...::Name the 3 most successful "black women" in Hollywood

Martin Lawrence
 

The three most successful "black women" in Hollywood are Eddie
 Murphy, Martin Lawrence and Tyler Perry. What is wrong with this picture?

Tyler Perry

Eddie Murphy

...::Show This To All The Little Girls You Love...

... and if that one is not persuasive, try this one--

...::Media Still Slighting Blacks In The Age Of Obama

Get thee behind me...

There is a Black Face in the White House, but media coverage of the Black community has not significantly improved. So says a new study by the widely-respected Pew Research Center. In fact, the study says, media coverage of Blacks may have gotten worse. Who woulda thought it. Read more here.

You may have their attention, but you don't have their control

...::Oscar Grant And Street Media

Oscar Grant poster in Oakland CA

Oscar Grant is the young unarmed father who was shot in the back and killed by a transit cop in Oakland CA on New Year's Day 2009. Most of you know about the case. Above is an Associated Press picture from Oakland. Here is the photo caption--

A beauty salon-- with a poster of Oscar Grant in the window-- is locked up in Oakland, California. Several shops put up photos of Grant in their windows in the hope that it would deter rioters [sic] from damaging the businesses.

Two lessons on media in the modern age here--

One, this poster is a good example of how street media can be used. Street media is where individuals or small groups go straight to the streets to influence public opinion. With street media, you don't send press releases to the Big Paper In Town. You don't buy an ad on a local radio station. You create strong images, words and/or sounds, and you take it to the streets.

Two, this is also an example of how street media can be mis-used-- The beauty salon owner is being very crafty-- "If I put this poster up, folks will not likely damage my business after the trial verdict." It is not being used for the purpose intended by the maker of the poster.

...::Co-Founder Of BET Is "Ashamed" Of The Network

Sheila Johnson is crying all the way to the bank.

Sheila Johnson was right beside hubby Bob Johnson at the creation of Black Entertainment Television back in 1980. After decades of raking in money, after a nasty divorce and the selling of BET, Ms. Johnson looks back in shame.

“I don’t watch it. I suggest to my kids that they don’t watch it… I’m ashamed of it, if you want to know the truth.”

“When we started BET, it was going to be the Ebony magazine on television. We had public affairs programming. We had news… but the problem is that then the video revolution started up… And I remember during those days we would sit up and watch these videos and decide which ones were going on and which ones were not. We got a lot of backlash from recording artists… and we had to start showing them. I didn’t like the way women were being portrayed in these videos.”


More

...Jill Scott And The Roots Live Onstage... 'Nuff Said

I dare you to sit still through this. Notice Jill's wrists...

...::When A Tiger Turns Into A Cheatah

Read how the media helped turn Tiger Woods' image from Good Guy to Gangsta.


Did he just come off the prison yard??

Then read this insightful piece that puts Tiger in a larger media and cultural context. What’s striking about Tiger, the piece says, is the colossal gap "between this golfer’s public image as a paragon of businesslike discipline and focus and the maniacally reckless life we now know he led. What’s equally striking... is that the American establishment and news media... fell for the Woods myth as hard as any fan and actively helped sustain and enhance it."

...::Crowns

...::One Hell Of A Shot, Serena

Serena Williams has posed nude on the cover of ESPN, the sports magazine.



Your thoughts?

...::BET, Why Do You Hate Us?

Good question. The online magazine for girls, Clutch, wants to know.

...::Just Suppose... Juxtapose... Just A Pose...

This image is presented by Youth Rights Media. The group empowers youth to--
-- know, protect and advance their rights
-- build "youth power and leadership"
-- use "video media production and community organizing"
-- learn "tools, skills, and strategies for affecting change"

...::The Reach of Art

The headline in the NYTimes article was: "Mission From Africa." The story was about a Nigerian missionary in the U.S. But before I could read the article, I was struck by the story's photo--



I haven't even finished reading the article, yet this photo stood out for me--
-- The preacher is in a pose like you would find in a video game
-- Did you notice the "heavenly" light on the right and the extra shadow on the back wall? They give the picture a mystical quality
-- The woman is so deep in prayer; I wonder if she knows she has come out of her heels
-- Attendance sure isn't overflowing; but the preacher is passionate nonetheless

Let me know what you notice-- yemitoure@gmail.com. In the meantime, back to the article. Interestingly, it is about the explosive growth in Africa of conservative Christianity, with African missionaries coming to the U.S. to save souls. How's that for a reversal ...