Rachael Ray racy sexy photos? Sex symbol? What?

This is crazy! Rachael Ray has racy sexy photos? She's a sex Symbol? What? When I think of Rachael Ray, I think of food, not sex. But apparently, Rachael did a photo shoot for FHM Magazine in 2003 in next to nothing, and her racy images have resurfaced in FHM's 100 Sexiest Women 2009 Edition. Unfortunately, she's not in the Top 10, but given the buzz created by her publicist, she should be. She's ranked 100.

The Top 100 ranked list features in no particular order Hilary Duff, Megan Fox (number one), Kate Hudson, Evangeline Lilly, Elisha Cuthbert, Adriana Lima, Vanessa Hudgens, Diora Baird, Lindsay Lohan, Madeline Zima, Ashley Tisdale, Iron Man 2's Scarlett Johansson, Heidi Montag, Frieda Pinto, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Anne Hathaway, Liv Tyler, and Anna Faris.

In March 2009, Rachael Ray said she'd do the whole thing again, even with the controversy it sparked for her at the time. Even her mother took issue with her decision.

But once again, the photos and the buzz they create show that for women in fashion and media, sex sells. It's an important aspect in the development of a "Q-Rating". Some take extreme measures of expression, using sex tapes, others racy photos, but the formula of getting one noticed works. What separates the success of one actress or model from the other is what the person does with that platform.

For example, even with all of her fame, Former Miss California Carrie Prejean is not on the list.

Politics?  I think so. It's obvious Carrie's being punished for her recent behavior.   I still think had she carried herself with a quiet dignity on CNN's Larry King Live, she would have gotten a second wind in pop-culture.

Stay tuned.

Charlie Sheen update - Charlie and Brooke Mueller Sheen get counseling

This Charlie Sheen update. According to People Magazine, Charlie and Brooke Mueller Sheen are to get marriage counseling.

Wow.

A quick recap if you don't know the story. Charlie Sheen was arrested and placed in the Pitkin, County Jail in Aspen, Colorado on Christmas morning after having been charged with, according to the Aspen Times, a class-four felony charge of second-degree assault and a class-five felony charge of menacing. He was also charged with a misdemeanor count of what is called "criminal mischief."

District Judge James Boyd presided over a hearing called Friday, Christmas night. The Judge issued a mandatory protection order against Sheen; he can't have contact with Brooke Mueller Sheen. He posted bond, set at $8,500 and was released.

Charlie Sheen and Brooke Mueller Sheen

According to TMZ.com, Brooke Mueller Sheen was legally drunk at the time she called 911 to report that Charlie allegedly attacked her. Then Brooke Mueller Sheen recanted the story of her 911 call. On Saturday, she rejected the re-interview request of the Aspen, Colorado Police Department.

Now they're talking marriage counseling. But the other problem is if Brooke Mueller Sheen filed a false report, it's likely Aspen, Colorado law enforcement would file charges against her.

Stay tuned.

Ann Marie Cox is top blogger on Bing - but no blog!

You know what gets me? How some people in media new and old really play fast-and-loose with the truth. Take Bing x-Rank. In fact, you should.

Bing x-Rank has a listing for "top bloggers", which caught my attention for obvious reasons. TBing x-Rank lists the following bloggers in the order presented (as of this writing):

Gizmodo
Michelle Malkin
Perez Hilton
Aaron Gleeman
Alex Ross
Ally Carter
Ana Marie Cox
Andrew Keen
Andy Stern
Arianna…

Huffington.

Ok. Now, one would expect some kind of ranking system, right? One would also think each blogger had a blog they were editing or at least writing on, right?

So it was interesting to me that Ana Marie Cox, who's certainly a legendary blogger in history, was listed as a "top blogger" without any numerical data to defend the choice for a person who's not with the blog she's listed as writing for!

Wonkette.

Yes, she's the founder, but I mean everyone knows it's not her blog anymore and she's not writing on it. Ana Marie will tell you herself she's a "Wonkette emerita". She's tops on Twitter - in part because someone at Twitter put her on their "Suggested Users" list, which caused her follower count to just zoom.

For that reason, in part, Twitter's "Suggested Users List" is no more.

Now I'm not picking on Ana Marie Cox - this could have been true for any blogger who did not have an active blog.  (In fact, note that I'm not picking on Michelle Malkin, ok?)  When I see "top bloggers" I don't expect a list just made up from the whim of the web master, even if it's Bill Gates.  

Especially if it's Bill Gates.

I expect to see a numbers graph.  I expect to see displayed traffic measures.

Think about this. Some of the people responsible for this arbitrary selection would be the first to say they're not biased at all. Yes, I'm going there. I'm pretty hot about this. In New Media the idea is for the best or top of whatever to get their because they have measurable traffic and readership. When the numbers change, the blogger's ranking changes. Right?

Keep prejudices out of it.

This display of arbitrary selection of "top bloggers" on the part of Bing is no better than it was over at Twitter.

It's really got to stop.

Emerald Bowl - USC tops Boston College with officials help

Yes, USC beat Boston Collage 24-13 in the Emerald Bowl in San Francisco, but I've got to believe something really awful in media's going on when the mainstream press doesn't point out the obviously really questionable calls in this game, and it takes a blog like The Bleacher Report to tell it like it is:

It was almost like watching professional wrestling in that the fix seemed so clearly to be on.

Why is Google allowing a really imaginary hierarchy between "news" and "blogs" when all news articles do is express someone's opinion without using the term "I"? But I digress.  If TMZ's the only blog considered reliable, they need to hurry-up with TMZSports.com.

The NCAA  and Congress should conduct an investigation for having a bowl game that had two calls that looked like - to me - the officials were in on some kind of fix. How else can one explain a long pass in the second quarter that was obviously caught out of bounds as a catch?

How can anyone say that a video which showed a ball bouncing into the foot of a USC player on a punt turn, as that player was pushing the Boston College punt defender, was USC's ball because the USC person was blocked into the ball?

It's right there on the video - unless the video was destroyed.  Did anyone make a video of the game?

Wow.

Sorry. For the media not to question what's in their face and with outrage is outrageous. I'm happy the Pac-10 won a 2009 bowl game, but come on! Not this way.

Anytime one can go to a Cal Football forum and see that fans know the officials were making "pro-USC" calls, you know there's a problem. Say, even though Cal fans are USC rivals, we're supposed to root for the Pac-10 in bowl games. I expect to see the complaint at a Boston College forum, and I did, but Cal too?

This is a matter of right versus wrong. It really hurt to watch that game.

USC was not playing much better than Boston College until after that punt return call, which could have and would have changed the momentum of the game and given Boston College the ball at the USC 30.

Didn't happen.

The refs spent a good five minutes "coming up with the wording" as one ESPN annoucer put it, to explain the call they were about to make. Even ESPN's Rod Gillmore was aghast, asking anyone why they were taking so much time.

The 2009 Emerald Bowl will go down as a game that did not show NCAA College Football at its officiating best.

Urban Meyer update - Meyer could be replaced by Dan Mullen

The legendary innovator Urban Meyer will step down as Head Coach of the Florida Gators after his team takes on the Cincinnati Bearcats in the Sugar Bowl. Meyer, who's health problems (including chest pains after Florida's 32 - 13 loss to Alabama in the 2009 SEC championship game) finally convinced him to leave the field.

Urban Meyer, to me, is irreplaceable by anyone except former Florida Offensive Coordinator Dan Mullen (now Head Coach at Mississippi State)

As Chris Brown points out in a comprehensive blog post at SmartFootball.com, Urban Meyer's contribution to football was to take several seemingly disparate offensive concepts - the Run-and-Shoot, the Spread Passing Offense used by Joe Tiller at Purdue, the Shotgun Formation, Zone Running, and The Triple Option - and fuse them together into a new offensive approach.

Urban Meyer has been so successful with this system that New England Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichek sent then-Quarterback Coach (now Denver Broncos Head Coach) Josh McDaniel down to learn about his offense in 2006. The result was several key changes that led to the Patriots record-setting passing game in 2007.

Urban Meyer and Dan Mullen refined the Spread Offense over time such that play-action passes (which Chris Brown points out were considered impossible in Shotgun Formations) are a common part of the attack.

My point is, Meyer and Mullen really created that offense and have been the architects of Florida's success. Dan Mullen's the most logical candidate to replace Meyer.

The question is if Mississippi State will match Florida's reported possible payout of $4.9 million a year. Since Mullen takes in just $1.2 million, it's not likely that will happen. While other coaches like Bobby Petrino at Arkansas and Bob Stoops at Oklahoma are rumored to replace Urban Meyer, Dan Mullen's the best choice to step in as he's a seamless fit.

Happy Kwanzaa! December 26th is the first day of Kwanzaa

Kwanzaa is a seven-day celebration of family, community, and culture. It's an African American holiday; born of the first harvest celebrations of Africa. In a custom similar to Hanukkah, Kwanzaa is marked by candle-lighting and gift giving.

This Kwanzaa opening ceremony was held at Youth Uprising in Oakland in 2009:



Greg Hodge, who ran for Oakland's District Three City Council seat in 2008, is also Minister Greg Hodge of Wo'se Church in Oakland. In this video, he talks about the importance of language and names in Kwanzaa. Greg, as usual, offers great words of wisdom:



If you're looking for a good guide for the preparation of Kwanzaa-related cuisine, check out the new website Cuisine Noir.

Stay tuned and Happy Kwanzaa!

Charlie Sheen update - Brooke Mueller Sheen blows off police

In this Charlie Sheen update, we learn from TMZ.com that Brooke Mueller Sheen is blowing off the Aspen, Colorado police.

Charlie Sheen was arrested and placed in the Pitkin, County Jail in Aspen, Colorado on Christmas morning after having been charged with, according to the Aspen Times, a class-four felony charge of second-degree assault and a class-five felony charge of menacing. He was also charged with a misdemeanor count of what is called "criminal mischief."

District Judge James Boyd presided over a hearing called Friday, Christmas night. The Judge issued a mandatory protection order against Sheen; he can't have contact with Brooke Mueller Sheen. He posted bond, set at $8,500 and was released.

Charlie Sheen and Brooke Mueller Sheen

Aspen lawyer Richie Cummins said Sheen was scheduled to board a flight to Los Angeles.

Now, TMZ.com reports Brooke Mueller Sheen "has told cops she's done talking with them about the incident" when they tried to re-interview her on Saturday. Initial reports quoted Colorado law enforcement officials as saying Brooke Mueller Sheen was legally drunk when she made a 911 call to report Charlie Sheen.

TMZ.com has also reported that Brooke Muller Sheen changed her story from what she said during the 911 call.

Some have asked why Charlie Sheen managed to get a hearing on Christmas night. One reason separate from who Charlie Sheen is, is that he picked the right lawyer. Richie Cummins is reportedly a 30-year criminal lawyer in Aspen. He knows all of the police, sheriffs, and judges. Sheen made the right choice.

RadarOnline.com reported that Charlie and Brooke took a "trial separation". They reportedly met in Aspen where Muller rented a house and started arguing Christmas morning.

Charlie Sheen is to report back to court in Colorado, February 8th.