Tag Archives: soledad o'brien

I missed the first one. When Barack Hussein Obama was sworn in as our first African-American president with an agenda that I believed passionately in,…

Behind The Scenes At Inauguration 2013 [MINI MOVIE]

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Tagged appid, barack, Barack Obama, cicely tyson, missing, Obama, roland martin, smokey fontaine, soledad o'brien

Soledad O’Brien Grills Shady Azz Senator Jeff Sessions Over ‘Cutting Food Stamps’ [Video]

Posted on December 11, 2012 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

61% of houses in Jeff Sessions state receives assistance from SNAP… and Soledad calls the Republican Senator out for wanting to cut back on funding! According to the interview , he says the figures ‘aren’t accurate’, and Soledad asks ‘why are you trying to balance the budget on people who make less than $23k a year?!?!’ Soledad O’Brien grilled Sen. Jeff Sessions over his efforts to cut the federal food stamps program on Tuesday’s “Starting Point.” Earlier this year, Sessions proposed removing $11 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. He advocated cuts on Tuesday, arguing that food stamp spending has gone up even though unemployment is currently on the decline. O’Brien seemed skeptical. “There are people who’d say if you’re doing cuts, you invariably hurt people who need food and people who need food stamps to buy supplemental food,” she said. Sessions argued that the program has been “growing out of control” and “there are a lot of people receiving benefits who do not qualify and should not receive them.” O’Brien said that Sessions himself voted to expand the program in 2002 and 2008, and cited research that found the program has a low rate of fraud. Later, she said, “When you’re thinking of things to cut, people basically say, why are you trying to balance the budget on people making less than $23,000 a year… So why not cut something else? There are other things that could be on the table before you pick a program that is feeding the nation’s poor children.” Sessions said that he was not picking on solely the food stamp program. “I say all programs need to be examined in this government,” he responded. “This government is wasting money every day.” SMH…when will these old azz white men stop slashing monies for those in need?? Images via youtube/tumblr

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Soledad O’Brien Grills Shady Azz Senator Jeff Sessions Over ‘Cutting Food Stamps’ [Video]

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Tagged black, Celebrity Gossip, food, for discussion, Hollywood, interview, jesus take the wheel, News, program, sessions, soledad o'brien, supplemental, video

Race Matters: Soledad O’Brien To Host New CNN Special On Black Techies “The New Promised Land: Silicon Valley”

Posted on November 9, 2011 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

CNN’s Soledad O’Brien investigates how African-American entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley struggle with racial bias, financial security, . While much of the country struggles to emerge from a recession, California’s Silicon Valley is booming, and technology companies like Facebook, Skype, and Apple are seeing their valuations soar. CNN anchor and special correspondent Soledad O’Brien reports that the ownership of this digital bloom is mostly young, white, and male. For her fourth Black in America documentary, O’Brien asks why, according to industry analyst CB Insights, less than one percent of all venture capital money went to digital startups with African-American founders in 2010 – and she profiles a unique, technology-focused “accelerator” developed to help African-American digital entrepreneurs secure funding to establish their businesses. Black in America: The New Promised Land – Silicon Valley will debut on Sunday, Nov. 13 at 8:00p.m. ET & PT and replay on Nov. 13 at 11:00p.m. ET & PT. It will also replay on Saturday, Nov. 19 at 8:00p.m. and 11:00p.m. ET & PT on CNN/U.S. The NewMe accelerator program, founded by friends Angela Benton and Wayne Sutton, is a collaborative of African-American start-up founders with Internet-based businesses – the first such business accelerator of its kind. NewMe’s ultimate mission is to diversify the technology industry by accelerating the participants’ business ventures. Participants seek venture capital investment and are mentored by prominent people from within the industry. O’Brien follows the progress of the eight former strangers after they were selected to live together for nine weeks in a modest, three-bedroom house in Mountain View, CA, from June to August of 2011. The entrepreneurs were provided with free office space and attended regular networking events hosted by NewMe’s sponsors. The participants come from varied backgrounds and experiences. It’s kinda like “The Real World”, “The Ultimate Hustler”, and “African-America’s Next Top Techie” all in one show. Should be interesting… Source

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Race Matters: Soledad O’Brien To Host New CNN Special On Black Techies “The New Promised Land: Silicon Valley”

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Tagged california, celeb news, Celebrity Gossip, Cnn, digital, minutes-or-less, News, on the come up, race matters, silicon-valley, skype, soledad o'brien, the-list, TMZ

CNN’s Soledad O’Brien Sympathizes With Lesbian Teen’s Plight

Posted on June 15, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

On Monday’s Campbell Brown program, CNN’s Soledad O’Brien presented a one-sided report about a lesbian teenager in Mississippi whose senior portrait was left out of her school’s yearbook because she chose to have it taken in a tux, defying the school’s rules. O’Brien commiserated with the teen, asking her at one point, “I want people to understand because other people will say- oh, for God’s sake, it’s just a picture. So explain to us, what does it feel like to not be where you’re supposed to be?” Anchor John Roberts introduced the special correspondent’s near the end of the 8 pm Eastern hour by trying to make a tenuous connection between the report and the continuing major news of the Gulf oil leak: “All eyes are on Gulfport, Mississippi this morning as the President arrived for the first leg of his three-state tour, but about 150 miles north of the Gulf, in a small town called Wesson, the big news this season was all about the high school yearbook. It was here that a teenager’s senior picture triggered an unexpected backlash, and sparked outrage throughout the state.” O’Brien sympathized with Ceara Sturgis, the teen from Wesson, Mississippi, from the start of her report: “For 18-year-old senior Ceara Sturgis, her high school yearbook is more than a collection of memories. It’s about her struggle to be who she is in tiny Wesson, Mississippi, population about 2,000.” After asking the lesbian to describe herself (“18 years old and I’m gay. I don’t like people to push me around, especially when I have the right, and I don’t give up.”), the correspondent continued that “what she didn’t give up on was her fight to get this picture in her yearbook, a picture she took wearing a tuxedo instead of the traditional dress, called a drape.” Later, O’Brien got the closest to providing the other side when she provided quotes from the Wesson high school principal and the district office administrator. But she also let Sturgis and her mother cast the principal in a negative light: O’BRIEN: Principal Ronald Greer refused to print the picture of Ceara in a tux in the yearbook. Neither the principal nor the school’s superintendent would talk with us. After repeated calls, the district office administrator told us- quote, ‘We are done.’ Back in October, the principal told the Jackson TV station, he wasn’t able to comment- quote, ‘on that particular situation.’ Ceara and her mom believe the main reason the photo was vetoed- Principal Greer’s attitude towards homosexuality . The CNN special correspondent got the most sympathetic towards toward the Mississippi teen near the end of her report: O’BRIEN: Shortly after prom, Ceara got her copy of the yearbook. Her portrait wasn’t in it. O’BRIEN (on-camera): Where would you be? STURGIS: Between there and there. O’BRIEN: So you should be like right here. STURGIS: Yeah. I figured that if we kept fighting for a little bit, they would just end up changing their mind because I didn’t think it was a big deal. O’BRIEN: What did it feel like to not be there? STURGIS: It made me sad. O’BRIEN: Well, tell me. STURGIS: It made me feel bad. O’BRIEN: I’m not trying to make you feel bad. But I want people to understand because other people will say- oh, for God’s sake, it’s just a picture. So explain to us, what does it feel like to not be where you’re supposed to be? STURGIS: (crying) It’s not fair. O’BRIEN: Why is it not fair? STURGIS: I don’t know- okay, let’s say we put it in the yearbook, would anyone hurt like I hurt since I’m not in the yearbook? It wouldn’t hurt anyone. O’BRIEN (voice-over): She’s thinking about suing. It won’t put her picture in Wesson’s 2010 yearbook, but she says it may help other gay kids in Mississippi. STURGIS: All right, now just do a serious face. O’BRIEN: And at this point, that’s what Ceara’s thinking about. Reporting, in America, Soledad O’Brien, CNN, Wesson, Mississippi. Roberts hinted that O’Brien had another report on a homosexual teen in the works after her report finished: “And later this week, Ceara’s story inspires another Mississippi teen to stand up and speak out. We’ll have her story.” The anchor also promoted the correspondent’s upcoming one-sided special report ‘Gary and Tony Have a Baby,’ which she recently previewed for homosexual activist group GLAAD . CNN found it fitting to spend an entire four-minute-plus report to this lesbian teen’s plight, but when pro-life activist James Pouillon was murdered in September 2009, the network devoted only one anchor brief to the story: “A shooting spree near Flint, Michigan, leaves two dead. A local anti- abortion activist was killed in a drive by shooting this morning while protesting in front of Owosso High School. The gunman then drove to a local business where he shot and killed the owner. Police arrested a 33-year-old suspect who they say planned to kill a third man.”

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CNN’s Soledad O’Brien Sympathizes With Lesbian Teen’s Plight

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Tagged campbell-brown, ceara-sturgis, Cnn, culture/society, Education, john roberts, mississippi, network, News, president, report, soledad o'brien, TMZ, video

CNN’s O’Brien Previewing ‘Gary & Tony Have a Baby’ Special for Leftist GLAAD Activists

Posted on June 15, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

CNN’s marriage to gay activists looks complete. Soledad O’Brien is previewing the “news” network’s documentary “Gary and Tony Have a Baby” for gay activists in two cities. The one-sided no-room-for-dissenters piece was previewed along with a panel discussion for the left-wing Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation at the Paley Center in Los Angeles on June 9. CNN and GLAAD are doing the same thing in New York tonight . Remember this when CNN publicists and executives laughably claim to be nonpartisan, and just straight down the middle. The gay magazine The Advocate reported that O’Brien thought her story on Gary and Tony had to be “authentic,” when critics might find it propagandistic: “My job is to do the story as authentically as possible,” said O’Brien, who led a panel discussion following the documentary’s screening. The panel consisted of gay fathers who discussed their experiences as surrogate or adoptive parents as well as the fact that the issue of gay parenting rarely makes waves when issues like “don’t ask, don’t tell” and gay marriage get big headlines. O’Brien also granted an interview to Adam Amel Rogers of Change.org , and he’s a former staffer with GLAAD. He was unhappy the words “gay” and “controversial” are still in the same sentence: ROGERS: The trailer starts out by identifying the topic as one of the most controversial issues of our time. Why do you think the idea of two men raising a baby is controversial? O’BRIEN: Well I’ll start out by saying I don’t. I don’t write the promos, but I think what they were referring to is the fact that in the past year and in the next several years, the idea of gay marriage has been very controversial. And controversial meaning that there are ardent opinions on either side of the issue where people firmly believe that they are right. So I think that this is an issue that people feel very strongly about, but again that is promo copy, that is not my documentary. ROGERS: Mike Huckabee recently condemned gay parents by saying “children are not puppies.” Do you think there is anything in the special that will help build understanding among vocal opponents of gay parents, or do you think it will provide them with more ammunition? O’BRIEN: That’s never my goal. My goal, when I do documentaries is to drill down and tell the story of human beings. I guess anybody is welcome to take from it what they want to take from it… ROGERS: How do you think they [Gary and Tony] will do as parents? O’BRIEN: What’s funny is that they are the fun parents. I have seen them with small children and they are standing on their head and doing gymnastics, while I just want to sit in this chair for a minute. Gary and Tony, I think from watching them, are going to be great parents because being a great parent is about being a loving human being… ROGERS: There have been many rumors and many calls for a Gay in America special. Is there still hope for an in-depth CNN documentary about the LGBT community ? O’BRIEN: I probably started that rumor, because we have really considered doing that. In a way I think of this documentary as one piece of that. One of the challenges I find in doing a Gay in America or a Women in America or a Black in America is that it is just impossible to tell stories of 51 million people, in Latino in America for example. It’s just impossible, so you end up telling a handful of stories and one of the criticisms which I actually agree with is “well, you didn’t get my story.” So what I decided to do is to tell stories about individuals. This is a great story — they aren’t every gay couple in America and they aren’t every gay person in America. They’re not meant to be. I guarantee that if I did a survey on gay in America, you would be the one calling me up saying “well, how come it didn’t have this and why did you pick that?” I think it is a valid question. My own mother after the first Black in America said “No Caribbeans? Where are my people?” She is right, but you can’t tell stories well that way. There is no conspiracy going on, this is the start of Gay in America . The marketing people may tell you something else, but to me this is the start of Gay in America . CNN’s promotional tour with GLAAD underscores conservative jokes about this group being the “Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Debate.” There’s no room for dissent in the special, and certainly not on its associated panel discussions. CNN is supposed to be a news network, not a liberal sympathy circle. CNN is conducting a political/publicity campaign with people who believe that allowing an opposing opinion on gay issues is unprofessional . CNN’s gay-parenting special premieres on June 24.