Jeff Varner reacts to firing after…

Jeff Varner reacts to firing after…

Ousted “Survivor” contestant Jeff Varner revealed Saturday that he feels “devastated” after being fired from his job following his controversial turn on the long-running CBS reality show. Varner, 50, got the boot from his North Carolina real estate gig after CBS aired an episode Wednesday night that featured Varner outing fellow contestant Zeke Smith as transgender in a desperate bid to avoid being voted out. The three-time “Survivor” contender, who previously competed in 2001 and 2015, explained that he felt his abrupt dismissal from the Charlotte-based Allen Tate realtors was “an ugly, knee-jerk reaction.” “I wasn’t even given the chance to explain or right the wrong,” Varner told Entertainment Tonight. “In the real estate world, buyers and…
FULL STORY

Jeff Varner Reacts to Being Fired…

Jeff Varner Reacts to Being Fired…

Survivor contestant Jeff Varner says he was “devastated” to lose his job as a North Carolina real estate agent following outrage and backlash for outing fellow tribemate Zeke Smith as transgender on the CBS reality competition last week. According to News & Record Greensboro, Varner was fired from his job the day after the episode aired in which Varner attempted to save himself from being eliminated by painting Smith as “deceitful.” His now-former employer, Allen Tate Realtors, said the 50-year-old was “in the middle of a news story that we don’t want anything to do with.” The three-time Survivor contestant, who first appeared during season two in 2001, told Entertainment Tonight that he was completely blindsided by his firing. “As I’m spending hours doing press [on Thursday], I discover I can’t access my email. Then the MLS association emails to say, ‘You’ve been…
FULL STORY

Survivor’s Jeff Varner Reacts to Being…

Survivor’s Jeff Varner Reacts to Being…

Survivor castaway Jeff Varner opened up in a new interview about being fired from his job as a real estate agent after outing fellow contestant Zeke Smith as transgender.As previously reported, the three-time Survivor player, 51, was let go from his job at Allen Tate Real Estate in North Carolina on Thursday, April 13, just one day after he revealed to millions of viewers on the CBS reality series that Smith, 28, is transgender.Survivor’s Biggest Villains and Fan Favorites Varner spoke to Entertainment Tonight about losing his job, saying that he was fired in “what I felt was an ugly, knee-jerk reaction kind of way.” He claimed his employer didn’t give him the opportunity to explain the controversial decision that…
FULL STORY

Jeff Varner Fired From Job After…

Jeff Varner Fired From Job After…

Survivor player Jeff Varner lost a lot more than the show’s $1 million dollar prize when he made the decision to out fellow tribemate Zeke Smith as transgender in an attempt to paint him as “deceitful” on Wednesday’s episode of the CBS reality competition. His move, which caused outrage and backlash, not only cost the 50-year-old three-time player to be unanimously voted out of the game by his tribemates — but it also cost him his real-life job. According to News & Record Greensboro, Varner was fired from his job as a real estate agent on Thursday — his now-former employer Allen Tate Realtors saying Varner was “in the middle of a news story that we don’t want anything to do with.” It appears, from social media postings, that Varner had…
FULL STORY

‘Survivor’ Castaway Jeff Varner ‘Devasted’ to…

‘Survivor’ Castaway Jeff Varner ‘Devasted’ to…

Playing EXCLUSIVE: ‘Survivor’ Castaway Jeff Varner ‘Devasted’ to Be Fired From Job After Outing Fellow Contestant Zeke Smith Jeff Varner is seeing real world repercussions to outing fellow castaway Zeke Smith on Survivor. The three-time Survivor player — and North Carolina real estate agent — has been fired from his job, Varner confirms to ET. EXCLUSIVE: Inside Jeff Varner’s Decision to Out Zeke Smith at Tribal Council, What Viewers Didn’t See Varner, who is a former news anchor for CBS and Fox affiliates, was let go on Thursday from his job at Allen Tate Real Estate, telling ET that he was fired in “what I felt was an ugly, knee-jerk reaction kind of way.” …
FULL STORY

‘Survivor’ Castoff Jeff Varner Says He…

‘Survivor’ Castoff Jeff Varner Says He…

“It’s one thing to lie about someone sneaking off at night to search for hidden advantages. It is quite another to incense bigotry toward a marginalized minority,” said contestant Zeke Smith of the moment. Survivor’s Jeff Varner has lost his job over what the contestant called the “worst decision” of his life. After outing his friend and fellow contestant Zeke Smith as being transgender on Wednesday’s episode of CBS’ Survivor: Game Changers, Varner, 50, was fired from his job as a real estate agent the following day. The North Carolina native and former news anchor for CBS and Fox affiliates was told he is “in the middle of a news story that we don’t want anything to do with,” reports News &…
FULL STORY

Phil Jackson wresting control of Knicks…

Phil Jackson wresting control of Knicks…

The Knicks’ new coaching lineup is this: Kurt Rambis is associate head coach, Jeff Hornacek is head coach, and Phil Jackson is now ready to become coach-at-large. It is unclear who will have the most influence. Across Friday’s 49-minute press conference, the Knicks president made three things clear for next season: He wants the triangle around, he doesn’t want Carmelo Anthony around, and he wants to be around the team more as “an on-target mentor.’’ In fact, Jackson took partial blame for the team’s tailspin around the holidays when he took a West Coast respite. None of his remarks bode well for Hornacek, who could be on a short leash next season in the second year of his three-year deal….
FULL STORY

Jeff Flake grilled at town hall…

Jeff Flake grilled at town hall…

Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona. Ralph Freso/Getty Images Sen. Jeff Flake encountered a raucous audience at a town-hall meeting in Mesa, Arizona, on Thursday night. Constituents peppered the Republican lawmaker with questions about President Donald Trump’s actions in office and his broader agenda on climate change, the president’s taxes, the Supreme Court, and Planned Parenthood. Much as with other GOP town halls held since Trump assumed the Oval Office, attendees railed against Flake, many of them accusing him of being a rubber stamp for Trump. Flake, like Reps. Jason Chaffetz and Mike Coffman and Sen. Mitch McConnell before him, tried to answer the audience’s concerns, though most explanations drew shouts and boos from the crowd. That was especially evident when…
FULL STORY

RPT: DNC Email Urges AZ Supporters…

RPT: DNC Email Urges AZ Supporters…

Republican lawmakers across the country have been met by angry voters at town hall meetings, but Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) endured a particularly brutal face-to-face with constituents in Mesa, Arizona, on Thursday. During the two-and-a-half hour event, Flake was bombarded with questions on a wide range of issues, particularly the failed Republican plan to repeal and replace ObamaCare, which he supported. Some of the anger at the town hall, might have been whipped up by an email the Democratic National Committee allegedly sent out to Arizona supporters in advance of Flake’s event urging them to “go get in Jeff Flake’s grill.” “Sen. Jeff Flake has a town hall coming up tomorrow. We’re asking you to commit right now to attending,”…
FULL STORY

The War Over Forensic Science Started…

The War Over Forensic Science Started…

Forensic science—the techniques law enforcement applies to cases, CSI-style—desperately needs an overhaul. Although investigators regularly use procedures like fingerprinting, hair strand analysis, and bite mark matching, evidence of their accuracy remains scant. Worse, experts often overstate their effectiveness in court. To bolster the field’s validity, the Obama administration launched the National Commission on Forensic Science in 2013. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced this week that he won’t renew the commission, a decision critics condemned. Sounds like another salvo in the Trump administration’s (very real and much criticized) war on science, right? After all, the commission did
FULL STORY