Contemplations of Social Media Radio Convergence

I read with great interest an article on radiofacts.com that detailed radio station 93.5 KDAY's convergence efforts with regard to twitter and it's on-air presentation. KDAY had used twitter to generate listener song requests themed around the surprise knockout of Manny Pacquiao. It was a very interesting article and spotlighted a very innovative programming strategy that embraced the water cooler talk of the day. The article further stated that this innovation is one of the reasons why the station is ranked number 12 in the nation's 2nd largest radio market. I have a perspective that I wanted to share with Radio Facts and I wrote a comment/response on their website, but it did not appear. Now, I don't know if this was because my comment did not pass moderation, or if the editor just did not see it, or maybe some technological glitch occurred and my comment just did not appear. At any cause, I thought I would re-publish my response on my blogs. You can read the article here . And here is the text of my response:

Dear RadioFacts,
First let me say that I thoroughly enjoy radiofacts.com. There is not a day that goes by that I do not check for Radiofacts to learn of the latest urban radio news and views. That said, I read with great interest the article entitled "Why 93.5 KDAY is knocking out radio competition." The article does a great job of describing how the station converges it's social media platforms with it's on-air presentation. Agreed. It was a good promotion to engage the audience around the water cooler talk of the day - the surprise KO of Manny Pacquiao. However, I take issue with a couple of points the article either states or implies.

1. "KDAY remains ranked #12 in the market" - Not so fast, RadioFacts!! As I peruse the Nov. 2012 PPM book, I just cannot find where they are ranked that high in the market. A ranker pulled6+, Mon-Sun 6a-12m  and sorted by average share will show KDAY ranked at 28, KJLH is ranked 27... if you view the ranker by average rating you will find them at #22, tied with KJLH and 2 other stations - however, KJLH is listed ahead in this tie because the audience composition is more pure. .. By average persons KDAY is ranked 28th in the market, while KJLH is ranked 27th. With all due respect, can you please clarify where KDAY is ranked 12th in the nation's second largest radio market?
2. Sales: It would be interesting to see KDAY's strategies relative to sales. It's curious that the station has a decent cume, but still maintains a modest rating point. How does the station's innovations on the social media universe translate into digital sales?? Does the cume vs. rating point ratio translate into results for advertisers? I don't know the answers to these questions, I'm just sayn....
3. Digital Strategies - the article presents KDAY as a leading edge, innovator when it comes to the utilization of social media strategies and implies that others can learn from them. I submit to you, sir that the digital team at KJLH is and has been at the leading edge of social media convergence. I would put them up against any social media team in the city including those at the major corporations.

The article says KDAY is knocking out the competition. It describes that even with a weak signal and niche format, the station is finding listeners and ratings success - this due to it's innovations in the social media universe.  I surmise that KJLH is among that competition. But We are not woozy. We are not weak in the knees. We are not on the ropes... In fact, we are vibrant, relevant, bobbing and weaving, sticking and moving... I am not hating - don't have too. It's good that KDAY's innovations receive notoriety and kudos for their broadcast efforts. But, in this market, we are a part of the conversation because as an independently owned, small-signal, niche broadcaster, we are not knocked out. In fact it could be said that we are floating like a butterfly and stinging like a bee!!!

#stillstanding

Contemplations of tanning gone bad....

So can anyone tell me what the deal is here??? How does one aim to toast themselves to a crisp.... this is not tan... this is self abuse.... and what is her fascination with darker skin....??? couldn't she be pleased with what God gave her??


Tell me what you think!!!

How Memorial Day Was Stripped of Its African-American Roots

How Memorial Day Was Stripped of Its African-American Roots

This is an interesting article from the Dominion New York..... I did not know that it was a tradition of former slaves.....

Contemplations of Spanking: An old school perspective

Boy oh boy, at this age, I am seeing more and more edits to those moral values that we were taught. The social rules and boundaries have changed drastically. What used to be ok back in the day, is frowned upon today.

Spanking your children is one such issue.

We have been told that spanking your child is wrong and can have severe, long lasting psychological effects on your children. In fact, to do so, is against the law and can cause much interference, inconvenience and stress in your life. Why? Because if your child tells their school officials that you spanked them, then the police are called and the local child services agencies are inserted in your life. wow......

Question to self: with all the whuppins I got, Am I psychologically damaged and just don't know it?? After all, didn't mom administer whuppins and then come back and tell you that she loved you?? and what you did was wrong?? and that she did not want to whup you? (:don't make me go get my paddle" "don't make me come in there!!")

i can remember quite vividly, momma, auntie, grandma and 'nem administering a sound whuppin when we did wrong. I can remember being petrified when we were told to "wait till your father gets home",,,, because that was a whuppin for sure.... 

I am a grandparent caregiver. I am of that generation of people who are having to raise their children's children. In more and more cases, drugs, general irresponsibility, teenage pregnancy, bad life decisions or the basic disintegration of the family unit has caused the grandparent to step in to be mother and father of the babies.... We gotta do what we gotta do. I am also of that generation that says in the area of child discipline, there are whuppable offenses. But now, if you whup 'em, the school can and will, call the police and the appropriate child services entity on you.

Preposterous.

In my opinion, and particularly in the case of raising boys, from a black perspective,  the nation has programmed itself to project how many young men will be in the prison system in years to come. They begin monitoring boy's behavior in the third grade. From this data, they can project how much prison space they will need. I'm trying to keep my boys in line before they get there... I will be doggone if they are going to be consumed by the system in this way. And if spanking them is part of that then spanking them I will.

I have noticed that once the child realizes that the parent is reluctant to administer corporal punishment, he is emboldened.... empowered.... the system has actually given power to the child. And they will try you....

The system is saying that they would rather allow immoral and unruly behavior than allow you to put your smack hand down on these kids. If junior sets a fire at school or steals or wreaks general havoc and refuses to complete his academics, then it's ok. They just want you to put them on time out.....  

man.... shoot........ I believe in spankings. With Love......

Contemplations of Chivalry

And so today I am contemplating the notion of chivalry... is it dead?  I was raised to respect and protect the woman... particularly the black woman. I was taught from an early age to hold doors open, allow the female to walk through a door first, open the car door for women, treat women with a measure of respect... you know, give up your seat on the bus or train type stuff.... this was drilled into me from puberty until I left the nest.

And now as a mature man, I wonder if women even recognize the chivalrous actions of the man. I mean do they really appreciate the fine art of chivalry. Recently I was at church. And as I entered the cathedral, there were several sistas coming into church behind me... it was my natural instinct to hold the door open for them. As I did, all of the women walked through, but NOT ONE uttered a word of thanks... just left me there holding the door like I was the doggone doorman....

is chivalry dead???

I was riding the bus recently (hey I am experimenting trying to find a few ways to save on gas....)... a lady came onto the bus and there were no more seats... I lifted my tired behind up and offered her the seat. She took it, but uttered NOT A WORD of thanks.... In fact, she looked at me with this sense of entitlement and expectancy that quite frankly left me feeling belittled and weak.

And it's not just the sistas... I was downtown in a building for a meeting... elevator opened and even though I was the first one at the elevator, I paused to allow the ladies from another mother who came behind me to get on first... they walked on, never giving me a thank you, an acknowledgement of my courtesy. In fact, once we got on the elevator, a couple of them seemed nervous. You know how they do... it was a shock to know that not only did they not recognize chivalry, they were nervous to be on the elevator with a brotha. I'm here to remind you that Jim Crow, slavery and all that are over... it's a new day!!!

I'm not in need of so much acknowledgement that women need to kiss my feet, but when a man steps in his chivalry role, then females ought to recognize. A simple thank you will do. But then again, perhaps chivalry is dead and these actions are just a sign of the times.....

Is chivalry dead?

Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Tupac at Coachella: Gangsta Contemplations

And so the buzz this week emanates from the Coachella Music and Arts Festival where Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg headlined an absolutely outstanding lineup of music from a wide variety of genres. It's not that Dre and Snoop did not have a body of work that's got folk talking... Certainly the duo deserves a headlining spot at this music festival attended by tens of thousands over a two weekend period.  I am impressed that the Festival has grown in stature so much that not only was it massively attended live at Coachella, but they added millions to their audience through live streams to YouTube.

Dre and Snoop did not disappoint as they delivered hit after hit with flawless precision. They dedicated an entire segment of their show to their fallen colleague Nate Dogg, joined onstage by fellow G-funk producers Daz and Kurupt. And while the litany of hit music was presented in an outstanding manner, the talk of the town is that the duo reincarnated the late Tupac Shakur via hologram that placed the legendary rapper right on stage with them. It was something to see!!!!


Tupac's holographic appearance has generated everything for shock to awe. In fact, as I look at the video, I am convinced that the crowd is rendered speechless as Tupac rises from the stage. It is unbelievable!!!

I know that from the start, Dr. Dre has been an innovator. His time as one of the infamous NWA followed by his litany of hits at Death Row and and AfterMath has made him one of hiphop's hall of famers. Snoop Dogg is also a hall of famer with major hits under his belt and a plethora of creative collaborations that have made him one of America's pop culture icons.  Tupac is immortal as he left behind a tragic story and a tremendous body of work in music, television and film. So the question is not if the brothas are innovative and creative. It's how innovative and creative could they get?

Now this is not the first time Dre and Snoop have been the arbiters of creative shock and awe. I remember the 1994, Soul Train Music Awards. The Shrine Auditorium was the place to be as black music's best and brightest gathered to honor it's own. Amid the controversy of the day regarding their music, it was unprecedented that Don Cornelius would invite gangsta rappers to his otherwise elegant stage. It was then that we witnessed what kind of showmen Dre and Snoop would be as they hit the stage in a '63 lowrider Impala, hit some switches and proceeded to rip "Nuthin but a G-Thang Baybay!!!" It was off the chain and a technological marvel at that time that had tongues wagging for weeks.....

Now when we examine the Coachella performance, we really see an entire show that was full of technological wizardry and bigtime firepower. And yes. Snoop and Dre served their body of work - hit after hit, but we would be remiss if we did not celebrate the performances of Eminem, 50 Cent Wiz Khalifa and more. This concert set was fantastic to say the least! You can enjoy it below.

At Coachella this weekend, we witnessed the unimaginable. Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre resurrecting Tupac. They performed together and interacted right there live onstage at Coachella. Now THAT's gangsta!!!

Easter Morning Contemplations

As millions did, I went to church today. I attend church every Sunday. So today was nothing out of the ordinary except that it was Easter. And needless to say, church was packed!! You know how it is on Easter Sunday. All those folk who never come to worship except for a Sunday just as this. Attendance is always to the rafters on Easter Sunday. And oh boy... the saints... my people... looking down their noses at those newcomers. Sniggling under their breath about how those folk are hypocritical.... how those folk turn service into a fashion show. Their new outfits. Their extreme couture.... The essence of church fashion is intensified on Easter Sunday. But why do we point and criticize? why do we care if those folk come on Easter? Why interrupt our contemplation of this most sacred observance to roll our eyes at those who are visiting today? Why is it a problem for us? Sure. those folk could be here on other days. Sure they didnt have to come just today. But the point is that they came. As we consider the Last Supper, didnt Jesus leave final instruction to love one another? Why dont we take an opportunity to show love. Isnt the lesson learned today concerning Jesus sacrificing his life for our sins? If so, then these visitors have had their sins forgiven just like we have. They cannot be judged. Nor should they be. They should be given more reason to come back more often. They should feel that they too are part of the church family.                                                                                                                                                            Now, as I drive around the city after church I cant help but notice the hundreds of souls who did not make it to worship.  I see and hear those who did not hear the good news. I see the lost. the hurt, the sick. What of them? Do we look down on them too? Or do we take the example of Jesus and express love to them. Do we share the news of the resurrection with those who seemingly have not heard it? To not do so is to disobey Jesus final instructions before He submitted himself to the agony of the Crucifixion and the glory of Resurrection.  If we are to follow the instruction of Jesus.... if we are to understand the notion of this holy time.... if we call ourselves Christians, then this holiday, is an opportunity to love those who are new to the word.... to minister to the lost..... to lift up those who have lost hope... those who are sick (by His stripes we are healed).... it is not the time to criticize.... because wasnt it criticism and hateration that got Jesus nailed to the cross in the first place?

Contemplations of Trayvon

By now, you have heard about the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. Trayvon, 17 years old, walking through a gated community in pouring rain and wearing a hoodie, is followed, confronted and ultimately shot and killed by George Zimmerman. George was the neighborhood watch captain for the area who, as he observed Trayvon moving through the community, felt suspicious- so suspicious that he called 911. Against the counsel of the 911 operators, Zimmerman follows- no, stalks and hunts down the young man. Somehow a struggle ensues and in the end, an unarmed, innocent teenager is dead. Shot at close range by an overzealous neighborhood watchman.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        As I contemplate this tragedy, I realize that black males are an increasingly endangered species. Even as some have proclaimed that America is now a "post-racial society",  we are seeing an increase in race based violence. Even as we have placed a black man in the highest political office in the land, hatred, prejudice, racism is all around us. In the words of my late mother, "the more things change, the more they stay the same", a mantra she repeated time and again as she watched the progress of the Civil Rights Movement. The tragedy of Trayvon is a reflection of what is happening all over our nation. The worth of a black life is devalued even the more. And yes, when I look upon the image of Trayvon Martin, I know that he could be my son. My neighbor. My nephew. The youngster at church. One of my interns. Yes, As I look around the community, I see millions of Trayvons. It is sad but true that one could send their teen to the corner store and that young man may never return to the home alive.                                                                                                                                                      And so, the masses are in an uproar. Protest across the nation abound. We see the usual suspects - Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton et. al. making a stand for justice for Trayvon. Across the nation, folk are wearing hoodies. They are changing their facebook profile pics. The Hoodie is a national symbol of protest against racial profiling.. The entire Miami Heat Team took the court wearing hoodies. Congressman Bobby Rush wore a hoodie as he addressed that great body and was summarily reprimanded.                                                                                                                                         Yes. We want Justice for Trayvon.  But then what of the others? Those who have been wrongly killed by police? What about the more prevalent issue of black on black murder? Indeed, we are just as, if not more, dangerous to our own selves than any white man. There are thousands of unsolved murders in Los Angeles County involving black male vs. black male. What about Justice for them? Wheres the outrage for this aspect of violence against the black male? As we take to the streets and demand justice for Trayvon and others like him - as we demand and protest that a black life is valuable, not to be thrown away and discarded like a soiled napkin, why not demand justice for our own, killed by our own. As we demand respect for a black life, why don't we check ourselves and have respect for our own?  Justice for Trayvon? Absolutely. But we must look inward and demand justice for us.          "Just-Us."

                                                                                                                                

Mitt Romney: Contemplations of Mormonism

I remain intrigued by the candidacy of Mitt Romney for President of the United States. My curiosity is centered on his faith. He is a Mormon. I cant help but notice that no one even whispers a protest against his faith. I mean, there are so many people questioning President Obamas faith. So then why not question Mitts faith. For many years Mormons had a consciousness of prejudice based on the belief that being black is the mark of Cain. Mormons once held that blacks could not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven because they fought against God in a heavenly war and their souls were cast down to earth doomed to a life on abasement...  Now even as the Mormons received a revelation that this perspective is not good nor true, I cant help but wonder how many Mormons still hold this belief deep in their hearts. After all, this doctrine was hammered in by pastors, elders, Sunday school teachers, parents, grandparents... everybody. Is it that easy to overturn in their hearts? I attended a high school with a fair amount of Mormons students. I participated in choir, the Madrigal singers, actually all things musical. The pianist of our choir stepped to me one day to inform me that she was a Mormon and that "your people will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven because the color of your skin is a curse from God"... I was flabbergasted. Her statement was everything against that which my momma, dad, grandma, grandpa, pastor, dads friends, cousins... shoot everybody believed with all their heart and soul. That is we are going to heaven!!! To make matters worse, the girl repeated the statement in my high school senior yearbook. I have to this day. And what of the Mormon belief in polygamy.Isn't this against the moral folkways of our nation? And in fact against the law? Wouldn't it be something if multiple wives in the Mormon tradition began to surface during Mitts quest for the Presidency? lol!! Im just saying. If the essence of ones faith is a prerequisite for the Presidency of these United States, then why not make Mitt answer questions about his Mormon religion. Are Mormons even Christian? Im just sayin... For more introspect, check out this vid I posted 4 years ago during Mitts last run for the Republican nomination