"Breaking News"

This is the new song titled "Breaking News" that has created controversy because some of his family members don't think the song is being sung by MJ. The vocals clearly sound like deceased "King of Pop" but unfortunately it sounds like a throw away song that Jackson never would've released on his own. Surely there have to be better songs that he recorded over the years that would create a quality product. Michael Jackson's musical legacy doesn't have to be tainted by releasing bad music.

Where There's Smoke With Cam Newton!

The timing of the allegations against Auburn quarterback Cam Newton are interesting. Surely they coincide with the fact that he's the leading Heisman Trophy candidate, but does have baggage going back to his days at the University of Florida. Allegations of cheating at Florida and requesting to be paid to attend Mississippi State have surfaced in the past two weeks that appear to have the intent to derail his run at the Heisman.

There's no question that a smear campaign has been orchestrated to taint Newton and his family. The NCAA and Auburn have been investigating the allegations, and Auburn seems satisfied that Newton is eligible to play football. There's definitely some smoke to the allegations, since Newton, nor his father want to address the allegations, simply saying they're in the past. The bottom line with the Cam Newton smear campaign and his eligibility is that if he hasn't accepted any money or gifts from anyone, then he should be clean. He and his father maybe did ask for money to attend Mississippi State, but at this point there's no proof that any money exchanged hands, which is totally different from the Reggie Bush fiasco.

Unnecessary Death of Bobby Tillman!

18 year-old Bobby Tillman attended what was intended to be a small house party in Douglasville, GA on Saturday evening. The party escalated to possibly as many 80 people and became out of control. According to reports, a female attendee hit a male attendee for some unknown reason. The male, choosing not to hit the female back, decided to hit the next male walking by who happened to be young Bobby. Upon being hit, Bobby was assaulted by more young men ultimately resulting in his death.

4 young men are now in jail being charged with Bobby Tillman's death. This is truly one of the truly unnecessary killings in recent memory. If this is an 18 and 19 year-old black male's mentality to hit another person without provocation, then the next generation is truly in trouble. Immediately 5 lives are gone, Tillman's mother has lost a son and this is not even considering what the owner's of the house that held the party is having to deal with in terms of future lawsuits.

A New Normal!

President Obama appeared on "60 Minutes" last night to discuss his emotional stability after the political "shellacking" that he took last Tuesday. Very interesting interview to say the least and The President vows to work with Republicans to prevent gridlock in policy making. One thing that the President said that stuck with me is that we may be in a "new normal" in terms of the economic structure of our country and employment. President Obama stated that he hopes that the new normal isn't company's doing more with less, satisfied that they will still make the same profits while expecting more from employees, which will prevent job creation.

The reality is that we're probably in a "new normal" from a employment perspective. Politics is often a dirty business, but business' look at bottom line numbers in terms of profits. The President can impact many things, however he can't force company's to hire when the company is operating efficiently and making desired profits. This philosophy puts most company's in the mode of simply replacing workers that they have to replace.

"Decoded"

Hip-hop mogul Jay-Z is releasing a new book titled "Decoded" on November 16. The book reads as a biography and decodes 36 of his classic songs. The New York Post previews the book, which appears to be fascinating and a must buy. The artist, aka Shawn Carter opens up about his past of dealing drugs, getting high with Biggie and getting the sample approval on "Hard Luck Life" from the Annie franchise.

Jay-Z is worth an estimated $450 million, and doesn't have to release a book recounting his life. His rags to riches story is a testament to hard work, maximizing talent and rising above adversity.

"It Feels Bad"

President Barack Obama had the tough job of meeting the press yesterday after taking the political beating of his life the night before. Democrats lost the House of Representatives, barely kept the Senate, and lost major swing states to elected Republican governors. The President took the hit stating that "It Feels Bad" that the policies that he's pushed in 2 years have been rejected by the electorate.

I've hoped that Obama would not be a one term president, but after Tuesday night, he's facing a major uphill battle to regain the presidency in 2012. His only hope now is to quickly turn around the economy and get unemployment in the 7-8% range. The crazy thing is that President Obama hasn't done a horrible job in my opinion, but perception is reality and reality hit him over the head Tuesday. How he responds will be interesting, but I suggest he place a call to the master politician, Bill Clinton. Clinton's demise was predicted after 1994 mid terms, but he moved to the center on policy and survived to serve another term.

Randy Moss Iverson!

Wide receiver Randy Moss Iverson was waived by the Minnesota Vikings yesterday, after another unproductive Sunday afternoon and 4 games of work with his new/former team. Moss Iverson's uninspired performances since being traded by his old team the New England Patriots has been baffling to say the least, and his praise of his old team Sunday after they defeated the Vikings clearly shows that Randy Moss Iverson left his heart in New England. Moss Iverson was fined by the NFL last week for not speaking to the media, and even went on one of his weird rants about not giving any more interviews except to himself.

Perhaps Randy Mosss Iverson is not the player that he once was, and is trying to convince us otherwise. With professional athletes, skills do diminish when we least expect it, and if Moss Iverson isn't careful, he may be playing football with his namesake in Turkey.

Maurice Lucas Dead at 58!

Maurice Lucas died yesterday after losing a battle with bladder cancer. He was only 58 years old. Lucas was Bill Walton's enforcer while playing power forward for the Portland Trail Blazers and was a member of their 1977 championship team. A very tough loss for the N.B.A family.

Poor, Hungry and Unhealthy!

The Philadelphia Inquirer is running a series on being poor, hungry and unhealthy in the city. We normally associate poverty with hunger, but living in poverty contributes to being unhealthy, with a direct correlation with obesity and diabetes because of the poor food choices that are made.

Our first lady is now making the rounds promoting healthy living, and honestly I haven't seen or heard any of her interviews, but poverty continues to be the one issue that has long term effects for any person trying to live a productive existence. Lack of access to fresh fruits and vegetables in poverty stricken areas has a direct impact on future heath.

Charlie, Kobe & Tiger!

Charlie Sheen was arrested Wednesday after going into a racial and profanity laced rage in a New York hotel according to the New York Daily News. Charlie went into a rage after 22 year-old Capri Anderson requested $12,000 before the 2 had sexual relations. Prior to this, the couple had smoked cocaine in the room. Charlie Sheen is the highest paid actor on television and has had numerous brushes with the law. America tried to tear down both Kobe Bryant and Tiger Woods for their indiscretions. We know that Kobe has fully recovered and headed towards Top 5 All-Time in the NBA, while Tiger had a rough year but could be seen smiling last night while attending the Orlando Magic basketball game. Neither man was broken down by the media deluge which is a testament to their will.

Charlie Sheen is not completely getting a pass in this situation, admittedly because he's a "bad boy." However, if he truly was spewing the N-word continuously because he didn't want to give Ms. Anderson $12,000, he should be held accountable by the media, fans and his employer.

LeBron's New Nike Commercial!

LeBron James unveiled his new Nike commercial this week, and played 2 games with his new team the Miami Heat. The Nike commercial takes jabs at his detractors, using the tag line "What Should I Do?" James' commercials are always entertaining, and this one is not any different, overall I give it a B+ grade. James' team, the Miami Heat have had mixed results, losing to the Boston Celtics and beating the Philly 76ers.

James has had 18 turnovers in his first 2 games, showing that the Heat experiment will be a work in progress. I think the Celtics will ultimately win the championship. The Heat just aren't big enough up front to compete with bigger teams in the league, but the season will be entertaining.

Juan Williams' Good Fortune After Being Fired By NPR!

In these times of economic uncertainty, and continued 10% unemployment, Juan Williams was fired Wednesday by NPR for comments that he made on "The O'Reilly Factor" stating that at times he feels uncomfortable when he sees Muslims in full in "full garb" when on airplanes. Williams was stating how he felt in the statement, but NPR felt that he was stating an opinion and not meeting the journalistic standards of the company. Williams, who appears the Fox News in various capacities promptly signed a 3 year $2 million contract with Fox yesterday.

Juan Williams is a best selling author and liberal commentator who regularly appears on "The O'Reilly Factor". Now Williams is not considered a "far left" liberal on most subjects, but he's a avid supporter of liberal issues and can hold his own with any conservative opponent. NPR's loss in Fox News' gain, and with this firing more people will be more aware of Williams and the contributions that he makes to fair journalism.

Kanye's Diamonds!

Kanye West is such a talented entertainer when he's on his game. One of the best rappers in hip-hop and a top producer. His achilles heel has always been his uninhibited personality that causes him to do things without thinking first. The Taylor Swift incident is an example, with the assistance of a few drinks. Kanye's all over the place now promoting his album slated to be released next month and a short form movie for his song "Runaway". If you pay close attention to him now, you can see that he's replaced the bottom row of his teeth with diamonds.

I'm not sure what made Kanye replace his teeth with diamonds, but I hope that he's not headed to a world that only he understands. Michael Jackson went into his own world and we lost him forever. It would be sad to lose the talented Mr. West the same way.

Does Seau Need To Play Again?

Yesterday we got word that former NFL player Junior Seau was arrested for felony domestic violence against his 25 year-old girlfriend and later his drove his SUV off a cliff in California. That's a lot of activity for anyone, and Seau is obviously having some issues in post retirement at 41. Seau told authorities that he fell asleep at the wheel, which appears to be plausible according to police, while drugs and alcohol don't appear to be factors in the crash.

Luckily for Seau he escaped the crash with minor injuries, but he's having some issues that get pronounced when you're a former NFL superstar. Seau won't be able to deal with his issues in private, with TMZ already all over the story. He can only hope that Deadspin doesn't come knocking at the door.

Obama's Change!

Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News writes a good article about what President Barack Obama is facing in 2 weeks when his real change will take place in the mid-term elections. Obama and the Democrats are about to have their clocks cleaned because people simple aren't buying the change that our President promised two years ago. Obama is traveling the country vigorously campaigning for his party, surely knowing that in 2 weeks he will be faced with the challenge of convincing an electorate that he deserves to keep his own job.

Bill O'Reilly Laughing All The Way To The Bank!

This is the clip of Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg walking off the set of "The View" yesterday when Bill O'Reilly, who is promoting his book "Pinheads and Patriots" made a statement that Muslims caused the destruction of 9/11. Behar and Goldberg objected to the statement and walked off the set, later returning.

During his show last night O'Reilly had what seemed to be a very mischievous grin on his face when discussing the incident. O'Reilly, who has the highest rated news show on cable continues to grin and smile all the way to the bank. This may be a cynical view, but America loves fireworks especially when people have opposing opinions. and O'Reilly is promoting a book.

What Does Randy Jackson Really Think?

Randy Jackson, Michael's baby brother went on Twitter this week stating his disappointment with his parents granting an interview to Oprah Winfrey. Randy stated that Winfrey would be the last person that Michael would want to to be around his children. Randy mentioned a show that Winfrey broadcasted on pedophilia during Michael's trial as a prime issue.

Randy Jackson is the Jackson brother that we've never heard from regarding his brother's death and legacy. Randy is also alleged to have been heavily involved in Michael's business dealings in his last years, so it would not be a stretch to assume that he was perhaps his closest family member in the end. I don't think a new Oprah interview will provide us with any new revelations regarding Michael Jackson or his children that we don't already know. With this being the last year of Oprah's show, it just seems a little exploitative on her part to rehash old wounds for the family.

What's Mark Richt Doing At UGA?

University of Georgia running back Caleb King became the 11th player arrested during this year's football season and all of the arrests really gives the appearance that coach Mark Richt has lost control of his football team. Now to be honest King was arrested after being in the car with his brother and having police run a check to discover that he had an outstanding warrant for failing to appear at a court date for a speeding ticket, but an arrest is an arrest. Also this is King's second arrest in 3 years since joining the team which is ridiculous.

The bottom line is that Coach Richt has to instill some discipline into his team. Having arrests on top of the team not performing well opens Richt up to all sorts of questions, and as the coach he's accountable for the team's performance on and off the field.

The President Campaigning Vigorously!

Despite low poll numbers and the perception that he's the worst President in our history, President Barack Obama has been campaigning vigorously throughout the country in hopes of duplicating Democratic voter turnout from two years ago when he was elected. Republicans are looking at victories throughout the country if poll numbers are any indication. It's interesting that Republican candidates are leading in polls regardless of the candidate's personal or financial issues. The resurgent tea party has been an unstoppable locomotive in terms of raising issues that are personal to conservative voters, and changed the political landscape from where it was 2 years ago.

President Obama has failed to get his message out in a clear and concise manner. The few clips that I've seen while he's been on the trail show him being reactionary to criticism. He appears more like a candidate than the President of the United States. It'll be interesting to see if he can get his previous mojo back. It's probably too late for the November elections, but our President needs to go back to his past successes and simply become more presidential.

Toni Braxton's Money Woes!

Toni Braxton was once a multi million selling artist who probably made millions as one of the top female R&B artists. Braxton even had a successful Las Vegas stint that was cut short by a heart condition. Unfortunately for Braxton, although she had insurance, the company states that because she had a preexisting condition that it wasn't going to cover the losses that resulted from her leaving the Vegas show. Now Braxton has been forced to file bankruptcy with debts that she states could be as high as $50 million. Braxton didn't write on any of the hits that she sang when she was with LaFace records, so she has no residual income when they're being played on the radio.

Artists such as Janet, Mariah and even Mary figured out that part of the music business a long time ago, so long past when they're careers are over, they still will be receiving paychecks. Too bad Braxton didn't ask for songwriting credit on those early hits that are getting played throughout the world. The music business is unforgiving if artists don't have the savvy to use it to their benefit.

Real Housewives Of The Scripted!

Bravo is stretching the Real Housewives franchise to it's limit at this point. "Real Housewives of Atlanta" debuted season 3 last night with the usual drama as NeNe and Dwight got into what seemed like a totally scripted argument over money that Dwight supposedly lent to NeNe's husband Greg. The funny part of the argument was Dwight tearing up the check, but nothing in the altercation seemed real. When the show initially premiered the cast seemed much more natural and spontaneous, but now almost everything in the show seems very scripted and planned.

I was really looking forward to watching the new season of Atlanta last night, but it left me wondering if anything on the show is the truth.

Will Fame Derail Bruno Mars?

Singer/songwriter Bruno Mars is one of the hottest artists at the moment. He currently has the #1 song in the country with "Just The Way You Are" but is facing felony cocaine charges after being arrested in Las Vegas last month. Mars, 24, releases his debut album "Doo-Wops & Hooligans" tomorrow, but it appears that he may be allowing the trappings of his new found fame to derail him his promising career.

The New Poverty!

The Charlotte Observer profiles the new face of poverty in Debra Cherry. Cherry is 47, college educated and previously making $75,000. Laid off due to job cut backs, she's unemployed and now living in an apartment after previously residing in a $250,000 home. McDonalds says that she's over qualified for working in the fast food industry. Unfortunately this is the new reality for the working class. Hopefully Cherry's profile will improve her job prospects.

What Is Carmelo Really Thinking?

Carmelo Anthony began his 8th media day with the Denver Nuggets yesterday amid trade rumors that have him being traded to either the New Jersey Nets or the Philadelphia 76ers. Anthony is a free agent after this season and has a $65 million contract on the table from the Nuggets that he has refused to sign. The Nuggets fearing a LeBron James debacle have decided to trade Anthony if he doesn't sign the contract extension.

Anthony may be making a bad decision along with "his team". It's likely that next year the owners will lock out the players in an effort to bring costs down which will likely impact player salaries. Anthony's probably looking at his last $20 million a year payday but is acting like he has all the leverage. If I were the Nuggets, I would make him play out the season. I know they run the risk of losing him for nothing, but Carmelo Anthony as much as I love him as a player is not even the leader of his own team, that happens to be Chauncey Billups, and he's definitely not LeBron James.

Eddie Long's Not A Perfect Man!

Bishop Eddie Long finally spoke to the members of New Birth Missionary Baptist Church yesterday morning stating that he's not a perfect man, but definitely not the man being portrayed amid the sexual coercion charges that surfaced last week. He stated that he's going to fight the charges, but since he never stated that the charges weren't true my guess is that settlement talks will be taking place at some point.

Long still appears to have the support of his church, but if he allows these suits to go to trial he runs the risk of being exposed if any of the charges are proven to be true. It's my guess that he won't be willing to take that chance.