NEWS

Former Miss Teen USA runner-up Gloria Almonte claimed that a 15-year-old Raven-Symoné, who served as a celebrity judge for the 2001 pageant, approached her after the show to brag about voting for her over the eventual Black winner, Marissa Whitley.

Receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is not just the culmination of a Black artist's lifelong aspirations; it also encompasses the dreams of their friends and family. Veteran actress Nia Long was recently recognized by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce in a celebratory affair in Los Angeles that brought out icons like Snoop Dogg, her Love Jones co-stars, Courtney B. Vance, and Terence Howard, as well as fellow collaborators and producers.

Tay Keith died from the toxic effects of drugs including ketamine and an active ingredient in kratom. According to the Nashville Medical Examiner's Office, Keith had ketamine and mitragynine in his system when he died. Mitragynine is a chemical compound found in kratom, a tree from Southeast Asia that affects the brain's opioid receptors.

Mary Cosby says she never considered staying home, and she is finally answering the question that has followed her since the spring: why she let Bravo's cameras back into her home three weeks after her son died. The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star lost her only child, Robert Cosby Jr., in February. He was 23. Salt Lake City police responded to a reported overdose on Feb. 23 and found him dead at the scene; the medical examiner has not released a cause of death.

It has been two years since TV audiences watched Phaedra Parks and CT Tamburello occupy opposite sides on The Traitors, but it seems their unlikely chemistry is very much in play. The former opponents are now officially a couple.

Black voters are a key constituency heading into the 2026 midterms, but reaching voters is a major challenge. The Congressional Black Caucus Institute announced SO VOTE, a civic participation initiative aimed at mobilizing low-propensity and rural Black voters through community outreach, partnerships and digital engagement. The multimillion-dollar initiative will build on proven voter-mobilization strategies while testing new approaches, investing in local organizations and connecting with folks through HBCU campuses, neighborhood cookouts and social media.