New York radio station Hot 97 (WQHT) has been fined $240,000 by New York's Attorney General for an ongoing contest stunt caled "Smackfest."

The stunt involved women pitted against each other to see who could slap the other the hardest for a prizes including movie tickets and a cash prize of $5,000.

WQHT Hot 97's parent company (Emmis Communications) also agreed in a settlement to pay $240,000, which equaled the maximum fine it faced, Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said.

Spitzer and the state Athletic Commission said the hip-hop and rhythm and blues station held 24 "Smackfest" contests from April 2004 to January 2005. Young women took turns "violently" slapping each other for concert tickets and as much as $5,000 in cash, Spitzer said. Images of the slapping then ran on the station's Web site.

Spitzer investigated the case as a potential violation of state law on promotion of a combative sport.

WQHT agreed to pay $60,000 of the settlement to a nonprofit group that promotes awareness of domestic violence.

No word has come down regarding any employee disciplinary actions over "Smackfest."

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Rev. Al Sharpton is planning to lead a rally in Memphis Saturday which is supposed to encourage city leaders to support the renaming of two parks in the city. The two parks are named after Confederacy President Jefferson Davis and Nathan Bedford Forrest, one of the founders of the Ku Klux Klan.

Saturday, a rally will be held not far from the parks to push city officials to move the names of men associated with racist acts of the past. Rev. Al Sharpton will headline the rally in hopes of getting more people on board, Judge DÂ’Army Bailey, a Shelby County Circuit Court judge, told BlackAmericaWeb.com.

“There have been thousands of blacks who’ve signed petitions asking (City Council) to rename the park. Rev. Sharpton looked at this as a battle in Memphis,” Bailey said. “He believes it’s a very significant national battle and one that needs to be won.”

“People ask the question, ‘What’s in a name?'” Bailey said. “But I ask them, why do they ban Nazi symbols and not have any recognition of Adolph Hitler in Germany? Why did the United States forces pull down the statue of Saddam Hussein as their first act against tyranny?

“Names and symbols represent either an allegiance to or disavowal of something,” Bailey added. “It’s well past the time to remove allegiance to those whose prime intention was to erase a whole race of people.”

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John H. Johnson, the man behind the Ebony/Jet publishing empire, died today at the age of 87. Further details have not been made available.

Publisher John H. Johnson, whose Ebony and Jet magazines countered stereotypical coverage of blacks after World War II and turned him into one of the most influential black leaders in America, died Monday, his company said. He was 87.

Born into an impoverished family in Arkansas, Johnson went into business with a $500 loan secured by his mother's furniture and built a publishing and cosmetics empire.

Johnson built Ebony from a circulation of 25,000 on its first press run in November 1945 to a monthly circulation of 1.9 million in 1997. Jet magazine, a weekly, was founded in 1951 and a third magazine, Ebony Man, a monthly men's magazine, was started in 1985.

Johnson launched Ebony just after World War II, as black soldiers were returning home. At the time there were no black players in major league baseball and little black political representation.

With blacks' incomes far below white Americans, the idea of a black publishing company was widely dismissed. Civil rights leader Roy Wilkins advised Johnson to forget the publishing business and save himself a lot of disappointment; Wilkins later acknowledged he gave Johnson bad advice.

Johnson's example set the pace for many black businessmen to follow. I'm thankful for Johnson's work and his pioneering spirit.

Thank you, Mr. Johnson. God bless you.

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From left, US Rep. John Lewis (Mumble-mumble-GA), US Rep. Maxine Waters (Granola-moonbat-CA), Harry Belafonte (...an' he wan' go home), Rev. Jesse Jackson (never to let a photo-op go unturned), House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Cruella DeVil-CA), "unidentified guy", at Saturday's Bash Bush march in Atlanta

Belafonte used a Hitler analogy when asked about what impact prominent blacks such as former Secretary of State Powell and current Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had on the Bush administration's relations with minorities.

"Hitler had a lot of Jews high up in the hierarchy of the Third Reich. Color does not necessarily denote quality, content or value," Belafonte said in an exclusive interview with Cybercast News Service.

"[If] a black is a tyrant, he is first and foremost a tyrant, then he incidentally is black. Bush is a tyrant and if he gathers around him black tyrants, they all have to be treated as they are being treated," he added.

When asked specifically who was a "black tyrant" in the Bush administration, Belafonte responded to this reporter, "You." When this reporter noted that he was a Caucasian and attempted to ask another question, Belafonte abruptly ended the interview by saying, "That's it."

Saturday's march was billed as one tied to the renewal of provisions of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which are set to expire in 2007. Speakers at the rally insisted that the Bush Administration is "evil" and was trying to eliminate the Voting Rights Act. However, when asked about renewal, Republican legislator after legislator supports renewal of the act.

The true motive behind Saturday's march was tied to a pending Georgia state law that would reduce the number of identifications accepted for voters from a couple dozen (which include things like utility bills) down to five government-issued photo IDs (your passport, your state college ID, your state employee ID, your state-issued ID card, or your driver's license). Opponents insist that the measure is racist, and will cause black voter disenfranchisement.

If someone cannot afford to obtain a state ID, the state will provide one at no cost. If someone cannot get to a bureau to obtain a license or ID, the state will send mobile units to areas across the state in order to provide maximum access.

Sounds like a good way to cut down on voter fraud. After all, under the present system, any Tom, Dick or Harry can swipe a utility bill out of a mailbox and use it to both register and/or vote in Georgia.

Racist? No, sounds more like sour grapes and a desire to continue to abuse the system to me.

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Discovery's astronauts get to enjoy a free day in orbit today after being waved off from today's scheduled landing at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Discovery was supposed to land in the pre-dawn hours this morning, but due to clouds and threatening weather in Florida, Mission Control decided to wave them off in order to try again tomorrow.

The astronauts had powered up their spacecraft and were awaiting word from Mission Control to fire their braking rockets and head for home when controllers announced early Monday that low clouds over Cape Canaveral would postpone the landing.

"We've been working this pretty hard as I'm sure you can imagine from our silence down here," Mission Control radioed Discovery commander Eileen Collins. "We just can't get comfortable with the stability of the situation for this particular opportunity, so we are going to officially wave you off for 24 hours."

NASA would prefer not to use either contingency site; it would cost a cool million dollars to load Discovery on the back of a 747 and ferry it back to Florida if they do.

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Charles Gibson just broke in on ABC with the news that longtime anchor Peter Jennings had died this evening of lung cancer. Jennings died at his apartment in New York City, with his family at his bedside.

Jennings' 41 year career at ABC News counted him as one of ABC's original news anchors, sitting at the helm of Peter Jennings and the News, from 1964 to 1967. Canadian-born Jennings reported from across the world after that, opening the first American television bureau in the Arab world, and helming the bureau in Rome.

In 1975, Jennings became the anchor of A.M. America, the short-lived predecessor to Good Morning America. Shortly after that stint ended, he became ABC's chief foreign correspondent, based in London.

From that London base, Jennings returned to the anchor desk in 1978 as part of the three-anchor team for World News Tonight, along with Frank Reynolds in Washington and Max Robinson in Chicago.

In 1983, Jennings became sole anchor of WNT, where he spent the rest of his life.

Jennings became the defacto managing editor of ABC News, guiding them through the 80s, 90s and into the 21st Century. Many people remember two major highlights of recent years, his marathon anchor job on ABC's mammoth ABC2000 megacast on December 31, 1999 and January 1, 2000; also his steadfastness and rock-solid demeanor amid the chaos and terror of the 9/11 disaster.

Many criticize Jennings' liberal politics, but no one can argue that among the "big three" anchors, Jennings was the most learned, and most scholarly. He was a good guy, and at least I, for one, am sorry to see him depart this life at his age.

Godspeed, PJ, and thanks for the memories.

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Unconfirmed reports this evening from sources inside ABC News, say that World News Tonight anchor Peter Jennings is close to death.

Jennings announced he had been diagnosed with lung cancer in April, and has not been on the air since. Anchor duties have rotated between several anchors, most notably Good Morning America co-anchor Charles Gibson.

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The schools affected by the ban on "offensive" Indan-based mascots announced yesterday by the NCAA:

Alcorn State University (Braves)

Central Michigan University (Chippewas)

Catawba College (Indians)

Florida State University (Seminoles)

Midwestern State University (Indians)

University of Utah (Utes)

Indiana University-Pennsylvania (Indians)

Carthage College (Redmen)

Bradley University (Braves)

Arkansas State University (Indians)

Chowan College (Braves)

University of Illinois (Illini)

University of Louisiana-Monroe (Indians)

McMurry University (Indians)

Mississippi College (Choctaws)

Newberry College (Indians)

University of North Dakota (Fighting Sioux)

Southeastern Oklahoma State University (Savages)

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Bob Novak, after his on-air meltdown yesterday, took the time to apologize to viewers today for his expletive-ridden tirade.

Robert Novak apologized Friday for swearing on the air and walking off a CNN set, but said it had nothing to do with the federal probe sparked by his revelation of a CIA officer's name in a 2003 column.

"I apologize for my conduct and I'm sorry I did it," he said in an interview.

CNN has pulled him off the air indefinitely. Novak said "I'll follow their guidance" on when he returns.

I can't excuse his behavior, but I certainly accept his apology. I'm glad he stood up and took his hand-slap like a man.

There's no word, at present, as to when CNN will let him back on the air.

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The NCAA announced this morning that they are banning the display of "hostile or abusive" Indian mascot names in post-season tournaments beginning February 1.

The ruling extends to covering up the logos of schools who have Indian mascots that are presently scheduled to host tournaments. The NCAA plans to prohibit any schools with Indian mascots from hosting tournaments in the future.

The NCAA banned the use of American Indian mascots by sports teams during its postseason tournaments, but will not prohibit them otherwise. The NCAA's executive committee decided this week the organization did not have the authority to bar Indian mascots by individual schools, committee chairman Walter Harrison said Friday.

Nicknames or mascots deemed "hostile or abusive" would not be allowed by teams on their uniforms or other clothing beginning with any NCAA tournament after Feb. 1, said Harrison, the University of Hartford's president.

Among the schools to change nicknames in recent years over such concerns were St. John's (from Redmen to Red Storm) and Marquette (from Warriors to Golden Eagles).

The NCAA plans to ban schools using Indian nicknames from hosting postseason events. Harrison said schools with such mascots that have already been selected as tournament sites would be asked to cover any offensive logos.

Such logos also would be prohibited at postseason games on cheerleader and band uniforms starting in 2008.

No word from schools like Florida State University (Seminoles) or the University of Illinois (Fighting Illini) on what -- if anything -- they plan to do in light of the ruling.

This also begs the question of whether or not professional leagues will force their teams (MLB's Indians or Braves; NFL's Redskins or Chiefs; NHL's Black Hawks; NBA's Warriors) to comply with a similar ruling.

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Al Qaeda's number two man, Ayman Al-Zawahiri issued a new videotape today, which (of course) was aired by Al Jazeera.

In the tape, Zawahiri promised more attacks on the UK and the US.

Tensions in London were already high, two weeks to the day after the last attempted attacks, and four weeks to the day after the deadly July 7 bombings.

"What you have seen in New York, Washington and Afghanistan are only the initial losses," Zawahiri said in a videotape broadcast by al-Jazeera, the Arabic language satellite channel. "If you [the United States] continue the same hostile policies, you will see something that will make you forget the horrors of Vietnam," Zawahiri threatened in the videotape, a Kalashnikov propped against his right shoulder.

Repeatedly pointing a finger for emphasis, the bearded, turbaned Zawahiri, an Egyptian-born doctor and Osama bin Laden's top deputy, said that British Prime Minister Tony Blair shouldered the blame for the July 7 attacks in London that killed 56 people, including four suicide bombers. The tape was released exactly four weeks after the deadly attacks on London's transportation system.

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While talking with James Carville and guest host Ed Henry, CNN's Bob Novak (supposedly the source of the Plame leak) got mad, got up and stormed off in a huff.

Novak was talking about Florida Senatorial candidate Katherine Harris; Carville kept interrupting and wouldn't let Novak get a word in edgewise, finishing with a comment about Novak getting tough for the editorial pages.

Novak's response was a bit more "colorful."

NOVAK: "Well, I think that's bullshit..."

After Novak's departure, Henry said that he was planning on asking Novak about the CIA leak, but that would have to wait until another time.

Media Matters has video of the exchange with a suitably snarky dig at Novak.

UPDATE 9P ET: CNN has suspended Novak indefinitely as a result of the outburst and walk-off.

A CNN spokeswoman, Edie Emery, called Novak's behavior "inexcusable and unacceptable." Novak apologized to CNN, and CNN was apologizing to viewers, she said.

"We've asked Mr. Novak to take some time off," she said.

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Democratic leaders, along wtih civil rights leaders, are spreading fear through black America regarding the Voting Rights Act, according to Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, head of Brotherhood Organization of a New Destiny (BOND).

Peterson specifically cites a voter rights march scheduled for Atlanta this weekend, spearheaded by Rev. Jesse Jackson.

“The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was made necessary by the practices of some racist Southern Democrats who opposed equality for Blacks—the same Democratic Party that Jesse Jackson now wants Blacks to support. Jesse Jackson knows that the 15th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees Blacks the right to vote. Yet, he wants to convince Blacks that the Republican Party wants to strip them of their rights. Racism is not keeping Blacks from voting, but their own apathy is.”

(Peterson also said,) “The reauthorization of sections of the Voting Rights Act will neither help nor hinder Black voters—to claim otherwise is false! By lying to Black Americans about this issue Jackson and his extremist left-wing cohorts are dishonoring the Selma and Montgomery civil rights pioneers who bled for the cause of civil rights and equality for Blacks.”

Part of the issue that Jackson is emphasizing, is the new Georgia requirement for state-issued picture identification in order to vote. The types of identification include driver's licenses. Jackson insists that the requirement -- providing positive identification -- is racist. This is despite the fact that the state will issue -- at no cost -- photo ID to those who cannot afford the cost of said identification.

Uh, yeah. Right.

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Priya Parmar is an Assistant Professor of Adolescence Education for Brooklyn College's School of Education. Parmar insists that rap music is the be-all, end-all to help teach literacy to inner city students. In addition, Parmar calls the English language the language of "white oppressers."

All this, along with her personal biases against white students in her classes, comes out in Parmar's course, "Language Literacy in Secondary Education," where she insists on politicizing her education course.

Parmar's controversial course at Brooklyn College, "Language Literacy in Secondary Education," typifies the professor's preference for politicized pedagogy. Required of all students who intend to become secondary-school teachers, the course is designed to teach students to draft lesson plans that teach literacy. Parmar's syllabus informs students that the principal focus of these lesson plans must be "social justice."

Another theme animating Parmar's course is her aversion to the proper usage of English. To insist on grammatical English, Parmar believes, is to exhibit an intolerable form of cultural chauvinism—a point reinforced by the a preface to the requirements for her course, which adduces the following quotation from the South African writer, Jamul Ndebele: "The need to maintain control over English by its native speakers has given birth to a policy of manipulative open-mindedness in which it is held that English belongs to all who use it provided that it is used correctly. This is the art of giving away the bride while insisting that she still belongs to you."[7] Students are expected to share Parmar's antipathy toward grammatical rule-based English, as she does not countenance dissent: In December of 2005, for instance, several disaffected Brooklyn College students wrote letters to the dean of the School of Education taking issue with Parmar's hostility toward students who dared voice their support for the correct usage of English.

Nor was this the only confrontation between Parmar and her students. Evan Goldwyn, a Brooklyn College student who took Parmar's course, caused a campus storm when he wrote a lengthy critique of the course detailing his objections to Parmar's teaching methods. Topping Goldwyn's list of grievances were Parmar's pronounced bias against English and her alleged bigotry against white students. "She repeatedly referred to English as a language of oppressors and in particular denounced white people as the oppressors," Goldwyn wrote. "When offended students raised their hands to challenge Professor Parmar's assertion, they were ignored. Those students that disagreed with her were altogether denied the opportunity to speak."

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Number two athletic shoe maker Adidas is buying number three athletic shoe maker Reebok in a $3.8 billion deal. The combined company gains a good 20 percent of the US market, but still places the duo behind number one Nike.

Neither company is forfeiting their own brands. Adidas Chairman and CEO Herbert Hainer said the brands would stay separate but complement each other — a move that is likely to help them in their competition with Nike.

German-based Adidas has its roots in soccer and track and field, while Reebok's line of sneakers and athletic gear is visible across American sports like football, baseball and basketball.

Combining the two, executives said, will mean more access to athletic events just about anywhere there is a stadium.

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18 year-old Helena Aldridge is looking forward to a collegiate career at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee. And like many new students, she is dealing with the fiscal realities of paying for college today.

Helena's excellence has garnerd her several scholarships thus far, including a couple from the NAACP.

However, Helena is turning down one of those scholarships -- one from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida.

She was thrilled this summer when she learned she was one of three Florida teens to receive a $1,000 Norman Elliot Kent Youth Activist Scholarship from the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida.

The group, based in Miami, offers the awards to graduating seniors who have demonstrated a strong commitment to civil liberties and civil rights through student activism.

Then Aldridge read up on the organization.

While she found much to applaud - the ACLU has been protecting rights guaranteed in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights since 1920 - she was dismayed at what she perceived as the group's abortion rights stance on abortion and its opposition to prayer in public schools.

Much to the chagrin of ACLU officials, Helena has graciously declined the ACLU's scholarship monies.

Moreover, her mother is supporting her decision. I'm sure the monies that she would have gotten from the ACLU will come to her from some other source.

I'm very happy to see that she is standing up for what she believes in, despite those who would say otherwise.

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Democrats are wringing their hands over the recess appointment of John Bolton as UN Ambassador by President Bush yesterday.

Members of the Senate have delayed and deferred votes on Bolton's confirmation for months, citing Bolton's "bull in a china shop" method of diplomacy. Just Sunday, Senator Christopher Dodd (Moonbat-CT) called Bolton "damaged goods."

Bush's decision to appoint Bolton without a confirmation vote was denounced by Democrats, who predicted it would undermine the diplomat's credibility at the U.N. and create more partisan rancor on Capitol Hill. Bolton's sharp tongue and direct style have alienated some subordinates, but enchanted many conservatives.

"At a time when we need to reassert our diplomatic power in the world, President Bush has decided to send a seriously flawed and weakened candidate to the United Nations," said Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada. On Sunday, Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.) called Bolton "damaged goods."

But there were no signs Monday that Democrats would respond to the appointment by taking action against other Bush nominees, such as his choice of John G. Roberts Jr. for the Supreme Court.

Funny thing though, Bush has made a total of 110 recess appointments. His immediate Oval Office predecessor, Bill Clinton, made 140 recess appointments during his two terms in office. That doesn't sound like much of an abuse to me -- that is unless Senator Dodd thinks Bubba abused the power as well.

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Astronauts on board the International Space Station will be performing mid-flight repairs to the underside of the space shuttle Discovery Wednesday during an unprecedented space walk.

Filler material is protruding from the underside of the shuttle's fuselage. This material extends more than an inch from the surface of the thermal tiles that protect the body of the shuttle during re-entry. Ordinarily, the material would only extend about a quarter of an inch from the surface of the thermal tiles.

The crew of the space shuttle Discovery will perform an unprecedented on-orbit repair Wednesday, sending an astronaut under the orbiterÂ’s belly to remove a two strips of material jutting out from its tile-covered heat shield, mission managers said Monday.

If the filler material sticks out from between tiles during reentry, they can disrupt the aerodynamic flow around the orbiter during reentry, causing higher than normal local heating on the order of hundreds of degrees Fahrenheit, said Chuck Campbell, a NASA subsystem engineer who studies the heating issues associated with shuttle reentry.

“In the end it came down to be a really simple decision,” said Wayne Hale, NASA’s deputy shuttle program manager, during a briefing here at NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC). “We came to the conclusion that we don’t know enough to really feel good about this, so therefore the remedy is easy and we ought to go exercise the remedy.”

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