Controversial S#!T

Nikki Haley may need a refresher course in American history ... the 2024 Republican presidential candidate failed to mention slavery as the catalyst for the Civil War.

The former South Carolina Governor was talking to a bunch of voters in Berlin, New Hampshire Wednesday when a man asked her what caused the American Civil War. Nikki bungled the answer, saying the government was infringing on people's rights.

Here's her full response ... “I mean, I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run. The freedoms and what people could and couldn’t do.”

As you see, nowhere did Nikki mention the word slavery, which most people know was the reason for the war between the Union and the Confederacy.

Haley then asked the man what he thought triggered the conflict, prompting him to reply, "I'm not running for president."

Haley followed up with an even more tone-deaf response, saying, “I think it always comes down to the role of government and what the rights of the people are. I will always stand by the fact that I think government was intended to secure the rights and freedoms of the people. It was never meant to be all things to all people."

Considering all the backlash she received for her comments, Nikki may want to clarify what she meant, as she travels around the Granite state with four more campaign stops.

A Palestinian restaurant in NYC recently opened to some bad reviews – and it's all because of its antisemitic menu.

"Ayat" eatery – which had three locations in the Big Apple -- opened a fourth last week in the largely Jewish Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn, upsetting many of the patrons with the offensive language on the menu.

The phrases "from the river to the sea" and "down with the occupation" were scrawled across the menus handed out to fuming customers, who later went on Facebook to blast Ayat's owners for being "openly genocidal."

Of course, everyone knows the slogan "from the river to the sea" has been used as a rallying cry to wipe out Israel. The anti-Defamation League has even labeled the phrase antisemitic.

But, Ayat's owners – Abdul Elenani and his wife, Masoud – chalked it off to a misunderstanding, saying they have "no ill will" toward Jewish people.

In a Facebook post, Abdul wrote that "our interpretation on it is just simply freedom and rights to the Palestinian people between the Jordan River and Mediterranean Sea." He added, "We're just against the Zionist mentality of, like, eliminate or flatten now."

As you know, tensions have been riding high in the Middle East since October 7th when Hamas militants attacked Israel, slaughtering about 1,400 Jews, including babies.

A day later, Israel declared war against Hamas – a terrorist group governing the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

John Salley says the Ja Morant critics need to pipe down ... telling TMZ Sports he truly believes the NBA superstar didn't have bad intentions when he appeared to do a gun celebration on Tuesday night.

Salley told us the firearm-themed gestures -- which Morant seemed to hit following a thunderous alley-oop dunk in the Grizzlies' overtime win over the Pelicans -- were merely "a part of hip hop culture" ... and nothing more than that.

"He's not saying, 'Forget ya'll -- I got my gun!'" the four-time NBA champion said on Wednesday. "He probably didn't even realize it."

"It's nothing meaning anything," he added.

Of course, basketball fans all over social media have disagreed with that stance -- with many on X calling it a "tone-deaf" situation ... considering the 24-year-old had just served a 25-game suspension for a string of incidents involving gun-related social media videos.

Salley, however, was just sure there was no ill will involved in the post-dunk celly.

"I don't think he's trying to mock anybody," Salley said. "I don't think he's trying to be mean about it."

"Leave Ja Morant alone ... Leave him alone."

Salley also shared with us his opinion on his former Detroit Pistons squad -- which just lost its 27th game in a row on Tuesday night.

La disculpa de Kanye West por sus comentarios antisemitas carecían del estilo animado que el rapero suele utilizar en sus mensajes en línea y se lee directamente de un chatbot de inteligencia artificial.

Después de que Kanye publicó la disculpa en las redes sociales, los fans comenzaron a acusarlo de usar AI para redactar su punto así que hicimos algunas investigaciones... y descubrimos algo impactante.

Hemos introducido la disculpa de Kanye en un detector de contenido de IA, que ha destacado algunas palabras de moda típicamente asociadas con frases de chatbot, como "pido disculpas sinceramente", "no era mi intención herir" y "promover la unidad", entre otras.

El detector de contenido de IA dice que hay un 85% de posibilidades de que la disculpa de Kanye haya sido escrita por un computador.

Recordemos que el día después de Navidad, Kanye sorprendió al mundo disculpándose en hebreo.

La disculpa dice: "Pido sinceras disculpas a la comunidad judía por cualquier arrebato involuntario causado por mis palabras o acciones, no era mi intención herir o faltar al respeto y lamento profundamente cualquier dolor que pueda haber causado. Me comprometo a empezar conmigo mismo y a aprender de esta experiencia para garantizar una mayor sensibilidad y comprensión en el futuro. Vuestro perdón es importante para mí y me comprometo a reparar el daño y promover la unidad".

No suena al típico Kanye, ¿verdad?

Más pruebas de que Kanye recurrió a la IA para escribir su disculpa son que le pedimos a ChatGPT que escribiera una disculpa y después de varias indicaciones y un poco de ensayo y error el ordenador escupió una declaración extrañamente similar a la de Kanye.

Esto es lo que recibimos de ChatGPT, con las palabras que Kanye utilizó en negrita: "Pido sinceras disculpas a la comunidad judía por mi reciente arrebato involuntario. No era mi intención herir o degradar, y lamento profundamente cualquier dolor causado. Me comprometo a aprender de esta experiencia, a promover la unidad y a reparar el daño causado. Vuestro perdón significa mucho para mí".

Por supuesto, Ye tiene un álbum repleto de estrellas —"Vultures"— con Ty Dolla $ign para cerrar el año el 31 de diciembre y entrar a cometir con los gigantes del streaming es la mejor jugada para su regreso musical.

Sabremos con certeza si los fans se creen el mea culpa después de que publique sus cifras de la primera semana.

Kanye West's apology for his tirade of antisemitic comments lacked the animated flair the megastar rapper typically uses in his online posts ... and it reads straight out of an artificial intelligence chatbot.

After Kanye posted the apology on social media, fans started accusing him of using AI to get his point across ... so we did some digging, and made a shocking discovery.

We plugged Kanye's apology into an AI content detector, which highlighted some strong buzzwords typically associated with chatbot phrases ... including "sincerely apologize," "It was not my intention to hurt" and "promoting unity" ... among others.

The AI content detector says there's an 85% chance Kanye's apology was written by a computer.

Remember ... the day after Christmas, Kanye shocked the world by delivering his "I'm Sorry" speech in Hebrew, which translates to a fairly streamlined message.

The apology reads ... "I sincerely apologize to the Jewish community for any unintended outburst caused by my words or actions, it was not my intention to hurt or disrespect, and I deeply regret any pain I may have caused. I am committed to starting with myself and learning from this experience to ensure greater sensitivity and understanding in the future. Your forgiveness is important to me, and I am committed to making amends and promoting unity."

Doesn't sound like typical Kanye, right?

More evidence Kanye turned to AI to write his apology ... we engaged ChatGPT to write an apology and after several prompts and some trial and error the computer spat out a statement eerily similar to Kanye's.

Here's what we got back from ChatGPT, with the words Kanye used in bold  ... "I sincerely apologize to the Jewish community for my recent unintentional outburst. It was not my intention to hurt or demean, and I deeply regret any pain caused. I'm committed to learning from this experience, promoting unity, and making amends. Your forgiveness means a lot to me."

Of course, Ye's got a star-studded "Vultures" album with Ty Dolla $ign dropping to close out the year on December 31, and getting in the good graces of all the streaming giants is the best play for his music comeback.

We'll know for sure if the fans buy into the mea culpa after his first-week numbers post.

One fan is preparing for the Duke's Mayo Bowl by glugging a bottle of mayonnaise -- and while we're sure his stomach won't be happy with him later today ... it's clear the vibes are high heading into the big condiment-themed contest!!

The college football fan performed the chug just hours before UNC vs. West Virginia kicked off the bowl game on Wednesday afternoon -- and if you've got a weak tummy, video from the scene might not be for you.

In the clips, you can see the dude was partying at the Duke’s Mayo Bowl FanFest near Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte when he grabbed a tube of mayo and got busy.

The fella -- sporting a Nike hoodie and blue jeans -- took a couple shots and didn't flinch -- and the Duke's social media team was so impressed ... they blasted footage of his feat all over X.

While some were grossed out by it all, it did draw positive reviews, with one fan commenting, "I hope my alma mater gets to play in this bowl someday."

Of course, the mayonnaise guzzle will hardly be the most cringeworthy thing to come from today's bowl game -- after all, the winning coach is slated to be doused in the condiment!!

Jaire Alexander's eyebrow-raising actions during Sunday's pregame ceremonies have just cost him dearly ... because the Packers revealed Wednesday they're suspending him for the debacle.

If you missed it, the Green Bay cornerback ruffled some serious feathers over the weekend when he nearly blew the coin toss for his team just prior to its tilt with the Panthers in Carolina.

Alexander unexpectedly joined the Packers' captains at midfield ... called tails, and when he told the refs he wanted to start the game on defense -- it almost cost the Pack a possession.

Thankfully for Alexander and Green Bay, the snafu got cleared up and the team went on to win 33-30 ... but on Wednesday, the Packers made it clear they're furious over the situation.

General manager Brian Gutekunst said the 26-year-old has been banned one game for the incident ... adding in a statement, "Jaire's actions prior to the game in Carolina led us to take this step."

"As an organization, we have an expectation that everyone puts the team first."

Gutekunst also said the team and Alexander had a conversation about the situation Wednesday morning and the org. "fully" expects him "to learn from this as we move forward together."

Alexander has not publicly commented since the ban was announced -- though in a postgame meeting with reporters Sunday, he didn't show much remorse for his actions ... appearing to say he took it upon himself to go out with the captains since the Packers were playing in his hometown of Charlotte.

Alexander is widely regarded as one of the best young corners in the game -- he's made two Pro Bowls in his six-year career -- although injuries have sidelined him for most of this season.

Peter Rosenberg's not buying Kanye West's apology for his antisemitic comments ... seconding our observation it reads like something outta an AI chatbot.

We got the radio DJ on "TMZ Live" Wednesday, where he notes Ye's remorse was so inauthentic compared to his usual impassioned messages ... it automatically let him know it was bogus.

In fact ... Peter focuses on the rapper's delayed album "Vultures" ... theorizing he was forced into conjuring up a blanket apology after record execs pressured him into it ... in exchange for clearing some tunes on his album.

Peter blasts Ye further ... telling us his message being written in Hebrew was both intentionally and unintentionally offensive ... as if American Jews could easily read the language without vowels.

Noting his years-long obsession with making offensive comments ... Peter says he doesn't think there'll ever be an apology from Ye that could make people forget the uproar he's caused.

As TMZ first noted ... an AI content detector said there was an 85% chance a computer wrote Kanye's apology.

Strong buzz words usually associated with chat phrases like "sincerely apologize," "It was not my intention to hurt," and "promoting unity" were used -- meaning there's a strong chance it didn't come from his heart.

Peter Rosenberg no se está comprando las disculpas de Kanye West por sus comentarios antisemitas y también cree que parece salida de un chatbot de inteligencia artificial.

Tuvimos al DJ en "TMZ Live" el miércoles, en donde señaló que el remordimiento de Ye sonaba poco auténtico en comparación con sus apasionados mensajes habituales, lo que automáticamente le hizo pensar que era falso.

De hecho, Peter se centra en su retrasado álbum "Vultures" y teoriza que el rapero se vio obligado a inventar una disculpa general después de que los ejecutivos discográficos lo presionaran a cambio de despejar algunas melodías en su álbum.

Peter arremete aún más contra Ye, diciendo que su mensaje fuera escrito en hebreo fue a la vez intencionalmente y no intencionalmente ofensivo, como si los judíos estadounidenses pudieran leer fácilmente el idioma sin vocales.

Considerando su obsesión de años haciendo comentarios ofensivos, Peter no cree que exista una disculpa que pueda hacer a la gente olvidar el alboroto que ha causado.

Como TMZ primero señaló, un detector de contenido AI descubrió que había un 85% de posibilidades de que un ordenador hubiera escrito la disculpa de Kanye.

Palabras de moda por lo general asociadas con frases de chat como "sinceramente arrepentido", "No era mi intención herir", y "promover la unidad" fueron utilizadas, lo que significa que hay una gran posibilidad de que no haya venido de su corazón.

Russell Wilson has been sidelined in Denver ... the Broncos are benching the future Hall of Famer.

Head coach Sean Payton made the decision this week, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter, informing his team Wednesday that backup Jarrett Stidham will now be the starting signal-caller going forward.

Wilson has been largely a disappointment since Denver traded a bevy of picks and players for him prior to the 2022 season ... but, per Schefter, the move also has a lot to do with the 35-year-old's contract.

Schefter reported Wednesday that leaving Wilson on the bench will ensure he won't get injured -- and therefore $37 million of his contract will not become guaranteed in 2024.

The former Super Bowl champ had arrived in Colorado with huge expectations, but he was one of the worst QBs in the NFL in '22 -- throwing just 16 TD passes to 11 interceptions.

His 2023 campaign, however, had seen far more ups -- he's thrown for 26 TDs and just 8 INTs this season -- but the Broncos are still just 7-8 ... and have lost three of their last four.

Complicating matters further for Wilson, Payton was seen screaming at him on the sidelines during Denver's blowout loss to Detroit earlier this month.

Tom Smothers -- one half of the famous singing comedy team the "Smothers Brothers" -- has died.

In a statement released Wednesday, Dick Smothers announced his brother's passing, saying Tom died at home as a result of cancer.

Dick went on to say “Tom was not only the loving older brother that everyone would want in their life, he was a one-of-a-kind creative partner."

Continuing, Dick said, “I am forever grateful to have spent a lifetime together with him, on and off stage, for over 60 years."

Dick ended with, "Our relationship was like a good marriage – the longer we were together, the more we loved and respected one another. We were truly blessed.”

In the late '50s, early 1960s, Tom and Dick often appeared on TV variety shows and released popular albums of their stage performances. In 1967, they finally landed their own variety show, "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour," which instantly became one of the most hotly debated TV programs during the Vietnam War period.

The "Smothers Brothers" got canceled decades before cancellation became a thing. Tommy became super political when the show was in its second season, railing with satire against the Vietnam War. The Bros were especially critical of then-President Lyndon B. Johnson.

On one show Tommy looked straight into the camera and said, "Okay, all you guys in Vietnam, come on home."

During one episode, Harry Belafonte sang, "Don't Stop the Carnival," and the backdrop on stage were images of the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago, where then-Mayor Richard Daley ordered law enforcement to beat Vietnam protesters in the streets.

They took on other issues as well, but it was too hot for CBS. The network pulled the plug in 1969 at the end of season 3. People in the anti-war movement, along with free speech advocates, were outraged.

Tommy and Dick sued CBS for breach of contract and they eventually got $775,000. The 'SBCH' came back for a short-lived revival in 1988 but ended after one season

Think Dixie Chicks, but 40 years earlier.

La actriz transgénero Tommy Dorfman está arremetiendo contra Delta Air Lines, acusándolos de cometer una violación a los derechos humanos por confundir "incesantemente" su género durante un altercado.

El acalorado enfrentamiento ocurrido en el aeropuerto La Guardia de Nueva York fue capturado en video por la estrella de "13 Reasons Why", quien alega que el personal se refirió a ella por los pronombres equivocados, afirmando que uno lo hizo "intencionalmente".

No está claro lo que precede a la situación, pero en el clip que se ha viralizado en TikTok se puede escuchar a Tommy, que utiliza los pronombres ella/su, diciendo: "¿Qué pasa cuando un empleado de Delta confunde tu género intencionalmente?".

Para hacer frente a Tommy, el agente que está en la puerta le dice a otra persona que espere su turno, diciendo: "Mientras ella habla... mientras él habla".

Tommy, quien se declaró como trans en julio de 2021, no está nada contenta y le informa que se ha equivocado de género de nuevo, aunque el agente le dice que no fue intencionalmente y que si ella quiere tomárselo como algo personal era cosa suya.

El agente también arremete contra Tommy por ser condescendiente y la amenaza con ser escoltada hacia la salida por la Autoridad Portuaria. Además, le pregunta si era realmente necesaria esta conmoción días antes de Navidad.

Pero Tommy se mantuvo firme y en su pie de foto escribió que se encontró con la transfobia y las amenazas de ser detenida en La Guardia cuando simplemente estaba abogando por ella. Añadió que no sabía que era condescendiente levantar una bandera por la violación de los derechos humanos cuando se pasa a llevar el género de una persona.

Transgender actress Tommy Dorfman has lambasted Delta Air Lines ... accusing them of committing a human rights violation for "incessantly" misgendering her during a spat.

The heated showdown at NYC's LaGuardia Airport was caught on camera by the "13 Reasons Why" star ... who alleges the staff referred to her by the wrong pronouns -- claiming that one did so "intentionally."

It's unclear what precedes the situation ... but in the viral TikTok clip you can hear Tommy -- who uses she/her pronouns -- saying, "What about when a Delta employee misgenders you intentionally?"

To deal with Tommy, the gate agent tells another person to wait their turn, saying ... "While she's talk -- while he's talking."

Tommy -- who came out as trans in July 2021 -- is none too pleased ...  informing him that he's misgendered her again -- though the agent tells her it wasn't intentional and if she wanted to take it personally, that was on her.

He also slams Tommy for being condescending .... threatening to have Port Authority escort her out ... and asking her if the commotion was really necessary days before Christmas.

But, Tommy's standing her ground ... writing in her caption she was met with transphobia and arrest threats at LaGuardia when merely advocating for herself -- adding she didn't realize it was condescending to flag a human rights violation when being misgendered.

Simone Biles' fans are going after her hubby, Jonathan Owens ... relentlessly trolling him on Instagram after the NFL player controversially said he was the "catch" in their relationship.

The Green Bay Packers safety made the remarks on "The Pivot" podcast last week -- saying he didn't know who Biles was when he first met her ... while going on to call himself the real prize in the couple.

The comments were met with outrage -- because, after all, Biles is one of the greatest female competitors to ever walk the Earth -- and her fans are still clearly pissed over them ... with many taking to his social media page recently to throw barbs.

"Merry Christmas to Mr. & Mrs. Simone Biles❤️," one commenter wrote on Owens' Christmas Day post.

"I don’t even know his name," another fan said. "I just know him as Simone Biles's husband."

Others took shots at Owens' bank account ... writing, "Girl have him sign a prenup."

The couple, however, seems unbothered by the backlash -- in fact, Biles actually rushed to his defense days ago, supporting Owens in an IG post.

Ja Morant's barely been back on the NBA hardwood for a week, but he's already found himself mired in a bit of controversy again -- this time after he hit a celebration that appeared to feature imaginary guns.

The Grizzlies point guard pulled out the celly Tuesday night after he helped give Memphis an insurmountable lead over the Pelicans in overtime of their game in New Orleans.

The 24-year-old -- who just came back from a 25-game ban for a string of incidents involving gun-related social media videos last week -- seemed to turn his hands into the shape of pistols after throwing down a thunderous alley-oop dunk, before he appeared to spray the road crowd with fake bullets.

The gestures only lasted a few seconds, before Morant returned to defense to finish off the game -- but basketball fans were still critical of the moves nonetheless.

Several roasted him as "tone deaf" -- particularly after he had just returned from his suspension on Dec. 19.

Of course, it's entirely possible Morant was not mimicking firing guns and was instead just simply hitting a dance -- but the hooper has yet to publicly address it all.

Kanye West se está disculpando -en hebreo- por sus desvaríos antisemitas y su apoyo a Hitler, esto después de que su nombre fue escrito en un aparente misil israelí que está siendo utilizado en la guerra contra Hamás.

El rapero escribió el martes un extenso comunicado en su reactivada cuenta de Instagram, mostrándose arrepentido por sus comentarios ofensivos hacia el pueblo judío durante el año pasado. Curiosamente, Kanye expresó su arrepentimiento en el idioma del judaísmo: el hebreo.

Esta es la traducción íntegra del mensaje de Kanye: "Pido sinceras disculpas a la comunidad judía por cualquier arrebato involuntario causado por mis palabras o acciones, no era mi intención herir o faltar al respeto y lamento profundamente cualquier dolor que pueda haber causado".

Kanye continuó: "Me comprometo a empezar conmigo mismo y a aprender de esta experiencia para garantizar una mayor sensibilidad y comprensión en el futuro. Su perdón es importante para mí y me comprometo a enmendar las cosas y promover la unidad".

Las palabras... bueno, suenan más corporativas que Kanye.

Su disculpa se produce después de que el luchador israelí de MMA Haim Gozali publicara una foto en X, mostrando un misil con el siguiente mensaje escrito en él: "Kanye West volando a Gaza Haim Gozali".

Por supuesto, Gozali se refería a la actual guerra entre Israel y Hamás en la Franja de Gaza. También escribió en el pie de foto: "@kanyewest no te gustamos los judíos. Así que a nosotros tampoco nos gustas".

Desde 2002, Kanye ha criticado repetidamente a los judíos en foros muy públicos.

En primer lugar, fue en las redes sociales y declaró que iba "a la muerte con 3 en la gente judía". Luego Kanye se sentó para una entrevista de televisión con Piers Morgan, diciendo que le deseaba mal a los judíos por intervenir en sus acuerdos musicales.

Pero no se detuvo ahí... Kanye apareció en "Infowars" presentado por el loco de la conspiración de extrema derecha Alex Jones, mientras proclamaba: "Veo cosas buenas sobre Hitler". Luego habló muy bien de los nazis, afirmando: "Ellos también hicieron cosas buenas. Tenemos que dejar de menospreciar a los nazis todo el tiempo".