Video Beating Victim To Speak
The Atlanta man seen in a viral video being savagely beaten by thugs for wearing skinny jeans will speak today at a press conference scheduled for noon.
The victim’s family told reporters that the 20-year-old man came forward on Tuesday to speak with police after the FBI joined the investigation.
“Atlanta Police Department spokesman Carlos Campos said that the widespread dissemination of the video led family members of the 20-year-old victim to contact police,” according to the Atlanta Journal.
“Atlanta police investigators were able to locate the victim … who gave a statement to investigators,” Campos said in statement emailed to the news media Tuesday night.
In the video, which was first posted on Worldstarhiphop.com, the victim is seen exiting a convenience store on McDaniel Street in the “Pittsburgh” area of Atlanta on Saturday. The man, wearing tight black “skinny jeans” and a long black ponytail, is set upon by three thugs shouting anti-gay slogans.
The thugs punch and kick the defenseless man as he crouched on the ground. One thug picked up a tire that was leaning on a wall nearby and hit the victim with it.
The brutal scene was captured on two cell phone cameras as well as a surveillance video from the convenience store.
The FBI is investigating the incident as a federal hate crime against gays. If captured and convicted, the perpetrators will face stiffer sentences than if they were convicted on state charges.
Watch the video here.
In Case you Missed It: Love & Hip Hop; Reality Check
I like ‘Love and Hip Hop‘ executive producer Mona Scott-Young. She’s real enough to give viewers into the real, less glamorous side of reality shows. For instance, Chrissy Lampkin only agreed to appear on last night’s episode if she wasn’t interviewed by Scott.
In last night’s episode, subtitled ‘Reality Check‘, Scott took viewers behind the scenes of ‘Love and Hip Hop‘, to show how the producers really influence the direction of reality shows.
Scott is part interviewer, part therapist. It was interesting to watch her use her calm shrewdness and experience to draw the emotions out of the insecure cast members.
For instance, we now know that fading rapper Jim Jones agreed to appear in the LHH pilot because Chrissy “took a liking to” all the attention she received from the show. It was hard to watch Jones squirm under the weight of his own humility as he admitted to suppressing his pride to allow his woman to shine on the show.
Now that’s love.
Video: Man Assaulted for Wearing Skinny Jeans *Updated*
Scroll down for updates…
A loyal reader sent in this disturbing video of a man being beaten by thugs who assume he’s gay apparently because he’s wearing a hairpiece and skinny jeans.
In the video, which was posted on Worldstarhiphop.com, the unidentified male victim, dressed in all black, was viciously punched without provocation as he exited a convenience store with another man dressed in an orange Tee (it isn’t clear if the two men are together).
When the victim hit the ground he was set upon by three thugs who savagely kicked and punched him as he cowered on the ground. The thug holding the camera laughed while another man off-camera screamed anti-gay hate slogans.
Loyal reader Demond writes:
Please Help End This.. Can you please help put an end to this mess! Bring these three guys to justice!
Update I, 6:43 pm ET:
The Washington Post has picked up the story under the title Atlanta Hate Crime Caught On Videotape. I had no idea this brutal attack occurred right here in Atlanta — the gay mecca of the south. We’re waiting for the local news to catch up.
Update II, 7:00 pm ET:
The Atlanta Journal Constitution was on top of this story earlier today. According to the AJC, Atlanta police are aware of the videotaped beating, which took place outside a convenience store on McDaniel street just south of the AU center. But police don’t know who the victim is or the date when the video was shot. The APD is urging the victim to come forward and press charges against his assailants.
Police are asking anyone with information about the incident shown in the video to call Zone 3 police officers at 404-624-0674 or to call anonymously to Crime Stoppers Atlanta at 404-577-8477.
Update III, 11:40 pm ET:
The AJC reports that the FBI has joined in the investigation:
In a prepared statement emailed to the media Monday night, U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said, “Along with the Atlanta Police Department, we are working to determine if the actions portrayed in the video violate federal law, including the hate crime statute.
“The actions depicted in the video are appalling and unacceptable in our community, and we encourage anyone with information about this video to contact the FBI or Atlanta Police,” Yates said.
Update IV, 11:45 pm ET:
WSBTV.com Channel 2 Action News reporter Craig Lucie speaks with the family of the teenage victim: Federal investigators now joining probe into taped beating of teen
Be warned that the video you are about to see is brutal and disturbing.
Kanye West’s Super Bowl Ad; Plus, Banned Durex Condom Ad
Super Bowl 46 was viewed by over 111 million worldwide on Sunday. The 2012 Super Bowl commercials fetched an average of $3.5 million for each 30-second spot. Music producer and rapper Kanye West pocketed some change from one of those spots: Budweiser’s Bud Light Platinum ad, which featured the intro from Kanye’s track “Runaway” off of his platinum album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.
Watch the Bud Light SB ad after the break, plus the banned Durex condom Super Bowl commercial that you never got the chance to see (and I wish I didn’t see).
In Case You Missed It: Super Bowl XLVI (Highlights)
Some are calling Super Bowl 46 the greatest in Super Bowl history. It was certainly the first Super Bowl in recent memory where the commercials didn’t upstage the game on the field. (This year’s commercials were too numerous and too boring to remember.)
Super Bowl 46 was the 2nd meeting of the NY Giants and the New England Patriots, and the 2nd time the Giants came out on top. It was also the first (and probably the last) super bowl for hapless wide receiver Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson whose off-the-field antics didn’t endear him to NE coach Tom Belichick.
It’s almost certain that Belichick will unload Ochocinco after spending $6 million on him in a trade with the Bengals. No team will sign Ochocinco which will give him more time to plan his fake wedding to reality TV star Evelyn Lozada this Summer. Ocho and Evelyn had better take note of the fallout from Kim Kardashian and Kris Humprhies’ fake made-for-TV wedding, which didn’t go over well with the fans.
Watch the highlights from Super Bowl XLVI after the break!
Was Madonna’s SB 46 Halftime Performance the Greatest Ever?
That’s what everyone is saying this morning after the BY Giants upended the hapless New England Patriots to win Super Bowl XLVI 21-17. The 53-year-old pop icon rode into the arena on a chariot worthy of the gods. She launched into a performance of her hit single “Vogue” before performing her current single “Give Me All Your Lovin’” with Nicki Minaj and M.I.A.
Madonna didn’t miss a step as the athletic superstar danced her heart out and threw in a couple of cartwheels onstage. But it was M.I.A.’s flip of a finger that caused most of the buzz from last night’s performance. Some are comparing M.I.A’s middle finger flip to Janet Jackson’s intentional disrobing in 2004′s Super Bowl.
That may be a bit of a stretch when you consider that M.I.A. flipped the bird so quickly that most of America missed it. Still, M.I.A.’s obscene gesture may have stolen the show from Madge. Watch the video after the break.
T.I. and Tiny Remember Don Cornelius; Discuss Baby Rumor
Rap mogul T.I. and his wife, Tameka “Tiny” Harris, remembered Don Cornelius during their visit to ’106 & Park’.
“For me, it was about him creating a platform for us to be able to see ourselves,” said Tip. “Every Saturday morning after cartoons went off, I was waiting and hoping Run-DMC or somebody was on there. If not for him, we wouldn’t have had that. And not just my generation, but generations before me.”
From Miss Xpose:
Tiny recalled her appearance on the show in the ’90s with her group Xscape. “When I first started out, we were on ‘Soul Train’ and it was a great experience,” she said. “It was the first time I realized that they lip-sync, so it was something different, but I loved it. He paved the way for a lot of us to make it and be seen.”
The couple also addressed rumors that they’re expecting another child. “Ya’ll know I can’t give it away,” said Tiny, before T.I. interrupted to tell them to tune in to their VH1 show, “T.I. and Tiny: The Family Hustle,” to find out.
While we’re on the subject, Tiny is looking for a licensed nail tech for her new location. You must be licensed in the state of Georgia. (See new post).
