Obama Brings Firsts for Black Media

Barack Obama’s election as president is generating major changes in the nation’s Black press, ushering in a series of firsts that editors say will reshape print, Internet, radio and television coverage aimed at Black audiences.

Essence, the top-selling magazine among Black women, will have a full-time White House reporter for the first time. Ebony magazine will add a White House reporter, either full time or as needed. Its sister publication, Jet magazine, will have a weekly two-page Washington report in every issue. BET is scrapping its usual program of videos and sitcoms for a four-hour live broadcast of Obama’s swearing-in. BET did the same thing for both party conventions last summer, and on Election Day. TV One will do the same, airing 21 hours of inauguration coverage throughout the day.

The moves mark a return to a time when the Black press, particularly magazines, was newsier. Jet first published photos of the battered and swollen body of Emmett Till in 1955, sparking outrage and galvanizing a still-young civil rights movement.

What took so long? Katrina happened under Bush, Rwanda happened under Clinton. If more reporters of color were there, maybe those issues would have gained more attention. The addition of Black reporters could mean more focus on the urban agenda, failing schools, crime, job loss, poor health care.

The latest issue of Essence, which reaches 8.5 million readers a month, has two different covers, Barack on one and Michelle on the other, and features famous Black Americans, reflecting on the moment. Ebony named a person of the year for the first time in its 63-year history, dedicating its entire January issue to the president-elect. The Obama watch section is one of the most popular features on the Essence website. For Ebony, the nation’s oldest Black magazine with a monthly readership of 12 million, the coverage paid off — the Chicago-based magazine landed Obama’s first post-election interview.

But all the coverage won’t and can’t be like that. Black folks will be interested in education, unemployment, AIDS, housing, health, crime, etc. The unemployment rate in our community is double the national average. And 95 percent of black children go to public schools. These are the kinds of things Black people are going to be interested in seeing improvements in.

Maybe the Black media is returning to the time when something that was happening in our community, it hit the Black press long before it hit the mainstream. The newsier turn in the Black media is due, at least in part, to the Black brain drain from mainstream publications because of massive industry buyouts and layoffs. And Black publications like Ebony and Essence have reaped the rewards, landing reporters and editors from such top newspapers as the Baltimore Sun, Newsday and the Boston Globe and such organizations as the former Knight Ridder chain.

BET, which will host an inaugural ball for the first time in the network’s history, ran 10 hours of Election Night coverage and reached 10.7 million viewers, topping CNBC’s coverage. Correspondents, who were spread out in cities across the country, had a responsibility to give the information but also say what it felt like and what it meant to our community. They were our storytellers and not just reporters.

BET has long been criticized for running too many booty-shaking music videos, but is in the process of expanding its news coverage beyond the current 25 hours a month. TV one offers more middle of the road programming, but is not offered in all areas of the country. Don’t expect “Meet the Press” or a nightly news-style broadcast from either yet.
But the Black media realizes that Black people are demanding change and accountability and they want to know what’s happening and they want people who they trust to break it down and help them understand it.

How Will Life be for the Obama Daughters in the White House?

They haven't even moved into the White House yet, but Malia and Sasha Obama are the world's most famous tweens. Their parents have often said they want a normal existence for them. But how normal can life be for the first daughters? They're only 10 and 7, and already designers are competing for the chance to dress them. They've been on the cover of People, Us Weekly, Ebony and Jet. And there's that standing invitation to the set of "Hannah Montana."

History suggests that the media will keep their distance. Chelsea Clinton was 13 when she entered the White House and she was largely left alone at the request of her parents. Amy Carter was 9 when she came and was allowed to live a fairly normal life. The Kennedy children were kept from the public eye by their mother. She even set up a school for Caroline at the White House. But technology has advanced to the point where photos and video can be taken by anyone with a cell phone, and uploaded to the Web within minutes. The public is fascinated with all the Obamas, including the girls. But these are kids and there is a tricky line on how public the Obama girls can and should be.

The Obamas are clearly aware there's a fascination with the girls and how they're going to lead their lives. They're going to try to chart a safe course. The girls weren't constant fixtures on the campaign trail, but they were not invisible, either. They occasionally appeared at rallies, spoke onstage to a video image of their father at the Democratic convention, and, along with their parents, gave an interview to "Access Hollywood," a move President-elect Obama later said he regretted. The girls captured many hearts with their poised and joyfulness on the few public appearances they have made, but and I’m positive that there will be far fewer pictures. A couple of exceptions, of course, will be the inauguration and probably a flurry of photos when their puppy arrives.

Once safely in the White House, the girls will be well protected and nurtured. The people surrounding these girls are going to work hard to let them go about their routines. I’m sure they will follow the Clinton pattern. Michelle Obama has talked to Hilary Clinton in great detail about Chelsea’s life during the White House years. Chelsea went to her ballet rehearsals, came home, did homework, and ate dinner with her parents. The White House ushers set up a scavenger hunt for Chelsea when she came, so she could get to know the place. We know the Obama girls like their dance classes, their soccer, and their sleepovers. All these will likely continue. And maybe we can expect President Obama, like candidate Obama, to attend parent-teacher conferences at the private Sidwell Friends School.

The Obama family will be starting with an advantage over the past few years of their lives. They will have dinner together every night. They have just come off the campaign road for the past two years. Now they will see each other seven days a week. Remember they are living in the office. Of course, they'll have to make new friends. At school we can assume that neither Malia nor Sasha will be the odd girl out. They won’t be the picked-on girl. They are going in as the queen bee. They won’t get left out of anything. Every kid in school parents want to be invited to the White House!

Of course, the tricky part comes with teenage years — something Malia, at least, will be experiencing at the end of Obama’s first term. With middle school comes all sorts of issues: rebellion, body issues, mean-girl stuff. But there's plenty of time to think about that. Right now, there are rooms to decorate and lots of people to meet. Michelle says she wants to be mom-in-chief. And Barack Obama says 'I love you' to his children right up there on the stage. You get a sense that there's a lot of love there. I truly believe the Obamas have laid a good foundation.

The Obamas will end their vacation on New Year ’s Day and move to Washington, DC this weekend. Most incoming president come to Washington a few days before the inauguration, but the girls new school, Sidwell Friends School, restarts after the holiday break Monday and President-elect and Michelle want their daughters there from the beginning.

Down Home with the Neelys

As co-owners of Neely's Bar-B-Que, Patrick (Pat) and Gina Neely have turned their family restaurant into one of the most successful barbecue restaurants in the South. Now they share the secrets behind their favorite dishes and their passion for food, family and fun on Food Network's Down Home with the Neelys.

After its February 2 premiere, Down Home with the Neelys became the highest-rated series debut in the five-year history of Food Network's "In the Kitchen" weekend block and continues to be a top ratings performer. By the end of 2008, the Neelys will have filmed four seasons of the popular show in their hometown of Memphis. The meals served on the show come from passed-down recipes of grandmothers, mothers, aunts and uncles. Some favorites include their BBQ Spaghetti, Sweet and Spicy Coleslaw, Get Yo Man Chicken and Grilled Pound Cake Sundaes.

Beginning in July 2008, the Neelys launched a second Food Network show, Road Tasted with the Neelys, a cross-country search for specialty stores and family-run businesses that make hand-crafted, one-of-a-kind edibles.

Patrick began working in the restaurant business at the age of 15, learning the art of barbecue from his uncle Jim Neely who taught Patrick and his brother Tony the methods of slow cooking southern barbecue using indirect heat. In February 1988, Pat and his three brothers (Gaelin, Tony, and Mark) opened their first restaurant in downtown Memphis with just a few tables and chairs, one barbecue pit, and $20,000 borrowed from their grandmother. Building on a reputation of hard work, great food and consistently good service, the Neelys now have two locations in Memphis and one in Nashville. Additionally, they operate several concessions in the Memphis FedEx Forum and their products are sold online and in grocery stores nationwide.

High school sweethearts in the 80s, Pat and Gina reunited at their 10-year high school reunion and were married in 1994. For years the two have learned to balance their roles in the family as well as in the family business. They reside in Memphis with their two daughters, Spenser, 19, and Shelbi, 13.

Gina handles the catering division of Neely's Bar-B-Que, which she has expanded to more than 25 percent of the restaurant's total sales. She is also responsible for sales of all Neely's products including sauces, seasonings, shirts, hats, and aprons. Before joining her husband in the family business, Gina served as branch manager at National Bank of Commerce in Memphis and was an events coordinator for The Carter Malone Group, a local public relations firm.

Patrick is a board member of the Memphis Regional Chamber of Commerce, a member of the Shelby Farms Conservancy Board, and the immediate past chairman of board for the Memphis Convention and Visitors Bureau. In 2007, Patrick was named Restaurateur of the Year by the Memphis Restaurant Association.

Gina is a member of the Memphis Restaurant Association, on the steering committee for The Women's Empowerment Summit for the Memphis Housing Authority, and on the PTSA of Cordova High School. She is also a member of The Dreamers Club for the National Civil Rights Museum and an active member at Cummings Street Missionary Baptist Church where she serves in the Hospitality and Greeters ministries.

Gina and Patrick support Memphis youth by sponsoring 25 children to attend every NBA Memphis Grizzlies home game. They are long-time supporters of Melrose High School and Central High School athletics and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Basketball Tournament.

Neely's Bar-B-Que was awarded the 2007 Business of the Year by Memphis MED-Week (Minority Enterprise Development) and a Blue Ribbon Small Business by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C.

The Neelys have also appeared on Food Network's Paula's Home Cooking, Paula's Party, Road Tasted hosted by Jamie and Bobby Deen, and BBQ With Bobby Flay as well as on Good Morning America, The Big Idea With Donny Deutsch and Extra. They also have been featured in USA Today, Family Circle, Cooking with Paula Deen and Jet among others. Down Home with the Neelys airs Saturdays at 11 a.m. ET/PT.