Obama to Black Lives Matter: Got Your Back

October 23, 2015

Group "raises legitimate issue," president says at forum; Campaign '16 press corps has gender, not racial diversity; dressing like "Empire's" Cookie and working at N.Y. Times; Mark Rochester named top editor in Rock Hill, S.C.; NPR adds a black male voice to "All Things Considered"; NAHJ meets in Mexico City, miles from hurricane; Robert Montemayor dies, on Pulitzer-winning L.A. team; BET picks non-black hosts for its French edition; that should be *Mari* Negro; Rubio: Don't like Trump on "SNL"? Don't watch; Tampa Bay Times praises vote to remove Confederate flag (10/23/15)

Group "Raises Legitimate Issue," President Says at Forum

Campaign '16 Press Corps Has Gender, Not Racial Diversity

Dressing Like "Empire's" Cookie and Working at N.Y. Times

Mark Rochester Named Top Editor in Rock Hill, S.C.

NPR Adds a Black Male Voice to "All Things Considered"

NAHJ Meets in Mexico City, Miles from Hurricane

Robert Montemayor Dies, on Pulitzer-Winning L.A. Team

BET Picks Non-Black Hosts for Its French Edition

"When Laure Assembé was 16, she saw Public Enemy perform in Paris. That 1988 concert started a 25-year love affair with Black American culture for the French-Cameroonian woman,"Kiratiana Freelon wrote Wednesday for Ebony.

"She didn't have BET to learn about the latest hip-hop artists and Black movies. Still, she knew about the network. 'I'm from this generation who use to buy The Source, Ebony and Essence magazines to know about the culture overseas,' Assembé said. 'We didn't wait for [the] Internet to know about BET.'

"She'll get a chance to see the network when it debuts in France on November 17. Like its American counterpart, it will be light on music and heavy on television shows. But one thing it won't have are French versions of Bow Wow, Big Tigger, Free or AJ Calloway.

"That's because when BET chose its first hosts for its French broadcasts, it apparently overlooked the 'Black' in Black Entertainment Television. The first two announced hosts, Hedia Hinges and Raphael Yem, come from MTV and are of Arab and Asian heritage. . . ."

Freelon also wrote, "Debra Lee, chief executive officer of the network which was sold to Viacom in 2001 by founder Robert Johnson, countered the frustration with a tweet promising there would be Black hosts. . . ."

That Should Be Mari Negro

The Eagle Herald in Marinette, Wis., ran this headline Thursday, referring to Mari Negro, a candidate for Menominee city assessor, Jim Romenesko wrote on his media blog.

Rubio: Don't Like Trump on "SNL"? Don't Watch

"While Marco Rubio and Donald Trump have been engaged in a war of words in recent weeks, the Florida senator took time earlier this week to defend his Republican presidential rival over the controversy surrounding his hosting gig on 'Saturday Night Live,'" Fox News Latino reported on Thursday.

"Rubio said that while he doesn't always agree with the real estate mogul, he thinks the calls to have him removed as a host on the long-running sketch comedy show is excessive.

"'It's a free country,' Rubio said on Fox News''Your World' with Neil Cavuto on Wednesday. 'I don't agree with everything that Donald Trump says, I don't agree with everything the other side says, either. But if you don't like it, don't watch the show.'

"Rubio added: 'It's on at 11:35 on Saturday nights and there are plenty of other things you can watch, or you can just go to bed early.'

"A number of Latino groups and lawmakers have called on NBC and SNL creator Lorne Michaels to remove the boisterous candidate from the hosting gig. . . ."

Two polls this week found Trump trailing Ben Carson in Iowa, site of the first contest in the 2016 race, Ben White reported Friday for CNBC. "The second survey, out Friday, showed Carson with a solid 9-point lead, 28 percent to 19 percent, over Trump. An earlier Quinnipiac poll showed Carson leading Trump in Iowa by 8 points. . . ."