Sun Cal, once hard at work in trying to redevelop the Alameda Naval Air Station in a politically-complex environment, has just assembled a deal to swap land with the US Army.
The objective? For Sun Cal to build new military facilities at Camp Parks Reserve Forces Training Area in Dublin, Ca, in exchange for 180 acres of land that will be developed into a master - planned community.
Sun Cal was selected for this after a competitive bid process that saw 150 investors, contractors, developers and other interested parties attended an "industry day" to launch the Army's search.
What About Camp Parks?
Camp Parks will gain a new main gate and 4,300 square-foot administrative building for base police. This will be followed by a 33,000 square-foot area maintenance support facility; a 33,000 square-foot regional medical training facility; a 42,000 square-foot Army Reserve training facility; a 40,000 square-foot public works/logistics warehouse; and a variety of road and utilities infrastructure construction and improvements.
On the 180 acres Sun Cal receives, it will build a 1,500 home "new town" called "Dublin Crossing," a pedestrian - friendly, mixed - use community that planners say will connect the east and west sides of town currently separated by Camp Parks.
We're pleased to reach this important milestone so new base facilities can be built at no added cost to taxpayers," said Joseph Calcara, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army. "This exchange represents the type of innovative public - private partnerships that will enable us to maintain top - rate facilities for our Reserve Forces for many decades to come."
"We can now move forward with the planning and construction of new facilities for the Army," said David Soyka, Senior Vice President of Public Affairs, SunCal. "Dublin Crossing is designed to serve the ongoing growth needs of the Bay Area fueled by job growth. Through the use of public transportation, families will be able to walk to BART and leave their cars at home."
"This brings the vision of Dublin Crossing a step closer to reality," said Dublin Mayor Tim Sbranti. "We're excited to continue working with SunCal as we partner to bring new jobs, shops, restaurants and homes, plus parks and trails, to Dublin. This new neighborhood is a significant part of our city’s future."
Monday, April 11, 2011
Jenn Sterger, WNBA Draft Rookies Maya Moore, Liz Cambage, Hotter
In fact, in watching the first six WNBA Draft picks on ESPN (before they switched to ESPNU), all of them were much hotter than Jenn Sterger. They're beautiful, tall, athletic, buffed, smart chics. Two from the Stanford Cardinal among them, Kayla Forward Pedersen and Guard Jeanette Pohlen, who were drafted by the Tulsa Shock and the Indiana Fever, respectively, look like star movie actresses on the red carpet.
And Elizabeth Cambage from down under and drafted after Moore by the Tulsa Shock? Six-feet eight inches of still-growing hotness in a dress, with incredible legs. Take a look at this video about her, before the WNBA Draft:
Yes, this blogger's objectifying WNBA rookies, and why not? Something's really screwed up in a society where we pay homage to weak women, talk about the athleticism of men and have NFL Combines with guys running around in shorts and shirtless, and try to cover up the sexuality of women in sports.
That ESPN produced the WNBA Draft for television and got all of these amazing athletes "done up" will change how people in America look at women's basketball, and tune in more often. But it also calls into question the WNBA's whole marketing strategy.
Regardless of what anyone says, the WNBA and women's sports in general, should emphasize sexuality. We know they can play and love to see them play, but this blogger's sick and tired of the implication that to like how these women look is wrong. Especially since we hear NFL draft expert, after NFL draft expert talk about some guy's chest. C'mon, folks. Give me a break!
Indeed, it's just plain sick to try and hide the incredible sexual power of these female athletes. If the WNBA had its marketing act together, and American society had its head screwed on straight, Maya Moore would be the top Google search trend, not Jenn Sterger.
Someone call Hugh Hefner, now! The Women Of The WNBA? Hell yes! Do it! I'd rather see them than some skinny-mini like Jenn Sterger.
In closing, thank you ESPN!
2011 NFL Draft - NFL Lockout Makes Taking QB In Top Ten Questionable
The NFL Lockout presents a problem not commonly talked about by draft experts like ESPN's Mel Kiper and NFL Network's Mike Mayock: teams can't have any kind of direct contact with the players they draft in the 2011 NFL Draft.
That heavily impacts the quarterback conversation, where some, like Kiper and Mayock, have predicted (or is it suggested?) that The Carolina Panthers take either Cam Newton or Blaine Gabbert as the number one pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. So, for the sake of example, let's say the Panthers do that, as unwise as it would be.
Commissioner Roger Goodell says "With the first pick, the Carolina Panthers select Cam Newton, Quarterback, Auburn." Or Commissioner Roger Goodell says "With the first pick, the Carolina Panthers select Blaine Gabbert, Quarterback, Missouri." In ether case, the Panthers are looking at a signing bonus of between $40 million and $50 million, and the need to get their prized selection into team headquarter and then to mini camp, the very next week.
That was the case last year for Sam Bradford, the Oklahoma Sooners signal caller who was picked number one by the St. Louis Rams. Bradford met with the media at the Draft, then got on a plane to St. Louis to meet his new bosses, first among them Rams Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo. Then, the very next week, Rams Rookie Mini Camp started, and allowed Spagnuolo to not just make sense of the new playbook, or new to the draft picks, but how it feels to run the plays in it.
Now, fast-forward to 2011. The Carolina Panthers can't do any of that because of the NFL Lockout. The Panthers can't fly their pick in to town for anything other than a press conference, coach the pick in camps of any kind, or have any direct contact with the pick.
Nothing.
NFL PR Head Greg Aiello says
The problem is not just that the teams can't have contact with their new teams, but that no one knows how long the NFL Lockout will go on for. So if the Lockout extends to June, that's two months of direct coaching time lost, and players who have no experience playing with their veteran NFL teammates. That means no time to develop a feel for the speed of the NFL game.
June is the start of training camp, and a month-and-a-half to essentially make up for lost time. Then the 2011 NFL season starts. So, you're going to throw in your Newton or Gabbert in just because you paid $40 million, plus for him?
The whole scenario winds up a waste of $40 million.
That's the situation facing a lot of NFL Teams and according to NFL Draft colleague and 34-year NFL Draft veteran Dr.William Chachkes, taking a QB high in the draft this year is dicey considering the prep time needed:
Thus, the best decision for the Panthers is to take one of the top defenders available in a defender rich NFL Draft. A defensive player is more ready to step in and play because the nature of the position is to react to what the offensive player does. It's easier to get a great athlete and plug that person into the lineup with less training time.
So, in this draft, look for the Caroline Panthers to select a defender like Robert Quinn, the top ranked defensive end from North Carolina who runs like the wind - unless they're willing to spend $40 million and wait a year to see if the investment pays off.
That heavily impacts the quarterback conversation, where some, like Kiper and Mayock, have predicted (or is it suggested?) that The Carolina Panthers take either Cam Newton or Blaine Gabbert as the number one pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. So, for the sake of example, let's say the Panthers do that, as unwise as it would be.
Commissioner Roger Goodell says "With the first pick, the Carolina Panthers select Cam Newton, Quarterback, Auburn." Or Commissioner Roger Goodell says "With the first pick, the Carolina Panthers select Blaine Gabbert, Quarterback, Missouri." In ether case, the Panthers are looking at a signing bonus of between $40 million and $50 million, and the need to get their prized selection into team headquarter and then to mini camp, the very next week.
That was the case last year for Sam Bradford, the Oklahoma Sooners signal caller who was picked number one by the St. Louis Rams. Bradford met with the media at the Draft, then got on a plane to St. Louis to meet his new bosses, first among them Rams Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo. Then, the very next week, Rams Rookie Mini Camp started, and allowed Spagnuolo to not just make sense of the new playbook, or new to the draft picks, but how it feels to run the plays in it.
Now, fast-forward to 2011. The Carolina Panthers can't do any of that because of the NFL Lockout. The Panthers can't fly their pick in to town for anything other than a press conference, coach the pick in camps of any kind, or have any direct contact with the pick.
Nothing.
NFL PR Head Greg Aiello says
They can bring in their draft picks for a press conference between the time they are picked and the conclusion of the draft on Saturday afternoon. Once the draft ends, a team can have no further contact with its draft picks until the work stoppage ends.Sure, Newton and Gabbert can look at the playbook, but with all of the information flying around the Internet, they can already do that. What they can't do is run plays under the direction of the Panthers coaches.
The problem is not just that the teams can't have contact with their new teams, but that no one knows how long the NFL Lockout will go on for. So if the Lockout extends to June, that's two months of direct coaching time lost, and players who have no experience playing with their veteran NFL teammates. That means no time to develop a feel for the speed of the NFL game.
June is the start of training camp, and a month-and-a-half to essentially make up for lost time. Then the 2011 NFL season starts. So, you're going to throw in your Newton or Gabbert in just because you paid $40 million, plus for him?
The whole scenario winds up a waste of $40 million.
That's the situation facing a lot of NFL Teams and according to NFL Draft colleague and 34-year NFL Draft veteran Dr.William Chachkes, taking a QB high in the draft this year is dicey considering the prep time needed:
"The QB position today in 2011 is not the same "beast" as it was in 1996 or 2002, or even 2006. Today the "study" portion of a Qb's Preparation is a 12 month a year-work-in-constant progress. You can not expect to draft a QB in this draft class and expect him to be a major contributor if the Lockout continues past the draft week itself. If your (Team-Coach) expects a "drafted QB" to be ready for opening day 2011 you need to have every available minute to prepare."
Thus, the best decision for the Panthers is to take one of the top defenders available in a defender rich NFL Draft. A defensive player is more ready to step in and play because the nature of the position is to react to what the offensive player does. It's easier to get a great athlete and plug that person into the lineup with less training time.
So, in this draft, look for the Caroline Panthers to select a defender like Robert Quinn, the top ranked defensive end from North Carolina who runs like the wind - unless they're willing to spend $40 million and wait a year to see if the investment pays off.
Arianna Huffington At Ad Tech SF Digital Media Meeting
This quick blog post is written from Ad Tech 2011 San Francisco, where the focus is Digital Media...and people, and cocktails.
On Wednesday morning, Huffington Post Founder Arianna Huffington will grace the event and talk for the thousandth time about the AOL purchase of her giant blog and what it means for the digital marketing industry.
But today, people are drinking and talking.
About 400 people are massing on the third level of Moscone Center West for a large party sponsored by, well, just about every company involved with sponsoring AdTech.
What's of interest to this blogger are the various new platforms and apps for everything from sponsorship engagement to online marketing and advertising.
And the parties. The SF Chapter of the American Marketing Association's having on Tuesday evening, and there are more meetups I'm sure to hear about as the time progresses.
Stay tuned.
Jenn Sterger Brett Favre Scandal Back - Jenn Talks To GMA
Now former New York Jets sideline reporter Jenn Sterger's back in the news, having finished a taping of an interview with ABC News and Good Morning America's (GMA)George Stephanopoulos (who this blogger still thinks of as an aide to President Clinton), that's set to air Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.
If you don't know the story of Jenn Sterger, one that was presented in ever-so-sleezy fashion by the blog Deadspin, private-part images and all, this safe-to-watch Zennie62 video is a good recap:
Not sure what the purpose of Jenn Sterger's appearance on GMA is, and this blogger wonders if she made money from the interview. Jenn says she's made nothing from the matter: "I haven't made a dime off anything in this whole situation. Not from the pictures. Not from Favre. I never wanted to sue anyone. That was never an intention of mine."
In fact, Jenn was an unwitting pawn in the entire sex scandal story. Someone, not her (and just who did is still not known) sent the photos and voicemail to Deadspin, or so Deadspin claims.
Brett Favre did admit that he called Jenn Sterger, but says he never sent images or text. Frankly, there are few who really turn their life upside down, wanting to know if those photos were of him or not. But what is clear, is that Favre's wife has to be wondering what the hell's wrong with Brett.
Did he get a case of John Edwards Fever?
Edwards fooled around on the now-late Elizabeth Edwards while she was battling cancer. While Brett didn't actively do anything with Jenn Sterger, it's clear he tried to, and paid $50,000 in a fine imposed by the NFL for his lack of cooperation in the Sterger investigation.
But that was in 2007; let's hope Brett's just chilling at home.
Meanwhile, Jenn's news isn't creating a lot of buzz. It's only registering as "Spicy" on Google Trends, and its the number one search as of this writing.
If you don't know the story of Jenn Sterger, one that was presented in ever-so-sleezy fashion by the blog Deadspin, private-part images and all, this safe-to-watch Zennie62 video is a good recap:
In fact, Jenn was an unwitting pawn in the entire sex scandal story. Someone, not her (and just who did is still not known) sent the photos and voicemail to Deadspin, or so Deadspin claims.
Brett Favre did admit that he called Jenn Sterger, but says he never sent images or text. Frankly, there are few who really turn their life upside down, wanting to know if those photos were of him or not. But what is clear, is that Favre's wife has to be wondering what the hell's wrong with Brett.
Did he get a case of John Edwards Fever?
Edwards fooled around on the now-late Elizabeth Edwards while she was battling cancer. While Brett didn't actively do anything with Jenn Sterger, it's clear he tried to, and paid $50,000 in a fine imposed by the NFL for his lack of cooperation in the Sterger investigation.
But that was in 2007; let's hope Brett's just chilling at home.
Meanwhile, Jenn's news isn't creating a lot of buzz. It's only registering as "Spicy" on Google Trends, and its the number one search as of this writing.
Eric Roberts, Mark Cuban, Daymond John At Reality Rocks LA
Eric Roberts Should Play 'The Professor' In a Gilligan's Island Remake, a photo by zennie62 on Flickr.
Eric Roberts should play "The Professor " on a remake of Gilligan's Island. But before we turn to Roberts, let's recap.
Eager to make a first-time day trip to an event, this blogger went to the Reality Rocks Expo in Los Angeles on Saturday. Some of the online coverage was presented in a previous blog post, but it doesn't represent all of the Twitter Tweets and Flickr photos, and more videos.
In short, the trip was a success, as about three-quarters of the content is already up and out via Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Friend Feed, and this blog, with more blog posts to come this week.
Reality Rocks is a first-of-its-kind convention centered entirely around reality TV. There's a whole universe of people, companies, and consultants that have grown around this entertainment concept, and they even have a "top list" of people, as collected by The Hollywood Reporter.
And who's at the top? Ryan Seacreast. And while he was not at the Reality Rocks Expo (held at the LA Convention Center), his sprit was felt in the number of entertainment entrepreneurs trying to pitch their show ideas, or themselves for casting opportunities.
There were panels on everything from how to pitch your show to how to deal with fame. Indeed, that last part's a problem that American Idol's Page Miles, a "Season 9" sensation, is dealing with today.
She said that the fact she was famous hit her after her first appearance, when she was at the airport and "all of these people were" looking at her. But it's also gone beyond just looking in some cases, enough for her to take a lot of time talking about it.
Comfortable with their fame are Dallas Maverick's Owner Mark Cuban and FUBU Founder and CEO, Daymond John, both stars of ABC's reality TV show Shark Tank.
With Sam Rubin of Entertainment Tonight, they held a business pitch panel, along the lines their hit show. The audience consisted mostly of people who actually came to present their business ideas and products. One group, Karen and her daughter Tomi, has an already-made infant-carrying product that, while it did not score a deal, was praised by Mark Cuban (and that was captured on video to come Wednesday).
But the funniest segment was with a man, Carl Tunina, who claimed he has a perfume that was the actual scent of Kathryn Hepburn. He also said he had the rights to the DNA of Abraham Lincoln, Michael Jackson, and hundreds of celebrties.
It was hilarious. Here's the video:
Later, on Twitter, John and others who were at the Reality Rocks segment, retweeted my tweet about the video, explaining that it was really a comedy skit:
TheSharkDaymond Daymond John
THIS PITCH WAS COMEDY!! RT @Qubits_Toy: RT @zennie62: @mcuban At Reality Rocks LA youtube.com/watch?v=97FRhp… via @youtube #realityrocks @samontv
As to Eric Roberts, he wasn't going to do the interview, because he didn't think the Flip Video Camera could make a good clip. Seriously. I had to coax him into it; then when he saw the high def video, he was sold.
More from my Reality Rocks LA trip later today. On to Ad Tech SF.
The Gorn From Star Trek Is Bobby Clark - WonderCon SF
Star Trek The Original Series (TOS) fans, and even occasional observers, will remember an episode featuring a man-lizard humanoid that fought Captain Kirk (William Shatner). That alien, called "The Gorn," starred in one of Star Trek TOS's most popular segments, called "Arena." It was memorable because The Gorn has a face that looked like Godzilla on Botox, and it nearly killed Kirk.
Who's The Gorn? It's is Bobby Clark. But who? How?
Bobby Clark is a veteran actor who's work goes back before Star Trek, and to such legendary shows as TV's longest running western Gunsmoke. "I became The Gorn because I knew the director, who I had worked for, for several years prior (to Star Trek), Joseph Pevney," Clark said. "I did four of the (Star Trek) episodes that Joseph Pevney did. One was called "The Apple" (With Celeste Yarnell - video below), "Return Of The Archons," "Mirror Mirror," and naturally, "Arena." That was my claim to fame," Clark reflects.
In the video break, Yarnell talks about "The Apple" and William Shatner
Acting With William Shatner
Never Worked With Nimoy
Interestingsly, even though he did four Star Trek episodes, Bobby Clark never worked with Leonard Nimoy, who's is Mr. Spock. That's interesting, how an actor can be associated with another performer in the same series, but because of circumstances, never work with them. Clark will forever be linked to someone he never actually worked with: Nimoy.
Getting Into The Gorn Suit, Fighting Kirk
Clark explains that the suit he wore took just 20 minutes to put on, and was basically made based on a wet suit. He just slipped into it.
But the fighting between The Gorn and Shatner was real, well, semi-real: "That was a real rock (Kirk threw at him in the episode), it almost killed me....NO. He laughs. "But after that, I picked up a rock and threw it at him, and that rock weighed about 450 pounds and I had no problem picking it up."
Star Trek Was Our Future
Clark thinks the enduring popularity of Star Trek has to do with its message of change, and that now alot of what we use, like cell phones (which are like the Star Trek Communicators), were conceived for the show decades ago.
Clark's a Ludite
Bobby Clark doens't use a computer for much other than email. So if you see this and know him, send him one,saying you saw it.
Bobby Clark: an American Cultural Icon.
Saturday, April 09, 2011
Mark Cuban, Daymond John of Shark Tank LOL At Reality Rocks LA
Dallas Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban, and FUBU Founder and CEO Daymond John, two stars of ABC's Shark Tank are laughing at Carl Tunina's product: a perfume line based on the "scent" of a movie star, or stars. This is all part of "Reality Rocks LA."
Reality Rocks LA is a two-day expo, today and Sunday, that is a kind of catch-all of everything surrounding reality TV: casting, pitching, concept, and participation.
The first of its kind event is being staged at the LA Convention Center, and features celebs like the two stars of Shark Tank, Micha Barton, Sinbad, who's pitching a new show on WE network April 12th, and stars from American Idol, and form shows like Cheaters, and Dancing With The Stars, and many more.
This was a one day trip, so I don't get caught in two days of making content and trying to post it in a timely fashion.
FFollow me at Twitter at Zennie62 and stay tuned for videos, including the hilarious one that goes with The Shark Tank panel at Reality Rocks LA.
Forget Nostradamus: Carlin Foretold Today’s State of our UNION
Forget Nostradamus: George Carlin foretold today’s state of our UNION (or America’s ruin as the case may be) before his death in 2008. The video below says it all. Though Carlin always made us laugh - the content of this monologue is scary in how dead on truthful it is.
US News - Politics this week went one step further when they named names of some of the “Owners of America” Carlin refers to in his TRUE to LIFE stand-up routine depicted in the video.
Brad Bannon’s commentary:
Conservative Attacks on Medicaid, Jobless Benefits Lead America to Ruin
makes the case Americans are victims of a vast right-wing conspiracy led and funded by the billionaire Koch brothers.
The article explains:
Republicans and their Tea Party allies are working on two important campaigns in Washington, D.C. and in state capitals around the country. The conservative goals are to rip the economic safety net wide open and pave the way for their friends in big business to dominate political campaigns.On the economic front the right-wing two-pronged attack is on Medicaid in D.C. and jobless benefits in the states.In Michigan which has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country, the GOP has succeeded in cutting jobless benefits by six weeks. The conservatives in Missouri (and several other states) are also trying to limit unemployment benefits. Meanwhile in Washington, the right wing wants to cut funding for Medicaid. About half of all Medicaid recipients are children. [See who donates the most to your member of Congress.]Of course these attacks on children, the unemployed and the disabled don’t stop the Tea Party from giving billionaires and banks big tax breaks. The message from the GOP on both fronts is if you’re hurting, you’re out of luck. If you’re rich and powerful we will pay any price to help you out.
I think you know my position on America’s Clown Congress. There is only one or two there worth a grain of salt. However, the collective of elected idiots in Washington DC is simply the distraction for the people to allow the Wealthy owners of America to perform their “Slight of Hand” magicians tricks that eventually will turn this country into 2 classes only: The obedient Worker Bees and the tyrant, Megalomaniac Masters of wealth who happily oppress them ( them being the worker bees).
The unemployed - ESPECIALLY the UI exhaustees have been banished from the economy and the American dream. We have become relegated to the ranks of the invisible and forced to believe we must endure this abominable fate that has been forced upon us or beg for what little scraps of hope Washington tosses out to us then snaps back with unimaginable cruelty.
How is that working out for ya? Have you had enough? Then it is time we all become the exact opposite of invisible. We MUST become EXTREMELY VISIBLE and FAST. It is not very difficult to and it may require more courage than you have shown in a great while, but what have you got to lose? If you are like most of us - you already have nothing left - except your desire and instinct to survive.
- Get out in the streets, even if there is only 1 or 2 of you with signs (home made or contact U-Cubed for the “Hire US America” signs free for the asking). Find a busy street corner or overpass and stay there 90 minutes. Call the media. Make your plight known.
- If your group of scouts or PTA is looking for a project - suggest they have a fund raiser to HELP the 99ers. Create care packages and give them out or contact www.Helpthe99ers.com to find those in the greatest need.
- Go to where ever any local, state or federal politician may be speaking or cutting a ribbon and bring your signs. Chant “US Unemployed NEED JOBS & Benefits.” Interrupt their press conferences (Politely) by doing the same. You will not be arrested - perhaps escorted out or asked to leave but we all need to STOP being afraid. Fear is paralyzing and not the emotion which propels one to victory. Where is your American Spirit?
- Make your opinion count! Please take three minutes to complete this U-Cubed survey
One sure fire winning tactic and the fastest way for the 99ers to get Washington to enact benefits for our survival NOW is to create massive unrest in our own streets. I am not talking violent overthrow here - I am speaking POWERFUL massive protests in every town and city in the USA. The WORLD will be watching and the MEDIA will NOT be able to ignore it! When the Markets begin rapidly dropping Globally and the dollar tanks - we WILL get their attention and they will cave in I assure you!
JUST One Week of MASSIVE protests in the streets of America would have such a terrible effect on Wall Street that the BIG BANKERS will call their employees (i.e. Congress) immediately to DEMAND they give us what we need NOW so they can stop bleeding money!
They have been making us hurt for years and have ignored our suffering. It is our turn to hurt them back the only way we can - FINANCIALLY! The wealthy scoundrels continue to be so brazen about their corruption and shenanigans because Americans have proved over and over again they will do nothing to stop these Wall Street miscreants and Washington will NEVER bite the hands feeding them (unless it is the tax payer’s hands that is).
Do not believe the lie these monsters that control the media have drummed into you about “there is nothing you can do to change how bad things are” because YOU CAN. That is what Carlin gets wrong in the video. He lost touch with his humble 60’s beginnings, when he too protested against the War of that era.
What we need is an all out revolution of conscience by those in America who still have one - and that is NOT the talking heads in Washington, the greedy Wealth Barons or Captains of Industry who are stealing our lives out from under us. It is YOU who must make this happen.
The sooner you take to the streets in mass (or even alone if you must), the sooner we will get what we need. STOP BEGGING and START DEMANDING Washington work for US and not every other country which can help the rich get richer by lucrative Defense Contracts. Enough is enough. But have you had enough?
If you like what I write please donate so I can keep on fighting for the 99ers! Thank You!
ASNE Study: American Newsrooms Almost 90 Percent White
At a day and age when America is almost 50 percent people of color according to the U.S. Census, American newsrooms, those places housing that dying breed of media-maker the print journalist, are almost 90 percent white according to the American Society of Newspaper Editors ASNE survey released on Thursday.
And the study reported that the 12 percent of the total population of newsroom staffers that was "of color" dropped .47 percent from the last survey of the year before. No, not 47 percent, but basically one-half of one percent. Which means just 13 percent of the population was of color.
What this means, if one stops and thinks about how a newsroom is staffed, is that for every white and more often than not male (36 percent of the newsroom staffers are female), person, that means someone of color was, at some point, turned away from employment.
It also means that many black journalists in particular were the first to be fired in the wake of the economic and technical changes that have caused newsrooms to shrink in size.
Another ASNE study from 2009 revealed that 400 black journalists lost their jobs in 2008 alone, and at what was described as an "alarming" rate. The National Association of Black Journalists reported that the habit of cutting blacks from newsrooms continued through 2010.
The "why" you may ask has one simple answer: racism. Who to hire and fire is a judgment call made by management of, in this case, a newspaper. Many people of color in newsrooms have been given assignments that are either sports-related or concern matters involving people of color - like expressing views via a column. In other words, they're pigeon-holed, not promoted, then shown the door when its time to pair the ranks.
The bright side of this story is, with a near 50-percent minority population, the market is there for the enterprising journalist of color to start their own media brand and capture some of it. It's not so hard to generate a good website or blog, and it's worth doing because even those who stay at newsrooms may not get the recognition they deserve.
As an example, this blogger also contributes to SFGate.com's City Bright's Section. In 2009, Hearst Corporation ran a small report in Editor and Publisher, in November, if memory serves, of how the traffic for that October was due, in part, to "mommy-bloggers" and other blogs, while failing to mention the work of this blogger, who generated about 1 million unique visitors for that October of 2009 alone.
So, I set out an objective to prove a point: that if one knows how to "work" online technology they can't be ignored regardless of color, and in spite of the news organization's and the public's best efforts to do so. Using a then-new blogging approach I created, this blogger generated over 10 million unique visitors over the next year, which was 2010.
If fact, of the 46 million unique visitors SFGate.com attracted in 2010, one-fifth of them were generated by me. Or, look at it this way: a black guy, me, technically owned just over one-fifth and close to one-quarter of SFGate.com in 2010, which was valued in some quarters, at $60 million for that year. In fact, I generated 285,000 unique visitors in one day and in just seven hours - that was March 18th 2010.
Anyone of color can master this stuff. It just takes study and work, both driven by a healthy dose of anger at the active racism of the overall society, intelligently applied.
And the study reported that the 12 percent of the total population of newsroom staffers that was "of color" dropped .47 percent from the last survey of the year before. No, not 47 percent, but basically one-half of one percent. Which means just 13 percent of the population was of color.
What this means, if one stops and thinks about how a newsroom is staffed, is that for every white and more often than not male (36 percent of the newsroom staffers are female), person, that means someone of color was, at some point, turned away from employment.
It also means that many black journalists in particular were the first to be fired in the wake of the economic and technical changes that have caused newsrooms to shrink in size.
Another ASNE study from 2009 revealed that 400 black journalists lost their jobs in 2008 alone, and at what was described as an "alarming" rate. The National Association of Black Journalists reported that the habit of cutting blacks from newsrooms continued through 2010.
The "why" you may ask has one simple answer: racism. Who to hire and fire is a judgment call made by management of, in this case, a newspaper. Many people of color in newsrooms have been given assignments that are either sports-related or concern matters involving people of color - like expressing views via a column. In other words, they're pigeon-holed, not promoted, then shown the door when its time to pair the ranks.
The bright side of this story is, with a near 50-percent minority population, the market is there for the enterprising journalist of color to start their own media brand and capture some of it. It's not so hard to generate a good website or blog, and it's worth doing because even those who stay at newsrooms may not get the recognition they deserve.
As an example, this blogger also contributes to SFGate.com's City Bright's Section. In 2009, Hearst Corporation ran a small report in Editor and Publisher, in November, if memory serves, of how the traffic for that October was due, in part, to "mommy-bloggers" and other blogs, while failing to mention the work of this blogger, who generated about 1 million unique visitors for that October of 2009 alone.
So, I set out an objective to prove a point: that if one knows how to "work" online technology they can't be ignored regardless of color, and in spite of the news organization's and the public's best efforts to do so. Using a then-new blogging approach I created, this blogger generated over 10 million unique visitors over the next year, which was 2010.
If fact, of the 46 million unique visitors SFGate.com attracted in 2010, one-fifth of them were generated by me. Or, look at it this way: a black guy, me, technically owned just over one-fifth and close to one-quarter of SFGate.com in 2010, which was valued in some quarters, at $60 million for that year. In fact, I generated 285,000 unique visitors in one day and in just seven hours - that was March 18th 2010.
Anyone of color can master this stuff. It just takes study and work, both driven by a healthy dose of anger at the active racism of the overall society, intelligently applied.
Friday, April 08, 2011
Planned Parenthood is More Than Just Abortions
A lot of time, thought and effort went into this post. So please read it.
The most annoying thing will be that before even reading this post some people are going to automatically go into the mind state that the only thing Planned Parenthood does is use tax payer's money to pay for abortions. Please continue reading, because there is a lot more to it.
How fitting, after doing a post about how the teen pregnancy rate has lowered there is now a big issue with what will happen to Planned Parenthood if the Government Shutdown occurs.
On CBS News there was a tagline that said: Defund Abortion Providers.
Really? That is not all Planned Parenthood is.
CBS reports that 75 percent of Planned Parenthood clients are living close to the poverty line. The lack of funding or cutting the program all together could lead to terrible things; people need to NOT just associate Planned Parenthood with abortions:
"Planned Parenthood provides a wide array of medical services including reproductive health care, cancer screenings, and STD testing at more than 800 locations across the country. They are also the country's largest abortion provider."
Yes. It is the country's largest abortion provider and federal government funding abortion is not something that every Pro-Choice person agrees with; so put aside the fact that Planned Parenthood is mostly known for abortions and yes, the funding for Planned Parenthood indeed does go to abortions.
CBS continues to talk about those on the right who are opposed to government funding Planned Parenthood. What it should be saying is that there are a lot of Conservatives who are Pro-Life and think that all Planned Parenthood does is take tax-payer's money and have them pay for abortions. No, that's not it.
The CBS report emphasizes on that:
Republican lawmakers have questioned government funding of Planned Parenthood, saying the government shouldn't be in the business of supporting abortion - even indirectly. Planned Parenting receives government support, though the funds are used for purposes other than abortions.
As the article goes on it continues to talk about abortion:
"For all the controversy, abortion remains a common procedure in the U.S. A long-term decline in the abortion rate stalled between 2005 and 2008, according to the Guttmacher Institute. In 2008, 1.21 million abortions were performed, with about 40 percent of unintended pregnancies now being terminated by abortion.
"Abortion yields 37 percent of all Planned Parenthood revenues by conservative estimates," Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) said in an interview, according to a written statement released by her office. "
This is so redundant.
Could people please realize that there's a lot more than abortions going on.
STD checks, pelvic exams, etc.
Money is brought up once again:
An agency statement says 3 percent of their services are devoted to abortion. They didn't break out the revenue. They also claim to prevent more than half-a-million unintended pregnancies each year by distributing contraceptives. They estimate their efforts prevent 290,000 abortions each year.
Yes this blog post is using the CBS report, because the report from CBS was the most informative out of all the sources reporting on this.
And now we have this:
"Ayotte said he was also worried about a recent "sting" operation by the antiabortion group Live Action, in which men posing as pimps were videotaped interacting with Planned Parenthood workers.
"I'm troubled by what's come out in the videos that have shown that they were essentially looking the other way on sex-trafficking," Ayotte wrote.
Planned Parenthood isn't taking the criticism lying down."
Well, here's what Planned Parenthood has to say. This is the most important piece of this entire post:
"Reasonable people could have agreed on funding the government weeks ago, but a small group of extremists has been allowed to hold the government hostage to their narrow political agenda - one that has no place in the budget process," Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards said in a written statement. "It is truly unacceptable that a small group with an extreme political agenda is forcing a shutdown of the United States government over a dangerous proposal that would bar women from getting the lifesaving health care they need - breast exams, Pap tests, HIV tests and more."
Since this is a blog post and not an article objectivity doesn't need to be an issue; because it is going to be annoying how many skim this post and just think oh well all they do is abortions and take money. Negative, negative, negative.
Go for it, complain it should be a state by state thing and not a federal thing, but guess what? Until states do it themselves the Feds NEED to. If each state was doing this then the Federal Government shut down wouldn't be such a big deal. So many conservatives say they believe things should be "up to the state." Well guess what, the states haven't done it yet, and in regards to the other shut downs I think that it would be better to have the clean water act that the federal government has to contribute and fund rather than having nothing at all. Yes, leave it to the states, but until the states do anything people are getting screwed.
And the people who are screwed might need to go to Planned Parenthood and get that checked out.
--Nikky Raney
The most annoying thing will be that before even reading this post some people are going to automatically go into the mind state that the only thing Planned Parenthood does is use tax payer's money to pay for abortions. Please continue reading, because there is a lot more to it.
How fitting, after doing a post about how the teen pregnancy rate has lowered there is now a big issue with what will happen to Planned Parenthood if the Government Shutdown occurs.
On CBS News there was a tagline that said: Defund Abortion Providers.
Really? That is not all Planned Parenthood is.
CBS reports that 75 percent of Planned Parenthood clients are living close to the poverty line. The lack of funding or cutting the program all together could lead to terrible things; people need to NOT just associate Planned Parenthood with abortions:
"Planned Parenthood provides a wide array of medical services including reproductive health care, cancer screenings, and STD testing at more than 800 locations across the country. They are also the country's largest abortion provider."
Yes. It is the country's largest abortion provider and federal government funding abortion is not something that every Pro-Choice person agrees with; so put aside the fact that Planned Parenthood is mostly known for abortions and yes, the funding for Planned Parenthood indeed does go to abortions.CBS continues to talk about those on the right who are opposed to government funding Planned Parenthood. What it should be saying is that there are a lot of Conservatives who are Pro-Life and think that all Planned Parenthood does is take tax-payer's money and have them pay for abortions. No, that's not it.
The CBS report emphasizes on that:
Republican lawmakers have questioned government funding of Planned Parenthood, saying the government shouldn't be in the business of supporting abortion - even indirectly. Planned Parenting receives government support, though the funds are used for purposes other than abortions.
As the article goes on it continues to talk about abortion:
"For all the controversy, abortion remains a common procedure in the U.S. A long-term decline in the abortion rate stalled between 2005 and 2008, according to the Guttmacher Institute. In 2008, 1.21 million abortions were performed, with about 40 percent of unintended pregnancies now being terminated by abortion.
"Abortion yields 37 percent of all Planned Parenthood revenues by conservative estimates," Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) said in an interview, according to a written statement released by her office. "
This is so redundant.
Could people please realize that there's a lot more than abortions going on.
STD checks, pelvic exams, etc.
Money is brought up once again:
An agency statement says 3 percent of their services are devoted to abortion. They didn't break out the revenue. They also claim to prevent more than half-a-million unintended pregnancies each year by distributing contraceptives. They estimate their efforts prevent 290,000 abortions each year.
Yes this blog post is using the CBS report, because the report from CBS was the most informative out of all the sources reporting on this.
And now we have this:"Ayotte said he was also worried about a recent "sting" operation by the antiabortion group Live Action, in which men posing as pimps were videotaped interacting with Planned Parenthood workers.
"I'm troubled by what's come out in the videos that have shown that they were essentially looking the other way on sex-trafficking," Ayotte wrote.
Planned Parenthood isn't taking the criticism lying down."
Well, here's what Planned Parenthood has to say. This is the most important piece of this entire post:
"Reasonable people could have agreed on funding the government weeks ago, but a small group of extremists has been allowed to hold the government hostage to their narrow political agenda - one that has no place in the budget process," Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards said in a written statement. "It is truly unacceptable that a small group with an extreme political agenda is forcing a shutdown of the United States government over a dangerous proposal that would bar women from getting the lifesaving health care they need - breast exams, Pap tests, HIV tests and more."
Since this is a blog post and not an article objectivity doesn't need to be an issue; because it is going to be annoying how many skim this post and just think oh well all they do is abortions and take money. Negative, negative, negative.
Go for it, complain it should be a state by state thing and not a federal thing, but guess what? Until states do it themselves the Feds NEED to. If each state was doing this then the Federal Government shut down wouldn't be such a big deal. So many conservatives say they believe things should be "up to the state." Well guess what, the states haven't done it yet, and in regards to the other shut downs I think that it would be better to have the clean water act that the federal government has to contribute and fund rather than having nothing at all. Yes, leave it to the states, but until the states do anything people are getting screwed.
And the people who are screwed might need to go to Planned Parenthood and get that checked out.
--Nikky Raney
Eva Longoria Wardrobe Malfunction, Legs, A Letterman Tradition
A button on Longoria's, er, "tuxedo," which David Letterman said was not really a tuxedo, managed to come off; it happened to be strategically located right at her cleavage.
On noticing this, Longoria, on a New York City television promotional tour that saw her on CNN's Piers Morgan talk show that evening, as well (as Morgan's show is produced and presented from New York), grabbed at the tux to help keep it from literally falling off her body!
It's noted that this is a tradition because a number of big-name female actresses have come on the show as guests wearing a really short skirt, or mini-skirt, with pumps. It happens so often, the wardrobe style must be part of Letterman's contractual appearance requirements for hot Hollywood women. Want an example? Presenting Jennifer Aniston:
Wow.
David Letterman knows how to have his stars help him create buzz. Piers Morgan's probably slamming his fists on the glass table of his set, saying "Why didn't we think of that!"
Stay tuned.
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