A life and death –celebrated
By Antoine Craigwell
On Feb 8, a cold Monday evening, more than 200 people braved the freezing winds blowing off the Hudson River to pack a room at the Brecht Forum in Manhattan’s West Village for the New York premier of the documentary, “W.A. R. Stories: Walter Anthony Rodney,” which chronicled the life, work, passion, and death on Jun 13, 1980, of the world-renowned Guyanese historian and social activist.
It was from an idea that Clairmont Mali Chung said he had that he was encouraged to traverse the globe, crisscrossing and tracing the routes and places where Rodney lived, and interviewed more than 43 people who knew or in some way were associated with him. Chung, an attorney, who wrote, directed, and co-produced the 90-minute documentary, said that all those who were interviewed recalled Rodney’s life and more importantly, the effect he had on them and on the places where he either visited or lived, including those places where he was rendered persona non grata by governments.
In the film, those who were interviewed included academics, Horace Campbell, Ph.D., professor of African-American Studies and Political Science at Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York; Rupert Roopnaraine, Ph.D., principal of the Critchlow Labor College, Georgetown, Guyana; Clive Thomas, Ph.D., professor of Political Science, University of Alaska Southeast; Issa Shivji, Ph.D., professor of Law, University of Dar-es-Salam, Tanzania; the late professor Haroub Othman, Ph.D., University of Dar-es-Salam, Tanzania; and the late Vice-Chancellor Emeritus Rex Nettleford, Ph.D., professor of Cultural Studies, University of the West Indies, at Mona, Jamaica. Also included among the list of those interviewed were poets, U.S. poet and playwright Amiri Baraka and Working Peoples Alliance (WPA) member Eusi Kwayana, writers, and activists including, Karen DeSouza and Andaiye, members of the WPA, the political party in Guyana to which Rodney belonged.
The documentary captured the essence of the man - in the people he met, spent time with, who listened to him speak, and shared in his vision for the rights of workers, especially those of the African Diaspora. Many spoke not only of his academic brilliance, referring to his books, which were during his life, and have since become required reading in colleges on subjects of Black history, and placed as part of the canon of Afrocentric and conscious writers such as the late Guyanese Ivan Van Sertima, and Cheikh Anta Diop, but as his widow Patricia Rodney, Ph.D., recalled, his humanness. His daughter, Asha Rodney, spoke of the tenderness and delight he had in his family – being nimble with his hands to build a doll house for his children, and his brother Hubert Rodney, who spoke of his attempts at cricket and his passion for striving to correct the wrongs done, not just to one person, but to a people.
In the film, many pointed to Rodney’s ability to navigate the line between his scholarship and his ability to dance the ska, he was able to hang out with friends, often hosting numerous people where he lived, to meet, to discuss and share thoughts on issues affecting them, and still be disciplined in his work.
The crowd that gathered for the screening, though small in number, was a promise of those expected to turn out to see the documentary at other occasions. The film revealed that whenever Rodney spoke at a meeting and wherever he went, from countries as far flung as Tanzania to Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of Congo; from Zimbabwe to Jamaica; from Montreal, Canada to Atlanta, GA in the United States; and to the intersection of Louisa Row and D’Urban streets in Georgetown, Guyana; people gathered to hear him speak of realism, practicality, pragmatism, and to hear him excoriate those who condoned and perpetuated wrong-doing. Undoubtedly, Rodney’s charisma and his grasp of the issues combined with his oratory, held many captive, and not only unnerved those in power, but also earned him their opprobrium and ultimately, his demise.
The documentary, with a few technical glitches, drew on archival material including footage from the Victor Jara Collective “Terror of the Times” and Menelik Shabazz “Time and Judgment,” and news clips from the Walter Rodney Archives, and from Guyanese and Caribbean publications, such as the Guyana Chronicle, The Catholic Standard, The Mirror, Dayclean, The Gleaner of Jamaica, Caribbean Contact, and the Trinidad Guardian. The music, which provided another sense of context was taken from the work of artists including Ras Camo, Rubix and Talib Kweli “Another Millionaire Dies Everyday,” Carl Dawkins “Dr. Rodney,” Lui Lepke “Dem kill Walter Rodney,” and the strains of Frederick Chopin, all fused together to produce a piece of work that truly captured who Rodney was, his impact on the people he met, and the patina of a legend that had begun to form about him in life, and which assumed greater significance for the party and the people with his death.
Following the screening, Chung, Abbyssinian Carto and Gabriehu Aregai, author of “Dangerous Times: The Assassination of Dr. Walter Rodney,” hosted a panel discussion and was assisted from the audience by Nigel Westmaas, Ph.D., assistant professor of Africana Studies, Hamilton College. Westmaas, who was an advisor for the documentary, as he answered questions from the audience, placed Rodney in the context of his time. He pointed out that despite stories to the contrary, Guyana’s history is replete with several successful rebellions, occurring during slavery by slaves as in 1763 Slave Revolt in Berbice, and after slavery, in the 20th century. In response to a question from the audience, Chung said that while he was aware of the presence of the idea for and about Rodney in his consciousness for sometime, he decided in 2006 to bring it to reality, and completed filming in 2008. Carto and Aregai, who appeared in the documentary, each recollected memories of Rodney’s life and the dastardly circumstances of his death. Speaking separately, Carto and Aregai said that combined with the knowledge that some of the principal people who were instrumental in formulating a decision to have Rodney removed, and who are still alive and playing active roles in the political life of Guyana, fills them with unspeakable anger. Carto said that he is so angry with the former prime minister, Hamilton Green, now mayor of Georgetown, that he cannot bring himself to forgive him for the part he is alleged to have played in ordering Rodney’s assassination.
During the film and even after, in the question and answer session, frequent mention was made of Rodney’s authorship, especially “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa,” “A history of the Upper Guinea Coast, 1545 – 1800,” and “Groundings with my brothers.”
Rose October-Edun, a member of the Guyana Cultural Association, commented that as a young woman in Guyana, she was as aware, as were those of her generation, that while many Guyanese were ignorant or unfamiliar with Rodney’s international stature and proficiency, there were people in Guyana, who through the filter of the political domination of the time were only slightly familiar with his work and activities; he was ever more popular abroad than he was at home. She admitted that she was a victim of the deliberate or unconscious channeling by the adults in her life who denied Rodney’s existence and stature, a charge she felt was true for many of her peers and those of subsequent generations; that any information of and about Rodney was purged from the news and from popular discourse. The documentary, she declared, has inspired her to make a project of learning as much as she could about a true revolutionary. Many in the audience called for the educational system in Guyana to embrace and promote Rodney’s books, so that this and future generations could be informed more accurately about their history.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Status Is Everything
Knowing means better decisions, choices and responsibilities
By Antoine Craigwell
As the saying goes, knowledge is power, and for many young Black men in the city of Newark, NJ, being aware of their HIV status is taking responsibility and making choices, for themselves and for others.
In 2001 the African-American Office of Gay Concerns (AAOGC), an inner city community-based organization was founded by Gary Paul Wright, its current executive director, to address the needs of the Black gay community in Newark, NJ with a slogan, “Status Is Everything.” Using its own tagline, the organization embarked on an ambitious promotional campaign to encourage Black gay men in their early teens to middle 20s to be tested, get to know their HIV status, and be able to make choices in their lives that are more informed.
The “Status Is Everything” campaign blitz, which cost approximately $35,000, was launched with an all day event at the Newark City Hall on Thursday, Feb 4. As a campaign, it would feature images of young Black men on posters placed inside and outside Newark city buses and the city’s Light Rail, on a Washington Street billboard, use social media, and in public service announcements on cable television and in the movie theaters; to encourage other young men to be tested and know their HIV status.
At a conference for African-American men, Wright said, he noticed that there was no organization taking up the cause of fighting for these men, “Status is everything is my brainchild and it is more than the tag line to the organization. It began in my kitchen with my partner and six other friends.”
Funded by the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), and from the U.S. Centers for Diseases Control, the effectiveness of the “Status Is Everything” campaign is monitored by a team led by Anne Dey, Ph.D., program development administrator with the HIV Prevention Community Planning Support and Development Initiative of Rutgers University, whose department would be tracking the numbers of young men who go to any one of three testing locations around the city and reporting to the state. The testing locations include St. Michael’s on Central Avenue, UMDNJ Rapid Testing Center, and the NJCRI HIV Counseling and Testing Team.
Unlike other campaigns, this exercise makes use of contemporary technology, including YouTube, Twitter, and FaceBook: someone could text, using his cell phone, to one of the locations and receive instructions to the nearest testing site. If a person does not have access to a cell phone, he could call the number on the posters and receive testing locations and information.
The fact that from start to finish researchers and campaign planners listened to what the target population had to say made the project exciting, Dey said, “When the billboard went up in Washington Street, we got word that someone saw it and went to a testing center to be tested.”
According to Wright, the AAOGC staff waded through streams of data on the numbers of young Black men who are HIV positive, and as a practical project, moved beyond his kitchen. After five focus groups had met and examined the best and most effective manner of reaching the target audience, including messaging, encouraging young men to get tested, and reviewing six competitive bids; contracts were signed in October 2009 with FEMWORKS, LLC, a Newark, NJ-based public relations firm, and Robert Penn Productions, a NYC-based film production company, to develop and promote the “Status Is Everything” campaign, which is scheduled to run until Jun 2010.
Following an evaluation and depending on the responses and effectiveness of the campaign, Wright said, the AAOGC would approach the state and the CDC about continuing it in Newark and expanding it to other cities.
“If there is an increase in the numbers of young men who get tested and we see this through anyone of the modes, it could be replicated in other parts of the state. But, if there is no increase, then we would ask what did we do wrong, where we failed, and it would be lessons learned exercise,” Dey said.
In support of the slogan, “Status Is Everything,” driving the campaign and giving it a reason, a Jun 30, 2009 New Jersey HIV/AIDS Report, (http://www.state.nj.us/health/aids/repa/popgroups/documents/blacknothispanic.pdf) states that as recently as of the middle of last year, Black men who have sex with men (MSM) - an estimated 25,899 - accounted for close to one-fifth, 19.5 percent, or 5,048 of the accumulated reported HIV cases.
As a demonstration and a more comprehensive understanding of the significance of the impact of HIV on the state, the report included those MSMs identified as injection drug users (IDUs), who make up close to 4.46 percent or 1,155 of the overall population. Against the statewide numbers, of an estimated, 11,132 Black men living with HIV, approximately 24 percent or 2,654 are MSM, and 3.43 percent or 381 are MSM-identified IDUs.
Drilling down from the state to the county level, the report stated that of the13, 552 HIV/AIDS cases in Essex County, (http://www.state.nj.us/health/aids/repa/county/documents/essex.pdf), Blacks were 77 percent or 10, 451 of that population, of which 20 percent or 2,714 were MSMs, and 4.52 percent or 613 were categorized as MSM-IDUs. In Essex County, Newark tops a list of cities in the state with more than 100 HIV/AIDS cases with 13,744 cases.
In Newark, (http://www.state.nj.us/health/aids/repa/impactcities/documents/newark.pdf) Blacks were 74.50 percent or 2,537 of the 3,405 people living with HIV. Of the numbers in Newark, the men living with HIV with the highest numbers are those 35 to 44 years old, who make up 25 percent or 840 men, and 38 percent or 1,277, who are between 45 to 54 years of age.
“This is the most professional emerging campaign I’ve seen in a long time and I’ve heard from a lot of clients that they have seen it,” said Dey.
By Antoine Craigwell
As the saying goes, knowledge is power, and for many young Black men in the city of Newark, NJ, being aware of their HIV status is taking responsibility and making choices, for themselves and for others.
In 2001 the African-American Office of Gay Concerns (AAOGC), an inner city community-based organization was founded by Gary Paul Wright, its current executive director, to address the needs of the Black gay community in Newark, NJ with a slogan, “Status Is Everything.” Using its own tagline, the organization embarked on an ambitious promotional campaign to encourage Black gay men in their early teens to middle 20s to be tested, get to know their HIV status, and be able to make choices in their lives that are more informed.
The “Status Is Everything” campaign blitz, which cost approximately $35,000, was launched with an all day event at the Newark City Hall on Thursday, Feb 4. As a campaign, it would feature images of young Black men on posters placed inside and outside Newark city buses and the city’s Light Rail, on a Washington Street billboard, use social media, and in public service announcements on cable television and in the movie theaters; to encourage other young men to be tested and know their HIV status.
At a conference for African-American men, Wright said, he noticed that there was no organization taking up the cause of fighting for these men, “Status is everything is my brainchild and it is more than the tag line to the organization. It began in my kitchen with my partner and six other friends.”
Funded by the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), and from the U.S. Centers for Diseases Control, the effectiveness of the “Status Is Everything” campaign is monitored by a team led by Anne Dey, Ph.D., program development administrator with the HIV Prevention Community Planning Support and Development Initiative of Rutgers University, whose department would be tracking the numbers of young men who go to any one of three testing locations around the city and reporting to the state. The testing locations include St. Michael’s on Central Avenue, UMDNJ Rapid Testing Center, and the NJCRI HIV Counseling and Testing Team.
Unlike other campaigns, this exercise makes use of contemporary technology, including YouTube, Twitter, and FaceBook: someone could text, using his cell phone, to one of the locations and receive instructions to the nearest testing site. If a person does not have access to a cell phone, he could call the number on the posters and receive testing locations and information.
The fact that from start to finish researchers and campaign planners listened to what the target population had to say made the project exciting, Dey said, “When the billboard went up in Washington Street, we got word that someone saw it and went to a testing center to be tested.”
According to Wright, the AAOGC staff waded through streams of data on the numbers of young Black men who are HIV positive, and as a practical project, moved beyond his kitchen. After five focus groups had met and examined the best and most effective manner of reaching the target audience, including messaging, encouraging young men to get tested, and reviewing six competitive bids; contracts were signed in October 2009 with FEMWORKS, LLC, a Newark, NJ-based public relations firm, and Robert Penn Productions, a NYC-based film production company, to develop and promote the “Status Is Everything” campaign, which is scheduled to run until Jun 2010.
Following an evaluation and depending on the responses and effectiveness of the campaign, Wright said, the AAOGC would approach the state and the CDC about continuing it in Newark and expanding it to other cities.
“If there is an increase in the numbers of young men who get tested and we see this through anyone of the modes, it could be replicated in other parts of the state. But, if there is no increase, then we would ask what did we do wrong, where we failed, and it would be lessons learned exercise,” Dey said.
In support of the slogan, “Status Is Everything,” driving the campaign and giving it a reason, a Jun 30, 2009 New Jersey HIV/AIDS Report, (http://www.state.nj.us/health/aids/repa/popgroups/documents/blacknothispanic.pdf) states that as recently as of the middle of last year, Black men who have sex with men (MSM) - an estimated 25,899 - accounted for close to one-fifth, 19.5 percent, or 5,048 of the accumulated reported HIV cases.
As a demonstration and a more comprehensive understanding of the significance of the impact of HIV on the state, the report included those MSMs identified as injection drug users (IDUs), who make up close to 4.46 percent or 1,155 of the overall population. Against the statewide numbers, of an estimated, 11,132 Black men living with HIV, approximately 24 percent or 2,654 are MSM, and 3.43 percent or 381 are MSM-identified IDUs.
Drilling down from the state to the county level, the report stated that of the13, 552 HIV/AIDS cases in Essex County, (http://www.state.nj.us/health/aids/repa/county/documents/essex.pdf), Blacks were 77 percent or 10, 451 of that population, of which 20 percent or 2,714 were MSMs, and 4.52 percent or 613 were categorized as MSM-IDUs. In Essex County, Newark tops a list of cities in the state with more than 100 HIV/AIDS cases with 13,744 cases.
In Newark, (http://www.state.nj.us/health/aids/repa/impactcities/documents/newark.pdf) Blacks were 74.50 percent or 2,537 of the 3,405 people living with HIV. Of the numbers in Newark, the men living with HIV with the highest numbers are those 35 to 44 years old, who make up 25 percent or 840 men, and 38 percent or 1,277, who are between 45 to 54 years of age.
“This is the most professional emerging campaign I’ve seen in a long time and I’ve heard from a lot of clients that they have seen it,” said Dey.
The rise of technology in time of Disaster
By Antoine Craigwell
About nine minutes after disaster struck, the first Tweet was sent to the outside world, alerting those on the sender’s Tweet list of the devastation.
Red Cross International reported on Wednesday, Jan 13, that as of then, approximately $3 million was raised through people texting “Haiti 90999” since the earthquake and untold amounts of money was donated, also by texting, to “Yele 501501” to the charity headed by Haitian singer Wyclef Jean’s Yele Foundation. In a 24-hour period, the Red Cross raised $1.7 million through text donations.
Contrary to some schools of thought, that social media, including FaceBook and Twitter, and Skype encourage the sharing of an inordinate amount of personal information – though social media detractors do have a point, as it is in some cases used by many subscribers who divulge the minutia of their everyday lives, either as a sign of boredom or of exhibitionism run amok; that it is through the power of this media that at least three major global events were transmitted to the wider world, against other established and traditional forms of communication which had failed, were severely compromised or damaged.
On Nov 24, 2006, when most Americans were sitting down to their traditional Thanksgiving dinner, and when the attackers had laid siege to the hotel in Mumbai, India and were wreaking havoc, journalists, members of the Society of Asian Journalists, who Tweeted, using their allotted 140 characters to send reports and updates of what was happening on the ground.
Last summer, when protests erupted in Tehran, Iran over the results of that country’s general elections, and the government had shut down phone service, blocked Internet access, expelled journalists, threatened its citizenry with arrest and imprisonment for using cell phones to Tweet or to take photographs, that some brave souls in the capital risked their lives to Tweet about the state of affairs. It was through the brave efforts of those who Tweeted about the scale of the protests and the wanton use by the government of the Revolutionary Guard and the basjee to violently suppress all protests, was the world outside of Iran made aware.
Once again, when, at 4:53 pm EST time that the 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck, hitting the port city of Port-au-Prince, Haiti and the traditional communications networks had been destroyed, telephone infrastructure leveled, it was through people on the ground with their cell phones who were texting and Tweeting the state of affairs, what they were seeing and experiencing. As with the attacks in Mumbai, the protests in Tehran, and now the earthquake in Port-au-Prince, the first pictures appearing in mainstream media, though blurred, were taken and distributed by cell phones.
Following this explosion of cellular activity, it came as a technological surprise to many when two organizations put abroad that donating money for the relief efforts could be sent by a “text” and the amount would be added to the sender’s cell phone bill. Not forthcoming or asked about is for those making donations over their cell phones, the cell phone companies making a pledge or commitment to donate a portion of their grossly inflated revenues to the Haitian cause, and only later did the cell phone companies agree not to charge taxes and miscellaneous fees normally levied on subscribers.
About nine minutes after disaster struck, the first Tweet was sent to the outside world, alerting those on the sender’s Tweet list of the devastation.
Red Cross International reported on Wednesday, Jan 13, that as of then, approximately $3 million was raised through people texting “Haiti 90999” since the earthquake and untold amounts of money was donated, also by texting, to “Yele 501501” to the charity headed by Haitian singer Wyclef Jean’s Yele Foundation. In a 24-hour period, the Red Cross raised $1.7 million through text donations.
Contrary to some schools of thought, that social media, including FaceBook and Twitter, and Skype encourage the sharing of an inordinate amount of personal information – though social media detractors do have a point, as it is in some cases used by many subscribers who divulge the minutia of their everyday lives, either as a sign of boredom or of exhibitionism run amok; that it is through the power of this media that at least three major global events were transmitted to the wider world, against other established and traditional forms of communication which had failed, were severely compromised or damaged.
On Nov 24, 2006, when most Americans were sitting down to their traditional Thanksgiving dinner, and when the attackers had laid siege to the hotel in Mumbai, India and were wreaking havoc, journalists, members of the Society of Asian Journalists, who Tweeted, using their allotted 140 characters to send reports and updates of what was happening on the ground.
Last summer, when protests erupted in Tehran, Iran over the results of that country’s general elections, and the government had shut down phone service, blocked Internet access, expelled journalists, threatened its citizenry with arrest and imprisonment for using cell phones to Tweet or to take photographs, that some brave souls in the capital risked their lives to Tweet about the state of affairs. It was through the brave efforts of those who Tweeted about the scale of the protests and the wanton use by the government of the Revolutionary Guard and the basjee to violently suppress all protests, was the world outside of Iran made aware.
Once again, when, at 4:53 pm EST time that the 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck, hitting the port city of Port-au-Prince, Haiti and the traditional communications networks had been destroyed, telephone infrastructure leveled, it was through people on the ground with their cell phones who were texting and Tweeting the state of affairs, what they were seeing and experiencing. As with the attacks in Mumbai, the protests in Tehran, and now the earthquake in Port-au-Prince, the first pictures appearing in mainstream media, though blurred, were taken and distributed by cell phones.
Following this explosion of cellular activity, it came as a technological surprise to many when two organizations put abroad that donating money for the relief efforts could be sent by a “text” and the amount would be added to the sender’s cell phone bill. Not forthcoming or asked about is for those making donations over their cell phones, the cell phone companies making a pledge or commitment to donate a portion of their grossly inflated revenues to the Haitian cause, and only later did the cell phone companies agree not to charge taxes and miscellaneous fees normally levied on subscribers.
Haiti : destruction what was – Recreating anew
Since the earthquake devastated Port-au-Prince, there has been a rush by many, including governments to provide aid: in rescue and recovery, and with medical supplies and food. With the announcements, thanks to the prolific media’s presence, especially through CNN and BBC, there has been an outpouring of aid from non-profit organizations, led by the United Nations and the American Red Cross, and the organization founded by the Haitian singer, Wyclef Jean, the Yele Foundation; people from all across the U.S., from all across the world, from as far as Taiwan on the other side of the globe and Israel, of all nations, stepped in to help rescue the Haitian people. It was particularly admirable that a rescue team of 40 from Iceland, a country in the throes of its own economic crises and a bankrupt government, with their specialty in search and rescue, came to help.
Ten days later, while those who had come into the island nation to provide assistance had shifted gears from rescue to recovery, incredibly, people were being pulled from the rubble, alive: images were on the news an 84-year-old woman was rescued as well as a 22-year-old man, beating all the text book odds of a human being unable to survive beyond three days without food or drink. And, through an American perspective, seeing this disaster through the presentations of the media, the Haitian people, with the exception of a few isolated pockets of expressions of frustration and anger at the slow pace of aid reaching them – water, food and medical supplies; there was calm. The people were behaving.
Interestingly, the same media, striving for its oft sought after fair and balanced reporting, as well as showing the planes landing at Toussaint International Airport, spoke of the flights held in holding patterns and diversions, of the towering pallets of food, clothing and temporary shelter, all still cling-foil wrapped on the airport’s apron; also showed interviews with aid personnel who complained of being forced through the absence of materials to sterilize surgical equipment with, of all things, vodka – which they surely would’ve wanted to drink, to help dull the images of death and dismemberment, suffering burnt into their consciences, seared into their memories; of the smell of decaying, decomposing, putrefied human remains, those who had as yet to be found in their crumbled concreted tombs, and those, the estimated 80,000 who were buried in mass graves, unidentified and unaccounted for. The same media, showed images of regions outside of the capital where no one had gone to help: who knows how many may have died entombed in their crumpled homes, buried under their respective prides and joys – their own homes.
The 7.0 magnitude earthquake (a force the equivalent to more than 100 mega tones of TNT or several times the force Hiroshima and Nagasaki), which struck at 4:53pm along the fault line, was the crust of the earth going about its business - readjusting, shifting, fitting into place; caught an estimated two million people by surprise, as they went about their business. In truth, the island nation of Haiti was no stranger to disaster. A few years ago, as if the climate, the very weather, which turned azure skies and a turquoise, tranquil warm water sea, a respite from the cold of the north in balmy 85-degree temperature, into a sign that all was not well with the world; the island was slammed by more than one hurricane, natural disasters, which as of the time of the earthquake, the island nation had not quite recovered.
But, for those Haitians who were killed either by falling masonry, died of starvation or from their injuries because no one could get to them or knew they lay in pain, trapped in their homes, the shadow of disaster seemed to be a permanent cloud stuck, hovering over their country; at least for them they were out of their misery, they know nothing anymore. It is those who have survived; those who were trapped, pinned under steel or concrete, tons of it, whose limbs were amputated, to stop the insidious and pervasive march of infection that threatened to join them with their country men and women who had ceased to breathe, who had shuddered in darkness and in silence one last time, and literally didn’t know what hit them; to save their lives. It is those who survived, the major question is: what life for them now?
In the U.S. as in many other so-called first world countries, being in any unable to provide for oneself or family has truly become a curse of this age. Many thousands of Haitians, who just moments before the earthquake, who had survived countless triumphs, were to be brought low, reduced to a life of who knows what. In the U.S. for example, while ostensibly there are resources for the disabled, and a law to protect against discrimination, in a land and among a people easy to marginalize; life for an amputee is hard, often, as in NYC, to wander the city's streets or the subways begging for a handout. For the many able-bodied men and stout women of Haiti who before this devastation held their heads high with pride, what now would be their fate, how would they be viewed, who would have mercy on them, who would forget that an earthquake caused buildings to collapse and in the rubble trapped many, and who would see these amputees as survivors? What does one say to a child, boy or girl, who now is disabled?
The article written by Sir Hilary Beckes, Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University of the West Indies, and published in the Barbados Advocate, circulating around on the Internet focused on the bigger picture: the sovereignty, nationhood and identity of the Haitian people - aspects of which at the microcosmic level essential for the creation of a home are just as important as for those who died in their improvised tombs, as if they said to the world at large, “this is my house, my castle, my domain and I’ll die in it.” Could it be that those who recently died in this natural disaster waved their fists in the air and dared that Haiti should rise once more and be the nation it once was? Sir Beckles addressed the history of Haiti, from its inception, when Christopher Columbus landed on the island, which he called Hispaniola, to the occupation by the English, Dutch, Spanish, and then by the French, who made the island into a colony and imported slaves to till the soil and to produce for the French government and people. Sir Beckles recounted the nation’s history, reveling in the pride of a people, the first in the New World to achieve independence from France in 1804 and took his readers through the path where that glory was stripped away, taken, to be finally summarized in the words of an American evangelist, Pat Robertson, who suggested in his bigoted view, that the people of Haiti had made a pact with the devil, but who could not see that the devil the Haitian people trusted was someone like he.
Now with the outpouring of support, aid, and assistance, is anyone asking those pertinent questions: would the island nation of Haiti be allowed to rise up to reclaim even a semblance of what it once was? Is the Preval government capable of charting a new course of nationhood, forged in the blood recently spilt and the blood of his country’s ancestors? What would be the fate of all those who are missing limbs, their abilities to provide for their families severely compromised, or who would take care of them? What can anyone say to the young men and women who are maimed by this disaster? Would the heavy American presence, 10,000 troops, act as a guarantee that U.S. companies would get the chance at first dibs at bidding or the best assignments to rebuild?
Was the earthquake indeed necessary for this nation to start over?
Ten days later, while those who had come into the island nation to provide assistance had shifted gears from rescue to recovery, incredibly, people were being pulled from the rubble, alive: images were on the news an 84-year-old woman was rescued as well as a 22-year-old man, beating all the text book odds of a human being unable to survive beyond three days without food or drink. And, through an American perspective, seeing this disaster through the presentations of the media, the Haitian people, with the exception of a few isolated pockets of expressions of frustration and anger at the slow pace of aid reaching them – water, food and medical supplies; there was calm. The people were behaving.
Interestingly, the same media, striving for its oft sought after fair and balanced reporting, as well as showing the planes landing at Toussaint International Airport, spoke of the flights held in holding patterns and diversions, of the towering pallets of food, clothing and temporary shelter, all still cling-foil wrapped on the airport’s apron; also showed interviews with aid personnel who complained of being forced through the absence of materials to sterilize surgical equipment with, of all things, vodka – which they surely would’ve wanted to drink, to help dull the images of death and dismemberment, suffering burnt into their consciences, seared into their memories; of the smell of decaying, decomposing, putrefied human remains, those who had as yet to be found in their crumbled concreted tombs, and those, the estimated 80,000 who were buried in mass graves, unidentified and unaccounted for. The same media, showed images of regions outside of the capital where no one had gone to help: who knows how many may have died entombed in their crumpled homes, buried under their respective prides and joys – their own homes.
The 7.0 magnitude earthquake (a force the equivalent to more than 100 mega tones of TNT or several times the force Hiroshima and Nagasaki), which struck at 4:53pm along the fault line, was the crust of the earth going about its business - readjusting, shifting, fitting into place; caught an estimated two million people by surprise, as they went about their business. In truth, the island nation of Haiti was no stranger to disaster. A few years ago, as if the climate, the very weather, which turned azure skies and a turquoise, tranquil warm water sea, a respite from the cold of the north in balmy 85-degree temperature, into a sign that all was not well with the world; the island was slammed by more than one hurricane, natural disasters, which as of the time of the earthquake, the island nation had not quite recovered.
But, for those Haitians who were killed either by falling masonry, died of starvation or from their injuries because no one could get to them or knew they lay in pain, trapped in their homes, the shadow of disaster seemed to be a permanent cloud stuck, hovering over their country; at least for them they were out of their misery, they know nothing anymore. It is those who have survived; those who were trapped, pinned under steel or concrete, tons of it, whose limbs were amputated, to stop the insidious and pervasive march of infection that threatened to join them with their country men and women who had ceased to breathe, who had shuddered in darkness and in silence one last time, and literally didn’t know what hit them; to save their lives. It is those who survived, the major question is: what life for them now?
In the U.S. as in many other so-called first world countries, being in any unable to provide for oneself or family has truly become a curse of this age. Many thousands of Haitians, who just moments before the earthquake, who had survived countless triumphs, were to be brought low, reduced to a life of who knows what. In the U.S. for example, while ostensibly there are resources for the disabled, and a law to protect against discrimination, in a land and among a people easy to marginalize; life for an amputee is hard, often, as in NYC, to wander the city's streets or the subways begging for a handout. For the many able-bodied men and stout women of Haiti who before this devastation held their heads high with pride, what now would be their fate, how would they be viewed, who would have mercy on them, who would forget that an earthquake caused buildings to collapse and in the rubble trapped many, and who would see these amputees as survivors? What does one say to a child, boy or girl, who now is disabled?
The article written by Sir Hilary Beckes, Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University of the West Indies, and published in the Barbados Advocate, circulating around on the Internet focused on the bigger picture: the sovereignty, nationhood and identity of the Haitian people - aspects of which at the microcosmic level essential for the creation of a home are just as important as for those who died in their improvised tombs, as if they said to the world at large, “this is my house, my castle, my domain and I’ll die in it.” Could it be that those who recently died in this natural disaster waved their fists in the air and dared that Haiti should rise once more and be the nation it once was? Sir Beckles addressed the history of Haiti, from its inception, when Christopher Columbus landed on the island, which he called Hispaniola, to the occupation by the English, Dutch, Spanish, and then by the French, who made the island into a colony and imported slaves to till the soil and to produce for the French government and people. Sir Beckles recounted the nation’s history, reveling in the pride of a people, the first in the New World to achieve independence from France in 1804 and took his readers through the path where that glory was stripped away, taken, to be finally summarized in the words of an American evangelist, Pat Robertson, who suggested in his bigoted view, that the people of Haiti had made a pact with the devil, but who could not see that the devil the Haitian people trusted was someone like he.
Now with the outpouring of support, aid, and assistance, is anyone asking those pertinent questions: would the island nation of Haiti be allowed to rise up to reclaim even a semblance of what it once was? Is the Preval government capable of charting a new course of nationhood, forged in the blood recently spilt and the blood of his country’s ancestors? What would be the fate of all those who are missing limbs, their abilities to provide for their families severely compromised, or who would take care of them? What can anyone say to the young men and women who are maimed by this disaster? Would the heavy American presence, 10,000 troops, act as a guarantee that U.S. companies would get the chance at first dibs at bidding or the best assignments to rebuild?
Was the earthquake indeed necessary for this nation to start over?
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
2009 OUT Music Awards
Chaos and Confusion at 2009 OUT Music Awards
Story by Antoine Craigwell,
Chaotic, disorganized and confused were some of the adjectives used to describe the 2009 OUT Music Awards held at New York City’s Webster Hall on Tuesday, Dec 8. Billed as the 19th l OUT Music Awards, an alliance of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) recording artists and performers, the awards celebrated the accomplishments of many of the artists and musicians in the community. The list of sponsors included LOGO, MAC cosmetics, Grace Hotels, Peaceman Foundation, and GMAD.
While behind the scenes was a hive of activity, scores of volunteers, and assorted staff and assistants running about trying to pull the show together, the first inkling of the widespread disorganization manifested itself outside the Hall with an officious bouncer determining who could gain entry. On one occasion, when he recognized three people who had somehow forced their way to the front of what was a collapsed line, to the chagrin of those who stood in the cold night air waiting to be admitted; he, feigning familiarity with hugs and simulated kisses, brandished a slim sheaf of papers, on which was written names of people who were VIPs, pretended to look at the list and declared, to no one in particular, that the three people were on the list, then waved them to another gatekeeper who affixed different colored wristbands.
On entry, in the lobby, more confusion reigned: an obviously harried assistant perfunctorily waved media and VIPs to the right and others, a press of people around her, she struggled to determine who had what type of access. And, when asked about VIP passes, the assistant was only too willing to hand over a quantity of the green VIP wrist bands without checking that the person was actually a VIP. In a long slender room, up against a wall, was what appeared to be a hastily constructed step-and-repeat banner, a flimsy strip of red carpet and a cordon, behind which a motley gaggle of photographers strained to hear the name of whoever was announced by an equally harried assistant, their cameras clicking away at anyone who appeared in front of the banner.
Those who appeared on the “red carpet”, after their moment of photographic fame, were ushered into either a larger room or left to fend for themselves. In the larger room, a pre-show was underway, which featured a couple going through the motions of presenting awards. At one point, the duo announcing the award categories, the nominees, opening a large blue envelope, and the winners were shouting, unamplified, to be heard above the din; some time after were given working microphones.
Many of those who walked the “red carpet” were sensibly if tastefully and fashionably attired. Others appeared in various costumes as if, some two months later, the Halloween parade had finally made its way across town from 6th Avenue to 3rd Avenue. One person who had designed and made his costume, as he said, to look like a sea creature, looked more like the main character from the Hans Christian Andersen story of the Snow Queen. Another appeared in an all black skin fitting costume with creations of two other people attached to the central figure with limbs sprouting from every direction; and another, the artist known as Sir Ivan, wore a floor length multicolored cape attached to a body suit which seemed as if he was an incarnation of Liberace.
Before the awards began, an assistant came on stage and made three important announcements: she apologized to the VIPs in the balcony that one of the main sponsors had not come through with the liquor, which meant that they had no bar service. A couple who had given up on being VIPs even though they had paid an estimated $300 a person for their tickets, took up seats on the main floor, which had a bar, and proceeded to get as drunk as they could. The assistant also apologized to the crowd of people who were seated in the first three rows, asked them to give up their seats for the nominees, and informed everyone that the entire show was being filmed live for LOGO.
After a further wait, that seemed to go on forever, the show’s joint hosts, Rodney Chester from Noah’s Arc and Kate Clinton, political humorist, appeared on stage and were followed by performances by Christine Martucci, Toshi Reagon, and an assortment of hip hop performers, one of whom kept indicating to the audience that she wanted more adulation. At one point, there was obviously no coordination when Clinton and Chester were to appear on stage together; she appeared and began speaking, followed later by Chester who emerged from behind a curtain and tried unsuccessfully to laugh off his missed cue.
According to the program, there were 23 categories with an interminable list of 91 nominations. Kevin Aviance was presented with the OUT Music Lifetime Achievement Award, which was followed by other special awards, including Willie Ninja, the OUT Music Icon; Reagon the OUT Music Heritage; and Debra Harry, the OUT Music Pillar award. Dan Martin and Michael Biello, who received the OUT Music Visionary, said that the OUT Music awards began in their living room, and then it was about men singing to men and women singing to women.
One artist who came on stage with about 12 back-up dancers, while performing a number with “voging” undertones, was upstaged by two people – a middle-aged man wearing a fur jacket and a tall man in drag with an upswept blond wig and heels – from the audience who couldn’t contain their need to demonstrate that they knew how to “vogue” and felt the need to march up on to the stage. While their antics elicited hooting, hollering and cheering from the audience, there was no crowd control; the person who may or may not have been security, who grabbed the middle-aged man and pulled him down the stage stairs, was standing around with a drink in his hand.
Despite all this, there were a few bright spots in the evening, one of which featured, Nhojj, who performed his song “Love” and won the Outstanding R&B/Soul award over Kalup Linzy and Robert Anton.
“It’s validation from my community and it’s good to be back,” said Nhojj.
Performance artist, milDRED, who earlier in the year had received OUT Music’s Spirit Award in recognition of her 14 years of service, said, “I came to the awards to give my support because OUT Music supported me and my work.”
Jessie O, an R&B pop recording artist who was a 2006 nominee and who introduced and presented Nhojj with the award, said, “This is a fulfillment of a dream where I could be at a place where my talents and that of others support each other.”
But, the actual award, as described by its designer, 24-year-old Emmanuel Perez, was inspired by his own recent coming out to his parents and family, and since he had not been exposed to the gay world, for him it was exciting and energetic. The CEO of OUT Music, he said, approached him and James Meade, the accomplished architect and photographer, with an idea for a campaign for LGBT artists called “Freedom of Expression”, and from this collaboration, a relationship developed. The entire process, from design to mock-ups, took between two to three weeks and was done as a contribution to the awards program, he added.
“I created a disco ball base for the top and a classy microphone as the award and I’m really proud of it,” Perez said.
There were three after parties, one for men, one for women, and another for extra special VIPs at the Grace Hotel. Yet, at the end, even though reactions were mixed, some enjoyed the evening: it was what they expected and more; to others, it signaled an organizational meltdown and leaves questions about the 20th anniversary.
Story by Antoine Craigwell,
Chaotic, disorganized and confused were some of the adjectives used to describe the 2009 OUT Music Awards held at New York City’s Webster Hall on Tuesday, Dec 8. Billed as the 19th l OUT Music Awards, an alliance of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) recording artists and performers, the awards celebrated the accomplishments of many of the artists and musicians in the community. The list of sponsors included LOGO, MAC cosmetics, Grace Hotels, Peaceman Foundation, and GMAD.
While behind the scenes was a hive of activity, scores of volunteers, and assorted staff and assistants running about trying to pull the show together, the first inkling of the widespread disorganization manifested itself outside the Hall with an officious bouncer determining who could gain entry. On one occasion, when he recognized three people who had somehow forced their way to the front of what was a collapsed line, to the chagrin of those who stood in the cold night air waiting to be admitted; he, feigning familiarity with hugs and simulated kisses, brandished a slim sheaf of papers, on which was written names of people who were VIPs, pretended to look at the list and declared, to no one in particular, that the three people were on the list, then waved them to another gatekeeper who affixed different colored wristbands.
On entry, in the lobby, more confusion reigned: an obviously harried assistant perfunctorily waved media and VIPs to the right and others, a press of people around her, she struggled to determine who had what type of access. And, when asked about VIP passes, the assistant was only too willing to hand over a quantity of the green VIP wrist bands without checking that the person was actually a VIP. In a long slender room, up against a wall, was what appeared to be a hastily constructed step-and-repeat banner, a flimsy strip of red carpet and a cordon, behind which a motley gaggle of photographers strained to hear the name of whoever was announced by an equally harried assistant, their cameras clicking away at anyone who appeared in front of the banner.
Those who appeared on the “red carpet”, after their moment of photographic fame, were ushered into either a larger room or left to fend for themselves. In the larger room, a pre-show was underway, which featured a couple going through the motions of presenting awards. At one point, the duo announcing the award categories, the nominees, opening a large blue envelope, and the winners were shouting, unamplified, to be heard above the din; some time after were given working microphones.
Many of those who walked the “red carpet” were sensibly if tastefully and fashionably attired. Others appeared in various costumes as if, some two months later, the Halloween parade had finally made its way across town from 6th Avenue to 3rd Avenue. One person who had designed and made his costume, as he said, to look like a sea creature, looked more like the main character from the Hans Christian Andersen story of the Snow Queen. Another appeared in an all black skin fitting costume with creations of two other people attached to the central figure with limbs sprouting from every direction; and another, the artist known as Sir Ivan, wore a floor length multicolored cape attached to a body suit which seemed as if he was an incarnation of Liberace.
Before the awards began, an assistant came on stage and made three important announcements: she apologized to the VIPs in the balcony that one of the main sponsors had not come through with the liquor, which meant that they had no bar service. A couple who had given up on being VIPs even though they had paid an estimated $300 a person for their tickets, took up seats on the main floor, which had a bar, and proceeded to get as drunk as they could. The assistant also apologized to the crowd of people who were seated in the first three rows, asked them to give up their seats for the nominees, and informed everyone that the entire show was being filmed live for LOGO.
After a further wait, that seemed to go on forever, the show’s joint hosts, Rodney Chester from Noah’s Arc and Kate Clinton, political humorist, appeared on stage and were followed by performances by Christine Martucci, Toshi Reagon, and an assortment of hip hop performers, one of whom kept indicating to the audience that she wanted more adulation. At one point, there was obviously no coordination when Clinton and Chester were to appear on stage together; she appeared and began speaking, followed later by Chester who emerged from behind a curtain and tried unsuccessfully to laugh off his missed cue.
According to the program, there were 23 categories with an interminable list of 91 nominations. Kevin Aviance was presented with the OUT Music Lifetime Achievement Award, which was followed by other special awards, including Willie Ninja, the OUT Music Icon; Reagon the OUT Music Heritage; and Debra Harry, the OUT Music Pillar award. Dan Martin and Michael Biello, who received the OUT Music Visionary, said that the OUT Music awards began in their living room, and then it was about men singing to men and women singing to women.
One artist who came on stage with about 12 back-up dancers, while performing a number with “voging” undertones, was upstaged by two people – a middle-aged man wearing a fur jacket and a tall man in drag with an upswept blond wig and heels – from the audience who couldn’t contain their need to demonstrate that they knew how to “vogue” and felt the need to march up on to the stage. While their antics elicited hooting, hollering and cheering from the audience, there was no crowd control; the person who may or may not have been security, who grabbed the middle-aged man and pulled him down the stage stairs, was standing around with a drink in his hand.
Despite all this, there were a few bright spots in the evening, one of which featured, Nhojj, who performed his song “Love” and won the Outstanding R&B/Soul award over Kalup Linzy and Robert Anton.
“It’s validation from my community and it’s good to be back,” said Nhojj.
Performance artist, milDRED, who earlier in the year had received OUT Music’s Spirit Award in recognition of her 14 years of service, said, “I came to the awards to give my support because OUT Music supported me and my work.”
Jessie O, an R&B pop recording artist who was a 2006 nominee and who introduced and presented Nhojj with the award, said, “This is a fulfillment of a dream where I could be at a place where my talents and that of others support each other.”
But, the actual award, as described by its designer, 24-year-old Emmanuel Perez, was inspired by his own recent coming out to his parents and family, and since he had not been exposed to the gay world, for him it was exciting and energetic. The CEO of OUT Music, he said, approached him and James Meade, the accomplished architect and photographer, with an idea for a campaign for LGBT artists called “Freedom of Expression”, and from this collaboration, a relationship developed. The entire process, from design to mock-ups, took between two to three weeks and was done as a contribution to the awards program, he added.
“I created a disco ball base for the top and a classy microphone as the award and I’m really proud of it,” Perez said.
There were three after parties, one for men, one for women, and another for extra special VIPs at the Grace Hotel. Yet, at the end, even though reactions were mixed, some enjoyed the evening: it was what they expected and more; to others, it signaled an organizational meltdown and leaves questions about the 20th anniversary.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Greet the Press: A Black gay media
(Text of presentation made as a panelist for Greet the Press held on Jun 22, 2009 by The Future, at the Brecht Forum in New York City.)
A Black Gay Media – Transitioning from Print to Online:
Newspersons in the Black gay community need to recognize two essential facts: there is a dearth in reliable, accurate and trustworthy news that is specifically geared to the Black gay community, and that this is a growing demographic hungry for news. A Black gay media would find its place and relevance not in the Ball scene, entertainment and the usual gossip, most of which are part of the entertainment factor and found on blogs, but in real news as it actually affects the community, and each and every Black gay man. In recent times I have been drawn to report for GBMNews.com, not only about plays, shows and art galleries, but on issues that directly affect and impact the Black gay community, for example, recently, how many people know that the New York State Black Gay Network, a coalition of Black gay social service organizations throughout the state that provide services to Black gay communities, had filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, how many people know or care what happened to POCC in Brooklyn, or how many people care about an Atlanta-based organization trying to come into NY and step into the space left by the collapse of POCC when that organization seems to be running from some serious issues? Do Black gay men in New York City really care what happens in their community, knowing where they would get the assistance they need, to know which organization is better suited to addressing their needs?
While in the Black gay community there are many who think they can write and want to be writers, as a community there is still a desperate need for writers, people who are seeing their community with a critical eye, and feel the need to make that news available for everyone, to make sure everyone is in the know. There is one caveat to this, however, not everything is news; for a journalist, it is often touch and go to decide what is or isn’t newsworthy.
But while there are up-and-coming writers and many who think they can write, a background in journalism or training in journalism, with some experience in print journalism, is essential to making and achieving that transition from print to the Web.
A New York Times sponsored blogging heads presentation, on Tuesday, Jun 16, in an online discussion on how journalists in the post-print age move from print to online between Michelle Goldberg of The American Prospect and Rachel Lehmann-Haupt of True/Slant, Goldberg said she finds the idea of the writer as entrepreneur as liberating, especially for someone who enjoys writing, mostly books, and in some ways, it means that in relation to “branding” the person, a journalist has to become a hustler, which separates the professional from the amateur. A writer, today, she said is someone who could hustle better to make a living. Lehmann-Haupt suggested that it becomes a popularity game, where every writer would strive to outdo the other, obtaining a broader and larger Internet presence to get an audience and hits which would impact advertising, and which in turn brings in money. These, she said, narrows the scope of any online publication and militates against a writer’s core readership.
Lehmann-Haupt referred to the 1990s when the Internet was considered information overload, and as bad and unhealthy. Goldberg suggested that journalists and the public are on the cusp of a backlash against this information overload, as in the ad from Bing, where the commercial was playing into the sense of information overload and bombardment people are feeling. She added that a lot of people like Twitter, but many journalists ask, do I have to use it and begrudgingly use it and don’t know that they don’t have to if they don’t want to; and if the social arrangements are not working for journalists, perhaps they have to change themselves before trying to change the environment, because it’s the new wave.
What Goldberg or Lehmann-Haupt did not mention in their presentation was the attention to quality in reporting, which establishes and solidifies the journalist’s credibility. How much should a writer sacrifice his or her reporting skills – how to frame a question, do research, objectivity, syntax, grammar, and punctuation for the sake of truncated and abbreviated words, slang with specific meanings, or a more visual society intent on spending no more than one or two minutes reading, and prefer instead to look at a picture or a two minute video clip?
CNN has admitted in its reports from Iran that although they are grateful that there is a surge in citizen journalism, reporting on events there, with foreign correspondents banned or reporting abilities severely restricted by the government, the news organization does not have any way of corroborating or verifying images, both still and video, and Tweets.
A post by Barbara Iverson on Apr 30, 2009 for the Poynter Institute for Journalists’ online product, Poynter Online addressed the issue presented by Web usability expert Jakob Nielsen who recently picked the BBC as the news Web site with the best headlines.
He cited several ways in which the BBC editors, "consistently do an awesome job."
"It's hard enough to write for the Web and meet the guidelines for concise, scannable and objective content. It's even harder to write Web headlines, which must be: short (because people don't read much online); rich in information scent, clearly summarizing the target article; front-loaded with the most important keywords (because users often scan only the beginning of list items); understandable out of context (because headlines often appear without articles, as in search engine results); and predictable, so users know whether they'll like the full article before they click (because people don't return to sites that promise more than they deliver)," he said.
Not only do the BBC headlines represent good usability for users who scan information, their front-loaded, keyword rich, short and contextual headlines are excellent for search engine optimization (SEO).
In recent months, several newspapers across the country have “folded,” pun intended, for good. According to an online commentator, “The Rocky Mountain News is closed. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer is now Web only. The foreign bureaus of the Baltimore Sun and Boston Globe have closed. The publishers of the Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia Inquirer and Chicago Tribune have filed for bankruptcy. The Christian Science Monitor folded its print edition and is online only. The Star-Ledger of Newark has cut its staff in half, and Newhouse, Copley, and Media General, news services and aggregators, have eliminated their Washington bureaus. The San Francisco Chronicle is on the brink of closing; if it does, the “City By The Bay” would be a city without a daily newspaper.
The New York Times had to acknowledge change and adapt from traditional print news presentation to digital methods and in a close shave, dodged the “folding” bullet with the infusion of $225 million from Carlos Slim Helu, a second generation Lebanese in Mexico, who has become one of the richest men in the world and one of Mexico’s top oligarchs. In his Jun 1, 2009 article in the New Yorker magazine, Lawrence Wright examined in “Slim’s Time” Slim’s rising influence as a major media player. With this infusion of cash, Slim has become the only person outside the Ochs-Sulzberger family as the largest shareholder. But The Times is in dire straights. It is negotiating selling a portion of it new $600 million headquarters for $225 million and leasing back 21 floors for office space, with an option to buy back those floors in 10 years.
But, even before the current recession struck, the basic sales model for print media began falling apart: Craigslist destroyed the classified-advertising base, department stores consolidated and advertised less, and the Internet made the free distribution of news the norm. So when Slim began to invest heavily in The New York Times, many thought he was crazy. But he saw something in the future of the media, and control or a hand in policy at the Times could ensure that he, unlike Rupert Murdoch who wanted the Wall Street Journal as a trophy, could influence media direction – especially with one of the Times’ latest and costliest investments, its Website.
In the article, Wright speaks with a Times writer and discusses the Times’ transition from traditional print to digital. The writer said that it was the smartest thing the paper did, turning itself into a true national newspapers, with the very best Website.
Although articles on The New York Times Website can jump to several pages, it is considered one of the best examples of the transition from print to online, including a separate global section, accessible from within the national section.
In recent times, too, according to a Poynter Online post by William Sullivan on May 27, “Chicago Tribune Launches New ‘Huffington Post Meets Facebook’ Blog Network,” as a way of reaching into the Web-sphere to retain their relevancy. While many in traditional media have marveled at how Arianna Huffington created a niche with the Huffington Post, I’d suggest that GBMNews.com is approaching that threshold to becoming the same for the Black gay community.
But for many traditional writers, especially those trained in the skills necessary as a journalist, understanding the Web, its reach and impact, and the attention span of readers, become crucial to effective writing for online media; almost everyone today, young, not so young and no longer young have blogs, places where they could write and share their thoughts and experiences, but which cannot supplant journalistic writing.
Traditional writers need to master these 10 basic techniques when thinking of writing for the Web:
1.Write tightly-focused, specific articles that are authoritative and cite trusted sources – your reputation rests on what you write and who you quote;
2.Assume a reader's cursory knowledge of the subject, but explain for the layperson – check accuracy of titles, correct spelling of names. Explain key terms and concepts;
3.Ensure copy is unique, balanced, exclusive, and free of sales pitches or pure opinion – keep “self” out of article;
4.Write in the third-person reportage style and keep personal anecdotes for blogs; remove common speaking style from writing;
5.Proof for spelling and punctuation errors, tired language, general/weak statements, passive sentences, and awkward syntax and sentence construction;
6.Title your article as transparently as possible, reflecting the key search terms/phrases;
7.Get to the point in the lead “lede” paragraph and proceed convincingly from there;
8.Use 50- to 75-word paragraphs, bold subheadings, and bulleted lists for easy reading on screen;
9.Link to up to five related on- and off-site articles, with keyword anchor text organically embedded; and
10.Attach a clear and appropriate color photo, properly credited to the photographer and accurately captioned.
Many writers struggle with being able to separate the way they speak from the expected standards of the written language. Indeed, most writers’ style of writing are suitable for their personal blogs, where no one could find fault with its expression, because it's theirs and administered by them, and which has become the window for creative writing expression. However, for the sake of repetition, for a wider general audience, administered by someone else, there is a greater responsibility to preserve and formalize the written word. I recently had occasion to comment on someone’s writing submission by pointing out that when I write and edit I maintain a certain standard of English expression, regardless of the temptation to dip into the colloquial or vernacular.
Recently, the Root.com and David Wilson’s thegrio.com, claimed to be online media outlets and voices of Blacks, but what about BlackNews.com, which provides news and information about as much happening in the Black community, nationwide? Currently there is AfterElton.com, an online magazine presenting news, reviews and commentary on gay and bisexual men in entertainment and the media for a multi-racial audience, and of course, there’s Gay City News, The Blade and the Washington Blade, each covering the gay community, but only selectively carrying Black gay stories, and mostly if there is something negative. Where is there a positive Black gay online news and information Website, not an aggregator of blogs or an extended blog with so much page scrolling it takes forever to load?
On the issues affecting Black gay men, how informed are we of the mutations in HIV and the advances in medication, how informed are we about the health related issues Black gay men have to deal with, including prostate cancer, diabetes, stress, stroke, cardiac complications and those that are HIV related?
How informed is the Black gay community to make choices about the same-sex marriage bills raging like a brush fire through state legislators and courts. There are several reports that Blacks don’t support same-sex marriage, but what happens when you or your lover is hospitalized and you can’t get in to visit him, or he dies and you are denied the life you shared with him – all his possessions are taken from you? Are you sufficiently informed about what to do?
How informed is the Black gay community of their choices, when they go to a church looking for comfort and a salve for the psychological wounds suffered during the week, except only to hear a pastor ridicule and condemn them for being who they are just as they are made, and to know you could get up and walk out of that building?
How informed is the Black gay community, especially in this economic recession/depression about what to do to find a job, how to prepare, what to do when unemployment insurance is exhausted and no job prospects are on the horizon? What to do when faced with an eviction notice because the rent has not been paid for four months or the mortgage on the condo bought when times were good, instead many may have used the money to go to a club, on a boat ride, to the beach, buy new clothes, or every Friday night cocktails and fried wings for an ever growing circle friends at Chi Chiz, the Black gay bar on Christopher Street in Greenwich Village in NYC?
How informed is the Black gay community about organizations in the state and city who were appointed stewards of funds and to ensure better attention to the number of issues plaguing Black gay men, but only to discover that the money was misused, and how to call for an accounting if ignorant of the facts?
How does the Black gay community learn when one of their brothers has achieved a great accomplishment and done well, to celebrate with him, or how do they know when a brother no longer walks the Earth and when his family denies him the openness he so craved in life by refusing to let others know or acknowledge his sexual orientation in death?
Where do we learn what is happening in our community? Do we wait for The New York Times, The Daily News, the New York Post, a blurb in Gay City News, on someone’s blog or someone Twittering, to spread a bit of news? How different is that from the housewives who stand gossiping over their fences?
I recognize trends and pay attention to how I am positioned in relation to any. I came across another article that addressed the issue of how journalists and the public could communicate and share information with a new application, Google Wave, which could change that dynamic.
In an article by Will Sullivan, posted online on Jun 4, he mentions the just concluded Google I/O 2009 conference held in San Francisco, where Google announced a revolutionary open source project.
Google Wave is a new open source platform that, at this early stage in its development, is a multimedia hybrid of instant messaging, e-mail, blogging and Wiki technology all in one. These "waves" offer a new experience of real-time collaboration, sharing, conversation and editing between multiple parties.
The new technology has the potential to let newsrooms take better advantage of real-time reporting tools that offer the community and editors functionality to work together on breaking news as it happens. Last November when the violence erupted in Mumbai, India, one person I knew was receiving Tweet reports from people who were there and watching what was happening, and today, with the protests in Iran, journalists all over are communicating and receiving reports using Twitter and Facebook. CNN today called it the “communications revolution” using Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to transmit images and text reports of what’s happening on the ground in Tehran. Imagine the power you have as Black gay men, spread out all over this country, to report, send in your images and not only raise consciousness and awareness, but begin to force changes in attitudes, perceptions and policies. Identify a Website and when you see a situation where a Black gay man is being treated badly, humiliated for being gay, or in a church, you hear the pastor speaking derogatorily of same-sex relations, YouTube it, record it with your IPhone, and Tweet it so that the word gets out and people know what’s happening, even if you’re telling your story with 149 characters. Remember the image of the bloodied face of Neda Soltan, Farsi for “divine calling,” the 26-year-old woman who was shot in her heart by government forces while standing looking on at the protests and died on the street in Tehran, and which has now become a potent status symbol, she is now called the “Angel of Tehran,” for the Iranian protests, in Iran and worldwide. Her image was broadcast and transmitted worldwide via YouTube and texts about her demise via Twitter; everyone around the world saw her dying.
One new bit of technology is called the Wave, which Google explained on its blog: "A 'wave' is equal parts conversation and document, where people can communicate and work together with richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, and more.
"Here's how it works: In Google Wave you create a wave and add people to it. Everyone on your wave can use richly formatted text, photos, and gadgets and even feeds from other sources on the Web. They can insert a reply or edit the wave directly. It's concurrent rich-text editing, where you see on your screen nearly instantly what your fellow collaborators are typing in your wave. That means Google Wave is just as well suited for quick messages as for persistent content – it allows for both collaboration and communication. You can also use "playback" to rewind the wave and see how it evolved.
"As with Android, Google Chrome and many other Google efforts, we plan to make the code open source as a way to encourage the developer community to get involved. Google Wave is very open and extensible, and we're inviting developers to add all kinds of cool stuff before our public launch. Google Wave has three layers: the product, the platform and the protocol," said Google.
The official launch date hasn't been released yet, but Google said it expects it will be available later this year.
Matt Thompson, a 2008 to 2009 Reynolds Journalism Institute fellow, said he has foreseen and proposed that the potential of iterative, contextual journalism could help provide a richer journalism experience for all involved.
Prospective Black gay journalists, can, while maintaining the basics of responsible, accurate and objective journalism transform and incorporate those concepts and practices into the digital age – online.
A Black Gay Media – Transitioning from Print to Online:
Newspersons in the Black gay community need to recognize two essential facts: there is a dearth in reliable, accurate and trustworthy news that is specifically geared to the Black gay community, and that this is a growing demographic hungry for news. A Black gay media would find its place and relevance not in the Ball scene, entertainment and the usual gossip, most of which are part of the entertainment factor and found on blogs, but in real news as it actually affects the community, and each and every Black gay man. In recent times I have been drawn to report for GBMNews.com, not only about plays, shows and art galleries, but on issues that directly affect and impact the Black gay community, for example, recently, how many people know that the New York State Black Gay Network, a coalition of Black gay social service organizations throughout the state that provide services to Black gay communities, had filed for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy, how many people know or care what happened to POCC in Brooklyn, or how many people care about an Atlanta-based organization trying to come into NY and step into the space left by the collapse of POCC when that organization seems to be running from some serious issues? Do Black gay men in New York City really care what happens in their community, knowing where they would get the assistance they need, to know which organization is better suited to addressing their needs?
While in the Black gay community there are many who think they can write and want to be writers, as a community there is still a desperate need for writers, people who are seeing their community with a critical eye, and feel the need to make that news available for everyone, to make sure everyone is in the know. There is one caveat to this, however, not everything is news; for a journalist, it is often touch and go to decide what is or isn’t newsworthy.
But while there are up-and-coming writers and many who think they can write, a background in journalism or training in journalism, with some experience in print journalism, is essential to making and achieving that transition from print to the Web.
A New York Times sponsored blogging heads presentation, on Tuesday, Jun 16, in an online discussion on how journalists in the post-print age move from print to online between Michelle Goldberg of The American Prospect and Rachel Lehmann-Haupt of True/Slant, Goldberg said she finds the idea of the writer as entrepreneur as liberating, especially for someone who enjoys writing, mostly books, and in some ways, it means that in relation to “branding” the person, a journalist has to become a hustler, which separates the professional from the amateur. A writer, today, she said is someone who could hustle better to make a living. Lehmann-Haupt suggested that it becomes a popularity game, where every writer would strive to outdo the other, obtaining a broader and larger Internet presence to get an audience and hits which would impact advertising, and which in turn brings in money. These, she said, narrows the scope of any online publication and militates against a writer’s core readership.
Lehmann-Haupt referred to the 1990s when the Internet was considered information overload, and as bad and unhealthy. Goldberg suggested that journalists and the public are on the cusp of a backlash against this information overload, as in the ad from Bing, where the commercial was playing into the sense of information overload and bombardment people are feeling. She added that a lot of people like Twitter, but many journalists ask, do I have to use it and begrudgingly use it and don’t know that they don’t have to if they don’t want to; and if the social arrangements are not working for journalists, perhaps they have to change themselves before trying to change the environment, because it’s the new wave.
What Goldberg or Lehmann-Haupt did not mention in their presentation was the attention to quality in reporting, which establishes and solidifies the journalist’s credibility. How much should a writer sacrifice his or her reporting skills – how to frame a question, do research, objectivity, syntax, grammar, and punctuation for the sake of truncated and abbreviated words, slang with specific meanings, or a more visual society intent on spending no more than one or two minutes reading, and prefer instead to look at a picture or a two minute video clip?
CNN has admitted in its reports from Iran that although they are grateful that there is a surge in citizen journalism, reporting on events there, with foreign correspondents banned or reporting abilities severely restricted by the government, the news organization does not have any way of corroborating or verifying images, both still and video, and Tweets.
A post by Barbara Iverson on Apr 30, 2009 for the Poynter Institute for Journalists’ online product, Poynter Online addressed the issue presented by Web usability expert Jakob Nielsen who recently picked the BBC as the news Web site with the best headlines.
He cited several ways in which the BBC editors, "consistently do an awesome job."
"It's hard enough to write for the Web and meet the guidelines for concise, scannable and objective content. It's even harder to write Web headlines, which must be: short (because people don't read much online); rich in information scent, clearly summarizing the target article; front-loaded with the most important keywords (because users often scan only the beginning of list items); understandable out of context (because headlines often appear without articles, as in search engine results); and predictable, so users know whether they'll like the full article before they click (because people don't return to sites that promise more than they deliver)," he said.
Not only do the BBC headlines represent good usability for users who scan information, their front-loaded, keyword rich, short and contextual headlines are excellent for search engine optimization (SEO).
In recent months, several newspapers across the country have “folded,” pun intended, for good. According to an online commentator, “The Rocky Mountain News is closed. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer is now Web only. The foreign bureaus of the Baltimore Sun and Boston Globe have closed. The publishers of the Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia Inquirer and Chicago Tribune have filed for bankruptcy. The Christian Science Monitor folded its print edition and is online only. The Star-Ledger of Newark has cut its staff in half, and Newhouse, Copley, and Media General, news services and aggregators, have eliminated their Washington bureaus. The San Francisco Chronicle is on the brink of closing; if it does, the “City By The Bay” would be a city without a daily newspaper.
The New York Times had to acknowledge change and adapt from traditional print news presentation to digital methods and in a close shave, dodged the “folding” bullet with the infusion of $225 million from Carlos Slim Helu, a second generation Lebanese in Mexico, who has become one of the richest men in the world and one of Mexico’s top oligarchs. In his Jun 1, 2009 article in the New Yorker magazine, Lawrence Wright examined in “Slim’s Time” Slim’s rising influence as a major media player. With this infusion of cash, Slim has become the only person outside the Ochs-Sulzberger family as the largest shareholder. But The Times is in dire straights. It is negotiating selling a portion of it new $600 million headquarters for $225 million and leasing back 21 floors for office space, with an option to buy back those floors in 10 years.
But, even before the current recession struck, the basic sales model for print media began falling apart: Craigslist destroyed the classified-advertising base, department stores consolidated and advertised less, and the Internet made the free distribution of news the norm. So when Slim began to invest heavily in The New York Times, many thought he was crazy. But he saw something in the future of the media, and control or a hand in policy at the Times could ensure that he, unlike Rupert Murdoch who wanted the Wall Street Journal as a trophy, could influence media direction – especially with one of the Times’ latest and costliest investments, its Website.
In the article, Wright speaks with a Times writer and discusses the Times’ transition from traditional print to digital. The writer said that it was the smartest thing the paper did, turning itself into a true national newspapers, with the very best Website.
Although articles on The New York Times Website can jump to several pages, it is considered one of the best examples of the transition from print to online, including a separate global section, accessible from within the national section.
In recent times, too, according to a Poynter Online post by William Sullivan on May 27, “Chicago Tribune Launches New ‘Huffington Post Meets Facebook’ Blog Network,” as a way of reaching into the Web-sphere to retain their relevancy. While many in traditional media have marveled at how Arianna Huffington created a niche with the Huffington Post, I’d suggest that GBMNews.com is approaching that threshold to becoming the same for the Black gay community.
But for many traditional writers, especially those trained in the skills necessary as a journalist, understanding the Web, its reach and impact, and the attention span of readers, become crucial to effective writing for online media; almost everyone today, young, not so young and no longer young have blogs, places where they could write and share their thoughts and experiences, but which cannot supplant journalistic writing.
Traditional writers need to master these 10 basic techniques when thinking of writing for the Web:
1.Write tightly-focused, specific articles that are authoritative and cite trusted sources – your reputation rests on what you write and who you quote;
2.Assume a reader's cursory knowledge of the subject, but explain for the layperson – check accuracy of titles, correct spelling of names. Explain key terms and concepts;
3.Ensure copy is unique, balanced, exclusive, and free of sales pitches or pure opinion – keep “self” out of article;
4.Write in the third-person reportage style and keep personal anecdotes for blogs; remove common speaking style from writing;
5.Proof for spelling and punctuation errors, tired language, general/weak statements, passive sentences, and awkward syntax and sentence construction;
6.Title your article as transparently as possible, reflecting the key search terms/phrases;
7.Get to the point in the lead “lede” paragraph and proceed convincingly from there;
8.Use 50- to 75-word paragraphs, bold subheadings, and bulleted lists for easy reading on screen;
9.Link to up to five related on- and off-site articles, with keyword anchor text organically embedded; and
10.Attach a clear and appropriate color photo, properly credited to the photographer and accurately captioned.
Many writers struggle with being able to separate the way they speak from the expected standards of the written language. Indeed, most writers’ style of writing are suitable for their personal blogs, where no one could find fault with its expression, because it's theirs and administered by them, and which has become the window for creative writing expression. However, for the sake of repetition, for a wider general audience, administered by someone else, there is a greater responsibility to preserve and formalize the written word. I recently had occasion to comment on someone’s writing submission by pointing out that when I write and edit I maintain a certain standard of English expression, regardless of the temptation to dip into the colloquial or vernacular.
Recently, the Root.com and David Wilson’s thegrio.com, claimed to be online media outlets and voices of Blacks, but what about BlackNews.com, which provides news and information about as much happening in the Black community, nationwide? Currently there is AfterElton.com, an online magazine presenting news, reviews and commentary on gay and bisexual men in entertainment and the media for a multi-racial audience, and of course, there’s Gay City News, The Blade and the Washington Blade, each covering the gay community, but only selectively carrying Black gay stories, and mostly if there is something negative. Where is there a positive Black gay online news and information Website, not an aggregator of blogs or an extended blog with so much page scrolling it takes forever to load?
On the issues affecting Black gay men, how informed are we of the mutations in HIV and the advances in medication, how informed are we about the health related issues Black gay men have to deal with, including prostate cancer, diabetes, stress, stroke, cardiac complications and those that are HIV related?
How informed is the Black gay community to make choices about the same-sex marriage bills raging like a brush fire through state legislators and courts. There are several reports that Blacks don’t support same-sex marriage, but what happens when you or your lover is hospitalized and you can’t get in to visit him, or he dies and you are denied the life you shared with him – all his possessions are taken from you? Are you sufficiently informed about what to do?
How informed is the Black gay community of their choices, when they go to a church looking for comfort and a salve for the psychological wounds suffered during the week, except only to hear a pastor ridicule and condemn them for being who they are just as they are made, and to know you could get up and walk out of that building?
How informed is the Black gay community, especially in this economic recession/depression about what to do to find a job, how to prepare, what to do when unemployment insurance is exhausted and no job prospects are on the horizon? What to do when faced with an eviction notice because the rent has not been paid for four months or the mortgage on the condo bought when times were good, instead many may have used the money to go to a club, on a boat ride, to the beach, buy new clothes, or every Friday night cocktails and fried wings for an ever growing circle friends at Chi Chiz, the Black gay bar on Christopher Street in Greenwich Village in NYC?
How informed is the Black gay community about organizations in the state and city who were appointed stewards of funds and to ensure better attention to the number of issues plaguing Black gay men, but only to discover that the money was misused, and how to call for an accounting if ignorant of the facts?
How does the Black gay community learn when one of their brothers has achieved a great accomplishment and done well, to celebrate with him, or how do they know when a brother no longer walks the Earth and when his family denies him the openness he so craved in life by refusing to let others know or acknowledge his sexual orientation in death?
Where do we learn what is happening in our community? Do we wait for The New York Times, The Daily News, the New York Post, a blurb in Gay City News, on someone’s blog or someone Twittering, to spread a bit of news? How different is that from the housewives who stand gossiping over their fences?
I recognize trends and pay attention to how I am positioned in relation to any. I came across another article that addressed the issue of how journalists and the public could communicate and share information with a new application, Google Wave, which could change that dynamic.
In an article by Will Sullivan, posted online on Jun 4, he mentions the just concluded Google I/O 2009 conference held in San Francisco, where Google announced a revolutionary open source project.
Google Wave is a new open source platform that, at this early stage in its development, is a multimedia hybrid of instant messaging, e-mail, blogging and Wiki technology all in one. These "waves" offer a new experience of real-time collaboration, sharing, conversation and editing between multiple parties.
The new technology has the potential to let newsrooms take better advantage of real-time reporting tools that offer the community and editors functionality to work together on breaking news as it happens. Last November when the violence erupted in Mumbai, India, one person I knew was receiving Tweet reports from people who were there and watching what was happening, and today, with the protests in Iran, journalists all over are communicating and receiving reports using Twitter and Facebook. CNN today called it the “communications revolution” using Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to transmit images and text reports of what’s happening on the ground in Tehran. Imagine the power you have as Black gay men, spread out all over this country, to report, send in your images and not only raise consciousness and awareness, but begin to force changes in attitudes, perceptions and policies. Identify a Website and when you see a situation where a Black gay man is being treated badly, humiliated for being gay, or in a church, you hear the pastor speaking derogatorily of same-sex relations, YouTube it, record it with your IPhone, and Tweet it so that the word gets out and people know what’s happening, even if you’re telling your story with 149 characters. Remember the image of the bloodied face of Neda Soltan, Farsi for “divine calling,” the 26-year-old woman who was shot in her heart by government forces while standing looking on at the protests and died on the street in Tehran, and which has now become a potent status symbol, she is now called the “Angel of Tehran,” for the Iranian protests, in Iran and worldwide. Her image was broadcast and transmitted worldwide via YouTube and texts about her demise via Twitter; everyone around the world saw her dying.
One new bit of technology is called the Wave, which Google explained on its blog: "A 'wave' is equal parts conversation and document, where people can communicate and work together with richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, and more.
"Here's how it works: In Google Wave you create a wave and add people to it. Everyone on your wave can use richly formatted text, photos, and gadgets and even feeds from other sources on the Web. They can insert a reply or edit the wave directly. It's concurrent rich-text editing, where you see on your screen nearly instantly what your fellow collaborators are typing in your wave. That means Google Wave is just as well suited for quick messages as for persistent content – it allows for both collaboration and communication. You can also use "playback" to rewind the wave and see how it evolved.
"As with Android, Google Chrome and many other Google efforts, we plan to make the code open source as a way to encourage the developer community to get involved. Google Wave is very open and extensible, and we're inviting developers to add all kinds of cool stuff before our public launch. Google Wave has three layers: the product, the platform and the protocol," said Google.
The official launch date hasn't been released yet, but Google said it expects it will be available later this year.
Matt Thompson, a 2008 to 2009 Reynolds Journalism Institute fellow, said he has foreseen and proposed that the potential of iterative, contextual journalism could help provide a richer journalism experience for all involved.
Prospective Black gay journalists, can, while maintaining the basics of responsible, accurate and objective journalism transform and incorporate those concepts and practices into the digital age – online.
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