President Obama pledged this week that the U.S. would be “relentless” in the wake of the beheading of an American journalist by the militants in Syria known as ISIS.

The president said that the video of a masked militant killing James Foley — who was kidnapped in Syria nearly two years ago — has “appalled” the world and will not deter America from its escalating military effort to root out terrorists in Iraq.

ISIS has also threatened to kill another captive journalist, Steven Sotloff, if the U.S. does not change its course in Iraq. “No faith teaches people to massacre innocents,” Obama said. On Thursday (August 21), it was revealed that U.S. special forces attempted to rescue Foley and other hostages earlier this summer after the terror group had demanded a $130 million ransom for his release.

Who Is ISIS?
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS, also known as ISIL) used to be known as Al Qaeda in Iraq. After the 2006 U.S. troop surge in Iraq seriously hampered the group’s ability to carry out terrorist actions, ISIS reorganized and began to rebuild its strength.

Mirror.co.uk

Are They Still Part Of Al Qaeda?
Al Qaeda broke ties with ISIS in February after Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri became frustrated with ISIS’s refusal to heed his orders to kill fewer Syrian civilians. The group is expanding its reach on the long border between Iraq and Syria, where the combination of the Syrian civil war and a weak government in Iraq ...

Former Stone Temple Pilots singer Scott Weiland has been in a California jail for four weeks and, somehow, we’re just now finding out about it. According to a spokesperson for the Beverly Hills Police Department the singer with a history of substance abuse issues was arrested last month after he allegedly stole razors and other cosmetic items from a Rite-Aid in Beverly Hills.

When police caught up with him, they found methamphetamine and charged Weiland, 46, with felony possession of a controlled substance. He was also charged with burglary rather than theft because police found an “insulated” bag on him which prevents theft censors from going off.

The singer is still in jail on $95,000 bond.

Weiland was booted out of STP last May and filed a $7 million suit against his former bandmates. His solo band, the Wildabouts, are slated to play a show at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut, on August 29. At press time, that date and others in September and October are still listed as active.

Gil Kaufman

Often guilty, never convicted. Serving 15 years to life at MTV News.

The year was 1993. Grunge was king, Bill Clinton was the new president, David Letterman didn’t get the “Tonight Show,” “Jurassic Park” had the biggest movie opening of all time and Victoria Justice, Chance the Rapper, Liam Payne were born.

Oh, and so was 2014 MTV Video Music Awards performer and nominee Ariana Grande! The VMAs 21 years ago were weird and wild, and you don’t need to look any further than the 1993 VMAs for proof. What did the show look like the year Ariana bounced into the world and prepared for her fembot takeover? Nirvana and Pearl Jam were the show’s (and era’s) saving grace, but from the looks of Christian Slater’s vest, the world (and the VMAs) more than needed Ariana at the VMAs.

Here are a few highlights from the tenth VMAs, aka the year Ariana Grande was born.

The Host
Christian Slater did the honors the same year he starred as Clarence Worley in “True Romance.” So that was awesome. Plus, he wore a vest at one point during the show in an act of absolute ’90s redundancy.

MTV

Pearl Jam Won, Then Walked
After snagging Best Group Video, Best Metal/Hard Rock Video, Best Direction and Video of the Year for “Jeremy,” Pearl Jam basically gave up making music videos… so, way to go out on top? They also played “Animal” on the show, which is one of the only times in VMA history that a song ...

When he’s not busy trying on hats (but not shirts), taking the ALS ice bucket challenge or posing in front of animal-print cars, Justin Bieber likes to just chill out with his pal Khalil and re-create the best scene from the funniest movie you’ve probably never seen.

And in case you forgot, here’s the original.

Related: Watch Justin Bieber Shave His Mini-Mustache

Gil Kaufman

Often guilty, never convicted. Serving 15 years to life at MTV News.

There are going to be plenty of virgins at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards this Sunday… Meaning artists making their first VMA appearance or performance this year. What did you think we meant by “virgin”?

5 Seconds of Summer are making their first trip down the red carpet, Fifth Harmony are performing on the Pre-Show, Iggy Azalea — who’s going big with seven nominations — will make her first headlining VMA performance, Ariana Grande is graduating to the big stage after an upgrade from the 2013 Pre-Show spot, and Lorde will get her first chance to rub elbows with her fellow VMA nominees during the August 24 show at the Forum in Inglewood, California.

Which got us thinking about some of the other great VMA debuts in history. Here are the 24 best first times at the VMAs:

1. Madonna
Sure, 1984 marked the first-ever VMAs, but, man did Madonna make a debut no one could ever forget when she rolled around on the stage in that wedding dress to “Like A Virgin.”

2. Michael Jackson
The late King of Pop appeared on the VMAs for the first time in 1988, where he won the first-ever Video Vanguard Award (now named in his honor).

3. Guns ‘N Roses
It’s hard to remember a world where Axl and the boys were fresh faces, but 1988 also marked the first time they swaggered into the VMAs, leaving a trail of broken furniture ...

David Letterman was friends with Robin Williams for nearly 40 years. In fact, on his Monday night show, Letterman said that Williams helped give him his big break in TV when the late comedian offered Dave a small walk-on role on “Mork & Mindy” more than 35 years ago.

With his show back on the air after a summer break, Letterman spent 10 minutes paying tribute to his friend, reminiscing about their long relationship, the first time he saw Williams perform stand-up and lamenting that he had no idea Williams, who committed suicide last week, was in so much pain.

“It’s like nothing we had never seen before, nothing we had ever imagined before,” he said of of Williams’ late 1970s debut at Los Angeles’ Comedy Store with a set of his legendarily high-energy, stream-of-consciousness routines. “We’re like morning dew, he comes in like a hurricane … And then he finishes and I thought, ‘Oh that’s it, they’re gonna have to put an end to showbusiness because what could happen after this?’… We didn’t approach him because we were afraid of him. Honest to God you thought, ‘Holy crap, there goes my chance in show business because of this guy.’”

With more than 50 appearances on Letterman’s show, the host said Williams was one of his kindest, easiest guests. “Two things would happen: One, I didn’t have to do anything – all I had to do was sit here and watch the machine,” Letterman said. “And two, people would watch. If ...

Frustration and rage boiled over once again on Sunday night in Ferguson, Missouri, as protesters took to the streets and clashed with police and state highway patrol officers hours after preliminary autopsy results were released that showed 18-year-old Michael Brown was shot at least six times.

Getty Images News/Joshua Lott

Early reports indicate that at least two people in the crowd were hit by gunfire that came from within the protest and not from police, who moved in with tear gas, rubber bullets and armored vehicles two hours before the newly instated midnight-5 a.m. curfew took effect.

Autopsy Results
The results of a preliminary private autopsy conducted on behalf of the Brown family by Dr. Michael M. Baden, former chief medical examiner in New York, showed that Brown was shot at least six times, two to three times in the face and several more times in the torso and arm, according to the New York Times.

All the bullets entered from the front, contradicting early reports that Brown was shot in the back as he tried to retreat from police. There was also no gunpowder residue on Brown’s clothing, which also contradicted reports that the unarmed teen was shot at close range; Baden was not given access to Brown’s clothing, so a final autopsy could provide clarity not that issue.

Family attorney Daryl Parks told CNN on Monday morning (August 18) that the preliminary autopsy results do ...