Entertainment
Star Trek's Riker Called Out Starfleet Academy's Biggest Problem, And The Media Tried To Hide His Comments
By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
Since Starfleet Academy aired, I became increasingly aware of the full-throttle efforts among fans and even journalists to launder its reputation. Threads that criticized the show for bad writing and plotting were often disappeared from places like r/StarTrek, and many other Star Trek online spaces would block, ban, or otherwise censor anyone who said anything bad about the show. Eventually, the prevalent narrative became that SFA was the best thing since sliced bread and that anyone who didn’t like it was nothing more than a bigoted troll.
Starfleet Academy’s haters were arguably vindicated when the show was canceled because this was proof that not enough people were watching for Paramount to justify making more episodes. Still, the narrative continues that the only people who could dislike this Discovery spinoff are mindless haters. Recently, the best evidence of this came from an exclusive TrekMovie interview with Jonathan Frakes where they prompted him with a comment about online trolls. This led to an obligatory headline about Frakes calling out the trolls. However, the real headline should be his bombshell admission that SFA focused too much on spectacle and not enough on telling good stories.
Riker Vs. The Trolls
Jonathan Frakes’ primary purpose during the interview with TrekMovie was to promote the recent Trek Against Pancreatic Cancer event. Eventually, though, they began discussing the wider world of Star Trek. Frakes lamented the “unfortunate irony” that there are currently no new shows or movies in active production despite this being the 60th anniversary of the franchise. Eventually, they began discussing why people disliked Starfleet Academy, and the interviewer basically prompted him, claiming that the show’s biggest critics were people who hadn’t even watched it.
In response, Frakes said this was “unfortunate” and mentioned a conversation with Alex Kurtzman about the cancellation of Starfleet Academy. While the Star Trek actor and director didn’t give many details, he said that Kurtzman and SFA co-showrunner Noga Landau “couldn’t not mention as a factor, the trolls.” Based on his mild agreement with their extremely leading question, TrekMovie included in their headline how Frakes “Decries ‘Starfleet Academy’ ‘Trolls.’”
What They Don’t Want You To Know: Shoot To Thrill
What’s wrong with this headline, you ask? Earlier in that same interview, before he was prompted to talk about trolls, Frakes speculated about various reasons why “some people…either didn’t like or didn’t approve or didn’t support” Starfleet Academy. He noted that it could be because of “the changing of the guard at Paramount+ and CBS” before focusing on “the amount of money it costs.” He noted how “the level of the production has become this sort of ‘shoot to thrill’ cinematic phenomenon…when we did [Star Trek: The Next Generation] back in the ‘80s, we counted on storytelling and acting and the occasional camera move.”
He went on to say, “It’s a different beast now, and that beast is very expensive.” Now, Jonathan Frakes kept things light, but it really seems like he agrees with Starfleet Academy’s critics that the show is focusing more on expensive spectacle than on comparatively cheap “storytelling and acting.” Many in the fandom want a return to those halcyon days of episodic storytelling, and they’d gladly take a simpler, cheaper-looking show if it meant we could have shows that looked and felt like those in the Golden Age of Star Trek. Sadly, Alex Kurtzman focuses almost exclusively on expensive, cinematic effects, leaving the writing and characterizations to wither and rot.
How They Manufacture Consent
At any rate, this is a lesson in how fans and complicit media work together to manufacture consent. Previously, all critics of Starfleet Academy were dismissed as a minority of bigoted trolls who didn’t even watch the show. Now, the show is canceled because the “minority” was actually sharing a fairly mainstream opinion: the spinoff sucked because it was poorly made. As soon as Star Trek icon Jonathan Frakes brings up how SFA focused on spectacle rather than storytelling, an interviewer steers him to say something about trolls, all so they can run a headline about how he “decries trolls” rather than honestly criticizing a failed TV series.
Unfortunately, this mindset is how the modern Star Trek writers and producers have landed in their own no-win scenario. There’s too much pride (or, in NuTrek terms, “sheer f*cking hubris”) to admit that most traditional fans don’t like Starfleet Academy and most of NuTrek, so the creators blame their failures on trolls. But as Frakes has proven, the “trolls” are the mainstream audience, and they are leaving in droves because these new shoes are Star Trek in name only. At $10 million an episode, that’s a mistake producers literally cannot afford to keep making, and Trek’s temporary hiatus may become permanent unless we get what Frakes is calling for: genuine storytelling rather than empty effects.
Entertainment
How to watch PSG vs. Bayern Munich online for free
TL;DR: Live stream PSG vs. Bayern Munich in the Champions League for free on Prime Video. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.
The Champions League semi finals are finally here. Only four teams remain in contention for the top prize, but it feels like PSG vs. Bayern Munich might be the strongest side of the draw. It’s the defending champions against the team that just dumped Real Madrid out of the competition — it’s going to be a fascinating battle between two giants.
Expect big performances from the likes of Harry Kane and Michael Olise as Bayern Munich look to steal an advantage at the Parc des Princes.
If you want to watch PSG vs. Bayern Munich in the Champions League for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.
When is PSG vs. Bayern Munich?
PSG vs. Bayern Munich in the Champions League kicks off at 3 p.m. ET on April 28. This fixture takes place at the Parc des Princes.
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How to watch PSG vs. Bayern Munich for free
PSG vs. Bayern Munich is available to live stream for free on Prime Video (30-day free trial).
If this free stream is not available in your location, you can secure access with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in another location, meaning you can unblock Prime Video to stream the Champions League for free from anywhere in the world.
Live stream PSG vs. Bayern Munich for free by following these simple steps:
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Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)
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Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)
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Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK
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Visit Prime Video
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Watch PSG vs. Bayern Munich for free from anywhere in the world
$12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)
The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch PSG vs. Bayern Munich without committing with your cash. This isn’t a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream select Champions League fixtures before recovering your investment.
What is the best VPN for Prime Video?
ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on Prime Video, for a number of reasons:
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Servers in 105 countries including the UK
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Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more
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Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure
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Up to 10 simultaneous connections
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A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).
Watch PSG vs. Bayern Munich in the Champions League for free with ExpressVPN.
Entertainment
LG W6 Wallpaper vs. The Frame Pro: Why is the Wallpaper TV so expensive?
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The resurrected LG Wallpaper TV is officially available to preorder. LG hasn’t announced a release date yet, but some interested buyers may need an extra second to think after seeing that the W6 Wallpaper TV costs $5,499.99.
And that’s just the smallest size. To be fair, the smallest size in question is 77 inches, but that’s still quite pricey — especially if your instinct is to compare the Wallpaper to Samsung’s The Frame. So, the $5,500 question is: Is LG delusional for the W6 Wallpaper’s price tag, or are we delusional for wanting it to be cheaper?
get $200 off a soundbar when you preorder
Why does the Wallpaper cost so much more than The Frame?
The most expensive Frame model, the 83-inch Frame Pro, costs $3,999.99. We’re certainly not used to any art TV making The Frame look affordable. But this time, the Frame Pro sounds more like a dupe for the LG Wallpaper than the other way around.
However, comparing these two designs is a real apple and oranges situation. The W6 Wallpaper is OLED and The Frame Pro is Neo QLED (Samsung’s version of mini-LED). Those are two completely different methods of lighting the TV screen, and OLED is already considered to be superior to QLED in most situations.
As you can see from the side view, the Wallpaper is unbelievably thin.
Credit: LG
(I don’t think brands do themselves any favors in the “convincing the average buyer that this TV is a practical purchase” department by strictly staging product photos in a home that looks like Bruce Wayne’s penthouse, but I digress.)
The W6 Wallpaper’s OLED tech is some of LG’s most advanced ever. Some key features include Brightness Booster Ultra and Hyper Radiant Color Technology, which LG says make the W6 Wallpaper nearly four times brighter than the average OLED TV. According to LG, the W6 is the most “reflection-free” of any LG TV. Brightness and legibility in bright rooms are typically an OLED TV’s rare weak spot against QLED TVs, but it sounds like LG bridged that gap here.
The most mind-bending part is that LG packed it all into a screen that measures 9 millimeters thick — even thinner than either The Frame model, which are already impressively thin. For reference, 9 millimeters is thinner than a closed MacBook Pro.
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Comparatively, The Frame Pro’s Neo QLED technology isn’t even Samsung’s best Neo QLED work.
The best Samsung Neo QLED TVs use full array local dimming: Clusters of tiny LED bulbs arranged across the entire screen that can individually dim or brighten as needed, leading to deeper blacks, vibrant highlights without blooming, and overall more accurate picture quality. Instead, the Frame Pro’s mini-LED system consists of extra bulbs arranged across the bottom of the TV, pointing upward. While the Frame Pro’s picture is brighter and more contrasted than the regular Frame, it almost feels basic compared to the W6 Wallpaper.
As if gamers needed any convincing to blindly side with the OLED TV, the LG Wallpaper’s max 165Hz refresh rate is worth nothing — the Frame Pro can only hit 144Hz.
Samsung has a Wallpaper TV dupe. It’s just not in The Frame family.
The Frame Pro’s teetering title as the best art TV certainly didn’t get much cushion from Samsung’s latest TV launch. When the remaining half of Samsung’s 2026 flagship TVs were released at the beginning of April, the biggest news about The Frame Pro was a negligible HDMI port upgrade. That’s exactly the level of innovation needed to compete with LG’s new OLED art TV.
But during that launch, I noticed that the nicest new Samsung OLED embodied the core features of art or lifestyle TVs. The Samsung S95H rocks a steel-colored metal bezel and a “glare-free” matte screen coating, mounts flush with the wall, and can access The Samsung Art Store. It also sees boosted brightness and improved reflection handling over the 2025 Samsung S95F, which was already one of the internet’s favorite OLED TVs for bright rooms.
Art features or not, high-end OLED TVs are just expensive
It’s not like high-end OLED TVs aren’t always on the steep side of the pricing spectrum. The 2026 77-inch LG C6H OLED and 2026 77-inch LG G6 OLED cost $3,699.99 and $4,499.99, respectively. The 77-inch version of the aforementioned Samsung S95H OLED also costs $4,499.99. As one of the absolute best LG OLED TVs you can buy, plus the unique art TV features, the W6 Wallpaper is naturally pricier — just like we’ve long accepted that The Frame is simply going to be more expensive than other QLED TVs with similar specs.
If it makes you feel better, the new LG Micro RGB TVs are just as salty. The cheapest one, the 75-inch MRGB95B TV, just debuted at $4,999.99. The 85-inch version costs $6,999.99.
No one is alleging that the W6 Wallpaper is a realistic investment for the average household. $5K is still wickedly expensive for a TV, but it’s pretty in line with the common asking price for other premium OLED TVs.
Entertainment
Hackers got data on 5.5 million ADT customers by phishing, report says
Millions of people use security company ADT to protect their home or business. And yet their cybersecurity may have been compromised in the latest high-profile breach from hacking group ShinyHunters.
The website Have I Been Pwned reports that a ShinyHunters data breach included 5.5 million unique email addresses associated with ADT customers. ADT says that customers’ payment information wasn’t compromised.
Still, the company confirmed that the breach included customer names, phone numbers, and addresses, as well as Social Security and Tax ID numbers in a minority of cases.
“ADT’s cybersecurity systems detected unauthorized access to a limited set of customer and prospective customer data on April 20,” reads an ADT blog post confirming the breach. “The company’s response protocols activated immediately — terminating the intrusion, launching a forensic investigation with leading third-party cybersecurity experts, and notifying law enforcement.”
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ShinyHunters told Bleeping Computer they gained access to the ADT Salesforce account by compromising an employee’s Okta SSO login credentials. Bleeping Computer added that the hackers used voice phishing. The recent Panera Bread breach, also traced back to ShinyHunters, reportedly also involved SSO phishing.
Okta, a popular SSO service provider, recently warned about the prevalence of voice phishing attacks (also known as vishing) in a recent blog post, which included tips for guarding against these cyberattacks.
ShinyHunters is a prolific hacking organization. In recent months, the group has also been responsible for high-profile breaches involving Rockstar Games, Crunchyroll, Salesforce, Bumble, and others. Ransomware attacks may result.
In a typical ransomware attack, the hackers threaten to release or sell leaked customer or company data on the dark web unless the compromised organization agrees to pay a ransom.
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