In interesting news, Tiger Woods has done it again. In an example of what education, planning, and the avoidance of drugs can do Tiger has achieved a milestone that no other athlete has ever done. He's earned $1,000,000,000.
Yes, he has reached a mark that was long thought impossible to reach. And he did it without going to jail, shooting anyone, or getting high. He doesn't use steroids, he has a college education, he has a career beyond playing golf (remember that he designs golf courses and has a company for just that), he's married and has kids by the woman he married. The way the major media emphasizes the negatives of athletes (especially those of color) you would thing this combination of things could not exist.
The fact is that real wealth has been attained by Tiger Woods because he is smart. He has avoided the pitfalls that seemingly no professional in the NFL, MLB, or NBA can avoid. He is the best at what he does, and is not out to prove that he is gangsta or ghettofabulous. It's a message that I enjoy speaking about.
But he may not be alone in this landmark achievement for long. Michael Jordan is right on the heels of Woods. Which I also find great.
Jordan stopped playing in the NBA quite some time ago. He too is educated, unwilling to kneel to pressure to live or look ghettofabulous. He is the living image of a successful post-professional sports business success. And in relatively little time he too will be worth $1 billion.
When I think about it, I have to wonder. Why is it that the 2 most successful athletes ever, who happen to also be Black and well educated, are not emulated more? Why are there so few younger players that follow in their footsteps?
Of course there are plenty of kids in all colors that want to have the fame of a Woods or Jordan. There is no end of people that want their money. And there are extremely few who have their abilities to play sports.
But that's not what has made them great. Both men are hard-working, dedicated, intelligent professionals. They study their business moves as much as their sporting competitions. They plan and sow their actions, with purpose. It's something that an uneducated person cannot just stumble upon.
You would think that the media, especially Black media, would focus on that message. That the true key to success lies more in the mind than in the muscles. That this would be the goals we would want of all our children and those that choose to be athletes. Yet it doesn't happen.
I will bet that this is the only post or article that will mention the achievement of Tiger (and soon Jordan as well) in connection to his mind and education - not just his muscle skill and advertising friendly looks. And if I am right, the shame is not on Woods, or Jordan, but the media. Because the real message, the real achievement, the real greatness is the thing they aren't discussing.
Thursday, October 01, 2009
Flava Flav is back at VH1 - don't set your Tivo
I was going to write about Tiger Woods and his yet again record breaking feat, when I ran across a bit of news that stopped me in my tracks. It's news that I am sure Sumner Redstone felt was groundbreaking. hundreds of fans will be elated to know that... Flava Flav has a new reality television show.
Yet the king of VH1 "reality" programming will be back. But sadly this time there will not be a slew of morally corrupt, attention starved, stereotypical women or men on the program. That's right, instead of highlighting grown adults (particularly of color I'm sad to say) acting like complete fools for 15 minutes of fame the show will instead highlight kids in high school - likely also acting like fools hoping to gain 15 minutes of fame.
Of course the program is not focused on presenting the kids as buffoons. That's just the general way that people on reality programming wind up being portrayed. The goal is
Don't get me wrong, I commend most things that seek to highlight the importance of education. I want to emphasize that knowledge is the key to improving your life. But I neither believe nor trust Flava Flav, Sumner Redstone, and Viacom in getting that message out.
If this were an attempt to seriously promote education, especially to children of color, why is this not being presented on BET (which Viacom owns and Sumner Redstone controls)? If this were only about a positive message why not put it on broadcast television in primetime - because even with the lower viewership of broadcast TV it would still be available to a larger audience than VH1 will get.
Do I trust Viacom? Why should I. They took BET and removed all of its best features. They promoted the worst of music videos, of insanely stupid programming (remember Hot Ghetto Mess was their surefire hit idea), of the very least worth of movies (unless you think Soul Plane was unfairly overlooked by the Oscars). Viacom promoted Flava of Love at VH1, for multiple seasons, and then spun off even more brain-numbing spin-offs of the program. And let's not forget the decade+ long exclusion of music videos featuring African American entertainers - except Michael Jackson - at MTV.
As for Flava Flav, he has sold out in the worst way. Many younger readers may be completely unaware of how Flav got to become a celebrity. They likely have no idea what his enourmous clock is meant to represent.
Flav was a member of Public Enemy, a rap group that existed before gangsta rap was promoted as the only form of rap by music executives. Back when rap music was diversified, and positive political messages were empowering listeners - back when the music industry was calling rap a fad - Public Enemy was huge.
The rap group was controversial, but overall spread a message of empowerment and power of the people. They were political in a way similar to Malcolm X as compared to Dr. Martin Luther King. And at that time, the clock was meant to signify that time was running out. That people of color has to wake up and realize that they were becoming pawns in the political and societal goals of people that didn't care about issues in our communities.
Flav has gone a long way since those days. From protesting the minstrel show, to hosting it.
So given these facts about the key people involved in this "reality" program, do I think anyone will realize that Flava Flav is trying to promote education? I doubt it. But it does give me one more program, timeslot, and channel I don't have to consider in my choices of entertainment.
Yet the king of VH1 "reality" programming will be back. But sadly this time there will not be a slew of morally corrupt, attention starved, stereotypical women or men on the program. That's right, instead of highlighting grown adults (particularly of color I'm sad to say) acting like complete fools for 15 minutes of fame the show will instead highlight kids in high school - likely also acting like fools hoping to gain 15 minutes of fame.
Of course the program is not focused on presenting the kids as buffoons. That's just the general way that people on reality programming wind up being portrayed. The goal is
"I just want to show the world it's never too late to get your diploma, and show kids they should stay in school and not wait until you're old to get it," Flav said. "Everybody sees me as this big love mogul. Now I got a baby girl, I've been there and done that and now it's time for the next episode."
Don't get me wrong, I commend most things that seek to highlight the importance of education. I want to emphasize that knowledge is the key to improving your life. But I neither believe nor trust Flava Flav, Sumner Redstone, and Viacom in getting that message out.
If this were an attempt to seriously promote education, especially to children of color, why is this not being presented on BET (which Viacom owns and Sumner Redstone controls)? If this were only about a positive message why not put it on broadcast television in primetime - because even with the lower viewership of broadcast TV it would still be available to a larger audience than VH1 will get.
Do I trust Viacom? Why should I. They took BET and removed all of its best features. They promoted the worst of music videos, of insanely stupid programming (remember Hot Ghetto Mess was their surefire hit idea), of the very least worth of movies (unless you think Soul Plane was unfairly overlooked by the Oscars). Viacom promoted Flava of Love at VH1, for multiple seasons, and then spun off even more brain-numbing spin-offs of the program. And let's not forget the decade+ long exclusion of music videos featuring African American entertainers - except Michael Jackson - at MTV.
As for Flava Flav, he has sold out in the worst way. Many younger readers may be completely unaware of how Flav got to become a celebrity. They likely have no idea what his enourmous clock is meant to represent.
Flav was a member of Public Enemy, a rap group that existed before gangsta rap was promoted as the only form of rap by music executives. Back when rap music was diversified, and positive political messages were empowering listeners - back when the music industry was calling rap a fad - Public Enemy was huge.
The rap group was controversial, but overall spread a message of empowerment and power of the people. They were political in a way similar to Malcolm X as compared to Dr. Martin Luther King. And at that time, the clock was meant to signify that time was running out. That people of color has to wake up and realize that they were becoming pawns in the political and societal goals of people that didn't care about issues in our communities.
Flav has gone a long way since those days. From protesting the minstrel show, to hosting it.
So given these facts about the key people involved in this "reality" program, do I think anyone will realize that Flava Flav is trying to promote education? I doubt it. But it does give me one more program, timeslot, and channel I don't have to consider in my choices of entertainment.
APA challenge - can a rank 4 beat a rank 7 in 9-ball?
From time to time I have discussed the American Poolplayers Association league that I play in. Located in Endicott New York, I play in the 8-ball and 9-ball leagues.
Most notably I have commented on how my 8-ball team qualified and went to the Las Vegas APA National Tournamnet this summer. And I provided a bit of video of not only me but the rest of my team.
But I have not given my 9-ball team (playing out of Guys and Dolls Pool Hall in Endicott) as much attention. Because while I am good, no one player is a team. And while I am captain, and my team is currently leading the fall session, this would not be tryue without a great team.
So I decided to show a bit of video on some of the rest of my team. this one focuses on Gary Hinkley (the man in the video). He is ranked a level 4 - though he may go up a level after this game. he is playing a level 7 player (the woman in the video). This is the last rack of their match.
You can see why Gary is one of the leading players in the league, and a great asset to my team. And yes, Gary did win the match. 18 - 2.
More on the rest of my team soon.
Most notably I have commented on how my 8-ball team qualified and went to the Las Vegas APA National Tournamnet this summer. And I provided a bit of video of not only me but the rest of my team.
But I have not given my 9-ball team (playing out of Guys and Dolls Pool Hall in Endicott) as much attention. Because while I am good, no one player is a team. And while I am captain, and my team is currently leading the fall session, this would not be tryue without a great team.
So I decided to show a bit of video on some of the rest of my team. this one focuses on Gary Hinkley (the man in the video). He is ranked a level 4 - though he may go up a level after this game. he is playing a level 7 player (the woman in the video). This is the last rack of their match.
You can see why Gary is one of the leading players in the league, and a great asset to my team. And yes, Gary did win the match. 18 - 2.
More on the rest of my team soon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)