Black History Month Celebrations Kick Off In LA With The Kinsey Collection!

'What You Didn't Learn In High School' Comes To The Ebony!

On Saturday February 5th at 8pm, join us for a spectacular Southern California evening of inspiration as world renowned art collectors and philanthropists Bernard and Shirley Kinsey, along with their special guests, take you through the African American experience in a unique and engaging way.

The Kinsey's "What You Didn't Learn In High School History" will include performances by talented actress Cassandra Freeman (The Inside Man) and Danny "Coco" Brown, followed by a scrumptious champagne and dessert reception immediately after this 2nd Annual Los Angeles cultural gathering.

If you missed attending last year, please take a peak at the 2010 photos now on Facebook that were taken to see that this is no ordinary celebration.

Tickets are going fast so get your now at the Ebony Repertory Theater's Website.

See you there! And make sure you visit The Kinsey Collection, currently on display at The Smithsonian Museum in Washington, DC.

Byron Allen Tells Gloria Allred, “I’ll See You In Court!”

Entertainment Studios is adding to their syndicated roster famed attorney Gloria Allred in what will certainly be daytime television’s most anticipated court show, "We The People with Gloria Allred."

A founding partner of the law firm Allred, Maroko, & Goldberg, the legal heavyweight will preside over outrageous small claims disputes between aggrieved parties. "I've always been passionate about the law, and I'm very excited about this show. I am fully committed to making 'We The People' a huge success," said Allred, who has also indicated that she intends to continue practicing law while she's not on the bench. Here's Saturday Night Live's take on the woman famous for her red St. John's suits:

Having been involved in some of the most controversial cases of our day, including O.J. Simpson, Michael Jackson, Scott Peterson and Tiger Woods, Allred is sure to have fans and critics alike tuning in. "It is unprecedented to have the biggest name in law come to television and be a part of one of its most successful genres – the television court show," said Byron Allen, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Entertainment Studios. "With the increasing success of our show "America's Court with Judge Ross" we are extremely proud to have Ms. Allred join our family and further demonstrate Entertainment Studios' unwavering commitment to be the number one provider of quality television content."

'We The People', Entertainment Studios 28^th and newest HD television program, further cements Byron Allen's position as being one of very few independent entertainment companies run and controlled by African Americans. In the Obama era, black celebrities with entrepreneurial acumen such as Will Smith, Tyler Perry, Oprah Winfrey, Jamie Foxx, and Queen Latifah are showing Hollywood once again that in the business of show, it’s all about the green!

For African-Americans Interested In The Online Space, This Is Your Urban New Media Wrap-Up For January 2011

The Game’ Is a Winner, Helped by BET Loyalists

“The Game,” a sitcom about pro football players’ relationships with women, puttered along in obscurity for three years on the CW network. The season it was canceled, it attracted only 1.9 million viewers an episode. Then it was resurrected with two new episodes last Tuesday on the cable channel BET, which picked up the program and resumed production as part of an effort to add scripted shows to its schedule. The response from BET viewers was “jaw-dropping.” The first two episodes of the new season averaged 7.7 million viewers, making it the most-watched sitcom ever on cable television.

The 30-year-old channel had never had such high ratings for a series. “Just over the moon” is how Debra L. Lee, the chief executive and chairwoman of BET Networks, described her reaction. “It proves that cable is competitive,” she said. How does a show quadruple its audience? Ms. Lee credits a smart marketing plan, fan bases on Facebook and Twitter, and frequent showings on BET of repeat episodes in the past year, which ginned up interest in the new episodes.

More...

For Minorities, New 'Digital Divide' Seen

When the personal computer revolution began decades ago, Latinos and blacks were much less likely to use one of the marvelous new machines. Then, when the Internet began to change life as we know it, these groups had less access to the Web and slower online connections — placing them on the wrong side of the "digital divide."

Today, as mobile technology puts computers in our pockets, Latinos and blacks are more likely than the general population to access the Web by cellular phones, and they use their phones more often to do more things.

But now some see a new "digital divide" emerging — with Latinos and blacks being challenged by more, not less, access to technology. It's tough to fill out a job application on a cellphone, for example. Researchers have noticed signs of segregation online that perpetuate divisions in the physical world. And blacks and Latinos may be using their increased Web access more for entertainment than empowerment.

Continue...

Dr. King's Facebook Page Vandalized With Racist Images

A Facebook page that appears to be run by the Martin Luther King Center has been vandalized by individuals or a group of people who are determined to populate the page with disturbing racial imagery. Images using the N-word are displayed all over the page, along with other hurtful pictures, including a black man having sex with a bucket of chicken.

It is not clear who is responsible for maintaining the page or moderating the images, but the KingCenter.org website is listed as the group that owns the page.

Details...

Will The Strings Attached To Comcast/NBC Deal Be Effective?

Both the FCC and the Justice Department have effectively cleared the way for Comcast (aka, that cable company from Philadelphia) to own a majority of NBC Universal, but the regulators did so with several strings attached to the deal. Among the regulations outlined by the FCC and the Justice Dept., are:

*Comcast/NBC must license its programming to online distributors that have obtained distribution agreements with one of NBCU's peers.

*Comcast can't do anything that would unduly limit content owners' abilities to freely negotiate creative arrangements with Comcast competitors.

*The Comcast/NBC Voltron is not allowed to "retaliate against any broadcast network, affiliate, cable programmer, production studio or content provider for licensing content to Comcast competitors."

*Comcast must relinquish its management rights in Hulu, which is a joint venture of NBC, Fox and ABC, "so Comcast cannot use NBCU's partial ownership of Hulu to diminish its competitive significance."

Keep Reading...

If You’re Not Networking, You’re Not Social

Social media isn't isolating us as we tap on our laptops, smartphones and tablets; rather, we're becoming "hypersocial" in our virtual, avatar-populated environment, suggests researcher and author S. Craig Watkins. Rather than gathering in, say, the bowling alleys that were social hubs in the 1950s, we Wii-bowl with companions nearly anywhere on the globe.

Author of "The Young and The Digital," a book about today's so-called digital natives, Watkins rejects some researchers' laments that technology isolates us, noting that multiplayer online games cultivate friendships across long distances, and Facebook helps childhood friends keep in content when they move geographically. "There's nowhere we can't connect to our friends and our network," he says.

More...

Black People And The Internet - What's Up?

African Americans are more likely than whites to access the Internet by mobile phone, and they are twice as likely to use Twitter. Mobile devices have expanded access to the Internet, but they also limit the experience. NPR's Renee Montagne talks with IT consultant Anjuan Simmons about Internet trends among blacks.

Listen Here...

Isidra Person-Lynn Relaunches 'Sunday Morning Live' On Blogtalkradio

Media expert Isidra Person-Lynn has taken to the Internet to provide news, information and entertainment from a African American perspective on her new online Blogtalkradio show 'Sunday Morning Live'. Person-Lynn, a University of Southern California graduate who went on to become a celebrated public affairs radio personality on Los Angeles station 103.9 FM KACE, has also created a frequently updated blog for the weekly program.

Person-Lynn is clearly filling a void in the talk arena, as traditional black radio broadcast stations are opting to play more music and reducing their focus on spotlighting local issues in African American populated communities.

Check It Out...

Former Compton City Councilman Maxcy Filer, Persistent Tackler of The California Bar Exam, Dies at 80

Never Give Up!

Maxcy D. Filer, a former African American attorney and civic leader in Compton, California who gained nationwide headlines when he passed the State Bar examination after 48 tries, died yesterday at his Compton home.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kelvin Filer said his father, 80 years of age, died in his sleep around 8:30 a.m. The cause of death was not determined, but the elder Filer had been in ill health for a few years, the judge said.

Maxcy Filer was a councilman there from 1976 to 1991, having previously served as a planning commissioner.

Kelvin Filer was in third grade when his father, who attended law school at Van Norman University at night while working by day, made his first stab at the bar examination. By the time he passed the test in 1991, Kelvin and his brother Anthony Filer—now an attorney at Community Legal Services in Norwalk—were both lawyers.

Born in Mariana, Ark., according to an online biography, Filer served in the U.S. Navy from 1946 to 1949 before attending Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical & Normal College, now the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.

He later moved to Indiana where he married Blondell Burson of Elkhart. He and his wife were activists in the civil rights movement, initiating voter registration drives and later serving as president of the Compton NAACP during the events of 1965 that became known as the Watts Rebellion.

But he will always be remembered, his son said, as the man who would never give up trying to become a licensed attorney.

Kelvin Flier explained:

“He always said: ‘In order to become a lawyer, you have to pass the California bar examination. In order to pass the California bar examination, you have to take the California bar examination.’”

The judge said he hopes to pass to his own children and grandchildren the lesson that “you never give up pursuing your dream.”

Choking back tears, the judge said his greatest memory of his father, who worked for his sons as a paralegal before being admitted himself, will be of “watching him walk across the street to the courthouse with his briefcase in order to practice law.”

Maxcy Filer was sworn in to the State Bar on June 6, 1991 at a new admittee ceremony that included the presentation of a special pin by then-Board of Governors member—now State Bar Court Judge—Robert M. Talcott. In a speech to the new members on behalf of the State Bar, Talcott identified the qualities a lawyer must have.

He then went on to say:

“Three of these characteristics are personified by Maxcy Filer—persistence, persistence, and persistence.”

His story has been included in books and magazine articles and was profiled in People magazine. He practiced with Kelvin Filer in Compton until his son was named a commissioner of the now-defunct Compton Municipal Court.

Filer stayed on as a sole practitioner until a few years ago, when he began having health problems that prevented him from fulfilling his responsibilities, Kelvin Filer said. He accepted probation in 2005 for failing to perform competently in a dissolution case and ceased his practice when was suspended in 2007 for failing to pass the professional ethics examination.

Besides his wife Blondell Filer and sons Kelvin and Anthony Filer, he is survived by daughters Maxine McFarland, Stephanie Hoxey, and Tracy Filer and sons Duane and Dennis Filer, along with 14 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Source

African Americans Discuss Their Online Media Strategy On Black Enterprise's Our World