From the random salute to James Bond to the non-sequiturial "Chicago" revival to Seth MacFarlane's predictably fratty but unpredictably tedious stint as a host — dear Rob Lowe and Snow White: All is forgiven — this year's Oscars were even more tumefied and wearisome than usual. Published February 25, 2013
Introduced to a national television audience less than two weeks ago, World Wrestling Entertainment’s newest villains Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter embody every unpalatable Tea Party stereotype. Xenophobic at best, downright racist at worst, possessing truly terrible facial hair all the while, the two want nothing more in the world than to deport Mexican immigrants. As in: all of them. Unsurprisingly, actual conservatives and Tea Party supporters are less than thrilled. Published February 22, 2013
Did “roid rage” — a state of heightened anger and aggression linked in popular culture to anabolic steroid use — play a part in Paralympic track star Oscar Pistorius allegedly killing his girlfriend on Valentine’s Day? If so, could it help in his legal defense? Published February 19, 2013
And you thought smartphone video chat was impressive. Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield participated in an online chat with users of the social media website Reddit on Sunday — and did so while orbiting the Earth on the International Space Station (ISS). Published February 18, 2013
While Christopher Dorner's apparent death inside a burned-out cabin following a four-hour police siege likely came as a relief to many, some have hailed the 33-year-old fugitive ex-cop and former Navy reservist as a quasi-hero, an avenging angel striking out against police corruption and a system gone wrong. Published February 14, 2013
Why should Dick Tracy have all the fun? Published February 12, 2013
When the news of Pope Benedict XVI’s unexpected, nearly unprecedented resignation broke Monday morning, the Twitter community responded by doing what they do best. Making lots and lots of jokes. Published February 11, 2013
How much do politically divided Americans distrust their television news sources? Let's count the ways. Published February 10, 2013
A new poll depicts a skeptical America split into partisan news-watching camps, Red and Blue viewers peering warily at their screens. Published February 7, 2013
If a new North Korean propaganda video has things right, the world may end with a bang — and also with an elevator music rendition of a popular Michael Jackson song. Coming amid increased atomic saber-rattling by North Korea and posted on state media website Uriminzokkiri last weekend, the video depicts a virtual city draped in the United States flag being attacked by missiles, its skyscrapers on fire and billowing smoke. Published February 5, 2013
When the White House released a photograph Saturday that shows President Obama firing a shotgun at Camp David on Aug. 4, it was intended to back up Mr. Obama’s previous statement that “up at Camp David, we do skeet shooting all the time” — a claim met with skepticism, both real and playful, by many on the political right. Published February 4, 2013
Reports of Sarah Palin's demise are almost certainly premature. Published January 31, 2013
Former Penn State and Pittsburgh Steelers running back Franco Harris recently hosted "Upon Further Review: Penn State One Year Later," a public forum that provided a critical look at the Sandusky investigation, former FBI Director Louis Freeh's scathing report on the scandal, NCAA sanctions against Penn State’s football program and media coverage of the story. Published January 30, 2013
The Boy Scouts of America are once again coming under fire from a national gay rights group, this time via a protest of the National Geographic Channel. The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation announced Wednesday that it is supporting an online petition asking the cable network to add a disclaimer to the start of each episode of the upcoming reality series "Are You Tougher Than a Boy Scout?" Published January 25, 2013
If you’ve ever wanted to evade overhead surveillance drones — and, of course, look stylish while doing so — then Adam Harvey has you covered. Literally. Published January 24, 2013
If you've ever wanted to evade overhead surveillance drones -- and, of course, look stylish while doing so -- then Adam Harvey has you covered. Published January 23, 2013
Utopian communities: They're not just for hippies anymore. Published January 23, 2013
By admitting that he used PEDs to dominate cycling and become one of the world's most marketable athletes, Lance Armstrong has weakened his defense in a series of lawsuits that could cost him more than $100 million — and may have provided an inadvertent blueprint for how to better deter high-profile athletes from doping. Forget public shame. Never mind competitive bans. Instead, get a lawyer. Then go after the money. . Published January 16, 2013
To the list of history's great break-ups — the continental rifting of Pangaea; the dissolution of the USSR; the split between Kim Kardashian and that tall doofus she married on television — add this: Colin Powell and the Republican Party. Published January 15, 2013
Since September of 2011, the Obama administration has invited the public to petition the government at a “We the People” area of the official White House website, promising that when a petition receives enough support — currently 25,000 electronic signatures within a 30-day window — Mr. Obama’s staff will review the request and issue an official response. Many of the resulting petitions have been predictable. Others, however, are more eclectic. Published January 11, 2013
