Blogs

Private Tour of Bonhams Auction House new space

By Elissa Hecker posted 2 hours ago
Please join EASL's Fine Arts Committee on Monday, April 20 at 4pm for a private tour of Bonhams auction house at their recently opened New York City flagship location in the magnificent Steinway Building at 111 West 57th Street. On display will be the American Art collection , in anticipation of the upcoming auction. Thank you to Fine Arts Committee member Deborah Hrbeck for making this possible. Limited slots available, RSVP required. RSVP link below Look forward to seeing you. Carol Steinberg Co-Chair Fine Arts Committee forms.office.com/r/UVPZGmpsP0

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 3 days ago
By Haley Lyons Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Time for Another Supreme Court Battle? Major Labels (and BMG) Move to Take Over Vetter v. Resnick Copyright Recapture Case, Spearhead Appeal Major record labels and BMG moved to take over the Vetter v. Resnik case and plan to seek a higher-court appeal after a Fifth Circuit ruling held that copyright recapture rights apply worldwide. https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2026/03/27/vetter-v-resnik-major-labels-appeal/ Blake Lively’s Retaliation Case Heads to Trial Without Harassment Claims A federal judge dismissed Blake Lively’s sexual harassment ...

EASL Blog

By Elissa Hecker posted 10 days ago
By Giancarla Sambo Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News: Entertainment Bill Cosby Loses Sex Assault Lawsuit and Faces a $59 Million Judgment On March 23, 2026, a Santa Monica jury found Bill Cosby liable for the 1972 drugging and sexual assault of Donna Motsinger, awarding her $59.25 million. This follows years of legal battles, with Cosby's conviction overturned in 2021 on procedural grounds. In a deposition, Cosby described his net worth as declining "like a submarine with no motor" ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 18 days ago
By Jessie Schuster Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Indie Artist Coalition Files Major Lawsuit Against Google Over AI Copyright Theft–’Broadest, Most Comprehensive Attack’ Against AI Music Models An independent artist coalition filed a sweeping lawsuit against Google, accusing it of using copyrighted music to train AI models without permission. The case is being described as one of the most significant legal challenges to AI in the music industry to date. https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2026/03/09/indie-artist-coalition-google-lawsuit-ai/ Live Nation Employees Boast About “Gouging” ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 25 days ago
By Christine Coleman Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Hip-Hop Icons Tell Justices That Texas Turned Rap Lyrics Into a Death Warrant The Supreme Court received expert assistance from towering figures in the world of hip-hop, including Killer Mike, T.I., Young Thug, Fat Joe, N.O.R.E., and Travis Scott in the form of briefs supporting James Broadnax, a man convicted of two 2008 murders and sentenced to death in Texas. In the original trial, prosecutors introduced lyrics written by Broadnax into evidence, which the jury used to determine whether to sentence him to death. In their briefs, the artists argue that prosecutors ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 03-09-2026
By Haley Lyons Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Live Nation Accused of Hurting Music Fans as Antitrust Trial Begins The Justice Department accused Live Nation, the concert company that owns Ticketmaster, of earning its profits illegally by using monopoly power to stifle competition, dominate the ticketing market, and extract money from fans through high ticket prices and surcharges. Live Nation denied the allegations, arguing that the company has minimal profit margins and fights for every deal in the highly competitive music business. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/03/arts/music/live-nation-antitrust-trial.html ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 03-02-2026
By Giancarla Sambo Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News: Entertainment U.S. Appeals Court Overturns BMI Rate Hike on Concert Promoters, Ruling Rates Were ‘Unreasonable’ The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled that the rates imposed on concert promoters in Judge Louis Stanton’s 2023 decision – which more than doubled the royalty rate songwriters receive from live concerts in the U.S. – were “unreasonable”, and vacated the ruling. BMI had celebrated the original decision as a “massive ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 02-23-2026
By Jessie Schuster Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Netflix Boss Says $83B Warner Bros Takeover Will Benefit Industry Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos defended the company’s $82.8B Bid to Acquire Warner Bros. Discovery assets, saying the deal would spur industry growth and benefit creators and consumers, even as political and competitive scrutiny mounts. https://www.theguardian.com/media/2026/feb/23/netflix-warner-bros-takeover-ted-sarandos-donald-trump-susan-rice Ryan Reynolds Skips Blake Lively-Justin Baldoni Settlement Conference The ongoing legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 02-16-2026
By Christine Coleman Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Hollywood Braces for New Round of Labor Talks The contracts that ended the actors’ and writers’ strikes in 2023 are nearing their expiration dates. Negotiations begin today between SAG-AFTRA and the leaders of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers for a new deal, while negotiations between the Writers’ Guild of America and the studios and directors’ alliance will occur later this spring. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/09/business/media/hollywood-actors-writers-contract-talks.html Adding “hot takes” to unlicensed music is not ...

United States' Federal Government Adopts New Rules on Foreign Ownership of Broadcast Stations

By Elissa Hecker posted 02-10-2026
by Barry Skidelsky, Esq.* On January 30, 2026, the United States' Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released two separate Reports and Orders in connection with foreign ownership of U.S. radio and television stations. FCC 26-3 One such Report and Order relates to the FCC's recently completed Review of Foreign Ownership for Broadcast Licensees, FCC 26-3 ( https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-26-3A1.pdf ), and adopts formal rules to codify relevant policies and practices that the federal agency has developed over the last decade which have liberalized the federal government's ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 02-10-2026
By Haley Lyons Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Trump Assails Grammys and Threatens to Sue Trevor Noah Over Epstein Joke President Donald Trump described this year’s Grammys as “virtually unwatchable” and threatened to sue the host Trevor Noah over a joke that implied Trump had been to Jeffery Epstein’s island. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/arts/television/trump-grammys-trevor-noah.html Timothy Busfield Is Indicted on Charges of Child Sexual Abuse A grand jury in New Mexico voted to indict Timothy Busfield, longtime actor and director, on four counts of ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 02-02-2026
By Giancarla Sambo Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News: Entertainment Sundance Says Thank You, and Goodbye, to Park City “It’s hard not to feel a disturbance in the force,” said Ethan Hawke, whose acting career took off after his early movies appeared at the Utah festival in the 1990s. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/28/business/media/sundance-film-festival-park-city-boulder.html Ye Apologizes for Antisemitic Behavior, Again The artist formerly known as Kanye West, who first ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 01-26-2026
By Jessie Schuster Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Paramount Extends Deadline for Warner Bros. Discovery Shareholders to Back Hostile Bid; WBD Says Base has Already Snubbed “Inferior Scheme” Paramount extended its deadline for Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders to back its bid in attempts to give the media giant more time to oppose Warner Bros’ proposed merger with Netflix. https://deadline.com/2026/01/paramount-extends-deadline-warner-bros-discovery-netflix-1236692082/ Matthew McConaughey Trademarks ‘Alright, Alright, Alright!” and Other IP as Legal Protections Against ‘AI Misuse’ As part ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 01-19-2026
By Christine Coleman Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Hands Down Landmark Vetter v. Resnik Copyright Termination Decision — ‘No Explicit Geographical Limitation’ to U.S. Copyright Recaptures The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has handed down a landmark copyright ruling in Vetter v. Resnik , determining that U.S. copyright termination rights apply worldwide. https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2026/01/13/vetter-v-resnik-appeals-court-determination/ L.A. Reid Settles Lawsuit Shortly Before Sexual Assault Trial On the day when his civil trial was set to begin, ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 01-12-2026
By Haley Lyons Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment Warner Bros. Board Rebuffs Paramount’s Latest Buyout Offer Warner Bros. Discovery advised shareholders to reject a takeover bid from Paramount, concluding that the deal posed greater risk than its recently announced $83 billion agreement to sell much of the company to Netflix. The board said that Paramount’s proposal, backed in part by a personal equity guarantee from billionaire Larry Ellison, relied heavily on debt and outside financing and carried regulatory and execution risks. The company also warned that Paramount’s proposed restrictions could limit the company’s ...

Climate Change Blog 61

By Carl Howard posted 01-05-2026
Facts on the Ground In early November, high waves spawned by Typhoon Fung-wong engulfed Sinbanali, a seaside village near the Philippine’s capital of Manila, prompting the evacuation of 1.3 million people . Ivy Villamor, a local resident, said “The winds howled, and the rains were non-stop. Like it was the end of the world.” The typhoon was classed as a super typhoon when it came ashore on the main island of Luzon. 132 villages were flooded, with some parts of Aurora Province cut off due to landslides. 1,000 homes were damaged by the storm and two people were killed which. The Philippines’ government deployed almost a thousand search-and-rescue teams to combat ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 12-22-2025
By Giancarla Sambo Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News: Entertainment Reiners’ Son Arrested and Charged in Deaths of His Parents Nick Reiner was arrested in connection to the deaths of his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, and was charged with two counts of first-degree murder. He is on suicide watch and being held in solitary confinement. https://ew.com/rob-reiner-son-nick-suicide-watch-solitary-confinement-after-murder-charges-11873992 President Trump Seizes on Rob Reiner’s ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 12-15-2025
By Lorena Guzmán-Díaz Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Below, for your browsing convenience, the categories are divided into: Entertainment, Arts, Sports, Technology/Media, and General News. Entertainment Paramount Makes Hostile Bid for Warner Bros. Discovery Paramount has launched a hostile takeover attempt for Warner Bros. Discovery, valuing its offer at 30 per share, which totals around $108 billion, including debt. This move comes just days after Warner Bros. finalized a deal with Netflix worth $83 billion, which included major studio assets and was approved by both companies' boards. Paramount's bid circumvents Warner's ...

Week In Review

By Elissa Hecker posted 12-08-2025
By Jessie Schuster Edited by Elissa D. Hecker Entertainment As Netflix Swallows Warner Bros., Hollywood Is In Full-Blown Panic Mode Netflix’s $82.7 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. has triggered widespread panic across Hollywood, as industry insiders, unions, and movie‑theater owners warn it could lead to job losses, reduced creative variety, and the erosion of the theatrical film model. https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/story/netflix-warner-bros-hollywood-panic Jorja Smith’s Label FAMM Seeks Share of Royalties From Viral Track ‘I Run’ Amid AI Allegations, Calls for Industry ‘Guardrails’ to ...