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Sure, I'd even be willing to bet most American's would have no clue what you are talking about if you mentioned email server in connection with Hillary. Depending upon the bias of the media you consume the email server is a non issue, or warrants prosecution. Ultimately it is a non issue since the government has already adjudicated the issue. Why bring it up now?

I wonder why they did not call it, "Hyde Park with You?" Looks like a cute love story though. I'm surprised I had not heard of this film before now. Good thing the Black swimmers have a cap on --otherwise Black Twitter would trash them too. We'd have more champion swimmers if our sisters were not so worried about their hair. The Olympics is racing toward irrelevancy with the doping scandals, politics, the adverse impact on the hosting nations, and Gabby's hair, it does not seem to be worth the effort. The world championships in each sport if good enough.

Well this is the flavor of the month for mainstream publishing. The twist of it being an actual subway might lend and interesting twist. I shouted the book out simply because Oprah praised it and it has been a minute since she has done this for a novel. Of course my cynical side suggested that I ignore the book, in favor of other important novels that can use the attention. Colson Whitehead's latest novel has gotten a ton of press as a result of Oprah, they don't need AALBC.com or the Black community for that matter. Our promotion of the book is taken for granted I also find it hard to image that Oprah has invested so much time, money and personal energy in promoting this novel just because she likes it. While I doubt it was your intent @harry brown, you've forced me to think a bit more deeply about given this title free promotion. This will be the last time that I promote an Oprah selection for free. There are too many other novelist that can benefit.

I don't think Trump supporters are just one thing that are capable of being described with a broad brush. Some I'm sure are just as you've described them, some are rabid racists, and others just want America to live up to it's potential. This is why I'm not so willing to reduce his supporters to racist idiots. Similarly I'm not willing to raise Hillary supporters to enlightened people... The results of the election will be interesting. I think the odds are that Hillary will prevail, but it will be interesting to see how many people come out to vote, who they select, and what happens as a result. I look forward to your commentary four years from now--either way.

A quarter of the Maywood residents voted against Barack Obama in the last election. This is an increase over the 2008 election. I wonder if the same significant portion of Maywood residents of Maywood (76% of whom are Black, and only 3% are white) would support Trump over Hillary, and if so, why? I don't think it can all be explained by a desire to be assholes...

Cynique, shared with us a picture of her childhood from 80 years ago. It was an idyllic picture of an America--during the Great Depression no less. When Donald Trump says "Lets Make America Great Again," what his supporters hear is a return to a time when kids can grow up like Cynique did. Black people like to interpret this to mean Trump wants Black people enslaved again. Today the white community is being ravished by a heroin epidemic; millions have lost their homes due to crooked Wall Street bankers; good paying jobs, for those without a college degrees have dried up; and those with a college degree struggle to find meaningful work that pays enough to get them out the oppressive debt they have piled on to attend schools which are really overpriced minor leagues for the NBA and NFL. White men are committing suicide at record numbers. Of course when white folks catch a cold... I'm not sure what percentage of Black folks, 80 years ago, grew up; without fear of violence; free of economic strife; and educated well; and how that compared to the way Cynique grew up. I bet the comparison was not favorable. I wonder what the percentage would be today. Does anyone think is has changed from 80 years ago? People want to go back to the way things were, but that is impossible, and for many Black Americans it would not be desireable.

I love you too Cynique. Happy birthday and may you have many more! I'm not sure what I'll do without you in this corner of the web... The book of your musings will come to fruition one day. If you don't get to see it your progeny will. Your presence here has touched many folks. Peace Your post made me think about something, but I'll share it in another conversation so that I do not to corrupt the positive spirit your message.

I agree, I saw Gabby's hair and I knew the feral children out there in social media would probably have a field day. I thought this lesson was learned four years ago... Media who give a crap about Black people would either ignore it or identify it for the stupidity it is. I guess the morons on "Black Twitter" would be happy if Gabby's hair was exactly like some little white girl, in a artificially relaxed ponytail... This is why so many Black girls avoid sports like the plague--they are too worried about messing up their hair! Black Twitter: Dissing Black women while enriching white men

I drove from Hilton Head, NC to Tampa Fl yesterday and I learned about Gabby being ridiculed on the radio by what was described as "members of Black Twitter." I know Gabby is relatively young, but she is far from a child and has to know these comments have nothing to do with her. These people are childish and mean. They don't know Gabby. If Gabby actually burst into tears as a result of reading something on Twitter then she needs needs to stay off the platform. Gabby, noone, deserves to be treated the way she has been. The notion that this treatment is an understandable consequence of being a successful athlete is sick. Now it would be impossible for her ignore the negativity hurled her way, this is how Twitter makes money providing a platform for trolls. The rest of the media spreads the nonsense because it makes money for them too. The fact that we continue to support a business whose model is to serve as a platform to regularly demean Black women betrays collective weakness as a people.

Pioneer the article was written for other academics, but anyone with a college education should be able to follow it. But given the state of education in the U.S. I can understand that it would be over the heads of most Americans. Of course the study was picked up by the media and summarized, but I usually don't focus on these pieces as sometimes the conclusions they draw, or inferences they make, don't follow from what was actually published in the study. For example, I don't see why you say they "lumped" news conspiracy theories and rumors. Maybe that was mentioned in one of the articles, but that was not done in the study.

Cynique I can't think of a reason why Pioneer can post a photo and you can't. Which browser/version (look in the browser menu and select help or about) and what operating system are you using? If you are using Chrome maybe it would just be easier to remotely access your computer and show you what to do.

@Cynique, did you ever sort out the image posting problem?

Yes, Virginia, Black or white, we are all being manipulated. As with anything else, there is a broad range in the impact this manipulation has on individuals. The some of the most severely impacted people, as previously discussed, never change an opinion, rejecting any new information, no matter how factual, that conflicts with what they already believe, while embracing supporting information, no matter how outlandish. Of course social media, and the media in general, tends to exaggerate this; which has more profound implications on the broader society (example: Donald Trump). People are complex and wear masks. What we know about others is a combination what they choose to show us and and how we perceive it--which usually is very different than what the person is actually like. Some people don't even understand their own motivations; they just react and do what others say, with out taking a split second to reflect... In the case of the outwardly confident "ghetto sistas," unconcerned about their weight loud and flamboyant; I've know a few over the years. If you get to know one or two you might discover their outward appearance could be a shield, a facade to help protect them from the hurt our culture heaps on them relentlessly. They may actually care more about their weight that they would ever let on. I've driven at least 1/2 a million miles and have been pulled over more times than I can remember. Most recently, about 18 months ago, for two moving violations in Harlem. I went to court because the citations were bogus. The officer presented first, and blatantly LIED about what I did. indeed the circumstances of my situation would have made, what he described, impossible. A good attorney would have probably gotten me off based upon this, but I was unprepared for the officer to lie and offered a less than optimal defense. The judge threw out one of the offenses and reduced the other. I wanted to fight even reduced penalty, but it would have cost me more time and money so I paid the fine and took the 2 points against an otherwise clean license. I say this to say there are MANY Black men sitting in jail because of similar situations. You can get arrested just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. You can end up in jail waiting for a trial simply because you don't have any money for bail. You ultimately accept a plead deal, because you want to get out of jail, and don't have the resources to mount a real defense. So you take the charge to get out of jail, but now you have a record. You don't have to be a criminal to have a record, just Black and poor. Of course you'll now be perceived as a menace by the larger society, and your self esteem is shot because you've essential become unemployable unable to escape a life of poverty The real problem in our culture is that few of have any real sympathy for each other, because we can see beyond the sound byte or the meme. Personally this is one reason I don't watch a lot of TV and don't really do social media. Once piece of advice I got long before the rise of social media is, "If you don't have nine sources of information you are being lied to."

Well @Pioneer1, what is your verdict in this case? Are you suggesting that these folks are trying to mislead people with facts? The really fascinating thing about the arguments presented here is that they illustrate the very essence of the article.

Cynique, I did not come to learn about the so called Black elite until I was an adult. All of the groups you mentioned, "civic and political groups, Masons, Eastern Stars, an American Legion Post, social organizations and clubs," were completely beyond my world view. I remember the first time I learned about Black Greek letter organizations--I was a freshman in college... I did not learn about Jack and Jill, the Links, or Boule until I was out of college. I did not know a Black teacher, lawyer, doctor, or engineer growing up. I barely knew anyone with a car, and I did not know anyone who owned the place in which they lived. Sure we had the Black church growing up, and I went most Sundays growing up. But other than the singing I hated every minute of it. I could not wait to get outta there, change my clothes and go outside to play. So the church was not exactly and influence for me growing up, and my pastor was Rev. Dr. Wyatt Tee Walker Compared to the kids coming up after me I had it pretty good... ...it got worse, as as drugs were introduced into the community, which brought violence and crime. Then they started locking people up like there was no tomorrow. Some of the younger kids from my neighborhood gained some notoriety, like the Central Park Five. They were more the rule than the exceptions. Of course this helped destroy the nuclear family in communities like mine. By the time I went to college most of the youngsters I knew, grew up without their fathers--if they knew them at all. As far as hip-hop is concerned the art form itself is great, it was the commercialization of hip-hop if that destroyed it and, I firmly believe, helped weaken the black community as well. I say all this Cynique to say there are many people who see women like the character Leslie plays every day (and as Pioneer suggests Leslie may indeed be one of them). Sure they see the Michelle Obama's of the world, but they are on TV and may as well be on Mars for as much influence they'll exert on the lives of most folks. Saturday Night Live, Hip-hop music, and the culture as a whole reinforces the Leslie Jones archetype. Michelle is just an exception. It is probably a lot worse out here than you might think...

I just added the the event you attended to the site: https://aalbc.com/events/index.php?st=California#SDSU+Writers%26rsquo%3B+Conference The personality of events are just like people. Some events I really like and others get on my nerves, because they constrain the growth and even hurt themselves because they alienate people. I think events reflect the sensibilities of their organizers. Book festivals and fairs are completely different animals than conferences. I think conferences, who usually charge, are more likely to generate a feeling of intimidation especially among newbies. The BWABC is taking place in Memphis next month. There are going to be 100 authors in attendance. These are the types of events I like to do, there are not too many events where you'll encounter 100 Black authors, actively promoting their books in one place ;-)

I hear you Cynqiue. As a Black person in America, I'd be the first person to admit, that it is really hard not to believe a lot of the craziness flying around the internet. So when people are convinced that vaccines cause Autism I get it-- we all know about the Tuskegee "experiments." As we watch wealth inequality grow and witness first hand Black people be shot for no good reason, who would not believe in the Illuminati or some other cabal of white folks trying to control the world and rid it of Black people? Our course I could go on an on from climate change denial, to your typical internet hoax, to George Bush blowing up the World Trade Center, all the Jews staying home, no airplane debris at the pentagon, and thousands of Muslims cheering while the towers fell... Why wouldn't people believe this?

I just upgraded this widget to include a full year of events. Many of the events have not updated their websites, but they usually take place during the same time of the year so I have updated our Events Calendar to reflect this. I also updated the widget to work on secure (https) websites. As I was updating the events calendar I noticed a couple of book fairs decided to call it quits. One, The Blue Ridge Bookfest, gave three primary reason for stopping, which I will share in a separate conversation.

While updating my Book Fair Events Calendar, I was surprised to discover several book festivals have ended The Blue Ridge Bookfest, called it quits after 8 years provided three main reasons for ceasing their book festival: Attendance has not lived up to expectations. The public seems less interested in meeting authors than in the early years. Internet, e-books and audio books have grown strong. Donor and sponsor funding have declined while the expense of bringing in authors has increased. The financial gap grew each year. The event did not charge admission. Volunteers have not come forward in sufficient numbers. The Buffalo Small Press Book Fair ran from 2007 to 2016, but it appeared to be successful and the organizer apparently just decided to "move on." These are two that have definitely ended but several others are likely to end, simply because they has already passed their anniversaries and they have not updated their websites, or their websites are down altogether. The First Read Expo is an event I participated in last year, and actually hoped to participate in this year, but their domain has expired, and I'm unable to reach the organizer. Maybe they will come back in 2017. Of course some of the remaining festivals are struggling. But fortunately, there are many fairs that are thriving. Do you go to book festivals? If so, which ones do you enjoy?

Of course you are right about the typos--thanks for pointing it out, again. Hrad as I mghti tyr ti si dfiflcut ot eidt my onw wirhtging, btu yod'u be rsupsrided how mcuh cna be cmomnucitade dseipet typos. But it is one of my weaknesses and while I'm not really sweating typos on the forum, it is an issue in general. Cynique, it is still not clear to me why you keep asserting that people are not being bamboozled when there is so much evidence to the contrary. We all agree that social media helps bad information circulate more quickly, but when consider the fact that today we have easier access to better information than ever before, but we are much less informed. Better access to more information and we we worse off...

Hi Anita, I just added this event to our events page. Does this event have a website?

Perhaps it is wishful thinking on my part, but time will tell Bruh--and you heard it here first

@Cynique, lets just say that the article reminded me of our conversation, and forget any of the ideas I attributed to you. However, I'll address what you just wrote. I do not think Facebook reflects Black culture in the least. At best it is a caricature of it. I agree everyone "fronts" on Facebook--more so that they would in real life. In terms of faking opinions regarding the election, what do you think about the impact of trolls, which the research paper discussed? People consume information created by trolls in the same fashion that they consume real news. People use troll generated information to substantiate a beliefs--even if they are exposed to real information. In my mind, the question is not really about the opinions of folks, but how those opinions are arrived at and how Facebook serves to reinforces their opinion whether they are based in truth or not; or whether they are fronting or not. These articles explain this research more clearly, in layman's terms. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/q-a-walter-quattrociocchi-digital-wildfires/ http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0118093 @CD Burns, sure social Facebook helps spread false information more quickly, a propaganda is nothing new. But if I understand you correctly, it sounds like you are suggesting that someone, using the same data, could have easily written a paper with opposing information? It also sounds like you are dismissing the impact of social media, essentially saying that any impact is only marginally different than what we've experienced in the past. Am I reading you correctly?

"Digital misinformation has become so pervasive in online social media that it has been listed by the WEF (World Economic Forum) as one of the main threats to human society." You can read the research report here. Don't be put off by the formulas and graphs; you can get the gist by simply reading the opening paragraph and the conclusions. @Cynique, I just stumbled across this article looking for something else and it make me think out you regarding our conversation about using Facebook to assess public opinion. I cautioned you against doing this because of the echo chamber effect of the platform. This research speaks to this effect. It also talks about how difficult it is to change ones opinion as a result; whether it the belief in vaccines causing autism or denying the climate change. It is pretty interesting stuff.

...at least for now. About a month ago I reported that at the current rate, referral traffic from social media this year, was on track to exceed the referral traffic from all previous years combined. Since Facebook is such a substantial portion of all of my social media traffic can effectively use "Facebook" and "Social Media" interchangeably. Well traffic from Facebook for the first 8 months of 2016 has already exceeded traffic generated during all the previous years combined! I decided to stop using Facebook to promote AALBC.com, because my organic reach was declining despite a growing fan base and daily active engagement. Now in 2016, after I taking my Facebook usage to the bare minimum; my referral traffic hits record levels?! I believe the increase is traffic to AALBC.com from Facebook is the result of one or more algorithms changes designed to increasing social sharing on their platform. The benefit to AALBC.com while relatively substantial is almost certainly short lived and certainly nothing to bank on. The algorithm change may have also been designed to get me to engage more on their platform, in an attempt to increase the traffic. Well I can tell you right now, there is no incentive for me to got back to actively engaging on Facebook again. I learned my lesson. The free time I've gained by eliminating Facebook engagement, has allowed me to grow AALBC.com's traffic much more substantially than I ever could have through Facebook. This might sound extreme, but I believe Facebook has already peaked, and is on a decline. You traders out there, short FB.