MIA Benjamin Bronfman

MIA Benjamin Bronfman, M.I.A. has split from her long-term fiance Benjamin Bronfman, according to a report in the New York Daily News.

The British hip hop star and Bronfman, an environmentalist, have a two-year-old son together, Ikhyd (NOT ‘Ickett’). The Daily News says it was M.I.A. – real name Maya Arulpragasam – who decided to end the relationship. Neither Arulpragasam or Bronfman have passed comment on the reports.

According to the article, the couple had been spending lengthy periods apart, with the 29-year-old Bronfman and Ikhyd staying in New York while M.I.A. was in her hometown of London.

The 36-year-old rapper has discussed her wedding in interviews before. Last year she told one U.S. magazine:

“I’ve always wanted to get married in a white suit. I used to work at a Kodak lab in England, cutting photos after they’d come out of the wash, and in one I saw this couple getting married on a beach in white suits, and their kid was there.”

Alas, the white suits may have to be hung away for another day.

As you probably know, M.I.A. has been attracting headlines aplenty at the moment, after she flipped the bird during the Super Bowl halftime show. With crushing predictability, the one-fingered salute prompted a hilariously over-the-top period of self-reflection and moral hand-wringing from the American press.

Maya Arulpragasam

Maya Arulpragasam, M.I.A. has split from her fiance Benjamin Bronfman. The ‘Paper Planes’ hitmaker — who has a two-year-old son, Ikhyd, with the environmentalist — has reportedly called time on the long-term relationship, according to the New York Daily News.

While no further details are yet known, in the wake of the split the hip hop star — real name Maya Arulpragasam — is believed to have been spending most of her time in her native London, while Benjamin, 29, and Ikhyd remain in New York, with the tot being looked after by his grandmother Sherry Bronfman.

The rapper has previously spoken out about her impending wedding, admitting she was keen to wear a white suit as she walks down the aisle because she was so impressed by a mystery couple’s marriage outfits.

She explained: “I’ve always wanted to get married in a white suit. I used to work at a Kodak lab in England, cutting photos after they’d come out of the wash, and in one I saw this couple getting married on a beach in white suits, and their kid was there.”

However, M.I.A. caused controversy at Sunday night’s Super Bowl when she flipped her middle finger at the camera while she performed alongside Madonna.

Referring to the incident, a spokesperson for NBC sports said: “We apologise for the inappropriate gesture that aired during halftime. It was a spontaneous gesture that our delay system caught late.”

Mia Middle Finger

Mia Middle Finger, The NFL and a major television network are apologizing for another Super Bowl halftime show. There was no wardrobe malfunction, nothing like that glimpse of Janet Jackson’s nipple eight years ago that caused an uproar and a government scrutiny.

Instead, it was an extended middle finger from British singer M.I.A. during Sunday night’s performance of Madonna’s new single, “Give Me All Your Luvin.'”

In front of some 110 million viewers on NBC and uncounted others online, she flipped the bird and appeared to sing, “I don’t give a (expletive)” at one point, though it was hard to hear her clearly.

The NFL and NBC wasted little time in responding.

“The obscene gesture in the performance was completely inappropriate, very disappointing and we apologize to our fans,” said Brian McCarthy, spokesman for the NFL, which produced Madonna’s halftime show.

The risque moment came during the biggest TV event of the year. The screen briefly went blurred after M.I.A.’s gesture in what was a late attempt – by less than a second – to cut out the camera shot.

“The NFL hired the talent and produced the halftime show,” NBC spokesman Christopher McCloskey said. “Our system was late to obscure the inappropriate gesture and we apologize to our viewers.”

Jackson’s infamous oops during the 2004 halftime show raised a storm of controversy and put CBS in trouble with the Federal Communications Commission amid questions about the responsibility of TV networks to police their airwaves.

Rush Limbaugh Picking Nose

Rush Limbaugh Picking Nose, There have been plenty of stories emanating from Super Bowl Sunday. Not only have we had riots and a halftime malfunction, but one picture making its way around is of conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh allegedly picking his nose while in the luxury box of Patriots owner Robert Kraft. But there’s just one problem: video of pickgate shows the alleged picking was more of a poking.

The original picture originated on the site Deadspin, which called the man who appears to be Rush a “knuckle-deep nose spelunker:”

USA Today originally bought the nose-picking theory, as evidenced by the story appearing — with USA Today copyright — on the website of the Tucson Citizen:

Why? you might ask. Because as Mediaite notes, “from the viewer’s vantage point, it was hard to delineate the difference between whether Limbaugh was making a pick or merely scratching his nose.”

And now, video evidence has surfaced showing the “pick” was most likely a split-second scratch. The intrepid blogger Daily Rushbo walks us through the evidence:

It should be noted that there are some wondering whether it’s even Rush. But Kraft was a guest at Limbaugh’s wedding and a close up appears to show Rush’s hearing implant: