Everything Wrong with "Fyre Festival"

It isn't that difficult to understand why music festivals are so successful. Take a number of successful artists, pay them to perform together over a small number of days, all of which at one venue, and charge an exclusive group of attendees WAY too much money to see it.

This was the business strategy that 25-year-old "tech-bro" Billy McFarland thought he could master with minimal effort. He teamed up with former Billboard-topping rapper Ja Rule, and things got moving.

Enter

Fyre Festival

The intended music festival that was supposed to take place last week turned into one of the most talked about news stories of the year, even overshadowing President Trump's 100th day in office anf the Correspondent's Dinner on the same weekend.

What was supposed to be a private weekend getaway on a private island in the Bahamas turned into a basic human rights violation, as the festival was extremely underequipped and unerstaffed. The hundreds off attendees ended up trapped on the island for the entire weekend, with little to no food or water, inadequate shelter, and due to the intended "exclusive paradise", no money.

That's right, no money. On top of the fact that attendees spent anywhere fro $4,000 to $100,000 on their respective tickets, the island was decreed a cash-free zone, forcing the attendees to upload electronic funds on to an exclusive concert bracelet.

Ja Rule and McFarland are currently in a legal battle with celebrity attorney-turned-man-of-the-people Mark Geragos. Apparently his client, Daniel Jung, is filing a class-action lawsuit on behalf of himself and multiple concert attendees. The suit claims that the founders knowingly created a dangerous environment and used false advertisement in order to make money.

Rule and McFarland advertised multiple celebrities such as the Hidad Sisters, and others in order to promote the festival. The performers, mostly consisting of  G.O.O.D Music artists, were warned ahead of time not to attend for risk of danger. They also claimed that the island was formerly owned by Pablo Escobar, which turned out to be a lie. I  fact, there was a "Sandals" resort down the block.

Not to mention the fact that most attendees could not make it back to the states for the entire weekend, which forced Rule and McFarland to charter 3 flights per day from the Bahamas back to Miami, and pay numerous customs fines.

So, what have the co-founders/co-idiots done to combat this negative publicity? 

They have issued an official statement on their instagram page and official website, claiming that they knew it would be under-prepared, and promising that "next time they throw a festival" it will be properly equipped and stateside.

Personally, I doubt there will ever be a "next time," because both Ja Rule and Billy McFarland are about to lose soooooo much money in this lawsuit. 

But this is an ongoing story, perhaps the power of Ja Rule's celebrity will alleviate some of the blow. Perhaps the exclusivity of the lawsuit will make the tech-bro feel special.

Should NBA stars sit regular season games (without being injured) ?

It happens all the time, they call it a "healthy scratch." There is been much debate this season about NBA players sitting in regular season games without an injury warranting their rest day. This season, as opposed to many others, has seen some of the higher caliber players resting on game days.

LeBron James

Courtesy of SB Nation

LeBron is one of the greatest of all time, and the NBA's reigning King. The three-time champion and four-time MVP has sat 5 games this season (as of Mar 30) and is expected to sit one-to-two more games as the season comes to a close. James is averaging 26 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 8.8 assists per game this season.

LeBron, as well as teammate, All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving have been criticized for sitting in multiple games this season, with the main complaint coming from a fanbase that feels robbed for paying to see players that may not be active on any given night. Both LeBron and Kyrie have been outspoken defending the players right to rest during the season. The Cavs were scheduled for games on consecutive nights 16 times this season, second in back-to-back games only to the (awful) New York Knicks.

Golden State Warriors

Courtesy of ESPN.com

March 11th - Saturday night’s ABC primetime matchup between the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs – the top two teams in the West separated by 1½ games – Warriors coach Steve Kerr rested Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala.

Last season, the Golden State Warriors set the NBA record for most wins in one season, with a 73-9 record improving on the 1995-'96 Chicago Bulls 72-10 record. This regular season success took a toll on the team in the postseason, though. Following a 7-game series against the Oklahoma City, they were drained by the NBA Finals where they played in another 7-games series, this time losing to LeBron's Cleveland Cavaliers.

Russell Westbrook and James Harden

Courtesy of Bleacher Report

This years MVP race is led by former OKC teammates Russell Westbrook, still with the Thunder, and James Harden, now of the Houston Rockets.

Harden, played in all 74 of the Houston Rockets regular season games thus far, and has averaged 29.3 points, 8 rebounds, and 11.3 assists per game. When asked about the importance of playing all 82 games, he had this to say.

 “Yeah, because you’re not leaving your teammates out there to dry, “Harden said Tuesday morning, before the Rockets’ game against the Warriors.  “For me, I worry about always having my teammates’ back and always being out there.”

Westbrook, played in all 73 of the Oklahoma City Thunder regular season games thus far, and has averaged 31.4 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 10.4 assists per game. When asked for his thoughts on NBA stars resting, he had this to say.

“I like to play basketball, so I like to go out and complete and have fun. For me, I look at it differently from being hurt, and missing a lot of games. I embrace every moment. I have an opportunity to play basketball, and I’m enjoying any time I can to get on the floor and play.”

Personally, I have been to multiple games where star players are taking an opportunity to rest. All-Star talents like John Wall, Carmelo Anthony, LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Kevin Garnett, as well as others over the years. Although I as a fan want to see the best players compete, it is understandable that a player at such a high level at times can feel physically burnt out. I think it is the responsibility of the coach to win games, not to give the fans a show. 

Wrestlemania 33 Predictions

This years Wrestlemania, being promoted as "The Ultimate Thrill Ride", is being held this coming Sunday, April 2nd, in Orlando, Florida. Wrestlemania is the "showcase of the immortals", it is covered by major media outlets, attended by A-List celebrities, and consistently sets PPV buy records for wrestling promotions. This year's Wrestlemania is one of many in recent history that is headlined by part-time talent, with major match-ups such as Brock Lesnar vs. Bill Goldberg, Undertaker vs. Roman Reigns, and Triple H vs. Seth Rollins (hopefully). With these bouts, as well as some of the younger talent being featured in marquee match-ups, Wrestlemania 33 should round up to be one of the best in WWE history.

So let's make some predictions*.

Cruiserweight Championship (Kickoff Show)

Courtesy of WWE.com

Neville (c) takes on Austin Aries in what has built as a dream match since the Cruiserweight Division returned in mid-2016. The King of the Cruiserweights looks to defend his title against A-Double in the first match on the card. The way Neville has been booked as of late implies that not even Aries can defeat him. Yet, since his in-ring debut on the main roster, Aries has been on top of the world.

Prediction: Aries defeats Neville in tightly contested bout.

Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal

Courtesy WWE.com

The Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal is a tricky situation. When used correctly, it can be a stepping stone to stardom. When misused, it can be a way to bury young talent and waste an opportunity to make a young superstar successful. Current names involved include Samoa Joe, Sami Zayn, Big Show, Goldust, R-Truth, Dolph Ziggler, and Braun Strowman, among others. In addition, the possibilities of NXT call-ups and/or surprise returns.

Prediction: Big Show, it has been announced that this is his last Wrestlemania, and given his legacy as a dominant giant, a la Andre, I believe he will hold the trophy over his head.

Raw Tag Team Championships

Courtesy of WWE.com

This triple threat match has The Club (Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson) defending their newly acquired championships against the teams of Sheamus & Cesaro AND Enzo Amore & Colin Cassady. This is one of the more difficult matches to predict the outcome of. Sheamus/Cesaro held the belts for only a couple of weeks and lost it due to shenanigans. The Club were the ones to defeat Cesaro & Sheamus, and are finally booked as the kind of winning team they were before they left New Japan Pro Wrestling. Despite all of this, Enzo and Cass are one of the most over acts in the WWE today, and have never held WWE gold despite their popularity.

Prediction: Enzo and Cass, they're long overdue for a tag team title reign.

Smackdown Live! Women's Championship

Courtesy of WWE.com

Alexa Bliss (c) defends her title against "every available woman on the Smackdown Live! roster" according to Smackdown Live! General Manager Daniel Bryan. Those names currently include former champions Becky Lynch, Natalya Neidhart, Mickie James, and newcomer Carmella> There are also rumors of former champions Naomi and Kelly Kelly returning and a possible call-up of  undefeated NXT Women's Champion Asuka.

Prediction: Naomi returns and regains her championship in her hometown of Orlando, FL

Intercontinental Championship

Courtesy of WWE.com

Dean Ambrose (c) takes on Baron Corbin in a somewhat thrown together match for the Intercontinental Championship. Ambrose has been booked 50/50 since losing his WWE Championship to AJ Styles. He beat The Miz for the title shortly after losing the WWE Championship, and has somehow been able to keep the title around his waist. Corbin, on the other hand, has won every rivalry he's been booked in since the brand split.

Prediction: Corbin in a sub-par, "bathroom break" quality match.

Mixed Tag Team Match

Courtesy of WWE.com

John Cena and Nikki Bella take on the married couple of The Miz and Maryse. This is the kind of match that on paper looks pretty lame, but due to the in-ring abilities of John Cena and The Miz, it might be a Match of the Night Nominee. The promos and matches leading up to this match made fans actually care about it., thanks to the mic work of Miz and Cena.

Prediction: The Face that Runs the Place, John Cena and his girlfriend Nikki Bella, take the W.

United States Championship

Courtesy WWE.com

Chris Jericho (c) vs. Kevin Owens in a classic "best friends turned bitter enemies" storyline. Owens turned on Jericho, Jericho cost Owens his Universal Championship, Owens snapped The List of Jericho in half, now Owens threatens to cost Jericho his title. Basic wrestling storytelling 101. I love it.

Prediction: Jericho is rumored to take an extended break after this years WM, I imagine Kevin Owens walks out with the title.

Courtesy of WWE.com

AJ Styles vs. Shane McMahon is going to be a high-spot filled, car crash match that will most likely feature the most memorable moment of the night. After Smackdown Live! GM Daniel Bryan fired AJ Styles, Styles went after Smackdown Live! Commissioner Shane McMahon and assaulted him in the parking lot of an arena. This match is going to be fun.

Prediction: Styles, McMahon is the only part-timer that constantly puts over the full-time talent.

Co-Main Event

Courtesy WWE.com

Although The Undertaker's undefeated streak at Wrestlemania was broken a number of years ago, he has still been shown to be an absolute monster at the #1 WWE pay-per-view. He'll be taking on Roman Reigns in a match that most people really don't want to see. Taker is getting up there in age (52 at the time of writing this), and the dream matches of Sting or John Cena are becoming less likely with every passing 'Mania. Plus everybody thinks Reigns is going over.

Prediction: Unfortunately, Roman Reigns.

Unsanctioned Match (AKA No Holds Barred, No DQ, or Anything Goes Match)

Courtesy of WWE.com

The match that almost didn't happen, and as of writing this still may not! Although Seth Rollins and Triple H have confirmed on-screen that this match is going to happen, Pro Wrestling Insider has reported that the Rollins/HHH match is a "game time decision", as Rollins is still recovering from a real-life knee injury suffered at the hands of a debuting Samoa Joe. But if this match does happen, it is guaranteed to entertain. "The Architect" takes on "The King of Kings" in a No-DQ Match that is over 2 years in the making. 

Prediction: If the match happens, Rollins goes over The Game

Co-Main Event: WWE Championship Match

Courtesy of WWE.com

"The Apex Predator" looks to take the WWE Championship from the "Eater of Worlds" as Royal Rumble Winner Randy Orton takes on Bray Wyatt (c). In a similar, yet very different from the Owens/Jericho fued, allies turn enemies when Randy Orton burned the Wyatt family compound down to the ground and desicrated the grave of Sister Abgail (and yet somehow Orton is the good guy in this scenario). Wyatt earned the WWE Championship by pinning both AJ Styles AND John Cena in the Elimination Chamber match last February, and although it is his first taste of singles gold, I doubt he will have it much longer.

Prediction: Orton wins, becomes 13-time World Champion.

MAIN EVENT: Universal Championship

Courtesy of WWE.com

This match is above good guys vs. bad guys. This match is easily the most anticipated part-timer event of all time. 52-year-old superhero Bill Goldberg (c) takes on "The Beast Incarnate" Brock Lesnar for the Universal Championship. After Goldberg and Lesnar stunk up Madison Square Garden in 2004 at Wrestlemania 20, they have a second chance to blow the roof** off the place when they go at it in the main event. Last year's Survivor Series saw Goldberg stun Lesnar, and the WWE Universe, by beating Lesnar in just under 2 minutes. Then Goldberg easily eliminated Lesnar from the Royal Rumble this past January. The key here is to keep the WWE Universe guessing. If the match becomes predictable, the people will stop caring.

Prediction: Brock finally defeats Goldberg. But that ending is a bit predictable, anything could happen with these two monsters. I just hope that the match goes over 5 minutes this time.

*Yes, I know. Professional Wrestling results are predetermined. Go away.

**The SunLife Stadium in Orlando, Florida has no actual roof.

Mock News w/ voiceover

IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A POST FOR THE SAKE OF ENTERTAINMENT, LOOK NO FURTHER.

This post is for the sole purpose of completing a class assignment.

Script 1: Roundabout

A new roundabout worth $20,000 has been constructed at the intersection of Dugg Gap Road and Wary Lane. The roundabout is funded by the county, as well as federal grant loans. After delays last month due to heavy rain, construction has finally completed and will be opening this coming Saturday. This is the third roundabout built in the last two years, and County Road Commissioner Sara Jess Thornburgh says that others are being considered.

Script 2:

Three books, authored by Ed Caudill and Paul Ashdown, that have been published over the last 10 years, have been awarded with the Phantom Grace Award for Civil War Literature today by the Phantom Grace Society. The books, entitled: "Sherman's March in Myth and Memory", "The Myth of Nathan Bedford Forrest", and "The Mosby Myth: Confederate Hero in Life and Legend", respectively, take a look at three different Civil War personalities and what people think of them today. Authors Caudill and Ashdown  will be discussing their books on local public radio show "Datelines and Bylines" this coming Sunday.

Reporting News via Twitter

Twitter is the social media outlet used by many to keep informed of the news. While the masses are hooked on the tweets of current President Donald Trump, I keep my focus generally on the never-resting world of sports. This past week marked the beginning of the NFL's Free Agency period.

Free agency in the NFL is the period where players that are no longer under contract can be contacted by other NFL teams. This period is one of the most anticipated parts of free agency, and is closely payed attention to by the experts and analysts across the major sports networks and websites.

As I covered the NFL free agency period via my twitter page @QuarterbackDiaz, i found that the people most important to follow were ESPN's @AdamSchefter, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport (@rapsheet), and FOX Sports' @JayGlazer.

Free Agency started officially on the Friday before spring break, and is currently still ongoing (as of writing this).

From following this, I learned that it is quite difficult to follow a news story without any actual leads or NFL-qualified contacts.

Despite that, it was definitely interesting and fun for me to follow the ongoing free agency moves and give my opinions on them as I reported.

Storytelling via Snapchat

Snapchat is one of the most popular social media outlets in todays current internet-obsessed culture. While some users indulge in self-obsession or mind-numbing entertainment, other users are required to use the media for information and news sharing. I was required to do something a bit different with my use of social media.

STORYTELLING

I had the luxury of traveling to Los Angeles, California over spring break. I recorded some of the key moments from the morning of my departure to California, to my return back into Newark, New Jersey. 

Day One: The Journey

It started with my digging out snow in order to get to the car, just to get me to the airport. In Poughkeepsie, my family and I got 26 inches of snow, so it took some work to make that happen. Then I had to find a way to make it to Los Angeles. Once I arrived, I made my way to STAPLES Center to watch the Los Angeles Clippers game.

Day Two: Getting Acquainted 

My first official day in Los Angeles was met with awe. I took a walk around the neighborhood, met up with my cousin Louie, toured my dream school, the University of Southern California, and hung out at a few bars in Downtown Los Angeles.

Day Three: The Hike, and Quality Time

My second, and unfortunately, my last day in Los Angeles was spent hiking (halfway) up the famous Griffith Park to the Griffith Observatory. After this, I came back to my cousins house to hang out with her kids, my little cousins.

Day Four: The Return

It started a bit after 4am, after staying up all night I made my way to the airport. I walked from gate to gate in the overcrowded LAX, found myself eating multiple plates of pancakes and watching old wrestling videos, and miraculously getting on a direct flight from LA to New Jersey. After an entire morning of trying to travel, and an entire afternoon of flying cross-country, I finally made my way back to the Bronx.

Cutlines: Captions Under Pictures

John Ross (pictured) at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis,
 breaking the all-time record for 40 yard dash, running a 4.22.

Nova (above), taking a nice autumn walk. Nova, a 2 year-old purebred 
American Pit Bull Terrier currently resides with The Diaz family in the Bronx, NY.

Colin Cassady (upper right) throwing his partner, Enzo Amore (upper left),
onto his opponents Luke Gallows (lower left) and Karl Anderson (lower right).