Entertainment
What’s Something Beautiful You’ve Read?


Recently, I’ve started doing something I haven’t done since college. Lying in bed with a book, I’ll find myself clutching my heart over a sentence — and then feeling compelled to root around for a pen in my bedside table so I can underline an especially good sentence. Do you ever do this? Here are three parts I marked (and tell me what you’ve loved lately!)…
“I didn’t know how to be mad at people yet, so I just aped the behavior I had seen at home: speaking to someone in tight, terse little sentences until they went insane.”
— The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue
“[My father and grandfather] both had thick, coarse beards that they cared for rigorously… it seemed that this was a kind of sacrifice made in the name of loving well, of having something that a small child could bury their hands in, something closer to the ground those hands might be reaching up from.”
— There’s Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraqib
“My curiosity about Grey is a huge, violent dog on a very tight leash.”
— Another Marvelous Thing by Laurie Colwin
In the third one, a man, in the midst of an affair, is wondering about his lover’s spouse. (Caveat, since someone asked why I read about affairs: I’m not into actual affairs, but I’m fine reading about affairs, in the same way that I’ll watch The Sopranos even though I’m not a huge fan of murder and money laundering. I am just really interested in different people’s lives and why they do what they do.)
Anyway, this line struck me because — I can’t decide if this is embarrassing to admit! — it describes how I feel about any woman who previously dated the guy I’m currently dating. I’m curious about his romantic past, but I will not probe because I know even the smallest tidbit will make me nuts — hence, a huge dog on a tight leash. Have you ever felt this way? I know it’s uncool, but what a perfect way to describe it.
Sometimes a book will get it right in a way that feels like a forehead slap. A while ago, I was at a bookstore with a friend, who said he read only non-fiction because he always wanted to learn something when he read. I pointed out that you can learn a lot from fiction. “Oh, for sure — about sentence structure, syntax, etc,” he replied. “No, about the human condition!” I said.
Remember Ethan Hawke’s wise words? “Most people don’t spend a lot of time thinking about poetry… They have a life to live, and they’re not really that concerned with Allen Ginsberg’s poems or anybody’s poems, until their father dies, they go to a funeral, you lose a child, somebody breaks your heart, they don’t love you anymore, and all of a sudden, you’re desperate for making sense out of this life, and, ‘Has anybody ever felt this bad before? How did they come out of this cloud?’” And that’s when you need it.
Tell me: What have you been reading lately? What lines have stayed with you? Novels, poetry, non-fiction, memoirs, I’d love to hear!
P.S. This poem is so romantic, and the darkly funny book I can’t stop thinking about.
Entertainment
Xtra suddenly cancels preorders for its clone of banned DJI Osmo Pocket 4 Pro camera
Xtra, the camera company that suddenly popped up last year, is canceling preorders and issuing refunds for its upcoming Xtra Muse 2 Pro gimbal camera.
“After reviewing our product and launch readiness, XTRA has decided to pause the current Early Bird program,” the company said in a statement posted on its website and in emails sent to customers viewed by Mashable. “Because we are unable to confirm a reliable launch timeline at this stage, we do not believe customers’ funds should remain on hold.”
Xtra customers had put down a $20 reservation for the Xtra Muse 2 Pro in exchange for a pre-order and an early bird discount of $60 off the camera when it went on sale. Along with a refund, Xtra is also issuing a 10 percent off coupon to customers that can be used on their current line of products.
Despite taking preorders, Xtra never shared a prospective launch date for the camera, which was a major point of criticism for customers across social media.
Why did Xtra cancel camera preorders?
Xtra says the refunds were due to “product and launch readiness” and didn’t provide any further explanation. However, the preorder cancellations come shortly after the FCC announced investigations into eight companies, including Xtra.
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DJI, the popular China-based drone and action camera company, has effectively been banned in the U.S. As Mashable previously reported, the ban started late last year after Trump’s FCC cited national security concerns and data-spying issues. DJI products that were for sale before the ban can still be sold for now. Consumers with DJI devices can still use them. However, the U.S. government has not approved any new DJI products, so they can’t be imported into the country.
Enter Xtra. Xtra came onto the scene last year with its lines of cameras that appear to be clones of DJI’s line of cameras. The company is rumored to be a “DJI front company,” or a company explicitly set up to import DJI’s banned products into the U.S. Online sleuths and outlets such as The Verge have previously looked into Xtra’s potential relations with DJI and found numerous similarities and connections. Xtra’s Muse 2 Pro camera, for example, looks exactly like DJI’s new Osmo Pocket 4 Pro camera aside from a few design alterations.
In addition, DJI has gone after competitors like Insta360 with legal claims involving its camera patents. Yet, DJI has remained mum on Xtra’s products, which would appear to infringe way more than others.
The eight companies under investigation were previously asked to provide information on whether any of the products it sells should be on the list of banned items. However, none of these companies apparently responded to the FCC. As a result, the FCC is demanding the information and has levied a $25,000 fine against each of them, including Xtra.
The FCC is now looking into retroactively banning Xtra’s previously approved products as well.
At this point, the status of the Xtra Muse 2 Pro is unclear. The company is not outright canceling the launch; however, the preorder cancellations and the FCC news point to a potentially grim outcome for U.S. consumers. For now, at least, U.S. consumers looking to buy an Xtra Muse 2 Pro or DJI Osmo Pocket 4 Pro can look into the Insta360 Luna Ultra, which is not banned in the country.
Entertainment
Comic-Con 2026: All the movie and TV announcements you need to know
Comic-Con International: San Diego has always been a barometer for where the entertainment industry is placing its biggest bets, and this year’s lineup made that clearer than ever. Over the course of a single weekend, Marvel Studios, Prime Video, Apple TV, and AMC all used the convention floor to unveil casting reveals and first-look footage for some of their most closely watched projects, spanning superhero blockbusters, prestige sci-fi, and small-screen horror alike.
Long-simmering rumors finally became official announcements, decades-old franchises got new leads and new timelines, and fans packed into panels for a glimpse of what’s coming to theaters and streaming over the next two years.
Here’s a rundown of the biggest reveals to come out of Comic-Con 2026.
MCU’s Ghost Rider

Credit: Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney
Ryan Gosling was confirmed as Johnny Blaze in a new Ghost Rider film directed by Shawn Levy, ending years of speculation about the actor joining the MCU. This film is set to release in 2028.
Black Panther 3 release date reveal

Credit: Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images
The same Marvel panel brought news of another long-rumored casting: David Jonsson was announced as the new Black Panther, playing the son of Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa, in a film directed by Ryan Coogler and set for release on December 15, 2028.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
Season 3’s trailer teased Sauron’s completion of the One Ring and the outbreak of full-scale war across Middle-earth. New cast additions include Simon Pegg voicing the Balrog, Eddie Marsan as Dwarven royal Thrain, and Andrew Richardson as the future King of Gondor, Anárion. Season 3 premieres November 11.
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Blade Runner 2099
Prime Video debuted the first trailer for its Blade Runner series, set decades after Blade Runner 2049. Michelle Yeoh stars as Olwen, a replicant confronting the end of her life, opposite Hunter Schafer as a human fugitive on the run from Blade Runners. Ridley Scott executive produces, with Silka Luisa serving as showrunner. The series arrives November 25.
Carrie
Mike Flanagan’s Carrie series got its first trailer, dragging Stephen King’s telekinetic teen into the smartphone era ahead of an October 7 premiere on Prime Video. The eight-episode miniseries follows Carrie White as she endures bullying at school and abuse at home from her fanatically religious mother, Margaret — all while discovering she has telekinetic powers.
Summer H. Howell leads the new cast as Carrie White, alongside Samantha Sloyan as Margaret, Siena Agudong as Sue Snell, and Matthew Lillard as Principal Grayle, with Alison Thornton, Thalia Dudek, Amber Midthunder, Josie Totah, Arthur Conti, and Joel Oulette rounding out the ensemble.
Yaga
AMC+ and Crave released a teaser for this Canadian supernatural mystery series, starring Noah Reid as a detective investigating the disappearance of Henry Park, an heir to a commercial fishery, in a small coastal town. Park is played by Hudson Williams, known to fans of the queer romance series Heated Rivalry.
The cast also includes Carrie-Anne Moss and Clark Backo, with the series created by Kat Sandler based on her own 2019 stage play of the same name.
Neuromancer
Apple TV entered the fray outside Marvel and Prime’s orbit, releasing its first trailer for an adaptation of William Gibson’s cyberpunk classic, starring Callum Turner as hacker Case.
This article will continue to be updated….
Entertainment
Potential World Cup manipulation on Polymarket flagged by sports advisory group
An independent group that monitors potential manipulation of sports competitions has announced the results of a yet-to-be-released report examining irregularities related to betting and gambling on FIFA World Cup matches.
The organization called Group of Copenhagen monitored all 104 matches and determined that 15 games rose to the level of requiring enhanced monitoring. The group also assessed 12 major controversies from an “integrity risk perspective.”
While the Group of Copenhagen has yet to release its full detailed report, the New York Times has reported that a few of these flagged events involve the online prediction market Polymarket.
The report singles out how $4.8 million was placed on Polymarket for Spain not to defeat Cape Verde in their group stage game, which was the first game either team played in this year’s tournament. The game’s result, a goalless draw, was considered to be one of the biggest shocks of the entire World Cup. Spain was a tournament favorite and went on to win the championship. Cape Verde was playing its first-ever World Cup game.
However, much more notable than a surprising game outcome is the market that was opened on Polymarket based on the red card issued to the U.S. Men’s National Team striker Folarin Balogun.
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According to the report, a Polymarket market was opened on July 2, which asked: “Will Folarin Balogun play against Belgium?” That was the same day that Balogun was issued a red card in U.S.’s match against Bosnia and Herzegovina. The red card meant Balogun would not be able to play in the match against Belgium.
However, on July 5, before the U.S. vs. Belgium match, FIFA announced that Balogun would be allowed to play and that his ban would be suspended. President Donald Trump would take credit for FIFA’s decision shortly after, saying he had a phone call with FIFA head Gianni Infantino. Reporting later confirmed that U.S. officials went to work immediately following the red card being issued to have it overturned.
Did Trump officials who were privy to this information partake in insider trading to make a profit on Polymarket? It’s a legitimate question to ask, especially in light of recent news that Trump’s teleprompter operator profited from their position by placing trades on Kalshi.
Prediction markets have blown up in popularity in recent years. Kalshi, a prediction market that partnered with the World Cup’s official prediction market sponsor, ADI Predictstreet, has said that a record $1.2 billion in trades was placed on its platform to predict the World Cup winner. The company said it also gained 3 million new users directly from the World Cup.
According to experts interviewed by the New York Times, the irregularities don’t necessarily mean that any manipulation occurred. While the Group of Copenhagen’s research was coordinated with FIFA’s own Integrity Task Force, FIFA has released its own findings claiming that “no suspicious betting activity or indications of match manipulation in connection with any fixture” had been identified.
