Search results for: “quotemedia/f”
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The Hotbed That Produced Obama
Barack Obama took the oath of office as a United States senator on January 4, 2005, and promptly began running for president. Very quickly, he began using the peculiar kind of celebrity that comes with being a senator to introduce himself to Washington, to a new generation of political power brokers, and, more broadly, to…
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Well Played, BET, Well Played
In all honesty, I don’t know what kind of ratings the Nielsen meter is handing out for BET these days. All I know is that I rarely contribute to those numbers and I usually don’t give them more than an a few channel-surfing seconds. Until right about now. If you aren’t an alien to the…
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Michael Wolff Wants More Jazz Hands From President Obama
Michael Wolff wishes Barack Obama did a little more acting up so he would have something worthwhile to write about He’s boring. Devoid of electricity. Square. Stiff. Goody-good. Without charisma. As much as the lagging economy and the health care bill, the Obama flat, blunted, dead-on-arrival affect is what’s hurtling the Democrats to oblivion in…
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Lena Horne Was a Friend to the Press
The late CBS correspondent Ed Bradley was fond of saying, “When I get to the pearly gates and St. Peter asks what have I done to gain entry, I’ll say, `Have you seen my Lena Horne interview?’ “ In that classic 1981 piece for “60 Minutes” [video], “he got the legendary performer to candidly discuss…
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Shakira's World Cup Theme Gets F Minus from South Africa
Shakira recently released the World Cup anthem she recorded with South African group Freshlyground. South Africa wishes she had not “It’s horrible,” local fan Lindi Munonde said. “I’m not standing for it. I mean, what is our president doing about it?” “Waka Waka — Time for Africa” takes its inspiration from Cameroonian music, but South…
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Black Tea Partiers Speak
Charles Butler, a black, Chicago-based conservative talk show host, has been in shouting matches and called a traitor to his race because of his affiliation with the largely white Tea Party movement. Lloyd Marcus, a black, Orlando, Fla.-based, conservative folk singer who wears a black panama hat, leather vest, white shirt and black pants, has…
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Treme: On The Verge of a Faster Pace?
So I’m still slow-moving on the Treme bandwagon. (Hence, the lateness of this post.) But I haven’t given up quite yet. Last night’s episode had some interesting moments. Of course, the music was great. Even Wendell Pierce’s “singing” of “St. James’ Infirmary.” And then, there was a split second of New Orleans bounce music, courtesy…
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Single-Minded: Plowing Through the Oprah Bio
As it stands, “internationally acclaimed investigative biographer” Kitty Kelley’s latest offering, Oprah: A Biography, reads more like a middle-school book report than a well-researched, heavily reported, and revelation-laden expose. Footnotes would have been greatly appreciated. It reminded me of one I wrote in seventh grade on France. I waited until the 11th hour and, instead…
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Do You Have Your 'Hood Pass?
Earlier this month, President Barack Obama aroused some controversy by checking “African American” on his U.S. Census form. He’s black, some say. No, he’s half-white, declare others. If blackness is more of a social construct than a biological one, what are its social definitions? Its dating and marriage choices? An identification fostered on Hawaiian basketball…
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The Musicians 'Down in the Tremé'
is an intern at The Root and senior journalism major at Howard University. Born in the Seventh Ward of New Orleans, Boutte got his start in music by playing the trumpet and cornet in area marching bands. Although he grew up with a heart beating to New Orleans’ rhythms, he didn’t start singing professionally until…