culture

What a brave new world we really do live in, where formerly obscure African American political figures decide the fates of wealthy scions of former presidents—or maybe not. Announcing Thursday morning that she has withdrawn her name from consideration for appointment to fill New York’s vacant U.S. Senate seat, Caroline Kennedy has surely spared herself…

The Buzz has hardly been able to get anything done. Since this video of the First Dance hit YouTube and The Daily Beast, it’s been on repeat all day. If you haven’t seen it twenty times, stop what you’re doing and watch the electricity between our president and first lady. All in attendance at the…

During MSNBC’s live coverage, Keith Olbermann asked, “Is the White House ready?” Hard work begins in earnest Wednesday for President Barack Obama, but governance won’t be the first family’s only impact on American life—yesterday the Negro National Anthem made a joyous comeback while the Obama girls’ inaugural outfits crashed the J. Crew website. It was…

They came in droves from all across the nation to get to inauguration, and when the big day arrived the expected happened — pandamonium. Wall Street Journal got wind of how public transit couldn’t accomodate all the people who headed to the National Mall before sunsrise. And CNBC has a view of the “sea of…

The new president has set forth to undo all of the messes Bush made over the past eight years, and “begin the remaking of America.” Read the full transcript of Barack Obama’s inaugural address.

Writes Haygood of the Caldwells of Washington D.C.: “One black American family: A mother and a father. Four daughters and a son. Forebears who reach back to slavery, and grandchildren who can now grow up with the knowledge that they could be president.  At times, blood and fire marred their city. On other days, the…

Globe staffer Joseph Williams writes: When Eddie Burns, an unemployed musician, describes what the inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama means to him as an African-American, he answers in superlatives: historic, amazing, unbelievable. The future president, Burns proudly declares, “has encouraged people to dream.” But as a client of Shepherd’s Table, a suburban Washington charity that…

Miley Cyrus-fever has made its way into politics. Last night, the tween idol had a performance, along with other young stars at the Disney Kids’ Inaugural. MTV notes Cyrus as the kickoff act, but Jamie Foxx got the crowd hype with an Obama cheer, complete with beat box. Malia and Sasha Obama were in attendance.…

Larry King went live from the event and got a chance to get the back of a lot of random heads. The Daily Beast is right, though, Obama didn’t show up. But many other did — Spike Lee, Oprah Winfrey, Natalie Portman, Diane von Furstenburg and, oh yes, Damon Weaver — and it’s hard to…

Henry Louis Gates Jr. and John Stauffer in today’s NYT: “UNTIL a martyred John F. Kennedy replaced him, Abraham Lincoln was one of the two white men whose image most frequently graced even the most modest black home, second in popularity only to Jesus. Perhaps none of his heirs in the Oval Office has been…