By Drew Grant 5/04/12 4:28pm

Racism

Phil Mushnick, big racist (Getty Images)

Phil Mushnick Uses N-Word in New York Post Sports Column, Blames Jay-Z

Phil Mushnick is a man that once garnered the nickname “Mr. Grumpy” from his boss at Fox Sports. That was in 1998, when it was known even then that Mr. Mushnick was a relic. “He’s a throwback,” David Hill, president of Fox Sports told The New York Observer at the time. “He sees himself as a knight in shining armor protecting sports fans from the slings and arrows hurled at them by cretinous, unfeeling network sports chiefs.”

But cretinous is a term that applies more to Mr. Mushnick more than sports chiefs, especially after today’s rant about Brooklyn Nets, during which he refers to the players as N——, which is certainly a novel way to say the N-word without saying the N-word, but otherwise is a pretty indefensible position all around. Even better is that Mr. Mushnick then tried to defend his statements by blaming the Nets’ part-owner, Jay-Z. Read More

By Daniel D'Addario 2/21/12 11:47am

Celebrity Sightings

3 Photos

Beyoncé and child.

Beyonce and Jay-Z Check Out Lin–and Their Nets

Brooklyn Nets (née New Jersey Nets) investor Jay-Z and his wife Beyoncé have kept a relatively low public profile since the birth of their daughter Blue Ivy Carter, independently releasing songs and photos and singing at Carnegie Hall. Perhaps it’s only a low profile by celebrity-couple standards, but they didn’t go to the Grammys!

Last night, though, Mr. Z and Ms. é made an appearance at Madison Square Garden to see the Nets defeat Jeremy Lin’s Knicks. Forensic analysis of photos shot at the game indicates that Beyonce wore potential parquet-destroying heels, and that the best and worst part of being a civilian sitting courtside is getting to sit next to a celebrity but having to pretend to text so as to play it cool. Read More

By The Editors 1/31/12 7:03pm

Opening Shot

(Future AU Senator??) Julian Assange

A Season of Too Many Stars

Last week, Michael Bloomberg attended a press conference for the 100th episode of Gossip Girl. “I just don’t see how Blair could marry Prince Louis when she’s clearly in love with Chuck,” said the New York mayor, who apparently had nothing bigger on his plate to worry at that moment, such as the allegations of rape made against Greg Kelly, the son of his police Commissioner Ray Kelly, or the NYPD head’s own cameo in an anti-Muslim training video for NYPD recruits.

“I just wish that Nate and Vanessa had been able to work things out … but, again, I’m just a casual fan,” he added. Read More

By Foster Kamer 1/17/12 5:33pm

jay-z-rocawear

Jay-Z’s Clothing Line, Rocawear, Laid Off Half of Their Employees (The Day Before His Daughter Was Born)

Jay-Z’s been no stranger to controversy recently.

The multi-platform mogul, rapper, and as of a week ago father of Beyonce’s baby had what he called the “best week ever” last week. The loud, not-at-all muted complaints of those who felt sidelined by Beyonce’s childbirth at Lenox Hill Hospital—even if they’ve now been deemed “not credible”—would argue differently. So would all of those wondering why Jay-Z’s decision not to use the word “bitch” going forward in light of becoming the father of a daughter didn’t happen in light of being married to a woman like Beyonce. As would the half of Jay-Z’s Rocawear (nee Roc-A-Wear) clothing line workforce, who ANIMAL NY reports were laid off one day before the child was born. Read More

By Drew Grant 1/13/12 10:44am

Ivy Blue Carter

A room with a view: Lenox Hospital (Getty Images)

Beyonce’s Birthing Suite Nicer Than Most New York Apartments

By now, you’ve probably heard that Blue Ivy Carter‘s entrance into this world cost her parents $1.3 million in VIP privacy at the Upper East Side’s Lenox Hill Hospital. The hospital admitted that Beyonce was the first person to use the gigantic suite that was recently built to host extra-special mommies, but denied that the suite was built directly for her. They’ve also claimed, despite rumors, that the entire hospital’s maternity wing did not shut down to make room for the famous duo.

Even Mayor Bloomberg defended the hospital’s lavish attention at the possible expense of other patients, because Blue Ivy Carter, not yet a week old, is already a symbol of Ayn Rand-ian proportions. Read More

By The Editors 1/10/12 7:48pm

Opening Shot

Beyonce wearing Babyonce. (Getty)

Seven Days of Social Networking

How can you tell 2012 has begun with a bang? Just log onto Twitter: the hot topics since Jan. 1 are a Venn diagram of American life—from pop culture to politics, to sports and even race relations. It’s beginning to feel an awful lot like looking into a microcosm not too dissimilar to those sea monkey kits we cried enough about to have Mom and Dad buy one, only to have it sitting in garage next to whatever Santa had brought us the year before. In fact, Twitter has morphed into This American Life. Well, again, for sea monkeys. At least there’s a community spirit in the barrage of 140-character thought bubblettes: it’s one of the few times that you’ll find New Yorkers venturing outside their insular world and joining in the national dialogue ­… even if it’s only online and it turns out that our sea monkeys are just brine shrimp with great marketing.

So here was your week on Twitter. Read More