#_author:Marcus Gilmer

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The Boston Red Sox are the latest team to ban 'Fortnite'

The defending World Series champion Boston Red Sox have struggled early this season, but it's apparently not because they're distracted by Fortnite.

Several players, including pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, told WEEI's Rob Bradford that the game is completely absent from the team's clubhouse in 2019. "I haven’t seen it this year," Eovaldi, told WEEI. "Usually everybody had it set up in their lockers. But I haven’t seen it."  

SEE ALSO: Prince Harry says 'Fortnite' should be banned

Bradford reports that the team decided that players were losing their focus on the field:

The revelation is a surprise considering the game was a constant presence during the 2018 season. Starting pitcher David Price loved it so much it was rumored to have contributed to a carpal tunnel injury he dealt with. (He denied this report.)

Price also claimed to have played the game with Eovaldi the night before he pitched the World Series-clinching Game 5 victory. 

David Price said he prepared for his start today by playing Fortnite with Nathan Eovaldi last night. "Yes, we did win," Price said.

— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) October 29, 2018

And, bringing things full circle, Price used an off-season Twitch session during a game of Fortnite to tease Eovaldi about re-signing with the Red Sox; Eovaldi did indeed return to the Red Sox but there's no word whether Price's Fortnite skills helped.  

The Red Sox aren't the only sports team to deal with the popularity of Fortnite in the team clubhouse. During the final week of the 2018 season, Philadelphia Phillies player Carlos Santana got so fed up with teammates being distracted by playing the game that he smashed a television with a bat. 

Meanwhile, the Texas Rangers, like the Red Sox, reportedly banned Fortnite from the clubhouse for 2019 and the Toronto Blue Jays implemented restrictions on playing video games for its players. And, over in the NHL, the NHL's Vancouver Canucks apparently banned the game for the 2018-2019 season after a mediocre performance the previous season. 

So, for now, at least a small group of people have figured out how to temporarily slow Fortnite steady, methodical takeover of the sports world. 

WATCH: Fortnite releases 'Avengers: Endgame' crossover

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Jaw-dropping video shows water sloshing down a skyscraper during earthquake

A stunning video shot during Monday's earthquake in the Philippines shows water cascading down the side of the building like an urban mega-waterfall.

The water reportedly sloshed out of a rooftop pool of the residential Anchor Skysuites in the Binondo district of Manila as the building swayed during the earthquake.

Accoring to the U.S. Geological Survey, the quake registered as a magnitude 6.1, with the epicenter reported to be about 50 miles from Manilla. At least eight people have died, according to CNN.

The video was originally shared by Michael Rivo on Facebook and picked up by local media outlets, including the Filipino Times and the Manila Bulletin. 

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12 interesting gadgets to spice up your self-love life

May is National Masturbation Month, and we're celebrating with Feeling Yourself, a series exploring the finer points of self-pleasure.

Your sex life can always use a little spicing up, even if the only person involved is, well, you. 

Yes, even masturbation is something that sometimes needs a little something extra so you don't grow so bored of the same routine.

SEE ALSO: How mutual masturbation can help close the orgasm gap

Luckily, just as it was with DVDs and the internet, the sex industry is at the forefront of the evolution of gadget technology. And that means some ingenious tools for making masturbation fun again.

1. Pornhub's Virtual Blowbot Stroker

Behold, the Blowbot

Image: Pornhub

Leave it to Pornhub, the most popular adult entertainment site on the world wide web, to not only have its own toy line but to have a device with the great name "Blowbot." This device for men can sync up with certain, compatible videos on the site to simulate the action you see on screen. And you can use the Feel Connect app to pair your Blowbot with a wide range of other toys for a mutual experience with a partner.  

Price: $118 at PornhubToys.com

2. blueMotion NEX|1 vibrator and app

A simple, discreet app-based vibrator that lets you or a partner control the fun

Image: blueMotion

Speaking of remote play, the blueMotion NEX|1 vibrator allows for just that, letting whomever you connect to the app to control the settings for this small, silicone, Bluetooth-enabled vibrator. Whether that's a partner or just yourself is up to you, but the size and shape of the device allow you to be discreet in your enjoyment. 

Price: $129 at Lovelife

3. iGasm Spinning Stimulator

Multiple uses!

Image: Kinky Store

The key to any good sex toy is versatility, and the iGasm Spinning Simulator accommodates certain self-pleasure needs for both men and women, depending on the fold-out attachment. It's a simple tool with multiple uses even when you're alone. 

Price: $77.25 at Kinky Toy Store

4. Smart Doll World's AI sex doll

Is that 'Harry Potter' that you're reading?

Image: Smart Doll World

AI is the wave of the future and that applies to sex dolls, too. Take, for instance, the above doll, named Alison, which is said to include "responsive artificial intelligence, interactive voice communications, facial movement, body temperature control, and touch sensors." That's a pretty impressive list, which probably explains the steep price. But, for you, it may be worth it.

Price: $3,689 at Smart Doll World

5. Hush Vibrating Butt Plug

A versatile butt plug

Image: Hush

Like a lot of items on this list, this particular butt plug, advertised as "The World’s First Teledildonic Butt Plug," allows remote access to the controls for yourself or a partner via an app. But there are other features that make it worth a look, like the option to sync to music or to activate via sounds. It also comes in two different sizes for your comfort.

Price: $119 at Lovesense

6. Pornhub's Virtual Rabbit

One rascally Rabbit

Image: Pornhub

The partner to the Blowbot, Pornhub's Virtual Rabbit is a vibrator that has a lot of the same features, including video syncing and pairing via Feel Connect. Equipped for both clitoral and G-spot stimulation, the Virtual Rabbit has multiple functions and vibration patterns for all your self-pleasure needs. 

Price: $102 at Pornhub Toys

7. Hot Octopuss Pulse III Solo Guybrator

Wrap your head around the guybrator. Or is it the other way around?

Image: OhMiBod

What's a guybrator? A vibrator for men, of course. In case you can't tell how it works from the photo, the Guybrator is a "revolutionary male stimulator that uses oscillation movement to stimulate a man." It's a brand new world for guys looking for something a little different.

Price: $119 at Hot Octopuss

8. Lovesense VR Toys

New tools for your VR masturbation session

Image: Lovesense

Take your solo flights one step further with the Max (for him) and the Nora (for her), self-love toys that sync up with VR porn clips and enable you to really feel like you're in the film. Compatible with Oculus Rift, Samsung Gear, and Google Cardboard, among other VR options, it's not hard to, uh, get hard yourself. 

Price: Max - $119 at Lovesense; Nora - $119 at Lovesense

9. The Autoblow

OK, this one should be pretty self-explanatory. But this sex simulation tube has a few tricks in its skin sleeve to make it feel more realistic than most. 

Price: $159.95 at Robotic Blow Job

10. Dame Product's Pom

Flexible vibrator? Yes.

Image: Dame Products

The Pom is a popular, flexible vibrator that's also waterproof and has five different settings. The product comes from Dame, the toy company founded by Alexandra Fine and Janet Lieberman. Mashable chatted with Fine for a story on women in sex tech back in 2018, which you can check out here.  

Price: $95 at Pom

11. LaunchPAD

The Launchpad is here to solve an age-old problem.

Image: Fleshlight

This is for the prudent masturbator. Set up your iPad, insert penis, and thrust to completion. No fuss, no muss. Though it might take a bit of coordination so you can thrust and yet still see whatever video is playing on the iPad. 

Price: $19.46 at Fleshlight

12. SVAKOM Siime Eye Wireless Camera Vibrator

If you really want to take the mutual self-love thing one step beyond just an app, how about this vibrator that doubles as a camera? You can send video right to a partner's phone, giving them the pleasure of watching you pleasure yourself. It even has an "intelligent mode" that "simulates vibration frequency during the whole process of sex from beginning to orgasm," guaranteeing some fun regardless of whether or not you've got that camera on.

Price: $249.99 at SVAKOM

WATCH: Tumblr is losing millions of visits after its porn ban

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The internet pays tribute to Grumpy Cat

Proving once again that there is nothing good about 2019, the internet woke up Friday morning to the news of Grumpy Cat's passing, the viral pet known for its resting grouch face.

Grumpy Cat's owners announced on Friday on Instagram that the cat passed away on Tuesday at the age of 7. The internet reacted by sharing their condolences and memories of the famous feline, starting with Aubrey Plaza, who starred in the Grumpy Cat movie, as well as Lil BUB and Nala Cat, two of Grumpy Cat's internet famous pet peers.

View this post on Instagram

my heart is broken. i will miss you grumpy cat. you were and will always be my true spirit animal...whether you like it or not 💔

A post shared by aubrey plaza (@plazadeaubrey) on May 17, 2019 at 9:07am PDT

View this post on Instagram

Our hearts broke today when we heard that BUB's long-time friend Grumpy Cat passed away. Despite being the yin to her yang, Grumpy was the one cat on the planet that BUB seemed most comfortable to be around. Like BUB, Grumpy was tiny but her heart was very big. Our thoughts are with her family and all of her loving fans. ~~~~~From BUB: Dearest Tardar, you were a truly majestic feline, and I am grateful for the years I was able to share with you on Earth, and look forward to the light years I'll get to spend with you in space. #spacesister

A post shared by Lil BUB (@iamlilbub) on May 17, 2019 at 10:24am PDT

View this post on Instagram

The saddest day in the world. The sour to my sweet, it was an honor to know you. Tabitha and family, we’re sorry for your loss and our hearts go out to you. We are in disbelief. Today and every day, we will honor you, the legend. Until we meet again 🌈💕

A post shared by Nala Cat ™ (@nala_cat) on May 17, 2019 at 6:11am PDT

Another popular internet cat, Venus the Two Face Cat, paid its respects as well. 

View this post on Instagram

Our cat world has lost a true OG legend, THE queen of memes who brought laughs and smiles to so many! Our hearts are broken to hear of Grumpy’s passing. 😿 Today is a sad day for the cat community, her family, and everyone who loved her so to honor her memory, this will be our only post today. This one is for you Grumpy! 💙 Please keep her family in your thoughts and purrayers during this unimaginably difficult time! Rest easy Grumpy! ❤️ #ripgrumpycat #ripgrumpy #queenofmemes #legend #Repost @realgrumpycat ・・・ Some days are grumpier than others...

A post shared by Venus the Two Face Cat (@venustwofacecat) on May 17, 2019 at 7:31am PDT

goodbye grumpy cat pic.twitter.com/2LmoYXM1Rr

— shitty watercolour (@SWatercolour) May 17, 2019

SEE ALSO: Grumpy Cat Claims the Iron Throne

Real name Tardar Sauce, Grumpy Cat skyrocketed to fame in 2012 thanks to a Reddit post and never looked back, becoming one of the most popular animals on the internet alongside the likes of Doug the Pug, Lil Bub, and Manny the Frenchie. 

One of the best/worst corrections I ever earned at the WSJ — and one of the all-time best hedcuts ever — came from my 2013 piece on #GrumpyCat’s agent. https://t.co/BP8q1WHVaT pic.twitter.com/McFI6sO2vI

— katie rosman (@katierosman) May 17, 2019

Grumpy Cat, whose sourpuss demeanor became an internet sensation, has died at age 7. https://t.co/2sCYCXLYEN pic.twitter.com/z7GPaq9oDW

— ABC News (@ABC) May 17, 2019

The meme. The legend. RIP Grumpy Cat. Some of our favourites. 💗 pic.twitter.com/ENW7ywRKB0

— re:act (@_reactmarketing) May 17, 2019

Heartbroken 😥😥😥 Sending my love to Tabatha and all your family. That came as quite the shock 🖤🌈

— Fran O'Reilly (@ShadEO9) May 17, 2019

Meeting grumpy cat was a beautiful moment. RIP grumpy cat!!!! pic.twitter.com/Oc3vLdIwQe

— Naomi Fry (@frynaomifry) May 17, 2019

Had the pleasure of meeting Grumpy Cat at a charity do once. She was surprisingly down to earth, and VERY funny.

— Limmy (@DaftLimmy) May 17, 2019

RIP Grumpy Cat 😢 Raising a glass of milk to Tardar Sauce! 🥛 pic.twitter.com/QlLgvR0ZSP

— Maylin (@MaylinBtw) May 17, 2019

We'll continue to update as more memorials for Grumpy Cat roll in.

RIP.

WATCH: 6 of the richest pets of all time

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Sam Bee offers sex ed lesson to the men behind the new abortion laws

As more states pass restrictive anti-abortion bills, with Alabama leading the way, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee is here to put the men who pass these laws on blast.

In a scorching segment called "Sex Ed for Senators," Bee takes aim at the predominantly old white men in the states' legislatures who keep passing these laws and their complete lack of knowledge of, well, biology.

Besides laying down how these bills ignore everything about the actual science of pregnancy, Bee uses these ignorant lawmakers' own words against them to unfold a withering, and sadly obvious, point: these guys don't know what the hell they're talking about. 

Bee's take is deservingly brutal, exposing how the (mostly male) leaders that are regulating women's health care access aren't only doing so in bad faith but in a cloud of woeful ignorance.

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Beto O'Rourke livestreamed his haircut. Yes, his haircut.

You can't keep a streaming Beto down.

If you didn't think livestreaming a dental appointment was mundane enough, wait til you see 2020 Democratic hopeful Beto O'Rourke stream a haircut. All 17 minutes of it. 

O'Rourke has begun something of a "reboot" of his campaign, including an appearance on The View where he did a lot of apologizing, and now he's back to doing what he does best: streaming average, everyday events like they're political rallies. 

SEE ALSO: Beto O'Rourke announces $5 trillion climate crisis plan

Of course, it's not just about a haircut, not with an election to win. O'Rourke also used the opportunity to talk about all sorts of issues, like the immigration story of his barber, Manuel, who moved to El Paso from Juárez, its neighboring city in Mexico. He also took questions from viewers about things like a potential trip to Puerto Rico and higher education. 

Question from a viewer as @BetoORourke live-streams his haircut on Facebook: “Beto, will you embrace your greys?” pic.twitter.com/0mOanNBTMf

— Johnny Verhovek (@JTHVerhovek) May 15, 2019

There's also a delightful moment a little over 9 minutes in when a random guy enters the barber shop just looking for a haircut and sorta recognizes O'Rourke, and he takes it all in stride.

 "Oh, you're, uh, the guy on TV. Is it the governor? The mayor?" the man asks. 

Beto O'Rourke is livestreaming his haircut. At one point, he notes that his earhair is getting trimmed. Something he says needs to be done as you get older. pic.twitter.com/um040cwpTU

— Matt Viser (@mviser) May 15, 2019

As Beto slips back into his old habits, it's worth remembering that it was another livestream that put him on a lot of peoples' radar to begin with. Back in March 2017, then-Congressman Beto drove 1,600 miles from Texas to D.C. with Republican counterpart Will Hurd due to a giant blizzard that shut down airlines. The pair livestreamed large chunks of their trip on Facebook Live, answering questions along the way. 

So Beto is going to keep being Beto, which is perfectly fine. As long as he stops trying to stream while he's driving. 

WATCH: Presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke’s teenage hacker life

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Pornhub: Here's what men and women search for when it comes to masturbation

May is National Masturbation Month, and we're celebrating with Feeling Yourself, a series exploring the finer points of self-pleasure.

Everyone has a slightly different ritual when it comes to self-love, but for many people that adventure involves a visit to Pornhub.

We asked the folks at the adult entertainment behemoth to give us a look into what people are searching for when it comes to masturbation videos — and they've provided some very interesting insights.

All the ways we search for masturbation.

Image: Pornhub

When it comes to masturbation-specific search terms, the results are fairly consistent with what they told us last year. There remains an interest in voyeurism, with various searches for "public" and "caught" variety ranking high. Though clearly the general term "masturbation" still reigns supreme.

As for how searches break down by demographic groups, women are 24 percent more likely to watch masturbation videos than men. And users under the age of 35 are far less likely to seek out masturbation videos than people who are 45 and up. 

Sorry, but your mom probably likes porn.

Image: Pornhub

Men and women also differ when it comes to specific searches. Women are 87 percent more likely to search the term "masturbation" and way more likely to search for male-related masturbation videos like "solo male masturbation" (305 percent more likely), "male masturbation" (276 percent more likely), and "hot guy masturbating" (389 percent more likely).

Meanwhile, men are more likely to search for things like "jerk off challenge" (66 percent), "jerk off encouragement" (65 percent), and "jerk off instruction" (51 percent). Make of that what you will.

This all makes perfect sense.

Image: Pornhub

Geographically speaking, these states lead the way for masturbation searches: New Mexico (27 percent above the national average), Alaska (22 percent above), and Kansas (14 percent above). Meanwhile, these two states are the least likely to search for masturbation videos: Wyoming (42 percent below the national average) and Idaho (38 percent below).  

If you're looking for larger geographic patterns, you're more likely to search for masturbation-related videos if you live in the wild, wild southwest than you are if you from the south. California, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico are all above the national average while Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and North and South Carolinas are all below that average. 

If you love masturbation, go west.

Image: Pornhub

So there you have it. If you're a woman over 55 living in New Mexico, congratulations: You're probably celebrating National Masturbation Month in style.

WATCH: Pornhub released new info about what women are searching around the world

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Elizabeth Warren takes a ‘hard pass’ on Fox News town hall

Unlike some of her fellow candidates, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) won't be appearing on Fox News this cycle. She laid down a verbal hammer to explain her decision. 

SEE ALSO: Every 2020 candidate's 404 error page, ranked

In a tweet on Tuesday morning, Warren called Fox News a "hate-for-profit racket that gives a megaphone to racists and conspiracy theorists." The tweet contained a link to her website and asked visitors to sign a "petition" supporting the decision (i.e., join an email list for Team Warren).

Fox News is a hate-for-profit racket that gives a megaphone to racists and conspiracy theorists. I won’t ask Democratic primary voters to tune into an outlet that profits from racism and hate in order to see our candidates. Sign up now to join me and take a stand.

— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) May 14, 2019

Warren also released a much longer statement on the decision, doubling down on her Fox News fire and saying the network "balances a mix of bigotry, racism, and outright lies with enough legit journalism to make the claim to advertisers that it's a reputable news outlet." 

Elizabeth Warren has turned down an offer to hold a Fox News town hall. The news channel is a "hate-for-profit racket" that provides "cover," she says, for the very thing she's campaigning against: "corruption that’s rotting our government and hollowing out our middle class." pic.twitter.com/NKhYBHw6jM

— Ruby Cramer (@rubycramer) May 14, 2019

Warren closes by saying, "Fox News is welcome to come to my events just like any other outlet. But a Fox News town hall adds money to the hate-for-profit machine. To which I say: hard pass."

For what it's worth, Warren has appeared on Fox News in the past, though sparingly, including for a March 2018 interview on "Fox News Sunday." 

Warren's announcement follows Fox News town hall appearances by Democratic challengers Bernie Sanders in April and one earlier in May by Amy Klobuchar. One other entrant in the crowded Democratic 2020 field, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, has a town hall scheduled for the network on May 19. 

At least one of Warren's opponents, former Congressman John Delaney, has already spoken out against Warren's decision. 

If you're not using your town hall, I will. Democratic candidates have to campaign everywhere and talk to all voters. https://t.co/jH5ZwYRtEg

— John Delaney (@JohnDelaney) May 14, 2019

Her announcement comes about a month after an interesting 17-tweet-long thread on the topic of Democratic candidates and Fox News from Angelo Carusone, president of Media Matters for America, which bills itself as "the nation's premier progressive media watchdog."

1/ Lots of chatter about Democratic presidential candidates partnering w/Fox News for town halls. There's a lot of confusion, assumptions and conflation swirling about. I've been knee-deep in this for long while. Lemme unpackage and help clear some things up...

— Angelo Carusone (@GoAngelo) April 17, 2019

In her statement, Warren echoed one of Carusone's main points: that Fox was bringing in Democrats for these town halls as a way to sway advertisers after multiple rounds of bad press, including Jane Mayer's deep dive for the New Yorker into the connections between the network and the Trump White House.

After Warren's announcement, Carusone told me, "This is the exact decision that Democratic leaders should be making." It's also a matter of consistency, he says, noting the criticism that Fox News has received from many Democrats, including Sanders: "If you criticize the network as a propaganda outlet ... then you should act accordingly."

Carusone disagrees with the notion that Democratic candidates need Fox News to reach conservative voters. Pointing out that just over 60 million people voted for Trump, he tells me, "Fox News doesn't have 60 million viewers every night ... Really, it is a very small subset of the Republican Party, a core of the core of the base."

He adds, "If you genuinely want to reach an audience for persuasion and maximum penetration of a wide spectrum of viewers, including conservatives, you don't do that through Fox News. You don't do that through partisan media. You do that through local media. You do that through radio."

Given that the Democratic National Committee rejected all bids by Fox News to host any 2020 primary debates while Democratic candidates continue to squabble over appearing on the network, the issues isn't likely to be put to rest any time soon. 

I've reached out to Fox News for comment on Warren's statement and criticism of the network. We'll update the story with their response. 

WATCH: Donald Trump met with Twitter's CEO

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'Game of Thrones' featured a cameo from NFL superstar Aaron Rodgers

Warning: Contains spoilers for Game of Thrones Season 8, Episode 5.

We can likely add one more body to the death count from last night's thrilling, fiery episode of Game of Thrones: Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Sunday night after the episode aired, Rodgers confirmed his cameo on Instagram, sharing a photo of him in costume.

View this post on Instagram

It was just for a few seconds, but I’ll always be thankful to have been on the penultimate episode of @gameofthrones #crazyepisodetonight #🔥🔥🔥🔥

A post shared by Aaron Rodgers (@aaronrodgers12) on May 12, 2019 at 9:44pm PDT

As for what role, exactly, he had, former NFL player-turned-radio host Pat McAfee claimed to catch a glimpse of Rodgers as a Lannister archer ahead of the battle for King's Landing. That archer in the middle certainly looks a lot like Rodgers.

Incredible performance tonight by Mr @AaronRodgers12 pic.twitter.com/NnETtVWkFi

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) May 13, 2019

Rodgers joins a long list of celebrity cameos on the show. New York Mets star pitcher Noah Syndergaard made a cameo in Season 7, and during the Season 8 premiere fans watched It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia star Rob McEwan and Silicon Valley star Martin Starr get stabbed to death. 

SEE ALSO: Bran is the most relatable character on 'Game of Thrones' Season 8

Rodgers' cameo is a long time coming for the star NFL quarterback and big-time Thrones fan, who did a video clip for the show last year in the run-up to the final season.

Time for the Season 1 play by play with Lord @AaronRodgers12 of Greenwater Bay. Your Binge #ForTheThrone continues with “The Pointy End,” “Baelor,” and “Fire and Blood.” https://t.co/crYx3Euc9u pic.twitter.com/L95Yy8X0q2

— Game of Thrones (@GameOfThrones) December 23, 2018

Rodgers has also posted about the show on his social media accounts pretty frequently.

View this post on Instagram

Two of my favorite things @gameofthrones and @adidas collab #🔥 #winteriscoming #

A post shared by Aaron Rodgers (@aaronrodgers12) on Apr 16, 2019 at 1:44pm PDT

Busy, next 82 minutes....

— Aaron Rodgers (@AaronRodgers12) April 29, 2019

Tiger Wins. @Bucks playoff opener. GOT Final Season begins. #dreamsunday # pic.twitter.com/VULjQOFEZf

— Aaron Rodgers (@AaronRodgers12) April 14, 2019

And it seems the Packers were signaling Rodgers' cameo Sunday night just ahead of the show by sharing this tweet, which Rodgers retweeted. 

So what's everyone watching tonight? #GoT pic.twitter.com/0vX7CuUQaL

— Green Bay Packers (@packers) May 13, 2019

As for the fate of Rodger's character, it's likely he ended up a pile of ash like most of King's Landing after Daenerys and Drogon blazed their way through the city. Here's hoping his arrows were as accurate as his passing before he met his scorching end. 

WATCH: 'Game of Thrones' ripped for its portrayal of women

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Pornhub reveals how ‘Star Wars’ fans are celebrating May the Fourth

Star Wars fans love to celebrate just like everyone else — with porn.

With May The Fourth — aka "Star Wars Day" — upon us, the folks at Pornhub have revealed the many ways that Star Wars fans use the adult entertainment site to mark the holiday. 

Searches for Star Wars on Pornhub on May 4, 2018 surged above the days surrounding it.

Image: Pornhub

Star Wars-related searches see huge spikes over the days preceding and following May 4th every year. These are the spikes for the last three years:

2016: 633 percent spike

2017: 1048 percent spike

2018: 748 percent spike

As Darth Vader would say, most impressive. 

Topping the Star Wars-related search list is Princess Leia, who famously donned a gold bikini as a captive of Jabba the Hutt for the first third of 1983's Return of the Jedi. This is also why the unfortunately phrased "Princess Leia Slave" is in the top 10.

Princess Leia remains the porn icon of the Star Wars universe.

Image: Pornhub

Other popular searches include the new trilogy lead Rey, Clone Wars favorite Ahsoka Tano, and Padme Amidala, portrayed by Natalie Portman in the prequel trilogy. If you're looking for a male character on this list, you have to go number 20 where a presumably shirtless Kylo Ren pops up. 

Taking these searches into account, it's not exactly shocking that men are 38 percent more likely to search for Star Wars than women. Also unsurprising is that users in the 18-to-24 age demographic are 77 percent more likely to search for Star Wars content.   

Shocking: Star Wars porn is really popular among young men.

Image: Pornhub

Finally, it's worth mentioning what's not listed in all of these stats. Conspicuous in their absence are both the Ewoks and Jar Jar Binks — proving that, even in porn, there's room for the Star Wars universe to expand. 

WATCH: 'Star Wars' movies to take hiatus after episode IX

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

'The Daily Show' skewers William Barr's bumbling testimony

Leave it to The Daily Show to put the properly absurd spin on Attorney General William Barr's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee over the Mueller Report.

Host Trevor Noah had no problem pointing out how bonkers the entire thing was. When Noah compares Barr's answers to a mangled subway announcement, the joke lands not because it's silly (which it is) but because how true it rings. 

Calling one exchange between Barr and Sen. Dick Durbin, "the most exciting boring fight I've seen in my life," Noah nails the dichotomy of Wednesday's drama: dry and slow and yet somehow bewildering and bonkers. After all, Barr even managed to incur the wrath of Mueller himself.

But Noah sums up the entire Mueller debate when, after a clip in which Barr refuses to hand over notes from a phone call to Sen. Richard Blumenthal, he says "America, I feel like I've discovered a fundamental flaw in your democracy: You have no defense against someone just being a dick."

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UnNews is a handy database that aims to keep tabs on fake news and biased sources

There's a new tool to help you refute all the fake news your aunt posts on Facebook.

It's called "UnNews" and it's the product of the International Fact-Checking Network, a wing of the Poynter Institute, a nonprofit journalism school. As the 2020 election cycle heats up, it aims to battle fake news by educating people about websites that traffic in fake news, biased news, and even satire.

Spearheaded by Barrett Golding, the index brings together five lists about unreliable sources already "curated by established journalists or academics" and cuts any sites that are no longer active. 

Here are the lists currently being used:

The index includes additional information for each site, including which of the above lists the site was flagged by and adds tags that help specifically categorize each site: bias, clickbait, conspiracy, fake, satire, and unreliable. More on their methodology is available here. 

We compiled a database of 515 websites that repeatedly spread false or misleading information https://t.co/zYJKQpLOsz

— IFCN (@factchecknet) April 30, 2019

While experienced web users will already recognize many sites on the list (particularly satire sites like Reductress and the Onion-produced Clickhole), it's a thorough and easy-to-navigate database that will help give less savvy readers a bit more background on their news sources.

Among the more well-known conservative sites included on the list are Tucker Carlson's The Daily Caller ("bias, clickbait"), conservative activist site Judicial Watch ("bias"), Laura Ingraham's conservative website Lifezette ("clickbait"), and, of course, Breitbart ("bias, unreliable").

On the liberal side, Robert Palmer's Palmer Report is flagged ("bias"), as are Shareblue ("bias, unreliable"), Raw Story ("clickbait"), and Daily Kos ("clickbait"). 

Golding told Mashable in an email that he's working on the next version of the database, though there's no release date set yet. It will include an additional 300-plus sites and "be much more interactive with more data." 

For now, though, you can feel confident clicking through to links and debating your family about biased news with UnNews in your back digital pocket.

WATCH: Facebook cracks down on Russian-based "fake news"

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

Hillary Clinton reading the best part of the Mueller Report is immensely satisfying

A new clip of Hillary Clinton reading a passage from the newly released Mueller Report in which Donald Trump utters the phrase, "I'm fucked" is destined to become an iconic moment in American political history.

The moment comes courtesy of Comedy Central's Jordan Klepper, who brought in  Hillary Clinton along with her husband, Bill, to pick a GoFundMe cause worthy of a $1,000 donation.

But three minutes in, and after a delightful debate over goat milk, they come upon this campaign to raise money to have Hillary create an audiobook version of the Mueller Report. Hillary is happy to oblige with a sample of the now-oft-quoted moment when Trump learned of Mueller's appointment.

Sure, this clip doesn't do anything to undo the 2016 election results, but at least it gives us a brief moment of schadenfreude to keep us warm at night. 

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

The dorky Easter eggs hidden in 2020 campaign websites

With the 2020 presidential race heating up, candidates are driving as many people as they can to their websites for donations, events, and everything else. But behind the curtain, some of them hid a few Easter eggs on their campaign websites. 

Of course, we already explored some of those with a ranking of every 404 error page from each candidate's site, but there are a small number of fun things to discover once you dig a little deeper.

Developers will occasionally hide some fun little surprises in the source code of the websites they create, and 2020 candidates are no exception. After diving through mounds of html, we came across three examples of fun ASCII art in the sites of John Delaney, Eric Swalwell, and Amy Klobuchar.

SEE ALSO: Congressman goes viral for hilarious yearbook photo featuring some extremely 1990s hair

Swole Springsteen fan Delaney has a pretty simple one in his site's source code, reading "GO JOHN GO!" We're not gonna fault them for the lack of commas that are needed because, hey, they put in good effort to begin with. 

GO GO GO GO GO GO

Image: John Delaney

Similar to Delaney's example is that of Swalwell, who also has a pretty simple, yet neat example in his site. 

Yes, this is Eric Swalell's site, thank you.

Image: Eric Swalwell

But perhaps the best example that we uncovered belonged to Sen. Klobuchar whose site goes beyond spelling out her name. It's a bit more complex, it's got emojis, and, it's got pizazz!

That's some intricate ASCII action, right there.

Image: Amu Klobuchar

It's worth noting that both Swalwell and Klobuchar used the services of web design company Scotch Digital. 

While there's still time for the other candidates to add some Easter eggs to their sites, we think that Cory Booker should invest in some Hot Pocket ASCII art, Beto O'Rourke in something punk rock or Whataburger, and Pete Buttigieg in — what else? — the Phish from Vermont. 

WATCH: Presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke’s teenage hacker life

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

Fan offers baseball player nachos after foul ball close call

Cincinnati Reds left fielder Jesse Winker turned down a friendly fan's offer of nachos after Winker made a stellar catch in front of the fan during Thursday night's game against the Atlanta Braves.

After Winker sprinted in from left field to catch a foul fly ball along the third base line, he made a move to take a bite from the fan's nachos. The fan was unfazed, playfully offering Winker a bite, but the player decided against it.

Which is probably for the best; as someone who has consumed gallons of stadium nacho cheese in my time, I can attest as to how it sits in your stomach like wet cement forever. Hard to run the bases full of all that cheese. 

[news-mashable-yahoopartner-blog]

Every 2020 candidate's 404 error page, ranked

Joe Biden is now officially in the 2020 race and along with a lot of baggage and controversy, he's also brought a new fun 404 error page to the campaign. 

But where does Biden's page stand in the context of every candidate that's declared for 2020? After all, there are nearly two dozen candidates. 

We've compiled a ranking of the 404 error page from every candidate's website from worst to best. All 23 of them. 

One note: these candidates were based off of the New York Times' list of candidates and we included Howard Schultz because he's made a lot of noise and gotten a lot of notice over a potential run. These rankings are based solely on the quality of the 404 pages themselves, not the candidates.

Behold.

23. Donald Trump

There is such a thing as a sore winner and there has likely never been a more textbook example of that in America's history than President Donald Trump, whose 404 page is a monument to the fact that he just can't let anything go.

Sigh.

Image: Screenshot/Donald Trump

22. Howard Schultz

The former Starbucks CEO's feeling-out period (he technically hasn't officially entered the race) has been full of so many LOLs that when I discovered he used the much-maligned Papyrus font on his 404 page, my only reaction was, "of course he did."

LOL

Image: SCREENSHOT/Howard Schultz

21. Seth Moulton

Moulton, a House rep from Massachusetts, has a responsive site that simply redirects any bad URL to his main page. TL;DR, he doesn't have a 404 page. And yet it's still better than Trump or Schultz.

Clever play, Seth, clever play.

Image: Screenshot/seth moulton

20. Bill Weld

The former governor of Massachusetts who's the only Republican to announce a challenge to Trump thus far has an incredibly bland, generic 404 page that has a very "Wordpress default" feel to it. Same goes for the next few entries.

It makes placeholder pages look drab.

Image: SCREENSHOT/Bill weld

19. Tim Ryan

The only reason Tim Ryan is ranked this high is because Weld's page is even drier. 

Meh.

Image: SCREENSHOT/Tim Ryan

18. Tulsi Gabbard

At least it's blue?

Kind of different. Kind of.

Image: SCREENSHOT/Tulsi Gabbard

17. Julian Castro

What if Julian's twin brother Joaquin had a site with the exact same 404 page?

Stripes!

Image: SCREENSHOT/julian Castro

16. Marianne Williamson

Williamson hasn't yet reached the required number of donors to make the DNC debates this summer, but at least there's some sort of personalization to her 404 page.

A bit different.

Image: SCREENSHOT/Marianne Williamson

15. Wayne Messam

The mayor of Miramar, Florida steps things up by having an actual photo of himself. 

Okay, a bit better

Image: SCREENSHOT/Wayne Messam

14. Cory Booker

Come on, Cory, the "making a funny face" gag is pretty tired to begin with and, besides, doing something with a Hot Pocket would have been such a layup. 

A distinct lack of Hot Pockets.

Image: SCREENSHOT/Cory Booker

13. Andrew Yang

Yang has been closely associated with memes by the press, which makes his meme-less 404 page somewhat of a let-down. 

Is this a meme???

Image: SCREENSHOT/Andrew Yang

12. Pete Buttigieg

Buttigieg is one of the hot choices right now but he disappoints with this 404 page. As we've seen, the "candidate making a mock disappointed parent face" isn't very original. All he had to do to guarantee himself the top spot was to tease his fledgling Phish phandom. 

Dad is very disappointed.

Image: SCREENSHOT/Pete Buttigieg

11. John Hickenlooper

There's a very "Life is a Highway" feel about this 404 page and I love that jam, so here we are.

LIFE IS A HIGHWAY, I'M GONNA RIDE IT ALL NIGHT LONG!

Image: SCREENSHOT/John Hickenlooper

10. John Delaney

Delaney, a former congressman from Maryland, quotes from Bruce Springsteen here which is fine! Delaney is apparently a huge Springsteen fan but, then again, so is Chris Christie. Besides, Delaney chooses to pass up the easy pick — "Born to Run" — in favor of "Dead Man Walkin'" which, come on, isn't the best play when you want to win, right?

And, frankly, how does this page not play off the fact that Delaney is actually Bezos-level swole?

Not the best Springsteen quote, is it?

Image: Screenshot/John Delaney

9. Kirsten Gillibrand

Points to Gillibrand for being playful. Any other year, a candidate drinking a beer might be more noteworthy. But Elizabeth Warren already played that card and it backfired based simply on beer choice.

Excuse me, Senator Gillibrand, but is that craft beer?

Image: SCREENSHOT/Kirsten Gillibrand

8. Amy Klobuchar

Big credit to Midwesterner Klobuchar for being the "Ope!" of the 2020 404 pages.

Midwesterners unite!

Image: SCREENSHOT/Amy Klobuchar

7. Beto O'Rourke

The first of three candidates who went with GIFs instead of text or photos. It's kinda funny and original enough to rank pretty high here, but the other two GIF candidates are better.

How very punk rock of you.

Image: Beto O'Rourke

6. Jay Inslee

This is wild for a variety of reasons:

The dad joke laid bare (sorry not sorry) for all to see.

It uses a cartoon of a surfing bear.

Inslee himself drew that cartoon of a surfing bear.

I love everything about it.

Surf's up!

Image: SCREENSHOT/Jay Inslee

5. Joe Biden

Say what you will about Biden, and there's a lot that could be said, but he at least knows his brand.

Cool guy Joe rides again.

Image: SCREENSHOT/Joe Biden

4. Bernie Sanders

Bernie Sanders is a lightning rod thanks to "Bernie Bros" and his role in 2016, but I still find this pretty funny. 

How very Bernie.

Image: Bernie sanders

3. Elizabeth Warren

A Star Wars reference, a memorable Warren quote, and an SNL video featuring Kate McKinnon? That is a recipe for success, right there.

This totally makes up for BeerGate.

Image: SCREENSHOT/Elizabeth Warren

2. Kamala Harris

The cream of the crop in terms of the GIF 404 pages.

This one has just a tad of heat on it.

Image: Kamala Harris

1. Eric Swalwell

You'd be forgiven if you don't know much about Swalwell, a California congressman. But he's the only politician who's recently had a high school yearbook item go viral for the right reasons and, as a member of some key House committees, he could have some visibility in the coming months. 

Also, not only does he feature his dog Penny on his 404 page, but the extra effort is taken to turn your cursor into a floating image of Penny's face which, really, cinches it. 

MORE 2020 DOGS.

Image: SCREENSHOT/Eric SwalWell

WATCH: Presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke’s teenage hacker life