This Kind of Leak Doesn’t Happen Without Good Reason

Let's face facts. This kind of leak doesn't happen unless somebody very important doesn't see any other way to warn the country about something he's not important enough to stop. If you have trouble reading this message, view it in a browser.       This Kind of Leak Only Comes from Someone Very Worried About Something They Can't Stop   Remember when Richard Clarke talked about how "all the lights were blinking red" in the intelligence community in the summer of 2001 during what later would be seen as the run-up to the 9/11 attacks? In that case, the blinking red lights were all located within the various spook HQs. That was bad enough. But now, the intelligence community seems to be going door-to-door with warnings that the President* of the United States is as big a danger to the country's security and stability as COVID-19 and modern country music combined. They're doing everything except staple warnings to lamp posts in Dupont Circle, and some of them apparently jammed Carl Bernstein's phone lines over the past few weeks. This is a massive breach of protocol on a dozen levels, not the least of which is the obvious fact that some important person feels no compulsion to show deference to the incumbent president*. Read More           When Will We Stop Searching 'Who is Marsha P. Johnson?'   Today, on Google's landing page, there is a doodle by Rob Gilliam. The woman at the center of it has a bright smile and red lipstick and a headdress fixed up with pearls and flowers. Behind her, four banners fly through the sky—for gay, bisexual, genderqueer, and transgender pride. This image is, in an ideal world, the perfect Pride. And as Pride month rolls to a close, especially in 2020, it only makes sense that this is the person who is featured on Google's homepage. Her name is Marsha P. Johnson. And understanding the life, death, and history of this civil rights icon is fundamental to understanding the foundations of Pride. Read More           HBO's Stories—and Storytellers—Are Setting the Standard for Inclusive, LGBTQ+ Friendly Television   "I'll never forget this moment," the drag queen Shangela says between peals of laughter, remembering when one of her drag daughters did something truly remarkable during the filming of her just-wrapped HBO series, We're Here. "We're backstage in Ruston, Louisiana. The show just ended. The emotions are high. Everyone is hugging. We're getting ready to take a photo and Big Momma Butter tells Nina [Rosenstein], 'Ooh, honey, I'm about to pick you up.' Mind you: this is one of the executive vice presidents of programming from HBO. Nina says, 'Oh, thank you! That's not necessary!' And Big Momma said, 'No girl, you are one of the family,' and swooped Nina up in her arms." That was the moment Shangela realized HBO had become one of the most queer-friendly networks on television. Brennan Carley explains why this isn't an isolated incident at the network—and how they've set a standard for inclusion outside of putting gay characters on your screen. Read More           Why Are Fashion Brands Suddenly Boycotting Facebook?   Over the weekend, a growing number of brands announced their participation in an advertisement boycott on Facebook in protest over the social media behemoth's reluctance to more stringently police the content on its platform. Facebook has often found itself embroiled in controversy surrounding the surfeit of misinformation and false claims on its site, but the current blowback is a direct result of the company's more recent failure to adequately stem the spread of posts with the potential to incite violence, particularly during a period of deeply felt national unrest. Here, Esquire's Avidan Grossman unpacks the growing movement. Read More           Carl Reiner Was Comedy's Best Friend   Carl Reiner, a longtime titan of show business, died of natural causes Tuesday at 98 years old, at his home in Beverly Hills, surrounded by his family. Reiner had one of the longest resumes in entertainment, working over seven decades as a comedian, actor, producer, director, screenwriter, and publisher. Born in Bronx, New York to Jewish immigrants, Reiner was drafted into the Air Force during World War II, spending two years of his service entertaining troops around the Pacific. Upon his return to the United States, he performed in several Broadway musicals and starred in Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows, where he met his longtime collaborator, Mel Brooks. Beginning in 1960, Reiner and Brooks teamed up as a comedy duo on The Steve Allen Show, leading to several award-winning comedy albums in the decades to follow. Esquire's Adrienne Westenfeld remembers the Hollywood legend. Read More           23 Black-Owned Grooming Brands to Support Now and Always   Here's the thing about grooming: Everyone wants to look good, but everyone has specific issues that they want products to address. The problem comes when the needs of certain people are not met. People of color have tremendous buying power, and yet, product lines directed to their specific needs and founded by Black entrepreneurs are underrepresented on the shelves of major retailers (or relegated to a separate section). In the last few weeks—since fashion designer Aurora James started the 15 Percent Pledge, a call for major retailers to dedicate 15 percent of shelf space to Black-owned brands to support Black-owned business; and the Pull Up For Change initiative, started by beauty brand founder Sharon Chuter, asking fashion and beauty brands to disclose how many on their staff, including executive teams, are BIPOC—the brands you're using to wash your face and condition your hair are in the spotlight. This is all great, but you don't need to sit around waiting for your local drugstore to change its stock to support Black-owned grooming companies. You can vote with your wallet, and put your money where your mouth is, to find new brands to overhaul your grooming routine. Esquire Grooming Editor Garrett Munce has a list you can start with. Read More         Read More on Esquire.com       Follow Us     Unsubscribe  Privacy Notice   esquire.com ©2020 Hearst Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. Hearst Email Privacy, 300 W 57th St., Fl. 19 (sta 1-1), New York, NY 10019