An Artificial Intelligence event held earlier this summer at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute allowed the community to interact with an experiential project.
David Rokeby is the artist behind the installation titled Surfing the Manifold: Adventures in Latent Space. Rokeby says the work rests of the shoulders of many, and he doesn’t consider it art. He says his role serves as a facilitator for the model which uses technologies and works created in the past.
WAMC’s Samantha Simmons met with Rokeby to discuss his efforts and the importance of AI literacy.
David Rokeby is the Director of the University of Toronto’s BMO Laboratory for Creative Research in the Arts, Performance, Emerging Technologies, and AI.
Oasis is back at No. 1 on the U.K.’s Official Albums Chart as the first leg of their Live ‘25 reunion tour comes to a close in Dublin, Ireland this weekend (Aug. 15).
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Time Flies… 1994-2009, the group’s era-spanning singles collection first released in 2010, returns to the summit for its second non-consecutive week this year and third overall. There’s success for two of their studio albums, too, as 1995’s (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? Lands at No. 3 and 1994 debut Definitely Maybe closes at No. 7.
The Gallagher brothers will play a pair of shows in the Irish capital this weekend, rounding off the U.K. and Ireland leg of their comeback jaunt. The show will head to North America next week, kicking off at Toronto’s Rogers Stadium on Aug. 24.
mgk, formerly known as Machine Gun Kelly, secures the week’s highest new entry with seventh studio album, Lost Americana. The spot gives him his third top 10 LP, and matches his previous high with 2022’s Mainstream Sellout.
After leading during the midweeks, Wrexham’s The Royston Club end the week at No. 4 with Songs For The Spine. It gives the indie band a new high, having previously peaked at No. 16 in 2023 with debut album Shaking Hips and Crashing Cars. They also top the Official Record Store Chart and Official Vinyl Albums Chart following an extensive in-store tour through record shops.
Alex Warren’s You’ll Be Alright, Kid holds steady at No. 5, while Gunna lands a third top 10 LP with his new collection The Last Wun finishing at No. 9.
After losing the top spot for a week, KPop Demon Hunters is back at No. 1 with hit single “Golden” (Aug. 15).
The song from the Netflix musical first hit the top spot a fortnight ago, becoming the first K-pop No. 1 single in the U.K. for over 13 years. PSY’s “Gangnam Style” was the last song to achieve the feat prior to that in 2012.
Chappell Roan debuted at No. 1 with her comeback single “The Subway” and claimed the crown from the animated group HUNTR/X, which is sung by EJAE, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami.
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But after a week away from the top, “Golden” has returned to the top spot with a massive weak on streaming. The KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack has now secured the most U.K. album streams in a week for a soundtrack ever (18,631 streaming-equivalent sales), toppling a record held by the Barbie soundtrack in 2023 (17,681). Two additional songs from the soundtrack “Soda Pop” (No. 6) and “Your Idol” (No. 7), both by animated boyband Saja Boys, land in the top 10.
Roan’s “The Subway” falls just one spot to No. 2 as the U.S. star tours a number of European festivals throughout August. She’ll head to the U.K.’s Reading & Leeds Festival next weekend (Aug. 22) for her debut headline performance at the iconic festival.
Disco Lines and Tinashe’s “No Broke Boys” climbs two spots to reach a new peak (No. 3). The song first featured on Tinashe’s 2024 LP Quantum Baby before its remix by the rising EDM producer.
MK and Chrystal’s “Dior,” which spent two weeks at the summit earlier this summer, finishes the week at No. 4, while Justin Bieber’s “Daisies” holds steady at No. 5.
Knowa De Baraso was hard to miss this time last year during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
He was the preternaturally precocious, pre-teen pundit in a polo shirt and khaki shorts who made the rounds of the global media outlets that were camped out in the the United Center sports arena as Vice President Kamala Harris was anointed as the Democratic presidential candidate.
Twelve months later, De Baraso, 13, has widened his lens to embrace pop culture and influencers and celebrities who want to connect with Gen Alpha listeners. The Atlanta-based youth has teamed with the podcast network Reasoned Choice Media and iHeart for the weekly interview podcast series “Now You Know with Knowa De Baraso.”
The series bowed July 30 with former “Real Housewives of the Potomac” star Mia Thornton and Incognito as inaugural guests. Hip hop star Macy Gray and comedian Roy Wood Jr. have also taken part in conversations that blend discussion of public issues, entrepreneurship, Black empowerment and personal anecdotes.
De Baraso is wise beyond his years, but he’s also got the blunt edge of a youth that can cut through the politesse.
“In those 30 minutes, we get a lot out of them,” De Baraso tells Variety of his guests. “Because this is no boring punditry. I’m not a pundit. I don’t want it to be politician stuff. I think I bring a great sense of how to mix politics and entertainment at the same time.”
Last year, De Baraso went viral during the DNC in August 2024 when he had an exchange on the floor of the United Center with conversative rabble-rouser Mike Lindell, CEO of MyPillow. As Lindell babbled on about baseless conspiracy theories involving voting in De Baraso’s home state of Georgia, the 12-year-old shut him down. De Baraso’s incredulous retort to Lindell — “So your source is, ‘Trust me, bro?’ — became a tagline that was converted to Knowa-related merch.
Knowa De Baraso
Video of the incident made it onto NBC’s “Late Night With Seth Meyers,” and it landed De Baraso a guest shot on popular “The Breakfast Club” radio show and podcast during the DNC. De Baraso has been a full-throated supporter of Harris and other prominent Democrats. Over the past year, he’s turned his focus to developing a podcast that goes beyond politics. De Baraso’s focus at present is less on advocacy and more about encouraging young Americans to be engaged in issues and to get out the vote in the mid-term elections of 2026 and beyond.
Among the contacts he made at the DNC was Angela Rye, the activist and commentator who is a leader of the Reasoned Choice Media network founded by Charlamagne Tha God. “Knowa is young but wise beyond his years,” Rye tells Variety. “I am so encouraged by his interest in the political process and what our collective obligation is to change it for our good.”
De Baraso, who will turn 14 on Oct. 18, became engaged in politics a few years ago after he attended a rally in Atlanta led by Stacey Abrams. The home-schooled youth made a splash at the DNC, which led him to discussions with prospective media partners. De Baraso emphasized that he’s spent months developing “Now You Knowa” and working on his interviewing skills.
“It will not be a 100% politics-focused podcast,” De Baraso says. “There will be a lot of politics with a pop culture background as well. And we’re going to talk to guests with all different sorts of backgrounds. This is not about advocacy. It’s going to be a very great way to merge entertainment and politics at the same time.”
In his downtime, De Baraso assured that he does engage in some typically teenage pursuits. As a budding media professional, he’s also a regular reader of Variety to stay on top of news and trends. And he’s a movie lover.
“I play Roblox. I like to play games and I like to stay safe while doing it,” he says. “I check Variety and I see what new movies are out.”
Rye believes the voices of De Baraso’s generation will be key to engaging younger viewers to participate in the elections that have profound impact on their everyday lives, whether they realize it or not.
“I hope he will inspire young poeple to engage in the process. Because whether you do politics or not, it always does you,” Rye says.
De Baraso believes the first step is to speak to Gen Z and Gen Alpha in ways that they understand, without making it feel like homework. De Baraso’s own career is an example that smart discourse can come from unpredictable places.
“We must not alienate young people when they choose to listen to their favorite TikToker or their favorite singer about who they choose to vote for,” De Baraso says. “I think by that is alienating young people by itself. Podcasts like mine will get people out to vote. I think that’s going to be great and very crucial in the next election — listening to these entertainment voices and getting their young audiences out to vote.”
CORRECTION: This post has been updated to correct the spelling of De Baraso.
David Shopland was a teenager in 1945 when the world marked VJ Day
A seaside town stepped back in time on Saturday as it marked the anniversary of VJ Day, or Victory over Japan Day.
On the exact spot of the former railway station in Clevedon, North Somerset, from which people would have left to serve in World War Two, a display of restored military vehicles and equipment was gathered.
As music of the era drifted through the streets and people arrived in 1940s dress, those attending reflected on the anniversary marking the end of the conflict.
“The veterans are disappearing now and their legacies really are these vehicles,” said James Shopland, who owns a collection of restored vehicles based at his family business Shoplands Sawmills.
James Shopland (left) said restoring the vehicles had become an “obsession”
Driving a “very aged 1940s lorry down the road”, he said, was “as near as you can really get to experiencing what they went through in the wars”.
During the war, production of civilian cars ground to a halt, with production instead focused on the huge quantity of vehicles and equipment needed for fighting.
It meant that by the end of the conflict there was a surplus of military vehicles, many of which were then bought up and repurposed for business use by people like Mr Shoplands’ ancestors.
Restoring them to their former glory has become a “project, passion, obsession”, Mr Shopland said, after growing up around the vehicles as his “playground”.
“For me it’s taking a piece of the past and trying to bring it back to life and also learn about what happened,” he told the BBC.
A number of antique vehicles from the period were on display in Clevedon
His father – David Shopland, a teenager on VJ Day – remembers the occasion in 1945 as much more muted than the jubilant celebrations on VE Day (Victory in Europe Day) earlier that year.
While VE Day was celebrated on 8 May 1945, thousands of military personnel continued to fight Japanese forces for three more months before the country surrendered following the United States’ nuclear strikes on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
“It was more or less a forgotten army at times,” David said.
Not a ‘jolly occasion’
Describing the feeling at the end of the war, he added that while there was “relief the hostilities were over and no one else was going to be killed”, there was a “sadness” at the sudden realisation at how much had been lost.
“It wasn’t a jolly occasion, it was tinged with sadness and a little apprehension about the future because the government had changed,” he said.
And when it comes to taking part in days like Saturday’s commemoration in Clevedon, Mr Shopland said: “You have to be careful to be seen that you aren’t just playing soldiers.
“It’s an interest in the vehicles and what they stand for, what they represent, not just trying to show off.”
Rabeeca Khan is a popular social media influencer and a digital creator, active on all social and digital media platforms including Tiktok, Instagram and YouTube. She has a strong Instagram following of 6.2 million followers. Rabeeca Khan has recently tied the knot with her fiance Hussain Tareen. Fans loved their viral Nikah events. She also made headlines for her Umrah journey.
Rabeeca Khan has recently sung the famous Bollywood song Saiyaara in her voice. She sang a long chunk from the song with the help of autotune and with full expressions and actions. Rabeeca was sitting in her car while singing Saiyaara female version. Here is the link to the video:
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Social media users are trolling Rabeeca Khan. One fan made fun of her voice, saying, “She needs to do the gargles from ELFY Super Glue to make her voice more refined” Another wrote, “Even the autotune is not helping her”. Many said, “Shreya crying in the corner after listening to Rabeeca Khan’s funny version”. Another wrote, “You don’t need to jump on every trend, it’s so horrible”. Many fans said that now they have started hating the real Saiyaara song after hearing this version. Read the comments:
Prince Harry’s pal takes dig at Britons amid backlash on ‘With Love, Meghan’
Prince Harry’s pal made his feelings clear about the second season of Meghan Markle’s cooking show.
For the unversed, part two of the Duchess of Sussex’s Netflix show, With Love, Meghan, has been released, which left the Britons unimpressed.
According to the Daily Mail, Alex Rayner, who once participated in a charity trek to the North Pole with Harry in 2012, sided with the Duchess of Sussex amid backlash.
He called Britons “too cynical” to understand the glamour of Meghan.
“I’d argue it’s made for the American market, maybe a little bit more than for us,” Alex said.
“We’re a little bit more cynical. For us, we’re about old Mrs Miggins over the Aga doing her marmalade. Whereas, in America, they’re a little bit more classy about it. They want a bit more,” he added.
Alex also lauded Meghan’s efforts with her lifestyle brand, As Ever. He dubbed the mother-of-two’s business venture “absolutely fantastic.”
“Both Harry and his father are passionate about sustainable, field-to-fork methods. And that’s very much what Meghan’s all about as well, but people pillory her. There’s an enormous level of support and an appetite to see what Harry and Meghan get up to, as with any member of the Royal Family,” he shared.
The love continues to grow stronger for the five-time Emmy-winning Netflix series Love on the Spectrum. Based on the Australian series of the same name, the docu-reality show, co-created by Cian O’Clery and Karina Holden, follows a neurodiverse group of people on the autism spectrum as they navigate the world of dating and relationships.
Season 3 features returning fan favorites Tanner, Connor, and James, alongside favorite returning couples Adan and Dani and Abbey and David. Newcomers Peri and Madison also join the cast. From the self-encouraging pep talks to finding the courage needed to ramp up to the first kiss, this series continues to highlight endearing moments of vulnerability and doesn’t shy away from the challenging moments of trying to find a soulmate. This time around, Love on the Spectrum garnered five total nominations, which include a first nomination for cinematography. “There’s a lot of dating shows that are competitions or quite salacious or quite populated by really hot Instagram model types – not that there’s anything wrong with that,” O’Clery told Deadline. “But I think that just having real people dating and their stories being told in a way that is truthful and honest, without any winners or losers or eliminations, is something that is hopefully, refreshing for people, and they enjoy that as well as our incredible cast. The people that we’ve cast in the series, whose stories we’ve been telling, are just awesome people.”
Below, O’Clery opens up about neurodivergent representation and the fun of filming the many stages of love.
DEADLINE: What is the biggest difference in adapting your Australian show for the U.S.?
CIAN O’CLERY: Well, I think the beauty of it and what has been great for us is that there isn’t a lot of difference actually. We haven’t really changed our methodology in terms of how we make the show. We haven’t added any new bells and whistles to make it a U.S. version. We’ve been able to stick with what the show was originally, and that’s great; we are appreciative of it, and Netflix has been supportive. We have a bigger canvas now, and we are shooting all over the U.S., which gives us an interesting diversity of characters to explore. But yeah, I think the beauty of it is that we haven’t changed a lot in terms of how we make it or how we put it together.
DEADLINE: You’re flying around the U.S. from places like Santa Ana to New York to Georgia to Florida just this past season alone. How long does it take you to make one season?
O’CLERY: Am I able to talk about this? Probably in loose terms [laughs]. So, we have a fairly long shoot period, but with less shoot days per week. We have a set amount of shoot days, but we stretch that over, say, four months to make sure that we have enough time to be able to tell people’s stories in a real, honest, and truthful way so that we do have actual time passing in between our visits. It means we’re spending a lot of time in the air, flying back and forth. Many shows will simply go somewhere, shoot everything, and then leave. We consider it a docu-reality series because it involves a lot of documentary elements. We start telling somebody’s story, we have no idea where it’s going to go. We have no idea how much time we’re going to spend filming with them. So, it’s all about the fact that we begin with these people, and we start to tell their stories, and their stories take us where they take us.
Abbey & David in Love on the Spectrum
Netflix
DEADLINE: There are some heartfelt, tear-jerking moments this season. I know it’s Season 3, but I’m wondering how you’re processing these very emotionally intimate moments that you capture.
O’CLERY: I mean, I am still [touched by these moments], but I’m also very focused on what I’m doing as well. It’s hard because I’m holding a shot at 200 mil at F2.8, filming something, as well as trying to think in director mode, as well as experiencing amazing moments. But this is how I’ve worked for a long time, so I’m used to doing that and having to make sure I’m really nailing a shot because I know that at the end of the day, it’s so important to capture these moments well.
It can be tough and tricky, but it’s amazing to film such special moments. Connor and Georgie in the rain, that was tough. It’s raining, it’s outside. That was hard to do. But you know what? We’re excited that we were nominated for cinematography this year. I’m happy with that because we put a lot of effort into making things look nice, despite having a tiny crew, no lights, no gaffers, and essentially nothing. And it’s nice to have a show that isn’t just big, beautiful drone shots being nominated for cinematography. So, we’re really honored to be named on that list.
DEADLINE: How do you decide what the audience sees versus all the things we don’t see during a date?
O’CLERY: It’s just the process of editing, and that’s where we’ve got incredible editors that we work with on this series that I’ve worked with, a couple of them, for a long time on a lot of different shows. We have great editors and storytellers and, of course, myself and Karina [Holden] and everybody who is also involved in that process. It’s about figuring out how to tell the best story that engages the audience and represents that person’s truth and experience on their dating journey. We do all of our post-production back in Australia. I’ve got three editors working already, and I’m on my last shoot day here on Season 4. Diving deeper into the edit and putting all the stories together is a fun part of the process, but also a lot of stress and very rewarding [laughs].
DEADLINE: As the orchestrator of this series that continues to grow, has the pressure and responsibility of representing the voices of people on the spectrum increased, or does it feel more like a well-oiled machine?
O’CLERY: It’s still a huge responsibility, and it’s one that kind of befell us as a team–me, Karina, and the team at Northern Pictures. It went from being a little show on an Australian public broadcaster to being this show that’s being seen globally, and I guess probably the clearest representation of autism in the media–that’s a huge responsibility that we don’t take lightly at all. It’s really important for us to try and get it right. I think what comforts us when we do think about that is we’re telling real stories of real people in their voices. It’s them telling us their stories. That’s why we have those lovely master interviews where they’re looking down the barrel, where they’re actually looking at a reflection of me in a mirror system.
That makes us feel good about what’s being put out there, and we also try to cast a diverse range of people whenever possible. But having said that, we don’t say, “Hey, we’re making a new season. We need X, we need Y, and we need Z,” we just put the call out, and it’s the people who come into us that we work with. And from there, we make a short list of who we think is going to be right. Also, I am neurodiverse myself, and I have ADHD, which is in the family. So, I think I identify with many of the experiences people on the show have, particularly in terms of sensitivities. But I’m not saying that means I understand [everything]. The most important thing is to be questioning all the time and asking people what their experience is, because the autism spectrum is so diverse that you can’t make any assumptions about anybody. That’s what we’re hoping the biggest message is in the series. We’re hoping that people don’t make assumptions about someone based on their diagnosis because everyone is completely different.
DEADLINE: Was there a date location that you were very excited to get?
O’CLERY: We filmed at some incredible places. It is getting to the point now where, for Season 3, when we were filming with James again, it was like, God, we’ve used up the best locations in that area [laughs]. The fact that we could film at the Crane Estate, where they filmed Witches of Eastwick. It’s amazing that we’ve been able to film in some of these places because we do not have a big location budget at all. But I think because people love the show, they’re willing to have us a lot of the time. It really adds to the show being able to film at beautiful places and places that are relevant to the people whose story we’re telling. James was so excited to film at the Crane Estate and Hammond Castle. We find beautiful spots and talk to our cast about what dates they want to go on and the kinds of places they’d love to go to. It’s fun when we get to film at some incredible places. If only I could just enjoy them without having all the stress of filming [laughs]. One day, I’ll get back to them as a tourist.
DEADLINE: Between setting up matches for the people on the show and serving as an EP on Netflix’s other dating show, The Later Daters, do you consider yourself a love guru?
O’CLERY: Not at all. I’m definitely not a love guru. It’s funny, but I don’t know. I guess common interest is always something that’s important. Being on a similar wavelength is important, especially when the people we’re filming with are on the spectrum. I think because it’s so diverse, finding similar wavelengths is important. Sometimes we get it right and it’s beautiful when it does.
More about the process behind the scenes, though, it’s just about an individual on an individual basis. So, depending on the person, depending on who the cast member is, we will work with them. Obviously, they’re the first stop in terms of what you’re looking for, what are you hoping for? What kind of person do you think would be right? Sometimes we will work with the parents if they are a big, important part of their lives. We’ll ask who they think might be a good match. Then we put our searching hats on, and we put the call out again in the areas where they live and try to find people who we think they might get on with. That’s the first and foremost, finding someone who we think they will get on, or possibly walk away with a friend if nothing else. But when they do find that romantic spark, it’s amazing to see. Season 3 was incredible. The connections that were formed during the filming period is just amazing. We’re not experts at this. We work from a gut feeling of talking to the matches and getting to know them well and trying to figure them out. We have our little whiteboard with our main cast, and we talk as a team about who we think might be a good match for who, and when we get it right, it’s amazing.
Peri in Love on the Spectrum
Netflix
DEADLINE: This show has won five Emmys, and you’re nominated again this year. What do you think people are responding to?
O’CLERY: There’s a lot of dating shows that are competitions or quite salacious or quite populated by really hot Instagram model types – not that there’s anything wrong with that,” O’Clery told Deadline. “But I think that just having real people dating and their stories being told in a way that is truthful and honest, without any winners or losers or eliminations is something that is hopefully, refreshing for people, and they enjoy that as well as our incredible cast. The people that we’ve cast in the series, whose stories we’ve been telling, are just awesome people. They’re interesting, they’re unique, and I think it’s nice to be able to celebrate that. There was just this Netflix Reality Universe Superlative Award thing, and Love on the Spectrum’s cast picked up four out of 10 of those awards. It’s great that people who are autistic and who are now these TV stars that people are loving and appreciating for who they are. It’s really nice to see.
DEADLINE: What does the future of Love on the Spectrum look like? You mentioned Season 4 is nearly finished. I want to see Sonia Wiggins back.
O’CLERY: I don’t know what I can really say. We will continue to explore and tell the stories of some of the people that audiences have grown to love, as well as introducing new people. And I think that’s always what we are interested in doing is always introducing new people and keeping that conversation going about the diversity of the spectrum, as well as telling some of these stories of people we’ve gotten to know who are really developing a lot in terms of their dating and their relationship lives. And who knows, there could be some big steps in future stories in terms of where their love and dating lives go.
[This interview has been edited for length and clarity]
Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco spend a summer of love with pals ahead of wedding
Benny Blanco and Selena Gomez gave fans a glimpse into their summer activities with a set of photos.
The 33-year-old songstress and actress took to Instagram on Friday, August 15, and shared a carousel which featured their snaps from over the few months.
The Only Murders in the Building star included multiple selfies and pictures of her loved ones in the photo series, including her co-star, Logan Lerman, who will be starring in the fifth season.
Gomez and Blanco appeared to be on a double date with Lerman and his fiancée Analuisa Corrigan. The following slide showed the foursome’s orders consisting of oysters and tiger shrimp.
The other pictures showed the Disney alum posing in front of a dressing mirror wearing a slip dress, snaps of various parts of her home, as well as a makeup free selfie.
“Wait … I’m gonna marry u,” Blanco wrote in the comments of his wife-to-be’s post.
Gomez also featured her little sister, Gracie, 12, as the duo posed in a party.
This comes after the couple postponed their marriage from September, when their wedding date was disclosed.
The new date is kept under the wraps but the happy couple are excited to tie the knot as Gomez said, “I couldn’t be more excited,” on her recent interview at Therapuss with Jake Shane. “I’m really, I just have never really felt so sure about something.”
Dr. Affan Qaiser is quite a famous Pakistani doctor and a digital creator known for his rants against digital influencers, wrong social practices and media celebrities. He has successfully built a strong presence on digital and social platforms, where his opinions are widely followed.
Recently, Dr Affan Qaiser made a video in Atif Aslam’s favour after he faced severe public backlash for doing a concert next day of his father’s passing.
Talking about it, Dr Affan Qaiser said, “Atif Aslam proved what is the value of a professional commitment. His father passed away a day before 14 August but he fulfilled his concert commitment. This agreement was done four months ago. Yesterday, I visited a medical centre where more than half of the staff was absent for 14 August, this happens by many of us we take off without informing our workplaces but he was fulfilling his commitments, it was his professionalism. Those criticizing him are being unjust. He was just doing his duty. This is the commitment of Atif Aslam that he is hiding is grief inside but singing. This is not the first example, Shakeel Siddiqui did the same. We all should learn from Atif Aslam”
Social media users are criticizing Dr Affan Qaiser for defending Atif Aslam for fulfilling the commitment that goes against Islam. One wrote, “What if a person himself meets an accident, would he still need to fulfil his commitments, what if someone dies, would he still come and perform? What will happen to commitment then?” Another wrote, “Which commitment was more important than Hadees which says, ‘You have to observe grief for three days’ and he went for a professional commitment (singing) that is against Islam ” One fan wrote, “Dr Affan, I am your great fan, you always talk sense but today you proved yourself a fool”. Another stated, “If the sons die, the fathers leave all their commitments, it is all about priorities” Read the comments:
