culture
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Black Producers Still Rare on Broadway
Updated April 30, 2013 (The Root) — Despite mixed reviews from critics, Motown: The Musical — produced by the record label’s legendary founder, Berry Gordy — is set to become one of Broadway’s biggest successes of 2013. [Editor’s note: It has received Tony Award nominations for sound design and orchestration, as well as nods to…
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Immigration-Reform Bill: Is This What We Were Promised?
Ebony‘s France François asks how close the Gang of Eight’s legislation comes to what advocates were hoping for. Last week, the Senate’s bipartisan Gang of Eight released an immigration reform bill to cautious praise and protest alike from both immigration advocates and opponents. Latino groups, employee unions, Silicon Valley representatives, and anti-immigration advocates have all…
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Ed Gordon Brings New 'Conversations'
(The Root) — If it’s black news and it’s been in the headlines, veteran journalist Ed Gordon has probably covered it. From hosting Detroit Black Journal to anchoring BET News to unpacking the week’s hottest topics with his panels on Weekly With Ed Gordon, he’s brought African-American news and commentary to televisions and radios across…
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Terror and How People of Color Live Every Day
Writing at BlackAmericaWeb, Tom Joyner says living in fear is the new normal in many black cities. This isn’t new to us anymore. Oklahoma City, New York, Boston and maybe West, Texas and Mobile, Alabama are all places where terrorists have struck right here on our own soil. And let’s not forget the poison-laced letter…
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No New Friends: Are We Shortchanging Ourselves?
Clutch magazine‘s Alisha Tillery asks whether people who say, “No thanks, I’m good” to making new connections are missing out. Listening to the radio yesterday, I heard DJ Khaled’s latest song, “No New Friends,” featuring our favorite go-to guy for hooks, Drake. I tried my best to listen with a musical ear (not possible), but…
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Leo Branton Jr, Angela Davis' Attorney, Dies
Leo Branton Jr., a lawyer who helped successfully defend Angela Davis in her 1972 murder case, has died, the Associated Press reports. He was 91. From the Huffington Post: Branton died of natural causes on April 19 in Los Angeles, his son, Tony Nicholas, told the Los Angeles Times. Branton, the only 1948 black graduate…
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Don Lemon: I'm Gay and I Was a Boy Scout
After last week’s announcement by the Boy Scouts of America that the organization will consider repealing the ban on gay Scouts (but not leaders), scoutmaster and anti-gay activist John Stemberger debated the issue with CNN’s Don Lemon and gay-rights activist Zach Wahls, the Huffington Post reports. A highlight: Stemberger warned that the repeal would “destroy…
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End of an Era: SpinMedia Buys Vibe Magazine
SpinMedia, the owner of Spin magazine, announced on Thursday that it has bought 21-year-old hip-hop and R&B publication Vibe, the New York Times reports. Spin chief executive Steve Hansen said that the company plans to shut down Vibe’s print magazine later this year: The sale reunites the two publications, which more than a decade ago were part…
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Why Terrorists Love Profiling
The Rev. Al Sharpton argues at the Huffington Post that the controversial practice actually helps those who would do harm to America. In the 1990s, National Action Network and I worked on a case with the late Johnnie Cochran where we introduced the term racial profiling into America’s lexicon. Four young Black and Latino men…
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Boston-Bombing Coverage and Invisible Whiteness
Colorlines‘ Akiba Solomon says that journalists need to improve their approach, starting with the language they use when doing their jobs. Watching professional broadcast journalists attempt to compete with social media hobbyists for any nugget of information during last week’s manhunt for suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing, many us felt a familiar dread. We…