UK Bans Ad With Lusty 'Pope'

Civil liberties groups want plaque removed from hallway

(NEWSER) - Dispatches from the church-and-state front:

• Ten Commandments: Civil liberties groups have sued the school board in Giles County, Virginia, demanding that a Ten Commandments plaque be removed from a high school hallway. The board says it's simply part of a display of historical documents, including the Declaration of Independence, but the federal lawsuit by the ACLU and others calls that a "sham" excuse and says the plaque is up "with the primary aim of advancing religion," reports the Roanoke Times .

Catholic activists hit it with a hammer in Avignon museum

(NEWSER) - A pair of extreme Catholic protesters celebrated Palm Sunday this weekend by bursting into the Museum of Contemporary Art in Avignon, France, and smashing Andres Serrano’s (in)famous photograph “Immersion Piss Christ,” and some other works of art they objected to, with hammers. According to a French report translated by the New Yorker , the men were from the organization Civitas, (“for a Catholic city”), which seeks “the restoration of the social reign of Jesus Christ over civil society.” More»

Anwar al-Awlaki videos blamed for radicalizing young Brits

(NEWSER) - Several UK officials are calling on the US to censor Anwar al-Awlaki’s videos on YouTube, after a would-be assassin cited them as a key ingredient in her radicalization. More than 5,000 of Anwar al-Awkali’s sermons can be found on YouTube, exhorting the faithful to take up terrorism. “Jihad today is obligatory on every capable Muslim,” the American-born al-Qaeda cleric declares in one. Police think those videos radicalized Roshonara Choudhry, who was convicted yesterday of stabbing Labour politician Stephen Timms. More»

Calls archbishop's comments 'libel'

(NEWSER) - Israel blasted a statement by Catholic bishops made during a conference in Rome that called for “an end to the occupation” of Palestinian territories. “We express our disappointment that this important synod has become a forum for political attacks on Israel in the best history of Arab propaganda,” said Israel’s deputy foreign minister. More»

Celebs making up to $50K per month pitching products to fans

(NEWSER) - American celebrities are raking in up to $50,000 a month for tweeting on behalf of brands. A single shout-out from 50 Cent or Snoop Dogg, for instance, can earn them $5,000, finds the Sun . The pay-per-tweet model is now heading across the pond, and UK celebs won't be required to use "spon" or "ad" to mark paid tweets. A government official urged the country's famous folk to tweet responsibly: "If people don't reveal a tweet is paid for it could undermine fans' trust," he warns. (Click here to find out how not to be a jerk on Twitter.) More»