Listen to a recap of the top stories of the day from Electrek. Quick Charge is available now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn and our RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.
New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded Monday through Thursday and again on Saturday. Subscribe to our podcast in Apple Podcast or your favorite podcast player to guarantee new episodes are delivered as soon as they’re available.
Actor Michael Madsen, who starred in a number of Quentin Tarantino films, has died at the age of 67, according to Sky’s US partner NBC News.
Chicago-born Madsen died on Thursday morning from cardiac arrest, his manager, Ron Smith said.
He appeared in dozens of films during a career that spanned more than 40 years, with screen credits including Thelma and Louise, Free Willy, Donnie Brasco and Sin City.
But he was well known for his collaborations with Tarantino, who cast him in Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill: Vol. 2, The Hateful Eight and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Tributes poured in for Madsen, whose career started in the 80s.
X
This content is provided by X, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable X cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to X cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow X cookies for this session only.
Captain America co-director Joe Russo posted a picture of Madsen in Reservoir Dogs and said on X: “Michael Madsen ALWAYS had bite. RIP.”
“In the last two years Michael Madsen has been doing some incredible work with independent film including upcoming feature films Resurrection Road, Concessions and Cookbook for Southern Housewives, and was really looking forward to this next chapter in his life,” managers Susan Ferris and Ron Smith, and publicist Liz Rodriguez said in a statement.
More from Ents & Arts
“Michael was also preparing to release a new book called Tears For My Father: Outlaw Thoughts and Poems, currently being edited. Michael Madsen was one of Hollywood’s most iconic actors, who will be missed by many.”
Image: Michael Madsen played Mr Blonde in Reservoir Dogs. Pic: THA/Shutterstock
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
The BBC has said it will no longer show a live broadcast of “high risk” performances after the controversy over Bob Vylan’s Glastonbury gig.
It comes after it showed the punk-rap duo leading the crowd in chants of “death to the IDF”.
In a statement, BBC director general Tim Davie said he “deeply regrets that such offensive and deplorable behaviour appeared on the BBC and want to say sorry – to our audience and to all of you, but in particular to Jewish colleagues and the Jewish community.
“We are unequivocal that there can be no place for antisemitism at the BBC. I and everyone need to ensure that the BBC is a role model for inclusivity and tolerance and we all have a part to play.”
In a statement, the BBC said it was “clear that errors were made both in the lead-up to and during Bob Vylan’s appearance.”
The broadcaster said the duo were deemed “high risk” following an assessment process applied to all acts appearing at Glastonbury, but deemed suitable for live streaming with “appropriate mitigations”.
“Prior to Glastonbury, a decision was taken that compliance risks could be mitigated in real time on the live stream – through the use of language or content warnings – without the need for a delay. This was clearly not the case,” the BBC said.
More from Ents & Arts
“During the performance, the livestream was monitored in line with the agreed compliance protocols and a number of issues were escalated.
“Warnings appeared on the stream on two occasions and the editorial team took the decision not to cut the feed. This was an error.”
The corporation added that it would make “immediate changes to livestreaming music events”, including no longer broadcasting performances deemed high risk live.
In a statement on Instagram on Tuesday, the band said they were “not for the death of Jews, Arabs or any other race or group of people,’ rather, they were for the “dismantling of a violent military machine”.
In their statement, the group said they were a “distraction from the story” in Gaza and that whatever “sanctions” they received would also be a distraction.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been found guilty of transportation for prostitution following a landmark trial in New York – but cleared of more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy.
The 55-year-old hip-hop mogul was accused by prosecutors of abusing and coercing three alleged victims, including his former long-term partner, singer and model Cassie Ventura, and other crimes including kidnapping, arson and blackmail.
Jurors decided not all the allegations were proven – but Combs still faces up to 20 years in prison after being convicted of transporting people across the US, including Cassie and another former girlfriend, Jane*, and paying male escorts to engage in sexual encounters.
However, with the not guilty verdict on three other more serious charges – racketeering conspiracy and two of sex-trafficking – he has avoided a maximum possible sentence of life behind bars.
Image: Combs appeared upbeat in court as the verdict was announced. Pic: Jane Rosenberg/ Reuters
The mixed result from the jury came not long into their third day of deliberations. In the courtroom in Manhattan, New York, there were cheers from Combs’s family, and the rapper himself held his hands up in a prayer motion, looking at the jury, and hugged his defence lawyer Teny Geragos.
His mood seemed very different to just a day earlier – when he learned the jury had reached a verdict on four of the five charges, but were split on the racketeering charge. After deliberating for longer on Wednesday, they came to a unanimous decision.
Image: Combs later seemed to become overwhelmed with relief. Pic: Jane Rosenberg/ Reuters
Judge Arun Subramanian adjourned the court while he considered whether to grant Combs bail before sentencing. The rapper has been in prison since his arrest in September 2024 – but his lawyers argue his acquittal on the most serious counts has changed the legal landscape enough that he should now be released.
As the verdict sunk in, Combs appeared overwhelmed, kneeling at his chair and bowing his head in prayer once again.
“I’ll be home soon,” he said as he faced his family members. “I love you, Mum.”
Image: Casandra ‘Cassie’ was heavily pregnant when she gave evidence at the start of the trial. Pic: Jane Rosenberg/ Reuters
Cassie ‘paved the way’
Reacting to the verdict, Cassie’s lawyer Douglas H Wigdor said that although jurors did not find Combs guilty of sex-trafficking Cassie, she had “paved the way” for the other guilty verdicts.
“By coming forward with her experience, Cassie has left an indelible mark on both the entertainment industry and the fight for justice,” he said.
“We must repeat – with no reservation – that we believe and support our client, who showed exemplary courage throughout this trial.”
Cassie, who testified heavily pregnant just three weeks before giving birth, displayed “unquestionable strength”, he added, and “brought attention to the realities of powerful men in our orbit”.
Videos of “freak off” sex sessions with male escorts were shown to jurors only during the seven-week trial, with the footage kept private from members of the public and media in court.
Image: Pic: Reuters/ Jane Rosenberg
Former employees, along with escorts, hotel staff and police officers were among those to give evidence.
Cassie and Jane, who used a pseudonym, also testified. They told the court they were coerced into drug-fuelled freak offs – which were also referred to as “hotel nights” or “wild king nights” – with male escorts, and abused throughout their relationships.
Combs’s defence team presented a very different picture to show that sexual acts, including freak offs, were consensual.
They conceded the music star could be violent, had a bad temper, and used drugs. He also had multiple relationships at the same time. But crucially, they said, while he was “not proud” of some of his behaviour, none of it made him guilty of the charges against him.
After hearing evidence of flights and travel for escorts and Cassie and Jane, paid for by Combs, as well as hotel bookings across the US and the Caribbean, jurors found him guilty of the transportation to engage in prostitution charges. However, they did not find that the allegations against the rapper amounted to sex-trafficking or racketeering.
The Cassie hotel tape
Combs, known variously as Puff Daddy, P Diddy, and Diddy over the years, was once one of the most influential figures in hip-hop – famous as a producer, founder of Bad Boy Records and manager of the late Notorious BIG in the 1990s, as well as a rapper in his own right.
As an artist, he won three Grammys during his career, and had hits including I’ll Be Missing You, Come With Me, and Bad Boy For Life.
In September 2023, he received the “global icon” award from MTV and was given the key to New York City at a ceremony in Times Square, just a few miles away from the streets in Harlem where he spent his first years.
Allegations first came to prominence in November 2023, when Cassie filed a bombshell lawsuit accusing him of coercing her into unwanted sex sessions, as well as blackmail and several incidences of violence.
The suit was settled in 24 hours – for $20m, it emerged during the trial – but months later CNN aired hotel security footageshowing Combs punching and kicking Cassie and throwing her to the floor in 2016.
He apologised after the video aired, saying: “I was disgusted when I did it.”
Footage from the hotel incident was shown during the trial.
Following the verdict, the rapper now awaits sentencing. He also still faces several civil lawsuits, most of which were filed in the wake of his arrest in September 2024.
