Good things happen when people stand up - FCC votes in favor of InterNet Neutrality
FCC Internet Ruling: http://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-adopts-strong-sustainable-rules-protect-open-internet
The FCC just voted in favor of a strong net neutrality rule to keep the Internet open and free. That happened because millions of Americans across the country didn't just care about this issue: You stood up and made your voices heard, whether by adding your names to petitions, submitting public comments, or talking with the people you know about why this matters. Read a special thank-you message from the President, then learn more about how we got to where we are today.
Today's FCC decision will protect innovation and create a level playing field for the next generation of entrepreneurs–and it wouldn't have happened without Americans like you.
More than 4 million people wrote in to the FCC, overwhelmingly in support of a free and fair internet. Countless others spoke out on social media, petitioned their government, and stood up for what they believe.
I ran for office because I believed that nothing can stand in the way of millions of voices calling for change. That's the backbone of our democracy–and you've proven that this timeless principle is alive and well in our digital age.
So to all the people who participated in this conversation, I have a simple message:
Michael Baisden Sues Cumulus, Alleging Contract Breach
Story by AllAccess
Former syndicated host MICHAEL BAISDEN and CUMULUS appear to be headed towards more litigation, as BAISDEN and his BAISDEN ENTERPRISES INC. have filed suit against RADIO NETWORKS LLC, and CUMULUS MEDIA, INC. in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of TEXAS asserting breach of contract claims against the radio company.
_________________ Baisden, Maxine Waters, and I at the 2012 DNC Convention (photo right).
_________________
The suit alleges that RADIO NETWORKS and successor/parent CUMULUS breached a 2008 contract by not providing accounting of revenues and expenses, failing to match a third-party four-year offer of $4 million per year, and imposing an unreasonably restrictive non-compete. BAISDEN says in the suit that a CUMULUS EVP/COO agreed to waive negotiating exclusivity and allow third parties to make offers.
After an offer was received, BAISDEN says CUMULUS would not match it, would not release financial information as required under the original and amended contracts, and instead, as stated by CUMULUS' VP/General Counsel, treated BAISDEN's consideration of the offer as an anticipatory breach and made a "veiled threat" of legal action against the third party, and then informed BAISDEN's council that the host would be barred from working on-air locally for six months and on a multi-station basis (including satellite) for 12 months, despite the waiver of the exclusive negotiations clause.
In a separate action, CUMULUS sued BAISDEN in MAY 2014 for restitution of $1 million it says it accidentally paid the host due to an accounting error after he left the company in 2013. The parties appeared to be close to a settlement of that case last FALL, which would avoid a trial set for AUGUST 3rd.
A federal judge has granted Radio One a permanent injunction ordering Flinn Broadcasting to NOT to use its “Boom” trademark “in any manner,” including “confusingly similar” versions of the brand name.
Radio One sued Flinn for trademark infringement, unfair competition and other claims related to Flinn’s use of the “Boomin 96” moniker at its Memphis area classic hip-hop station, WVIG, which NOW calls itself “Bumpin! 96.”
U.S. Is Not Seeking Civil-Rights Charges Over Trayvon Martin's Death
Story by Bloomberg
Written by Del Wilber
Federal prosecutors won’t bring charges in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a black Florida teenager whose killing by a neighborhood watch volunteer three years ago sparked a national debate about race.
Prosecutors concluded there wasn’t enough evidence of a civil-rights violation by George Zimmerman, who shot the 17-year-old during a confrontation on a street in Sanford, Florida, according to the Justice Department.
Zimmerman, who was legally carrying a firearm at the time, was acquitted of second-degree murder in July of 2013.
“A comprehensive investigation found that the high standard for a federal hate crime prosecution cannot be met under the circumstances here,” U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement from the department.
___________________________
Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-02-24/u-s-said-not-to-seek-civil-rights-charges-over-trayvon-martin
U.S. President Barack Obama vetoes Keystone XL pipeline bill
Story by the Associated Press
Written by Josh Lederman
WASHINGTON DC — Defying the Republican-run Congress, President Barack Obama rejected a bill Tuesday to approve construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, wielding his veto power for only the third time in his presidency.
The President offered no indication of whether he'll eventually issue a permit for the pipeline, whose construction has become a flashpoint in the U.S. debate about environmental policy and climate change. Instead, President Obama sought to reassert his authority to make the decision himself, rebuffing GOP lawmakers who will control both the House and Senate for the remainder of the president's term.
"The presidential power to veto legislation is one I take seriously," Obama said in a brief notice delivered to the Senate. "But I also take seriously my responsibility to the American people."
Obama vetoed the bill in private with no fanfare, in contrast to the televised ceremony Republican leaders staged earlier this month when they signed the bill and sent it to the president. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Republicans were "not even close" to giving up the fight and derided the veto as a "national embarrassment."
The move sends the politically charged issue back to Congress, where Republicans haven't shown they can muster the two-thirds majority in both chambers needed to override Obama's veto. North Dakota Sen. John Hoeven, the bill's chief GOP sponsor, said Republicans are about four votes short in the Senate and need about 11 more in the House.
Although the veto is President Obama's first since Republicans took control on Capitol Hill, it was not likely to be the last. GOP lawmakers are lining up legislation rolling back the President's actions on health care, immigration and financial regulation that Obama has promised to similarly reject.
"He's looking at this as showing he still can be king of the hill, because we don't have the votes to override," Republican Sen. Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma, a vocal opponent of the Commander-in-Chief's climate change agenda, said in an interview. "If he vetoed this, he's going to veto many others that are out there."
First proposed more than six years ago, the Keystone XL pipeline project has sat in limbo ever since, awaiting a permit required by the federal government because it would cross an international boundary. The pipeline would connect Canada's tar sands with refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast that specialize in processing heavy crude oil.
Republicans and the energy industry say the $8 billion project would create jobs, spur growth and increase America's independence from Mideast energy sources. Democrats and environmental groups have sought to make the pipeline a poster child for the type of dirty energy sources they say are exacerbating global warming.
For his part, the President says his administration is still weighing the pipeline's merits, and he has repeatedly threatened to veto any attempts by lawmakers to make the decision for him.
The GOP-controlled House passed the bill earlier in February on a 270-152 vote, following weeks of debate and tweaks in the Senate to insert language stating that climate change is real and not a hoax. Republican leaders in Congress delayed sending the bill to the White House until they returned from a week-long recess, ensuring they would be on hand to denounce the president when he vetoed the bill.
The veto forced Republicans, still reveling in their dramatic gains in the midterm elections, to confront the limitations of being unable to turn their ideas into law without the President's consent — despite the fact they now control both chambers of Congress.
Republican leaders were mulling a number of potential next steps. In addition to trying to peel off enough Democrats to override Obama's veto — an unlikely proposition — Republicans were considering inserting Keystone into other critical legislation dealing with energy, spending or infrastructure in hopes that Obama would be less likely to veto those priorities, said Hoeven, R-N.D.
"We'll look to see if we can get some more bipartisan support," said Hoeven.
President Obama last wielded his veto power in October 2010, nixing a relatively mundane bill dealing with recognition of documents notarized out of state. With the Keystone bill, Obama's veto count stands at just three — far fewer than most of his predecessors. Yet his veto threats have been piling up rapidly since Republicans took full control of Congress, numbering more than a dozen so far this year.
The President has said he won't approve Keystone if it's found to significantly increase U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide, the chief greenhouse gas blamed for global warming. A State Department analysis found that the tar sands would be developed one way or another, meaning construction of the pipeline wouldn't necessarily affect emissions. The Environmental Protection Agency earlier this month called for that analysis to be revisited, arguing that a drop in oil prices may have altered the equation.
NBA Basketball Trade Deadline passes with many trades
Story by Yahoo Sports
There were deals involving dozens of players from nearly half the teams in the league.
The biggest stars to move were Goran Dragic (to the Heat), Kevin Garnett to Minnesota, Michael Carter-Williams to Milwaukee, Enes Kanter to Oklahoma, Tayshaun Prince to the Detroit Pistons, and Brandon Knight to Phoenix. The Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks flipped assets for picks.
Here's a complete rundown of the trades being reported:
* Goran Dragic to the Miami Heat from the Denver Nuggets in a three-team deal:
Miami gets: Goran Dragic, Zoran Dragic
Phoenix gets: Â Danny Granger, Justin Hamilton, John Salmons, two 1st-round picks
New Orleans gets: Norris Cole (per ESPN), Shawne Williams (per Woj)
* Enes Kanter to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Reggie Jackson to the Detroit Pistons in a three-team deal:
Oklahoma City gets: Enes Kanter, Kyle Singler, D.J. Augustin, Steve Novak
Utah gets: Kendrick Perkins, Grant Jerrett, protected future Oklahoma City 1st-round pick, Detroit 2nd-round pick, rights to Tibor Pleiss (per ESPN)
Detroit gets: Reggie Jackson
* The Suns, Sixers, Bucks, and Celtics engage in a massive four-team trade:
Phoenix gets: Brandon Knight, Marcus Thorton, Cleveland's 2016 1st-round pick (per Woj)
Philadelphia gets: Los Angeles Lakers 2015 1st-round pick (top-five protected)
Milwaukee gets: Michael Carter-Williams, Miles Plumlee, Tyler Ennis
Boston gets: Isaiah Thomas
* Arron Afflalo to the Portland Trail Blazers from the Denver Nuggets:
Portland gets: Arron Afflalo, Alonzo Gee
Denver gets: Will Barton, Victor Claver, Thomas Robinson, lottery-protected 2016 1st-round pick
* Kevin Garnett to the Minnesota Timberwolves from the Brooklyn Nets:
Minnesota gets: Kevin Garnett
Brooklyn gets: Thaddeus Young
* Tayshaun Prince to the Detroit Pistons from the Boston Celtics:
Detroit gets: Tayshaun Prince
Boston gets: Jonas Jerebko, Gigi Datome
* JaVale McGee to the Philadelphia 76ers from the Denver Nuggets:
Philadelphia gets: JaVale McGee, Oklahoma City Thunder's 2015 1st-round pick (top-18 protected), Chu Chu Maduabum
Denver gets: Cenk Akyol
* K.J. McDaniels to the Houston Rockets from the Philadelphia 76ers:
Houston gets: K.J. McDaniels
Philadelphia gets: Isaiah Canaan, 2nd-round pick
* Ramon Sessions to the Washington Wizards from the Sacramento Kings:
Washington gets: Ramon Sessions
Sacramento gets: Andre Miller
* Pablo Prigioni to the Houston Rockets from the New York Knicks:
Rockets get: Pablo Prigioni
Knicks get: Alexey Shved, two 2nd-round picks
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speaks on the importance of Black Radio
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speaks to NATRA in Atlanta, Ga. in 1967
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. addresses the National Association of Television and Radio Announcers (NATRA) conference in August of 1967 in Georgia.
King talks about the important role Black radio played in furthering the Civil Rights struggle. KGFJ's Magnificent Montague in Los Angeles, WDAS's Georgie Woods in Philadelphia, and WVON's Pervis Spann in Chicago were mentioned and thanked by Dr. King in the video above.
Many un-sung yet powerfully, meaningful, and inspirational MLK speeches - like the one above - have been hidden and downplayed.
King further tells you here about the truth of European settlers given free West and MidWest land from the US Government, while the freed slaves were left penniless, illiterate, famished, and segregated apart from society.
The Cities with the Most & Least Racial & Linguistic Diversity in 2015
Source: WallentHub
The total racial and ethnic minority population is projected to increase from 30.9 percent in 2000 to 40.4 percent in 2019. WalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of 2015’s Cities with the Most & Least Ethno-Racial & Linguistic Diversity: http://wallethub.com/edu/cities-with-the-most-and-least-ethno-racial-and-linguistic-diversity/10264/
Given such a forecast, it’s ever more imperative to close the racial gaps across U.S. cities to ensure economic prosperity. To identify the most ethno-racially and linguistically diverse landscapes among 350 of the most populated U.S. cities, WalletHub examined each city across three key metrics, including racial and ethnic diversity, language diversity and region of birth diversity.
Cities with the Most Ethno-Racial and Linguistic Diversity
1. Jersey City, NJ
2. Germantown, MD
3. Hayward, CA
4. New York, NY
5. Carson, CA
6. San Jose, CA
7. Irving, TX
8. Richmond, CA
9. Santa Clara, CA
10. Stockton, CA
Cities with the Least Ethno-Racial and Linguistic Diversity
341. Arvada, CO
342. Livonia, MI
343. Fargo, ND
344. Spokane Valley, WA
345. Lee's Summit, MO
346. Evansville, IN
347. Springfield, MO
348. Jackson, MS
349. Cedar Rapids, IA
350. Billings, MT
Key Stats
• The racial and ethnic diversity is four times higher in Vallejo, Calif., than in East Los Angeles, Calif.
• East Los Angeles, Calif., has the highest concentration of Hispanics or Latinos, at 97.5 percent.
• Livonia, Mich., has the highest concentration of whites, at 89.3 percent.
• Detroit has the highest concentration of blacks, at 80.7 percent.
• Hialeah, Fla., has the highest concentration of Spanish speakers, at 90.6 percent.
• Westminster, Calif., has the highest concentration of Asian- and Pacific Islander-language speakers, at 44.4 percent.
• New Bedford, Mass., has the highest European-born population, at 11.4% percent.
• Glendale, Calif., has the highest Asian-born population, at 43.3 percent.
For the full report and to see where your city ranks, please visit:
http://wallethub.com/edu/cities-with-the-most-and-least-ethno-racial-and-linguistic-diversity/10264/
Dr. John Hope Franklin Series in African American History and Culture
The best scholarship in African American history and culture compels us to expand our sense of who we are as a nation and forces us to engage seriously the experiences of all Americans who have shaped the development of this country. By publishing pathbreaking books informed by several disciplines, the John Hope Franklin Series in African American History and Culture seeks to illuminate America's multicultural past and the ways in which it has informed the nation's democratic experiment.
Link to complete book series: http://uncpress.unc.edu/browse/books?page_type=series&page_type_id=29
________________________________________________
Book: The African American Roots of Modernism - From Reconstruction to the Harlem Renaissance
Written by James Smethurst
The period between 1880 and 1918, at the end of which Jim Crow was firmly established and the Great Migration of African Americans was well under way, was not the nadir for black culture, James Smethurst reveals, but instead a time of profound response from African American intellectuals. The African American Roots of Modernism explores how the Jim Crow system triggered significant artistic and intellectual responses from African American writers, deeply marking the beginnings of literary modernism and, ultimately, notions of American modernity.
In identifying the Jim Crow period with the coming of modernity, Smethurst upsets the customary assessment of the Harlem Renaissance as the first nationally significant black arts movement, showing how artists reacted to Jim Crow with migration narratives, poetry about the black experience, black performance of popular culture forms, and more. Smethurst introduces a whole cast of characters, including understudied figures such as William Stanley Braithwaite and Fenton Johnson, and more familiar authors such as Charles Chesnutt, Pauline Hopkins, and James Weldon Johnson. By considering the legacy of writers and artists active between the end of Reconstruction and the rise of the Harlem Renaissance, Smethurst illuminates their influence on the black and white U.S. modernists who followed.
_________________________________________________
About the Author
James Smethurst is associate professor of Afro-American studies at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. He is the author of The New Red Negro: The Literary Left and African American Poetry, 1930-1946 and The Black Arts Movement: Literary Nationalism in the 1960s and 1970s, winner of the Organization of American Historians' James A. Rawley Prize.
Dr Martin Luther King: "...Sign your own Emancipation Proclamation..."
MLK Speech is reported to have been a segment from one of Dr. King's speeches in Atlanta Georgia on August 11, 1967.
"Nobody else can do this for us. No document - can do this for us. No Lincolnian emancipation proclamation can do this for us. No Tennessonian or Johnsonian civil rights bill can do this for us.
If the Negro is to be free he must move down into the inner resources of his own soul and sign with a pen and ink of self assertive manhood his own emancipation proclamation.
Don't let anybody take your manhood. Be proud of our heritage as somebody said earlier tonight, we don't have anything to be ashamed of.
Somebody told a lie one day. They couched it in language - they made everything Black ugly and evil.
Look in your dictionary, and see the synonyms of the word Black - it's always something degrading and low and sinister. Look at the word White - always something pure, high and clean.
But, I want to get the language right tonight. I want to get the language so right that everybody here will cry out YES, I'm Black and proud of it! I'm Black and Beautiful !"
Dr. King continued the speech by saying that Racial pride wasn't enough, that people of African descent in addition to have racial pride should be dedicated to improving the world.
Dr. John Hope Franklin Series in African American History and Culture
The best scholarship in African American history and culture compels us to expand our sense of who we are as a nation and forces us to engage seriously the experiences of all Americans who have shaped the development of this country. By publishing pathbreaking books informed by several disciplines, the John Hope Franklin Series in African American History and Culture seeks to illuminate America's multicultural past and the ways in which it has informed the nation's democratic experiment.
Link to complete book series: http://uncpress.unc.edu/browse/books?page_type=series&page_type_id=29
_______________________________
North Carolina Slave Narratives
The Lives of Moses Roper, Lunsford Lane, Moses Grandy, and Thomas H. Jones
Edited By William L. Andrews
The autobiographies of former slaves contributed powerfully to the abolitionist movement in the United States, fanning national--even international--indignation against the evils of slavery. The four texts gathered here are all from North Carolina slaves and are among the most memorable and influential slave narratives published in the nineteenth century. The writings of Moses Roper (1838), Lunsford Lane (1842), Moses Grandy (1843), and the Reverend Thomas H. Jones (1854) provide a moving testament to the struggles of enslaved people to affirm their human dignity and ultimately seize their liberty.
Introductions to each narrative provide biographical and historical information as well as explanatory notes. Andrews's general introduction to the collection reveals that these narratives not only helped energize the abolitionist movement but also laid the groundwork for an African American literary tradition that inspired such novelists as Toni Morrison and Charles Johnson.
______________________________ About the Author
General editor William L. Andrews is E. Maynard Adams Professor of English at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is author or editor of more than thirty books, including The Literary Career of Charles W. Chesnutt and To Tell a Free Story: The First Century of Afro-American Autobiography, 1760-1865. Coeditors David A. Davis, Tampathia Evans, Ian Frederick Finseth, and Andreá N. Williams have earned graduate degrees in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Fifty Years Later Questions Still Dangle about Malcolm X’s Assassination
Commentary by Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Five years ago Thomas Hagan was paroled. He served 44 years for his part in the murder of black nationalist leader Malcolm X. Hagan who at the time of the murder went by the name of Talmadge Hayer is the only one of a trio of convicted assassins who ever publicly admitted to killing Malcolm. He bluntly said that he joined the assassination team because of Malcolm’s public attacks on the Nation of Islam.
Hagan’s explanation still doesn’t satisfy many who see much more than a killing by a disaffected, misguided, rogue group of black assassins. Fifty years after Hagan and the others gunned down Malcolm, on February 21, 1965, the questions continue to dangle whether there was more, much more, to the killing than what Hagan said. An online petition through the White House online petition site has been launched demanding that the federal government release all files on the Malcolm X assassination. The point of this is twofold. One is to toss the spotlight back on the federal government to determine what extent if any the FBI and other police agencies were involved either knowingly or tacitly in the killing. The other is to force government transparency in its dealings with radical activists.
For now, though, the official answer is that Malcolm’s murder was a revenge killing for the bitter and contentious attacks he made on his former mentor and father figure, Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad. Louis Farrakhan candidly admitted years later, "There was not a Muslim who loved the Honorable Elijah Muhammad that did not want to kill Malcolm." Farrakhan at the time repeatedly lambasted Malcolm as a betrayer of the faith. Years later, though, Farrakhan attempted a public reconciliation with Betty Shabazz, Malcolm's widow and other family members.
Hagan, and his known other accomplices, were indeed fanatic followers of Muhammad. But did they kill Malcolm out of robotic blind hatred? Were there others involved? And who stood to benefit the most from Malcolm's death? Those are the tough questions that beg answers, but remain shrouded in mystery.
The men almost certainly hated Malcolm and believed they were being good Muslims by killing him. However, the FBI and the New York police department's super-secret elite undercover unit, the Bureau of Special Services (BOSS) also hated Malcolm. They waged a fierce illegal and shadowy campaign to undermine Malcolm and the Muslims. They riddled the Nation of Islam and Malcolm's group, the OAAU, with informants, and police agents. They dogged his tail on his travels in Africa, and the Middle East. FBI and BOSS agents reported on every word of his speeches and press conferences.
FBI officials were well aware of the threats made on Malcolm's life by Muslims, and they knew that some in the organization were more than willing to carry out his murder. Months before the killing, FBI informants supplied verbatim accounts to FBI director, J. Edgar Hoover of death threats made against Malcolm at Black Muslim meetings. During a European jaunt, Malcolm was not allowed to leave the airport in London and Paris. Reportedly, British and French intelligence agencies feared there would be an assassination attempt against him in their countries.
The FBI's interest in Malcolm's murder didn't stop with the conviction of his killers. FBI agents closely monitored the trial proceedings. In memos to top FBI officials, their prime concern was to protect their informants and undercover agents planted in Malcolm's organization from public exposure. At one point during the trial, one of the hit men, namely Hagan, claimed that he was promised several thousand dollars for the murder by a non-Muslim. The prosecutor and defense attorneys did not press him to name names. The judge sternly warned the jury to consider only that part of Hagan's testimony that was directly pertinent to the case and disregard the rest of his statements. His statement may have simply been hyperbole to get press attention, or inflate his importance, but it was another loose end that deliberately was not tied up.
There is no evidence that the FBI, intelligence agencies, or the New York police had a direct hand in Malcolm's murder, and the contour of any conspiracy by anyone other than the Black Muslims to get Malcolm remains hazy, problematic, or nonexistent. But Malcolm's murder can't be totally separated from the well-documented savage war that the FBI waged against Martin Luther King, Jr. black organizations and black leaders during the 1960s. In an infamous memo from those years, FBI officials flatly warned of the necessity to prevent "the rise of a "black messiah" among blacks. The FBI was more than willing and able to do whatever it could to make sure that that didn't happen. Malcolm undoubtedly was an unwitting casualty of Hoover and the FBI's obsession to decapitate black leadership. FBI officials undoubtedly shed few tears over his murder.
The whitewash of the issues and mystery that often surrounds the murder of a popular, but controversial, leader always raises questions and doubts, no matter how many years pass. Fifty years later, those questions still dangle about Malcolm X’s assassination.
The Authorization of Military Force Against ISIL Terrorists: What You Need to Know
On February 11, 2015, President Obama provided an update on his request of Congress for authorization to use military force against ISIL terrorists.
Right now, America’s armed forces are working with some 60 nations to degrade and destroy ISIL, a terrorist group that has committed countless barbaric atrocities and poses a grave threat to the people and territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria, regional stability, and the national security interests of the United States and its allies and partners. Coalition air strikes have been instrumental in disrupting ISIL’s command and control and supply lines and taking out their commanders and fighters.
The mission is a difficult one, but make no mistake, our coalition is on the offensive, ISIL is on the defensive, and ISIL is going to lose.
Although the President already has the legal authority he needs to take action against ISIL, he has noted that we are strongest as a nation when the President and Congress work together. A bipartisan authorization of the use of military force (AUMF) against ISIL would provide a clear and powerful signal to the American people, to our allies, and to our enemies that the U.S. is united behind the effort to degrade and ultimately defeat ISIL.
That is why the President submitted a draft proposal today to Congress that would authorize the continued use of military force against ISIL. What exactly is he asking for? For how long? What will our armed forces be asked to do? Here are some answers to a few questions you may have about the President’s AUMF request:
1. What is an AUMF?
An AUMF, or authorization of use of military force, is a law passed by Congress that authorizes the President to use U.S. military force.
2. What is the President’s proposal for an AUMF against ISIL?
The President is submitting a draft of an AUMF to Congress to authorize the continued limited use of military force to degrade and defeat ISIL. Key elements of the President’s proposal include:
•A three-year limit on the AUMF so that the next President, Congress, and the American people can assess the progress we have made against ISIL and review these authorities again
•A repeal of the 2002 Iraq AUMF which authorized the 2003 Iraq invasion under President George W. Bush
It’s important to note that the AUMF the President is proposing would not authorize long-term, large-scale ground combat operations like those our nation conducted in Iraq and Afghanistan. His proposal does seek the flexibility to conduct ground operations in other, more limited circumstances, including:
•Rescue operations involving U.S. or coalition personnel
•Special Operations missions against ISIL leadership
•Intelligence collection and assistance to partner forces
3. Why is this AUMF against ISIL important?
ISIL poses a grave threat to the people and territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria, regional stability, and the national security interests of the United States and its allies and partners. These terrorists are responsible for the deaths of innocent U.S. citizens James Foley, Steven Sotloff, Abdul-Rahman Peter Kassig, and Kayla Jean Mueller.
ISIL leaders have stated that they intend to conduct terrorist attacks internationally, including against the United States, its citizens, and interests. That is why the President is committed to working with Congress to continue our efforts against ISIL.
4. Will this be the first time we will use military force against ISIL?
No. The U.S. is currently leading over 60 partners in an international effort to degrade and destroy ISIL, and together, the coalition has conducted more than 2,300 airstrikes to date. However, as the President has said, we are strongest as a nation when the President and Congress work together. Enacting a bipartisan ISIL-specific AUMF would clearly show the force of our united resolve to degrade and ultimately defeat ISIL.
5. So is our military going to engage in ground combat operations like those our nation conducted in Iraq and Afghanistan?
No. As the President has said repeatedly, the U.S. should not be dragged into another ground war in the Middle East. That’s not in our national security interests -- and it’s not necessary. Local forces on the ground who know their countries best -- including Iraqi, Kurdish, and moderate Syrian opposition forces -- are best positioned to take the ground fight to ISIL -- and they are. The 2,600 American troops in Iraq today largely serve on bases, and they face the risks that come with service in any dangerous environment. But they do not have a combat mission.
6. How is this AUMF different from President George W. Bush’s AUMF that authorized the 2003 invasion of Iraq?
Unlike the AUMF that authorized the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the President’s proposal does not authorize enduring offensive ground combat operations and limits this authorization to three years. In short, the President’s proposal is not the authorization of another ground war like Afghanistan or Iraq.
___________________________________
Read the President's remarks: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/02/11/remarks-president-request-congress-authorization-force-against-isil
The telecommunications and advertising industries are changing rapidly, and NABOB appreciates the addition of its new Board members
who will bring their expertise in helping NABOB’s members respond to these changes.
The New Board Members join NABOB’s existing Board Members:
Arthur Benjamin, CFO, Access.1 Communications
Michael Carter, CEO, Carter Broadcast Group
Carol Cutting, CEO, Cutting Edge Broadcasting
Alfred Liggins, President, Radio One
James Wolfe, President Wolfe Broadcasting
Lois Wright, Executive Vice President, Inner City Broadcasting Corp.
Radio One reports 4th quarter results, AND agrees to acquire Comcast's TV One 47.5% interest - valued at $550-Million Dollars
NEWS RELEASE
February 12, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Washington, DC
Washington, DC: - Radio One, Inc. (NASDAQ: ROIAK and ROIA) today reported its results for the quarter ended December 31, 2014.
Net revenue was approximately $109.7 million, a decrease of 1.7% from the same period in 2013. Station operating income1 was approximately $42.5 million, an increase of 8.6% from the same period in 2013.
The Company reported operating income of approximately $19.4 million compared to operating income of approximately $17.4 million for the same period in 2013.
Net loss was approximately $13.5 million or $0.28 per share compared to net loss of $16.4 million or $0.35 per share, for the same period in 2013.
__________________________
Alfred C. Liggins, III, Radio One’s CEO and President stated, “Our radio business showed sequential improvement from the third quarter, with revenues -2.8%. During the quarter we changed format from news to classic hip-hop in our Houston market; excluding Houston our radio revenues for the fourth quarter were +1.1%.
Adjusting for a timing difference of our Women’s Empowerment event in Raleigh, Q1 2015 core radio revenues are currently pacing –1.8%, having weakened throughout January.
Our Washington DC cluster continues to under-perform the market, and we recently announced a new General Manager of the Washington DC market cluster by expanding the responsibilities of our own Jeff Wilson, Senior Regional Vice President. Excluding our Washington DC cluster, our core radio revenues are currently pacing up about 1% compared to the same time last year.
Our cable television business delivered 48.8% adjusted EBITDA2 growth in the fourth quarter, which helped drive consolidated adjusted EBITDA up by 18.8% for the quarter. TV One revenue and Interactive One direct revenue are both currently pacing up double digits for the first quarter.
I am pleased to announce that we have reached an agreement with Comcast Programming Ventures V, LLC to acquire their approximately 47.5% interest in TV One, LLC based on an enterprise value of $550 million. We have until June 30th, 2015 to finance and close on the transaction, after which either party can terminate.”
Radio One has a preliminary deal for Comcast to continue distributing its TV One cable channel.
The specifics have not been released, but in a regulatory filing Radio One says it includes both a “step-up” in the amount of money the cable provider will pay for TV One as well as a broader channel distribution commitment.
More critically, the new deal also paves the way for Radio One to buy out Comcast’s minority 47.9% stake in the channel.
Radio One says it is currently finalizing a few specifics of the deal, and allow for the TV One buyout to close by the end of second quarter.
To achieve that goal, Radio One has struck a deal with its lenders to relax certain requirements on its loan agreements and to “amend and extend” loan maturities.
______________________
See more at: http://www.insideradio.com/Article.asp?id=2882295&spid=33231#.VNzFny6VN2A
President Obama sends Congress request for military force against ISIS
Story by AP
Video by Bloomberg News
President Barack Obama asked the U.S. Congress today to authorize military force to "degrade and defeat" Islamic State forces in the Middle East without sustained, large-scale U.S. ground combat operations, setting lawmakers on a path toward their first war powers vote in 13 years.
Research reveals more than 4,000 Lynchings in Jim Crow South
Study Finds 4,000 Lynchings in Jim Crow South, Will U.S. Address Legacy of Racial Terrorism?
Story by Democracy Now
A new report has uncovered shocking details about the history of lynchings in the United States and their legacy today.
After five years of exhaustive research and interviews with local historians and descendants of lynching victims, the Equal Justice Initiative found white Southerners lynched nearly 4,000 black men, women and children between 1877 and 1950 — a total far higher than previously known.
The report details a 1916 attack in which a mob lynched Jeff Brown for accidentally bumping into a white girl as he ran to catch a train. In an example from 1940, a crowd lynched Jesse Thornton for not addressing a white police officer as "mister."
In many cases, the lynchings were attended by the entire white community in an area.
We speak with attorney and Equal Justice Initiative Founder and Director Bryan Stevenson, whose group’s report is "Lynching in America: Confronting the Legacy of Racial Terror." The EJI is calling for the placement of historical markers at sites where lynchings occurred.
UNLV basketball coach icon Jerry Tarkanian, 84, dies
LAS VEGAS -- Hall of Fame coach Jerry Tarkanian, who built a basketball dynasty at UNLV but was defined more by his decades-long battle with the NCAA, died Wednesday after several years of health issues. He was 84.
Danny Tarkanian announced his father's death on Twitter: "Coach Tark, my father, the greatest man I have ever known, passed today, to take his place in heaven. I will miss him every day of my life."
Tarkanian had been hospitalized since Monday at Valley Hospital Medical Center for a respiratory ailment and infection. He had been rushed to the hospital by ambulance after his blood oxygen fell to dangerous levels.
The towel-chewing coach, dubbed Tark the Shark, had been hospitalized three times in 10 months.
He had a second heart attack in April and was treated for pneumonia in November.
Tarkanian, who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in 2013, led the 1990 UNLV team that won an NCAA national title and the 1991 Runnin' Rebels who lost to Duke in the Final Four.
His teams were as flamboyant as his Las Vegas surroundings, with light shows and fireworks for pregame introductions and celebrities jockeying for position on the so-called Gucci Row courtside.
Tarkanian ended up beating the NCAA too, collecting a $2.5 million settlement after suing the organization for trying to run him out of college basketball.
He retired in 2002 with a 729-201 record in 31 years at the Division I level, ranking 12th all time. He spent 19 seasons at UNLV, compiling a 509-105 mark.
Tarkanian also coached the San Antonio Spurs and at Fresno State, leading the Bulldogs to the NCAA tournament twice. Before UNLV, he was the coach at Long Beach State.
Little Jimmy Scott's Widow Responds to the Grammys 'In Memoriam' Snub, in an emotional Open Letter
Grammy Awards show's annual "In Memoriam" segment that aired Sunday February 8, 2015 at 57th Grammy Awards...however omitting Jazz Great Jimmy Scott.
Story by Yahoo Music
Photo by Redferns
Written by Lyndsey Parker
Biography: Wikipedia
Little Jimmy Scott's Widow Responds to Grammys 'In Memoriam' Snub in Emotional Open Letter
Little Jimmy Scott, a jazz great popularized by Twin Peaks, The Cosby Show, and Michael Jackson, who performed at two Presidential inaugurations during his six-decade career, was one of many artists shockingly omitted from the In Memoriam segment at Sunday’s 57th Annual Grammy Awards.
Now the legend’s widow, Jeanie Scott, has penned a heartbroken open letter to the Grammy committee about this surprising snub.
Jeanie Scott’s full missive below:
To say I was disappointed in the Grammy board not mentioning Jimmy’s passing onto glory on June 12, 2014 in the memorials is putting it mildly.
I was crushed and heartbroken for Jimmy. Here is a man who was cheated in career omissions in life by industry slicksters omitting his name from his own recordings, from songs he wrote or co-wrote, from Savoy Record label owner blocking his masterpiece album produced on Ray Charles's Tangerine label when Ray asked him to be his first artist to record for it, having two more brilliant albums and his career blocked by the same label owner, not getting his due recognition.
Now, to be cheated in death still by certain record labels and not getting the recognition he earned. Jimmy earned it the hard way, by hard work and paying dues. As Ray Charles said, “Jimmy Scott made his mark and was singing from his soul long before the word was ever used.” Liza Minnelli said, “Every singer should get down and kiss his feet.”
Why? Because Jimmy influenced more artists in more genres and generations probably than any other singer. To name a few, ask Nancy Wilson, Frankie Valli, or Little Anthony. There was Frankie Lymon, Little Willie John, Joe Pesci, Marvin Gaye, numerous others, both men and woman vocalists. Even Michael Jackson recorded Jimmy’s first hit record, “Everybody’s Somebody’s Fool,” on his first solo album. He was Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, Big Maybelle, and Etta James’s favorite singer.
Known as a “singer’s singer,” Jimmy not only influenced other singers, but also actors with his deep, dramatic deliveries of telling stories attached to real-life experiences.
Jimmy sang the same song, “Why Was I Born,” at two Presidential inaugurations 40 years apart, in 1953 for Eisenhower and in 1993 for Clinton.
He won the highest honors from the National Endowments of the Arts as a “Jazz Master,” a “Lifetime Achievement Award” from the Jazz Foundation of America, the R&B Foundation “Pioneer Award,” the “Living Legend Award” from the Kennedy Center Jazz in our time. That’s just a few of the honors he received. He was Grammy-nominated for Best Male Jazz in 1992.
Jimmy has also acted in movies and has had numerous recordings on a wide variety of motion picture soundtracks. He’s been the subject of many documentaries, two which got acclaimed recognition on television, one winning awards over 300 other films. The Screen Actors Guild put Jimmy in their memorial page. Why couldn’t the Grammy academy do the same?
Jimmy Scott's highly touted song (covered by legendary singers including Nancy Wilson): "When did you leave heaven". Listen and enjoy.
Jimmy Scott recorded and entertained audiences professionally for eight decades. He never complained about the slights. He was kind, humble, and gracious, he made everyone feel important. Jimmy Scott had a hard life, but a huge heart for everyone he ever met. People who encountered the Jimmy Scott experience never forgot his magic. How could the Grammys forget him?
Jimmy’s Wife,
Jeanie Scott
The Recording Academy did post a longer In Memoriam list on its website, which includes Little Jimmy Scott and other music figures not mentioned in the broadcast segment. Yahoo Music has reached out to the Recording Academy, but as of this writing has not received a statement explaining the on-air snub.
_____________________________
Jimmy Scott's Legacy
Scott's career spanned sixty-five years. He performed with Charlie Parker, Sarah Vaughan, Lester Young, Lionel Hampton, Charles Mingus, Fats Navarro, Quincy Jones, Bud Powell, Ray Charles, Wynton Marsalis, and Peter Cincotti. He also performed with a host of musicians from other genres of music, such as David Byrne, Lou Reed, Flea, Michael Stipe, and Antony & The Johnsons.
Scott performed at the inaugurations of Presidents Dwight Eisenhower (1953) and Clinton (1993), where he sang the same song, "Why Was I Born?". Later, Scott appeared in live performances with the lounge music group Pink Martini, and continued to perform internationally at music festivals and at his own concerts until shortly before his death.
In 2007, Scott received the 2007 NEA Jazz Master Award. He also received the Kennedy Center's "Jazz In Our Time" Living Legend Award, and N.A.B.O.B.'s Pioneer Award in 2007, the "Lifetime Achievement Award from the Jazz Foundation of America" in 2010, the R & B Hall of Fame Induction Award in 2013.
In September 2008 he did a "two-day video interview" at his Vegas home with the "Smithsonian Institute for the National Archives".
Little Jimmy Scott's recording of "If I Ever Lost You" can be heard in the opening credits of the HBO movie Lackawanna Blues. He was also mentioned on The Cosby Show, when Clair and Cliff Huxtable bet on the year in which "An Evening In Paradise" was recorded. On August 17, 2013, at Cleveland State University in his hometown, Cleveland, Ohio, he was inducted into inaugural class of the R&B Music Hall of Fame.
Early life and career
Scott was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to Authur and Justine Stanard Scott, the third in a family of ten. As a child Jimmy got his first singing experience by his mother's side at the family piano, and later, in church choir. At thirteen, he was orphaned when his mother was killed by a drunk driver.
He first rose to prominence as "Little Jimmy Scott" in the Lionel Hampton Band when he sang lead on the late 1940s hit "Everybody's Somebody's Fool", recorded in December 1949, and which became a top ten R&B hit in 1950. Credit on the label, however, went to "Lionel Hampton and vocalists", so the singer's name did not appear on any of the songs. This omission of credit was not only a slight to Scott's talent but a big blow to his career. A similar professional insult occurred several years later when his vocal on "Embraceable You" with Charlie Parker, on the album One Night in Birdland, was credited to female vocalist Chubby Newsome.
Lionel Hampton gave him the stage name of "Little Jimmy Scott" because he looked so young, and was short and of slight build. However, it was his extraordinary phrasing and romantic feeling that made him a favorite singer of fellow artists such as Billie Holiday, Ray Charles, Frankie Valli, Dinah Washington and Nancy Wilson.
In 1963, it looked as though Scott's luck had changed: he signed to Ray Charles' Tangerine Records label, under the supervision of Charles himself, creating what is considered by many to be one of the great jazz vocal albums of all time, Falling in Love is Wonderful.
Owing to obligations on an earlier contract that Scott had signed with Herman Lubinsky, the record was withdrawn in a matter of days, while Scott was on honeymoon. The album was not re-released for forty years. Scott disputes the "lifetime" contract; Lubinsky loaned Jimmy out to Syd Nathan at King Records for 45 recordings in 1957–58. Another album, The Source (1969), was not released until 2001.
Scott's career faded by the late 1960s and he returned to his native Cleveland to work as a hospital orderly, shipping clerk and as an elevator operator in a hotel.
Comeback and later work
Scott eventually resurfaced in 1991 when he sang at the funeral of songwriter Doc Pomus, his long-time friend, an event that single-handedly sparked his career renaissance. Afterwards Lou Reed recruited him to sing back-up on the track "Power and Glory" from his 1992 album Magic and Loss, which was inspired, to an extent, by Pomus's death. Scott was seen on the series finale of David Lynch's television series Twin Peaks, singing "Sycamore Trees", a song with lyrics by Lynch and music by Angelo Badalamenti. Scott was featured on the soundtrack of the follow-up film, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me.
Also in attendance at Pomus's funeral was Seymour Stein, founder and operator of Sire Records, who released Scott's 1992 album All The Way, produced by Tommy Lipuma and featuring artists such as Kenny Barron, Ron Carter, and David "Fathead" Newman. Scott was nominated for a Grammy Award for this album.
He followed this up with the album Dream in 1994 and the jazz-gospel album Heaven in 1996. His next work, a critically acclaimed album of pop and rock interpretations entitled Holding Back The Years (1998), was produced by Gerry McCarthy and Dale Ashley. Released in the US on Artists Only Records in October 1998, it peaked at #14 on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart. In Japan, it won the prestigious Swing Journal Award for Best Jazz Album Of The Year (2000). The title track marked the first time in his career that Scott overdubbed his own harmony vocal tracks. Holding Back The Years features cover art by Mark Kostabi, liner notes by Lou Reed, and includes critically acclaimed versions of "Nothing Compares 2 U" (written by Prince), "Jealous Guy" (John Lennon), "Almost Blue" (Elvis Costello), and "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word" (Elton John & Bernie Taupin).
In 1999, Scott's early recordings on the Decca label were re-released on CD, as were all of his recordings with the Savoy Label between 1952 and 1975 in a three-disc box set. In 2000, Scott signed to the Milestone jazz label, and recorded four critically acclaimed albums, each produced by Todd Barkan, and featuring a variety of jazz artists, including Wynton Marsalis, Renee Rosnes, Bob Kindred, Eric Alexander, Lew Soloff, George Mraz, Lewis Nash, as well as Scott's own touring and recording band "The Jazz Expressions". He also released two live albums, both recorded in Japan, featuring the Jazz Expressions.
In 2012, he joined the 11th annual Independent Music Awards judging panel to assist independent musicians' careers.
He died on June 12, 2014, aged 88. He died in his sleep at his home in Las Vegas of cardiac arrest.
While conflicting reports continue to swirl online regarding the status of Bobbi Kristina, the Brown family has finally released an official statement on Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown's hospitalized daughter.
Although they don’t reveal anything specific about the comatose 21-year-old’s current condition, they specifically blast the “false reporting of TMZ, The National Enquirer, The Atlanta Journal Constitution and the Daily Mail (UK),” calling them out for writing articles based on unnamed “sources.”
Read the full statement here:
"We support the candlelight vigil for Bobbi Kristina. The Brown family is amazed by the love and support from all that attended." Said Christopher Brown of Brown & Rosen LLC, legal counsel for Bobby Brown. "However the false reports that continue to appear in print and on the internet are egregious, false and will be dealt with at an appropriate time. In particular, the false reporting of TMZ, The National Enquirer, The Atlanta Journal Constitution and the Daily Mail (UK) citing, police sources, family sources and Bobby Brown himself, will receive my attention. The desire to be "first" has clouded the judgment of many reporters as they forgo accuracy. This is a criminal investigation and the integrity of that process requires silence." Brown added.
"We continue to request privacy in this matter. We thank everyone that supported the vigil for Bobbi Kristina. God is hearing our prayers." Said Bobby Brown.
Bobby Brown's Family Bloody Brawl at a Hotel in Georgia
Bobby Brown and daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown
Story by ET
Written by Antoinette Bueno
Tension between Bobbi Kristina Brown’s family was so high on Friday that a fight erupted in an Atlanta hotel near the hospital where the 21-year-old daughter of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown is currently hanging on through life support.
“Fight call was involving the family members of pop star Bobby Brown. One victim Shayne Brown was struck in the head with a bottle by suspect Tina Brown,” Atlanta Police Department officer Kim Jones told TheWrap of the brawl at the W Hotel.
Shayne, who received lacerations to his head, is Bobby’s cousin, while Tina is Bobby Brown’s sister.
“Mr. Shayne Brown chose to drive himself to the hospital,” the officer’s statement continued. “Mrs. Tina Brown left the scene before police arrived. The motive of the fight is unclear at this time. Mr. Shayne Brown received lacerations to his head.”
Details are scant, as the full report is not ready yet, according to the officer.
Paramedics were called to Bobbi Kristina’s house last Saturday when live-in partner, Nick Gordon, and a friend found her unconscious and face down in a bathtub. After initial treatment at North Fulton Hospital in Roswell, she was transferred to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta Monday, and is currently in a medically induced coma.
Fans of Drake, Nicki Minaj, Chris Brown and Usher will have a new choice on the FM dial in Los Angeles tomorrow at 9:23 am. That’s when iHeartMedia will flip rhythmic oldies “Hot 92.3” KHHT to urban as “Real 92.3.”
Programmed by iHeart SVP of urban programming Doc Wynter, the station will challenge Emmis rhythmic CHR “Power 106” KPWR. KHHT, which has offered mornings to KPWR morning man Big Boy, will launch with "10,000 joints in a row" commercial-free.
We Remember Golf Pioneer Charlie Sifford, who died last night at age 92
President Obama speaks about great golf pioneer Charlie Sifford, while bestowing on Sifford the nation's highest honor, the "Presidential Medal of Freedom"
________________________________________ The White House released a statement from President Obama on Wednesday:
"Charlie was the first African-American to earn a PGA Tour card -- often facing indignity and injustice even as he faced the competition," the statement from the President read. "Though his best golf was already behind him, he proved that he belonged, winning twice on tour and blazing a trail for future generations of athletes in America. I was honored to award Charlie the Presidential Medal of Freedom last year -- for altering the course of the sport and the country he loved. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, his friends, and his fans."
_________________________________________ "Mr Charlie Sifford died tonite, the greatest African American Golfer most of you never heard of. RIP, Sir"! - Actor/Golf Enthusiast Samual L Jackson -
_________________________________________
Story below by ESPN/AP
Charlie Sifford, who only wanted a chance to play and who broke the color barrier in golf as the first black PGA Tour member, died Tuesday night, the PGA of America said.
Sifford, who recently had suffered a stroke, was 92. Details of his death and funeral arrangements were not immediately available.
"His love of golf, despite many barriers in his path, strengthened him as he became a beacon for diversity in our game," PGA of America president Derek Sprague said. "By his courage, Dr. Sifford inspired others to follow their dreams. Golf was fortunate to have had this exceptional American in our midst."
A proud man who endured racial taunts and threats, Sifford set modest goals and achieved more than he had imagined.
Sifford challenged the Caucasian-only clause, and the PGA rescinded it in 1961. He won the Greater Hartford Open in 1967 and the Los Angeles Open in 1969. He also won the 1975 Senior PGA Championship, five years before the Champions Tour was created.
His career was fully recognized in 2004 when he became the first African-American inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. This past November, President Barack Obama presented him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer are the only other golfers who received that honor.
Charlie Sifford, the Jackie Robinson of golf, receives the nation's highest honor - Presidential Medal of Freedom - from President Barack Obama. ESPN's Rick Reilly reflects on the life and legacy of Charlie Sifford.
"Charlie won tournaments, but more important, he broke a barrier," Nicklaus once said. "I think what Charlie Sifford has brought to his game has been monumental."
The one goal that eluded him was a chance to play in the Masters, which did not invite its first black player until Lee Elder in 1975. Sifford remained bitter, although the pain was eased when Tiger Woods won the first of his four green jackets in 1997.
Woods often has said he would not have played golf if not for Sifford and other black pioneers.
"It's been tough. Very tough," Tiger Woods said in a statement Wednesday. "As I've alluded to in the past, he's like my grandpa that I never had. And it's been a long night and it's going to be a long few days.
Stephen A. Smith comments on the loss of Charlie Sifford
"But he fought, and what he did, the courage it took for him to stick with it and be out here and play, I probably wouldn't be here, my dad wouldn't have picked up the game, who knows if the clause would still exist or not. But he broke it down."
The road was never easy.
Sifford was born on June 22, 1922, in Charlotte, North Carolina. He worked as a caddie and dominated the all-black United Golfers Association, winning five straight national titles. He longed to play against the best players, only to run into the same barrier that Teddy Rhodes and Bill Spiller faced -- the Caucasian-only clause.
In his autobiography, "Just Let Me Play," Sifford told of meeting Jackie Robinson in California about the time Robinson was trying to break the color barrier in baseball.
"He asked me if I was a quitter," Sifford wrote. "I told him no. He said, 'If you're not a quitter, you're probably going to experience some things that will make you want to quit.'"
(Photo by Getty images) During the 1952 Phoenix Open, one of the few events in which black golfers could play, Sifford found human feces in the cup when he got to the first green. He received death threats over the phone at the 1961 Greater Greensboro Open and heard racial slurs as he walked the fairways. He finished fourth, and didn't quit.
He was beloved by some of golf's biggest stars, including Nicklaus and Palmer.
During his Hall of Fame induction ceremony, Sifford told of his first meeting with Palmer. They were playing in the 1955 Canadian Open, and Sifford opened with a 63 to lead Palmer by 1 shot. He recalled Palmer standing in front of the scoreboard saying, "Charlie Sifford? How the hell did he shoot 63?"
"I'm standing right behind him," Sifford said. "I said, 'The same damn way you shot 64.' That's how we met."
Sifford also received an honorary doctorate degree from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland for his career as a pioneer.
He often attended the Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone, not far from his home in Ohio. During an interview with the AP in 2000, Sifford said he was proud of the role he played in making the PGA Tour accessible to African-Americans.
"If I hadn't acted like a professional when they sent me out, if I did something crazy, there would never be any blacks playing," he said. "I toughed it out. I'm proud of it. All those people were against me, and I'm looking down on them now."
L.A. morning radio show legend Big Boy (Kurt Alexander) says he’s ‘crushed’ by Emmis' suit
Story by Inside Radio
Link: http://kirktanter.blogspot.com/2015/02/emmis-sues-las-big-boy-over-possible.html
A day after Emmis Communications filed suit against rhythmic CHR “Power 106” KPWR, Los Angeles morning man Kurt Alexander for taking steps to leave the station, the host better known as Big Boy took to social media to offer a limited response. His message was largely a thank you to fans that have been with him through his two decades at KPWR, saying he is “crushed” by the lawsuit.
“This is bigger than a radio logo,” he writes, adding, “I’ll be able to tell the real … soon.” Emmis has asked the California Superior Court to issue an injunction keeping Alexander from joining iHeartMedia, which it alleges has plans to build a new urban station around the personality. Emmis tells the court it’s essentially met the terms of that three-year offer, including a $3.5 million salary, which under Alexander’s contract requires him to remain on KPWR. His current contract — which reportedly pays him $1.45 million per year — expires February 28, and several of “Big Boy’s Neighborhood” cast members have already quit KPWR.
Emmis has already scrubbed references to the show from the station’s website.
At least 31 killed as plane hits bridge, crashes in Taipei river
A dash-cam video captured the moment the plane hurtled out of control above the city's Nanhu Bridge before crashing into the Keelung River (Getty Images)
Story by CNN
Written by Euan McKirdy and Vivian Kam
A passenger plane clipped a bridge and plunged into a river in Taiwan on Wednesday, killing at least 31 people, according to the island's official news agency, CNA.
Rescuers scrambled to pull survivors from the submerged wreck of the ATR 72 twin-engine turboprop aircraft, which went down shortly after takeoff from Taipei, the Taiwanese capital.
Fifty-eight people were aboard TransAsia Airways Flight GE235 when it veered out of control as it flew to Kinmen, off the coast of the Chinese province of Xiamen.
The toll: 31 confirmed dead, 15 injured, including two on the ground, and 12 missing, officials said. The search and rescue effort continues.
The plane's pilot and two co-pilots were among those confirmed dead.
Crews later recovered the aircraft's "black boxes," said CNA, the island's official news agency. The flight data recorder and voice data recorder were found in the tail of the plane, Ang Xingzhong, the executive director of Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council, told the news agency.
Plane clips highway
A dash-cam video captured the moment the plane hurtled out of control above the city's Nanhu Bridge before crashing into the Keelung River, just after 11 a.m. local time (10 p.m. ET).
CNA reported that the pilot appeared to try to control the plane as it descended, but the aircraft's wing grazed the overpass, clipping a passing taxi.
The two people in the taxi were injured but are in stable condition after being taken to hospital, CNA said.
The news agency reported on the efforts of one father who was injured in the crash. The man, who was not identified, was aboard with his wife and 1-year-old baby. The father, upon learning that his wife and child had been sent to separate hospitals, rode a bike to find his wife and baby, CNA said.
The wife and baby are injured but did not suffer life-threatening wounds, doctors said, according to the news agency. The father was barely injured.
Rescuers in lifeboats pulled survivors from the water and the wreckage. Some passengers appeared to be wearing life jackets as they waited their turn to board rescue boats.
The military said it had 165 personnel and numerous vehicles nearby to assist rescue efforts if required.
_________________________________ Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/04/asia/taiwan-plane-crash-transasia/index.html
Emmis sues L.A.’s Big Boy over possible move - a Multi-MILLION Dollar battle (includes revenue share and company jet usage)
Story by Inside Radio
Emmis Communications has filed a lawsuit in California Superior Court against rhythmic CHR “Power 106” KPWR, Los Angeles morning man Kurt Alexander, known to listeners as Big Boy, to block him from crossing the street to iHeartMedia. The suit alleges iHeart offered him a lucrative deal to leave his Emmis radio home of two decades with the intention of building a new L.A. station around the personality’s brand.
Emmis claims its contract with Alexander gives it the right to match the offer put on the table by iHeartMedia — something the company says it has done — and now it’s asking a judge to issue an injunction keeping the 45-year old personality from moving to the competitor. His current agreement expires February 28.
Emmis CEO Jeff Smulyuan says he’s “dismayed” by Alexander’s efforts to leave KPWR — the station discovered him working as a body guard more than 20 years ago. “I am personally saddened by his actions and the impact they will have on our brand and our people,” Smulyan said in a statement.
Emmis’ effort to keep longtime “Power 106” KPWR personality Kurt “Big Boy” Alexander will likely come down to whether a judge concludes its offer is “substantially similar” to what iHeartMedia is offering. It also offers a peek into what some of radio’s top personalities are earning in 2015.
According to Emmis’ complaint filed in a Los Angeles courthouse yesterday, Alexander was offered $3.5 million in annual compensation to jump to iHeart. The three-year deal would also include a 16% net revenue share once the newly-launched station starts making money, a commitment of $1 million of marketing for the station a year, custom channels on iHeartRadio, $200,000 a year to develop video and TV projects, and access to the company’s private jet twice a year.
Alexander’s current Emmis contract says if the company ponies up whatever a rival offers, he agrees to stay at KPWR. “Emmis wishes to continue its long-term, highly successful relationship with Alexander,” the company tells the court.
While the legal fight moves forward, Emmis has pulled “Big Boy’s Neighborhood” off the air. And the company says several of his show’s cast members have quit KPWR over the past few days. Night host J. Cruz is currently anchoring the station’s morning show.
The Emmis complaint doesn’t indicate which station could become Big Boy’s new iHeart home, and the company declined to comment on the suit. But there may be signals the company is aiming to revive its urban “The Beat” brand on what’s currently rhythmic oldies “Hot 92.3” KHHT with the anonymous registration of the website 923TheBeatLA.com last week.
American Federation of Teachers' President states: "President Obama’s Budget Gives More Families a Pathway to the Middle Class"
For Immediate Release
February 2, 2015
AFT’s Weingarten: President’s Budget Gives More Families a Pathway to the Middle Class>
WASHINGTON—Statement from American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten on the president's budget for the 2015 fiscal year.
"Government can't do it all, but it can help level the playing field for working families. That's what the president's budget aims to do. By targeting investments in child care and paid sick leave, enabling more students to go to community college and helping battle America's worn infrastructure, it gives more families a pathway to the middle class.
"Nowhere is this truer than in the president's focus on children. With half of public school students living in poverty and more than 30 states funding public education at pre-recession levels, the president's proposed $1 billion increase in Title I funding will be a huge help. It will give all kids equal resources, including the computers, lower class sizes, and nurses and counselors they need, even when their communities can't afford to give it to them.
This was what President Johnson envisioned 50 years ago when he passed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act as part of his War on Poverty. Today, this investment is more important than ever.
"The investments the president proposes will help the middle class and grow our economy. The taxes he proposes simply ask those who have done very well to help others climb up that same ladder of opportunity. But unless Congress acts to both end sequestration and implement the president's proposals, it will mean nothing to working families who continue to feel left behind from an economy that increasingly benefits only the wealthy few."
Contact: Kate Childs Graham
202-615-2424
kchilds@aft.org
www.aft.org
President Obama’s Four-TRILLION Dollar Budget Sets Up Fight with Congress
President Obama's Weekly Address on the new budget proposal, "A Path Towards a Thriving Middle Class" (Video by White House).
LINK TO PRESIDENT OBAMA'S BUDGET: http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/
Story by Bloomberg News
Written by Jonathan Allen
President Barack Obama will send a $4 trillion budget blueprint to Congress today that would raise taxes on corporations and the nation’s top earners, fund major investments in infrastructure and education and stabilize, but not eliminate, the annual U.S. budget deficit.
The plan challenges Republicans to make politically thorny choices between defending current tax rates for the wealthy and Obama’s proposals to boost spending for the middle class, the Pentagon and companies that build domestic infrastructure.
That’s exactly the ground Democrats want to fight on heading into the 2016 elections. Addressing income inequality has become a mantra for Democrats from Obama to 2016 presidential nomination front-runner Hillary Clinton, and some of the Republican contenders have taken up the issue as well.
The budget plan for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1 backs up Obama’s recent talk about directing assistance to the middle class with tax breaks and programs for education, job training and child care, administration officials said. Rather than dialing back his goals after Republicans expanded their House majority and took control of the Senate in November’s midterm elections, the president is pursuing a more aggressive strategy.
Republicans were out with criticism even before the budget documents arrived at the Capitol.
New England beat the Seattle Seahawks to win the 2015 Super Bowl
Fans celebrate as Pats win. (Video by AFP)
Story by AP
Written by Ian O'Connor
ESPN Video Link: http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=espn:12266529
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Ten years removed from his last Super Bowl win, Tom Brady wasn't letting this one slip away.
Sure, the brilliant Brady needed a huge play by an undrafted rookie to preserve New England's 28-24 Super Bowl victory over Seattle on Sunday night.
But Brady's imprint was all over the Patriots' sensational fourth-quarter rally for their fourth NFL championship of the Brady-Bill Belichick era.
"You know, whatever it takes," the record-setting Brady said after throwing for four touchdowns, including a 3-yarder to Julian Edelman with 2:02 remaining as New England rallied from a 10-point deficit. "Every team has a journey and a lot of people lost faith in us ... but we held strong, we held together, and it's a great feeling."
The Patriots (15-4) had to survive a last-ditch drive by the Seahawks (14-5), who got to the 1, helped by a spectacular juggling catch by Jermaine Kearse. Then Malcolm Butler stepped in front of Ricardo Lockette to pick off Russell Wilson's pass and complete one of the wildest Super Bowl finishes.
Brady leaped for joy on the Patriots sideline after Butler's first career interception.
"It wasn't the way we drew it up," said Brady, who won his third Super Bowl MVP award. "It was a lot of mental toughness. Our team has had it all year. We never doubted each other, so that's what it took."
Brady surpassed Joe Montana's mark of 11 Super Bowl touchdown passes with a 4-yarder to Danny Amendola to bring the Patriots within three points.
Seattle, seeking to become the first repeat NFL champion since New England a decade ago, was outplayed for the first half, yet tied at 14. The Seahawks scored the only 10 points of the third period, but the NFL-leading defense couldn't slow the brilliant Brady when it counted most.
"He's Tom Brady," Edelman said. "He's the greatest quarterback on the planet."
It didn't matter how much air was in the balls, Brady was unstoppable when the pressure was strongest. While pushing aside the controversy over air pressure in the footballs stemming from the AFC title game, the Patriots moved the ball easily in the final 12 minutes.
Seattle didn't quit -- it never does -- and Kearse's 33-yard catch with 1:06 remaining got it to the 5. Marshawn Lynch rushed for 4 yards, then backup cornerback Butler, who was victimized on Kearse's reception, made the biggest play of his first NFL season with 20 seconds remaining.
"I just had a vision that I was going to make a big play and it came true," Butler said. "I'm just blessed. I can't explain it right now. It's crazy."
Lynch, when asked if he was surprised he didn't get the ball in that goal-line situation, told ESPN's Jim Trotter: "No. Because we play football. It's a team sport."
Seahawks linebacker Bruce Irvin was ejected in the final seconds for instigating a near-brawl, delaying the celebration for the Patriots.
Soon they were mobbing one another on the same field where their 2007 unbeaten season was ruined in the Super Bowl by the Giants. They also fell to the Giants for the 2011 title.
But thanks to superstar Brady and the obscure Butler, they are champions again.
"Malcolm, what a play," Brady said. "I mean, for a rookie to make a play like that in a Super Bowl and win us the game, it was unbelievable."
Brady has equaled Montana with four Lombardi Trophies and three Super Bowl MVPs. He stands alone with 13 Super Bowl touchdown passes. He was 37 for 50 for 328 yards against the NFL's top-ranked defense.
He also was picked off twice; Brady was intercepted a total of two times in his previous five Super Bowls.
Yet, he picked apart the Seahawks on fourth-quarter drives of 68 and 64 yards, solidifying his championship legacy.
His heroics offset those of Chris Matthews, one of Seattle's least-used players before the postseason. Matthews recovered the onside kick that helped the Seahawks beat Green Bay in overtime for the NFC crown, and had a breakout performance Sunday.
Having never caught a pass in the NFL, Matthews grabbed four for 109 yards and a touchdown. Lynch ran for 102 yards, but didn't get the ball at the 1 on the decisive play -- a decision the Seahawks will rue forever.
"For it to come down to a play like that, I hate that we have to live with that," coach Pete Carroll said, "because we did everything right to win the football game."
The teams got down to football under the open retractable roof at University of Phoenix Stadium -- the first venue to host an indoor and an outdoor Super Bowl -- after dealing with distractions far beyond the typical Super Bowl hype. The Patriots are still being investigated for using for those under-inflated footballs the AFC championship game.
It was a game of spurts by both teams before a crowd of 70,288 that was clearly pro-Seattle.
Jeremy Lane made the first big play to negate a nearly eight-minute drive by the Patriots with a leaping interception at the goal line late in the first quarter. Lane made his first pro interception, but left with a wrist injury after being tackled by Julian Edelman.
His replacement, Tharold Simon, got torched by Brady the rest of the way.
Wilson didn't get off a pass in the first quarter. When Brady completed his record 50th postseason TD throw, 11 yards to Brandon LaFell against Simon, it was 7-0.
Seattle went to its bench to help tie it.
Matthews' first career catch, a reaching 44-yarder over Kyle Arrington and by far the longest first-half play for Seattle, led to Lynch's bruising 3-yard TD run to make it 7-7.
But Brady to Rob Gronkowski made it 14-7 and seemed to finish off a dominant first half for the Patriots. Except no one told the resilient Seahawks.
A dormant offense turned dangerous in a span of 29 seconds, covering 80 yards in five plays, including a late gamble. Lockette caught a 23-yard pass and Arrington was flagged for a facemask, putting Seattle at the 10 with :06 remaining. Carroll went for it and the new Seahawks star, Matthews, grabbed Wilson's pass in the left corner of the end zone.
It was the most lopsided halftime tie imaginable.
Then Seattle stormed to a 24-14 lead in the third quarter on Steven Hauschka's 27-yard field goal and Doug Baldwin's 3-yard TD reception. New England was stumbling -- until Brady once again stepped up.
"I've been at it for 15 years and we've had a couple of tough losses in this game," Brady said. "This one came down to the end, and this time, we made the plays."
The Patriots will celebrate their title with a victory parade at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Boston mayor Marty Walsh said. The parade will start at the Prudential Center and end at City Hall.
Serena Williams wins Austrailian Open passing Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova in Grand Slam victories
Serena Williams started with "A ball, a racket and hope" beats Maria Sharapova 6-3, 7-6 to win the Australian Open, her 19th Grand Slam title, for the sixth time.
Story by ESPN
Written by Peter Bodo
Serena Williams grew nostalgic in the victory speech following her win over Maria Sharapova in the Australian Open final Saturday. She made a reference to the hardships of her youth and declared, "I went on court with a ball, a racket and hope."
When Williams finally drops that ball, leans the racket on the chair one last time, it will be as arguably the greatest female tennis player of all time. And I say "arguably" only because accolades of that nature always are. What is clear is that Williams' hopes were realized, and beyond the wildest imaginings she might have entertained as a child, some time ago.
But why stop now? Why rest content at age 33?
Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Williams' career is that she's come close to turning a familiar equation upside down. During the early portion of her career, she was shy and often uncertain in every area but the one she entered when she walked onto the court. In mid-career, she seemed somewhat adrift, not exactly sure of her identity after she was worked over on the anvil of fame. Now, in the late stage of her career, she seems to want nothing more than to play and win, and she seems completely absorbed in those ambitions. In other words, she's like a child embarking on her quest with a ball, a racket and hope.
This was Williams' sixth Australian Open title and her 19th Grand Slam singles trophy (she broke a three-way tie with Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova). She is a staggering 19-4 in Grand Slam tournament finals. This win now opens a number of new conversations: Can she win a calendar-year Grand Slam? Can she track down the only Open-era player who still owns more major titles (Steffi Graf, who has 22)? Is there anyone on the WTA horizon who can consistently -- or even periodically -- challenge her?
These are very different queries from the ones left in the wake of the 2014 Australian Open. A year ago, almost to the day, Williams absorbed a fourth-round beating inflicted by the No. 14 seed in Melbourne, Ana Ivanovic. She then went to Paris and suffered an utterly unexpected humiliation, winning just four games in a second-round clash with youngster Garbine Muguruza.
At Wimbledon, Williams went just one round further, losing to Alize Cornet. Nobody was talking about Williams catching Graf; the conversation was about Father Time catching Williams. She eluded his grasp with a win at the US Open, but some thought it might be a last hurrah, propelled by a home-court advantage. It was merely a turning of the page to a new chapter Williams began to write this week in Melbourne.
Right now, there is no woman player who poses a significant, realistic threat to the Serena Williams we saw during the second week of this major. In the final, she demonstrated that she is still quick, strong and steady enough to withstand the barrages of Sharapova at her absolute best, which is better than any other woman at her peak. Sharapova is a vastly improved player over the past two years. But even that raising of the ante was insufficient to snap this decade-long, 16-match streak of losses to Williams. It left Sharapova somewhat Yoda-esque afterward.
"I actually believe that we attract what we're ready for," she told reporters when she was asked about her awful record against Williams. "Yes, I haven't won against her many times, but if I'm getting to the stage of competing against someone like Serena, I'm doing something well."
But one thing Sharapova isn't doing well -- at least not well enough to recast the terms of the rivalry -- is serve. She is to be admired, because no player to my knowledge has rebounded from significant shoulder surgery to win a major. But that doesn't alter the fact that Sharapova's delivery is unreliable. It may have cost her Saturday's match, because her first-serve conversion rate in the critical final stages was abysmal. But let's not forget to put some of that down to FS, the widespread affliction the WTA has been living with since Williams won her first major in 1999: Fear of Serena.
By contrast, the serve won this match for Williams. She finished with 18 aces and had easily as many unreturnables. Williams' proficiency at the notch is a powerful antidote to her age, should such even be needed. You can throw the ball up and give it a good ride without having to run or react well into your 40s. As Sharapova said, "That's one of her biggest strengths, her serve. Maybe it's something that has saved her in many matches."
Williams herself went a bit further. Pondering how she won that second set with the way Sharapova was clocking those forehand winners (two of them dismissed match points), Williams said: "I started serving better in the second set because I knew if I wasn't having my groundstrokes where I wanted them to be, I knew I could serve it out. So yeah, it definitely got really interesting."
So interesting that after Sharapova escaped those two match points, and after an apparent match-ending ace was called back because it had ticked the net, Williams thought, "I am not meant to win this tournament." She fell into a panic at that moment, with conflicting urges about where to hit her next serve. She finally just tossed it up and hit it as hard as she could.
It was an ace.
Who is there left to challenge Williams now? Petra Kvitova has the serve and explosive shot-making, but she's a flawed competitor. Agnieszka Radwanska lacks the power. Halep has yet to show she can deliver regularly at significant events, and talents like Muguruza and Madison Keys, who played well against Williams in the semifinals, have yet to prove themselves.
Williams will likely take some losses this year, but not because one or more players are capable of running her to the ground. You might as well put the names of the top 100 into a hat and predict who might upset her by drawing one out now and then. It may not be a very scientific way to go about predicting, but it's honest.
No, it seems it will be Williams doing all the chasing, resuming a hunt that was postponed in 2014. The French Open will be a major obstacle, but not an insurmountable one. Her serve is even more effective on Wimbledon grass, and she's in a deep comfort zone at the US Open. Williams could equal Graf's Grand Slam title count -- and simultaneously join her as a woman who achieved a calendar-year Grand Slam -- within eight months.
It would seem a goal that could only be dreamed up by a naive child. A child with a ball, a racket and hope.
