Daily News Feed 10.23.08

Katt Williams’ BET Hip Hop Awards No-Show Explained
Want to know the real reason you won’t see Katt Williams hosting BET’s Hip Hop Awards tonight? The comic pitched a serious hissy and walked off the show, according to insiders.Williams claimed earlier this week that he turned over his hosting job to T-Pain after losing a break-dancing contest to the rapper. But sources say he actually bailed after an angry face-off with BET execs before the show’s taping in Atlanta last Saturday. “Katt has become difficult now that he’s a megastar,” one source tells us. “He was very demanding during rehearsals. He really berated one female member of the production company. He launched into a verbal assault on her in front of other people. I mean, he read her the riot act. “Then he left the set and said he wouldn’t return unless she apologized. (Continue Reading…)

Lyfe Jennings Arrested Following Car Chase in Georgia
R&B singer Lyfe Jennings was arrested on Sunday (October 19), following a car chase in Smyrna, Georgia. According to documents obtained by TMZ, police responded to calls of gunshots in the area. When officers arrived, they encountered a suspect leaving the area in a red Corvette. Police gave chase, finally catching up to the vehicle after it had crashed. Once stopped, the driver was identified as Lyfe Jennings (real name: Chester J. Jennings). The 35-year-old singer was arrested and charged with criminal trespass and discharging a firearm near a public highway, which are misdemeanors. He was also charged with attempting to elude and possession of a fireman by a convicted felon, both felonies. Jennings also refused a sobriety test. (Continue Reading…)

Ugly election incidents show lingering U.S. racism
Two weeks before an election that could install the first black U.S. president, scattered ugly incidents have reflected a deep residue of racism among some segments of white America. A cardboard likeness of Barack Obama was found strung from fishing wire at a university, the Democratic presidential nominee’s face was depicted on mock food stamps, the body of a black bear was left at another university with Obama posters attached to it. (Continue Reading…)