Jorge Ramos and a crew from Univision were held against their will in the Venezuelan presidential palace after Ramos asked Nicolas Maduro, the embattled leader of Venezuelan president, questions that he did not care for.
The interview was ended when Ramos confronted Maduro with a video of people eating out of a garbage truck:
The State Department publicly demanded their release:
Ramos and his team have since been released and deported, but their tapes of the interview and equipment have not been returned.
Ramos, you might remember, was once thrown out of a Trump press conference during the presidential campaign when he dared to ask the candidate questions about his immigration proposals. And I’m not saying that Trump’s aggressive and dangerous behavior towards journalists is what led to Maduro treating Ramos and his team this way; I’m suggesting that Trump’s hostility towards reporters exactly mirrors the behavior of brutal autocrats. If Trump could get away with deporting Ramos and confiscating all of his equipment, I guarantee he would.
AND IN CONCLUSION, IT’S SUPER GREAT TIME FOR JOURNALISTS. EVERYTHING IS VERY COOL RIGHT NOW.
In non-dictator news:
If you’re going to be in Austin for SXSW, What We Do in the Shadows will be hosting pop-up vampire libraries. Which is just very specific.
David Morrissey wants to be the Governor again. I’d be fine with that.
BREAKING NEWS: CHARACTERS ON TV SHOWS ARE PLAYED BY ACTORS WHO SOMETIMES WEAR WIGS AND SHIT.
Disney wants you to know that the Marvel shows that are going to be on Disney+ will be connected to the movies, unlike those other Marvel shows.
Stephen Sondheim knows about that Documentary Now! episode that is spoofing him and he’s cool with it.
This guy is comparing the upcoming Sopranos and Breaking Bad movies to The Brady Girls Get Married and I WILL NOT HAVE IT.
Time’s Up
R. Kelly has pleaded not guilty to the 10 counts of sexual abuse against him. He made bail, by the way.
The rape case against Luc Besson has been dropped by French prosecutors.
Emma Thompson wrote an open letter to Skydance explaining why she stepped down from their film, Luck, over their hiring of John Lasseter, and she had some questions for them. Including: “If a man has been touching women inappropriately for decades, why would a woman want to work for him if the only reason he’s not touching them inappropriately now is that it says in his contract that he must behave ‘professionally’?” and “Much has been said about giving John Lasseter a ‘second chance.’ But he is presumably being paid millions of dollars to receive that second chance. How much money are the employees at Skydance being paid to GIVE him that second chance?” DON’T STEP TO EMMA THOMPSON, YO.
Renewals
- Axios has been renewed for a second season at HBO.
In Development
- There is an animated Gremlins series in the work.
- Human Discoveries, an animated series voiced by Anna Kendrick and Zac Efron, is coming to Facebook Watch.
- The Night Shifter has been bought by Shudder.
Casting News
- Nicollette Sheridan is leaving Dynasty and the role might be recast.
- Jenna Bush is replacing Kathie Lee Gifford on the fourth hour of The Today Show.
- Nathan Lane is joining the cast of City of Angels at Showtime.
- Nikki Amuka-Bird will star in the HBO comedy Avenue 5.
- Jimmy Smits will star in the NBC pilot Bluff City Law.
- Kim Cattrall will star in the Fox pilot Filthy Rich.
- Brittany Snow will star in the Fox pilot Sisters.
- Cobie Smulders will star in ABC’s pilot Stumptown.
- Felix Mallard has been added to the cast of Locke & Key on Netflix.
- Richard Roxburgh, Madeline Wise, and Usman Ally are joining the Fox pilot Rake.
- Rosa Gilmore, Keon Alexander, and Jess Salgueiro are joining The Expanse on Amazon.
Mark Your Calendars
- Life in Pieces will return on CBS on April 18.
- One Night for One Drop: Imagined by the Cirque de Soleil will air on CBS on March 16.
- The Show Must Go On: The Queen + Adam Lambert Story will air on ABC on April 29.
- Europe in Chaos will debut on Smithsonian Channel on March 28.
R.I.P.
Jeraldine Saunders, Creator of The Love Boat
Beverly Owen, The original Marilyn from The Munsters
WATCH THIS
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills: The women go to the Bahamas and fight. 8 p.m., Bravo
World of Dance: God help me, but I kinda love this dance competition series. I fast-forward through A LOT of it, but the dancing is amazing. Season premiere. 8 p.m., NBC
Mexican Dynasties: A new reality series that follows three wealthy families in Mexico City and I can not wait. Muy delicioso. Series premiere. 9 p.m., Bravo
Lethal Weapon: Season finale.7 p.m., Fox
Gifted: Season finale. 8 p.m., Fox
Late Night:
- Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Tyler Perry, Sarah Hyland, Weezer
- Late Night with Seth Meyers: Patton Oswalt, Heidi Gardner, Elle King, Jon Epcar
- Jimmy Kimmel Live: Chloe Grace Moretz, Steve Ballmer, Lauren Daigle
- The Daily Show: John Legend
- Conan: Deon Cole
- Busy Tonight: Jenna Fischer
- Watch What Happens Live: Isaac Mizrahi, Dorit Kemsley
| TUES. | 7:00 | 7:30 | 8:00 | 8:30 | 9:00 | 9:30 |
| ABC | American Housewife (new) |
The Kids Are Alright (new) |
black-ish (new) |
Splitting Up Together (new) |
The Rookie (new) |
| CBS | NCIS (new) |
FBI (new) |
NCIS: New Orleans (new) |
| CW | The Flash (repeat) |
Roswell, New Mexico (new) |
Local |
| FOX | Lethal Weapon (new) |
The Gifted (new) |
News/Local |
| NBC | World of Dance (new) |
The Voice (new) |