Academy Awards "Whitest In 10 Years?" Means American Media Grew Up

For a time today, searching for "Academy Awards" results in Google News revealed a shocking result: CNN and The Huffington Post, to name some of the major outlets, pointing out that there are no major black award nominees at this year's 83rd Academy Awards.

While that news is sad, the fact that more mainstream media outlets are pointing to this is something to be celebrated.

Since many such news outlets are mostly white, it means a new generation of young white writers and bloggers are not afraid to hold up a collective mirror at an American Institution, as the Academy Awards are, and say "You need to diversify, dude!" The question is, what can or will AMPAS, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, do to make up for this problem?

What AMPAS can do is have more presenters of color. The Academy just sent a press release announcing that Hugh Jackman will be a presenter. Ah, good for the talented Jackman, but that's not solving the diversity demographic problem.

It's logical to assert that if the 83rd Academy Awards are seen as "too white," people may not watch it to the degree that they did last year.  Think about it: we're seeing the emergence of a group of young white people who really embrace diversity and not just as an idea, but as an ideal.   That means if they think the Oscars are too white, they just may not tune in at the levels that AMPAS would like to see to do better in ratings than for 2010.

AMPAS has a problem.

Why not invite an entertainer like Beyonce or Lee Daniels (The Producer of Precious) to be a presenter? Why not Zoe Saldana from Avatar? Yes, The Academy would be seen as dealing with a diversity problem, but so what?

That's the way people should think.

Bravo to American Media for noticing this Oscars problem and pointing to it.

Now, if the New York Times would say something about this, we'll throw a party!

Goals & Hope

An update from Nikky Raney, Executive Editor.
Lack of posts have been from some very important things that have been going on that have been quite.. intense and time consuming.. but there will be a Jersey Shore recap tonight.

MTA to Restore Service in Aftermath of Storm

At MTA.info the Metropolitan Transportation Authorities are working hard to restore their services. For quite a few residents in New York the transit and metros are their only means of transportation from place to place other than taxis - so having a lack of public transportation has really become something detrimental for those in the area.

The site says:

The MTA is working hard to restore service in the aftermath of a storm that dumped more than a foot of snow in parts of the region. Service is suspended in parts of the system as crews continue to remove snow and ice from tracks, switches, stations and roadways. Please check back to MTA.info for the latest updates, allow extra time and be careful when walking and boarding.

The site then lists specifics for each transit including New York City Transit,  MTA Bus, Long Island Railroad, Long Island Bus, Metro-North Railroad, and others.

CBS gave an update that many of the services have been restored, but to keep checking on the actual site for more information that is up-to-date.

Academy Awards News: Oscars Social Media Effort Slammed

After a lot of badgering in 2010, and by emails from folks like this blogger, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) is finally stepping out and giving social media a go (even has a Twitter account @TheAcademy). But the problem is that while AMPAS effort shows all of the typical markings of the Hollywood organization that just doesn't get it, it is to be congratulated for at least giving it a go, and the tech pubs aren't playing along with that idea.

Now, here's what AMPAS did wrong. (And why it's a bad idea to send press releases to snarky tech publications.)

First, AMPAS must realize the whole idea behind social media and new media is to quickly and cheaply disseminate information. Period. As one who's been involved with this since before "social media" became a term, and Marc Canter, arguably the inventor of the social network, was talking to me about the "People Aggregator" way back in 2002, the idea was as much about sharing info as connecting with people.

That means, in this case, AMPAS has to do one thing: produce content. That means The Academy must have its own blog - it doesn't.  And that's a sure sign the social media efforts not going to work as well as it could. A blog, connected to @TheAcademy twitter page, Facebook, YouTube, MySpace, Hi5, and other platforms, like FriendFeed, will allow it to rapidly distribute information. It can even use the contents from its own press releases.

And AMPAS effort has totally forgotten its YouTube page (which hasn't been updated in a month). So while the revamped website will have "cams" for the "winners walk" and the "dressing room," and all for $4.99, it will not have new videos uploaded to its YouTube page, then sent to its blog, then Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms.  (Plus, it lacks a Twitter follow button at the top!)

In other words, AMPAS has totally missed the fact that social media is really about sharing your content. And to do that, it means you've got to what?

That's right: produce content.

The other thing AMPAS missed was that it sent a press release targeted at tech publications and totally avoided its press base, where its fans are, which are far less likely to be nasty about AMPAS efforts.  I didn't get a press release on this, or even an email, and this news isn't popping up at Awards Daily.   That's a HUGE error.

Why?

Because by issuing a press release to the tech pubs, AMPAS is acting like an unattractive cougar placing herself on the lap of a disinterested 20-year-old: all that will come from the act is a set of snarky comments, and that's what Fast Company ("Academy Awards nominees were just announced--but Oscar hyperbole is already in full swing.") and TIME's TechLand ("Oscars Revamp Website, Realize Social Media Exists") have provided.

And that shows the biggest problem, one that's typical in Hollywood today: segregationist thinking applied to tech. That is, "I've heard of you, there for you must be the right publication." People, especially Hollywood PR folks, make this mistake all the time.

The 21st Century reality is that the PR person is supposed to know how to use tech to share information with a wide audience and always starts with their base - their fans - who are in a lot of cases more well-connected online and know tech as well as the tech pubs.

That's true for the people on AMPAS press list, but The Academy just ignored them!

So AMPAS should have sent a press release out to its list, and then created a blog and a video that it placed on YouTube, Blip.tv, and other video platforms using Tubemogul, then distributed it with Twitter and Google Buzz. The idea is a simple one: make your own news, share it with your friends, and spread it around.

And AMPAS has a lot of news to share.

In the case of Tech, AMPAS forgot its friends, and that's why it failed in this initial effort. But the good news is The Academy can always get back on that horse and ride again.

Oakland's Jack London Inn Called "Second Dirtiest Hotel" In America

Oakland, California's Jack London Inn could use better publicity than this, but at least it's getting noticed. This YouTube video presents the hotel in a condition that reportedly is far afield from normal, which is to say "clean."



Gawker called the place right across the railroad tracks from Jack London Square the "Second Dirtiest Hotel" in America.

Moreover, the blog post includes an at best unflattering and at worst horrifying example of what a guest is likely to witness if they stay at the JL Inn:

Because the Jack London Inn has that mirrored film on the windows, I didn't notice the 4 VERY salty cops in the lobby conducting an investigation of what sounded like a murderous brawl until I was standing among them in the cramped lobby. A person I inferred was a WITNESS was handcuffed to a chair. The cop was basically telling a nervous young man in a ghetto fab ensemble, "Look, if we take in we'll have to process you for this huge, no-bail, extradition warrant out for your arrest. Or, we can take you in the back and you can give us GOOD INFO about what happened up there and you can handle your business before you get arrested again, 'cuz next time you go away, it's gonna be for a long time." I was kind of surprised they would be doing this in a publicly accessible area, but they seemed as surprised to see me as I was to see them. This shit was straight out of "Training Day."

That should give the managers and owners of the JL Inn cause for concern.  But maybe they just don't have the cash for improvements?  Regardless, the hotel needs to clean up its image.

The Jack London Inn is a great example of why we have and need the California Redevelopment Agencies California Governor Jerry Brown wants to wrong-headedly get rid of. The area's blighted and Oaklanders know it.   The JL Inn needs to be declared a safety hazard, sold, and rebuilt.

U-Cubed Response to Obama's State of the Union Address

Here is the U-Cubed response to Obama's State of the Union Address yesterday. It is short and directly to the point (so unlike my own 99er response on YouTube earlier today).

From the U-Cubed Website:

Last night President Barack Obama issued a BURN NOTICE for jobless Americans. They are to remain in limbo — without jobs, without relief, without hope — until long after his term ends. Their careers, credit, savings and homes are forfeit. And the government he leads will do little to alleviate their distress.

For the 99ers whose benefits are exhausted and the 62 percent of the jobless who never qualified for unemployment, President Barack Obama had neither kind words nor new policies. In fact, he spoke as if they did not exist.

As a result, millions of jobless Americans were left to their own devices. Now they must rely on friends and family to simply survive. And survive they will. But they will never forget nor will they forgive the BURN NOTICE issued during this State of the Union.

Acting Executive Director,
Rick Sloan

Wow - very well put!

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A 99ers Response to the State of the Union Address - Offered by Paladinette

The following is a 99ers response to the State of the Union Address - offered by Paladinette. Nobody asked me to do this, but if Michele Bachmann can give the Tea Party response, I have certainly earned the right to express my take on what I see as an entirely ineffective, inadequate SOTU address. Besides I think I have proven myself up to the task of speaking intelligently on at least a few subjects so that puts me just a peg or two above Bachmann (even if I am blonde).

Now, before anyone gets their knickers in a knot, PLEASE NOTE: as the title suggests - this is just one 99ers’ response to Obama’s SOTU speech and is NOT intended in ANY WAY to speak for all 99ers. With that said, lets get to it:

Well if is true, as Obama said at the beginning of last night’s SOTU address, that we are all part of one American Family - then I guess we 99ers are the red-haired step children or just outright illegitimate ******* off spring whose very existence must be denied at all costs.

Personally I could care less about the stock market doing well - where are the jobs Mr. President? How are the 99ers who have been without UI benefits for nearly a year - with NO JOBS IN SIGHT supposed to survive the winter even? By refusing to talk about the 99ers or any of the shameful 45 other millions of Americans living in abject poverty, you once again proved that Washington DC only cares about the rich - and the poor be damned.

America will not have the largest most productive economy in the world for long unless things change very fast and the Belt Way leadership finally puts Main street ahead of Wall Street and corporate interests NOW!

Well we cannot prosper when we do not have enough money for even food and shelter Mr. President.

America’s greatness has never been about prosperity for the elite or only the few. America’s greatness has always been because of the potential for prosperity of all her citizens.

The 99er Nation can’t see to 2015 or to 2037 we need help NOW. We want a future - we want to be part of America’s success as we have always been prior to this non-declared depression. All we have ever asked is for a fighting chance to survive this jobless recovery and thrive by re-entering the work force. Being forced into poverty has ripped away our American dream and being ignored by you and Congress has destroyed our faith in Washington completely.

Preparing 100K teachers to step in as the baby boomers retire is admirable but Washington DC sits idly by watching state after state lay off tens of thousands of teachers on a regular basis. We need more than idle talk and meaningless rhetoric. We need action and help from our Government. We need a commitment to the well being of all American citizens hurting so bad for years now as Washington wastes time and ignores the suffering of her most vulnerable people in favor of the wealthy campaign donators.

It is great to have a vision for where America will be in five,15 or 25 years, but too many 99ers do not know where they will be next month or even 15 days from now. I did not hear anything which leads me to believe You or your administration give a damn about the millions of suffering 99ers you threw under the bus to get your deal with the devil done last December.

If you hate the mistreatment of those with pre-existing conditions so much then why can’t you help those with the pre-existing condition of Unemployment past the 99 week mark? Remember most of these folks have been out of work for over 3 years, as there have been many gaps in our UI benefits over the 4 tiers now in place - unlike those who have more recently become unemployed. Yet you helped those who were hurting the least and left those of us hurting the worst to fend for ourselves. May God forgive you for helping the top 3% richest Americans get wealthier and leaving the 99ers to die in the streets.

Why is it the only tough job you weren't willing to tackle in your speech was the tragic plight of the 99er Nation?

I do not know about you but I find nothing funny about smoked salmon - especially because nobody in the 99er Nation has been able to afford that for quite a long time.

I heard you Mr.Obama talk about restoring faith in the US government? Well faith requires trust and trust takes unwavering honesty. To that end, how about being honest about the true unemployment rate and the number of 99ers to start with eh? That might be a good beginning toward your stated goal Mr. President. Just saying.

Thank goodness Mr. President you made it a point to talk about the debt our nation owes to our sons and daughters in uniform, but only to tout your DADT victory and boost your own ego.

Gay marriage is only a priority to about 15% of the population of this country. Unemployment is effecting 1 in 6 families in America. So why not address the elephant in the room sir? Isn’t that why we pay you the big bucks? You seemed more worried about the immigrants getting a fair shake than hurting 99ers or other Americans barely hanging on and losing what little they have left. We should be your priority but you act as if by ignoring us we will just go away. I fear you have sorely misjudged the spirit, fight and anger of the millions you pretend do not exist. Continue to do so at your own political peril, as we can see to it you have only 1 more SOTU address to make next year, before the 2012 election.

I was only listening to the speech, not watching it as I typed these replies at my computer. Can anybody tell me if the Speaker cried during the speech? On second thought, never mind - I really don’t care to tell you the truth. 99ers and their families cry themselves to sleep every night all over this land and those tears are real.

Yes Obama, we do big things! We solve the big problems but we cannot solve the issues we refuse to admit need resolution.

To those inspired by the mention of jobs being a priority to Washington last night, just remember that Obama’s 2010 SOTU speech had the same theme and NOTHING was done all the rest of last year to make that goal a reality either.

So the President believes that the State of the Union is STRONG. Hmmmm well sir the State of the Union SUCKS for the 99er Nation, you know - the millions of UI exhaustees who you decided to ignore once again last night. I am now officially ashamed that I voted for YOU and that makes more disconsolate than I have words to adequately express....I feel like playing Speaker and having a good long weep. Food stamps do not allow you to purchase toilet paper - did ya know? So Anyone have a tissue?



[The donation button below is for Paladinette. If you like what I write please donate so I can keep on fighting for the 99ers! Thank You!]

President Obama's State of the Union Address

President Obama gave his State of the Union Address last night. All members sat with one another regardless of which political party he or she belonged to: John Kerry was sitting beside John McCain for example. It was a bit ironic that the two were both losing presidential candidates.

Obama gave a very memorable speech which really showed that he was trying to bring Republicans and Democrats together.

Some people on Facebook turned the State of the Union Address into a drinking game by taking a drink every time President Obama said the word "jobs" which ended up being 22 times - others took a drink every time members of Congress clapped - which was about 80 times.

But more importantly than that the President truly showed a yearning for bipartisanship and support between the parties, and it was really a powerful message that came across.

Of course the GOP was critical afterwards, like always - but it's undoubtable that the President spoke quite eloquently and spoke of issues that were truly important to both parties; creating more jobs, pushing for clean energy, the need for fiscal responsibility, etc.

CNN's poll shows that the majority believes that President Obama gave a good speech, but that is only based on those who visited and voted at CNN.com.

Now people must wait and see how things change in lieu of this speech.

Jersey Shore Shoots Season 4 in Italy

This this not a joke. According to CNN the Jersey Shore cast is going to shoot season 4 in Italy - season 4? It seemed like this would be the final season, but surprisingly there is more Jersey Shore to be watched.

CNN

Of course - it's not clear how many of the cast members actually speak Italian, but maybe that won't matter.

After the State of the Union yesterday this news may not be what America needs, but it will definitely bring a lot of controversy.

Justin Bieber Gives Hailee Steinfeld Oscar Nomination Congrats On Twitter

Hailee Steinfeld, who gave a bofo performance playing the tough and single-minded teenager / adult Mattie Ross in The Coen Brothers remake of the classic True Grit, was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in the 83rd Academy Awards on Tuesday.

Steinfeld's nomination triggered this tweet from singing icon Justin Bieber:

justinbieber Justin Bieber
met at the Globes and she is super talented. CONGRATS to Hailee Steinfeld for being 14 and getting nominated for an OSCAR for TRUE GRIT!
12 hours ago
Top Tweet

As well as a number of congratulatory tweets from the Twitterverse.

Hailee Steinfeld herself just got on Twitter, and is getting the hang of things, she didn't send a tweet indicating how she felt one way or another. But it's widely reported that she actually dreamed about getting an Oscar and now she's one more major step closer to the realization of that dream.

For an actor that doesn't have a long history, Steinfeld impressively held her own on the screen with heavyweights like Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and Josh Lucas. For someone who was nominated as Best Supporting Actress, the film appeared to be about her as the lead actor male or female.

Steinfeld carried True Grit as much as Jeff Bridges did, but the reason for her designation was due to what The Coen Brothers and her parents felt was her age and lack of experience.

Look for that issue to be a thing of the past, especially if Steinfeld wins on Oscar Sunday.

State Of The Union Address 2011 Dominates Twitter, CNN Fails MSNBC Soars

President Barack Obama's State Of The Union Address 2011 was a rousing success, as Democrats and Republicans sat together in an effective show of togetherness, and Obama set the right tone for "Winning The Future."

The speech was more than politically effective, it dominated social networks, especially Twitter. The SOTU represented, at one point, seven of the top ten Twitter Trends. The most popular of them was #sotu and "Nation Builders," referring to Obama's call to think of American Teachers as just that.

robertamiller Robert A. Miller
Characterizing teachers as "nation builders" is excellent positioning. As a country, we need to build on this. It's a "what counts" factor.
1 minute ago

KeithTrivitt Keith Trivitt
W/ a brother who is a teacher, I was very happy to see Obama say it's time to treat teachers w/ more respect & as "nation builders" #sotu
16 minutes ago

Fabulouskb KBoo
Teachers are Nation Builders!!!
23 minutes ago

MMcKone Mariel Leonard
@DavidJandura is schooling USAID in twitter RT Nation builders in school? Tweet that part USAID! #SOTU
23 minutes ago

jnetk0z Jeanette Kozlowski
RT @loriguffey: #Obama: treat teachers as the nation builders they are. reward good, no excuses for bad. #ovation #SOTU
24 minutes ago

CNN Can Do Better, MSNBC was great

The State Of The Union Address was excellent, but CNN's after-speech coverage was terrible. They had the usual talking heads, but when Erick Erickson went on a "well I'm conservative" rant taking us back to President Grant and issuing mindless musings about failed government-private partnerships, I changed the channel to MSNBC.

What MSNBC provides that CNN does not are interviews with elected officials after the speech, fielding questions from their pundits, including Eugene Robinson, Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell, and Chris Matthews, who looked as if he was upset that he wasn't in the center chair that Maddow occupied. That aside, the MSNBC approach was more effective and less annoying than CNN's "ranting heads" strategy.

Chris Nolan Academy Awards Snub Ignites Twitter - Inception Director

Chris Nolan, the producer and director of Inception, a terrific scf-fi movie starring Leonardo DeCaprio about how a specialist takes over a person's dreams and inserts new ones, was snubbed in the nominations for "Best Director." The slight has caused Twitter to explode in protest, and "Chris Nolan" has been a Top Trend Topic on Twitter for four hours, or since 6:30 AM PDT (It's now 10:24 AM as of this writing.)

What's confusing is that while Nolan's not up for Best Director, Inception is one of the Academy Awards Best Picture and Best Screenplay candidates.

Why is this? It may be that, while Inception is certainly an original work, it's also about 24 minutes longer than it should be.

The climactic ending scene featuring the cast working to get out of a "dream hole" five layers deep as the truck they're in is in free fall from a bridge to the water below, could have been cut down in some way. That may be the issue, but even then, it's a small one that reasonable people can disagree on.

Still, some of the Twitter tweets are worthy of awards themselves:

PosterRev Poster Revolution 

113 Retweets

Guess Chris Nolan didn't plant the idea inside The Oscar's board members' mind to nominate himself as the Best Director. #oscars

1 hour ago Favorite Undo Retweet Reply

colliderfrosty Steven Weintraub

don't understand how Chris Nolan didn't get a nomination for directing INCEPTION. Did they see the movie?

4 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply

NotChrisRock Chris Rock

It's okay though, Chris Nolan is the director the Academy Awards deserve, but not the one it needs right now #TheDarkKnight

2 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply

feliciaday Felicia Day

by murat__bal

Chris Nolan didn't get a director nomination?!! ARE YOU KIDDING?!

13 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

bookshopgirl212 Celia Tallis

Feels like Chris Nolan catched the Hitchcock curse-- oh well. he at least was nominated a few times.

3 minutes ago Favorite Retweet Reply

daviddimiele David DiMiele

by chfiv10

Wouldn't wanna be an Academy voter right now. Chris Nolan is coming for your dreams.

1 hour ago Favorite Retweet Reply

Oh, and here's mine:

zennie62 Zennie Abraham

Alert: Chris Nolan to hijack dreams of American TV audience on #Oscar Academy Awards night. Inception to win Best Picture, Best Director

7 seconds ago