I’ve achieved so much in life,
But I’m an amateur in love
My bank account is doing just fine
But my emotions are bankrupt

My body is nice and strong
But my heart is in a million pieces
When the sun is shining so am I
But when night falls, so do my tears

Sometimes the beat is so loud in my heart
That I can barely tell the voices apart
Sometimes the fear is so loud in my head
That I can barely hear what God says

But then I hear a whisper that this too shall pass
I hear the angels whisper that this too shall pass
My ancestors whisper that this day will one day be the past
So I walk in faith that this too shall pass

India Arie “This Too Shall Pass”

For the past few years, gas prices have steadily risen to the point of complete absurdity. Fortunately, there is light at the end of the tunnel. According to Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst at the Oil Price Information Service, gas prices may drop as low as $2.00 per gallon in the upcoming months.

Why the sudden drop in prices? Experts say that the current exorbitant rates are linked to expectations of severe hurricanes. Since no major calamities occurred in the tropics, gas rates are falling back to a more manageable level.

Of course, there has been no strong evidence to suggest that prices were appropriate, even in light of the expected natural disasters.  Still, the falling prices will be a welcomed gift to an economically struggling nation.

For the past week, false rumors have been spreading that Ne-Yo, Def Jam’s R&B sensation, told an Essence Magazine reporter that he was gay. Although I do not know whether or not he is gay, NeYo certainly didn’t make such a confession to Essence magazine.

First, the alleged press release is filled with horrific misspellings. Also, the alleged reporter, “Barbra Stradoff” (note the odd spelling of Barbara) cannot be found through the internet or the magazine’s contributers list. Lastly, I contacted Essence magazine and they confirmed that no such story exists.

I’m always shocked and amazed that people take the time to create and spread rumors about famous people. I’m also disappointed that websites and traditional media outlets — I saw the rumor printed in a local Philadelphia newspaper yesterday — were so willing to spread such an extremely shaky story.

Still, it is interesting to consider how the world would respond to Ne-Yo if he were outed. Although Black America has always had its share of gay R&B singers, they have always operated under a “don’t ask don’t tell” policy. In recent history, few if any singers who defied the industry’s hetero-normative logic have experienced any long term success. Since Ne-Yo has already achieved success and developed a fan base, would he be an exception to the rule or become another Jesse Powell or Tevin Campbell?

As the John Mark Karr debacle shows, TV news loves stories that keep viewers passive and fears the ones that might motivate us to take action.
Media Beast vs. Public Interest
By Mark Cohen

…Make no mistake: The media beast is every bit as compulsive and out of control as [John Mark] Karr, who may yet end up behind bars for child pornography. But the beast is free to maul again and again.

For 10 days, TV news has fixated on this imposter-culprit as if he were a world-historical figure — like Nelson Mandela emerging from prison, only bigger. TV tracked Karr’s travels across the globe, telling us what he ate for dinner, analyzing his attire.

To extend Karr’s allotted 15 minutes of fame into a 10-day ordeal, TV news ignored important stories of war, environmental degradation, corruption, citizen activism. Instead, TV viewers were offered hundreds of hours of single-minded examination and debate on one burning question: Did Karr do it? The inquiry was relentless and aired all sides.

If only we’d had such in-depth, full-spectrum debate when the Bush team was dragging our country into war based on pretense.

I worked in cable news just prior to the Iraq war. As I describe in my book Cable News Confidential: My Misadventures in Corporate Media, journalists at MSNBC got into trouble with management for questioning Team Bush too strongly, for insisting on genuine debate.

By contrast, no one will get into trouble for this embarrassing 10-day spasm of overwrought Karr coverage … as long as ratings were good and coverage was cheap. If so, news producers can expect congratulations for a job well done.

Tabloid stories involving sex, crime or celebrity are preferred by TV news management today. These stories are inexpensive to cover, since speculation by alleged experts can fill fill up hours of airtime. And tabloid stories typically don’t offend anyone in political or economic power, including corporate sponsors and media owners.

For the rest of this story, click here. 

“Actually, the only difference between the people you are seeing on television today and their status two weeks ago is now they’re wet!” – Gloria Ladson-Billings, describing the people of New Orleans two weeks after Hurricane Katrina hit.