Black in America

CNN has truly impressed me.

Their long running documentary entitled Black in America takes a real unfiltered look at racism in America today; an examination that many other media outlets conveniently remain oblivious to.

I recently watched part of the documentary for the first time and was shocked and pleased by the blunt style in which they portray the facts.

I highly recommend that anyone interested in race relations watch this.

Rupert Murdoch Apologizes

On Feb. 24, Rupert Murdoch, chairman of the New York Post, issued an apology for the controversial cartoon that many people found racist.

According to a CNN article, Murdoch responded saying "I can assure you -- without a doubt -- that the only intent of the cartoon was to mock a badly written piece of legislation."

Despite the fact that the NAACP has called for the cartoons creator to be fired, Murdoch made no mention of such a motion.

Although it was an apology that needed to be made, it seems to me as though it was done for public relations purposes rather than for true regret of poor judgement.

If he really was apologetic, he would have fired the cartoonist, or perhaps the editor who neglected to see the racist correlation.

The First Lady Plays a Role Too

It's not just President Obama and his administration that play a role in revamping America's image in America and across the world.

The First Lady Michelle Obama represents a significant figure in the cause as well, and she hasn't wasted any time getting involved and trying to make a difference.

Just a few days ago she opened the doors of the White House to young children and spoke to them about the meaning of Black History Month.

It will be interesting to see how she changes the role of the First Lady.

Our Image Abroad

CNN political analyst Bill Shneider wrote an article today entitled "Obama Begins Repairing America's Image Abroad."

He feels like the job has begun, but the road ahead is very long and arduous. President Obama just recently traveled to Canada where he was bombarded by throngs of citizens who wanted a chance to meet him.

Canada never hated us, so this isn't a huge step forward, but it is a start.

The true test of improving America's image will be, in my opinion, successfully ending the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and coming to terms with the entire Middle East.

But I'll take what we've gotten thus far.

Nation of Cowards?

The very first black Attorney General, Eric Holder, controversially made the comment that he thought regarding racial matters, America has been a "nation of cowards," according to an article published by the Associated Press. The above photo is courtesy of the AP.

As one would expect, the comment was not very well received.

For all of those under the facade that racism is officially over given that we have a black president now, this must have been pretty offensive.

Was it a politically smart thing to say? Probably not, in fact, definitely not. Is it true? It's debatable. What isn't up to interpretation, however, is the fact that racism is still alive and well in our society.

Holder should have just framed what he wanted to say in more politically sensitive way.

President Obama's picture taken down?

This past Presidents Day, President Obama's picture was taken off of a sign at Peterson Airforce Base.

The justification was that people complained that "the image did not fit the holiday commemorating the birthdays of past presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln" according to The Gazette. (a small online paper based out of Colorado)

The head of the local chapter of the NAACP thinks it was a highly racist move, and I agree. Since when did we set the definition of Presidents Day as a commemoration of the birthdays of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln?

All my life, all throughout grade school, I was under the impression that Presidents Day was a day to commemorate those who have boldly represented our great nation. A birthday never had anything to do with it.

Emerging New Foreign Policy

An article entitled "The Emerging Obama Foreign Policy," published on the Stratfor Global Intelligence website analyzes some of the expectations facing America's new president.

Published just a few days ago, the article takes a real look at America stance on foreign policy, past and present.

The author, Rodger Baker, writes "Whereas Bush often was portrayed as a unilateralist “cowboy,” constantly confronting others and never listening to allies (much less competitors), it was thought that Obama somehow would remake America into a nation that withheld its military power and instead confronted international relations via consultations and cooperation"

He addresses what seems to be a recurrent belief that President Obama's cooperative approach towards foreign policy would be more productive than Bush's cutthroat ideals.

Clinton Helps The Cause Too

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton traveled for the first time since being appointed this past week as well. She toured countries in Asia meeting with world leaders and solidifying her new position.

According to Time.com, Clinton will travel to Egypt for an international conference to discuss the unsettling situation in Gaza.

This photo, courtesy of Time.com, shows the excitement that some Asians felt to meet part of President Obama's administration.

All Smiles in Canada

They spoke about everything from NAFTA to the controversial stimulus plan. President Obama's first trip outside of the U.S was to Ottawa on Feb. 19.

According to Time on CNN.com, (photo courtesy of CNN.com) the meeting was all smiles and very constructive.

It's not Iraq, but it is certainly a good start to revamping America's relationship with other countries.

Racist or Newsworthy?

The Rev. Al Sharpton and CNN's Roland Burris cringed at one NY Post cartoonists idea of comedy.

Many feel as though the chimpanzee in the comic rubs African Americans the wrong way, reminiscent of America's slavery days and the primordial comparison between black people and monkeys.

According to CNN.com, the cartoon's creator claims it was an innocent and newsworthy reference to the deranged chimpanzee that had to be shot in Connecticut this past week.

Could they have chosen another animal for the cartoon? Perhaps.

World Economic Forum

On Feb. 1, Dateline Davos: Obama's World aired on CNN. Christianne Amanour assembled a panel of world leaders to discuss whether or not they believe that President Obama will change the world.



Kenyan Prime Minister said, when asked about Obama that "he said he was extending a hand of friendship to the rest of the world.



The French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner responded by saying "we want to work with President Obama."



When asked about President Obama, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki made it clear that Bush's ideals hurt America's image overseas by responding that "Mr. Obama should distinguish and introduce its differences with -- its policies with President Bush and which aspect he has differences with President Bush. We should know the approaches of President Obama. And we should know the differences between two gentlemen's approaches"



The world certainly seems hopeful about America's new president. It's a sense of hope that we can definitely use right now.