Writers for the NY Post, the Washington Times and the Dallas Morning News are ticked that they are not on the plane this weekend of Sen. Barack Obama.

Among them are Kirsten Powers, who rants this week that, “In fact, those reporters were bumped to make room for others from Jet and Essence, two glossy magazines targeted at African-Americans, and for a documentary unit chronicling the last days of the Obama campaign. None meet the standard of appealing to a “swing voter.”

“Worse, the campaign bumped news reporters for lifestyle magazines.

“This month’s Jet cover features a barely clothed Toni Braxton with promises of an interview about her personal trials. In the latest Essence, you can read “an intimate interview [where] . . . megastar Beyoncé dishes on her new album, Jay-Z and life in the spotlight.”

So, I decided to send Kirsten an email. Read below. You can also send her an email to: kirstenpowers@aol.com.

I noticed that you chose to single out the African American publications covering Obama that stayed on the plane.

What is pathetic is that you had the audacity to state that they didn’t qualify as a swing voter. Uh, duh? Neither does the NY Post. That’s clearly an Obama state. So using your argument, the Post doesn’t need to be on the plane. Texas is going red - my home state - so that doesn’t qualify as well.

So what’s your point?

I say get the hell over it. Essence, Ebony and Jet were covering Obama when folks like you - and your publication - didn’t give a damn about him or his candidacy. They have every right to be on that plane.

Lastly, you had the audacity to single out a story in Essence about Beyonce. Yes, she’s on the cover. But I also see that Essence has my column on the importance of voting and other critical stories. I know the previous month Essence had a detailed section on the election and other pertinent issues.

Hell, your newspaper has a TON of celebrity crap every day, namely Page Six. So if you want to cite Essence and it’s celebrity coverage, you need to also mention the “lifestyle” stuff we see in the NY Post each day.

GROSSE POINTE FARMS, Mich. — A suburban Detroit woman has decided to scare up the vote among neighborhood children by just offering treats to John McCain supporters.

Shirley Nagel of Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich., handed out candy Friday only to those who shared her support for the Republican presidential candidate and his running mate Sarah Palin. Others were turned away empty-handed.

TV station WJBK says a sign outside Nagel’s house warned: “No handouts for Obama supporters, liars, tricksters or kids of supporters.”

Nagel calls Barack Obama “scary.”

When asked about children who were turned away empty-handed and crying, she said: “Oh well. Everybody has a choice.”

Fax and phone messages left at numbers for Nagel were not returned.

The comments by Nevada Sen. John Ensign, who heads up the National Republican Senatorial Committee, is some of the most striking and damaging about Sen. John McCain’s vice presidential running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin.

With 72 hours to go, this kind of critique is certainly not welcome by the McCain-Palin camp.

During the Democratic primary, I wrote a column for CNN.com about how easy it is for any candidate to tar and feather another about their associations with less-than-acceptable figures. Sen. Hillary Clinton tried to blast Sen. Barack Obama for unsolicited comments made by Nation of Islam leader, Minister Louis Farrakhan, and folks like Fox News’ Sean “Little Ball of Hate” Hannity were happy to run with it, saying it was evidence that the junior senator from Illinois was unfit for president. But weaklings like Hannity never bothered to raise the issue of former Republican VP candidate Jack Kemp praising Farrakhan for his focus on self-help. Not only that, nearly everyone in the media was afraid to bring up the fact that Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell had high praise for Farrakhan when he was mayor of Philadelphia, even as the Muslim leader sat just 20 feet away! Again, blasting one person’s associations can come back to bite you. We now see Gov. Sarah Palin and the McCain campaign trying to stir the pot by invoking William Ayers, a 1960s radical who was a major figure in the Weather Underground, a group that bombed the Pentagon and committed other unspeakable acts of terrorism against their own country. Palin has been hammering home the point on the campaign trail that Obama and Ayers were friends, “palling around” the Windy City, even though Ayers committed these crimes when Obama was just eight years old. And never mind the fact Ayers and Obama were involved in a multimillion dollar education grant that was funded by right wing Republican, media magnate Walter Annenberg. Do you here any of them castigating this late Republican pillar? The McCain camp, along with their right wing media comrades, want to convince you that Obama should not have decided to serve with Ayers, who was named the Citizen of the Year in Chicago in 1987 for his education work, and who was a professor at the University of Chicago. Now, if someone was seen as an acceptable figure by business, political and education figures, many whom support Democrats and Republicans, should Obama be faulted for sitting on a board with the guy? So, let’s use that same logic and apply it to McCain. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., a Democrat from Chicago who serves as one of the national co-chairs for Obama, told me today on The Tom Joyner Morning Show that if we are to use the association tag as evidence of a candidate being unfit for president, what about McCain serving and working alongside virulent bigots like Sens. Jesse Helms, Strom Thurmond and Robert Byrd? Do we have evidence that these individuals committed specific acts against African Americans during Jim Crow? No. But we do know that their hateful words, and willingness to uphold laws that were absolutely anti-American, did not represent the best of this nation. Bombing the Pentagon is horrible and indefensible. But declaring yourself a patriot while you speak such hateful and venemous words against your own countrymen, who just happen to be black, and then try to oppress them, is just as hateful and venemous. So, did McCain work with them? Did he not speak with them? Should McCain have declared that he would not work alongside these men because of their past? Should the self-described maverick who believes in integrity and character have taken the honorable stance of resigning from the Senate to protest these hateful characters serving in the U.S. Senate? No. And this is why this association argument is so weak and impotent. For goodness sakes, Byrd was once a member of Ku Klux Klan, a domestic terrorist organization! Now, if Ayers was involved in these despicable acts today - or Byrd and his late Senate colleagues - then it is fair game. But no candidate should have to be held responsible for the actions of someone else, that took place years ago. I fundamentally believe that this is nothing but a smokescreen and effort to ignore the real issues we face. Nobody should care about any of this when they are losing their jobs, getting their homes foreclosed on, not able to afford to send their kids to college and unable to get access to healthcare. What I find to be more deplorable is to listen to McCain advisers say they don’t want this election to be about the issues, and want to turn the page to anything but the issue number one - the economy. If that kind of talk is coming from the camp of a guy who wants to be president, then that is something to be afraid of, not a candidate’s association with Ayers, or Thurmond, Helms or Byrd.

Today Martin begins his new role as senior analyst for the TJMS Dallas – Roland S. Martin, a popular CNN analyst and TV One Cable Network commentator, has joined the Tom Joyner Morning Show as senior news analyst to the nation’s No. 1 nationally syndicated urban radio show, company officials announced today.  Martin’s daily contribution can be heard every morning at 6:20 am CST. He will offer daily insight into major news events and other issues affecting Black America.  “I am excited to join The Tom Joyner Morning Show, which has been at the forefront of community advocacy in urban radio,” said Martin.  “As senior analyst, my goal is to bring clarity and a sense of purpose to the morning show’s eight million listeners on the issues surrounding the current presidential election, but also provide a common sense perspective on the many other social and cultural issues of the day through interviews with top newsmakers, and occasionally commentary.”As one of Black America’s most recognized journalist, just this year alone Martin has been named by Ebony Magazine  as one of the 150 Most Influential African Americans in the United States and won a NAACP Image Award for Best Interview for “In Conversation: The Sen. Barack Obama Interview.”  Martin was also named one of the top 50 political pundits by the Daily Telegraph in the United Kingdom and was awarded the 2008 President’s Award by the National Association of Black Journalists for his work in multiple media platforms.“This is a time when people need to be challenged where they are on the issues, regardless of ideology, class, race and gender, and I intend to be honest and ‘real’ in every way possible,” explains Martin.A seasoned member of the press, Martin is the former executive editor/general manager of the Chicago Defender, the nation’s largest Black daily newspaper, as well as the former founding news editor for Savoy Magazine and BlackAmericaWeb.com. He earned a B.S. in journalism from Texas A&M University and recently received a Masters in Christian Communications from Louisiana Baptist University.  Martin’s segments can be heard on a local Tom Joyner Morning Show affiliate or online at BlackAmericaWeb.com (http://www.blackamericaweb.com <http://www.blackamericaweb.com/> ).  Also, reports will be available on demand on the “If You Missed It” page. Additionally, Martin hosts his own talk show on WVON-AM/1690 <http://www.wvon.com/>  in Chicago and is a special correspondent for Essence Magazine, writing a bi-monthly column and a daily blog on Essence.com.About the Tom Joyner Morning Show The nation’s # 1 syndicated urban morning show, which airs in over 115 markets reaching nearly 8 million listeners, has distinguished itself over the years as continuously giving back to its audience with quality programming, highly popular promotions, special events and philanthropy.  Since 2004, Joyner has awarded millions to nearly 2,000 contest winners and his Foundation has raised more than $55 million to help keep students in historically black colleges and universities.  The Morning Show with co-hosts Sybil Wilkes and J. Anthony Brown also features news analysis with Roland Martin and special issues reporting from Jacque Reid; political commentary Stephanie Robinson and Jeff Johnson; and celebrity news with Jawn Murray, as well as comedic observations and lifestyle tips from Sheryl Underwood, D.L. Hughley, and the Celebrity Snitch Huggy Lowdown. Joyner’s website, BlackAmericaWeb.com, has more than 1.5 million registered users and delivers news with special reports by award winning journalists and exclusive political coverage as well as interactive elements with on demand audio.For additional information, contact Maiya Hollie, Communications Manager, REACH Media, (972) 371-5851 or maiya.hollie@reachmediainc.com.

CNN’s Roland Martin Continues Series of Candid Political DiscussionMartin, Panel of Middle-Class Americans Hash Out Struggles for ‘What They’re Not Saying. . . About Your Money’

As Americans count down to Election Day, CNN contributorRoland Martin will host his second special in a series examining the various issues driving this election. The special titled, “What They’re Not Saying. . .About Your Money,” airing this Saturday, Sept. 20, and Sunday, Sept. 21, at 8 p.m. (ET), will examine what it means to be middle class in America. 

For the special, Martin will talk to a panel of Americans who are currently facing a crisis with housing, health care or the job market. CNN’s senior business correspondent Ali Velshi and Capitol Hill correspondent Jessica Yellin will join the conversation to help viewers understand what is going on with the economy and what the candidates, government officials and political experts are – and are not – saying about the economic issues people face in their everyday lives.

Martin’s first special, “7 Weeks to Go,” explored how age, race and gender have played a pivotal role in this election and whether bias – instead of the issues – could be a deciding factor on Election Day. The program topped the cable news competition with 1.2 million total viewers and 360,000 viewers in the 25-54 demographic.

A third Roland Martin special, “What They Didn’t Say. . .In The Debate,” will air on Saturday, Sept. 27, at 8 p.m. (ET), the day after the first presidential debate. This post-debate program features Martin and panelists discussing what the candidates did not address, and CNN’s viewers will have the opportunity to respond. This special will re-air on Sunday, Sept. 28, at 8 p.m. (ET)

CNN Worldwide, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner Company, is the most trusted source for news and information. Its reach extends to nine cable and satellite television networks; one private place-based network; two radio networks; wireless devices around the world; CNN Digital Network, the No. 1 network of news Web sites in the United States; CNN Newsource, the world’s most extensively syndicated news service; and strategic international partnerships within both television and the digital media.

 It didn’t take Republicans long – and even some Democrats – to try dissuade those of us in the media from focusing on the news that Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s 17-year-old daughter is five months pregnant and plans on marrying the father.

Aides to Sen. John McCain quickly took to the airwaves to deplore any conversation regarding Bristol Palin, saying that the issue is a private matter and we should look elsewhere. Even. Sen. Barack Obama made it clear that the children of candidates are off limits.

But of course, that didn’t keep some folks from trying to score political points.

“This is the pro-life choice. The fact that people will criticize her for this shows the astounding extent to which the secular critics of the pro-life movement just don’t get it,” Richard Land, President of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, told David Brody of the Christian Broadcast Network.

“Those who criticize the Palin family don’t understand that we don’t see babies as a punishment but as a blessing. Barack Obama said that if one of his daughters made a mistake and got pregnant out of wedlock he wouldn’t want her to be punished with a child. Pro lifers don’t see a child as punishment.”

Now, for everyone on the left and the right, please, shut up for a moment and consider the broader issue here.

Read the rest of this entry »

I’ll have more to say on this later, but please, give me a break? Does Sen. John McCain actually think he chose the most qualified - or even the second, third or fourth - person to be his vice president? Sarah Palin may be the governor of Alaska, but prior to that, she was the mayor of a 10,000-person town. This was all about being a woman. McCain knows it and we know it. But the sad thing is that there are far more qualified women in the GOP. One that comes to mind is Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison. She clearly has the chops to do the job. Then the McCainites say it’s about her being a strong social conservative. Another ridiculous statement. Name the one social conservative who grabbed a huge share of grassroots evangelicals, and was governor for a lot longer than Palin? Mike Huckabee. But McCain didn’t even bother to vet him. So, let’s look at filling a void for the key markers: Battleground state. The choice would have been Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty. If he was on the ticket, the state likely would have gone in the Republican column. It will likely stay a blue state. Economy. Mitt Romney. The former Massachusetts governor ran a strong second to McCain, and is an accomplished businessman. He fills a serious hole in the McCain armor. Social conservative. McCain is weak among evangelicals, so why not choose the southern Baptist minister Huckabee? He beat McCain in Georgia; held strong in Texas, and although big name evangelical leaders shunned him, the folks who get people to the polls - grassroots organizers - loved him. Appealing to moderates. Palin may give Huckabee a run for his money on this one, but with his lighthearted manner, as well as sunny disposition, he never really ticked off liberals with his hard right positions. He still tops her on this one. Guns, guns, guns. Who gave one of the best speeches at the National Rifle Association convention? It wasn’t Palin. It was was Huckabee. So, if you make a pick based on these issues, Palin doesn’t fit the bill. So what does that leave? Hey, she’s a woman! I’m all for history, but what I’m hearing from women is “don’t insult me by picking anyone. Pick a qualified woman.” By any available measure, she doesn’t make the cut. Other than being a woman. Way to fill that quota, John.

Salem Baptist Church’s The House of Hope was one of only two places in Chicago that could hold all the folks who wanted to attend the public memorial service for comedian Bernie Mac.

So it was fitting that the funeral for the Chicago icon, who often spoke of his love for the South Side of the city, would be held on that part of town, as opposed to the United Center.

Family, friends, and fans were in abundance at the 10,000-seat venue, and many of his Hollywood friends and fellow comics were in attendance.

Among them: Mac’s family from The Bernie Mac Show, Kellita Smith (Wanda); Jeremy Suarez (Jordan); Camille Winbush (Vanessa); Dee Dee Davis (Bryana); Chris Rock and his wife, Malaak; Tom Joyner and his wife, Donna Richarson Joyner; Bruce Bruce; George Wallace; Salli Richardson and her husband, actor Dondre Whitfield; Myra J; Samuel L. Jackson and his wife, actress LaTanya Richardson; Michael Collier; and Don Cheadle.

Letters were read to the audience from Oprah Winfrey; Sen. Barack Obama; actor Andy Garcia; and Congressman Maxine Waters.

Mac’s favorite singer, Rachelle Ferrell, tore the house down with a 10-minute musical tribute to him.
Mac’s family has asked that donations be made to the Bernie Mac Foundation, which focuses on educating people on sarcoidosis, which he suffered from for several years.

Cedric the Entertainer

DL Hughley

Steve Harvey

Samuel L. Jackson

Rachelle Ferrell

Sheryl Underwood

LisaRaye

George Daniels