Author: Brett

Hey, Startups: Food Network Wants Your Pitch!

Brett

I hope you’re hungry, because this November, Advertising Age and Food Network are bringing tech startups, entrepreneurs, and creative technologists together to disrupt the food category, with one lucky winner set to receive $25,000 and a partnership with the media company.

Over the past 20 years, Food Network has owned the national conversation about food and inspired millions to enjoy food everywhere. But as the very idea of food has become increasingly about where you live, it’s time for America’s most iconic food brand to reflect on this behavior shift — and to be, put simply, more relevant locally.

 

http://adage.com/article/digital/hey-startups-food-network-pitch/237454/

What Does It Take To Be a Dominatrix?

Brett

When you start, the dominatrix says, it feels like being thrown into a deep ocean when you don’t know how to swim. You are coughing up water, choking, feeling like you are drowning.

Her first week at the dungeon Alexis Lass Trbojevic was overwhelmed by what she saw. What she saw was subs being whipped and caned, subs with bloody welts, subs walking on all fours on leashes, subs getting slapped in the face and spat on, subs licking the bottoms of women’s shoes, subs left bound in cages for six or eight hours. She had to remind herself of a line from The Night of the Iguana, “Nothing human disgusts me …”

She thought of her mother saying that you become brave by acting brave. Though she also thought of other things her mother would say about what she was doing. In the beginning it was very hard to get the voice of her Upper East Side upbringing out of her head, to separate the flock of preppie Spence girls in their green plaid uniforms, the blocks of doorman buildings and tulip lined avenues, from the the amorphous entity she was beginning to think of as her self. Those first days in the dungeon, wearing latex, whip in her hands, she hears a voice call her trashy, a whore, a loser, but she doesn’t know if it’s her voice.

 

http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/roiphe/2012/09/dominatrix_essay_from_katie_roiphe_s_in_praise_of_messy_lives.html

First Lady to Extol First-Term Record in Convention Kickoff

Brett

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Democrats gathered here on Tuesday to begin a brisk three-day convention intended to draw sharp programmatic differences with the Republican Party and walk a line between promoting President Obama’s first-term accomplishments while recognizing the continuing economic despair that has marked the last four years.

The convention, which is to be gaveled to order at 5 p.m., will feature a speech by Michelle Obama, in what Mr. Obama’s aides said would be the beginning of an attempt to prompt voters to re-examine the president’s record, particularly his health care law and his work on the economy.

In contrast with the other speakers on Tuesday night – and most of the speakers this week – Ms. Obama in her remarks will not offer criticisms of Mr. Romney, instead offering what aides described as an account of her husband’s motivations in pushing through the health care bill and the auto industry bailout. Other speakers, however, will focus on what has emerged as one of the convention’s top goals: drawing sharp contrasts with Mr. Romney.

“We want to crystallize the choice between two very different visions of the economy,” said Stephanie Cutter, Mr. Obama’s deputy campaign manager.

Michelle Obama Embraces the Role of First Celebrity

Brett

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-michelle-obama-20120904,0,27690.story?track=rss&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter&dlvrit=104530

WASHINGTON — Four years ago, the Obama campaign was strategizing about how to present Michelle Obama to the country with her prime-time speech at the Democratic National Convention. Today, the A-lister needs no introduction.

If you missed her on David Letterman last week, you can catch her on television soon with Rachael Ray and Dr. Oz. If you have kids, you know her from the Nickelodeon channel — iCarly, anyone? If you’re a reality TV fan, you caught her doing squats on “The Biggest Loser” or judging contestants on Bravo’s “Top Chef.” If you cook, you saw her on Epicurious.com.

She blogs. She tweets. She posts recipes on Pinterest.

Each president’s wife is given the challenge and luxury of making a name for herself in an undefined, unelected position. It took Michelle Obama little time to settle into her role: first celebrity. Her life is not an open book, though. She picks and chooses among interviewers in risk-averse settings and steers clear of Washington’s hand-to-hand political combat.

While Barack Obama was knocked by opponents for soaring to star status in 2008, it’s Michelle Obama who has embraced pop culture and entertainment media, using it to her own and her husband’s advantage.

She just finished a stint as a guest editor on iVillage, a website for women, whose votes could tilt the election. Obama confessed her weakness (potato chips), explained why the president quit smoking (their daughters) and ventured an opinion on why the erotic novel “Fifty Shades of Grey” caught fire with women (she hasn’t read it, she said, but members of her staff have).

“She’s the first fashionista, the mom in chief, the first gardener, the cool aunt — she’s Oprah with good arms,” said Robert Watson, an expert in first ladies at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla. “I don’t know if it’s rebranding or we’re finally getting the real Michelle. Whatever it is, it’s very effective.”

 

Transgender Activist Janet Mock to Give Keynote at LGBTQ Youth Empowerment Conference

Brett

Janet Mock, People.com Staff Editor and nationally renowned transgender activist, will give the keynote address at the Hispanic Black Gay Coalition’s 2012 LGBTQ Youth Empowerment Conference. The free conference, which takes place Saturday, Oct. 20, 2012, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., educates and inspires LGBTQ youth of color under the age of 25 to use their ideas, knowledge, and skills so that they can create personal and social change.

Mock, a transgender woman of color, uses media as a platform to explore and challenge “society’s limited portrait of womanhood.” Her #GirlsLikeUs campaign empowers trans women to speak up and out about their experiences and lives.

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pierre-r-berastain/janet-mock-lgbtq-youth-empowerment-conference_b_1841281.html?utm_hp_ref=gay-voices

Parents and Doctors Sue Clovis Unified School District Over Sex Education

Brett

For Release: August 21, 2012

Media Contact: Rebecca Farmer, 415.269.6275, rfarmer@aclunc.org


Parents and Doctors Sue Clovis Unified School District Over Sex Education
Lawsuit is the first of its kind in California

(Fresno, CA) – Today parents and physicians sued the Clovis Unified School District over its high school abstinence-only-until-marriage sex education. The lawsuit charges that the district is violating California law and putting teens’ health at risk by teaching students misinformation and denying them critical instruction about condoms and contraception.   

The lawsuit is brought by two parents in the district, the American Academy of Pediatrics California District IX (AAP), and the Gay-Straight Alliance Network (GSA Network). The plaintiffs are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), with pro bono assistance from the law firm of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP.

The textbook that Clovis Unified uses for high school sex education does not mention condoms at all, even in chapters about HIV/AIDS and on preventing STDs and unintended pregnancy. Instead, for example, the textbook lists that the ways to prevent STDs are to respect yourself, get plenty of rest, go out as a group and practice abstinence.

The curriculum teaches that all people, even adults, should avoid sexual activity until they are married. Additional materials compare a woman who is not a virgin to a dirty shoe and suggest that men are unable to stop themselves once they become sexually aroused.

“Our kids need complete, accurate information to help them protect themselves against STDs and unintended pregnancy. That’s information they’ll need at whatever point in their life they become sexually active,” said Aubree Smith, a plaintiff in the suit and mother of a 17-year-old daughter at Clovis High School.

“We can really save lives with comprehensive sex education. The Central Valley has high rates of STDs and unintended pregnancy. Sexual health education in schools is the only way to reach many teens and should be a place where they can get reliable health information,” said Tonya Chaffee, an AAP physician who treats teens needing sexual health information and care.

The rate of STDs among California teens has been on the rise over the last decade. In Fresno County teens account for nearly a third of chlamydia cases and a quarter of gonorrhea cases, both which can have serious health consequences if they are not detected and treated. Fresno County also has one of the highest rates in California of chlamydia infection among 15-24 year olds.

Teen birth rates are dropping across the state, but they remain high for rural areas. Fresno County has had one of the highest teen birth rates in the state for over a decade. The Guttmacher Institute reports that a sexually active teen who doesn’t use any contraception has a 90% chance of becoming pregnant within a year.

“Clovis provides a top-notch education in so many ways, and it’s important that students get the most up-to-date sex education too,” said Mica Ghimenti, a plaintiff and the mother of three children.

A 2007 congressionally mandated report found that abstinence-only instruction did nothing to reduce teen sexual activity. The report also found that teens who received abstinence-only instruction were less likely to believe that condoms are effective in preventing STDs than students who had no sex education at all.

“The sex ed in Clovis high schools violates state law and gives inaccurate, biased information to students,” said Phyllida Burlingame, Reproductive Justice Policy Director at the ACLU of Northern California. “Schools should teach teens about building healthy relationships, the benefits of delaying sexual activity, and accurate information about condoms and birth control. That’s what state law requires and that’s what meets the needs of teens.”

This lawsuit is the first of its kind in California since the passage of the state’s 2003 law requiring that sexual health education in public schools be comprehensive, medically accurate, science-based, and bias-free. Comprehensive sex education includes instruction about condoms and contraception, as well as abstinence.

A 2011 report by the University of California San Francisco showed that although California’s public schools have made great strides in the quality of sexuality education and HIV/AIDS prevention, many districts still fail to provide students with the complete, accurate information that they need and that the law requires.

The lawsuit was filed in California Superior Court in Fresno County. The lead attorney for the ACLU is Elizabeth Gill, staff attorney at the ACLU of Northern California. The ACLU of Northern California, the ACLU of Southern California and the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties are representing the plaintiffs, with pro bono assistance from the law firm of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP.

About the plaintiff organizations:

AAP is the leading organization of pediatricians who treat teens needing sexual health care and information. The GSA Network works to ensure that sex education is accurate and relevant for all students, regardless of sexual orientation.

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Latino TV Shows: NuvoTV Raised $40 Million to Create English Programming for Hispanic Audience

Brett

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/28/latino-tv-shows-nuvotv-40-million-investors_n_1836645.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003

The Latino audience is worth a lot to television networks — at least $40 million worth, to be exact. That’s the amount Hispanic-centric cable channel NuvoTV said it raised from investors to produce a new lineup of original English-language programming for a Latino audience.

The unprecedented capitol investment illustrates the gap in the market, along with the dire need to fill it with Latino TV shows for English-language speakers.

“This is the biggest injection of capital into NuvoTV since it was founded in 2004,” CEO Michael Schwimmer told Variety.

NuvoTV’s announcement comes on the heels of recent reports that Jennifer Lopez, Emilio Estefan and Ricky Martin have their own Latino-oriented programming in the works.

NuvoTV issued the callout for funding, recognizing it needed programming that TV studios weren’t creating on their own, Bloomberg Businessweek reports.

Founded in 2004 as Si TV, NuvoTV has worked to grow its business and expand its client base in the past few years, making dramatic changes — like its name — in order to better appeal to the changing face of its target audience.

NuvoTV, which is available in 30 million homes across the country, currently features shows such as “Fight Factory,” which follows top Latino MMA fighters, and its longest-running series, “Model Latina.”

“Most everyone is focused on total U.S. Hispanics, but the real story is the bicultural Latino,” Rafael Oller, the network’s senior vice president of marketing, told Advertising Age after the name change in 2011. “Three out of four speak English well or very well. These bicultural Latinos self-identify as Latino and American and are looking for culturally relevant programming.”

It seems a similar sentiment has echoed through the entertainment industry as mainstream networks like NBC Universal, Fox and MTV have hopped on the bandwagon with plans to cater to the fastest growing population in America.

“People kind of woke up to the size of this audience following the 2010 census,” Schwimmer told The Los Angeles Times. They now see that not only is the Hispanic population growing, but most of that growth is coming from U.S.-born Latinos.”

 

Technology Pioneers 2013: World Economic Forum Names The Year’s 23 Most Innovative Startups

Brett

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/28/technology-pioneers-2013-world-economic-forum_n_1834492.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003

What do Kickstarter, Dropbox, Foursquare and Spotify all have in common? Before becoming household names, each was featured on the prestigious Technology Pioneers list, sponsored by the World Economic Forum.

Since 2000, nearly 500 startups have been annually selected because of their industry-changing potential or the effect they could have on societies and economies around the globe. According to the WEF website, the participating companies are judged on the following criteria: “innovation, potential impact, growth and sustainability, and proof of concept and leadership.”

Today, a new set of 23 innovative companies were selected for the Technology Pioneers 2013 list. These startups are expected to drastically alter their particular fields over the next year and have been chosen because of their “promise of significantly impacting the way business and society operate,” per the WEF website. A WEF press release stated the newest inductees will also be formally recognized on September 11 – 13, during the Forum’s Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Tianjin, China.

This year’s crop of startups include a company developing thermal batteries, several solar energy initiatives, and one firm responsible for a sensor that lets users move their hands to interact with technology instead of reaching for a remote control. Check out the slideshow below to see all the honorees from the Technology Pioneers of 2013 list. Have you heard of some of these companies? Do you already use any of these services? Let us know your thoughts in the comments. For a look at previous Tech Pioneers, have a look at the WEC’s list from last year.

An Affair to Remember, and Put on Screen

Brett

THE relationship depicted in “Keep the Lights On” isn’t one that most people would want to revisit. The film, based on part of the director Ira Sachs’s life, immerses viewers in the love and protracted dysfunction involving Erik, a needy documentary filmmaker, and Paul, a charming yet drug-addicted lawyer in publishing.

 

“Keep the Lights On,” which opens Sept. 7, is a balancing act typical of this director of “Forty Shades of Blue” (2005): a film based on highly intimate and painful autobiographical material that doesn’t rely on audience members having that knowledge to exert a hold on them. In “Keep the Lights On” those who know the back story will recognize the movie, set in Manhattan, as a refraction of Mr. Sachs’s past relationship with Bill Clegg, the literary agent who wrote of his struggles in “Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man.” But knowing that back story is by no means crucial to appreciate the film.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/26/movies/ira-sachs-directs-keep-the-lights-on.html

The Best Book Reviews Money Can Buy

Brett

TODD RUTHERFORD was 7 years old when he first understood the nature of supply and demand. He was with a bunch of other boys, one of whom showed off a copy of Playboy to giggles and intense interest. Todd bought the magazine for $5, tore out the racy pictures and resold them to his chums for a buck apiece. He made $20 before his father shut him down a few hours later.

A few years ago, Mr. Rutherford, then in his mid-30s, had another flash of illumination about how scarcity opens the door to opportunity.

He was part of the marketing department of a company that provided services to self-published writers — services that included persuading traditional media and blogs to review the books. It was uphill work. He could churn out press releases all day long, trying to be noticed, but there is only so much space for the umpteenth vampire novel or yet another self-improvement manifesto or one more homespun recollection of times gone by. There were not enough reviewers to go around.