TV news update

The MUSE breaks down the best and worst of what’s happening in the world of television.

Donald Trump vs. Whoopie: The talk show showdown

Notorious foot-in-his-mouth billionaire and Presidential hopeful (really?) Donald Trump is upset with Whoopi Goldberg after last week’s heated debate that ended with Trump apparently feeling “insulted.” While chatting with the ladies of The View, Trump asked of Obama, “Why doesn’t he show his birth certificate?” The comb-over continued at this pace, and Whoopi became increasingly and visibly annoyed, finally crying out about the racist implications behind what Trump was spewing. On this Monday’s Fox and Friends, Trump asserted that his comments were in no way race-related. Asked if he in fact believes that Obama was not born in the US, Trump answered, “I am really concerned.” He offered to share his own certificate and made mention that previous Presidents and candidates like George W. Bush and John McCain have happily provided their certificates.

Kourtney Kardashian on TV (…and it’s not a reality show!)

This week on One Life To Live, the oldest of the Kardashian’s proved she can at the very least keep up with soap opera actors. The reality princess plays a lawyer by the name of Kassandra Kavanaugh (Get it? Double K? Just in case audiences missed it, the show itself even draws attention to the not-so-subtle allusion), and gets a pretty decent sized role on camera. While she isn’t likely to get a Daytime Emmy (I hope…) her performance is no worse than the usual soap opera dribble. Don’t worry, you don’t have to watch the whole episode to catch a peek, her scenes have been put up on YouTube for your viewing pleasure.

Two MTV reality stars get arrested for assault

Steve-O was arrested for an outstanding warrant for assault with a weapon, an incident that occurred more than eight years ago. He was finishing up a stand-up set in Calgary from last weekend when police seized him at the airport. The “comedian,” famous for his death-defying antics on Jackass, was released on $10,000 bail, and will have to return for his court date in May.

Janelle Evans, 19, star of Teen Mom 2 was also taken into police custody for assault and what police are calling affray for fighting. Video found on TMZ.com shows the young mother tackling, wrestling and beating Britany Truett. Her attorney however told TMZ that he believes Janelle was “set up” and in the video claims you can see how she was being egged on by friends. According to police, the fight between the girls was over a boy, Kieffer Delp, who was also taken into custody on an outstanding warrant for cocaine possession. Sounds like a real catch.

Animal Planet jumps on the food show bandwagon

Danielle Konya is an animal rights activist, and go figure the owner of a vegan bakery! Vegan Treats in Bethlehem, Pa. will be the stage to this new reality show that Konya hopes will be the key to showing audiences that eating vegan directly saves animal lives, habitats and the environment as a whole. The show, Sweet Avenger, is a new twist on what’s becoming a tired trend in the reality world. It seems every network these days has a baking/cooking/food related competition show springing up into schedules, but perhaps a show with an animal rights spin will lend the show some originality.

Shameless goes out with a bang

If you haven’t caught Showtime’s newest hit Shameless, you are doing yourself a disservice. The new show debuted at the start of this semester and just finished its 12-episode run on Sunday. The show, which is based on an award winning and long running British series of the same name, has been close in storyline to the original, but that’s not to say the show doesn’t have twists and turns of its own. Having watched bits of the British series and the entire first season of the U.S. version, I can safely say you should stick with Showtime’s adaptation. With drama, intrigue, shock and, of course, sex, this show has everything that Showtime is now famous for delivering. Do yourself a favor: check it out.