Archive for the ‘Obama’ Category

Swarm creative team includes co-writer Malia Obama – Chicago Sun-Times

Everyone is buzzing about Swarm.

In Amazon Prime Videos horror comedy (all seven episodes now streaming), Judas and the Black Messiah breakout Dominique Fishback plays Dre, a crazed fan of a Beyonc-like pop star named NiJah (Nirine S. Brown) who takes her obsession to murderous extremes. The series was co-created by Janine Nabers and Donald Glover, making his return to TV after FXs Emmy-winning Atlanta.

The dark and surreal new show has received, well, swarms of attention for its characters similarities to Beyonc and her fans, who call themselves the Beyhive.

Heres everything you need to know about the series, which co-stars Billie Eilish and is co-written by Malia Obama:

Each episode of Swarm begins with a title card that reads, Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events, is intentional. The show is inspired in part by an urban legend that circulated online following the release of Beyoncs 2016 album Lemonade, which hints at husband Jay-Zs alleged infidelity.

Janine Nabers (from left). Billie Eilish and Donald Glover attend the Swarm premiere Tuesday in Los Angeles.

In April 2016, when a certain visual album dropped, there was a rumor that a girl named Marissa Jackson killed herself because she realized that a certain pop star was being cheated on by her husband, Nabers said last week during a Q&A at South By Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, according to IndieWire. I was on a text thread with some of my Houstonian friends, and for two days we thought this was a real event.

The story was quickly debunked, but it stuck with Nabers.

When Donald pitched this idea about a Black woman whos obsessed with a pop star, I said, I know what the pilot is and ran with it.

Other online rumors and true crimes also made their way into Swarm, Nabers told Entertainment Tonight: After you see the show and you go to the internet, you will see that a lot of it holds up.

Along with Fishback, the series features a hot young cast of stars: Dres sister, Marissa, is played by Chloe Bailey, who is half of R&B duo Chloe x Halle with her sister, future The Little Mermaid star Halle Bailey. Singer/model Paris Jackson, daughter of the late Michael Jackson, portrays a stripper who befriends Dre. And seven-time Grammy winner Billie Eilish makes her acting debut as a hypnotic cult leader who interrogates Dre in a pair of teaser clips.

Eilish, who walked the red carpet at the Swarm premiere in Los Angeles, is a longtime fan of Glover. She called him one of her all-time favorite creators on her Apple Music podcast in 2020. She also brought out Glover, who goes by the stage name Childish Gambino, to perform at her concert in Inglewood, California, last December.

You may spot a notable name among the shows creative team: Malia Obama, daughter of Barack and Michelle Obama. The former presidents daughter landed her first full-time writing gig on Swarm after interning for HBOs Girls and working as a production assistant on CBS Extant.

Shes an incredible writer and artist, Nabers told People. We really wanted to give her the opportunity to get her feet wet in TV and see if this is something she wants to continue doing.

Speaking to Nerdist, Nabers called Obama a little bit of a Wikipedia page when it comes to movies, adding that she had some really wild, incredible pitches.

Glover echoed praise for Obama in an interview with Vanity Fair.

Shes really focused, and shes working really hard, Glover said. I feel like shes just somebody whos going to have really good things coming soon.

Swarm in no way tries to hide its Beyonc influences, with fictional pop star NiJah recreating almost exact images from Queen Bs Renaissance and Everything is Love eras. NiJah also hails from Beys hometown of Houston. But Nabers has played coy about whether the superstar signed off on the series.

Asked at SXSW whether Beyonc has seen the show, Nabers answered, Of course, but declined to elaborate. Reviews for Swarm have mostly been positive, and Glover told The Hollywood Reporter that he hopes Beyoncs fans are willing to go on the ride.

Beyhive, dont kill us, Glover joked. Its not that bad, its actually pretty cool!

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Swarm creative team includes co-writer Malia Obama - Chicago Sun-Times

AI-Generated Images Of Barack Obama And Angela Merkel Enjoying Vacation On A Beach Amazes Internet – NDTV.com

Artist 'Julian Al Art' posted AI-generated images of the former politicians

Creating surreal images using artificial intelligence (AI) has become a popular trend on social media. In the past few months, diverse images of imagined people and places created using AI, have been making rounds on the internet.

Now, the latest addition to the fleet is a bunch of delightful pictures of Former American President Barak Obama and Ex German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

In an Instagram post, artist 'Julian Al Art' posted AI-generated images of the two former politicians enjoying their time together on a beach after their retirement. The caption of the post reads, "Angela and Barack having an amazing beach day!"

The delightful pictures of Barack Obama and Angela Merkel after their retirement spending a day at the beach frolicking and having fun are going viral on the internet.

Take a look:

The post was shared 3 days ago and so far it has collected nearly 3,000 likes on Instagram. A user commented, "This is not only funny, but just so lovely. Two wonderfully gifted former world leaders."

Another user wrote, "This technology is getting scary by the day , deep fakes are getting perfect , we have also now ai that can create practically perfect copies of famous people voices, very soon we won't be able to trust our eyes or hears anymore because everything fake will as be as realistic as the real thing."

"Too funny! But also too good, I actually do think it would be good to put a little watermark that indicates it's a generated image mostly because people take photos from others all the time and re-post them without the original descriptions or context. Of course people can also remove watermarks but the majority of folks won't go through that effort and just want to have something to show on their social media."

"These are so fun!!! love it! with a tiny bit of faceapp a few of these might pass 99% of the public's sniff test if they weren't so hilarious," the fourth user expressed.

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AI-Generated Images Of Barack Obama And Angela Merkel Enjoying Vacation On A Beach Amazes Internet - NDTV.com

Another Obama-Appointed Trial Court Judge to Step Down – Bloomberg Law

US District Judge John Vazquez has announced plans to leave the federal bench in New Jersey, becoming the latest appointee of President Barack Obama to resign early in their life tenure.

Vazquez, 52, made public plans Wednesday to resign in September, according to the US courts website. He was confirmed, 84-2, in 2016.

He is at least the sixth Obama appointee who has resigned or announced their intent to leave the bench since August. The other five joined their courts at 45 or younger, highlighting a potential downside as presidents of both parties seek younger judicial appointees to secure their seats for decades.

Judges appointed earlier in their career are more likely to step down early. George Hazel, an Obama appointee, who left the Maryland district court for a lucrative partnership at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher told Bloomberg Law that the pay boost played a role in his decision making.

He was a partner at Critchley, Kinum & Vazquez in Roseland, New Jersey, prior to his confirmation. He also served earlier in his career as an assistant US attorney in New Jersey and worked in the state attorney generals office.

Vazquez chambers didnt immediately comment.

With assistance from Justin Wise

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Another Obama-Appointed Trial Court Judge to Step Down - Bloomberg Law

Michelle Obama Reveals Her Grandmothers Depression Was Often Confused For This. Heres How To Spot Depression – Forbes

On the latest episode of Michelle Obama's Audible Original, The Light Podcast, the former First Lady sat down with Conan O'Brien to discuss, among other things, her childhood and her mother's upbringing. One revelation that emerged from the conversation was that her grandmother struggled with depression - though Obama and others didn't recognize it as that at the time.

Instead of helping her, people accused her grandmother of being "snobby," or "tired" all the time, Obama said. "Now, looking back and knowing my grandmother, I was like, my grandmother was depressed."

Obamas family isn't alone in failing to recognize symptoms of depression in someone close to them.

Many people frequently mistake depression for something else. "Depression can look different from person to person," says Juanita Guerra, PhD, a clinical psychologist practicing in New Rochelle, New York. "And sometimes depression can mask as physical symptoms such as low energy, unusual tiredness, irritability, and aggressiveness." That's one reason its wise to consult with a physician to rule out potentially underlying medical conditions such as a thyroid imbalance or severe anemia.

But short of the presence of such medical conditions, depression can usually be spotted in symptoms or behaviors such as a marked change in sleep habits or appetite, a lack of interest or pleasure in exciting or enjoyable things, frequent irritability or moodiness, or an inability to concentrate or pay attention. "In extreme cases, depression can lead to feelings of worthlessness, hopelessness, and suicidal ideations," warns Guerra.

Of course, everyone goes through moments of sadness or short-term feelings of frustration or despair, and such feelings are natural and nothing to be alarmed over.

But severe levels of dysfunction - an inability to meet demands of everyday living such as showering or paying the bills - "differentiates depression from the occasional bouts of having the blues or feeling down," Guerra explains. Loved ones can spot such differences by noticing when the behaviors of those close to them begin differing from their typical baseline level of functionality. "This is valuable information that helps with diagnosing and treatment planning," she says.

And if you're the one struggling with depression, the best thing you can do is to get help. "Many people erroneously think their symptoms will magically resolve on their own," says Guerra. "But if youre clinically depressed, this is not the case and you will probably benefit from seeking out the support services of trained professionals."

She adds that too many people end up doing what Obama's grandmother had to do: wait out long periods of time before seeking help, if they ever do so at all, because they fail to recognize there's a problem in the first place or are too embarrassed to ask for assistance.

"We thankfully live in a much more accepting and understanding world than prior generations," says Guerra. "The key is to actively address ones depression by doing something; take some form of action to move in the direction of feeling better and being healthier."

I'm a healthcare reporter covering current health stories and health history at Forbes. I've published health or mental health stories for The Washington Post, The Atlantic, USA TODAY, Kaiser Health News, HuffPost, LiveScience, Parents, andPsychology Today.

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Michelle Obama Reveals Her Grandmothers Depression Was Often Confused For This. Heres How To Spot Depression - Forbes

‘Don’t get married to check a box,’ says Michelle Obama: How she suggests her kids think about happiness – CNBC

Dimitrios Kambouris | Getty Images Entertainment | Getty Images

When Michelle Obama attended Harvard Law School, her grandmother used to call and ask her what she cooked that day.

"Grandma, I'm in law school. There isn't even a kitchen around," Obama recalls thinking at the time.

No matter how well meaning, questions like these can often shape what young women believe success and contentment looks like, Obama tells "Today" host Hoda Kotb on the first episode of her new podcast, "The Light Podcast."

Obama thinks about this a lot when it comes to relationships and when she talks to her daughters Malia and Sasha about partnerships.

"We don't know what life will hand them," she says. "Maybe you find love great! But don't get married to check a box."

Obama, who proudly tells Kotb she is still in love with her husband, Barack, believes people do a "disservice" to young women when primarily asking questions about marriage and children.

"You can have an amazing career and somebody says, 'Oh, are you married?'" she says.

"Then if you are [married] then [they ask], 'When are you going to have a baby?' Not knowing, Can you, do you, want one?" she says. "It's almost like saying, 'Oh, you're married but you can't really be happy.'"

You can have an amazing career and somebody says, 'Oh, are you married?'

Michelle Obama

No matter how many boxes you tick, the expectations can seem infinite. "It feels like it's never enough," she says.

Obama's goal is for her children to know that happiness for a young woman doesn't mean finding love or having children, and there are many paths that can be fulfilling.

"I want my daughters growing up to understand they can have whatever life they choose. As long as they are happy, we've got their backs," she says. "I want my daughters to have a broad view of what happiness can look like."

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'Don't get married to check a box,' says Michelle Obama: How she suggests her kids think about happiness - CNBC