MSNBC's Black Agenda: Perms, Afros and Ed Shultz

In January 2010, MSNBC aired a highly promoted town hall with Tom Joyner and Chris Matthews hosted at Texas Southern University. The show was billed as a measurement of the state of America in the era of Obama. “Obama’s America: 2010 and Beyond” was part of MSNBC’s Martin Luther King Day observations.

Chris Matthews moderating was awful. He had very little restraint and could converse with anyone, Black or White. His constant interruptions and Tom Joyner’s snarky radio commentary did not translate well on TV. Both Matthews and Joyner were cheerleaders of the Obama Administration so it was hard to see objectivity. The event was on the heels of the first anniversary of our country’s first elected Black President. The summer of 2009 town hall meetings from hell, healthcare legislation debates, and “Skippy Gate” are incidents that exposed attitudes about race relations and the need for more ongoing dialogue. Those types of discussions need to be done with precision and care not ratings boosters for networks. The usual suspects of Black “leaders” known as speakers from Tavis Smiley’s once lucrative now defunct annual Negro super bowl, State of the Black Union (SOTBU), were itching to talk race relations. The SOTBU was once a coveted event where many were given a platform to strut their knowledge about all that ails black folks. Once Senator Obama became President Obama, the media gave the world a new coded label, “post racial America”. It was touted as the end of racism but many saw it as the beginning of cable news race-baiting at opportunity.

The "post-racial America" label popped up everywhere, while race-baiting became a carefully crafted art form that has induced more fearmongering than the Jim Crow South for all races. The word “racist” has been used like toilet paper, describing anyone and every situation. Every network has tried dissecting the new terminology and the repackaging of racism in one way or another. CNN’s "Black in America” series hosted by Soledad O’Brien left many wondering: who worked at CNN? Surely not people of color. Some of the segments only further cemented the harsh stereotypes of blacks, and many criticized the network for not being fair and balanced with the stories portrayed.

On the "Fair and Balanced" Network, Fox’s Glenn Beck, accompanied occasionally by Dr. Martin Luther King’s niece, Alveda King, had several panels about race on his now cancelled show. Dr. King’s niece read biblical passages while Beck, a Mormon, gave commentary about visions revealed by God to him in the shower, in the limo, or at the bank. One of the visions left Beck with the belief that the President was a racist and had a “deep-seated hatred of white people.” Beck even had a town hall meeting of Black conservatives who had voted for Obama but later loathed their decision, or did not vote for the President because they detested socialism, Marxism, non-Christians, and/or anything that threatens Democracy according to the original intent of the Founding Fathers.

On Sunday, MSNBC’s Ed Shultz stepped into the arena of racial moderation via media outlet depictions as the host of "The Black Agenda." Thousands on Twitter asked “Why?” and “Where is Tamron Hall?” Last year, "The Black Agenda" was hosted by Ed Schultz and Tamron Hall. This year MSNBC decided to drop the Black co-host and let Ed fly solo.

That was an ill-advised flight for MSNBC. Those who tuned in to watch shared their thoughts across the World Wide Web without mercy. The usual suspects from the Negro bowl were front and center, while Sam Cooke’s “Change is Gonna Come” and James Brown's “Living in America” were played at commercial breaks. “The Black Agenda” gave viewers clowns on parade and coonery at every turn. The show was part of Al Sharpton’s National Action Network week-long conference in New York that was kicked off with the President as the keynote evening speaker. Earlier on the same day, the President launched his reelection campaign via the Web.

The MSNBC "Black Agenda" televised panel came at the end of the National Action Network’s annual summit. It was advertised as featuring prominent African American leaders from across the U.S. who are committed to furthering progress on critical issues impacting their community. Schultz and the panel will discuss pertinent topics affecting African Americans such as politics, modern civil rights, healthcare, education, and ways to help build a stronger African American community. MSNBC will ask the tough questions: What is the Black Agenda? What can the African American community do to help itself? How does the Black Agenda help to further the overall American agenda?

If reading the tweets on Twitter was an indicator, the show encountered turbulence after the opening credits. Hearing Ed Schultz from North Dakota rewrite Sharpton’s history showed Ed did not do his homework. Sharpton was given “a gift to the Black community” slant. The media loves contrived storylines. However, all that ails black folks were not changed to fit Sharpton’s new edit. No daddies, unwed mamas, no education, no houses, many jail cells, and only a few slices of government cheese were the usual problems seen through the same lens and told by the same voices whose protests and shouts are nothing more than punditry of another color. No solutions were given, no success stories to model were told.

When Rev. Sharpton and Princeton’s Cornel West began to sharpen their talking points, the plane dropped 30,000 feet for MSNBC’s new race relations expert, Ed Schultz, and the Sunday camera guy with no instructions on how to steer the debate back to a “give black folks more help” viewpoint. When the talk turned to how the President can help the Black Agenda, Sharpton and West had an on-air collision for the whole world to see. The carnage was ugly.

Two Black men, one with a perm and one with a blown-out Afro, yelling and shouting about who was doing more to help the Black Agenda was disastrous. The part of the exchange that has gotten the most attention was:

Sharpton: “Too many of us are putting it all on the President, if I see a [Paul] Ryan in Congress, where is the counterpoint to Ryan? That’s not President Obama’s job...He shouldn’t lead the civil rights marches against himself. Eveybody’s sitting around acting like we can’t do anything, Obama’s going to do it. That’s hogwash.”

West: “They have a black constituency and there’s a context in the nation that a criticism of President Obama is an attempt to support the right-wing vicious attacks of Fox News and others.”

Sharpton’s hood-lined Ralph Lauren White House makeover and West’s displeasure at not being in the inner circle and lover of all things Obama was evident. Both men made a mockery of anything good accomplished by people of color before or after their births. Sharpton’s “I’ll cut ya” tirades are becoming famous and West’s “my brother, I love you” while stabbing you with his dictionary of words that conceal hate are distractions.

The media folks' biannual specials promoted as forums to discuss the status of race relations while putting on race-baiters 24/7 are futile and create further divisions. Media outlets need to examine how they have contributed to the decline of race relations in our country and look closely at the makeup of their staff, reporters, and anchors. Out of 815 newsrooms across the county only 64 have people of color at a management level, according to www.Root.com’s publisher, Donna Byrd. If more people of color were working in newsrooms, outlets like MSNBC would have known beforehand that a panel with Sharpton and West talking about a Black Agenda would crash and burn quickly.

On Monday, a less publicized Aspen Institute Symposium on the State of Race in America was held in DC. The panel was diverse and included women and younger demographics that gave solutions on how to show America’s diverse makeup, thoughts, and lives without preconceived filters. MSNBC’s Richard Lui was the moderator. However, this event was not advertised at every break throughout the day for weeks. The panelists spoke truth to power about the role the media plays in the dilution of the news and how the media has stoked racial flames at every turn, including the media’s influence on Donald Trump’s pretend run for president. As of yet, there has been no coverage of Lui’s role at the conference on MSNBC.

In the meantime, steer clear of cable news specials featuring old angry men with Jheri curls, permed hair, or blown-out afros discussing race issues, moderated by folks from culturally diverse states like North Dakota. They are only going to leave one with the foul taste of outdated government cheese thinking, which should be discarded for the sake of the country’s agenda of moving forward not backward.

Article first published as MSNBC's Black Agenda: Perms, Afros, and Ed Schultz on Blogcritics.

Tavis Smiley Sets Himself on Fire and Burns HIS Agenda

Filled with barely disguised negativity, Tavis Smiley broadcasted on Tuesday morning that he was calling a “choir rehearsal for Black Leaders” on the Tom Joyner Morning Show. When Tom Joyner first announced last week that special commentary from Tavis Smiley would replace Jeff Johnson, my immediate thought was, “This is going to be a hot mess whatever it is”. Tom tried to build excitement about the Tavis Smiley’s upcoming commentary, by counting down to the segment. Tow Joyner was excited.But I am sure Tom Joyner had no idea that Tavis would use his show to set off a firestorm in the Black community. Tavis Smiley did not disappoint; he came with mess and mayhem.

When Tavis Smiley came on the air he barely acknowledged the morning crew and said “Let’s jump right into this”. And that he did. He opened with quotes from one of our country’s greatest leaders, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

“I choose to identify with the underprivileged. I choose to identify with the poor. I choose to give my life for the hungry. I choose to give my life for those who have been left out of the sunlight of opportunity. This is the way I’m going. If it means suffering a little bit, I’m going that way. If it means dying for them, I’m going that way. Because I heard a voice saying, ‘Do something for others.’”

The words of the greatest American we’ve ever produced, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., talking about the choice he made not just, Tom, to identify with, but to give his life for the least among us; the politically, socially, economically disenfranchised in America.

Last year, in researching Tavis Smiley’s relationship with Wells Fargo, I know all too well when he starts out with a quote from Dr. King, it is usually a setup for a manifesto about Tavis Smiley and what he believes is righteous indignation. Once again, he did not reflect the heart of Dr. King or actions Dr. King would have taken. Instead, Tavis Smiley should be paying royalties to the King Foundation for the constant misuse of Dr. King’s image and words.

In 2009, I wrote in several posts how Tavis Smiley loves to sprinkle biblical scriptures/references in his oratorical presentations. He sounds spiritual and gives you the impression that he is a shepherd of the flock who wants to give gentle loving nudging to his “sheeple”. On Tuesday, he kept his tilted, tainted halo on as he stated the following words:

“Must Jesus bear the cross alone and all the world go free? No, there’s a cross for everyone and there’s a cross for me.”

Some of us, who call ourselves Black leaders are making the wrong choice. I’m afraid this morning, Tom, that in so doing, we are misleading, misguiding, Black folk. It’s time for a course correction, not now, but right now. Because leadership without followership is a sinkin’ ship.

The above quotes were Tavis’s opening statements. He only got better or worse depending on if you were laughing or crying. In all the years that I have heard real leaders speak, I have never heard the word “followership”. I have attended events around the globe and spoken at hundreds of conferences, seminars, on panels, and in sessions and I don’t recall anyone using a rarely used word to fool the gullible by trying to sound like an intelligent leader. A leader leads; he does not have to try to sound like a leader if he is a leader.

Tavis Smiley told 12 million listeners he was having an event to call out leaders who do not understand the importance of the “Black Agenda”. My parents must have missed that one when I was born. Not one doctor or nurse put that in my diaper bag when they sent me home; raise your child with a Black Agenda. What is the Black Agenda? Jobs for the unemployed? Homes for the homeless? Education? That is part of getting America back on the road to recovery. That is everyone’s agenda. Geez, when are folks are going to stop being idiots with mics and get people back to work.

Are things harder on some than on others? Yes, I totally agree with that. But as I said last week when meet and greets are called to make demands and commands, often times it is photo ops and not about helping the community. Black folks do not need another conference to state what is wrong with black folks. What is needed is community mind folks (of all races) working with like minded folks (of all races) to bring job opportunities, raising testing scores in schools to help get more kids in college, dealing with credit issues that obstruct better insurance rates and home ownership…the list is endless. But I can go into the Hispanic community and they are saying the exact same thing.

The good thing about Tavis Smiley’s latest media-defacto, it engulfed him in flames and burned HIS agenda. People have rejected his antics and took to the blogs and radio to speak up. Rev. Sharpton who Tavis has palled around with in the past called into the Tom Joyner Morning Show right after Tavis’s rambling diatribe where he announced the time, date, and panelists scheduled to attend the meeting. Sharpton was not aware of the meeting and heard the invite via the radio. Tavis Smiley had not called many of scheduled “leaders” personally to come to this meeting. I was sitting at my desk heaving from laughing so hard. Tavis Smiley is so full of himself; he really thought people would show up because he was on the radio announcing the resurrection of his Negro Super Bowl. It only got uglier by the minute; the parting shot by Sharpton was Tavis Smiley did not have this urgency to call out President Clinton and black leaders before while Tavis was dancing on stage with the Clintons. LAWD…you just can’t make this stuff up!

Well now… this is not over and I am sure others are going to have a few more words to say as well. Here’s one of similar posts over at www.jackandjillpolitics.com:

Whenever anyone disagrees with you; if they’re men, you try to shame them. If they’re women, you try to have them fired off their jobs. You sure as hell don’t give them a platform from which to preach the truth, which you don’t like, because most of it is about you hawking another damned book, and saying it’s to help Black People.

Stop acting like a community leader that you play on TV, and be the self-promoting marketeer you really are. Your attempt to pass yourself off as a “Black Leader” has worn off and just like the Emperor, you don’t have any clothes on.
The CPL

It must really hard trying to sell books in this economy while posing as a community activist. Y’all this has been the longest black history month in years. See you in March.

Illiterate R. Kelly to "Pen" A Book

Illiterate R. Kelly to “Pen” A Book

Sometimes headlines are meant to be sensational to draw the reader to the story and sometimes some headlines, like the one above, should not be written. Illiterate, should be locked up for life, R. Kelly has inked a deal with Smiley Books to tell his life story. The notorious pedophile will tell his tragic pitiful tale of rags to riches and from women to girls, through Tavis Smiley, to anyone who will buy his story. If this is not a con game, then I don’t know what is.

Mr. Smiley who enlightens, encourages and empowers Black folks will help the community of color understand a high school dropout who can barely read turned child predator by publishing his book sometime in 2011. I don’t know what is worst Mr. Smiley’s press release announcing the upcoming book or R. Kelly claiming he is writing one. Are we to assume he will get a rushed copy of Hook-on- Phonics to help him understand how to spell and write the words he will speak? Mr. Smiley, the promoter of Wells Fargo, originator of bad loans to “mud” people, comes back to the very people he duped promoting flawed financial “products” to sell (I mean promote) a remorseful, suddenly educated, cleaned up, family version of R. Kelly. Please.

Once I got over the disbelief, I felt there were questions that Black folks should ask Mr. Smiley. Not R. Kelly. Why continue to peddle products, services and people who either dumb down or rob the very community you declare to love so greatly? And why do Black media continue to give a pass to Mr. Smiley? “What About Our Daughters” founder, Gina McCauley, was one of the first to address this topic last week on her blog. Mainstream and Black media have bypassed the hypocrisy of this all together. She has an entire list of questions that many should ask of the Smiley Group because inquiring minds that are enlightened, encouraged, and empowered really want to know.

Mr. Smiley’s show is broadcasted on PBS, a public station that relies heavily on donations to stay on air. Do donors want to help promote a taped child molester? The very thought should close purses with super glue to keep any money from escaping. Why R. Kelley? Why now? With the drop out rate of Black and Hispanic males at an all time high and the incarceration rate of black males representing a third of the community, why put R. Kelly back in the spotlight? This message could be misinterpreted to mean drop out and become a pedophile like me…you will be exonerated by the community even if you are guilty and get a book deal. Trifling is not even an adjective for this situation.

Mr. Smiley’s creditability continues to sink. Mr. Smiley goes from writing about holding the President accountable to publishing a book by R. Kelly. I got to give it to him for being creative when sponsorships are getting low. When all else fails, play to the lowest mindset in the community. Some stories you do not have to look for, they write themselves. But why would Mr. Smiley partner with R. Kelly? Smiley Books is part of a co-publishing venture with Hay House, Inc. According to Smiley Books website, “Smiley Books is a general trade book publisher that specializes in quality nonfiction”. Dr. Cornel West and Jeff Johnson are two authors who have written works published through Smiley Books.

R. Kelly will now get billing along side a noted college professor and a change agent who gives commentary on the community “discovering and sharing” information that will empower itself. With the swoosh of the pen a deal is cut with Smiley Books and R. Kelly is redeemed while at the same time releasing a new CD this month where song lyrics mention making love to “Baby Girl” several times. Some of the songs on his new CD are so explicit that the titles could not be read during an interview on the TJMS. From the heart the mouth sings, huh? Is part of the marketing of R. Kelly is praying that folks forget his taped criminal activities?

If this makes you sick and you want to become empowered, check out www.whataboutourdaughters.com . There are thousands who are using their collective voices to not allow this garbage to be dump into the community. If Mr. Smiley wishes to promote R. Kelly by all means do so but don’t use public airwaves to con the public. Enough with the foolishness and as Jeff Johnson would say “truth is power”. A book about R. Kelly is not about enlightening, encouraging, or empowering Black folks and people of color. He is an “opportunity” to make money. At the end of the day, the making money card seems to trump the “enlighten, encourage, and empower” card often.

By the way, why R. Kelly was not included in Mr. Smiley's book "How to make Black America Better"? There goes my inquiring mind again.

If Tavis Smiley was White, Wells Fargo and "Ghetto Loans" would be Front Page News

This is the third in a series of posts about Tavis Smiley and Wells Fargo, sponsor of the State of the Black Union (SOTBU). Everyone is in uproar about Wells Fargo employees calling loans to black mortgage holders “ghetto loans” and the disdain they showed for the customers they made the most profit from. But the media, especially black media, has been very silent about the role Tavis Smiley played in helping stack this ill fated deck of cards that has plagued the black community in several major cities.

When Mr. Smiley first partnered with Wells Fargo in 2005, he was a TEACHER of economic empowerment and assembled seminars around the country as the keynote speaker for wealth building. Press releases filled every major news outlet inbox and black newspapers were infected with faxes stating Mr. Smiley’s desire to teach the principles of home ownership as the key for breaking the cycle of poverty in the African American community. All this knowledge was given at no charge to trusting black folks. This was the golden ticket to obtaining the elusive piece of the pie via Mr. Smiley’s recommendations. Surely the intentions of all involved were pure and Mr. Smiley had vetted Wells Fargo thoroughly. Or so we thought. My granddaddy would say often, “Be wise when someone wants to give you something for free, there will be a price to pay later.”

Here’s what Mr. Smiley and Wells Fargo said in 2005 according to a widely circulated press release:

Wells Fargo Home Mortgage Joins With Tavis Smiley to Offer Free Wealth Building Strategies Seminar in Washington, DC

Tavis Smiley and a Host of Financial Experts Share Information
About Building Generational Wealth and Family Financial Security

WASHINGTON, Aug. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, the nation's leading originator of home loans to ethnic minority customers, has joined forces with talk show host and author, Tavis Smiley; and several financial affairs experts to provide free Wealth Building Strategies Seminars in eight cities across the country, including Washington, D.C. Additional seminars featuring other popular panelists also will be offered in 12 more cities, nationwide.
The Washington, D.C. event will take place Sat., Sept. 10 at the Hilton Washington, 1919 Connecticut Ave., NW, from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. For more information, or to register for the event contact 866-275-8584 or visit http://www.wellsfargo.com/wealth.
"African-American households had $656 billion in earned income in 2003, an increase of 3.9 percent over the previous year*," said Jackson Cosey, senior vice president of emerging markets, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. "The Wells Fargo Wealth Building Seminars will teach attendees the best route to make their income work for them over time through homeownership, investments and credit improvement while simultaneously helping them plan for their financial futures."
The free day-long events will feature interactive sessions and one-on-one meetings with financial experts, real estate professionals and Wells Fargo home mortgage consultants who will share information on building generational wealth and family financial security. In addition,the Wealth Building Strategies Seminars will include a keynote address by Tavis Smiley, the first person to ever simultaneously host signature talk shows on both the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) and Public Radio International(PRI).
Other cities on the Wells Fargo Wealth Building Strategies Tour include Los Angeles,Richmond,Va.,Dallas,San Francisco,Philadelphia,Chicago and Baltimore.
"All families dream about home ownership,college education, world travel and more but may not know the best steps to becoming financially independent,” said Smiley. "I am thrilled to be a part of the Wells Fargo Wealth Building Strategies Seminars tour because I truly believe this event offers attendees the fundamental tools they need to make their dreams a reality."
In addition to Smiley, acclaimed financial authority Kelvin Boston, host of PBS's financial affairs series "MoneyWise with Kelvin Boston" will be among the event speakers. The Wells Fargo Wealth Building Strategies Seminar also will feature interactive breakout sessions focused on topics including real estate, investing, and credit. Each seminar will feature a panel of experts who will provide a range of information related to their topic followed by a question and answer session. Following the breakout sessions, panelists will be on hand to meet privately with attendees to get advice related to their specific issues.
The Wells Fargo Wealth Building Strategies tour is just one of many initiatives that showcase Wells Fargo's commitment to its customers and the African-American community. Other programs include the African-American Business Services program which supports economic development in the African-American community and their Afro-centric branch designs which reflect the local African-American community and celebrate its heritage.
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage is the nation's No.1 retail mortgage lender**, the No 1,lender to low-to moderate-income and ethnic minority customers, and one of the country's leading servicers of home mortgages. It operates the country's largest mortgage network from more than 2,300 mortgage and Wells Fargo banking stores and on the Internet. Based in Des Moines, Iowa, it services loans for over 5 million customers nationwide.

(Source: Wells Fargo/PR Newswire)

Mr. Smiley stated he was “thrilled” to help black folks achieve their dreams but now that many of them have found themselves in a nightmare, where is he? Has he spoken out against the “ghetto loans” statement by Wells Fargo employees? Has he demanded accountability that he touts must be part of helping President Obama be the best President he can be? Has he applied that same scrutiny to Wells Fargo now that their sins of omission and commission have been exposed by their employees? Mr. Smiley’s messages are often woven with biblical terms to give his messages of empowerment a spiritual halo; so I will take a page from his book, has he washed himself in hyssop to amend for his leadership initiatives with Wells Fargo that has caused financial harm to people of color? Was he aware of their ‘good intentions’ from the start? Has he and the Smiley Group sent out press releases to denounce the actions of Wells Fargo that have been highlighted in the media over the last few weeks? There are hundreds of releases on the web announcing his decision to help black folks dreams become a reality from 2005-2008. Shouldn’t he address their present nightmarish economic plights as vigorously?

We should not be shy about asking these questions of Mr. Smiley. But why is black media afraid to question one of their favorite sons about the role he played promoting Wells Fargo to the African American community? Could it be they are part of the problem as well? I am keenly aware of the balance between the news and advocacy and recruiting advertisers and sponsors but we should not be ostriches when it comes to a story of this magnitude. For those who used Mr. Smiley’s conferences/events as promos to keep themselves in the mainstream media eye as “leaders” of the African-American community, they are eerily quiet on this subject. Many are giving the vibe that this is not their problem. Not only is this their problem but a problem that was sold to the community by many of them lending creditably to Wells Fargo by their participation at the SOTBU organized by Mr. Smiley. Mr. Smiley's events were promoted heavily on black radio stations and pushed to the African American community by the very media that has become silent. Many books, DVDs, and future speaking engagements as well as branding of black folk friendly products, like Wells Fargo loans, were marketed to attendees of these conferences.

Many of SOTBU featured speakers are protest initiators and apology demanding enthusiasts. Where are their statements on this subject? Wells Fargo is still a sponsor of Mr. Smiley’s events and he maintains a link on SOTBU website to their mortgage department? My PR training of yesteryear is still valid today; separate when your brand is being tarnished by another. Mr. Smiley’s continues with his Accountability Tour and black folks are still flocking to them without asking him to be accountable. We seem to love the oki-doke. Why do we play dumb and ignore the obvious? Mr. Smiley has done media interviews since the revelations of Wells Fargo employees’ statements and not one media personality has asked him about his ties to the Wells Fargo. Shouldn’t the public demand answers from a so-called leader about his financial partnership to a company that practiced such grievous actions? If Mr. Smiley was white, this would be front page news and a black radio tour would be ongoing for months by his cohorts that pranced on SOTBU's stage. Baltimore, MD was one of the first cities on his wealth empowerment tour. Will anyone cross reference his list of past attendees with those who have foreclosed properties now? Inquiring minds would like to know.

This is a larger symptom of an age old problem with black folks. We justify the actions of ego-driven-self-appointed helpers of the downtrodden with this verbiage “let’s not touch God’s anointed”. It is reminds me of the gospel shows on BET, the hypocrisy smacks you right in the face. Again, for the record, this is not a personal attack of Mr. Smiley, but stating facts which are not being addressed. When the NAACP filed the lawsuit against Wells Fargo, I questioned the SOTBU sponsorship in several posts in March and April. It is June and Mr. Smiley still has not issued a public statement. The community of color that he has taught to “enlighten, encourage and empower” is waiting. If he was white, the cries would be shouted from the roof tops? For too long, black folks have allowed our very own to pimp and sell us on the auction blocks to the lowest bidders without consequences. Wells Fargo used one of our own to profit from our trust of that individual. Mr. Smiley was not the only avenue Wells Fargo used to get their acid laden loans in the black community hands. As Wells Fargo’s employees stated last week, part of their marketing strategy included preachers of mega churches. Surprised? Why? What better way to get to the sheep than through those who claim to be shepherds. As for Mr. Smiley, he allowed his influence to be used to peddle nonsense to the very people he claims to love so dearly, yet he continues to promote his Accountability Tour. That is the definition of absurdity.

What’s that sound I hear from the media? Being a pest control operator, I know it all too well...crickets.

Update: Link on Mr. Smiley's website regarding Wells Fargo:
http://www.tavistalks.com/sites/www.tavistalks.com/files/TavisSmileyonWellsFargo.pdf

Previous posts about Tavis Smiley and Wells Fargo:
http://blacksnob.com/snob_blog/2009/3/17/strange-bedfellows-the-case-of-tavis-wells-fargo-and-the-naa.html
http://blackbloggers.wordpress.com/2009/03/16/tavis-smiley-holds-barack-accountable-but-who-holds-tavis-accountable/
http://genmaspeaks.blogspot.com/2009/03/roland-martin-of-cnn-interviews-ben.html
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/08-25-2005/0004094109&EDATE=)
http://www.wellsfargo.com/wealth