NEWSMAKERS

NEWSMAKERS

Jennifer Aniston: I’m not pregnant; I’m fed up with tabloids

LOS ANGELES

Jennifer Aniston says she’s not pregnant and she’s fed up with predatory tabloid culture that defines women by their looks and maternal status.

In an essay published Tuesday in the Huffington Post, Aniston says constant paparazzi coverage contributes to a “dehumanizing view of females, focused solely on one’s physical appearance.” She says the further speculation over whether she looks as though she’s pregnant or may have eaten too much “reflects the warped way we calculate a woman’s worth.”

‘Star Trek’ creator’s son unsure of gay Sulu

LOS ANGELES

The son of late “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry says his father would have been on board with an Enterprise crew member being portrayed as gay, but he’s unsure if it should have been helmsman Hikaru Sulu.

Rod Roddenberry says his father would have been supportive of a gay “Trek” character and commended the “Star Trek Beyond” filmmakers for featuring an LGBT character. Roddenberry died in 1991.

John Cho told Australia’s Herald Sun last week that a scene in the upcoming film plainly presents Sulu with a male spouse raising an infant daughter.

George Takei later called the decision “unfortunate.” The openly gay original Sulu actor told The Hollywood Reporter that he thought the character had been altered and would have preferred the filmmakers to create a new gay character.

‘America’s Got Talent’ dominates summer TV

NEW YORK

There’s little doubt that “America’s Got Talent” is the nation’s favorite television show of the summer.

The NBC talent show, this summer augmented by the addition of Simon Cowell as a judge, was seen by 12.8 million people Wednesday, the Nielsen company said.

NBC is stretching its schedule with a Wednesday night showing of “America’s Got Talent” highlights, and that finished as the third most-watched program for the week, Nielsen said.

For the week of July 4 to 10, the top shows, their networks and viewerships: “America’s Got Talent” (Tuesday), NBC, 12.81 million; “Olympic Trials” (Sunday), NBC, 8.58 million; “America’s Got Talent” (Wednesday), NBC, 8.48 million; “Celebrity Family Feud,” ABC, 7.43 million; “60 Minutes,” CBS, 7.35 million.

Associated Press