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A GoFundMe was set up for James Van Der Beek’s family — ‘the extended fight against cancer have left the family out of funds’

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Actor James Van Der Beek’s wife, Kimberly, appears to have backed a GoFundMe in the wake of the “Dawson’s Creek” actor’s death on Wednesday from colorectal cancer.

The campaign — shared on both James and Kimberly’s Instagram stories — states the mother of the star’s six kids as the organizer.

The initiative, which had raised over $598,000 toward the 1 million target by 7:30 p.m., primarily called for donations to help cover 48-year-old Van Der Beek’s medical bills.

“In the wake of this loss, Kimberly and the children are facing an uncertain future,” the text of the GoFundMe said. “The costs of James’s medical care and the extended fight against cancer have left the family out of funds.”

It said the bereaved family is “working hard to stay in their home and to ensure the children can continue their education and maintain some stability during this incredibly difficult time.”

Van Der Beek’s wife announced his death on Instagram

The appeal went on to say that financial support from others would make a “world of difference” as Van Der Beek’s loved ones “navigate the road ahead.”

The money raised was said to help fund the family’s living expenses, pay bills, and support the kids’ education.

“Every donation, no matter the size, will help Kimberly and her family find hope and security as they rebuild their lives,” the GoFundMe said.

In her Instagram story, Kimberly wrote, “My friends created this link to support me and our children during this time. With gratitude and a broken heart.”


Kimberly and James Van Der Beek

Kimberly and James Van Der Beek on the red carpet.

Phillip Faraone/Getty Images



A spokesperson for GoFundMe told Business Insider, “We are working with the organizer to ensure funds safely reach the intended beneficiary.”

They added, “Funds are being held safely by our payment processor in the meantime.”

Kimberly announced her husband’s death on Instagram, saying, “Our beloved James David Van Der Beek passed peacefully this morning.

“He met his final days with courage, faith, and grace. There is much to share regarding his wishes, love for humanity, and the sacredness of time. Those days will come.

“For now we ask for peaceful privacy as we grieve our loving husband, father, son, brother, and friend.”

2 months ago, the star said he felt ‘strong’

Van Der Beek received his cancer diagnosis three years ago. He made his final public appearance on NBC in December when he seemed optimistic about his health.

“I feel much, much better than I did a couple months ago,” Van Der Beek told interviewer Craig Melvin.

He added, “It’s been a longer journey than I ever thought it would be. It’s required more of me — more patience, more discipline, more strength than I knew I had. I knew I was strong — I didn’t know I was this strong.”

The same month, the 90s heartthrob auctioned off personal memorabilia from the filming of “Dawson’s Creek” to help his family and meet bills for his cancer treatment.




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Trump says he’s staying out of the fight between Netflix and Paramount to take over Warner Bros. Discovery

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President Donald Trump said Netflix and Paramount Skydance have called him about their fight over Warner Bros. Discovery — but he says he’s staying out of it.

“I’ve been called by both sides,” Trump told “NBC Nightly News.” “It’s the two sides, but I’ve decided I shouldn’t be involved. The Justice Department will handle it.”

This is a shift from what Trump said in December of last year.

“They have a very big market share, and when they have Warner Bros., you know, that share goes up a lot so, I don’t know,” Trump said after Netflix made its bid for Warner Bros. Discover. “I’ll be involved in that decision, too. But they have a very big market share.”

The fight for Warner Bros. Discovery, and its well-known IP, has been contentious.

In November of last year, formal bids for the media behemoth were submitted, including those from Netflix and Paramount Skydance — which previously signaled interest in buying Warner Bros. Discovery.

Netflix announced in early December that it would acquire parts of WBD — the studio and streaming — for an equity value of $72 billion ($27.75 per share).

“The seismic cash-and-stock deal, which has a total enterprise value of $82.7 billion, will bring together Netflix’s streaming platform with Warner Bros.’ century-old studio, HBO, HBO Max, and some of the most iconic franchises in film and television,” Business Insider reported when the deal was announced.

Paramount Skydance came in days later with a hostile, all-cash offer of $30 per share for all of WBD, including its cable assets, making its appeal directly to shareholders.

The battle has continued with Netflix revising its deal with an all-cash offer at the same price per share, Paramount Skydance saying Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison was backing its offer, and WBD telling its shareholders to reject the Paramount deal.

No matter how the saga ends, the bids will need to clear regulatory hurdles for the merger — and for now Trump said he’ll leave that to the DOJ.




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America’s largest labor movement joins the fight against ICE

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The AFL-CIO, the country’s largest network of labor unions representing some 15 million workers, says ICE is a threat to workers.

“The Trump administration’s militarized immigration enforcement is putting innocent working people in danger,” the AFL-CIO said in a post on X on Saturday. “America’s unions have your backs.”

A group of local unions in Minnesota, meanwhile, has endorsed a planned statewide economic blackout in response to ICE actions in the state.

The Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, which is affiliated with the AFL-CIO, first announced its endorsement alongside other regional bodies on Friday.

“The Minnesota labor movement is united against the violent ICE occupation of our beloved cities that has directly impacted union members, our workplaces and our families,” the group said in a press release.

Dozens of community, faith, and union groups are organizing the Day of Truth and Freedom, a call to action asking Minnesotans to avoid work, school, and shopping on January 23 to pause the economy. There will also be a rally and march in downtown Minneapolis at 2 p.m. local time.

“We will gather with family, neighbors, and community to show Minnesota’s moral heart and economic power,” organizers said in a Facebook post.

Organizers listed several demands, including that ICE leave Minnesota and that federal funding for ICE be scrapped in the upcoming congressional budget.

The Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation told Business Insider that ICE’s presence is disrupting residents’ daily lives.

“Working people from across sectors — hospitality, healthcare, education, custodial, construction, public works — are being targeted,” the group said in a statement.

Thousands of ICE officers have descended on Minnesota as part of Operation Metro Surge, launched on December 1. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a press release earlier this month that the operation was targeting criminal activity among immigrants in the state.

“Under President Trump, we will expose and deliver accountability for the rampant fraud and criminality happening in Minnesota. You won’t steal from Americans or break our laws and get away with it,” she said.

The Trump administration has said it is specifically targeting cities like Minneapolis that have passed so-called “sanctuary” laws that prevent city resources and police from supporting federal immigration agents.

Many residents, meanwhile, have criticized the tactics that federal agents are using to locate and detain individuals.

Tensions in the state skyrocketed after ICE officer Jonathan Ross fatally shot Renee Good, a 37-year-old American citizen from Minneapolis, on January 7, leading to a wave of protests and outcry.

Days later, Minnesota’s attorney general — on behalf of Minneapolis, St. Paul, and the state — filed a lawsuit against Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, seeking to end the operation.

“As a result of this surge, municipalities have been forced to divert local law enforcement resources away from their normal public safety duties, emergency responder resources have been strained, schools have been forced into lockdowns and closures, businesses have been forced to close, and the rights of Minnesotans have been violated time and time again,” a press release from the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office said.

Homeland Security said officers have arrested over 2,500 individuals during Operation Metro Surge so far.




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The US banned a former EU official’s visa over Big Tech rules — and the fight is playing out on X

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The US just escalated its clash with Europe over tech regulation.

The State Department said it has barred five Europeans, including the EU’s former Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton and four members of digital campaign groups, from entering the country over what it called “censorship” of tech platforms.

The visa bans were met with backlash from European leaders on X, who accused Washington of intimidation and political overreach.

The dispute centers on the EU’s Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act, which imposes obligations on major tech platforms — many of which are based in the US — to police content and curb anti-competitive behavior. Companies in breach of it can be fined up to 6% of their global annual revenue.

In a post on X late Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the State Department would block leading figures of what he called “the global censorship-industrial complex” from entering the US.

“For far too long, ideologues in Europe have led organized efforts to coerce American platforms to punish American viewpoints they oppose,” Rubio wrote. “The Trump Administration will no longer tolerate these egregious acts of extraterritorial censorship.”

In follow-up posts on Tuesday, Sarah B. Rogers, the undersecretary of state for public diplomacy, named Breton among the five European individuals sanctioned, accusing him of using the EU’s Digital Services Act to pressure Elon Musk and X during his tenure as commissioner for the internal market.

She also named Imran Ahmed of the Center for Countering Digital Hate, Clare Melford of the Global Disinformation Index, and HateAid leaders Anna-Lena von Hodenberg and Josephine Ballon, accusing them of pressuring US platforms over online speech. None of the four campaigners immediately responded to a Business Insider request for comment.

Rubio added that the US was “ready and willing to expand this list” unless officials reversed course, framing the move as a defense of free expression and US sovereignty.

European backlash

The back-and-forth has largely played out on X, a platform that was hit with a $140 million fine earlier this month for breaching the Digital Services Act.

Breton responded in Tuesday X post by invoking McCarthy-era politics, asking, “Is McCarthy’s witch hunt back?”

He added, “To our American friends: ‘Censorship isn’t where you think it is.'”

French President Emmanuel Macron also condemned the visa restrictions, describing them in a Wednesday X post as coercive measures aimed at undermining Europe’s digital sovereignty.

“The rules governing the European Union’s digital space are not meant to be determined outside Europe,” he said.

The European Commission “strongly” condemned the US decision, adding that the EU has the sovereign right to regulate its digital market and would seek clarification from US authorities.

“Freedom of speech is the foundation of our strong and vibrant European democracy,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on X on Wednesday. “We are proud of it. We will protect it.”

Gérard Araud, France’s former ambassador to the US, said the dispute reflects a deeper rupture, writing on X that “the West” no longer exists and that Europe is now alone in defending its interests and values.

Daniel Fried, a former US ambassador to Poland and longtime US sanctions official, told Business Insider he could not recall a precedent for Washington imposing visa bans on a former European official in retaliation for policy decisions made in the course of their duties.

Similarly, Jacob Funk Kirkegaard, a senior fellow at the Brussels-based think tank Bruegel, told Business Insider that he could not recall any historical precedent for the move, describing the visa bans as largely symbolic and unlikely to trigger meaningful retaliation.

Musk in the middle

The dispute has been years in the making — and Musk X has often been at the center of it.

Breton repeatedly clashed with Musk after he bought Twitter in 2022 and pledged to loosen moderation in the name of free speech.

As the then-internal market commissioner, Breton warned that X could face fines or even be barred from the European Union if it failed to comply with EU law, later overseeing a formal investigation into the platform regarding disinformation and content moderation.

Those confrontations turned X into a symbol of the broader transatlantic fight over who sets the rules for online speech — a conflict that has now spilled from regulation into geopolitics.




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