Daily Dose: 12/7/17
Finally, justice in the killing of an unarmed black person
5:23 PMWhat’s up, kiddos. We’re just a couple of weeks from the big day if you celebrate Christmas, which means that you’re getting down to the wire if gifts are of importance to you. Check out this site for the baseball fan in your life.
PSA: when someone starts making these hand gestures at you … never mind, it’s already too late … pic.twitter.com/lsn5r06DDI
— Damon Jones (@nomadj1s) December 6, 2017
Michael Slager is going to prison, which in itself is news. The former North Charleston, South Carolina, police officer who shot and killed an unarmed black motorist back in 2015 will serve 20 years in prison, which is incredible. Why? Because typically when this happens, the officer goes free, if charges are even brought. In some cases, the officer doesn’t even get fired and in the worst case, the officer even gets the matter scrubbed from his or her record. But, Slager was convicted and a video of the matter from a bystander definitely played a huge part. Justice.
Minnesota Sen. Al Franken has resigned. The comedian-turned-politician who’s been accused of sexual misconduct by various women stood before Congress today and offered a speech that didn’t feel particularly apologetic. He basically said that every woman who came forward was lying and the only reason he was stepping down is because his reputation has been ruined and thus he could no longer be an effective lawmaker. Dudes gonna dude, I guess. He definitely made sure to mention President Donald Trump and Senate hopeful Roy Moore on the way out, though.
Every year, Sports Illustrated puts out a swimsuit issue. Its existence has been the source of much controversy over the years, mainly over the concept of its existence at all. But it’s also been the launching pad for quite a few models who have gone on to superstardom. Tyra Banks is one who comes to mind. But in general, we don’t always see a whole ton of women of color in those spaces. So, on a recent trip overseas, one sorority decided to do something about that. Presenting: Melanin Illustrated.
I’m not sure what LaVar Ball is doing anymore. When it came to his son Lonzo, he did his best to make him as well-known as possible, a situation that led to him being drafted No. 2 overall by the Los Angeles Lakers. But with younger sons LiAngelo and LaMelo, things have gone awry, to be very honest. Gelo got caught stealing overseas. Melo stopped going to high school. Now, he’s signed them both to an agent, with the purpose of getting them to play on the same team. I’m not sure I understand why he’s so obsessed with this notion.
Free Food
Coffee Break: Ummm … apparently the United States is borderline considering not playing in the next Winter Games, for reasons that are loosely valid, politically. It feels extra weird that the White House would imply that we won’t play, considering what just happened to Russia, but hopefully this doesn’t come to fruition.
Snack Time: This NBA 2K eSports League is going to be awesome. Especially now that teams are unveiling their own facilities to field squads. The Sacramento Kings are the latest to join the bunch.
Dessert: Roland Martin’s TV One morning show was canceled. Definite bummer.
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 12/6/17
Craig Melvin rumored to be up for ‘Today’ show gig
5:25 PMBack at it on television Wednesday, folks, so tune in to ESPN at 5 p.m. for Around The Horn. Going for my second win in a row, so we’ll see if it happens! But speaking of Around The Horn, our new Advent Calendar is out, and I got to be a part of it!
Our ATH Holiday Advent Calendar continues today, as @clintonyates shares a seasonal tradition that he hopes you will try this year.
We'll continue with a video a day, from each member of our ATH family, so stay tuned! #ATHAdvent pic.twitter.com/DcHN7nxRpv
— Around The Horn (@AroundtheHorn) December 6, 2017
Time magazine has named its Person of the Year. It’s the women of the #MeToo movement, the hashtag started to call attention to sexual harassment and assault across the globe. This has been the year that this country has apparently started to take this matter seriously, with men losing their jobs all over the place, for good reason. In a very weird way, though, this feels a bit disingenuous because last year’s person of the year was … Donald Trump, who has admitted to sexual assault on a few occasions.
Every once in a while, some people come up with really good ideas. Craig Melvin replacing Matt Lauer on the Today show would absolutely qualify as such. I’ve been a fan of Melvin ever since he was on NBC4 here in Washington, D.C., and his wife Lindsay Czarniak used to work for ESPN (as well as with him at the local station, where they met). If he makes this jump, it’ll be a great way to recover for NBC as Melvin is not only deserving, but also very well-liked. We’re really hoping this happens.
Right now, wildfires are destroying the greater Los Angeles area. These kinds of natural disasters happen with some regularity, but the pictures from today are truly mind-boggling. I’ve genuinely never seen anything like this in my life, and if I did, I don’t know how I’d just continue driving like nothing was wrong. This stuff is next-level scary and it feels like a movie just looking at it. Alas, those flames are on a path of damage and shutting down operations all over the area. Including the UCLA basketball game.
Shocking video shows wildfire raging next to highway full of early-morning commuters in Los Angeles. https://t.co/sbp5JvADBh pic.twitter.com/3qK5KLmO8k
— ABC News (@ABC) December 6, 2017
The NFL is all over the place right now. They’re suspending dudes for head hits, then not suspending others and none of it seems to make much sense at all. If you’re going to say that hits to the head are a priority, but allow guys to get away with WWE moves after plays, the message you’re sending is that you, in fact, don’t care. Now, the guy responsible for handling a lot of this, the commissioner of the league, has signed a new contract to the tune of $40M a year. No word on the private plane or lifetime health care for his family.
Free Food
Coffee Break: Jordan Peele has had an incredible year. After the success of Get Out, he’s basically become Hollywood’s go-to scary movie guy, which is cool. Now, he’s on board to reboot The Twilight Zone, which is a brilliant move for CBS.
Snack Time: Y’all gotta get your girl Rachel Dolezal. Homegirl has a new calendar out for 2018, with photos of her in various states of dress and some black history facts thrown in. What on earth??
Dessert: There are emergencies. Then there are EMERGENCIES.
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 12/5/17
Willie Taggart heads to FSU
6:06 PMWhat up, gang? Tuesday was a TV day again, so do check out Around The Horn at 5 p.m. on ESPN.
Me and my bro @TPAIN now are y’all happy lol 😂 pic.twitter.com/aoHv45yGLX
— Lil Rel Howery (@LilRel4) December 5, 2017
Rep. John Conyers is going to retire. The Democratic congressman from Michigan, who is facing multiple allegations of sexual misconduct, said his exit is effective immediately, but he is endorsing his son to fill his seat. It sort of feels like there should be rules against that kind of thing, but, alas, that’s what’s happening. Elsewhere in politics, the GOP is now back to supporting Senate candidate Roy Moore of Alabama, who is accused of having relationships with underage girls over the years. Guess that presidential endorsement was worth something.
If you smoke weed and live in New Jersey, good news! The Garden State is planning on legalizing recreational marijuana, thanks to huge wins by the Dems across the ballot last month. The state is no stranger to tourism, so this could end up being a huge boon for a place that’s suffered all kinds of issues over the years after natural disasters. It’s not going to be easy to get off the ground, but when it does, you can bet this is going to be an extremely popular thing to do.
LaVar Ball continues to be a legend. Look, whether you agree with his decision to pull his son LiAngelo out of UCLA, his public appearances continue to be epic. This morning, he appeared on CNN with Chris Cuomo again, this time with a roaring fireplace behind him at 6 in the morning, looking like he was about to belt out a holiday tune, which he then kind of did. Anyway, Ball wants his son to at least be able to develop as a ballplayer, which UCLA wasn’t letting Gelo do because of his indefinite suspension.
Looks like Florida State is going to have a black head coach. After Jimbo Fisher took off for Texas A&M, leaving that program in a bit of a lurch, they found a guy who’d once coached in Florida before. His name is Willie Taggart, and he’s coming from Oregon. Thing is, so many guys have changed jobs over the past month that who knows what’s a good gig anymore in college football? Basically, everyone is chasing Dabo Swinney and Nick Saban, and it doesn’t appear that anyone else is really in the running.
Free Food
Coffee Break: Have you seen the latest viral online challenge? Most of these are pretty ridiculously boring, but the invisible box challenge is excellent. You know you’ve got a good one when the failures are as good as the people who do it right.
Snack Time: When I was a kid, Mega Man was a great game. But there hasn’t been a version of the Capcom game to come out in eight years. Now they’ve got a new one on deck, and it looks AWESOME.
Dessert: If I’m still breaking it down like this when I’m this old, I’ll have done something right.
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 12/4/17
Lakers institute LaVar Ball rule
3:15 PMWhat up, gang? Hope your weekend went well. I’m talking to a group of schoolchildren about journalism Monday afternoon, which always makes me happy. It’s fun to give back.
https://twitter.com/JemiSHaaaZzz/status/937475953940484096
It’s clear that President Donald Trump and his people don’t think the rules apply to him. Literally. After Trump tweeted about Michael Flynn, who admitted that he lied to the FBI, many felt he was unintentionally admitting that he obstructed justice. Basically, he said he fired Flynn because he lied, which is not really how that’s supposed to work. Then, Trump’s lawyer told the media that it’s not possible for the president to obstruct justice, which is absolutely not how any of this works, at all.
For many school districts across America, parents make tough choices. There are private schools, which are costly and come with their own set of issues that provide families with difficult decisions but typically a higher level of education. Then there are public schools, which in quite a few cases are simply the default — and not always the best environment for learning. There are also charter schools, which provide somewhat of an in-between, but some come with a huge downfall: They are often operated in a fundamentally racist manner.
The fallout from Matt Lauer’s firing at NBC continues. Because he was such a big personality at the Today show, the story basically can’t go away. He also was a major part of their Christmas tree lighting ceremony in New York, which is always one of the biggest productions of the year for the network. They tried to re-edit that show as to not include him in the final on-air product, which is not easy. Now, they’re also basically deleting his entire existence from the history of the building, which is drastic but necessary.
LaVar Ball continues to rack up haters. His behavior in the media and at the Staples Center, where the Los Angeles Lakers play, has motivated the team to act. After he basically ripped the entire organization for how they coach the team, they’ve decided to institute a rule that says media members can’t talk to friends and family of players after games. Why they think this somehow is going to silence one of the loudest mouths in America, I don’t know.
Free Food
Coffee Break: Whatever happens to Rob Gronkowski probably won’t be enough. His hit Sunday in Buffalo, New York, on a Bills player after the whistle was one of the dirtiest things I’ve ever seen. He should be suspended for the rest of the regular season and the playoffs. He’ll probably get one game.
Snack Time: The Army-Navy game is coming up Saturday, and both teams will have extremely fire unis on. Check out Army. And here’s Navy.
Dessert: If you’re not worried about net neutrality, you should be.