Delete Your Account is a weekly column that takes the hot air out of celebrities and their social media shenanigans. Every Friday, I will decide whether or not each perpetrator should delete their accounts and never grace the internet again. This week, Out magazine is over; David Simon thinks he’s one of his characters on The Wire; Jesse Williams got the keys, the keys; and Entertainment Weekly is late, as usual.

OUT MAGAZINE

They shoot magazines, don’t they? I purchased my first copy of Out magazine in September 2005. It was my sophomore year of college and I worked at Borders bookstore. Though I’d come out months earlier, I still hadn’t gotten to the level of purchasing a gay magazine in public. Drawing that much attention to myself seemed positively petrifying. But I was putting away magazines and a woman saw Jesse L. Martin on the cover of Out.

“Is he gay?” she asked.

“No, he just plays a gay character in the movie Rent. It’s based on a musical he did about 10 years ago.”

“Oh, thank god,” she said. “That would be a shame.”

The conversation disappointed me enough that on my lunch break, I made sure to buy my first copy of the magazine. I’m not ascribed to the faux-morality that some people attempt to put onto magazines. I don’t think that magazines need to be political movements all the time. But I also can’t deny the fact that seeing a straight black man on the cover of Out, proud about playing a gay man on film, was incredibly moving to me. It was one of the first identifiable steps toward my acceptance of myself as a gay man.

Which is to say, that’s far from the Out we have now. While I can admit there’s power in seeing your straight heroes on a gay magazine cover, it matters who those heroes are. If it’s just a hot, gay-baiting actor looking for album sales like Nick Jonas, it means a lot less than a Jesse L. Martin or Jake Gyllenhaal promoting Brokeback Mountain. Out editor Aaron Hicklin has stated that the magazine is not the HRC or GLAAD, which is true, but gay media should exist to enlighten and to be a positive force in a world where trans women are murdered at increasingly high rates and gay men of color are getting gunned down in nightclubs.

And so, giving a fawning platform and glossy eight-page spread to a white supremacist like he’s fucking Kate Moss, even if he’s gay, even if you want to highlight a “super-villain,” is incredibly damaging and irresponsible. Particularly a piece that challenges none of Milo Yiannopolous’s abhorrent statements and allows him to assert the fact that having sex with black men makes him not racist. The author of the piece, Chadwick Moore, challenged the idea that Yiannopoulos is a white supremacist, which seems predicated on the fact that Milo said he loves fucking black guys. That you can fuck black people and be a racist is lost on a white gay man, which doesn’t surprise me. One needs only to look at the language Milo used to describe Leslie Jones to see what he truly thinks about black people. Writing to Fusion’s Sam Stecklow, Moore asked:

Imagine needing white supremacy defined for you in 2016. How hard up for freelancers is Out these days? Must be difficult when the best gay writers in media work for outlets that are slightly more reputable than a Tiger Beat with popper ads. This, of course, is not Aaron Hicklin’s opinion of Out:

First things first — Out‘s celebration of intersectional cultures has amounted to 85 percent white people on their covers from 2011 to 2016. Second, having the gall to condescend to writers about how to “read journalism” when you’re devoting your Pride issue to a profile of Nick Jonas is beyond laughable. In an interview with Fusion, Hicklin told Stecklow, “I think a good piece of profile writing, feature writing lets a reader come to an informed opinion based on observation, and what they see happening in the piece. I think a writer that inserts themselves and their opinions into a profile piece or a feature piece is not a good writer, and I’m sad that we have a lot of that journalism these days, I think it’s not the kind of journalism I was raised to write, it’s not the kind of journalism that you see practiced in a profile piece in The New Yorker or The New York Times, and there’s no reason that should be the kind of piece that you see in Out. I mean, if anyone is coming away from this piece with an idea that Milo is somehow an OK guy, I would be extremely surprised.”

Did he even read the fucking piece? Because Moore’s prose features plenty of editorializing like “the Loki from London swoops in with rapid-fire talking points delivered in a playfulness so foreign — and intoxicating — to most journalists and Americans that they are left standing in the rubble, dumbfounded” and “His silver-tongued tirades madly skip over the surface, leaving in their wake a stunned armada of agape liberals. He is the right’s Kanye West, the NRA’s Kim Kardashian.”

At any rate, the Out magazine that once helped me live my truth as a gay man is gone. It’s been replaced by covers with white men, interviews with white supremacists, and an editorial team that tells itself lies to defend the shit they’ve published.

SHOULD OUT DELETE ITS ACCOUNT?

DAVID SIMON

David Simon isn’t all that different from Rachel Dolezal when you think of it. But we’ll get to that in a moment. The creator of The Wire decided the best way to criticize Sean Hannity for hosting a Donald Trump town hall for black people was to tweet out the word “nigga.” He then went on to explain the context to his followers and tell us we just didn’t get it, he was making a joke! And that defense has worked so well for Lena Dunham and Amy Schumer in the past, so of course it had to work for Simon, right?

Nah, Simon. Let’s unpack this here. First of all, your continued insistence that the quote doesn’t exhibit racism and people just didn’t get it is wild. I don’t really think it’s racist, but it’s incredibly privileged of a white man to tweet out “nigga” and think that just because he put some black people on HBO he’s able to decide when someone should use that word.

But then again, people said “nigga” every 10 seconds on The Wire, which, if we’re gonna get real about it, was some straight-up poverty porn. I love the show, but it was far from a realistic portrayal of black life below the poverty line. The black experience in America is such that we really aren’t that far removed from housing discrimination and unfair hiring practices, which makes The Wire a bit of a fantasy in the same way The Cosby Show was. Every black person on The Wire is broke or plays a character like Clarence Royce, who got to his status by corruption. There’s this idea that black communities abandon each other, which is propagated by narratives such as The Cosby Show, where the Huxtables don’t seem to interact with any of their family members who are less well-off than them. Just because one family made it doesn’t mean the entire crew does. The same can be said for The Wire, which has an absence of affluent black people or at least well-off ones who are doing work in their communities to end gun violence, poverty, and drug addictions. My family wasn’t always middle class and I, like many black people who’ve achieved this status, still have family members I see at Thanksgiving or other family gatherings who haven’t had the privilege of gaining what I have.

All of which is to say: The near-realistic portrayal of black lives from Simon and his years as a journalist have given him the sense that he has an “in.” It’s the same “in” that allows Madame C.J. Dolezal to act like she’s black because she twisted some locs in the kitchen while Amen was on. It’s the same “in” that lets Simon think he’s allowed to tweet out “nigga” repeatedly. Because he’s done it before:

Just as long as we understand the context, right? Not at all. The context is you’re white.

SHOULD DAVID DELETE HIS ACCOUNT? I mean, I can’t stay mad at someone who introduced Idris Elba’s fine ass to me, but chill, David.

JESSE WILLIAMS

Who is “they,” DJ Khaled? What kind of 1970s paranoid conspiracy thriller are you living in? The only people who don’t want to see The Birth of a Nation are the people who don’t want to give their coins to an alleged rapist. You were at the same screening of Moonlight that I saw — how about you tweet about that movie instead?

SHOULD JESSE DELETE HIS ACCOUNT? *Stares at his eyes* No, never.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

New? The Jay Z song being referenced was released in 2003, y’all. It’s also on The Black Album, which has topped countless best-of lists. Hire some black writers.

SHOULD ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY DELETE ITS ACCOUNT? I mean, who else is gonna update us on Outlander?

Backstreet’s Back, all right (even though they never really left). The beloved Backstreet Boys have been going strong for over 22 years, and they’ve just booked one of their biggest gigs to date: a Las Vegas residency.

The beloved boy band (man band?) will hit the Strip for a “trial residency” starting on March 1, 2017. They’ve booked 18 shows at The AXIS at Planet Hollywood Resort Casino, which is also home to Britney Spears and Jennifer Lopez’s respective, nostalgia-fueled residency shows. All five members of the group — Brian Littrell, Nick Carter, A.J. McLean, Kevin Richardson, and Howie Dorough — will be on hand for the spectacle, dubbed Backstreet Boys: Larger Than Life, after their hit Millennium single.

In a statement on the band’s website, Littrell said, “If you’ve ever been to a Backstreet Boys show… it’s going to be that on steroids.” Richardson added, “We’re going to call the show Larger Than Life, and we’re taking that theme and we’re going to run with it.”

Tickets for the shows will start at $39, plus fees and taxes, and go on sale at 10 a.m. on October 1 through Ticketmaster. For more BSB goodness, check out our recent snack-focused chat with the guys.

I WANT IT SNACK WAY: A BRIEF CONVERSATION WITH THE BACKSTREET BOYS

We have good news and bad news, Shawn Mendes fans. The good news is, your boy finally dropped his sophomore album, Illuminate, today (September 23). The bad news is, he’s apparently been traumatized by love and really just needs a hug (or two or three or fifty).

The bulk of Illuminate is bluesier and more mature than Mendes’s debut album, last year’s Handwritten, and it’s packed with enough lovelorn agony to knock you flat. Call it a testament to his disarmingly intimate songwriting… or just call it a cry for help from a lovesick 18-year-old. Either way, here are 13 of the album’s most heartbreaking lyrics, accompanied by #SadShawn GIFs (sorry).

1. Giphy

   – “Ruin”

2. – “Mercy”

3. Giphy

   – “Treat You Better”

4. Giphy

   – “Three Empty Words”

5. Giphy

   – “Like This”

6. Giphy

   – “No Promises”

7. Giphy

   – “Patience”

8. – “Mercy”

9. Giphy

   – “Bad Reputation”

10. Giphy

    – “Understand”

11. Giphy

    – “Hold On”

12. – “Roses”

13. Giphy

    – “Honest”

Now can someone please go give this dude a hug?!?!

Like many Harry Potter fans, actress Evanna Lynch — who played the quirky, lovable Luna Lovegood in the movies — visited Pottermore this week to take J.K. Rowling‘s brand-new Patronus quiz.

For the Muggles in the room, the Patronus charm conjures up a spirit animal that protects its witch or wizard from deadly Dementors. Just as the wand chooses the wizard, you can’t control what creature your Patronus is. That’s where Pottermore’s quiz comes in: Fans go with their gut instinct, answering a series of timed questions. Lynch was displeased by her fishy results.

She even took the quiz twice, hoping to get a cat. (The first time, her Patronus was a Greyhound.) For the record, there are 14 known types of cat Patronuses, from ginger cats to Siberian cats to something called a polecat.

Or maybe a lion would do. There are two lion Patronouses in existence: one male, one female.

Daniel Radcliffe Is ‘Happy Enough’ To Let Another Actor Play Harry Potter

Sorry, Evanna, but there’s no arguing with the official Patronus quiz. It’s Rowling’s wizarding world and you just live in it.

Earlier today (September 23), T.I. dropped a surprise EP, Us or Else, comprised entirely of socially conscious songs focusing on racial injustice and police brutality. Among the politically charged tracks is “War Zone,” which Tip released a video for earlier this month, and “Black Man,” which has now received a similarly powerful visual.

The black and white video features Meek Mill, Migos’s Quavo, and RaRa, who are seen handing off a backpack while delivering verses about resistance and restlessness. Meek mourns inside a funeral home, while Quavo runs from the cops after being pulled over, asking them, “Is it because of my people?/ Is it because of my sneakers?/ Is it because of my jersey?/ Is it because that I’m perfect?” T.I. comes through with the final verse, as all four artists are seen joining a group of Black Lives Matter movement protestors.

T.I. announced This Is Us via Twitter with the hashtag #RIPTerenceCrutcher — a nod to the Oklahoman man killed by police in Tulsa this week — and said it was made in response to “the repeated deaths of unarmed black citizens at the hands of police.” The EP was released exclusively through Tidal, and is available to stream in full below (no subscription required).

T.I. FLIPS THE SCRIPT ON POLICE BRUTALITY IN ‘WARZONE’ VIDEO

Gear up, Little Monsters — we’re less than a month away from the release of Lady Gaga’s fifth album, Joanne. We’ve heard the lead single, “Perfect Illusion,” we’ve seen the pastel cover art, and now we have the CD art and the tracklist. Well, technically, we have two tracklists, as Gaga benevolently revealed both the standard and deluxe listings this afternoon (September 23).

Joanne spans 11 songs and features only one collaboration, with Florence Welch of Florence + The Machine (though Gaga previously said Father John Misty will appear on “Sinner’s Prayer”). The deluxe edition, meanwhile, tacks on an additional three cuts. “Perfect Illusion” appears as the sixth song on both versions — prepare for that crazy key change accordingly.

Joanne, the follow-up to 2013’s Artpop, arrives October 21. Check out the full tracklist below.

Joanne standard edition:

1. Diamond Heart

2. A-Yo

3. Joanne

4. John Wayne

5. Dancin’ In Circles

6. Perfect Illusion

7. Million Reasons

8. Sinner’s Prayer

9. Come To Mama

10. Hey Girl ft. Florence Welch

11. Angel Down

Joanne deluxe edition:

12. Grigio Girls

13. Just Another Day

14. Angel Down (Work Tape)

LADY GAGA STARTS A DEMONIC MOSH PIT IN THE ‘PERFECT ILLUSION’ VIDEO

Have Rae Sremmurd been holding out on us? The rap duo apparently harbor secret rockstar alter egos, but they’ve finally unleashed all the madness in their new “Black Beatles” video.

The SremmLife 2 standout comes to life with Eight Days a Week-style tour footage, in which Swae Lee and Slim Jxmmi become a modern hip-hop version of the Fab Four. Together they play gigs as a band, wreck electric guitars with abandon, and make throngs of fans go wild. There are a few nods to the actual Beatles, including an Abbey Road-esque crosswalk jaunt, but even more eye-catching is the clip’s ace selection of wardrobe. Jxmmi rocks a white suit John Lennon would’ve loved, and Gucci Mane shows up to spit his verse in slick red leather, looking every bit the rocker himself.

RAE SREMMURD SAVE SUMMER ’16 WITH SREMMLIFE 2

Eminem and Skylar Grey have a pretty solid track record, after collaborating on Grey’s “C’Mon Let Me Ride,” Dr. Dre’s “I Need a Doctor,” and Em’s Rihanna-featuring “Love the Way You Lie,” which Grey co-wrote. Now, the pair have reunited yet again for “Kill For You,” a foreboding duet inspired by Bonnie and Clyde.

Grey delivers impassioned declarations of ride-or-die love for her man, promising, “I’ll carry out his evil plans if he wants me to.” Em, meanwhile, is the master manipulator of the two, admitting he “brainwashed” his girl and telling her, “I’m your alternate escape route, the alter you pray to/ Your ultimate savior, your behavior is altered.” The song (which Eminem also produced) begins with sounds of running footsteps, slamming doors, and ringing alarms, and ultimately ends with one ominous gunshot. Uh oh.

Grey told Rolling Stone about the track, “Since the first day I started writing ‘Kill for You,’ I thought the Bonnie and Clyde message would be more powerful as a duet. I was stoked when Marshall put a verse on it.” (Yep, you know they’re tight when she refers to him by his legal first name.)

“Kill for You” appears on Grey’s third album, Natural Causes, which drops tomorrow (September 23).

Things have been disappointingly quiet on the Sky Ferreira music front, but it looks like that’s (finally!) about to change. The 24-year-old singer has unveiled the first “visual introduction” for her upcoming second album, Masochism, and it arrives via Playboy magazine. Yes, really.

Ferreira appears on two different covers of the mag’s October “Renegades” issue, which highlights men and women who “broke the rules and changed everything.” No stranger to executing fearless artistic decisions, Ferreira took the “cover girl” role one step further by assuming total creative control — and making history in the process.

“I am the first bunny ever to be a creative collaborator creative/art direct. I produced directed all of the content. It is the first introduction to #Masochism (visually),” she wrote on Instagram, adding that her body isn’t edited or retouched in the photos.

Ferreira followed up by posting a collage of the issue’s retro, grainy covers, which were shot by her friend, photographer Sandy Kim. She wrote in the post’s caption, “As a girl without an agency or manager @playboy has treated with the most respect. Not only am I the first creative collaborator ever buuuuut this is also the first double cover within the last 60 years. We just made history 🐰🐰🐰🐰🐰.”

Unfortunately, Ferreira’s accompanying interview (done by acting legend Bruce Dern, for whatever reason) doesn’t offer much in the way of new album details. She does, however, admit she still has plenty left to prove.

“I’m the type of person you either love or you hate, because people don’t know what box to put me in,” she said. “I don’t like feeling I have something to prove, but I do feel that way.”

Can’t wait to see (and hear) more from her soon.

Daniel Radcliffe sent the Stranger Things cast some serious love this week on BBC Radio1’s Breakfast Show. He’s a huge fan of the Netflix series, and complimented the cast on their outstanding performances.

“As a person who started out acting really young, how are they so good?” Radcliffe said Wednesday, September 21. “I wasn’t that good when I was a kid. Have the decency to be less good at acting, please, when you’re so young.”

In a happy coincidence, stars Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, and Caleb McLaughlin appeared on BBC Radio 1 the very next day, and host Nick Grimshaw relayed Radcliffe’s message to them at his request.

“Oh my god, OK, can you, like, just tell them that I think they’re amazing,” he raved.

Warner Bros.

“He [Radcliffe] says ‘I wasn’t that good when I was younger,’— he was Harry Potter!” Brown exclaimed at Radcliffe’s sweet words. “Let’s just review. He was doing pretty fine.”

Now, is it too much to ask for a Radcliffe cameo in Stranger Things Season 2?

‘Stranger Things’ Season 2 Episode Titles, Explained

Hear the full radio show with Brown, Matarazzo, and McLaughlin below.