Remembering
James Robison

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The Affogato: Don’t Call Me ‘Barbie’

Plus, Day 13 of Where in the World Is John Zmirak?

By Gayle McQueary Published on June 19, 2025

We are at a point where what little trust the public still has in the media hangs by a thread. One headline from yesterday shows the stark difference between responsible journalism and politicized clickbait.

Do Better, Daily Mail

On Tuesday evening, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was hospitalized in Washington, D.C. after experiencing an allergic reaction. DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said Noem was taken to the hospital as a precaution, and is “alert and recovering.” CNN reported seeing several Secret Service agents guarding the emergency room entrances.

The media did their duty to report on Noem being taken to the hospital, but the Daily Mail decided to be tactless about it:

This isn’t the first time the Daily Mail has used its nickname for Noem … but why does it do so at all, especially when reporting on her health? Daily Mail quickly changed the headline. However, the staffer forgot to clear the cache so Google wouldn’t display the original.

What happened to unbiased journalism? Call us old-fashioned, but there’s a time to leave the politics aside — and this was one of them.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Seeks War

Yesterday we said, “Please, no wars with Iran.” Well, just a few short hours after that story went to press, Iran’s supreme leader, the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, threatened the U.S. with “irreparable” suffering should we enter the nation’s conflict with Israel.

Khamenei, who is currently in hiding, seems to have missed the fact that President Donald Trump referred to him as an “easy target” on Tuesday — suggesting the White House knows exactly where Khamenei is hiding. After Trump called for an “unconditional surrender,” Khamenei responded, “It isn’t wise to tell the Iranian nation to surrender. What should the Iranian nation surrender to? We will never surrender in response to the attacks of anyone. This is the logic of the Iranian nation. This is the spirit of the Iranian nation.”

For his part, Trump did try to broker a deal between Israel and Iran over the past two months, but Iran rejected the proposal so they could continue enriching uranium — essential for both nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons. Yesterday, the International Atomic Energy Agency said it had information that two centrifuge production facilities in Iran were hit during Israel’s attack. When you combine this with Fox News reporting the discovery of a previously unknown Iranian nuclear facility spanning 2,500 acres, you sort of start getting the feeling that Iran can’t be trusted with enriched uranium.

SCOTUS Sides with Tennessee and Children

Get ready to let out a giddy, “Yippee!” Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to uphold a Tennessee law banning transgender treatments for minors in U.S. v Skrmetti. The majority, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, ruled that state laws involving transgender issues don’t automatically trigger the Equal Protection Clause — granting states the flexibility to address evolving medical and social debates. The court applied a “rational basis” standard, which gives legislatures broader latitude, rather than the stricter “heightened scrutiny” used in clear sex-discrimination cases.

Tennessee’s SB1 law stops doctors from performing or offering to perform medical procedures “enabling a minor to identify with, or live as, a purported identity inconsistent with the minor’s sex; or treating purported discomfort or distress from a discordance between the minor’s sex and asserted identity.” But interestingly (or tellingly), the plaintiffs seeking to block the law from being enforced only went after the part discussing hormonal puberty blockers. Gee, wonder why?

The ruling supports similar laws in more than half of U.S. states. It doesn’t mandate that the other states pass such laws, but focuses on the constitutional issues these medical treatments raise.

Where in the World Is John Zmirak?

The Affogato summer series game: Where in the World Is John Zmirak?

If you guessed that John was at the Tower of London yesterday, you would be correct! Sadly for John, it’s time for him to make his way back to the States. There are six international airports around London, and we’ll make it easier for you to guess by eliminating one of them: This isn’t Heathrow.

Only two more days to guess! The person with the most correct (or close to correct) submissions about the locations John has visited will get a free gift from us at the end of the month.

Do you think you know where John is in this photo? Send your guesses to us at [email protected] or visit our Facebook page.

Along The Stream…

Don’t miss this fascinating discussion led by Wander Alger on the power and purpose of supernatural experiences, including prophetic statements, and how they must be governed by the Word of God.

Ever wonder where the legend of Dracula came from? Turns out it’s a nasty distortion of the true story of a Transylvanian ruler guarding his kingdom against invading Muslims, as Raymond Ibrahim explains.

 

Gayle McQueary is The Stream’s social media specialist. She has a background in production and is a scary judge of things related to London.