• Is the United States to Blame for North Korea's Internet Being Completely Crashed?

    It looks like the United States might be giving North Korea a taste of their own medicine. The country's state-run internet began experiencing connectivity issues over the weekend and now according to various news outlets it has been completely down for about three hours now. This development comes on the heels of the FBI confirming that North Korea is responsible for the hacking of Sony that has lead to a business crisis of epic proportions for the company.

  • Due to Pressure, Sony Will Eventually Release 'The Interview'

    It is kind of amazing how divided the United States is over racial issues, law enforcement and good ol' political agendas, but when a film studio gets hacked, it is fairly easy to get everyone on the same page — and quickly! Sony canceled everything in connection with its film "The Interview" last week, fearing that the group that has successfully hacked the company would make good on its threats of violence. Once it was confirmed that North Korea was responsible for the large security breech, the studio decided not to take any unnecessary risks and even the White House disagreed with the decision. First, Hollywood as a whole chimed in collectively, not wanting to feel like its business was being controlled by Kim Jong Un's regime. Then political leaders such as U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Newt Gingrich started rallying for the film's release. By this morning, Dec. 22, Sony started contemplating exactly what the best way to release "The Interview" might be. While the logical possibility was either video on demand or Netflix, some other companies might be more than a little skittish, fearing that they, too, will be hacked.

  • North Korea Speaks of 'Merciless Punishment' in New Threats Targeting the U.S.

    Back in 2008, North Korea was officially removed from the U.S.'s list of state sponsors of terrorism after spending two decades of being listed on it. Thanks to the fallout from the Sony hacking and due to the fact that the FBI has confirmed that it was indeed North Korea that was behind the huge breech in security, our government is now pondering whether or not to put the nation back onto that list.

  • 'The Interview' Has Been Shelved but Sony Leaks Keep Coming as Amy Pascal Slams Adam Sandler

    Sony may have decided to appease the Guardians of Peace and not let "The Interview" premiere on Christmas Day or any other day in the near future, but that does not mean the hackers are finished wreaking havoc on the studio. Instead, newly leaked emails keep coming which indicate that the GOP's actual agenda involves quite a bit more than just making sure that one film does not see the light of day. Once again, Amy Pascal and her opinions are under fire. This time around, the subject of her disdain is Adam Sandler, who wanted a huge chunk of cash for a movie version of the board game Candyland. According to the leaked emails, Sandler asked the studio for $200 million for that flick and he also rallied to have his co-producer on "Hotel Transylvania 2," Allen Covert, get an extra $100,000. "Adam is an a--hole and this is more his fault than anyone's but what we did was not communicate with each other and make assumptions," said Pascal, indicating that Sandler is not one of Sony's favorite people to deal with.

  • The FBI Officially Accuses North Korea of Successfully Hacking Sony

    Earlier this week the news broke that the FBI was reportedly linking North Korea to the high level hacking of Sony and this morning the government agency issued a full statement that officially points the finger at that country's government. Even while under the sharpest of microscopes, the hackers who refer to themselves as Guardians of Peace, again reached out to Sony officials, sending another email overnight that made it clear that they weren't the least bit intimidated even if their identity has been outed.

  • Sony Email Leak: Snapchat Reportedly Wanted to Start Record Label

    The Sony hack has been devastating for one of the biggest media conglomerates in the world and all its affiliated artists and companies. The latest leak details plans by Snapchat to start its own label as a joint venture with Sony. A leaked email from Snapchat CEO Michael Lynton reveals the company's plans to start a music platform of its own because "every music service in the market is s--t." View the full email from Lynton below, via "Billboard": "Michael, "I was only able to see Evan for about 30 minutes yesterday but that was enough time for him to express his thoughts and leave us with some things to think about if there is going to a music play within Snapchat. He didn't end up showing some of the developments in the platform that may benefit music but referenced them in the discussion. First, he thinks every music service in the market is s--t and he wants to be a curator. He doesn't want to build a music service but he would like to have a record label so he could focus on the artists that he wants to use the platform to promote. He also wants to participate in the upside that he will create by promoting them on the platform. He later backed off a bit from being a record label to maybe testing the concept first. Obviously he doesn't understand some of the important nuances around the business about what rights a record label does and does not have. "I appreciate the introduction. I am going to go back to my team with some of these concepts and see if we can get creative in how we could get something to work here that is in the direction of Evan's vision and get him more exposed to what we can bring to Snapchat. We have a lot of ideas of our own but I don't think Evan will engage in our ideas until we try to move something forward that he wants to accomplish. "Please let me know if you want to disc [sic]"

  • Sony's Security Breach Reveals Drake, Kevin Hart Possible Leads in Spike Lee's 'School Daze Too'

    While Sony's recent security breach has uncovered information some folks would have liked to keep private, fans will be pleased to know that in the midst Drake and Kevin Hart were revealed as possible leads for Spike Lee's new film "School Daze Too." According to "HipHopDX," an email from Lee's agent to the head of Sony Pictures Entertainment about a possible follow-up to the director's 1988 movie "School Daze" was discovered during the leak. In the email, Lee's agent, Doug Belgrad, offers up a pitch for the film with the hopes of casting Drake and Hart as the lead roles. "This is a new draft that Spike has written after meetings with Drake, who will play the lead role of PE*NIS, and Kevin Hart who will play DAT N---A JIGGA," Belgrad wrote. "The budget is $ 9 million (net, after Georgia tax credits), not including historic costs, star salaries, creative producer fees. I believe in the film both as an entertainment — a college film — and as a provocative and exciting piece about the conflict of traditional values (education, college) and hip hop/star/celebrity culture. Why go to college to get a job to make money when you can make more money rapping, stripping, and creating salacious music videos even if they demean women??" Talks of a sequel for the film, which originally starred Laurence Fishburne, Giancarlo Esposito and Tisha Campbell-Martin, came about last year after Lee revealed he had completed a script for "School Daze Too."

  • Watch Cameron Carpenter Play "Alfie" on His International Touring Organ

    The Nigel Kennedy of the King's Instrument, Cameron Carpenter (born Taylor Cameron Carpenter) has taken that violinist's charge to another level, indeed, with his International Touring Organ--ITO, for short. "I want the American Classic cathedral organ to combine with its counterpart, the cinema organ, in a single instrument," Mr. Carpenter says.
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