 1972 law against sex discrimination that the Trump administration has argued prohibits transgender women and girls from competing on female school sports teams. Trump's decision not to formally recognize Pride Month also comes as WorldPride, the international LGBTQ Pride event, takes place this month in Washington.
Axios
23-05-2025
- Business
- Axios
FTC investigating liberal watchdog group Media Matters
The Federal Trade Commission is investigating the liberal group Media Matters over claims that it and other media advocacy groups coordinated advertising boycotts of Elon Musk's X, Media Matters president Angelo Carusone confirmed in a statement Thursday. Why it matters: Musk and conservatives have been targeting advertising groups for months as part of a broader effort to determine whether the ad market writ large is biased against them. X sued Media Matters for defamation in 2023 for a report it publicly released that showed ads on X running next to pro-Nazi content. X claimed the report contributed to an advertiser exodus. Last year, X filed a federal antitrust lawsuit against the World Federation of Advertisers, a major advertising trade group, and its industry coalition called the Global Alliance for Responsible Media. The lawsuit proved effective as WFA discontinued GARM a few months later. What they're saying:"The Trump administration has been defined by naming right-wing media figures to key posts and abusing the power of the federal government to bully political opponents and silence critics," said Carusone. "It's clear that's exactly what's happening here, given Media Matters' history of holding those same figures to account. These threats won't work; we remain steadfast to our mission." The FTC did not respond to a request for comment. Zoom out: The investigation, first reported by Reuters, signals an escalation of tensions between the advertising community and conservatives. Last year, The Daily Wire, a conservative media company, sent letters to major corporations asking them to "reject" GARM, arguing it colluded with agencies, brands and tech platforms "to demonetize conservative media outlets." The Daily Wire testified in a hearing about the matter last summer, after conservatives leading the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing about complaints GARM was colluding with ad-buying giant GroupM to discourage clients from buying ads in the Daily Wire because of its conservative politics. What to watch: X Corp. has a mixed record when it comes to lawsuits against research and advocacy groups.
