WGBH Radio; The Callie Crossley Show

I'm Kelli Crossley coming up on the callee Hosley show. We hit the rewind button on the stories that didn't reach our radar today at 1:00 after the Emily Rooney show on eighty nine point seven. Good afternoon you're listening to the Emily Rooney show. I'm Kevin Cullen filling in for Emily. And joining us today are Tom Kean former Boston city councilor freelance columnist for The Boston Globe Magazine Wendy Kaminer who is a social critic and an attorney. And Mary Ellen burns a Reagan communications now for our favorite part of the week. Thumbs up thumbs down. I'm assuming everybody saw Conan's appearance the other day he's back. Let's hear CONAN A lot's happened in the news and I want to off the air and I wanted to cover it all in one joke. Just one joke. Then I realize that's like trying to keep an Icelandic volcano from wearing Lady Gaga's meat dress while the trapped Chilean miner cleans up the BP oil spill. Come up Brett Farve. Brooklyn boy is back. What do you think Mary Ellen I thought was great.

Yeah it was great and I loved the whole thing about the 11 12 o'clock slot that he went through with because of the clocks will I think absolute thumbs thumbs up thumbs up shave the beard. Absolutely I agree with that when they come sideways I didn't see it but I'm glad he's back I love. I missed him a lot. I don't if you've seen the FDA has proposed new graphic warnings. I saw them and I actually thought it was kind of a comedic thing I didn't think it was really an FDA thing and then I was sort thumbs up to all of the sort of thumbs down two reasons first of all they're cartoonish. Secondly you know let's give it a rest already people already know smoking is bad for you. We got to be done on this Leah. Mary Ellen thumbs down. It's just not it's not going to make any difference if they want to do something then they need to. I don't know they need to do something different as far as how they're targeting kids because we are seeing it seems an increase and kids smoking What do you think is that you don't see that that would work. I don't see it's going to work I really don't mean they've already added additional warnings you know they've made them take the kind of lights and ultra lights off the boxes and different things like that I don't really know that it's making any difference.

Thumbs down for the reasons that both Tom and Mary Ellen have said but let me just add that kids smoke in I think in large part and I say this from experience because they think they're immortal. And it's not until you realize that you're someone who can get sick and die too that you're going to be motivated to stop smoking. No passengers and crews are rebelling over TSA body scans and aggressive pat downs I can't say I've been the victim of one but foams up to him thumbs up to the passengers and crews and the security people absolutely. Mary Ellen I'm a little in the middle on this because I worked with a company that had body scans that showed you clothed instead of the naked ones but I've said no to the ones that go through because I got to be honest people say well they're professionals behind there really because I've gone through and I've had these like pervy guys like I want to do that when I say no do it. They insist on giving me the pat down and they have the woman do it but then the guys stand around one of my girlfriends was traveling with me and she stood there and listened to these guys say disgusting things. Like I say thumbs up to the crew Yeah I mean they I say both far up I mean this is as a lot of people have said this is security theater this is not making us safe and it's really

astounding to me that that people will sheepishly accept what in any other context would be labeled sexual abuse on the pretext that it's keeping us safe when it really isn't. Correct. I agree. I'm up. Myself a company fired an employee over a Facebook post and I'm thinking if companies did this everywhere else a lot of people would get fired but thumbs up to AMR. So this Facebook post apparently what happened is that the employee was calling a supervisor a form of psyche a psychiatric patient. So you know the question goes into exactly how much of this is actually real harassment and so on as opposed to what is permissible and that's just discussing your employer. So I'm going to be right thumbs in the middle on this one. Oh I'm going to be thumbing the way down on the lawyer here and we should note that the NLRB the National Labor Relations Board is coming down on the employers saying that the employee had a right to do this this is free speech right. The fact that it's on Facebook you know that's that's down to right and you know as far as the harassment goes this is not a supervisor talking about an employee This is an

employee talking about a supervisor. Mariella I just think let's just talk about being stupid though. You don't go anywhere and put something in writing that you know basically anyone can see people say only my friends can see it. Well I don't really have like 600 friends and that's what I have on Facebook or something so let's be real about that right. You don't go on and start saying stupid things about the company you work for your employer unless you want to get in trouble it's like kids showing pictures of themselves drinking and then going up you know applying to colleges it's out there everybody can see it. Speaking of saying stupid things. Bill O'Reilly our favorite Fox host was joking the other day about beheading. Watch the Washington Post reporter Dana Milbank who just happens to be a very good friend of Danny Pearl the Wall Street Journal reporter who actually was beheaded by extremists in Pakistan as we have a clip. Dana Milbank you know this pinhead FROM WASHINGTON POST Well I think you and I should go and beat him up. You don't need to say with all due respect he doesn't deserve any real laws say we can behead Dana Milbank.

Well I mean I guess I don't even want to ask. Thumbs up or just or thumbs down. I mean where do you put your thumb. You know you know the problem is Riley saying something like this is that he has a lot of listeners who I think are even more unhinged than he is. And the real concern is this one of them taken seriously. And if I were Milbank I'd be worried about that. And you can imagine it's not hard to imagine what Bill O'Reilly would say about Keith Olbermann if Keith Olbermann suggested that you know conservative journalists oughta be beheaded or a lynch rally would be all over him. Yeah it's sick I mean I think it's I think it says that Bill O'Reilly should be maybe hanging out with Kanye West. And you know the two of them can have a little bizarro conversation because it's so far out there. I can't even imagine someone thinking it let alone having it come out of their mouth. And so well I bring this up as somebody who knows my my my tickets are actually going to increase in price because of this. They're bringing back big pappi for one more year the Boston Red Sox for 12 million bucks thumbs up or thumbs down thumbs down I think this last year

was his last year or should have been his last year. Mary Ellen I have to say I think that sums up I just love him Laurie I have to say thumbs down because I think the designated hitter rule is cheating. Well I like this. This is a National League girl after my I agree with that. Keith Olbermann suspension which took place in the week a few hours after we were on the air last week two days two performances I guess but I guess the bigger issue here is should people like Keith Olbermann be giving political donations to politicians. I'm thumbs up on the suspension. He knew he knew the rules the globe has the same rules apply but what about what about the idea of giving donations. He shouldn't be you shouldn't be. I mean it's and it's it is a mark I think of the difference between MSNBC and Fox that Fox doesn't care. And MSNBC actually has some journalistic stand except that yes NBC has apparently not been applying this will consistently. There are some of us and there's a lot of inconsistency and I think they suspended Keith Olbermann because it became a kind of public issue and then they backtracked on it because they came under a lot of criticism so I think MSNBC looks pretty bad in this

and let me say I'm no fan of Keith Oberman It's got nothing to do with that. You know and I agree with when if you're going to do it you have to do it consistently I think that this was this was a total PR thing this wasn't about you know I kind of disagree with you Tom there I don't think this was about their sell honorable I think it was that they got caught so they had to do something about it so Michelle Obama had a hand assault against the Indonesian Minister. I mean I'm actually down with the first lady. I think I'm Shanker hand. Thumbs up or thumbs down to thumbs up to Michelle and I'm no cultural relativist I think it's time that people in all countries learn to shake women's hands free. But he's a germ fairy tale and I think it's absurd I just we were let when you know we're laughing about his argument she just kept sticking her hand out the when she put her hand out he shook her head. There was no there was none of this kind of thing I know even though there's video evidence right now but this is absurd. It's absurd it's absurd that he has to feel the pressure to have to deny that. Well and it's worse that it's that absurd that as as Tom suggests there are a lot of cultures where women are so degraded that men aren't

even supposed to touch them and that is kind of a global tragedy for a lot of women. All right Les thumbs up the Huffington Post has launched a divorce section. I'm not go in there what about you Tom Thumbs up thumbs down if I ever go that I'm in trouble. OK. Mary Ellen you know I didn't I hadn't heard of it. I went and checked it out because of this I thought it was going to be cute divorce divorce stories so I would say kind of thumbs up because I went through this a lot of helpful information if you want to be deployed you go a little and I mean I went I wouldn't go to the Huffington Post for helpful information about much of anything. But I'm going to give this a thumbs sideways because I don't really care what they put on I think. I love that. Anyway actually Nora Ephron is going to be on I think the show on Monday talking about this is that correct. Oh wow. Anyway I think we're going to have to wrap it up today. That's going to do it for us this afternoon I want to thank my guests Tom Kean is a former Boston City Councilor a freelance columnist at The Boston Globe Magazine Wendy

kamma is a social critic and an attorney. And Mary Ellen Burns works very hard for a communications did you hear that George able to be back on Monday at noon joined by the great author and screenwriter Nora Ephron and the filmmaker Alex Gibney whose new documentary is Client 9 The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer. In the meantime tune in to Beat the Press tonight at 7:00 on WGBH Channel 2. Emily Rooney show is a production of eighty nine point seven WGBH Boston as NPR station for news and culture on the web at WGBH slash Emily Ronie Kelly Crossley Show is coming up next. I'm Kevin Cullen have a great weekend. Support for WGBH comes from you and from Boston Private Bank and Trust Company Boston private bank provides private and commercial banking and investment management

and trust services to individuals and businesses. You can learn more by visiting Boston private bank dot com and from Solomon's collection and find rugs in Quincy. Now accepting entries from kids ages 11 to 14 for their designer rug contest for the WGBH 2011 auction to download an entry form you can go to Solomon rugs dot com. Everybody warns the world he has put it it's in front of you brung him to. The deficit by luck. Coming up at 3 o'clock on eighty nine point seven. WGBH public radio from Boston for New England. I'm Marco Werman. I'm Lisa Mullins and this is eighty nine point seven WGBH Boston. Online at WGBH dot org. Boston's NPR station for news and culture. I'm Calla Crossley and this is the Kelly Crossley Show. Today we're hitting the rewind button on this week's news from the great lady's front

pages to the stories on the small screen and the reporting that never reached our radar. We're going to look at the news that was and wasn't. We'll be dropping in on community and alternative presses for a look at the big stories from the small papers where today's neighborhood news becomes tomorrow's mainstream headlines. We'll top off the hour going tring from the serious to the sublimely ridiculous with ragtime a tour of the tabloids and a round up of this week's pop culture. Up next on the Kelly Crossley Show from gumshoe reporting to gossip rags. First the news. From NPR News in Washington I'm Lakshmi Singh. President Obama is wrapping up a 10 day trade mission through Asia. In Japan where the Apex Summit

is under way. The president arrived there without the trade deal he wanted to finalize with South Korea before leaving Seoul the president spoke sharply about China urging that country yet again to raise the value of its currency and give a fair shot to overseas competition. It is undervalued. And China spends enormous amounts of money intervening in the market. To keep it undervalued. And so what we've said is it's important for China in a gradual fashion to transition to a market based system while promoting U.S. trade in Asia the president is also monitoring developments in Iraq. He praised Iraqi leaders for forming what he called an inclusive government. NPR's Kelly McEvers reports that a deal between Sunni's and Shiite's remains fragile after Sunni lawmakers walked out of parliament last night.

Lawmakers had announced that after eight months they'd reached a deal over who would get which jobs and Iraq's new government. Shiite Nouri al-Maliki will keep his job as prime minister. Jalal Talabani a Kurd will stay on as president and a Sunni has taken the parliament speaker job. But other elements of the deal are still being hammered out. Sunni's walked out of parliament when legislators refused to codified agreements that were made between their party and the ruling Shiite coalition. Among these agreements are a new Sunni led council that will check the Prime Minister's power and the appointment to keep posts of Sunni's who before were banned from serving in top positions because they once belonged to Saddam Hussein's Bath Party. Parliament is set to meet again Saturday. Kelly McEvers NPR News Baghdad. A suicide bomber has attacked NATO convoy in Afghanistan near the new parliament building in the capital Kabul. Authorities say an Afghan soldier and NATO service member were hurt. The head of Doctors Without Borders in Haiti says hospitals in Port au Prince are overflowing with cholera

patients. More from NPR's Jason Beaubien. Doctors Without Borders head of mission in Haiti Stefano Zinni says there's been a huge increase in the number of suspected cholera cases in the capital city and he says his agency has 400 beds for stabilizing and treating cholera patients in Port au Prince. But they're trying to expand that to a thousand by the end of this week. Cholera has now been detected from Cape Haitian in the north of Haiti throughout the middle of the country and in a leg on to the south. The United Nations says some 200000 people could be infected in thousands killed during this current outbreak. The U.N. is trying to raise one hundred sixty million dollars to fight cholera in Haiti over the next year. There's also concern that it may spread to the neighboring Dominican Republic. That's NPR's Jason Beaubien. This is NPR. The post office lost even more money last year than it expected. As NPR's Tamara Keith tells us the agency ended fiscal year 2010 eight and a half billion dollars in the red over the

last two years the post office has eliminated more than 100000 jobs to try to dramatically cut costs. Still the agency is bleeding money. The Post Office officials blame the weak economy and the continuing transition from snail mail to electronic media for driving down mail volumes and hurting revenues. First class mail volume fell nearly 7 percent in 2010. The post office describes this trend as particularly disturbing since first class mail is the agency's most profitable product. It generates more than half of total revenue. The agency is calling for changes to regulations and labor contracts. Tamara Keith NPR News Washington. Reflecting weakness in the jobs market in the U.S. Northrop Grumman is laying off nearly 400 people. At a facility in Newport News Virginia the first time that's happened at the site in more than a decade the company which builds ships for the military says it's cutting its workforce in part because it has fulfill key parts of its contracts.

Overall about 20000 people work at the shipping side. At last check on Wall Street the Dow Jones Industrial Average down one hundred thirty eight points at eleven thousand one hundred forty five. Nasdaq composite index off now forty five points. It's a two thousand five hundred eleven S&P 500 down 18 at eleven ninety five. I'm Lakshmi Singh NPR News Washington. Support for NPR comes from the George Lucas Educational Foundation creator of Ed utopia a source for what works in education more and more ad ed eutopia dot org. Good afternoon I'm Kelly Crossley and this is the Calla Crossley Show. Today we're hitting the rewind button on the week's news with a look at the stories that went under the radar. I'm joined by Howard Manley the executive editor of the Bay State Banner and Marcella Garcia managing editor of Howard and Marcella welcome great to be back. Well let's start with election

results. A lot of interesting stuff Marcella Panetta has a really interesting piece about the rise of Dominican American elected officials. Yeah it's kind of it's this story that sort of got lost in the you know whole Latino vote aftermath after the after November 2 but yes 13 Dominican where elected or reelected to public office two weeks ago so that's that's actually very very very good and it's close to their party the representation of Dominican in the U.S. more. I guess the most relevant of them all is that Veda. Just right. OK who has a very interesting story. Well I think when I was elected mayor of the city among the city of Providence and he the battle I guess was in the primaries back in September. After that

he was almost guaranteed victory. And he did win with more than 80 percent of the vote. So it's the first mayor the first Hispanic mayor of Providence or of a big city for that matter and he happens to be Dominican along with 12 other politicians in the U.S. I should say though they're mostly mostly in the East Coast. They're this 13 politicians I wear like that. And they were actually recently also recognized by the Dominican president over there. So it's a very good story. It's again it's you know this is this group within the Tino's that is actually writing to power compared to other groups it's definitely a good story. And is that the population of Dominican is mostly on the East Coast which is right the elect Yeah yeah New York New Jersey Massachusetts Rhode Island Of course Florida Maryland. There was a state representative I think elected in Maryland for the first time and of course New York and New Jersey. Yes I believe that the Minikin community here in the U.S. is more than a

million or so the Minicons in the Minicons Americans obviously. OK. Well this is definitely under the radar Howard I remember we mentioned this before that he was running for mayor of Providence but now that he is mayor that's pretty well was he a Harvard guy. Robinson will always be known for Buddy's Hansie. They needed in the hook of a clear image to bring that city and probably it's a fun city to go to so I don't quite know all their sort of issues I'm sure they're still plagued with unemployment and health care all the sort of stuff a municipal fare. It'll be interesting to see how he sort of navigates that in the next couple years. It definitely reflects the rights of Latinos as a group in Providence compared to Boston I would say that they have much more of a hold or they're more integrated into civic life than here and obviously political correct. OK. I imagine he's already get an outreach from everybody across the United States. Because the only other mayor I can think of who is Latino is to get a

go saying the L word and you know it well a big city. We also have our own very own in writing well that's true. But yeah. Yeah sorry I forgot to write. Yeah you know what. Speaking of a big city you know Lagos is the only one the only other one so yeah it's a big deal for the community. OK well let's continue in this vein because the election results also swept in as you mention lots of Latinos and not just the subset of we talked about of Dominican Americans but across the country. And I got to say in looking at the numbers most of them were Republicans correct. So what do you think what do you think. It's just very interesting I mean speaking only from the perspective the Latino vote leading the weeks leading up to the elections everyone was talking about the so-called Latino vote. You know are they going to come out are they going to support the Democrats. Is that you know are they all bore you know completely. They're not going to participate in the election because

they you know they were mad about Obama not actually acting on immigration reform. I know yes they are going to come out. Are they energized Yes they're energized. So all of a sudden the election's really demonstrated that the Latino vote is really up for grabs. It really is not because a lot with said that you know we always vote Democrat but that's not true. I can remember what in the Kerry Bush race there was a great push to sort of attract Latino voters who were more so than black voters. Amenable to the Republican pitch about business doing things less government and then you see over the years this whole split over immigration and you see some of these candidates particularly this one and I still don't know he did not win with this guy in the bottom underlying sense of all who elected he was just elected but he supported the sort of tough immigration

laws that Arizona proposed and in fact when asked would his kids be profiled. He said no because my kids don't look Hispanic. So you have this sort of real mix now for blacks 90 percent are going to go Democratic this far anyway. But once that was done the two to one got seats in Congress and both of them are Republican. Crazy crazy dynamics going on here and so I'm not going to go and say that race is not a factor across the board as some people some observers that I just think you have to look at those constituencies and those districts most of those majority white. So I don't know how all this is going to vote. More importantly for the 2012 election. Well let me just mention their names. That's Tim Scott from South Carolina one is an African-American lawmaker Republican and sure that was an insurance salesman and in Florida Allen West who is an avowed Tea Partier by the way.

Now Lee is he giving. Calm yourself out. Not only is he Republican but he like my go to movie in Florida Yeah that's right they give an America and they embrace Allen West embrace the Tea Party now Allen West has said he plans to join the Congressional Black Caucus. Tim Scott's not so sure. And what's interesting is that Tim Scott is the more the quote traditional quote unquote traditional Republican. And obviously Allen West is not. Well the Congressional Black Caucus has its own problems but they have the same sort of issue with the Republican black from Connecticut whose name escapes me right now where he was on the board I mean he was a participant. I don't know how all that's going to plant panned out given what he represents right now. They're all at a crossroads. I mean the CBO the Congressional Black Caucus people started I asked Really what do you all do one. Well we're not going to go there. You're right. My point is that that you're right the Congressional Black Caucus could have at least one Republican member J.C. Watts was the last African-American lawmaker

congressperson. He left in 2003 and he never joined a caucus. But Allen West Tea Partier says I think I'm going to join. So I'm not sure so I do first thing within diversity. But before we leave this whole issue I do want to quote someone. This was a survey taken before the elections by the National Association of the Latino Elected and Appointed Officials or Leo and they were talking about immigration being a real dividing point for a lot of Latinos. But and Republican Latinos and here's a quote. Even long time Republican Latinos are unhappy with this emotional rhetoric talking about some of the overhyped rhetoric going on about immigration. And they feel that they have a way to go way to the right on immigration to win the primaries if they want to get elected they'll need the Hispanic vote in that way. So you know there's going to be a lot more discussion on that but there but I think there's going to be some tension even though on the Republican Absolutely I think one thing that this election's it became clear in this past election is that Latinos are

a group that can absolutely swing. Right. So that's good for us. I could go either way as you know his address to Yeah exactly so that's good because we that means that we you know me we just need to accept that political power in order to get what we want. So and that's the hard part. The next two years are going to be just very interesting because nobody knows what you know what the Republicans need to do and the Democrats need to do to you know you know one thing that is not come across on the table at least I'm not hearing our solutions or at least attempts to the solutions to these just what are we going to do about the deficit how are you going to create jobs what are you going to do what you'll have to do flock to address that now. You've got branding. Well look with me take a look at that. All right let's move on. Right after the election Governor Patrick sort of reasserted his political power and appointed or nominated the guy who could be the state's first black chief justice. That's Roderick Ireland. He

comes highly recommended and lots of people have positive things to say you had a piece about him in the Bay State Banner Howard. He's run a recount is just a solid American. When the Lincoln went on to law school and has just done yeoman's work in a very quiet way has never played the race card per se but I thought it was interesting when we listen to a story that he was told to go to a vocational training as a police coming out of my career. Yeah and so and he's just sort of a stoic guy right down the middle. He's more of a lawyer. What's interesting for Patrick though is that his last three nominees have been shut down for a lot of reasons mostly campaign about. And so he purposely delayed announcing who he wanted to have this until after the election so it would become sort of a political fight. But Arlen is just a solid solid guy.

And the Commonwealth will be served very well under his leadership. Well to your point there's doesn't look like there's any no hint of scandal no no next to this guy. Well the only hint is that is he the first African-American or the second. And so you have to give Margaret Marshall that sort of technicality because she was born in South Africa. So the media are very careful to say black as opposed to the first African-American because that would be Martin Marshall. Well OK. Hear it yet. Yeah OK all right very interesting. OK what do you think Marcella. Interesting No I'd say it's a good story he definitely comes across as someone that a solid like like Howard says I like his story about how he was. He was confused by I have to let my leg I just going to his daughter's wedding and of course see yeah that's right. This is not a long time ago he wrote. So it really talks about the times that

we're living. It's nice that he's from the ranks he'll say that yeah I want his good friends way but it just speaks very very highly of him again and he had that sort of Springfield sense about don't want to cause a lot or bring a lot of attention to themselves. Does this want to do the job quietly and you know it was bad. Yeah I spoke to Darnell Williams who is the executive. Director of the Urban League and he said I question about his ability to only be there for years because it's a mandatory retirement age to 70. He said I'll take him to four minutes if need be for the good. All right I'm Kalee cross we were looking at the news that went under the radar with Howard Manley of the Bay State Banner and Marcella Garcia of Del planeta. We'll be back after this break stay with us. With. Support for WGBH comes from you and from the New England mobile book fair

in Newton. For 53 years New England's independent bookstore. The New England mobile book fair find them online at any book fair dot com. That's an e-book fair dot com and from Boston private banking Trust Company Boston private bank provides private and commercial banking and investment management and trust services to individuals and businesses. You can learn more by visiting Boston private bank dot com and from the 14th annual Boston International fine art show hosting a special evening with ninety nine point five Laura Carlo Friday November 19th from 6 to 9 p.m. at the cyclorama. Info at ninety nine 5 all classical dot org. You know what. That's right because Peewee Herman is back on Broadway with a new show on the next FRESH AIR we talk with the man who is Peewee Paul Reubens. He came up with the voice of Pee wee while doing community theater. I did it unwittingly. Terry join us for the

next FRESH AIR. This afternoon at 2:00 an eighty nine point seven WGBH. Visit WGBH dot org right now and register to win a five night cityscape or two and go away our. Prize includes round trip airfare from Boston plus accommodations in the city Pointe apartments guided tours of Connemara the Burren and the Cliffs of Moher. This trip is kindly donated by Tennant tours. Learn more at WGBH doddle. I'm Michele Norris from NPR News and you're listening to eighty nine point seven The WGBH radio. Stay with us for the bigger picture behind the day's news on ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. Coming up at four NPR stations for news and culture. I'm Cally Crossley and this is a Cali Crossley Show. If you're just tuning in we're hitting the rewind button and looking at the news that went under the radar last week this week.

Joining me to talk between the headlines are Howard Manley the executive editor of the Bay State Banner and Marcella Garcia the managing editor of Elle pled to a couple of interesting leadership moves speaking of leadership. I know that you have a piece in Marcella about one aboard us appearing before the Latino Leadership Initiative which you met at the Harvard Kennedy School recently. This is the first year that the Latino Leadership Initiative was held it's basically a program that is hosted by Harvard at the Kennedy School at Harvard and it hosts. A dozen or so of Latino students from from different high schools I believe I think it's high schools and they basically just you know give them a course on leadership and Latino leadership. You know Diaz was a speaker in the last in the first and you know the session over the summer. And so they they're be having this sort of fun race young Russians. Yes yes. And they brought this very interesting Latino leader Juan aboard of us who is recognized.

She's an author and motivational speaker. And you know she travels around the country and you know she just was brought in to talk about that you know leadership and what it means to her and diversity multiculturalism. And again in the context of the Latino leader leader Initiative at Harvard again it's a new program. And you you know you kind of wonder why it's the first the first year they're having this opening the doors to Harvard to students Latino students it's a great opportunity but they're there in the fundraising stage. Obviously it's going to be held next year again. So you have two old Latino students out there. You should keep an eye out for the Latino Leadership Initiative at Harvard. Well that was very interesting that. Want to board us. Our culture is everywhere the cultural influence is everywhere so this is you know and it's timely obviously we've been talking about the great sweep of Latino Elected Officials.

And she just this is a quote I love diversity give salsa to life and now we sell more tortillas than bread kind of states which I think is an amazing thing. You know you start thinking about that. Well I just read that. Speaking of bread that beanball which is a Mexican bread maker just bought or recently bought suddenly after already acquiring Wonder Bread. And this is this is totally under the radar by the way and recently because they're obviously they're huge big Latino markets like Texas and California which are closer to Mexico but they are really making their impact here in the in the new New England in the New England area. But yeah obviously diversity definitely brings out so moving on in the leadership is still in the leadership mode. I note in the Bay State Banner Howard that you have a piece about a map and resident who's IG executive director of the American Association for affirmative action.

I never heard of this organization before and I'm so glad to have this piece as a benefit because affirmative action talk about falling off the radar. I mean ever since O'Conner. In the Michigan case say there's a clock ticking on affirmative action maybe about five or six years ago and that clock being 25 years. It's all sort of falling away it's not politically correct to talk about affirmative action it's been replaced with the sort of quote diversity efforts which are not matters of law but they are getting a lot of attention and a lot of corporations and schools and pay attention to them. But again there's a very basic unfair dims discrimination that that's going on that needs to be monitored especially in the issuance of federal contracts. And her group sort of does that and she points out in this story the difference between affirmative action and diversity and what those efforts need to be in order to continue these programs that have brought a lot of folks into prominent roles throughout corporations and

schools and whoever gets federal contracts so it's quiet as it's kept there are people still talking. How do you know that this is being talked about because I thought it was very interesting how she made that distinction between affirmative action and diversity and that's a conversation that we all need to be having you know I think petition companies or government because everyone a lot of companies just get by with a diversity that I meant. And it's not just black or white or brown and white it's all people. People over 50 folks with special needs I mean there's all sorts of issues. Women right. Actually So I think that's one of the problems that affirmative action has suffered from is that it's became perceived as a black giveaway program and this is certainly not the case. Well we should mention that her name is surely Wilcher and that the organization is based in Washington but she's here. And so that's interesting in and of itself. And because you both mentioned it I have to read her quote in the

piece she scorns those programs that she says for instance celebrate Black History Month but do not redress unfair decisions about hiring promotion and pay. So that's she's very serious about what does this mean. And right here in Boston so who knew. All right. How do you have an interesting piece about the death of someone who was an activist in Boston Andrew filament Jones. This was a long piece by Brian Wright O'Connor the guy really committed suicide after after pulling a gun on someone else in his family. He was living in South Africa after years of being here in Boston and being an activist tell us why it was important to mark his passing. This guy Andrew Jones is one of those phenomenons that comes around once and just the short story is that he too was part of the ABC program the same program that I better chance

a better chance that brought Deval Patrick to not look at me but he went to Exeter where he was a standout violinist. He also played football. Ed Russell but he had this sort of activists heart even from an early age and so he became involved in a lot of political self-determination programs in the one that's best known is the one when he tried to succeed to get Roxbury to succeed from the union. Now this was at a time when Mayor Flynn was the mayor. And the argument was that he was not delivering services quality services comparable services to black neighborhoods and so that measure ultimately failed. But Jones was just one of these I guess a intellectual curiosity the best story about this guy. Of all of them. I mean he was a journalist he was a film producer he was this he was that and he traveled all over the world and he was in Moscow for some reason. And as he's going to the airport the security guard notices this

19th century violin in his bag and he says it is a black guy with a violin. You know that can't be yours. And Andrew Jones calmly pulls it out and plays like a jack to some classic piece and a security guard just said yeah you could go on. And so yeah he tragically he had moved to South Africa. He took a shot him and his wife are having some problems. He did shoot her she'd survived and then he took his own life. And he's one of those sort of. You know just figures that will go away without much notice but he had just a great great heart for the communities of color. That's a really sad story. I know it was interesting to see how all the countries that he's been to you know it was you know a heartbreaking story but he sounds like he definitely lived a good life made it made an impact.

Yeah totally it was burned out at the end. Marcella start strong a program that you are profiling in El planeta. It's one of a dozen local programs that are part of a start strong building healthy relationships among adolescents program. Now this is really important because trying to teach young people from 11 to 14 about domestic violence about I was yeah the star struck program partner with the Boston Public Health Commission actually here locally to implement some of these ideas initiatives or programs you know that ultimately have the goal to. Reaching out to teens and teach them the skills needed to fight domestic violence I guess 40 percent of domestic violence crimes are concentrated in rocks were in Dorchester. So since last year the Boston Public Health Commission have they really have come come up with great innovative ideas to use this money from you know the Robert Wood foundation right

right to to implement one of them was I don't know if you guys remember towards the end of last year they held I guess they held a summit for kids and the task to them was to come up with a good idea to to fight of domestic violence and they came up with the sound relationship nutritional label which was the idea behind it was to you know categorize songs by their healthy or unhealthy level to relationships. So this is an idea that the teens actually created most recently the possible health commission during the summer they held a Breakup summit. And remember they remember that that's part of this program and it actually came from the money came from this program. And yes it's a great it's a great way to reach out to teens and get them involved and talk about this. This problem with the statistics says it all. You know they're oing rocks were in Dorchester and obviously blacks and Latinos are disproportionately affected by domestic violence.

So I say intimate partner violence was higher among blacks fourteen point eight percent Hispanics eleven point four percent and then among whites which is at seven point two percent. I should note that there have been a number of studies looking at the impact of the link between unemployment and domestic violence and that has risen. And if you then move over and understand this just sticks in neighborhoods of color and communities of color are double that of the 9.6 that we often hear about it's really 15 percent 16 percent. You know you can understand how these linkages are going across the board in all kinds of ways. Yeah and there's a lot of programs that you know too. But what was interesting about this is that is by teens 14 immediately the teens by giving them the tools that they needed to come up with a solution or with a program or with an idea to break up some of it's really amazing I mean if I had had that training.

Well there's been a state of mind there's no classes back in the day example of how to deal with all the motional anx over this loved one as there were this love that's gone just gone to rise so. Any sort of guidance. Yes exactly. Any kind of like Can we just talk about this. Yeah well I think goes a long way in cutting down some of the collateral damage that you have in the classroom with your health and what you're seeing is that because teens are actually involved in you know being part of the solution. You see you know things like you know social networks like Facebook and there was actually a panel in this break of summit that dealt with you know do not share your emotional feelings on Facebook or Twitter because they may come back to you. So it's it really is going to to the heart of the issue. The program to the Boston program directors Casey CORCORAN And I mention his name because right after the Chris Brown Rhianna. Situation yet they did a survey under this program of teens asking what did you think. Many of them said well what did she do to provoke it.

So this is what they're really trying to come wait a minute you know let's let's really look at this and understand how it works and that's when they come up with the traditional label for you know to categorize the songs because a lot of these songs have these negative or really vague messages about symbols most women wear. Yeah yeah right. Okay so moving on. Marcel is a lot of music stuff I want to talk about first the Latin Grammys. Yeah. Yellow one big I guess let me and I said great group we had a local guy. Oh yeah and yes Lou. Well he's a producer actually but that works with the group that wanted to do to been a swelling guys and this guy Ritchie Pena who's actually participating Berklee acting. Yeah that was I mean I think. Sobering Yeah so what's his name again I'm going to keep saying yeah ok. He's a producer of this song that does do. Nacho and someone I can't remember the name but he didn't listen to what I'm saying. And Nacho Yeah OK. He won for urban music album

and he's a producer Groome boss that Excellent. Yes I want to talk to him. So the Berkeley Hispanic students are doing repeating their great success with this month full month of celebration of all the celebration of music and American culture and I got to say the lineup sounds really amazing. It's amazing to think that this idea started as a group of students but now it's become really larger than it really was just a week back in you know in the 90s and now it's a whole month and they have conferences they have workshops they have concerts and one of those workshops is being taught by these guys. The producer that was this is told. Yeah yeah yeah yeah. Talk about under the radar. Yeah I'm telling you and I mean it. The culture part let's not forget that. I see that there's a workshop here called Learn cap where oh so Kepler is a mix of martial arts dance and music with the Afro-Brazilian roots. So you've got everything with and including on the other end Ruben Blades.

Yeah you know I think that this is really pretty interesting. All right John Vause it's you know again we have to acknowledge that Berkeley is just a treasure to have yeah. Yes I know you know. All right one more thing from you WANT to this thing at the Macy's parade. I know the first time ever I want to see. Why does a Colombian finger and to be honest I was always a price. I'm like what is going to be the first finger that's going to you know sing in Spanish. I don't know I would have thought Shakira I mean but no it's a great it's a great achievement for him. He's been you know trying to do the crossover thing. It's Colombian he's a runner Yeah he's yeah he sings rock definitely. He's in charge of doing. He's It's such an honor I can't believe it's the first time that Mace is going to have a Spanish song. I got in the bank and span Yeah that's what this is the first time. Right right it is 84 years. It's obvious maybe it's already on Thanksgiving. Yes which by the way attracts 3.5 million people watching that parade on the streets of New York. And more than 50 million on television so he's getting a huge audience which

is good for him because he's got a new album. Very sad but he must I mean I've never heard of the guy yet a super popular in that America. I went to see him in concert in Prague so he's never been here in Boston and I know that he's been to Foxwoods and of course I was there. OK all right. Really fast Howard and the Bay State Banner I note that Great Barrington is celebrating its 200 50th birthday and as a part of that they're acknowledging to boys they've had a love hate relationship with Dr. Dubois over the years. The criticism against the boys who was one of the leading intellectual thinkers at the turn of the century one of the first Harvard graduates African-American graduates is that toward the latter years of his life he turned to communism. And in fact left America to live in Guyana where he is now buried. But in Great Barrington where he was brought up he always spoke fondly of this.

This sort of a rural community that it was acceptable to him and his family. And so they're having this anniversary and I can't think of anybody else from Great Barrington that had any kind of stature. I may have missed I don't know made but w boys is a giant and that everyone just sort of embraced this guy and the fact that they're now doing it lets me know that anything is possible. Great barracked so w the boys deserves a huge huge commendation for all the work that he's done. Yeah all right. And for those who want to know more about W.B. du boys we should note that at Harvard under the direction of Henry Louis Skip Gates is of the boys Institute. All right we've been talking those with Howard Manley executive editor of the Bay State Banner and Marcella Garcia managing editor of Elle. Thank you both enjoy. Coming up we're taking a turn from the serious to the sublimely ridiculous with a tour of this week's tabloids. We're back after this break stay tuned to nine point seven. Support for WGBH comes from you and from the Museum of Fine Arts

celebrating the historic opening of the new art of the Americas wing. Members see it first with exclusive preview days and members only evening events starting on November 14th. Details at MFA dot org. And from Boston Private Bank and Trust Company. Committed to helping successful individuals and businesses accumulate. Preserve and grow their wealth. You can learn more at Boston. Private Bank dot com. And from safety insurance. Working with independent agents in Massachusetts and New Hampshire to provide coverage for homes autos and business. And supporting PR eyes of the world. Weekdays at 3 and 6 here on eighty nine point seven WGBH. Next time on the world judges in Italy ruled that a marriage could be an old after the wife just considered having an affair. Italy's highest court agreed and the marriage is no longer valid. The husband will not pay alimony and couples across Italy have something not to talk about a new way to end a marriage Italian style. That's next time on the world. Coming up at 3 o'clock here at eighty nine point seven WGBH.

Hi I'm Brian O'Donovan host of the 9.7 WGBH and if you haven't done so already I hope you'll reserve your tickets to join me at the 8th anywhere presentation of a Christmas card this year. The show is traveling all over New England with performances in Northampton Boston Providence Rhode Island. And Portsmouth New Hampshire purchase your tickets online the WGBH dot org slash. On the whole bunch of stuff some serious some not so serious weekdays at noon here on eighty nine point seven page NPR station for news and culture. It's rag time a view of the week's coverage in tabloids. It's a low brow examination of the salacious to the ridiculous and everything in

between. But this being public radio we'll conduct our review with the help of some highbrow analysts. Our pointy head of pop culture Thomas Connelly and Rachel Reuben Thomas Connelly is a professor in the Department of English at Suffolk University and Rachel Reuben is the chair of the department of American studies at UMass Boston welcome. Hello again and welcome back. Thank you. Well today we have on board apologies all around a retiring critic Conan returns Michael Jackson back in the headlines. So let's jump right in. I want to start with Kanye West. For many perhaps after President former President George Bush Bush spoke this week he may be known as Conway West. But. We'll get to that. As we know Kanye West became known to more people than he is rap following when he stated after Katrina that he President Bush didn't really care for black people. So that led up from there to

this point where Kanye has done a kind of reversal of his opinion. And I for our listeners before we talk we put together a Kanye West timeline tracking his evolution or de-evolution if you wish depending on your take starting with his comments at the 2005 benefit concert for Hurricane Katrina relief all the way through his recent interview with Matt Lauer on The Today Show. George Bush doesn't care about black people. Reflecting now. Do you still believe George Bush doesn't care about black people. I mean I have a hard time believing that George Bush cares about anyone so sidebar black people also. You know I went to George Bush. In my moment of frustration. I didn't have the. Calling the racists but I believe that in a situation of high emotion like that we as human beings don't always choose the right words. Rachel what do you think evolution de-evolution teach evolution I think it is I'm

really I often sort of Scranton scrounging in the corners of my mind for an analogy and like I've thought of all that you know Little Richard having invented rock n roll and sort of snuck into mainstream culture all of this you know black music and drag culture. At times in his life has it has unfortunately you know gone through these self-hating periods where he apologizes for essentially inventing rock n roll which breaks my heart and I don't want Kanye to apologize. His George Bush doesn't care about black people moment was completely thrilling. If only for the fact that we so seldom see somebody go off script like that and the expression on Mike Myers face when Kanye does that really shows he doesn't even know what to make of it it's like probably the only authentic moment and I've seen in television in decades and so and you know it. Generative to I just want to urge people if you don't know the New Orleans musician

the legendary K-O did a fantastic song organized around that comment and around Kanye's song Gold Digger. Go look. Google it or go to go to YouTube. The legendary K-O It's called George Bush doesn't like black people. And please listen to it it's fantastic. I should note that Mike Myers is a comedian formerly of Saturday Night Live he was standing next to Kanye West when Kanye made it and his jaw hangs in the U.K.. Well what I found fascinating was watching George Bush's face as he listened to the apology and the permutations of narcissism and self involvement that Kanye West's voice. Echoed were reflected perfectly in George Bush's facial expression. Here we have two giants of self-involvement. I share Rachel's chagrin over this statement for many reasons. Also the fact he followed up with George Bush doesn't care about anybody I like I like that. But this this just pulls it back

and to me it's just this is a guy so west is so pathetically desperate to be at the center of attention. You know he apologized to Taylor Swift now he's apologizing to President Bush. That bizarre Twitter meltdown that is available online. This is a person who just just wants to be looked at it. It's not even he wants to be loved. He just want his self-regard. He wants to see reflected in our regarding him and it's just it's it ends up being as distasteful as George Bush calling him Conway. Well aside from that it's distasteful Scuse me not as distasteful as the slow response to Katrina or the starting of well that's where you want to say oh yeah I hate running and impeach him. So I'm like looking at Kanye is just just a little kind. I will say that in his response to con way who the guy he called Kanye. He noted to met Lauer that this was the lowest point in his administration which is very odd when Kanye said he didn't like black people but that should be on the record as well.

OK. Something that happened this week that maybe wasn't quite as significant but interesting anyway as Conan O'Brian return to television. Here's Conan on his return to late night television. People ask me why Name the show Conan. I did it so I'd be harder to replace. But the truth is Lessons I mean I have dreamed of being a talk show host on basic cable ever since I was 46. Tom Well I think he I still find it funny and what's interesting to me is how people you know this get picking up what Rachel said about unscripted. The guy's hurting. He's still mad about it. And that doesn't go on television. It's the original cool medium and you're not supposed to let people know that you're too much of anything. And OK he doesn't want to let it go. He got a big viewership the first night it's gone down every night but no one is really surprised by that I mean CBS is not a huge drop channel. But. I think we should let him go with it and I mean if you've seen the extended play version of the American Express commercial. I mean he's still the same crazy Coco. I'm going to let the guy have a

chip on his shoulder let him work it out. That's one of the one of the interesting aspects of television that we sometimes can see this play out before our eyes and I'm I'm sure I'm going to keep watching. OK. Now those numbers did go down as Tom said Rachel from four point two million I guess they were. People were curious to 2.8 million the second night I mean a drop precipitously What do you think. Well it it it did it did drop and that of course makes sense because you know the comeback episode is going to seem special to people. But what's interesting is who did watch it you know throughout the show and even in the clip you heard he keeps on making jokes about being on basic cable. He's named the band The basic cable band he's you know obsessed with this idea of basic cable who watches basic cable. Young people do. Young people do and so you know it's a question of whether he will manage to sort of be relevant to that audience they did watch him in greater numbers than you know the proportions would suggest. All right well switching to somebody who is back in the headlines though not here. Michael

Jackson. His new Michael album on December 14th is coming out soon. But yet there's a controversy about it. And let me explain to people the some of the songs on the new album both his mother and his children say are faked. So we've set up a situation so that you can hear from a blind hearing to this which is the real Michael. So here we go track a. Here's Michael. OK. I get that one. Distract me. One more time so you can catch it. Your strike a. Good. Thanks and friendly thanks. OK. Can you tell which is the real Michael Rachel of course.

That's very obvious that the first one is the real Michael. I mean and the fact is of course I'm not you know I am not a sound engineer so I can't really have no way to know whether that's actually Michael Jackson's voice or not. But there's like this from a forensic point of view. And if it turns out that it's not that it's fake but you know that there will be a path to go down that way. But then there is also a cultural point of view and I think from that perspective there's nothing about that second song that in any important way is a Michael Jackson song he doesn't have his signature vocal moves. He stays too much like strictly on the melody instead of sort of singing against it the way he normally does. And you know one thing that occurs to me is he's known to be so a real real pretty was a perfectionist in terms of his music in the movie This Is It You see that. And so he as a perfectionist didn't release this if it is him you know and it's sort of sad to see the country has lost the control because as you said he's not here anymore. So I don't know whether that is a literally not Michael Jackson a Michael Jackson song

performance but I don't think in any important way it is. Will people buy it Tom. Maybe out of curiosity factor desperation factor. I find this part of the ongoing tragedy of the Jackson family. I didn't come out against it too I thought. I thought yes the children actually in their protests say because the company Sony says we got the song from some time when he recorded as a sergeant. Yeah at a certain period of time and the children were with him then yes. And they said they don't remember those songs. So that's why they're saying it just it just doesn't I mean I am. Believe me I'm no expert on Michael Jackson's vocal technique I remember him with the Jackson 5. But this I agree with Rachel probably the second one. I just in my gut no this is not something he would have released. Yeah I wondered if it was an age thing. You know you can tell the difference and it's a real Aretha but younger and older. Different Yeah but but yeah it was later that well that's true and you know he definitely has it. Well that's true he sounded great I've arranged it all. Yeah he has not lost out.

So if people want to see the real Michael that is the movie to see this is it. Because that's really good all right. Moving on Michael J Fox returned to television in a special role really created just for him and I think it's interesting because we don't often see. People with disabilities on the air but Michael J Fox as many may recall has Parkinson's disease. So he played a role on the very popular CBS series called The Good Wife and he played a lawyer with Parkinson's disease. So here he is on playing this role in a behind the scenes interview with the producers of The Good Wife. If you get the legs shot the arm goes get the arm stuff the other arm goes you get both of them sitting here. On your arms a few legs your head goes you know in another room. We're playing some of the business that I want to do everything I can suppress it in this instance if you just let it go what you think. I admire him tremendously for doing this because I believe fervently that disability should be recognized but not

made. Poignant for its own sake and to me this was a professional actor playing a role doing what he could doing what he was trained to do doing what his artistic life is all about and also that he had the guts to play an unattractive character. The other thing I believe very strongly about is you know a person in a wheelchair is moving. That's how a person in a wheelchair moves not stop look oh my. I think it's very important that this is something that needs to be recognized as part of life. And Michael J Fox speaking about this his journey Margulies talking about it in the way that she did is to me again small steps towards the kind of society that you know we should be living in. Julianna Margulies really star of The Good Wife and she's fantastic in that role Rachel what do you think. I also I like you know I like Will Michael J Fox plays against the babyface so to speak because he's so sweet looking and you know that show is so cynical that there isn't going to be a sweet character. Right and it is extremely you know I don't know I sort of

grew up grappling for words here Tom but it's like deflating of that sort of what you're talking about this. You know I don't know over determination and like Alf's of somebody is you know in a wheelchair that means we understand everything we need to understand about him because he's a liar and he's like scummy like the rest of them you know he's trying to get sympathy for the jury. You know so I appreciated that very much. And also you know. I appreciated the sort of outspokenness about you know what the women's choices are sometimes after having breast cancer because I came up in that that episode as well. OK this summer we're switching topics now. A singer named Cee Lo had a viral hit in a song named with a title we can't say here on the air for half the first letters after We'll let your mind go on. And he appeared on the call bear show Stephen Colbert show on the Comedy Channel who and negotiated with Stephen Colbert about sanitizing the song

titled bleep you. You're going to the song in just a minute yes. And as a family though we can't be dropping the F-bomb here could I recommend a couple other words you could say instead of. Beef stew. Now about something positive like Fox News. Thanks. A great great. Player and. I love the original article and I love that I was a fan fic just a little bit about Cee Lo you know started out in the group the Goodie Mob and he was known as Cee Lo Green the soul machine very well suited had a monster hit a few summers ago called crazy with both.

Little girls are only now he has this solo career and which this song catchy as all get out right has a sound that the FCC has decided we cannot hear that particular sound because it will make us think of a word whereas we can make us think of the word without saying the sound and that's ok go figure. So first that song is sanitized over the radio as forget for you. It makes no sense. And then but it's still catchy. It's still a great radio song. And then you know this further adaptation to Fox New this. It's a real modern day example of the folk process. The song is being adapted to all kinds of circumstances and it's still very soulful. And I think the greatest adaptation is William Shatner's cover. You can't he did on the George Lopez Show and it puts rocket man to bed. This is just an extraordinary education of a man who has once played Hamlet and now brings the heaviness and import of Shakespeare's lyrics to the

deathless lyrics of Cee-Lo. OK I got to squeeze it one more because I love to see logo listed else on this fabulous Gene shallot critic at The Today Show retiring after 40 years we put together a condensed version of a review of his film Funny People. Good morning and welcome to the critic's corner. Speaking as a collector of really really terrible movies funny people arrives like a Third Son from heaven. What. A smirk of this face the characters are making a vanity movie about them so that keeps not ending for two and a half hours. Kill me. Well to me funny people is passable. Speaking clonic Lee. I thought he was very clever He's 85 and I love what he said on the on the announcing his retirement. It's enough already. What do you think I love that the show the Jewishness of it. You know Leo rousted the wonderful author of the joys of you know is sitting up you know from beyond the grave

greeting when teaching shallots at anough all right as he was on his way out the door. That's great. It's all right. Well Professor Rachel Reuben Professor Thomas Conley thank you for joining us for another fabulous EDITION. Of rag time. You can keep on top of the Calla Crossley Shelagh GBH dot org slash Della Crossley follow us on Twitter and become a fan of the Calla Crossley Show on Facebook. This is the Calla Crossley Show where production of WGBH radio Boston's NPR station for news comes.