ASNE Study: American Newsrooms Almost 90 Percent White

From [HERE] At a day and age when America is almost 50 percent people of color according to the U.S. Census, American newsrooms, those places housing that dying breed of media-maker the print journalist, are almost 90 percent white according to the American Society of Newspaper Editors ASNE survey released on Thursday.

And the study reported that the 12 percent of the total population of newsroom staffers that was "of color" dropped .47 percent from the last survey of the year before. No, not 47 percent, but basically one-half of one percent. Which means just 13 percent of the population was of color.

What this means, if one stops and thinks about how a newsroom is staffed, is that for every white and more often than not male (36 percent of the newsroom staffers are female), person, that means someone of color was, at some point, turned away from employment.

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Shutdown was Not About the Money: Republicans Attached More than 80 Riders Unrelated to the Budget

From [TheProgressReport] NOT ABOUT THE MONEY: Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) took to the Senate floor early yesterday to announce that the parties had essentially settled on a level of spending cuts for the remainder of FY2011, and that the holdup is because of various policy "riders" that Republicans want to include on the funding bill, including one cutting funding for Planned Parenthood and another blocking the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating greenhouse gases. "The two main issues that are holding this matter up are the choice of women, reproductive rights, and clean air," Reid said. Republicans attached more than 80 riders to their initial funding bill, including several that actually increase federal spending. "We will continue to insist that the policy riders passed in H.R. 1 are on the table. It's just as important to many of our members as the spending cuts themselves," speaker of the House John Boehner (above)  (R-OH) said.

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General: US ‘May Consider’ Ground Troops in Libya

We Are Not Being Told The Truth About Libya [MORE] 

From [HERE] General Carter Ham, the commander for US AFRICOM, told Congress today that the Obama Administration would consider sending ground troops into Libya to “aid the rebels,” though he insisted such a move was “not ideal.”

His reasoning was, predictably, nothing to do with the danger of yet another US ground war on the other side of the planet, but because it might harm international support for the ongoing war. The US and France started the war two and a half weeks ago, and have since transferred it to NATO control.

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates indicated last week that ground troops were not on the near term agenda, saying that there would be no ground invasion “as long as I’m in this job.” The promise is increasingly meaningless, however, amid talks he could be replaced by CIA Director Leon Panetta within the next few months.

It is already confirmed that the US has had CIA ground forces inside Libya for “several weeks,” and the US has also deployed troops in the nation for “rescue” missions. The question then is not so much if ground troops will be sent to Libya, but to what extent they are already there, and how much this presence will be escalated in the days and weeks to come.

Trillion Dollar War Rolls on: U.S. combat troops may stay in Iraq beyond 2011, Gates admits

•  Department of Defense has asked for $113 billion to fight the Afghanistan war this year [MORE] 
• US Soldiers Fighting For Free During Republican Shutdown [MORE] 

CAMP MAREZ, Iraq (AFP) – US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said Friday that American forces were prepared to stay in any role beyond a scheduled pullout late this year, but time was running out for Iraq to ask.

Gates, who arrived in Baghdad late Wednesday on an unannounced visit, met with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, President Jalal Talabani and Massud Barzani, president of the autonomous Kurdistan region in the north.

His message to each was the same: finish forming a government and appoint the remaining security ministers; decide where US military help is needed beyond 2011; and agree on the number of US troops after that date.

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Obama's support among Blacks & Latino slips unexpectedly

Once monolithic, blacks' support for the first African American president is still........immense. But for unclear reasons it's declined about 7% from well above 90% to 85% in March. That's a new low since Obama's inauguration 26 months ago.

Equally ominous for Obama in 2012, his approval among Hispanics, the nation's fastest-growing demographic, has also fallen to again tie his term low of 54%. That's a drop of 11 points from its early high of 65%.

Gallup seems puzzled by the unexpected decline, mentioning March's major news as possible reasons: the ongoing fight with Congress over no fiscal 2011 federal budget and Obama leading the country into a new military combat zone over Libya.

As we reported here Wednesday, other polls found approval of Obama's national security performance declined after he explained his rationale for Libya. While the unemployment rate has slipped slightly, millions remain out of work. Real estate has not rebounded. And consumer confidence is weak.

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No Accountability for Intentional Conduct: Biased Supreme Court shields prosecutors in wrongful convictions

Since the 1990s, the advent of DNA evidence has swept across the American criminal justice system and revealed that hundreds of convicted prisoners were innocent. Yet, throughout that time, the Supreme Court has shielded prosecutors from claims that they hid evidence that could have revealed the truth and has been reluctant to give prisoners a right to reopen old cases.

By a 5-4 vote Tuesday, the high court threw out a jury verdict won by John Thompson, (above) the Louisiana man who had sued the New Orleans district attorney after he spent 14 years on death row for crimes he did not commit. In the past, the court has shielded individual prosecutors from being sued, even if they deliberately framed an innocent person. Last week's decision protects a district attorney's office from being sued for a series of errors that sent an innocent man to prison.

Advocates for the wrongly convicted denounced the decision. Prosecutors have "enormous power over all of our lives," said Keith Findley, president of the Innocence Network, yet "no other profession is shielded from this complete lack of accountability."

In Thompson's case, at least four prosecutors knew of the blood test, eyewitness reports and other evidence that, once revealed, showed they had charged the wrong man.

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No Warrant Necessary for Government to obtain your E-mail left on server for over 180 days

From [HERE] The Obama administration is urging Congress not to adopt legislation that would impose constitutional safeguards on Americans’ e-mail stored in the cloud.

As the law stands now, the authorities may obtain cloud e-mail without a warrant if it is older than 180 days, thanks to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act adopted in 1986. At that time, e-mail left on a third-party server for six months was considered to be abandoned, and thus enjoyed less privacy protection. However, the law demands warrants for the authorities to seize e-mail from a person’s hard drive.

A coalition of internet service providers and other groups, known as Digital Due Process, has lobbied for an update to the law to treat both cloud- and home-stored e-mail the same, and thus require a probable-cause warrant for access. The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on that topic Tuesday.

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Alabama lawmakers approve Anti- Latino Arizona Style, 'Juan Crow' Law

BIRMINGHAM, Ala (Reuters) – The Alabama state House of Representative passed an Arizona-style crackdown on illegal immigration on Tuesday, despite opposition from Democrats and civil rights groups.

The measure, which passed by 73 votes to 28 on Tuesday evening, would give state and local police broad powers to check the immigration status of people detained on other charges.

It also would require businesses in the state to run checks on new employees through a federal computer database, dubbed an "E-verify," and use a state verification program to deny public services to illegal immigrants. The bill will now go to the Alabama Senate for a vote.

The law is similar to the controversial anti-immigration measure passed by Arizona last year that sparked a legal fight and a confrontation with the federal government. Rights groups said they were concerned that it would lead to racial profiling in the state, which has a long history of civil rights violations, and infringe the federal government's duty to enforce immigration laws.

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Rep. Keith Ellison: People's budget or roadmap to ruin?

The Republican budget is not a blueprint for an economy that lifts up Americans who work for a living. For working Americans, it’s a proven Roadmap to Ruin.

As conceived by House Republican Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), this 2012 budget gouges away some of the most crucial protections and promises that America has made to its people.

The Ryan budget puts yet another brick in the wall between the haves and have-nots. It takes guaranteed health benefits from disabled and low income Americans rather than lowering health care costs. It destroys Medicare as we know it, by turning America’s promise of care for our seniors into “health vouchers” that leave our parents and grandparents at the mercy of insurance companies, who put profits before patients.

The Ryan roadmap blocks inroads to prosperity like Pell Grants, which make it possible for middle class families to afford college. It strips away training for workers, who want to compete for the jobs of the future. Meanwhile, it creates more tax loopholes for corporations who ship jobs overseas.

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Conyers Releases Report on New Black Panther Party Case

From [HERE] The ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, Representative John Conyers of Michigan, on Thursday released a 78-page Justice Department report about a much-disputed voter-intimidation case involving the New Black Panther Party, a radical fringe group.

The report by the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility, available for reading here, offers new details about how the case was developed and internal deliberations at each stage, including sharp disagreement over the incident’s significance from the beginning.

But the report also concludes that both factions acted in good faith. The internal ethics watchdog had already told Congress in a letter last week that its investigation had cleared all department lawyers of any wrongdoing in relation to the case.

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Dump Donald Trump: Stupid White Man Must Go

(Dog Whistle Politics) New Poll: After Promoting Birther Conspiracy, Donald Trump Vaults Into Statistical Tie For 1st Place [MORE] 

From [HERE] It’s a free country and Trump can do or say whatever he wants but why do people of color have to support him while he attacks not only our President but also attacks common sense and decency? We can’t stand by and watch as a potential appointed leader forges ahead and moves forward via baseless accusations and selfish motivation.

Here’s how you can NOT show your support for Trump and support the movement to restore sanity in politics : steer clear of supporting all of his businesses. Here’s how:

Don’t Watch The Apprentice

(you should not be watching this show anyway - because it is dog shit -BW). Sure, you may not be helping Nene Leakes or Star Jones, who appear on this season’s Celebrity Apprentice but they’ve already gotten their fair share of attention from the show. Make sure you don’t tune in because the more heads that are watching, the more ad dollars the show gets, and the more “the Donald” pockets to fund his campaign. He reportedly gets $3 million per episode.

FYI: The Miss Universe, Miss USA, and MIss Teen USA pageants are also produced by Trump so be sure not to watch these annual programs.

Contact NBC  [HERE] Tell them they are harboring a cave dweller, racist idiot on their network of otherwise first class programming. 

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Oklahoma’s Republican Lawmakers Push to Abolish Affirmative Action

From [HERE] OKLAHOMA CITY — A Republican-backed plan to wipe out any affirmative action programs in Oklahoma appears headed for approval by the Legislature, prompting a bitter response from some minority lawmakers that it is merely a political ploy to play on racial fears and draw conservative voters to the polls. If approved, the measure would go on the 2012 state ballot.

The affirmative action proposal by state Sen. Rob Johnson, R-Kingfisher, and Rep. Leslie Osborn, R-Tuttle, would prohibit special treatment based on race or sex in public employment, education or contracts. The bill, which already passed the Senate on a party-line vote, is scheduled for a hearing on Wednesday in a House committee.

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Black unemployment worsens as U.S. gains jobs

From [HERE] The U.S. economy gained 216,000 jobs in March while private sector employment (excludes government losses) increased by 230,000, according to the National Urban League's State of Urban Jobs report.

The unemployment rate changed little - now 8.8 percent (from 8.9 percent in February) - though it did fall for the fourth straight month.

 The black unemployment rate increased slightly to 15.5 percent (from 15.3 percent). The unemployment rate for black men was up to 16.8 percent (from 16.2 percent); for black women, down to 12.5 percent (from 13.0 percent); for black teens, up to 42.1 percent (from 38.4 percent).

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Network aimed at black audience announced for fall

From [HERE] The country's first broadcast network aimed at African-American audiences is set to debut this fall with free movies, sports and documentaries.

Atlanta-based Bounce TV will be an over-the-air channel supported by sponsors, showing programs for blacks ages 25 to 54. It is designed to be carried on the digital signals of local television stations, and it doesn't necessarily want to compete with existing cable networks like BET, TV One or Centric, said Ryan Glover, a former Turner Broadcasting executive and member of the Bounce leadership team.

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Obama Takes Aim at Inequality in Education - Attends HNIC Sharpton Event

From [HERE] Describing education and education equality as the “civil rights issue of our time,” President Obama called Wednesday for a renewed effort to eliminate the achievement gap between African-American students and others.

“Too many of our kids are dropping out of schools,” Mr. Obama told a mostly black audience in the ballroom of the Sheraton New York Hotel in Manhattan. “That’s not a white, black or brown problem. That’s everybody’s problem.”

In a lightning-fast visit to New York before returning to Washington for more budget talks, Mr. Obama delivered a sober assessment of what he has done since taking office to help black Americans, and what more needs to be done. He praised the health care overhaul and the auto-industry bailout, and castigated critics who he said had developed “amnesia” about the shape the country was in when he took office.

Mr. Obama’s remarks, at the 20th anniversary of the Rev. Al Sharpton’s Harlem-based National Action Network, kept a promise he made when he spoke to the group as a presidential candidate in 2007. Win or lose, he pledged to return, and Wednesday night he spoke to a hugely supportive audience of 1,200 primarily black Americans, who had already heard from a daylong procession of the president’s cabinet and close advisers.

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