The streaming box black market
And yes, using a racial slur can still get you fired
There’s a thriving steaming box black market across the US
Where church ladies and retired cops are selling semi-legal streaming TV boxes that give you every show, movie and event for free, and Hollywood has no one to blame but itself.
So I was casually scrolling the other day, when this Verge article caught my eye: EVERYONE IS STEALING TV. Now I’m familiar with regular old piracy - via torrents, streaming, and download sites but this article was about something else entirely: The SuperBox and the vSeeBox.
According to the Verge, they are bootleg devices being sold nationwide by individual sellers. The boxes themselves, which are possibly being imported from China, are legal. They come with a one time fee of $200-400 for the consumer, and they give you free, permanent access via “illegal streaming services … to every single channel, show, and movie you can think of,” including live broadcasts like NFL games and UFC fights.
And what’s really wild is The Verge says these boxes are being sold in a nationwide network of mom and pop bootleggers, some of who sell them at local farmers markets. Quote, “There’s a retired former cop in upstate New York selling the vSeeBox at the fall festival of his local church. A Christian conservative from Utah who pitches rogue streaming boxes as a way of “defunding the swamp and refunding the kingdom.” An Idaho-based smart home vendor sells vSeeBoxes alongside security cameras Midwestern church ladies in Illinois and Indian uncles in New Jersey all know someone who can hook you up”
And obviously, the media companies are not happy about this. Dish Network has sued a few major sellers, and won millions of dollars in damages of them, but based on quotes from the people using these boxes, it seems the media companies have no one to blame but themselves. Consumers are turning to these boxes because subscribing to all the streaming services plus cable or a live TV service like YouTubeTV has gotten way too expensive.
But the article explains that using one of these boxes could come with risks. There’s the security and privacy risk of connecting some mysterious box to your home Wifi network and possibly a legal risk, media companies could sue consumers for pirating content or they could pressure the internet service providers to cut off customers who have these boxes. Anyway, this was all really fascinating — I super recommend reading the article.
Hey it turns out using a racial slur can still get you fired in America
Despite the fact that some people in this country seem to be immune from FAFO, one HGTV host is currently learning the consequences of her actions. Nicole Curtis, the host of HGTV’s Rehab Addict, a home renovation show which has aired 83 episodes since 2010, has been fired from the series after she was caught on camera using a racial slur.
In filmed but unused footage, Curtis is seen a top a ladder struggling with a project when she says “Oh fart [n-word]” She immediately knows she messed up and says “What the fuck is that that I just said? Nick you gotta, can you kill that?” Fuck my life”
The footage is reportedly 2 years old but leaked this week. So in response, HGTV has fired her, canceled the show, AND wiped the entire series from its platforms. The network said in a statement, ““Not only is language like this hurtful and disappointing to our viewers, partners, and employees it does not align with the values of HGTV. Accordingly, we have removed the series from all HGTV platforms. We remain dedicated to fostering a culture of respect and inclusion across our content and our workplace.”
Curtis also put out an apology of sorts, telling TMZ, “I want to be clear: the word in question is wrong and not part of my vocabulary and never has been, and I apologize to everyone.”
Proof our health care system is messed up
James Van Der Beek’s friends and family had to set up a GoFundMe because the costs of his cancer treatments basically bankrupted them. Quote, “ The costs of James’s medical care and the extended fight against cancer have left the family out of funds.”
In case you’re not aware, actor James Van Der Beek died yesterday at the age of 48, after a two and a half year battle with with colon cancer, he was diagnosed in 2023. James Van Der Beek was a very successful actor, for more than 30 years, he worked consistently, on major projects like Dawson’s Creek, Varsity Blues, Don’t Trust the B, Pose, Scary Movie and more. Even after his diagnosis he continued to work, he was on The Masked Singer last year.
So if his family can’t afford health care when disaster strikes, what hope is there for the rest of us? Also, this really shows that many actors — even very successful ones — Probably don’t make as much as you think they do, and face the same financial realities as everyone else when hard times hit.
Thankfully, because Van Der Beek was so beloved and reached so many people. His family’s GoFundMe was an instant success. They set the goal at $500,000, it reached more than $1 million in 24 hours. But who’s helping out the average American?
Netflix is finally giving us the extra Stranger Things story we so desperately needed
It’s been about a month since Conformity Gate went crazy viral. If you forgot, it was the Stranger Things conspiracy theory, where fans predicted that there would be an extra 9th episode of the show after the finale.
Obviously, that 9th episode never came. But now Netflix IS preparing to give us some more content inside the main Stranger Things canon and no I’m not talking about the animated spinoff Tales From 85 - coming later this year.
This week, we learned that Netflix is filming the Stranger Things Broadway play First Shadow and that it will be releasing it on the platform at some point in the future. This is great news, because not everyone can get to New York and afford tickets.
So this will bring the show — which is pretty damn good — to wide audiences. I’m pumped for people to see Louis McCartney’s outstanding performance. Also what’s nice here is that all Netflix viewers can finally understand Henry Creel’s full backstory and see exactly what went down in 1959.
Do I wish every Stranger Things viewer could have seen this sooner? Like maybe before or during the final season, to have the full background on Henry? Absolutely. But I guess better late than never. And it’s always nice to get a publicly released Broadway pro-shot.
Chappell Roan just fired her agents over the latest Jeffrey Epstein news
Pink Pony Club singer Chappell Roan took to Instagram this week with a big announcement. Quote, “As of today, [I] am no longer represented by Wasserman, the talent agency led by Casey Wasserman, I hold my teams to the highest standards … No artist, agent or employee should ever be expected to defend or overlook actions that conflict so deeply with our own moral values.”
If you’re wondering what that means and why she fired them. Well, it’s because Casey Wasserman, the agency’s CEO, appears in the Epstein files multiple times. In 2003, he had several email exchanges with Ghislaine Maxwell, asking her, “”Where are you, I miss you,” and “what do I have to do to see you in a tight leather outfit?”
Wasserman said in a statement he regrets his messages with Maxwell, but claimed he had no “personal or business relationship” with Jeffrey Epstein. That said, he did admit to flying to Africa aboard Epstein’s plane in 2002.
Roan went on to say her decision “reflects my belief that meaningful change in our industry requires accountability and leadership that earns trust.”
Casey Wasserman is currently still the CEO of the agency, and the chairman of the organizing committee for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The agency represents other big names including Kendrick Lamar, Brad Pitt, Florence Pugh, and Adam Sandler.