Uptown Magazine Goes Green

Last Thursday night I went to a panel discussion at the New York Society for Ethical Culture entitled "People of Color Don't Care About the Environment." Sponsored by Uptown Mag, the panel was moderated by this fly sister Simran Sethi of the Sundance Channel's The Green. She was on point with her questions and comments especially her criticism of Vanity Fair's recent mostly-whites-featured Green issue. Even though I haven't seen the latest issue of Uptown I think this month's jawn is their urban (read Black) spin on the environment and going Green. Anyway the discussion was ambitious and well intentioned, it's just that afterwards you just couldn't help but have this keep it real feeling reverberating in your mind that the hood ain't going green anytime soon. At least I don't think so. And by the many heads I saw nodding when the woman asked how do we do connect recycling and beautifying the earth with folk who are struggling to pay their rent and make ends meet, I'm gathering I'm not the only one with that sentiment. There just seems to be so many other issues going on in this country that I just don't think people of color feel, unfortunately so, that the environment-- the greening of the world at large is relevant. I live in a building that is mixed with working class, middle class and upper class educated colored (and white) folk and do you think we recycle? Nope. Not a blue bag or bin on the premises. Right now one of our concerns is that Columbia keeps their gentrifying hands off of our apartments. And then when I walk outside and I see the chicken bones thrown about the sidewalks and the synthetic hair blowing pass storefronts, I'm disgusted and know that folks in my hood are very far away from thinking about nature and land preservation. So many of them don’t even respect their own walk-ups and elevators as the ubiquitous, penetrating smell of piss will undoubtedly confirm. Is it just me and my cynicism or do we need to get hiphop on board the Green boat before we can expect to see change in our urban areas. And it cannot simply be a few (Russell Simmons, Erykah Badu and dead prez), but it’s gotta be infused in the culture as a whole. And what's going on in our public schools? I don't have children so I have no idea if eco-friendly ideals are being taught and discussed.

On a positive note there are quite a few heads in NYC (esp in the BX-- oh yeah!)taking charge and doing their part to save our earth like Jarid Manos (who was on the panel) and who has written a very intriguing book called Ghetto Plainsman.

There's also Zena Nelson's South Bronx Food Cooperative that's getting people hooked on eating organic and at very reasonable prices.

I gotta give propos to the folks behind The Go Green East Harlem Cookbook!

And of course there is Majora Carter, also in the South Bronx, who won a MacArthur Genius award for her work "greening the ghetto." (her talk @TED conference)

UPDATE CORRECTION: Simran Sethi was not critical of Vanity Fair's Green Issue. She was instead "proud and grateful (to be) featured - as a woman of color and as a person who cares deeply about these issues." Read more of her remarks in the comments section. Sorry Simran about the confusion!

Media Madness: The Wire, The Voice & Essence Mag

Last night as I was preparing for bed, I decided to flip to HBO to see what was popping and ended up catching the First Look for the upcoming last season of The Wire. Whoa, that joint was so fascinating that I ended up watching the entire segment! Featuring interviews with cast members about their roles and intertwining that with interviews with real life folk on whose lives these cast members base their characters and then juxtaposing all that against the real-city life of Baltimore it was very insightful and even a tad bit riveting. It totally resonated with me because this upcoming season, if you haven't heard, revolves around the media, The Baltimore Sun, in particular and how the media can distort, challenge and define what is considered factual, especially in criminal investigations and most especially when they involve Black folk, specifically Black men. Catch my drift?

Never mind that it's edgy plots, hard core portrayal of drug slinging and raw characterizations rendered Denzel's American Gangster into nothing more than Ken Burns fodder for me, The Wire ironically and simply is a testament to great screenwriting and amazing journalistic depth.

And I had no idea who or what would be exacted in executive producer David Simon's scope this season so this was a pleasant surprise especially after just griping that afternoon about the absolute booty crust attempt at writing record reviews in this week's Village Voice. Print advertising is down and newspapers are especially shook with corporate buyouts left and right and so I'm guessing editors just don't give a fluck about dope styles, personal voice, description, knowledge of subject matter and general literacy because what I read about Cassidy and Gucci Mane and the rest of dem rappers was most definitely fluckless. I felt like I was reading someone's blog, a scraggly one at that-- run on thoughts tapped out in the middle of the night in a drunken haze of overambition and idiocy. I can't believe this is the same paper that has published gems by writers like Greg Tate, Michael Gonzales, Joan Morgan and Nelson George. Not only did /do I value my work experience at The Voice, but I give soooo much credit to becoming a good writer from reading, writing and inhaling The Voice back in the 90's! Reading that review really hurt me and my sensibilities.

My other beef, no I'll say, utter confoundment, is with Essence Magazine. Can someone (and I know there are folks reading this that know) please explain to me why the January issue was only 170 pages? Either do a year-end double issue like most mags or publish a real full-bodied issue. That joint was so thin... my Pathmark circular is thicker. I knew it had to be a joke especially since Juanita Bynum is on the cover, especially since she was just featured in the previous issue, especially since the feature is based on the same interview from the previous issue. I could not believe they recycled info that was just used. Like I would have forgotten that I just read that mofo four weeks ago. Huh? Before I could even ask what da hell is going on over there, I get hit up by Miles Marshall Lewis about Susan Taylor leaving Essence. What?!? But she is Essence. Yeah something is going on over there. First of all she exits during the holiday break when everything is quiet and closed and then the Times article doesn't even feature quotes from current staff members about her exit. Can someone please hit me up about what’s really going on. You can post anonymously.

And even though this is kinda old, since I'm on the topic of exits and publishing mayhem. Here's some news about Len Burnett and other folk bouncing from Vibe.

Cipher Space: FaceBook, LinkedIn, MySpace

I spent an inordinate amount of time yesterday on Facebook. I became obsessed looking for old colleagues, international buddies and fellow college classmates. Seriously, I was on there for more than three hours... on a Sunday. When I should have been mopping, writing holiday cards or paying bills I was instead trying to find folks that I hung out with in South Africa and folks that graduated from Williams College. Fo' real peeps I was having an online meltdown. Everyone keeps telling me Facebook is The Ish, and that Myspace is dead and Linked-In is so 2005, but for all of their hootin and hollerin, I could only find one person from my graduating class on FB.This was even more distressful because we have a major reunion coming up in June and I really want Black folks to show up and get our Berkshire swerve on. But how can we get together in the boonies, when I can't even find folk on supposedly one of the hottest and most popular online networks there is. Now I found plenty of my white compadres that I worked with and schooled with, but I was really surprised by the high frequency of times I got "Name Not Found" when I searched for one of the many faces of color I used to know.

And for the record, I'm still not ready, set, go on believing in the power of online networking-- virtual or otherwise, I'm still doubtful. But even in the midst of my doubt, it seems like every month or so I get convinced, errr suckered, to join a new network, post my pic and rule the world (wide web) or at least have enough friends to do so together.

First there was MySpace: my man Greg was on me like toffee to join and I did and initially was thrilled and of course obsessed in my mission to "get friends." MySpace was hot! I discovered so many new artists and cool blogs and got updates on when my favorite artists would be performing. And of course I made friends-- 711 and counting. But what I discovered is the more “friends” you have, the more likely you are to get spammed with stupid messages about free gift certificates from Macy's or even worse, the easier it is for you to get hacked and lose your entire identity, um I mean profile. At the very least, having so many "friends" makes it harder for you to find the comments and bulletins from the folks you really care about and know... your real friends. Kinda like real life, huh, with all our technology and lack of intimacy? So Myspace isn't dead for me cause I still use it to promote this here blog and to connect with artists like Imani and Alice, but it's just not the space for me.

Next there was LinkedIn and my girl Melinda hood-linked me into joining this cipher. After investing so much into Myspace though I was a bit more cautious this time out and asked her several questions on what this community was all about and of course how it could best serve me knowing that I was already down with Tom and his crew. She convinced me that LinkedIn was the more mature version of MySpace and that it was great for professional wheelings and dealings. Well alrighty then, I thought! This sounds like a community I need to be a part of and in the beginning I was psyched, finding people I used to work with and even a few fellow alumni. And although I was linking-up left and right, I was still wondering about those elusive deals and new found business ventures I was supposed to be getting. I quickly realized that LinkedIn was going to require me to do a lot more footwork. The same kinda footwork that I do offline would have to be done here. That's just smurfy! And yeah I know, through my "CONNECTIONS" I'm like hooked-up to 4,000 people, but in order to get to those folk I have to get introduced by a friend or try to email them cold. And please the 3rd degree? Yeah I have 250,000 connections, but I can't even access them unless I upgrade my account and handover my Visa digits. Instead of martinis at the Four Seasons, a night out at Scores or some form of payola, it's Paypal. Either way it takes money to have real connections and make real deals. Huh, just like the real world again.

And last but not least, the motherland of matrix mash-ups-- FaceBook. I wasn't even going to mess with FB because by now I was feeling like I was a member of more social networks than a Jack & Jill swingin, Delta stepping, praying Deaconess. But when I went to South Africa (which I'm going to blog extensively about over the holidays) EVERYONE was down with FB and scoffed at me when I mentioned hooking up through MySpace. You would have thought I was asking my JoBurg homies to use Morse Code. So now that I'm down with FB I must say it is on and popping with all of their super walls and graffiti. I have 'poked' a ton of folks from my past and am hooked up with all of my international buddies. I'm finding it's a really useful way to stay in touch with friends and associates who do not live in NYC and I've been a bit more personal on FB than the other platforms.

So for now I'm totally content with my online hood. But recognize yo, at the end of the day nothing makes me happier than receiving a good ole fashion, handwritten letter in my mailbox. I love sending out and receiving Christmas cards and just bought a box of cute notecards from Papyrus. Online networking and texting is cool, but a note that says 'I love you' or an 'I'm just thinking of you' postcard from a far off locale or coffee with one of my mentors or a fried fish dinner with my mom... priceless!

Glamour Mess, Black Girls "Out of Fashion" & Trace Mag

So this Glamour mess is still a brewing just stinking up an already racist publishing industry (don't believe me find out how many Black models have graced the cover of Vogue-- more on this later). On this site they delve into the issue by featuring a post entitled How Does a Black Woman Feel About the Glamour Controversy? The writer, Dodai Stewart, says some things that got me nodding in agreement but then she said quite a few things that had me saying aloud 'Oh hell to the no!' Like she questions what qualifies as racism at least two or three times throughout the piece. Are we still unsure... even in 2007? She says:

I believe that plenty of well-intentioned people make ignorant, misinformed, undereducated statements all the time. Does that make them racists?

I say 'Yeah, damn skippy it does!' That's like the comment I read online the other night when someone had the audacity to say that hanging a noose on a tree where Black students hangout or on the door of a Black ivy league professor isn't the same as actually hanging someone from a noose. Oh so now we gotta wait until the bodies are dangling? Until we hear the n-word shouted? Until the strange fruit blows stinking in the wind?!? Please people work with me. What she said is racist and yes that makes her racist. And no that doesn't mean I think she has a white hooded robe hanging in her closet next to her Nicole Miller sundress. There are many faces and degrees of racism. But it's all connected and it all stems from and is racism.

She then asks:

Would Beyoncé be the star she is now if her skin were darker, like her Destiny's Child cohorts?

Um yeah she would be! Bey is just way more talented (and driven) and no one can deny that. If Michelle were the lightest girl in the group she would NOT have been the star. I'm not saying the music industry is free of racism because we all know that's not true, but unlike the fashion and movie industries, there seems to be a bit more latitude. Look at Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Meshell Ndegeocello & Lauryn Hill. Sometimes nappy headed, dark skin sisters do make it through. And I'm sure this is largely because music unlike fashion and film is more of a visceral experience than visual. Even in the face of MTV it still matters more what you sound like than what you look like. Just ask Cassie or Britney! You will be hard press to find the same percentage of sisters like this in Hollywood and even more so in Fashion and I'm talking high-fashion not the Ebony Fashion Shows or Upscale magazine covers. I'm talking Gucci & Prada shows, Vogue covers, et. al. And because so many Black women purchase and rock Gucci and Prada that situation is that much more complicated. Even the usually comedic Miss J from America's Next Top Model had to speak out on the lack of diversity.

On that note, Bethann Hardison is back on the case-- focusing attention on the growing trend of not booking Black models for major cover and advertorial shoots and for fashion weeks here in the States and also in Milan and Paris. She created the, currently dormant, Black Girls Coalition in 1988 and it really seems like there is a need for that organization now more than ever. She had a forum in September that was attended by what seemed like all the top Black girls in the biz including Naomi Campbell, Liya Kebede and Iman. She continues the conversation this Monday October 15th. Please come out and support this important cause. From the aforementioned controversy there couldn't be a more apt time.

And finally, on the upside of Blackness in the media, I finally, finally got my Black Girls Rule issue of Trace mag. I know I'm mad late with this one, but I have been eagerly awaiting what y'all know is my favorite issue of this mag and one of my favorites of any mag. It seems like I can only find the issue on 23rd or 14th streets, but thanks to Carol at Susan Blond she hooked me up. And the issue was definitely worth waiting for cause Iman guest edits this time ‘round. The Unsung feature about all these cool sisters doing great community work should have been much bigger. I wanted to know more about these extraordinary women. The bi-racial story was well done and the Black models featured were on point (although I felt like I was looking at the same 3 wigs over the course of a 31-page spread. It would have been nice to see more variety-- hair that had some texture would have been hot and ideal right about now). Anyway if you can find it and check it out.

Dis-sing: Disgust, Disillusionment and Discovery

It's Monday. Columbus "Discoverus Americus Post-Africanus" Day at that. Y'all do know that long before the Santa Maria ever hit the shore of this here "New World," West Africans were all up in this piece trading tools, gold and boats and frying okra. Anyway it's one of those days that I feel a lil' on edge. The activist in me resents that I have to work and this beautiful weather is just not making the situation any easier. I really can't believe I was swimming in Sag Harbor just two days ago in October! So in light of my discomfort and disgust, I feel a rant is in order.

Marion Jones-- a heartbreaker. And does her apology make her act any less vile? Nope. Should the entire 4x400 relay team be forced to return their medals for indiscretion? Hell no! I really hope they do not strip the entire team. Besides being shamed and possibly imprisoned, Marion will get her booty kicked if LaTasha Colander-Richardson has to return her gold medal.

Taking "the clear" and thinking it was flaxseed oil was stupid. I mean in 2000 I was so dang happy cause Black grrrls were killin it at the Olympic Games and I considered Marion to be one of the greatest athletes of my time. Her lack of judgement and poor management is really what I find so disheartening.

And speaking of stupid, asinine behavior... no I'm not going to bring up OJ that's just too obvious and too stupid. It looks like former Glamour fashion editor-- Ashley Baker, who told a room full of lawyers at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton about the (Black hair) dos and don'ts of the workplace got the boot last week and is making headlines today.

According to American Lawyer magazine, the editor showed a slide of an African-American female wearing an afro. "A real no-no, announced the Glamour editor to the 40 or so lawyers in the room. As for dreadlocks: How truly dreadful! The style maven said it was 'shocking' that some people still think it 'appropriate' to wear those hairstyles at the office. 'No offense,' she sniffed, but those 'political' hairstyles really have to go."

I wasn't sure if this was still newsworthy, but according to Gawker and today's Post I guess it is, which is ironic cause just last Tuesday night my stylist who is a sister didn't think it was still relevant. "Old news," she stated. And she added that if you have "messy locks and a big fro out to here," she extended her arms a foot above her head to make her point, "then that is unacceptable in corporate America and these young people do need to know." Needless to say we got into a debate about that that extended throughout my entire time under the steamer. I disagreed about her assumption that young Black women, specifically in this case, young obviously educated, Black attorneys, not knowing what is acceptable 'hair-code' and wondered why when we talk about fros and locks, the extreme position is assumed about our hair. It's gotta be big, unkempt, nappy, knotted and crazy. I mean of course that's unacceptable in a major law firm, but if Gabrielle Union never combed her weave and it was tangled, knotted and smelled, I'm sure she wouldn't have been invited to the set of "Daddy's Little Girls" either. But then again we rarely talk about relaxed her being unkempt, radical and outrageous. It's the political hairdos that get us sisters into a pot of lye every time.

And this whole situation stinks (like a pot of lye). Just like I don't believe for one second that Marion Jones thought that flaxseed was given her all of that strength and speed and muscle tone. (Dang every now and then I get a flaxseed booster in my smoothie and I'll be damned if I'm not huffing and puffing after I running for the 6-train, but I digress). I don't believe that Glamour's Editrix Cindy Leive had no knowledge of lil' Miss Baker's speaking engagement when it was posted on their site the day the presentation went down.

Secondly all of this talk about homegirl not being a racist just needs to cease. Her comments were ignorant and based on bias and therefore racist notto mention supa dupa dumb in light of what just happened to Imus. People often think that being a racist must mean you are guilty of calling someone the n-word or hanging nooses on trees under which Black students hangout. Although the folks in Jena don't think they are racists either, but often racism is more complicated and subtle. I remember my first job outta college was at Smith Barney Shearson and I was working in HR. The Friday before I was to have my relaxed hair cut into a short twisted natural, I approached the VP of my dept and told her that on Monday I would be sporting a short coif. I did it out of fear that I my new look may cause a rumble in the office. On Monday after seeing my lil twists, my boss exclaimed how wonderful my new hairstyle was and that it really showed off my beautiful features. A month later I was rocking an afro and got my first promotion. I'm not going to say that Black folk aren't professionally maligned because they decided to rock dreadlocks or a fro but for a lot of us that marginalization happens first in our minds and we seldom take the chance to show off our natural-ness. I feel like if more of us did then Ashley may have thought twice about saying what she did. Anyhoo she's resigned/ terminated from Glamour and can now spend her time looking for a new gig instead of trying to school lawyers on style. That in and of itself seems so absurd. What law firm has that kinda time(eh- hem besides Gottlieb that is)? In all of my years working, I've never had some type of company sponsored lecture on style. Sometimes I look around and wish we had one at my workplace, but then for the most part I feel like if you gotta work on a nonsense holiday in 80-degree weather then we should be able to wear whateva the frack we wanna wear.

My Black Grrrl Matrix

Damn I know it's been a minute. Okay six months, but who's counting! I had to take a time-out and unplug from this crazy, super desensitizing, often confusing, often exhausting, manic matrix in which we live and work.

As many of you know or have heard my dad passed away. Cornelius "Kurt" Moore-- my hero and inspiration transitioned in March of this year. I felt his loss in everything I did or saw. Tasted it in everything I consumed and breathed. It was beyond hard and so I took the advice of so many of my friends who told me to, "be gentle with yourself and be still."

Back in April though, around my birthday, I thought it was high time I resume my life. Get back to what I was doing before ish hit the fan-- blogging, marketing, hanging, dating, but thangs had changed. I had changed and it hit me like a fire hydrant that is suddenly opened. Intense yet invigorating. I gotta find my way all over again. A new way. Around that time I discovered this wonderful quote by Rilke:

Have patience with everything unresolved in your heart
and try to love the questions themselves...
Don't search for the answers,
which could not be given to you now,
because you would not be able to live them.
And the point is, to live everything.
Live the questions now.
Perhaps then, someday far in the future,
you will gradually, without even noticing it,
live your way into the answer.

And so now I'm living the questions of my life. The unanswerables around death. The inexplicables of the US healthcare system. The whys of a failed, yet most heartfelt relationship. It's hard at first not to search for the answers, but in the end it is much easier.

So for 6 months I cocooned myself in a Black Grrrl Matrix of relaxation, solitude, sisterhood and communion. Now it may sound like I was all up under the covers but I hung out... well sometimes.

Like in March I went to Vibe/ Vibe Vixen's supa dupa big issue party at Cipriani's in Chelsea and like many "industry" parties nowadays it was overbooked and I spent a good 30 minutes at the rope trying to get in. But this was my first time being behind the rope with the likes of Def Jammers Kevin Liles, Lyor Cohen, Baby Phat publicist BJ Coleman, Rocsi from 106 & Park, Zab Judah and two NY Knickerbockers. It was ghetto... err urban pandemonium out there. BJ was threatening to punch several key Vibe editorial & sales execs in the mouth if he didn't get in at once. He screamed, "Baby Phat pays for Vixen. If it weren't for Baby Phat there would be no Vixen. Our ads are why you can afford to have this party"... yada, yada, yada. Everyone in the know, figured that BJ ain't said nothing but a word. There were some pounds and an occasional, "You betta work BJ" hollered out. Meanwhile those folks at Cipriani's just looked at us like we were monkeys in the zoo fighting over a fruit loop. At one point they even closed their big gold and black iron doors right in our faces, but minutes later they were reopened to let Lyor, Kevin and I think that was Dougie Fresh inside. I can't believe how much I remember of this evening. I guess I do cause of all the high-class drama and how I regretted for weeks not taking out my phone and videoing it for all y'all to see. Next time. For the record, BJ got in and no one got smacked; Rocsi went in for like 2 minutes and came stomping out w/ mad tude because they wouldn't allow her plus one in (and that was her co-host Terence); Zab and the Knick playas never got in and yeah I never got in either. Me and my girl Alison had a drink at sorry as$ 40/40. I mean there were only like 3 other people in the spot. Yikes, Oh what a night!

On April 10th, my birthday, before having sushi with the grrrls I actually went to audition for Essence's 30 Dates in 30 Days. Unfortunately I had to break out though before my one-on-one interview. What I remember though most about that experience is how freaking taken aback I was to see sooooooo many fly single sisters. I mean there were hundreds of young Black women there filling out applications and taking polaroids and they were serious too. High heels, sequins, and the weaves were crazy tight, of course! I had on my red Nikes and a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Clearly I wasn't ready. Well I was, that's me, but I guess I wasn't ready to take that whole process of auditioning for a date so seriously. I even saw a sister up in there with her very young daughter! But hey clearly she was on a mission and probably couldn't find childcare so she did what she had to do. It was a scene no doubt with Maxwell's "Urban Hang Suite" playing in the background and everything! Now that I see what this was all about I am so glad I opted for spicy tuna rolls over discussing what I would wear on a first date. Having the date broadcast online and having the essence dotcom community choose the man, the location and the "outfit" for my date(um, I stopped wearing outfits when I outgrew the pre-teen dept at Gimbels) is more than a notion. It takes the pressure off? Yeah right. Now you gotta worry about the haters outfitting you in some hootchie gear for a date on some Circle Line cruise. Now that's stressful.

Music, Music, Music. Music was all up in the Black Grrrl Matrix. I listened to so much Imani Uzuri especially Love Story, Sun Moon Child and her cover of Nina Simone's Fodder. When I finally got a chance to see her live in August at Smooch Cafe it was nothing less than amazing! When she started singing You Are The One I couldn't hold it in and cried the tears I was too angry to cry back in the spring. What a release. We had church that night for sure. Imani was calling folks on stage to sing with her-- Mikel, Eisa and damn everyone could sing too! I love the power of good music when it takes you there.

I also went to see Meshell NdegeOcello at the Highline Ballroom. That was a weird show. Not one of my favorites. I heard that she had just played Atlanta and somewhere else and had some issues with audience members taking flash photos (she has epilepsy) and throwing water bottles on stage. I guess she was still dealing with the backlash from all that and just gave us what she could. Of course back at home, in my Matrix, her Bitter and Plantation Lullabies was on continuously on blast. I haven't heard her new record yet but I should have something to say about it by next week.

In May I gotta chance to check out Lorna Simpson's exhibit at the Whitney. I've seen a lot of various pieces in a number of settings but this was the first time seeing so much of her body of work in one setting. I especially love her work that fuses words and phrases with images. My fave is probably "Waterbearer." It's like her visual riff on society and race and gender. Definitely feeling her works that feature wigs, weaves and other types of Black hair pieces and extensions. They are witty, funny, and moving. Oh yeah her cityscapes especially of Madison Square Park is totally different than anything I've ever seen her do, but still provocative like her other works but in a more cerebral soft way. I wish I could remember more (I do however remember not liking her video installations too much) but alas it was 4 months ago. It's so sad that I can remember the details of BJ going berserk but I can't remember more of Lorna's brilliance. MTV is frying my brain! Sorry.

I have so much more tell you. There's the trip I just took to South Africa, Botswana and France. There are these cool organizations for young Black women that I've been checking out (WEEN & My Sister's Keeper). And oh yeah there is crazy Black Grrrl music to review and discuss (MeShell, Jill Scott, Latifah, Keyshia Cole, Chaka Khan, Santogold-- who just opened for Bjork at Madison Square Garden this past Monday!).

So yeah I'm back. Plugged-in and ready to write, to explore, to see what's happening outside my cocoon. Ready to realize some more dreams, to be a mentor, to be more of an activist. To be an editor, an author, a mother and a lover. I'm ready y'all. So let's go!

Vibe Vixen, Uptown, UNleashed & Giant Mags

This may be old news for some but I just found out a few weeks ago that Harriette Cole, the former Editorial Director of Uptown, was recently named Creative Director of Ebony.

Cole’s focus in her new position is to try to strengthen the fashion and beauty coverage in Ebony in order to attract younger readers. She is also responsible for the overall look and design of Ebony, which last underwent a redesign in 2003.

That means major staff changes at Uptown as I hear she also nabbed their Art Director, Corinne Walker, before taking flight from their 1-2-5 offices. Erickka Sy Savane, their Editor at Large, the seat I once filled, has also jumped ship. Staying behind and holding it down are original players Sekou "Writes" and Melissa Kramer. Former Vibe Vixen editor, Ayanna Byrd will take the helm as Uptown's new EIC. I hope the Black muckety-muck mag continues to improve cause the current issue with John Legend on the cover is great and surely their best issue yet! (blogger's note: thanks for finally putting JL on the cover it is a good look)

Speaking of Vixen I hear from a very credible source that former Honey EIC and Essence exec, Michaela angela Davis is front runner for that EIC slot. And while I’m mentioning Michaela let me offer a retraction to something I said earlier about Honey that got her a lil riled up. When I said I wasn’t feeling the “last issues” of Honey I didn’t literally mean the last four that were published while she was rocking the top of the masthead. I just meant I wasn’t feeling the direction-- the overall content, the look of the mag after Joicelyn and Kierna left. I remember seeing only one of the issues that Michaela edited but did not see the other three. I did, however, see the 13 or so issues that were published under the two Ms. A’s that helmed the mag before Michaela and I thought they pretty much sucked!

The only thing that probably sucks over at Giant is that big ole vacuum Smokey is pushing to collect the revenue that that mag must be generating with its fantastic ads and the sweet deal they just closed with Radio One. And let’s not forget they had Jennifer Hudson on their cover before both Vogue and Essence.

And about that Vogue cover I was shocked to hear that Jennifer was the first Af-Am singer to grace its cover. I just knew Beyonce had a hold on that record but I guess my grrrl Jen done came in first again.

And oh my Lord, did y’all hear that allegedly Ron Samuel the former Publisher of the very hot looking mag UNleashedwas indicted on money laundering and is now serving time in a Californian jail. Not sure how true that story is but it is one that I’ve heard on more than one occasion. Does anyone know if there’s anything popping at Essence with either the staff or the direction of the mag? And what’s up with the Source and that other new HipHop Weekly publication that Joicelyn and I think Kierna are both working on with Dave Mays? I haven’t even seen it yet? Have you? C’mon gimme the scoop!

NETworking

The night before last I decided to take a break from my usual routine and instead of heading to the BX I headed downtown to get my geek on at two writer-centric events. The first event was put on by The New York Times and was held at their headquarters on 43rd street. The invitation read:

This panel discussion with three Times journalists (Sewell Chan, Andrea Elliott and David Gonzalez, each featured in The Times's new brand advertising campaign) discussing their beats and how racial and ethnic trends impact the stories they cover.

My Beat: The Impact of Diversity on a Story was the really hip name they christened this panel that featured some really not so hip writers (excluding David Gonzalez who was charismatic, really open and had more personality in his big toe than the other two writers combined). Now don’t get me wrong it wasn’t a big yawn, but when one hears the word "beat" ya can’t help but think music, culture or enlivened, witty and impassioned discussions and this it, well, wasn't. I knew going into this it was going to be a night filled with irony and weird, errr… staged juxtapositioning if that makes any sense just because the event was sponsored by their Human Resources Dept. (ie. The NY Times is looking for writers of color or at least they want us to believe that they are at least committed to da rainbow coalition!)

As I got off the elevator and walked down this long winding hallway I had to laugh. This hall featured about 50 framed photographs of, I believe, writers who have worked at The Times and as I walked to this diversity event I realized this long a$s hall had only two photos of Black women. I recognized Isabel Wilkerson in one shot but didn’t know who the other woman was. It’s so remarkable to me that every time I walk the hallowed halls of so many (old) institutions (like my college’s alumni club for example), I have to deal with seeing old white men or as MeShell NdegeOcello once told me “we are confronted with the ancestral history of The Man every day damn near every minute here in America.”

Anyway I digress. The panel was pretty interesting because the work of the writers featured especially David and Andrea was really insightful and unique. Hearing how they get people to open up about their very personal lives and how authenticity played apart in their goals as journalist was very inspiring for me. The other thing that I found totally inspiring was their dope spread—open bar, shrimp, sushi, Kobe beef satay, curry chicken tartes. Never mind that my questions about gender and about passion & objectivity were also a bit hit, so much so that I was asked by two Times execs to send them my resume and writing samples.

My next stop: Rockefeller Plaza to NBC Studios for their first ever NYC Blogger Summit. I got there a lil late and missed the reception, but heads were still complaining about there not being any liquor, especially beer. This issue was actually brought up at least three or four times throughout the night. I’m gathering I’m not the only blogger who likes to get her drink on. I think the final count for attendees was 129 and I was probably1 of only 3 Black folks there. But on the upside the Conan O’Brien studio where the Summit was held had a good look on blog-grrrls in the mix. The ladies were definitely in the house repping a number of sites ranging from big dot coms like Mediabistro and Gothamist to All Cupcakes and of course theHotness Grrrl.

This Summit was groundbreaking in that a mainstream (not to mention VERY major) news source was basically fessing up that they need us. WNBC, at least, wants to partner with us on delivering news. Initially most bloggers were doubtful of this “partnership” and really had to think about the value of what we would get in return—basically credit, hyperlinks and TV exposure. No loot. I think most folks were like me and more interested in hearing the stories of various bloggers and how they developed their audience and their particular blogging styles. The folks at NBC didn’t really have a lot to say. The highlight for me was meeting Anil Dash the cat that created TypePad, Movable Type and other blogging software and services. We spoke for a good minute about hiphop and the Web, successful (i.e. revenue generating) blogs & sites related to urban culture, Questlove’s blog and OkayPlayer. We had a great convo and are supposed to hangout real soon. A good night overall that ended with me on the 11pm news coverage of the Blogger Summit. Thanks Lynne for noticing my two seconds of fame. Real recognizing real!

theHotness Grrrl Thinks Very Deeply... Sorta

How fly is Oprah? The Academy she opened in South Africa is amazing? And what's up with all the backlash she's getting about spending HER money in Africa. Some haters are wondering why she didn't give it to public schools here in America? Or my favorite quip: how the school is "too lavish and grand" for such a small number of attendees (152 to start and 450 when all grades are fully enrolled). If it was Barbara Walters opening a school in Milan for aspiring artists and it featured art studios and spas no one would say anything. But a Black woman can't open a 40 million dollar school in rural Africa without folks thinking it's too much. Yeah it's always too much for Black girls to be taking yoga and violin lessons when they should be focusing on their fundamentals like double-dutch and domesticity. Just give them darkies a jump rope and a mop and they'll be aight, seems to be what this backlash is implying. Well now I hope folks like Bill Cosby, Bob Johnson and Jennifer Lopez will show their support and their middle finger by opening up other similar institutions in places like Ghana and Puerto Rico. You rock Oprah! And if you are looking for instructors? I'm so down!

Why are all the guys on I Love New York gay? Is this some down-low reality love ish? And how flavorless is New York? Where is Flavor Flav when you need some really god-awful ebonics and craziness to watch?

What's PM Dawn up to these days? And how good does it feel to know that at one time urban radio (and MTV) was not so caught up in image and payola to spin a song like Set Adrift on Memory Bliss?

Black folks and Mexicans really did their thing last year in film and television (as seen by the noms and wins at this year's Golden Globes). Forest Whittaker as Idi Amin in Last King of Scotland was spectacular. He truly absorbed his character. He's actually now acting as the voice for Where The Wild Things Are (one of my most memorable children's books), which is supposed to be released sometime 2008. Then there's our Dream Girls cast where Eddie, Jennifer and Anika acted their ashes off. And finally Alejandro González Iñárritu and Guillermo Arriaga got recognized for their wonderful contributions to film (for Babel specifically; they also did 21 Grams and one of my absolute most favorite films Amores Perros). Salma Hayek and America Ferrara showed that Ugly is the new hotness and I'm sure Salma had to freaking stand her ground and take a lot of basura for creating a show based on a telenovella. I haven't seen Pursuit of Happyness yet but I hear from everyone including Karen Good who is not a big Will Smith fan that he is totally believable and so worth the $10.75 ticket. I really hope to get a chance to see Volver this weekend because I hear that Penelope Cruz is fantastic in this comedy and I really want to see her in something that shops me she's got all around acting skills.

Why can't magazines created for Black women (and women of color in general) survive in the publishing marketplace (i.e. Honey, Suede, Rebelle, Wink, err maybe even... Vibe Vixen?) Latina is a great mag that is doing well, so why can't the other joints get it together and compete?

Latina as a mag is doing well but why does seem like there is dearth of Latina women out here making (good) music? J. Lo can't be the only Boriqua who can sing? (Big-up to Carol C., Vinia Mojica, La Bruja, Sophia Ramos and Maya Azucena for doing their thing on the underground but dang why can't they get a deal!)

Was I the only one cringing when reading this article in last month's Esquire?

And are Black, umm... urban folks afraid of posting comments on blogs? I've talked to other Black bloggers and we know we have mad traffic but for some reason heads rarely post comments (BitterVibes' blog excluded)? Is this a cultural difference that needs to be analyzed? Like when the Web first came about and White folks would surf the Web while Black said we cruised it?

Hummph, just some thoughts I had today.

Thanks to KJ for using his subtle jedi hijinks to inspire the competitive spirit in me to blog more frequently. His blog is quite nice and surely something worth checking out!

Revenge of the HipHop Publishing Outcasts

Title of this post courtesy of Greg Tate.

From Tuesday's AdAge.com.

New music title slated to debut next month
by Nat Ives

The ousted owners of The Source and Vibe's recently fired editor in chief
are launching newwstand-only Hip Hop Weekly.

The ousted owners of The Source and Vibe's recently fired editor in chief
are launching a newsstand-only music title.

Hip Hop Weekly is slated to debut on Oct. 16 with a guaranteed paid
circulation of 100,000.

David Mays and Ray "Benzino" Scott, who started The Source in 1988, were
forced out last January amid allegations of tax evasion and a sexual
harassment suit filed by two former staffers. Mimi Valdes was booted from
Vibe after a change in ownership last summer.

Ms. Valdes, now the editor in chief at Hip Hop Weekly, said the magazine
will try to get in on the celebrity-weekly action, particularly through
columns by radio veterans Wendy Williams and Star & Buc Wild.

"The rest of the magazine is really about trying to offer some insight,
reflection and criticism on hip-hop as it influences everything," she said.

The weekly format will also make the title more competitive with monthly
music books, whose long lead times make it harder to present
up-to-the-minute news and photos.

Hip Hop Global Media, the holding company backing Hip Hop Weekly, will price
the first issue at $2.99 and subsequent issues at $3.99.

That's more expensive than OK magazine and Bauer Publishing's In Touch and
Life & Style Weekly, which sell for $1.99, and even Wenner Media's Us Weekly
and Time Inc.'s People, which sell for $3.49.

Black Media Stereotypes

Last Saturday in between the rain and the sun, The Harlem Book Fair was in effect. For the first time I was out there as a vendor selling my Hotness T-shirts and so I didn't get a chance to check out the panels. I'ma blog more on the Book fair itself in a day or so, but first I must post about one of the panels that I caught on C-Span on Sunday.

The panel Black Media and Black Stereotypes was moderated by Cathy Hughes (Radio One) and featured Roland Martin, Dick Gregory, William Rhoden and Juan Williams. I think Al Sharpton joined later but by then I was probably engrossed in something way more interesting like cutting my cuticles or cleaning my microwave. This panel was not only a snoozer but it was so rudimentary that it was offensive.

When asked what is Black media, Roland answered with the following observation: "I believe there are three types—Black Owned, Black Controlled and Black Targeted." Black Owned would be WLIB, Black Controlled would be Essence and Black Targeted would be The Source (when headed by Dave Mays & Benzino). He then went into this exegesis of sorts about The Washington Post and how he never wanted to work for them and Milton Coleman. Then seemingly out of nowhere both he and Cathy launched into this tirade about Janet Cooke who won a Pulitzer for a fabricated story she wrote for TWP and how "mainstream media types encourage this type of behavior." Oh, did I mention this Janet Cooke fiasco happened in 1981 and that coincidentally after everyone discovered what a big liar she was (allegedly she said she graduated from Vassar too), Janet claimed that the high-pressure environment of the Washington Post had corrupted her judgment?!? Okay, so many things can be said about this entire exchange. Like why are your references as to how yucky white media can be like 25 years old (dang isn’t that when MTV debuted?), or why is that when Black folks eff up at "mainstream" companies, it's the fault of the company and not the individual, or better yet how is it that in 2006 you still believe that mainstream outlets like the Post somehow compromise and tarnish the talents of Black journalists without even acknowledging the value and depth folks like Lola (NY Times), Greg (Village Voice) and Cheo (LA Times) have added to these outlets? Well my friends it only gets better.

Next up was William who couldn't stop waxing nostalgically about how great it was to play football at Morgan State and get a job at Ebony. It seemed that for him this was the epitome of Black Male success and at that time it probably was (oh yeah, I forgot to mention that no one on the panel was under 45 or female [Cathy moderated]). Again it's 2006 and you are talking about Ebony magazine as a model for what? You know I'm not going to say anything more about that moment. Especially since I had walked by the QBR booth right outside the Schomburg that very day and heard this sister ask who reads Ebony because her book was featured in this month's issue. I lie to you not, no one said a word. I heard crickets on 135th Street, yo! Startled, homegirl said something like well make sure you go to your doctor's office and check it out.

So back to the panel. After about 30 minutes of yapping, I was shocked that in their talk about Black Media no one mentioned, never mind discussed, online media and how digital platforms like Blogger, or this and Black sites like EUR and this one are impacting community, media and politics. Nope not a word. Then again there were no youngin's on the panel cause we all know X-ers like me only get asked to participate on hip-hop panels.

Juan Williams brought up a good point about the history of Black journalists being advocates and using the press to promote a specific point of view like DuBois did with his Crisis. He wondered where was the advocacy in Black media and how do Black journalists fit into niche media. This bright point never got a fair shake as Dick Gregory and Cathy Hughes somehow started talking about Marion Barry.

In what had to be the panel's finest moment, both Dick and Cathy ranted about how the gov't set up Barry and how the media twisted the story making a mountain out of a tiny snow hill. "Is he the only man in America that sniffs coke," one of them whined. Errr um, he was the dang mayor of DC and it was crack. And please break it down to me how the Post manipulated him to do a Pookie and light those rocks and get high? I'm starting to wonder if Dick is sniffing his leftover Bahamian Diet Mix powder. Jeesh! At this point I changed the channel and made myself a drink.

I turned back 30 mins later hoping that these cats were trying to redeem themselves. Unfortunately Dick was talking about how all of his children had attended Black colleges except for one and that "she's the craziest child in his family." Then of course Rhoden chimed in about how great his experience was at Morgan.

When so many Black and Latino children drop out of high school and decide not to go to college, what the hell is so fracking constructive about dissing Black kids like me who decide to go to a predominantly white college. This has got to be the funkiest crap I've heard in a longtime. I was pissed. Still am. And because I've already written a novel here, I won't go into detail about how much more advanced-- academically and socially I was than the chick I shadowed at Howard in '89. I had read the books they were reading as sophomores in my junior year at Hunter H.S. Now I'm not dissing Howard or Spelman or any of the other historically Black colleges, but I'm saying they were not for me and that was my choice. I don’t think I need to be dissed or feel ashamed for making that choice and if this is what Dick and the other cats on the panel think is the major problem facing Black journalists then I guess Darfur, AIDS and poverty aren’t the biggest issues for Black communities. It's old school ignorance.