In a fast and furious world.. what you need is foundation. Bedrock Communications....

Thursday, December 27, 2012

Tarantino Talks to Gates: A Podcast Special

Hear The Root's editor-in-chief, Henry Louis Gates Jr., chat with the Django Unchained director about the n-word and a possible sequel.

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Thursday, December 20, 2012

Year in Review: The Root Staff Edition

This week on The Confab: From 2 Chainz and Blue Ivy to "YOLO" and political Twitter racism, our staff recalls and debates the highs and lows of the past 12 months.

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Thursday, December 13, 2012

The Hues of Black Folk

This week on The Confab: Join Associate Editor Brett Johnson as he chats with staff writer and White House correspondent Jenée Desmond-Harris, contributor Gene Demby and PR exec Rachel Noerdlinger about CNN's special on colorism in the black community.

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Monday, December 3, 2012

The Audio Book Club on NW

This month, Slate Book Review editor Dan Kois, DoubleX editor Hanna Rosin, and Brow Beat editor David Haglund visit the London of Zadie Smith’s fascinating novel NW. The three discuss the novel’s wild stylistic and tonal shifts; its view of race, class, and fate in the council estates of London; and how it was predicted by Smith’s famous 2008 essay, “Two Paths for the Novel.” And they even Google Map a bunch of the book’s northwest London locations and find them exactly as described in the book—a truly modern novel, as Rosin notes, “meant to be Googled.”

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Thursday, November 29, 2012

DoubleX Gabfest: The Nobody’s Business Edition

In this week’s Gabfest, DoubleX editor Hanna Rosin joins New Republic staff writer Noreen Malone and DoubleX managing editor Allison Benedikt to discuss Martha Stewart’s new young, hip following; Rihanna’s song, “Nobody’s Business,” and her relationship with Chris Brown; and Fox News’ funny ideas about the “War on Men” with Reason contributing editor Greg Beato.

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Is It Racist to Hate Chris Brown?

This week on The Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris as she chats with Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta and contributing editors Edward Wyckoff Williams and Hillary Crosley about allegations that coverage of Chris Brown's latest Twitter brawl was racially tinged. Plus: President Obama's responsibility to blacks.

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Thursday, November 22, 2012

Mitt Romney's Late B-School Lesson

This week on The Confab: Join Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta, Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris, Associate Editor Brett Johnson and contributor Gene Demby as they chat about Mitt Romney's diversity handicap, black Twitter slang, Rihanna's failing 777 tour and more.

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Saturday, November 3, 2012

The Audio Book Club on Cloud Atlas

Our critics discuss David Mitchell’s 500-year puzzle epic. By Emily Bazelon, Dan Kois, and Meghan O'Rourke

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Thursday, November 1, 2012

DoubleX Gabfest: The Hipster Sexism Edition

In this week’s Gabfest, DoubleX editor Hanna Rosin joins New Republic staff writer Noreen Malone and Slate assistant editor Katy Waldman to discuss the election and whether the “war on women” really exists; the trending term “hipster sexism”; and how the media handled the nanny murder case.

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Monday, October 29, 2012

IF... Podcast: Talking Back to History


From “malarkey!” to Big Bird to “horses and bayonets,” the 2012 Presidential Election Debates produced some much-watch TV. But the candidates had nothing on the everyday Americans who came out to IF...Urban’s debate watch events.


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Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Tamron Hall on Getting Answers From Guests

This week on The Confab: Join Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta, Associate Editor Brett Johnson and Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris as they chat with Root 100 honoree Tamron Hall about getting answers from guests and why she loves Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.

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Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Yes, Black People Do the Great Outdoors, Too

This week on The Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris and Associate Editor Brett Johnson as they chat with The Root 100 honoree Danielle Moodie-Mills about how the mission to expand what it means to be black links her environmental and LGBT advocacy. Plus: Jay-Z and Bey as role models?

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Wednesday, October 10, 2012

'Barack X': What He Really Means to Us

This week on The Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris and Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta as they chat with professor Jelani Cobb about things some people just don't get about Obama's cultural significance. Plus: The worst habits of rappers.

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Thursday, October 4, 2012

IF... Podcast: Chinese Seeds

In August, the Interactivity Foundation co-sponsored the 2012 China Citizenship and Social Innovation SEED Camp held at Harvard University. IF Fellows Pete Shively, Adolf Gunderson, Sue Goodney Lea and IF resident Taiyi Sun’s talk about China’s future.


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DoubleX Gabfest: The Muumuu Edition

In this week’s Gabfest, DoubleX editor Hanna Rosin joins New Republic staff writer Noreen Malone, regular Slate contributor Jessica Grose, and DoubleX managing editor Allison Benedikt to discuss if it matters that Marissa Mayer, the new CEO of Yahoo!, opted for a short maternity leave; if a dad’s letter to his porn-surfing son that went viral on Reddit exhibited good or bad parenting skills; and Jessica Grose’s new book, Sad Desk Salad.

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The Audio Book Club on How Should a Person Be?

How should a novel be? Slate Book Review editor Dan Kois, Slate culture critic Meghan O’Rourke, and Slate Brow Beat editor David Haglund discuss Sheila Heti’s “novel from life,” How Should a Person Be? Deliberately messy and featuring unveiled versions of the author’s friends, the novel sharply divided the Audio Book Club. David Haglund defended the book’s innovation and verve; Meghan O’Rourke thought the book was valuable and important despite some problems; and Dan Kois worried he was just another clueless dude who couldn’t get it.

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Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Kasim Reed's Postdebate Predictions

This week on The Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris and Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta as they chat with The Root 100 honoree Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed about political predictions and personal insights.

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Thursday, September 27, 2012

Is Obama Doing Better Than We Think?

This week on The Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris and Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta as they chat with The Root 100 honoree writer Jamelle Bouie about topics both political and personal.

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Saturday, September 22, 2012

The Confab -- Sept. 13, 2012

Assistant editor Akoto Ofori-Atta chats with associate editor Brett Johnson, staff writer Jenée Desmond-Harris and contributing editor Genetta Adams about what's stopping politicians from talking about poverty. Plus: Fall's cast of black TV characters.

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Friday, August 31, 2012

It's Racist to Discuss Ryan's Black Ex?

This week on the Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris as she chats with Political Correspondent Keli Goff, Contributing Editor David Swerdlick and Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta about whether it's racist to discuss Paul Ryan's black ex-girlfriend. Plus: Chris Matthews' Republican-race-baiting smackdown, and a dispatch from the RNC.


*** all of our episodes are available on itunes...

Thursday, August 16, 2012

What Paul Ryan Means for Black People

This week on the Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris as she chats with Political Correspondent Keli Goff and contributor Genetta Adams about the Republican vice presidential hopeful's views on black people. Plus: Politicians and their athletic counterparts, and a wrap-up of Olympic controversies.


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Wednesday, August 15, 2012

IF... Podcast: Kickstart the Arts

Brooklyn saxophonist Laron Land shares lessons from “Prof” star of “Thundersoul” doc; L.A. children’s book author Calida Rawles imagines a high-tech, interactive library; Madison, Wis. singer-songwriter Melissa Simonson on collaborating with fans.


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Friday, August 3, 2012

Black Olympic Highlights and More

This week on the Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris as she chats with Associate Editor Brett Johnson and Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta about The Root's Olympic highlights, John Carlos' black power salute at the 1968 games and the Mississippi church that wouldn't marry an African-American couple.


*** all of our episodes are available on itunes...

Monday, July 30, 2012

DoubleX Gabfest: The We Wish We Were Talking About Kristen Stewart Edition

In this week’s Gabfest, DoubleX editor Hanna Rosin joins New Republic staff writer Noreen Malone and DoubleX managing editor Allison Benedikt to discuss the male heroes of the Aurora shooting, who died saving their girlfriends’ lives; the case of Savannah Dietrich, who took to Twitter to name the two young men who sexually assaulted her; and women’s boxing, which for the first time ever is an Olympic sport.


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Thursday, July 19, 2012

On Mitt's Riches and Frank Ocean's Success

This week on the Confab: Join Senior Political Correspondent Cynthia Gordy as she chats with Associate Editor Brett Johnson and Contributing Editor Helena Andrews about Mitt Romney's tax returns, Frank Ocean's revelation and why you should be careful on Facebook.

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IF... Podcast: Mood Swings

Can an AWOL Congressman destigmatize mental illness? Why did civil rights activists give Romney the hook? Did Obama stiff the NAACP? IF DC area facilitators discuss policy, politics and their plans for future discussions.


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Thursday, July 5, 2012

Health Care, the BET Awards and More

This week on the Confab: Join Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta as she chats with contributor Scott T. Sterling, Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris and Senior Political Correspondent Cynthia Gordy about the Supreme Court's Affordable Care Act decision, the upcoming Olympics and the 2012 BET Awards.


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Thursday, June 28, 2012

DoubleX Gabfest: The Still Not Having It All Edition

In this week’s Gabfest, DoubleX editor Hanna Rosin joins nymag.com staff writer Noreen Malone and DoubleX managing editor Allison Benedikt to discuss Anne-Marie Slaughter’s Atlantic cover story, “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All,” with Slaughter joining us as a guest; the new Pixar movie Brave, which features the studio’s first ever female protagonist; and Elizabeth Kolbert’s New Yorker piece on why American kids are so spoiled.


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Monday, June 25, 2012

Michelle Obama's White Family: Shocking?

This week on the Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris as she chats with contributor Sylvester Monroe, Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta and Associate Editor Brett Johnson about Rodney King's legacy, Michelle Obama's white relatives and 1977's black-music highlights.


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Saturday, June 9, 2012

Why Obama Can't Be the Black President

This week on The Confab: Join Political Correspondent Cynthia Gordy as she chats with Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta and contributor David Swerdlick about what Obama's done for black people, a shaky study about black girls and exercise, and black-music memories.


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Monday, June 4, 2012

DoubleX Gabfest: The Itty Bitty Cheapo Rock Edition

In this week’s DoubleX Gabfest, editor Hanna Rosin joins nymag.com staff writer Noreen Malone and DoubleX managing editor Allison Benedikt to discuss the media reaction to Mark Zuckerberg’s new wife Priscilla Chan, accusations that Wired’s GeekDad cover is sexist, and a lawsuit to reverse the military’s ban on women in combat.


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Saturday, May 26, 2012

Race-Hustling the 2012 Election?

This week on The Confab: Join The Root's assistant editor, Akoto Ofori-Atta, as she chats with staff writer Jenée Desmond-Harris and contributor Edward Wyckoff Williams about Republican race-baiting, the NAACP's stance on same-sex marriage and whether celebrities' sexual orientation is our business.


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Thursday, May 17, 2012

DoubleX Gabfest: The Bare-Chested Edition

In this week’s Gabfest, DoubleX editor Hanna Rosin joins nymag.com staff writer Noreen Malone and DoubleX blogger Libby Copeland to discuss the infamous Time magazine story on attachment parenting, President Obama’s college love letters, and the question of whether a child can really be a psychopath.


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Saturday, May 12, 2012

Obama's Endorsement and Black Obesity

This week on The Confab: Join political correspondent Cynthia Gordy as she chats with staff writer Jenee Desmond-Harris and contributing editor Demetria Lucas about the political risk in Obama’s same-sex marriage announcement and the lesser-known factors behind obesity in the black community.


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Friday, May 4, 2012

7 Timeless Business Lessons You Can Learn from Hollywood Screenplays

I love movies. In fact, movies are what led me into copywriting and eventually to building a successful software company.

Better explain that one, huh?

Back in 1997 when I bolted from the big law firm and moved down to Austin, my plan was to become a screenwriter. Feast or famine, damn the consequences, starving artist type stuff.

Well, instead of writing screenplays, I got caught up in the Web 1.0 boom, and read a lot of books about the film industry in my downtime.

Turns out, being a screenwriter in Hollywood ranks somewhere below “best boy” and “key grip” when it comes to actual influence. Not exactly inspiring.

The only way to have true influence in the film world as a writer is if you are also the director and/or producer. That fact made me realize that I am really an entrepreneur, not a pure writer.

And being an entrepreneur is so much like being a Hollywood writer / director / producer, except you operate in the real world. But often the writing part gets neglected, and that ultimately hurts the business.

more click here....

Author: Brian Clark is founder of Copyblogger

Thursday, May 3, 2012

DoubleX Gabfest: The Your Baby’s Name Is Brand-Shift Edition

In this week’s Gabfest, DoubleX editor Hanna Rosin joins nymag.com staff writer Noreen Malone and DoubleX blogger Bryan Lowder to discuss a new study that suggests homophobic people might be secretly gay, our cultural fascination with celebrity pregnancy and the furious debate over how one should spend one’s workday lunch break.


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Friday, April 27, 2012

On Blacks and Fat: Is There Really a Crisis?

This week on The Confab: Join Staff Writer Jenée Desmond-Harris as she chats with Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta and Senior Political Correspondent Cynthia Gordy about our black-obesity series, Brian McKnight's new X-rated song and more.


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Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Setting Up a Small Recording Studio by Transom.org

One of Transom’s most popular features ever is TOOLS Editor Jeff Towne’s primer on setting up a small recording studio, but the page hasn’t had an update in six years. So, Jeff has created a completely new version, covering computer and software selection, the requisite hardware, along with equipment recommendations in various price ranges and pretty much everything you need on this topic, all in one place. There are links to individual tests of gear, manufacturer’s sites, downloads, etc. etc. (One interesting new thing: ProTools is becoming dislodged as the go-to choice for documentary production.) This is the kind of useful, generous advice that makes us all love Jeff Towne. more click here...

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

IF... Podcast: East Asia Chronicles

A bestselling book recently argued that Chinese mothers are superior, inflaming insecurities about the U.S. education system. IF fellow Sue Goodney Lea and Chinese graduate student Taiyi Sun compared education models during recent travels in China, Japan and Singapore.


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Friday, April 13, 2012

Trayvon and the Myth of Black-on-Black Crime

This week on the Confab: Join staff writer Jenée Desmond-Harris as she chats with assistant editor Akoto Ofori-Atta and contributor Edward Wyckoff Williams about the latest in the Trayvon Martin case, myths about black-on-black crime, and the suspension of Rick Santorum's campaign.


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Thursday, April 5, 2012

DoubleX Gabfest: The Coregasm Edition

In this week’s Gabfest, DoubleX editor Hanna Rosin joins nymag.com staff writer Noreen Malone and Slate editorial assistant Laura Anderson to discuss new research on sibling rivalry, the controversial legacy of the sexual revolution, and a study showing that women can get orgasms from exercise, especially core work.



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Friday, March 30, 2012

The Confab -- Mar. 30, 2012

Join staff writer Jenée Desmond-Harris as she chats with assistant editor Akoto Ofori-Atta and contributor E.R. Shipp about how Florida's "Stand Your Ground" law is playing out in the Trayvon Martin case, the smear campaign against the slain teen.


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Tuesday, March 27, 2012

IF... Podcast: The Womb v. The State

From contraception to transvaginal ultrasounds, lawmakers are getting intimate with women’s bodies. Law professor Lisa Crooms-Robinson, historic novelist Dolen Perkins-Valdez, health activist Autumn-Saxton Ross explore why.


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Thursday, March 22, 2012

Domains Names 101 / Lessons You Should Know

The difference between a great domain name and other marketing expenses is that you are acquiring a permanent, valuable and potentially resalable brand, which helps future customers define you - as opposed to renting keyword traffic from a search engine.

Owning a more meaningful domain name has become expensive with the average price of a common phrase or saying, ending in the dominant .COM extension, hovering between $9,000 and $30,000. In fact, the collective domain name industry consistently sells an estimated $5-10 million of domains each and every week at prices buyers are more than willing to pay. Click for more

shared from domainnamesales.com

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Santorum's Big Win, 'Love Jones' and More

This week on the Confab: Join Washington reporter Cynthia Gordy as she chats with staff writer Jenée Desmond-Harris and contributor Hillary Crosley about Rick Santorum's Southern sweep, the debate over "Homeless Hotspots" and '90s nostalgia on the 15th anniversary of Love Jones.


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Wednesday, March 7, 2012

KONY 2012 .... This should be important to the world...



KONY 2012 is a film and campaign by Invisible Children that aims to make Joseph Kony famous, not to celebrate him, but to raise support for his arrest and set a precedent for international justice.

Sunday, March 4, 2012

The Oscars, Body Image and More

This week on the Confab: Join Deputy Editor Lauren Williams as she chats with Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta and Editor-at-Large Nsenga Burton about the Oscars, Rick Santorum’s snob comment and black women’s body image.


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Friday, February 24, 2012

Rihanna and Chris Reunite and More


This week on The Confab: Join Washington reporter Cynthia Gordy as she chats with assistant editor Akoto Ofori-Atta and contributing editor Natalie Hopkinson about the GOP’s culture war, Rihanna and Chris Brown’s reunion and what drives success for black men in college.


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Thursday, February 23, 2012

DoubleX Gabfest: The Reindeer Sweater Edition

In this week’s Gabfest, DoubleX editor Jessica Grose, Slate editor David Plotz, and nymag.com staff writer Noreen Malone discuss Virginia’s proposed ultrasound law and the recent contraception hearings in the House, the rise of single mothers under 30, and a New York Times style section article about the growth in the male accessory market.


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IF... Podcast: Are U.S. Schools Really Factories?

The Urban Teacher Academy’s Dr. Julie Sweetland, alternative high school guidance counselor Derek Andrews and 3rd grade literacy teacher Darla Bunting find common ground with GOP candidate Rick Santorum and President Obama on education policy.


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Friday, February 17, 2012

Discussing Whitney's Death

This week on the Confab: Join Deputy Editor Lauren Williams as she chats with Assistant Editor Akoto Ofori-Atta and contributor Clay Cane about Whitney Houston's death.


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