Free Republic

Hollywood studios are reportedly bracing to lose billion of dollars in ticket sales in Asia and other countries due to fears surrounding the coronavirus as major blockbusters including Mulan, No Time to Die, and F9 (Fast & Furious 9) are set to roll out around the world. Variety reported that major studios are preparing for a dip in moviegoing in China, South Korea, Japan, and other countries hit by the coronavirus. But these fears appear so far to be based on speculation since the trade publication cited anonymous “studio executives” who said they are taking “a wait-and-see” approach as the number of hotspots expands.

JK Rowling has come out in support of a researcher who was sacked after tweeting that transgender people cannot change their biological sex. Maya Forstater lost her job in March after she posted tweets opposing government proposals to reform the Gender Recognition Act to allow people to identify as the opposite sex. Forstater, who worked as a tax expert at the Centre for Global Development, an international think tank that campaigns against poverty and inequality, took her case to an employment tribunal on the grounds that her dismissal constituted discrimination against her beliefs. Employment judge James Tayler dismissed her claim...

A leading LGBT advocacy group rescinded its Straight for Equality in Media Award to MSNBC host Joy Reid on Tuesday amid a controversy surrounding newly-unearthed homophobic comments made on a decade-old blog. Loading... Liz Owen, director of communications for PFLAG National, said the group had invited Reid to honor her at their 45th anniversary celebration knowing about some posts that she had already apologized for. But it said revelations of new posts had caused it to rescind the invitation. "We appreciated how she stepped up, took ownership, apologized for them, and did better-this is the behavior and approach we ask...

America Online is laying off more than 700 employees, primarily in member-services call centers, in response to the ongoing decline in subscribers for its dial-up Internet-access services. Under the plan, the Time Warner Inc. unit is closing its center in Orlando, Fla., and is cutting positions in centers in Jacksonville, Fla., and Tucson, Ariz., and at AOL's corporate headquarters in Dulles, Va. The cuts amount to about 4 percent of AOL's 20,000 global work force. The company hasn't announced layoffs of this magnitude since December 2004. AOL said the job cuts were driven by declining subscriber numbers, and were not...

Nearly two weeks after Tony Buzbee stepped down as chairman of the Galveston County Democratic Party, the state party has appointed a temporary leader. Late Monday, state Democratic Party chairman Charles Soechting appointed John Patrick of Friendswood, an activist with the national Democratic Party, as temporary chairman. His responsibilities will include calling the precinct chairs together within 20 days to select an interim party chair. The interim chair will hold office until the March 2006 primary when a new chairman can be elected. Under party bylaws, an election by the various precinct chairs within the county will select the next...