The Morning Delivery

Most Popular Online News Stories for 2011

It’s that time of year, again, when news organizations are scrambling to determine which stories and screaming headlines attracted the most attention from its readers.

As a way to get the ball rolling, I contacted some leading news organizations and asked them to provide the online story that generated the most page views on their Web Sites over the last year.

Here, then, are the responses that came back from those organizations considerate enough to return my emails.

• The New York Times: The story with the most page views on NYTimes.com between January 1 through Dec 5, 2011 was ``Sustainable Love'' By Tara Parker-Pope, an essay on what makes a happy marriage. The article appeared in the Times' print edition on January 2, 2011.

• The Wall Street Journal:  The most popular story at WSJ.com for 2011 was an essay entitled: ``Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior’’ which were excerpts from author Amy Chua’s new book: ``Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother", a book that caused a great deal of controversy earlier this year.

• New York Daily News: The most popular story of the year on NYDailyNews.com was a story about a Brooklyn Housing Authority worker killing a giant rat with a pitchfork. The article, according to Editor-in-chief Kevin Convey, generated 907,057 page views since it was published in August.

• CNN: The biggest traffic day at CNN was their first day of coverage (March 11th) of the earthquake in Japan.  According to a CNN spokesperson, CNN.com generated 135.9 million page views throughout the day.

• FOX News: At FoxNews.com, their most viewed story as of December 5, 2011 was a story about American socialite and reality television star Kim Kardashian being placed on an official Australian Immigration Department watch list after breaching her visa application as many as three times.

• NBC: At MSNBC.com, the top online video story of the year was the earthquake and tsunami in Japan  which generated more than 40 million online video streams in one day, setting an all-time one day site record, according to an MSNBC spokesperson.

• ABC: According a company spokesperson, the top story for 2011 on ABCNews.com was a story about the 50 most popular women on the Internet. The article was originally published on May 6, 2010.  The two other top stories for 2011 at ABCNews.com was the killing of Osama bin Laden published on May 1, 2011; and the obituary of former Apple CEO Steve Jobs , published on October 5, 2011.

• At TVNewser, one of 16 blogs at mediabistro.com,  their number one story of the year (so far) was a report about Jared Loughner, the suspect in the shooting of Arizona U.S. Congresswoman, Gabrielle Dee "Gabby" Giffords

• The most viewed story at FBI.gov for 2011 with more than 1.4 million page views was their posting about the murder of 41-year-old Ricky McCormick whose dead body was dumped in a field in St. Louis. Police found two encrypted notes stuffed into the victim's pockets, but have been unable to break the code, which remains a mystery to this day.

• ESPN:  According to an ESPN.com spokesperson, their most popular story to date was an article first published on January 13, 2011 about New York Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie unleashing a battery of harsh words for New England Patriots quarterback, Tom Brady. 

• The most widely read story at TechCrunch.com. a leading technology media property,  was a story about the new Facebook Timeline on September 22, 2011. The posting generated 1, 201, 589 page views according to John Briggs, editor of TechCurnch Gadgets. The second most popular story at TechCrunch for the year was news of Steve Jobs resignation as CEO of Apple on August 24, 2011, a breaking news story which generated 847,889 page views.

• According to a company spokesperson, the most popular television show, not necessarily this year, but of all time at Hulu.com is ``Family Guy’’,Fox’s American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane.

• Finally, at Nexis, a subscription-based database that offers a comprehensive collection of news, public records, and legal and business information- tells me that they were unable to reveal their top search terms for the entire year; but they were kind enough to disclose their top 100 search terms for the past three months. Nexis provided me the results in alphabetical order, so they are not rank-ordered or listed by the most popular.

Another thing to keep in mind about these results is that Nexis, due to confidentiality concerns, doesn’t archive search strategies from its customers; so these results are based on the most used LexisNexis SmartIndexing terms.  SmartIndexing is the company’s own classification (or taxonomy) of subjects, industries, geographic areas, people and companies.

100 Most Popular searches over the past 90 days from LexisNexis.

1.) AAA
2.) ACLU
3.) Afghan conflict
4.) Africa
5.) Amanda Knox
6.) American Enterprise Institute
7.) Americans for Tax Reform
8.) Americans with Disabilities
9.) Anderson Cooper
10.) Antitrust
11.) Asset Management
12.) ATV
13.) Biometrics
14.) Black Friday
15.) Brookings Institute
16.) Center for American Progress
17.) Central America
18.) China
19.) Church sexual abuse
20.) Climate Change
21.) Columbia University
22.) Commercial Construction
23.) Congress
24.) Corporate Malfeasance
25.) Credit Watch Agencies
26.) Criminal Justice
27.) Cyber Security
28.) Debates
29.) Disney
30.) Employee Benefits
31.) Employment
32.) Energy Recycling
33.) Engine Technology
34.) Equity Markets
35.) Executive Moves
36.) Food Contamination
37.) Food Industry
38.) Food Insecurity
39.) Greece
40.) Health Savings Accounts
41.) Healthcare
42.) Heritage Foundation
43.) Herman Cain
44.) Hopstop
45.) Human Rights
46.) Illegal Immigration
47.) Income Trends
48.) India
49.) Insurance
50.) Ira conflict
51.) Iran
52.) Iraq
53.) Islamic extremism
54.) Israel
55.) Japan Economy
56.) Jimmy Fallon
57.) Job Creation
58.) Layoffs
59.) Mexico
60.) MF Global
61.) Michael Bloomberg
62.) Motorcycle
63.) Mutual Fund Market
64.) Net Neutrality
65.) NHL
66.) North Korea
67.) Nuclear
68.) Obama
69.) Occupy Wall Street
70.) Olympics
71.) Organized Crime
72.) Pakistan
73.) Payroll Processing
74.) Persian Gulf States
75.) Political Violence
76.) Private Equity Markets
77.) Railway Infrastructure
78.) Reinsurance
79.) Religion and Environmental Policy
80.) Religious Bigotry
81.) Retail Industry
82.) Rick Perry
83.) Romania
84.) Romney
85.) Sales Compensation
86.) Sandusky
87.) Schumer
88.) Scientology
89.) Sean Hannity
90.) Securities Markets
91.) Social Security
92.) Solyndra
93.) Steel
94.) Steve Jobs
95.) Tax policy
96.) Teach for America
97.) Terrorism
98.) Tim Kaine
99.) Tribal governance
100.) Turkish politics

Source: LexisNexis® Business Insight Solutions

-Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com
December 7, 2011

 

9/11: 10-Year Anniversary Guide of Facts, Stats and Historic Footnotes

 

With the 10-year anniversary of the tragedy of 9/11 just days away, Americans will undoubtedly, as in prior anniversaries, mourn the thousands of innocent lives that were lost in Lower Manhattan on a day that began with clear blue skies-but in a blink of an eye-turned into a plume of black smoke when the twin towers of the World Trade Center collapsed like dominoes in front of millions of a shocked and traumatized television audience.

But unlike past anniversaries, this is the first 9/11 anniversary in which we take comfort in knowing the ruthless mastermind of the attacks, Osama bin Laden, is no longer lurking somewhere in the foothills of Afghanistan or Pakistan, thanks to the US Navy SEALS tracking and eventually gunning him down  in Pakistan's northern city of Abbottabad.

Americans will also remember the 9/11 anniversary by reflecting on how much the world has changed over the last 10 years; and how vulnerable we really were prior to a terrorist attack on our own soil.

So as a way to consider how 9/11 impacted our lives and shaped public policy, I assembled some historical facts and statistics related to the dreadful day that refuses to recede from our memories.

• In an effort to combat terrorism after 9/11, President George W. Bush signed into the law the Patriot Act on October 26, 2001, a bill consisting of 342 pages, 156 sections, and giving the FBI and CIA expanded powers to tap phones, monitor Internet traffic, and allow federal agents to obtain business and personal records. The Senate approved the bill (98-1), followed by the House of Representatives in a 357-66 vote.

• The USA Patriot Act is an acronym for Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism.

• On March 4, 2006, the U.S. House of Representatives passed revisions to the Patriot Act (280 to 138), which placed curbs on the act’s powers, including protecting libraries from government intrusion and creating judicial oversight.

• According to the Bill of Rights Defense Committee, 414 local, county, and state resolutions have been passed condemning the Patriot Act as a violation of civil liberties.

• According to the New York Chief Medical Examiner’s Office, as of August 2011, out of 2753 reported missing from the World Trade Center, 1122 victims have not been identified; leaving 1631 which have been identified.

• According to ``Bowker's Books in Print'' database, in the U.S. publishing market alone as of August, 2011, there have been 1,742 books written about 9/11, which includes fiction, pictorial books, and juvenile literature.

• According to The Foundation Center, 1,339 foundations, corporations, and other institutional donors made gifts in response to 9/11, which exceeded $1.1 billion in more than 4,500 gifts for relief and recovery efforts and for issues related to the attacks, including bioterrorism and civil rights

• The September 11th Fund of the United Way of New York City/New York Community Trust received $163 million, surpassing all other organizations; the American Red Cross Liberty Disaster Relief Fund received $150 million

• Foundations and corporations in the tri-state area (New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut) provided 52 percent of all giving.

• The Social Security Administration estimates that $250 million in benefits have been paid out to people affected by the September 11 tragedy.

• The World Trade Center consisted of 7 buildings, including one hotel, spread across 16 acres of land. The buildings connected by an underground mall and concourse.

• The Twin Towers (1 WTC, or the North Tower, and 2 WTC, or the South Tower) were the signature structures, containing 10.4 million square feet of office space.

• Both towers had 110 stories, were about 1,350 feet high and were square; each wall measured 208 feet in length. On any given workday, up to 50,000 office workers occupied the tower, and 40,000 people passed through the complex.

• Each tower contained three central stairwells, which ran essentially from top to bottom, and 99 elevators.

• As of 9:00 a.m. units that were dispatched (including senior chiefs responding to headquarters) included approximately 235 firefighters. These units consisted of 21 engine companies, nine ladder companies, four of the departments’ elite rescue teams, the department's single Hazmat team, two of the city's elite squad companies, and support staff.

• According to the Congressional Research Service, the cumulative total appropriated from the 9/11 for war operations, diplomatic operations, and medical care for Iraq and Afghan war veterans is $1.283 trillion including: $806 billion for Iraq; $444 billion for Afghanistan; $29 billion for enhanced security; and $6 billion unallocated .

• According to Paul Colford, Director of Media Relations at The Associated Press, the first AP news bulletin on 9/11 moved on the A wire at 8:53 a.m with the headline: ``Plane crashes into World Trade Center, according to television reports’’; and it was AP’s own Jerry Schwartz who first coined the term ``Ground Zero’’  at 12: 29 p.m on 9/11, when he wrote: ``Emergency vehicles flooded into Lower Manhattan. No one knew what happened; the towers target of a terrorist bombing in 1993; seemed to be ground zero once again.''

• The first time the term ``9/11’’ was used to describe the terrorist attack on American soil was in a Bill Keller column in The New York Times on September 12, 2001: ``Correspondent: America’s Emergency Line: 9/11’’

• There were six Pulitzer Prizes directly awarded to journalists for 9/11 coverage and two more related to Afghanistan, which later entered the picture, according to Sig Gessler, administrator of the Pulitzer Prizes and a special faculty member of the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University.

• The 9/11 Memorial will be dedicated on September 11, 2011 on the 10 year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, in a ceremony for victims’ families. It will open to the public on September 12, 2011, and will welcome visitors who have reserved free advance passes.  The 9/11 Memorial Museum will open in September 2012, a year after the Memorial.

Highlights of the Museum include:

• The names of 2,983 victims of the attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993 will be listed on bronze parapets surrounding the pools.

• 8,151 tons of structural steel will be used in the Memorial and Museum when complete, more than what was used to build the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

• 485,919 gallons of water will be held in each Memorial pool.

• The Memorial pools will be approximately 200 feet in length.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was created in the wake of 9/11 to strengthen the security of the nation’s transportation systems while ensuring the freedom of movement for people and commerce.

    • Since 9/11, TSA has screened nearly 5 billion passengers, detected approximately 50 million prohibited items, including 4,600 firearms during airport checkpoint screening.

    • Since the agency’s inception, TSA has screened approximately 4 billion checked bags. Every checked bag is screened for explosives.

    • Approximately 500 advanced imaging technology machines are deployed at 78 airports nationwide. Since the technology has been deployed, more than 300 prohibited, dangerous, or illegal items have been detected on passengers.

    • Today, TSA recurrently checks over 20 million airline passengers, flight crew and transportation-related employees on a daily basis against the federal watchlist and identifies known or suspected terrorists working in, or seeking access to, the Nation’s transportation system.

According to the New York City Comptroller’s Office:

    • Total private employment in NYC fell by 97,500 jobs from August to December 2001, and reached a low in August 2003 with a total loss of 167,100 jobs. By June 2011, private employment added 76,000 more jobs than had existed prior to the attacks.

    • Since 9/1, the manufacturing sector has lost more than 80,000 jobs and the financial activities sector has lost more than 41,000 jobs. Although the City’s financial sector rebounded after 9/11, employment in this sector has not reached pre‐attack levels. The financial sector’s share of total City jobs has decreased from 12.8 percent to 11.6 percent. The manufacturing sector has decreased from 4.2 percent to 2.0 percent of total jobs.

    • The Fire Department uniformed headcount decreased by 3.9 percent in the fiscal year immediately after 9/11 (more than 2 percent of FDNY uniformed personnel perished on 9/11) but by FY 2005 had rebounded to pre‐9/11 levels. Headcount levels dropped below 9/11 levels in FY 2010 as a result of the City's budgetary constraints and has remained below since then

-Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com
September 8, 2011

Source: 9/11 Memorial and Museum Press Office; The Foundation Center;  Transportation Security Administration; Office of NYC Comptroller John C. Liu; The 9/11 Commission Report
***

Selection of Front Pages on September 12, 2001

U.S. ATTACKED
The New York Times, September 12, 2001

Terrorists Hijack 4 Airliners, Destroy World Trade Center, Hit Pentagon: Hundreds Dead
The Washington Post, September 12, 2001

NEW DAY OF INFAMY,
Boston Globe, September 12, 2001

BASTARDS!
San Francisco Examiner, Sept 12, 2001

Darkest Hour
Denver Post, September 12, 2001

ACT OF WAR
Hartford Courant, September 12, 2001

OUTRAGE,
The Atlanta Constitution, Sept 12, 2001

`EVIL ACTS'
The Miami Herald, September 12, 2001

IT'S WAR,
The New York Daily News, September 12, 2001

TERROR HITS HOME.
The Houston Chronicle, September 12, 2001

UNTHINKABLE
The Salt Lake Tribune

For additional front pages related to 9/11, SEE, Newseum’s interactive archive

 ****

September 11th Events Planned by NFL and MLB

September 11th had a direct impact on the professional sports world as well. The tragic terrorist attack led the NFL to cancel the second week of the season on September 16, 2001, while Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig cancelled games through September 16, making it only the third time in MLB history that games were cancelled due to war or national security reasons.

This year, on the 10-year anniversary, which just happens to fall on the first week of the NFL season, all games in each of the broadcast windows (1:00 PM, 4:15 PM and Sunday Night Football) will feature a special video introduction followed by performances of “Taps” from near the sites of the attacks, and moments of silence. For the 1:00 PM games, (the Baltimore Ravens hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers) “Taps” will be performed in Shanksville, PA while the 4:15 PM games, (the Washington Redskins hosting the New York Giants) will feature a rendition from Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, VA. NBC’s Sunday night game (the Dallas Cowboys visit the New York Jets) will include a performance from Hoboken, NJ, looking across the Hudson River to Ground Zero. Coaches, players and local first responders and other heroes will come together to hold field-length American flags for the playing of the National Anthem prior to each game.

It was announced recently that the National Football League and the NFL Players Association will contribute $1 million to three memorials and two charities related to the events of September 11, 2001. In addition, the NFL and NFLPA will donate all proceeds from the sale of auction items from games played on Sunday, September 11.  These items, which fans can bid on at www.NFL.com/Auction, will include game-worn autographed player jerseys, coaches and player hats, and commemorative game coins used during those games.

Major League Baseball teams, meanwhile, will be wearing flags on hats and the backs of jerseys, a special video will be played, a remembrance logo will be on each field, and each club is coordinating a service-oriented activity. In addition, each club is honoring public servants, first responders, and members of the military, while many are allocating free tickets for them as well.

Select Minutes of Events on September 11, 2001

5: 53: a.m.:  Hijackers Mohamed Atta and Abdulazis Alomari board a Colgan Air Flight from Portland to Boston, Ma.

7: 59: a.m.:  Flight 11 (American Airlines Boeing 767-223 ER, 23, 980 gallons of fuel, 81 passengers, nine flight attendants, and two pilots) takes off from Boston’s Logan Airport.

8:00 a.m.:  President Bush receives an intelligence briefing with a brief reference to a heightened ``security risk’’ having been reported during the summer, but not alarming enough for him to place a call to National Security Advisor, Condoleezza Rice.

8: 13 a.m.:  Flight 11 is hijacked; flight attendant Amy Sweeney witnesses three of the hijackers storming the cockpit at approximately 8: 20 a.m.

8: 14: a.m.:  Flight 175 (Boeing 767-222, 23, 980 gallons of fuel, 56 passengers, seven flight attendants, and two pilots, flying to Los Angeles) takes off from Boston’s Logan Airport 16 minutes after the scheduled 7: 58 a.m. departure time.

8: 20 a.m. Flight 77 (Boeing 757-223, with 11, 489 gallons of fuel, 58 passengers, four flight attendants, and two pilots)  departs Dulles Airport outside Washington for Los Angeles, 10 minutes after its 8: 10 scheduled departure.

8: 20 a.m.: Four hijackers from Flight 77 rise from their seats in the business class and shoot or stab passenger Daniel Lewin who was sitting in the row in front of them.

8:20 a.m.: Flight 11 stops transmitting its IFF (identify friend or foe) beacon signal.

8: 20 a.m.:  Flight attendant Sweeney uses an AirFone to call Boston’s Logan Airport to tell them that hijackers have stabbed two first class flight attendants, Barbara Arestegui and Karen Martin, while also informing them that the hijackers brought a bomb into the cockpit. Sweeney was still feeding information to the flight service manager (Michael Woodward) right up until the plane crashed.

8: 34 a.m.: Flight controllers hear a hijacker on Flight 11 tell passengers: ``Nobody move, please, we are going back to the airport. Don’t try to make any stupid moves.’’

8: 35 a.m: President Bush’s motorcade leaves for Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Fl.

8: 38 a.m.:  The talkback button on Flight 11 stops working, an indication that the hijackers have replaced pilot John Ogonowski.

8: 42: a.m.:  Flight 93 (Boeing 757, 38 passengers (out of 182 seats), five flight attendants, and two pilots departs Newark International Airport bound for San Francisco, Calif.,  41 minutes late.

8: 46 a.m.:  Flight 11 slams into the North Tower of the World Trade Center, striking the 93rd-98th floors in the 110 story building, approximately 1,360 people die.

8: 46 a.m: Two French documentary filmmakers with their cameras rolling 10 blocks away from the WTC, capture a distant image of the first crash.

8: 48 a.m.:  CNN is the first major network to show footage of the crash with anchor Carol Lin saying: ``This just in. You are looking at …obviously a very disturbing live shot there-that is the World Trade Center, and we have unconfirmed reports this morning that a plane has crashed into one of the towers.''

 8: 50 a.m.: The last radio contact with Flight 77 is made when the pilot asks for clearance to fly higher. Six minutes later, the plane doesn’t respond to a routine instruction.

8: 50 a.m.:  Flight 175, already off course, makes a complete U-turn and starts heading north toward New York City. About this time, a flight attendant reports the plane has been hijacked.

8: 52 a.m.: ABC breaks into regular programming to report the crash.

8: 54 a.m.:  Flight 77 from Washington veers off course over Southern Ohio, turning to the Southwest.

8: 55 a.m:  President Bush’s motorcade arrives at Emma E. Booker Elementary School, a visit intended to outline his education policies.

8: 55-9:00 a.m.: President Bush first learns of the crash when advisor Karl Rove takes the president aside to inform him of the tragedy.

8: 58 a.m.: Brian Sweeney of Flight 175 calls his wife and leaves the following the message: ``We’ve been hijacked and it doesn’t look good.’’

9:03 a.m.: Flight 175 hits the South Tower (Tower Two) of the WTC; the plane strikes the 78th-84th floors in the 110 story building. Approximately 100 people are killed or injured in the initial impact; 600 people in the Tower eventually die.

9: 03 a.m.: The WTC is evacuated before the second Tower is hit.

9: 12 a.m.:  Renee May, a flight attendant on Flight 77, uses a cell phone to call her mother in Las Vegas to inform her that her flight has been hijacked.

9: 17 a.m.: FAA shuts down all NYC Airports.

9: 20 a.m.: Conservative American television commentator (and lawyer) Barbara Olson, wife of Theodore (Ted) Olson, Solicitor General at the Justice Department, calls to inform him that the hijackers (on Flight 77) used knives and box cutters to hijack the plane.

9: 21 a.m: The New York City Port Authority closes all bridges and tunnels in NYC.

9: 27 a.m:  Flight 93 passenger Tom Burnett calls his wife to tell her that the plane has been hijacked with a bomb on board.

9: 28 a.m.:  CNN, citing The Associated Press, report that U.S. officials think the attacks are believed to have been carried out by terrorists.

9: 29 a.m.:  President Bush delivers a speech while still inside Booker Elementary School: ``Today, we've had a national tragedy. Two airplanes have crashed into the World Trade Centre in an apparent terrorist attack on our country."

9: 32 a.m.:  The New York Stock Exchange closes.

9: 37 a.m.: Flight 77 crashes into the Pentagon with approximately 125 people on the ground, later determined killed or missing.

9: 37 a.m.: Vice President Dick Cheney telephones President Bush to tell him the White House has been targeted and to stay away from Washington.

9: 40 a.m.:  Flight 93 transponder signal is turned off.

9: 41 a.m.:  Flight 93 passenger Marion Britton calls a friend to tell him two people have been killed and the plane has turned around.

9: 43 a.m.:  President Bush learns of the attack on the Pentagon as he reaches Sarasota Airport.

9: 45 a.m.: The White House is evacuated.

9: 48 a.m.: The Capitol Building is evacuated.

9: 57 a.m.: Passengers and hijackers struggle in the Flight 93 cockpit.

9: 58 a.m.:  Passenger Todd Beamer aboard Flight 93, indicates on a phone call they plan ``to jump’’ the hijacker in the back of the plane who has the bomb.

9: 59 a.m.:  Richard Clark, counterterrorism tsar orders all prominent land mark buildings and all federal buildings in the U.S. evacuated; and all harbors and borders closed.

10: 00 a.m.: Flight 93 passenger Elizabeth Wainio tells her stepmother, ``Mom, they’re rushing the cockpit. I’ve got to go, bye.’’

10:06 a.m.: Flight 93 crashes into a Pennsylvania countryside, just north of Somerset County Airport about 80 miles southeast of Pittsburgh and 124 miles or 15 minutes from Washington, D.C.

10: 06 a.m.: According to Newsweek, U.S. intelligence pick up communications among bin Laden associates relaying the following message: ``We’ve hit the targets.’’

10: 08 a.m.: Armed agents surround the White House.

10: 10 a.m.: The U.S. military is put on high alert.

10: 13 a.m.: More prominent buildings in Washington are evacuated.

10: 15 a.m.: The front section of the Pentagon building hit by Flight 77 collapses.

10: 28 a.m.:  The WTC North Tower collapses, 102 minutes after hit by Flight 11.

10: 53 a.m.: New York’s Primary elections, already in progress, are postponed.

11: 00 a.m.:  More skyscrapers and tourist attractions are evacuated, including Walt Disney World, the Philadelphia Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, Seattle’s Space Needle and the Gateway Arch in St Louis.

11: 45 a.m.: Air Force One lands at Barksdale Air Force Base near Shreveport Louisiana.

12: 36 p.m.: President Bush delivers a second speech, which airs 30 minutes later, saying: ``Freedom itself was attacked this morning by a faceless coward. And freedom will be defended.’’

1: 02: p.m.:  Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld calls the President and calls for war: ``This is not a criminal act. This is war.’’

1:02 p.m.: New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani orders an evacuation of Manhattan, south of Canal Street.

1: 27 p.m.:  A state of emergency is declared in Washington.

1: 30 p.m.:  Air Force One leaves Louisiana and flies to Nebraska Offutt Air Force Base, the location of the U.S. Strategic Command.

4: 00 p.m.:  CNN reports there are good indications that bin Laden is involved in the attacks, based on ``new and specific’’ information since the attacks.

4: 10 p.m.:  The WTC Building 7 is reported to be on fire.

4: 30 p.m.:  The WTC Building 7 area is evacuated.

4: 33 p.m.: Air Force One leaves Nebraska and heads toward Washington.

5: 20 p.m.: The WTC Building 7 collapses; no one is killed.

6: 54 p.m.:  President Bush arrives at the White House.

7: 00 p.m.:  Secretary of State Colin Powell returns to Washington from Lima, Peru.

8: 30 p.m..: President Bush delivers his third speech of the day on live television in which he outlines the Bush Doctrine: ``We will make no distinction between terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor them.’’

11: 30 p.m..: Before retiring for the evening, President Bush writes in his diary: ``The Pearl Harbor of the 21st Century took place today…We think it’s Osama bin Laden.’’

Source: ``The Terror Timeline: Year by Year, Day by Day, Minute By Minute: A Comprehensive Chronicle of the Road to 9/11-and America’s Response.’’ By Peter Thompson and the Center for Cooperative Research (Harper, 2004).

****

Web Sites to Keep in Mind:

9/11 Memorial

September 11th Anniversary Events in NYC

September 11 Web Archive (Library of Congress)

September 11 Television News Archive

A Memorial List of Victims at the World Trade Center

The 9/11 Commission Report

Legislation Related to the Attack of September 11, 2001

World Trade Center Statistics (Skyscraper Museum)  

Selling New York: A Q & A

 

 
Tom Postilio, picture courtesy of CORE

***

The more the housing market ebbs and flows in most of the country after the turbulence of the Great Recession, the more it pretty much stays the same in Manhattan, the financial capital of the world.

According to the brokerage firm Prudential Douglas Elliman, while home prices have plunged 30 percent in most of the country and as much as 60 percent in Las Vegas, Manhattan's median residential sale price in the second quarter was only 17 percent below the market peak in 2008.

If you want to get a better idea of just how pricey real estate really is in Manhattan, look no further than HGTV’s ``Selling New York’’, now in its third season, a reality show which depicts three prestigious real estate firms (CORE, Gumley Haft Kleier, and Warburg Realty) competing to sell luxurious, breath-taking multi-million dollar penthouses, townhouses and apartments to a collection of eager clients all too willing to dump their truck full of money if the property is to their liking.

To satisfy my heightened curiosity about just how competitive the housing market must be for real estate agents in Manhattan, Tom Postilio, Founding Member and Managing Director of CORE, the real estate brokerage and advisory firm regularly featured on ``Selling New York’’, agreed to answer my questions.

Q.  Are the majority of buyers for real estate profiled on ``Selling New York’’-plunking down hard cash for these properties or are they financing them through mortgages like the rest of homebuyers in the country?

A.  Cash, as always, is king.  It’s especially prevalent in higher price points.  Banks have imposed stricter lending guidelines, which can often delay deals for even the most qualified buyers.  For sellers, this can be discouraging, so the cash buyer is always welcomed with open arms.

Q. Is the price of prime real estate in Manhattan continuing to rise or has it stabilized somewhat given the uncertainty of a down economy?

A. Demand for truly prime real estate in Manhattan rarely slips.  An excellent example of this phenomenon is the meteoric rise of 15 Central Park West throughout the doldrums of 2008 and 2009.  As prices around the city continued to tumble, 15 CPW defied trends and shattered sales records.  Even in difficult economic times, there are exceptions to the unwritten rules about the wealthy abstaining from conspicuous consumption.  Premium residential real estate in Manhattan is a potent cocktail made from equal parts of scarcity, passion, and power, with a twist of limestone.  The market is often shaken, sure, but always stirring.

Q.  Are there any unexplored areas/neighborhoods in Manhattan where a buyer for a penthouse or loft might find an unexpected deal?    

A. Manhattan is a cornucopia of undervalued, overlooked neighborhoods.  Some have simply yet to garner the attention they deserve, but they will.  It’s not easy to keep a secret in New York.  The Financial District, for instance, still offers phenomenal value, in every sense of the word.  Because it had never been widely considered a residential neighborhood, it was frequently eschewed by moneyed buyers.  But recent high-end new development projects, attractive tax abatements, the new Fulton Street subway hub, and a renewed vigor surrounding the World Financial District have helped many buyers to realize that there’s a lot more than perception to creating value.

Q.  I noticed recently that a woman on the show had a budget of about $350,000 and wanted to live in Manhattan. She eventually had to settle for property in Brooklyn. Do most of the agents have a cut off; that is, anything less than $300,000 isn’t worth their time to take on the client?       

A. Many brokers prefer to operate in a specific price segment, and to an extent, I can understand that.  It is as much work, if not more, to sell a $300,000 studio as it is to sell, say, a $15M penthouse.  The math there is pretty simple.  For me, however, I see each chance to work with a buyer or seller, at any price point, an opportunity to develop a lifelong relationship.  When they’re ready to sell their $300,000 to buy a $600,000, I can help them with both.  It’s surprising how quickly it snowballs!

Q. In most of the country, real estate is a buyer’s market, probably not so in Manhattan. I rarely see any negotiating the price of property down. If the real estate agents show someone a property for say $3.2 million; is that price pretty much set in stone; or are owners willing to negotiate?

A. Well, certainly, each deal is subjective.  Most sellers tend to be negotiable on their price; which strategically plays to the psychology of the buyer who needs to feel they’ve gotten something off.  In many cases, though, negotiating goes in the other direction… up.  Bidding wars can actually become more prominent in an uncertain economic climate, as there is usually a lack of fresh, quality inventory that comes to the market.  For those shopping in the under-$1 million category, inventory is abundant, and a good argument could be made that a buyer’s market does exist in Manhattan.

Q. It appears the competition among real estate agents in Manhattan is fierce? Is it as cut throat as it appears?  What kind of resume does a good real estate agent need to show in order to get hired by prominent firms, such as yours?       

A. Competition certainly is fierce.  You should see what happens when the cameras aren’t rolling—uncontrollable fits of hysteria, hair-pulling, mud wrestling.  In all seriousness, most brokers get along very well with each other.  We realize that this is ultimately a very small business, and we’re probably going to have to work together again in the future.  As for a resume, the New York real estate industry is a melting pot of people from wildly different professional backgrounds.  Actors, lawyers, corporate executives, architects, chefs—you name it.  In fact, I made a living as a professional singer of the Great American Songbook prior to launching my real estate career.  Of course, it’s necessary to be licensed by the State, but where background is concerned, the thing to remember is that this is a people-driven business.  The agents we hire are self-starters with a friendly demeanor, the ability to listen as well, or better, than they speak, and with a healthy immunity to rejection.  And because of its niche position in the marketplace, CORE has been successful in attracting the finest talent from other firms, which is to say that being a top-producer can’t hurt, either.

Q. What is the biggest misconception about buying real estate in New York City?

A. That the entire process takes place in an eleven-minute HGTV segment.

Q. With so many rich people buying real estate, who probably value their privacy, do you have trouble convincing some of these clients to be profiled?

A. Not as often as you might think.  The show has earned a reputation for showcasing beautiful properties and presenting its personalities in a positive manner.  Many buyers and sellers have come to recognize that and are eager to participate.  It’s all in good fun, and we all have a great time doing the show.  Sellers have also come to realize that it provides fantastic international exposure for their property. 

Q. Even though they might not have been profiled on the show, are there any high profile celebrities that purchased real estate through your firm, such as Brad and Angelina, Alex Rodriguez, Katie Couric, etc?  

CORE has maintained a celebrity clientele since its inception.  We are diligent about maintaining the privacy of all of our clients and customers, so there are some transactions we simply cannot discuss.

-Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com
August 15, 2011

Like Madalyn O'Hair, is Casey Anthony the Most Hated Woman in America?

 
Madalyn O'Hair with her sons outside of the U.S. Supreme Court in 1963.

 
Casey Anthony last seen fading into the thin night air on the morning of July 17th

***

Is Casey Anthony the most hated person in America?

Before her stunning acquittal of first-degree murder, aggravated manslaughter, and aggravated child abuse on July 5th in the death of her two-year old daughter Caylee, Ms Anthony, 12 days later, walked out of the Orange County Jail in Orlando, Fl, a free woman.

There was no welcoming wagon waiting to celebrate her newfound freedom; only a SUV provided by her lawyer in she was whisked away deep into the Florida night with no one knowing for certain where she was headed. Maybe she flew to L.A., possibly Arizona, or maybe she never left the Sunshine State at all; but the chances she reunited with her parents seem remote.

This country has a long history of outcasts, shunned by society, with little choice but to head for seclusion after losing grace with the court of public opinion:  O.J. Simpson was the most notorious outcast in America before being sentenced to 33 years in prison in 2008 (with the possibility of parole in nine years) on charges of kidnapping and armed robbery. Aristotle Onassis, Richard Nixon, John Edwards, and even Boston Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner were all forced to head for the hills, lock the doors tight and remain out-of-sight, out-of-mind.

Though all these characters had their share of enemies; they also had their share of supporters who were willing over time to overlook their past transgressions, gaffes, and crimes and misdemeanors. Even Simpson was allowed to wile away the days on the golf course without anyone threatening his life.

With Casey Anthony, despite being acquitted by a jury of her peers, despite no smoking gun linking her to the murder, despite now learning she never Googled the term “chloroform” 84 times as the jurors were led to believe when they deliberated, the court of public opinion and Nancy Grace still deem her public enemy number one.

According to her legal team, Ms. Anthony has been issued death threats; others are plotting revenge, convinced she got away with murder; still others on Twitter and Facebook have suggested in no uncertain terms that she is a dead woman if she is recognized in public.

With so many enemies, it is almost as if Casey Anthony has become the John Dillinger of the 21st century with everyone in pursuit of her, wondering which town she’s living; and perhaps like Dillinger’s case, which movie theater she will be spotted leaving before being ambushed by enemies.

Before Casey Anthony, the most hated woman was Madalyn Murray O’Hair, who much like Ms. Anthony became the most despised woman in America as a result of a court decision.

 On June 17, 1963, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Abington School District v. Schempp, banned mandatory prayer and Bible reading in public schools. And though she wasn’t directly involved in the decision, O’Hair took up the torch for the atheist cause and took much of the credit for banning prayer in public schools.

Like the Casey verdict, the public was shocked and angry over the Supreme Court decision; the public anger grew even more pitched once they became acquainted with Ms. O’Hair’s foul language and blatant disregard for American religious customs.

In a 1964 interview with the Saturday Evening Post, O’Hair said she had nothing but abuse, hate, and vilification heaped upon her. `` She could find no work and her credit had been cut off. She had become impoverished and had been forced to sell some of her personal possessions to survive’’ the magazine reported.

Like O’Hair, Casey Anthony doesn’t know how she will support herself, other than the money, reportedly $537.68 she left jail with. Possible book deals, exclusive interviews, photo-ops, and the selling of movie rights of her murder trial are the only cards that have been dealt to her.

Even when the dust settles, and Casey Anthony takes up residence somewhere, she might still be in danger of being confronted with her enemies spitting at her, windows of her home damaged from prowlers heaving stones and rocks, her flower garden trampled on, her electricity short-circuited, tires of her car slashed, and gun shots fired at her house, all real possibilities that Ms. O’Hair confronted in her lifetime. In another interview, O'Hair said she was called a “dirty atheist,” an “anti-Christ,” a “slut,” and a “masculine lesbian bitch.” She also received mountains of letters with threats to “kill you, kill you, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill.”

If that’s not hate, I don’t know what is.

The hate directed at Ms O’Hair kept going unabated right up until August 28, 1995 when David Waters, a former employee who O’Hair charged with stealing funds from her organization, abducted her, along with her son Jon Garth Murray, and Robin Murray (Madalyn’s granddaughter), forced them to withdraw $500,000 from their bank accounts, killed them and tossed their dismembered bodies in a grave, just outside of San Antonio, Texas.

The fate of Casey Anthony is uncertain. Some experts claim she’ll never live a normal life again without a deceptive makeover, a new name, while finding another country to live in. Others are confident Ms Anthony, only 25, will eventually be able to rehabilitate herself in the court of public opinion, come out from the rubble and begin to rebuild her life brick by brick.

Until the next chapter of her life begins, however, at least for now, Casey Marie Anthony will have to live with the epithet once bestowed on Madeline O’Hare; that of being the most hated woman in America.

-Bill Lucey
July 21, 2011
WPLucey@gmail.com

Remembering How Reality TV Talent Shows First Got Started

 

 © Fisher Media Productions

 

Gladys Knight, age 7, before her appearance on the ``Original Amateur Hour''   © Fisher Media Productions

***

With talent shows popping up like toasters on television, whether it’s ``American Idol’’, ``America’s Got Talent’’, ``Top Chef’’, `` America’s Next Top Model,’’ or Simon Cowell’s latest mega-project, the ``X-Factor’’ waiting in the wings, it’s worth noting that when television was in its initial stages, ``Ted Mack’s Original Amateur Hour’’ was the only real game in town for amateurs to showcase their talent.  Another talent show at the time, ``Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts’’, which ran on CBS from 1946 until 1958 would often book performers who previously earned money in their entertainment professions, distinguishing it from the pure amateur, non-professional status of Mr. Mack’s show.

This year, in fact, marks the 77th year when the ``Original Amateur Hour’’ hit the radio airwaves in 1934, and shortly after its debut; it was taken over by Major Edward Bowes, the show’s original creator. After his death in 1946, Bowes talent coordinator, Ted Mack became its permanent host.

The television debut came on January 18, 1948 on the DuMont Network; a year later it moved to NBC; and later both ABC and CBS carried productions of it.  All together, the ``Original Amateur Hour ‘’continued on radio until 1952 and on television until airing its 1,651 episode, its last, on September 27, 1970, making it the longest-running variety program in the history of broadcasting and consistently one of the highest-rated programs on-the-air.  ``The Original Amateur Hour ‘’was revived for one season in 1992 on the Family Channel network with Willard Scott as host.

The premise of the show pretty much stayed intact during its entire run. After talent scouts scoured the country looking for entertaining acts, they would then be brought to New York for auditions. If they made the cut, they performed on the show, while members of the audience would vote by phone calls or letters. Winners would then return and square off against a new crop of talent, leading up to the final competition at Madison Square Garden.

After reviewing the ``Amateur Hour’’ alumni, it’s truly stunning how many participants went on to fame and fortune after first being introduced to radio and television audiences. The list of graduates includes: Joey Bishop, Jack Carter, Robert Blake, Alan King, Red Foxx, Connie Francis, Robert Merrill, Beverly Sills, Paul Winchell & Jerry Mohoney (the ventriloquists), Jose Feliciana, Theresa Brewer, and Pat Boone, among many others.

In addition, a scrawny 21-year-old from New Jersey, Frank Sinatra, the lead singer of the ``The Hoboken Four'' first hit the airwaves back in 1937, in the radio version of the ``Original Amateur Hour.’’ At the tender age of 16, Ann-Margaret Olsson from Wilmette, Illinois, made her professional television debut on the Ted Mack Amateur Hour, losing to a man who played a tree leaf between his fingers; while comedian Robert Klein appeared with his singing group, the ``Teen Tones’’, only to lose to a one-armed piano player.  Future R&B/soul singer-songwriter, and actress, Gladys Knight, as well, first appeared at age seven, distinguishing herself as a three-time winner.  And Louis Wolcott, later known as the Rev. Louis Farrakhan, appeared in 1949 playing a violin.

© Fisher Media Productions 

But the ``Original Amateur Hour’’ did let a few would-be -stars slip through the cracks, such as when Elvis Presley, auditioning for the show in Tupelo, Miss., back in 1953, failed to make the cut. Wayne Newton’s family traveled to New York from Roanoke, Virginia when he was nine to audition him for the Amateur Hour, only to be turned away; the show also took a pass on a ukulele player named Herbert Khaury, who would later earn fame with his falsetto voice as Tiny Tim.

According to Albert Fisher, who was a 22-year old talent scout auditioning acts for “Ted Mack and The Original Amateur Hour’’, more than 50 amateurs who first appeared on the show went on to become top international stars; and of the more than 10,000 amateurs that appeared on the show, about 500 became professional entertainers.

When I asked how much the smash hit ``American idol’’ reminded him of the ``Original Amateur Hour’’, Fisher said he sees little similarity to the show he was a part of for so many years. 

In Fisher’s opinion, most ``American Idol’’ contestants, at least those that advance to the semi-finals and finals, are so well polished, they’re not far from being considered professional singers. ``Ted Mack’s Original Amateur Hour’’, by comparison, was an amateur show in the truest sense of the word.  While the show was noted for turning out a number of future stars, the ``Original Amateur Hour’’ was better known for showcasing obscure local talents from around the country who more than likely would never be heard from again, whether it was a yodeling duo (Smokie Ridge Boys) from New Jersey, the Ozark Square Dancers from Tuscumbia, Missouri, or Judy Kassouf, a two-baton twirling champion from Lakewood, Ohio.

A strict requirement before appearing on Ted Mack’s talent show was that no contestant was permitted to have earned money performing. No such requirement applies to either Fox’s ``American Idol’’ or NBC’s ``America’s Got Talent.’’ A representative from ``American Idol’’ said that a number of the Idol contestants’ appearing on the show, previously earned money in bands, playing at coffee shops, or performing at local festivals.  NBC’s ``America’s Got Talent’’ also doesn’t place any restrictions on participants from having earned money performing before appearing on their talent show.

Another striking difference between ``Ted Mack’s Original Amateur Hour’’ and talent shows on television today is the grand prize for winning the contest.  The winner of Ted Mack’s show was given a trophy and a check for a whopping $1500 before an audience at Madison Square Garden.   The winner of ``American Idol’’, by contrast, receives a lucrative recording contract with 19 Recordings and a management deal with 19 Management; while the winner of ``America’s Got Talent’’ receives $1 million.

One way of measuring the success or originality of any popular show is observing how many steal from your act. `` The Original Amateur Hour’’ certainly had its fair share of copy cats.  The famous "Wheel of Fortune"; the phrase: “‘round and 'round she goes ... and where she stops ... nobody knows" ... while the infamous "gong", which would later appear as a title of a show on NBC from 1976-1978 with Chuck  Barris as host, were all devices that can be traced back to the ``Original Amateur Hour.’’  As comedian Fred Allen once said (Newsweek, January 14, 1980), ``imitation is the sincerest form of television.’’

As a way to ensure that episodes of the ``Original Amateur Hour’’ are properly archived and preserved in meticulous condition, Fisher has donated copies of the long running talent variety show to the Library of Congress . In addition, anyone who had a family member perform on the show, can contact him on the address listed on his Web Site  and he will provide them (after charging a processing and handling fee) with a copy of the individual show.  It’s Fisher’s way, he said over the phone from Los Angeles, of showing his appreciation for the way the show gave him his first start in the entertainment business at such a young age. Fisher is now a highly successful television executive with creative credits from all major networks.

So next time you plop yourself in front of the television to watch your favorite talent show, in whatever form it may take, it might be worth remembering it was Major Edward Bowes and Ted Mack who were instrumental in first moving this whistle-stop tour down the tracks.

Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com
June 14, 2011

 

Japan Crisis Resource Guide: News Sites, Relief Organizations

 

With the number of confirmed dead estimated at 9,079, while 12,645 remain missing as a result of the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami that struck off the coast of Japan on March 11th, any news these days from the island nation ranges from grim to grimmer.

So imagine my surprise when I checked in with my good friend from South Florida to see how her family from Japan was doing.  She told me that you would never know it from the 24/7 news coverage in the United States, but people are leading very normal lives in Japan. She told me her dad went to play golf this past Friday, while her mom attended a concert of a popular entertainer just last Tuesday.

Of course, my friends’ family live in the western part of the country, far removed from the tumult in the northeast region. But while she was obviously concerned about the devastation in her native homeland, she just wanted to impress upon me that despite the news being reported here in the U.S. that Japan seems like it won’t be able to function anymore; it’s just not true, she said. Life is going on as usual in some parts of Japan, depictions we’re just not seeing these days on CNN and on the CBS Evening News.

Still, though life is going on for some in Japan, with its inhabitants still going to work, still playing baseball, and running their daily errands, there’s also no denying this earthquake was damaging beyond repair; with many questioning whether Japan will ever be the same again, especially economically, compared with China and other emerging economies in Asia.

When I put that very question to William M. Tsutsui, Dean of Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences at Southern Methodist University, who is a specialist in modern Japanese business and economic history, he told me , `` The recent disaster may well be the straw that breaks the camel's back of the Japanese economy.  It is hard to imagine where the Japanese government is going to get the funds to undertake the massive reconstruction of infrastructure necessary after the quake, tsunami, and nuclear leaks.’’  ``Japan's national credit cards are maxed out’’, Tsutsui pointed out, ``so the only place to get new funds will come from increased taxes.  This will have the effect of dampening any momentum which the already weak Japanese economy had.  Combine this with the rising yen and the (hopefully) short-term disruption to Japanese industrial production and I think you have a perfect storm of economic bad news.’’

Despite that dour assessment, Tsutsui also reminds me that Japan has recovered before during equally challenging economic times; after the 1923 earthquake, after their defeat in 1945, after the oil embargoes of the early 1970’s. ``I would like to think that Japan will come out of this even stronger and more united than ever before, Tsutsui, said. ``It is possible, and Japan has the cultural fortitude as well as the technological know-how and educational base to pull it off, but only time will tell.’’

Meanwhile, while the current Japan crisis continues, I thought it might be worthwhile to compile a resource page, listing news resources that are reporting on the crisis, along with a list of charitable organizations  who are collecting contributions for victims of the quake in Japan.

News Coverage

If you find cable’s coverage of the Japan crisis is not quite up to snuff in providing the most up-to-date information- you might check in with NHK World TV , a wonderful resource, which translates live feeds from Japan into English 24 hours a day.

The Kyodo News , a nonprofit cooperative organization, which is usually restricted to corporate and organization subscribers, is making its articles dealing with the Japan quake fully accessible.  Kyodo, founded in 1945, transmits over 200 news stories each day ranging from politics and economy to crime and accidents, and science and sports.

The Mainichi Daily News, an online news site operated by The Mainichi Newspapers with 101 general and news bureaus, 265 communications offices and stations, 26 overseas bureaus, has been providing exemplary news coverage of the quake in Japan.

For other news sites (in English) reporting from Japan, you might check in with Japan Times and NewsonJapan, both of which are providing updated coverage.

For social networking, you can't get much better than with what Asahi Shimbun (the English language web edition of Japanese news) has posted on their Facebook Page with updated stories and pictures, chronicling some success stories (such as the 80 year-old woman being rescued, along with some other not so successful rescue attempts.

Japan Quake Relief Organizations

Much like the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti, charity relief organizations are appearing thick and fast on ways individuals can contribute to the victims in Japan. As with any organization or Web Site soliciting donations, the online user needs to be careful they are donating to a legitimate organization.

To prevent consumers from falling prey to scams, the Federal Trade Commission has posted a charity checklist for consumers to review before donating money.Other resources to search the legitimacy of an organization seeking contributions, include Guidestar and the Charity Navigator

What follows is a sampling of legitimate organizations I stumbled upon.

The New York Buddhist Church on Riverside Drive has been collecting donations for the disaster relief efforts in Japan. Users also have the option of donating through the Buddhist Churches of America  Web Site.

Another reliable relief agency to keep in mind is the UMCOR of the United Methodist Church. This agency, according to Yugo Suzuki, pastor of the Japanese American United Church, has close ties with such ecumenical church organizations as UCCJ (United Church of Christ in Japan) and NCCJ (National Council of Churches in Japan). 100 percent of the donations that go through UMCOR  moreover, are used for relief, not a dime for administration costs.

KokuaJapan, meanwhile, reports that 100 percent of the donations collected by them will be sent to the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California, where they have created a Japan Earthquake Relief fund.

In New York, the Japan Society , an American nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, has created a disaster relief fund to aid victims of the Tohoku earthquake with plans to work with Japanese and American nonprofit organizations that are on the frontlines of disaster relief and recovery in Japan.  ``Japan Society extends its heartfelt sympathy and deepest condolences to the people of Japan who lost loved ones in Friday’s earthquake and tsunami,” Japan Society President Motoatsu Sakurai wrote on the organization’s Web Site.

Major League Baseball, which has such a strong Japanese representation, is planning to make an announcement sometime this week regarding their charity relief efforts for the victims in Japan. Several teams, however, have already announced their own charity relief efforts, including the New York Yankees who have donated $100,000 to rescue efforts. The World Series Champion San Francisco Giants and the Giants Community Fund, meanwhile, will make a $12,500 donation to the Northern Japan Earthquake Relief Fund; and with Daisuke Matsuzaka, a native of Tokyo, and Hideki Okajima, from Kyoto, on their roster, the Boston Red Sox have created their own foundation in which 100 percent of donations received will be directed to the Red Cross relief efforts now underway in Japan.

The Seattle Mariners announced their plans to donate proceeds for the six game opening homestand to the Red Cross for the quake victims in Japan. The Mariners’ hitting sensation Ichiro Suzuki has already donated 100 million yen ($1.23 million) to the Japanese Red Cross.

-Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com
March 23, 2011

***

Other Web Sites to keep in mind:

Person Finder: 2011 Japan Earthquake:

For updates on Nuclear Plants: Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency

Pacific Tsunami Warning Center

International Committee of the Red Cross

Embassy of Japan in the United States

The White House Website (Federal government information on the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami)

 Google Resource Page  related to the Crisis in Japan

Midterm Election Coverage Guide: Online Newspapers & TV Networks

 

For those who don't have much of a stomach for politics, this Tuesday might be a good time to visit your local Blockbuster and check out that movie you always wanted to see. Because beginning at about 8 p.m. Tuesday, most television networks and news Web Sites will be working on high alert in bringing viewers the most up-to-date election results in key battleground states from coast-to-coast.

Since the balance of power in the U.S. Congress is at stake, Tuesday's midterms have taken on even more importance than has been the case in past years.  The election will additionally be viewed as a barometer over whether the public has grown weary of President Obama, and the Democratic controlled Congress, paving the way for a Republican resurgence.

In preparation for Tuesday’s epic night, then, I compiled a listing of what the major U.S. newspaper online sites and television networks have in store for its viewers and online users.

U.S. Newspapers:

• Beginning at 6 p.m. on Election Night, The New York Times  will have live video reports  from inside the Times’ newsroom from its veteran team of reporters and editors.

Live blogging can be found at The Caucus and FiveThirtyEight . The Times has additionally created a Big Board , which will show the very latest election results for the House, Senate and Governor races, including State Results. And if users hover their mouse over the main tabs labeled ``House’’, ``Senate’’, ``Governor,’’ and ``State Results’’, they will find a pull down menu for additional election data, including a map and the latest from the exit polls.

As an added bonus, readers will be able to keep on top of the latest Tweets from The Times’ political team throughout the night. The Times’ also will be showcasing a robust mobile site with live results from across the country, including a electoral map,  county-by-county returns, live blogging, breaking news and the latest analysis 

• The Washington Post’s political page features a map of all 50 states  which will have the latest election results with news broken down by region of the country: Midwest, South, Mid-Atlantic, etc. Another slick map ``Campaign 2010’’  tracks all 435 House races, analyzes past election results, drilling down to district level data; the Senate tab will have the latest on all the 37 Senate races up for grabs. The map additionally incorporates a tool to track fundraising, showing spending by interest groups and political parties in the 2010 midterm elections. Another nice feature is an impressive interactive graphic display called ``Battleground Races'', which shows the districts on the U.S. map currently held by both Democrats and Republicans. Finally, with Sarah Palin wielding so much influence on the political landscape, the Post features a ``Palin Tracker'', which will show how the more than two dozen candidates the former Alaska Governor endorsed has fared on Election Night.

Post reporter Chris Cillizza, meanwhile, will be providing the latest video feeds with live reporting and analysis at The Fast Fix

• Beginning at 8 p.m. ET, The Wall Street Journal  will carry six hours of live video coverage with Campaign Journal Live,  hosted from Journal headquarters in New York by Gerald F. Seib, assistant managing editor and executive Washington editor; Alan Murray, deputy managing editor and executive editor, online, and Gerard Baker, deputy editor in chief.

In addition, on the WSJ’s  Opinion Journal Live  James Freeman, assistant editor of the Journal's editorial page, and Jason L. Riley of the editorial board will provide video updates in the last 10 minutes of every hour, beginning with the 8 p.m. ET hour, featuring commentary from editorial page editor Paul Gigot, Potomac Watch columnist Kimberley A. Strassel and WSJ.com columnist John Fund.

And throughout the night at the WSJ’s home page  readers will be able to feast on breaking news updates, analysis and observations with contributions from Journal reporters and editors;  an interactive map will keep track of key races, overall election results and the latest news whether the House is shifting its balance of power.

Cable News

• On Tuesday, lead political anchor Wolf Blitzer, will be joined by Anderson Cooper, Candy Crowley, John King and Soledad O’Brien to headline ``Election Night in America’’, beginning at 7 p.m. and continuing into the following day. CNN correspondents will fan across the country, from Delaware to Nevada to Alaska and report on the crucial races impacting the balance of power in Congress.  The home base for CNN’s online community can be found at their Election Center

In addition to analyzing the latest election data and monitoring Twitter activity through the ``Data Wall’’,  CNN’s wizard of the touch-screen, John King will unveil his ``Election Matrix’’ , which is a visual representation that will break down election data and show which party is winning key races and shifting the balance of power in Congress.

As final tallies come streaming in throughout the night, viewers at CNN’s Election Center  just need to enter their zip code to get the most up-to-date election data from their local communities. In addition to displaying the latest voting results in races for the House, Senate and Governorships, CNN Election Center will display how ballot measures are faring from key states across the country.

As races are called through the night, analysis will be offered by CNN’s political team, including new hosts Kathleen Parker and Eliot Spitzer, Gloria Borger, David Gergen , Jeffrey Toobin national political correspondent Jessica Yellin, along with senior congressional correspondent Dana Bash, Congressional correspondent Brianna Keilar; senior White House correspondent Ed Henry and White House correspondents Dan Lothian and Suzanne Malveaux. Also on hand to offer their sharp commentaries and in depth analysis will be John Avlon, Paul Begala, Bill Bennett, Donna Brazile, James Carville, Alex Castellanos, Erick Erickson, Roland Martin, Mary Matalin, Ed Rollins and Hilary Rosen.

• Fox News will kick of their Election Night Coverage at 6 p.m with co-anchors Bret Baier and Megyn Kelly, followed by the FOX Report with Shepard Smith at 7:00 PM ET who will be joined by FOX News Sunday anchor Chris Wallace, along with FNC contributors: Nina Easton of Fortune and Stephen Hayes of The Weekly Standard.

Beginning at 8 p.m, Baier and Kelly will return to report on the latest election results; and will be joined by senior political analyst Brit Hume and a panel of FNC contributors, including: Juan Williams, Democratic consultant Joe Trippi and former senior White House advisor to President George W. Bush, Karl Rove. FOX Veteran news anchors Martha MacCallum and Bill Hemmer will also cover exit polls and track historical live data on the giant Touch Screen, respectively, as chief political correspondent Carl Cameron provides minute-by-minute reporting on election results.

A rotating panel of contributors will additionally weigh in throughout the night to report on what the results mean for the future of Congress and President Obama’s agenda. Contributors will include: former vice presidential candidate and Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro, former Alaska Governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, former Arkansas Governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, Democratic strategist Bob Beckel, Democratic pollster Pat Caddell, Democratic strategist Kirsten Powers, Washington Examiner senior political analyst Michael Barone, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and political analyst and columnist Charles Krauthammer. And as always, commentators Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity and Greta Van Susteren will be right in the thick of it, offering their biting commentaries and analysis during their respective primetime hours.

Among the online tools Fox is showcasing, one includes ``America's Election HQ Midterm 2010 Map’’   which allows user to customize the races they’re most interested in with a pull down menu for individual states. As an added feature, Fox has identified the closest ``Races to Watch’’ as being critical to the balance of power, along with ``Races in Play’’, which highlights all seats up for election this year.

In addition to finding the latest election results, including live streaming, real time analysis and political blogs at the Fox News web site , live analysis throughout  the night can also be found at Fox’’s live webcast at the Strategy Room  

Television Networks

• Live from its headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York, NBC’s ``Decision 2010" special coverage will begin with a two-hour "Decision 2010" special report from 9:00 – 11:00 pm, ET and then continue with coverage from 11:35 pm, ET- 3:30 am, ET. Brian Williams will anchor "Decision 2010," and will be joined by "Meet the Press" moderator David Gregory and NBC News Special Correspondent Tom Brokaw.

Correspondents Andrea Mitchell, Savannah Guthrie and NBC News Washington Bureau Chief Mark Whitaker will also offer reports and analysis. In addition, NBC News Political Director and Chief White House Correspondent Chuck Todd will conduct live results analysis for both NBC News and MSNBC; while Lester Holt will report on exit polls for both NBC News and MSNBC as well.

Over at MSNBC, election coverage beginning at 6.p.m and continuing through 6 a.m, will be led by Keith Olbermann, Chris Matthews, Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O'Donnell and MSNBC contributor Eugene Robinson from election headquarters in New York. Ed Schultz, host of the "Ed Show" will report live from Las Vegas, who is covering the closely watched Harry Reid-Sharron Angle Senate race.

At MSNBC’s political online site  users on Election Night will be able to read blog posts, interactive maps, exclusive multimedia features, live votes, social media integration and world-class video from NBC News, while MSNBC’s home page  will feature live stream of NBC News’ coverage throughout Election Day, with morning-after results and analysis.

Among its online tools, MSNBC is featuring their Voter Confidence Index (VCI) which gives consumers the tools to measure the country’s mood by averaging three key questions from national polls. At First Read  users can find the latest blogging on the Election throughout the day, including insight and analysis from NBC News’ leading political team.

Consumers additionally at MSNBC.com on Election Night can submit pictures and reports from their local polling stations. And for those who rely on mobile devices for their Election Night coverage, users can log onto to mismo to check MSNBC or NBC News election coverage; NBC News will additionally text projected race results as the polls close for subscribers who text 622639.

Telemundo, meanwhile, will launch its special Election Night coverage under the title Tu Voto, Tu Futuro" (Your Vote, Your Future); a multiplatform editorial initiative which will focus on three key issues of special importance to the Hispanic community: the economy, immigration and education. In addition, the network will select Latino families from key communities around the country (CA, TX, AZ, NM, NV FL, and NY) and cover the issues through the eyes of each family and how they are making their voting decisions.

• At ABC, Diane Sawyer and George Stephanopoulos will kick off their special election coverage beginning at 8 p.m and continuing through until at least 4:00 a.m. ET. Sawyer and Stephanopoulos will be joined by Senior Political Correspondent Jonathan Karl, Senior White House Correspondent Jake Tapper, and “This Week” Anchor Christiane Amanpour who will be reporting from Connecticut. Also updating viewers with live reports from key battleground states will be Sharyn Alfonsi, Ron Claiborne, Neal Karlinsky and John Quinones. Weighing in and offering insightful analysis as the evening unfolds will be ABC political contributors: George Will, Cokie Roberts, Donna Brazile and Matthew Dowd. They will be joined by Ron Brownstein, Editorial Director for the National Journal Group and conservative commentator Dana Loesch.

“Nightline” will air a special hour-long broadcast beginning at 11:35pm ET and then will air another new one-hour broadcast for the West Coast at 11:35pm PT. “Nightline” co-anchors will report from across the nation with Terry Moran in Washington, D.C., Cynthia McFadden in Chicago, Illinois and Bill Weir in Los Angeles, California.  

On the Web, ABC News NOW, anchored by John Berman and Claire Shipman  will be live-streamed on Yahoo!, Hulu, and a variety of additional mobile and broadband platforms beginning at 7:00 p.m. ET. As the results begin to come in, ABC’s David Muir and Facebook’s Randi Zuckerberg will have live reaction from the campus community at Arizona State University.

ABC’s online community will additionally be able to take advantage of their interactive map on individual states, including analysis on what the Republicans need to do in order to take control of the House; A striking’ Tipping Point’’ tool bar will also be displayed on the interactive map which will show which way the balance of power is shifting: Red (Republicans) or Blue (Democrats).

ABC’s features on the ipad will also be in full display on Election Night with the ability to view results as they happen, including allowing users to imagine different scenarios for Senate and House races through an interactive touch-screen map, by tapping on either the Republican or Democratic parties, and watch how their predictions would impact the balance of power.

• CBS News’ election broadcast coverage will be led by CBS EVENING NEWS Anchor and Managing Editor Katie Couric beginning at 8 p.m ET. who will be joined by Chief Washington Correspondent Bob Schieffer, Senior Political Correspondent Jeff Greenfield and CBS News Congressional Correspondent Nancy Cordes.

Beginning at 9 p.m CBSNews.com  will air a special one-hour live Washington Unplugged Webcast featuring breaking developments on the top Election Night races with analysis from CBS News correspondents and political analysts. Immediately following ``Campaign 2010: Election Night’’ in the 10 p.m hour, Katie Couric will anchor a live webcast at 11:00PM ET that will also present extended analysis from the CBS News political team, interviews and special guests.

From 1-2:00 a.m.  “Campaign 2010: Election Night” anchored by Katie Couric will be streamed live at cbsnews.com Online users can additionally check out CBS’s Interactive Election Map for race-by-race ratings for each Senate, House, and governor race this year.

Internet Resources and Web Tools

• In addition to up-to-the-minute House, Senate and Governor race results, live blogs, interactive electoral maps and graphics, and analysis from its top reporters, columnists and editors throughout the evening, beginning at 8 p.m. and lasting until 11 p.m. POLITICO is featuring a live election night show, which will be anchored by Executive Editor - Jim VandeHei - and Chief White House Correspondent - Mike Allen - and streamed live. The continuous coverage will go inside the POLITICO newsroom with appearances by Editor-in-Chief John Harris, Assistant Managing Editor Jeanne Cummings, Senior Political Reporter Jonathan Martin and Deputy Political Editor Alexander Burns.

• Google News has a special section for U.S. Midterm Elections, including election news for specific states simply by typing the state in the URL. Google also is featuring``Election Ratings’’ 
which displays trends from top pollsters across the country

• In time for the Midterm Elections, Yahoo News has launched Ask America,  which is a new amazing Social Media hub in which users can answer questions and track what other members of the online community think about some of the burning issues of the day, such as the economy, Islam, the environment, etc.

• The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) has set up StateVote2010  which will update the latest results from 46 legislative contests and 160 ballot measures throughout the night. NCSL has additionally launched a blog, Prop50 , an interactive site which covers the election news and ballot measure issues that are taking center stage in many states.

• For Mobile users, The Associated Press’s, most up- to-date election results and news can be found either at iTunes   or at AndroLab.

-Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com

Katrina 5-Year Anniversary Timeline; New Orleans Update

 

 With President Obama planning a trip to New Orleans on August 29th to mark the five year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, I compiled a timeline, chronicling the chaos, destruction, and havoc as reported by major news organizations for two tumultuous weeks.

But first an update on New Orleans since 2005.

The New Orleans Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau is happy to report despite all the infrastructure damage and damage to its reputation as result of Katrina, including the damage incurred from the BP oil spill, the ``Big Easy’’ is once again greeting millions of tourists, hosting conventions and prominent corporate and association meetings, while earning awards as one of the hottest leisure destinations in America.

New Orleans, in fact, is doing better than it ever has. Since 2005 (pre-Katrina) It boasts 300 more restaurants, $400 million of improvements into local hotels,  $250 million of improvements into the Louisiana Superdome and $92.7 million of improvements into the Morial Convention Center.

In 2009, moreover, the annual visitor spending in New Orleans was $4.2 billion; just prior to Katrina, tourists spent $2.6 billion in New Orleans from January through June, 2005.

Hurricane Katrina Timeline: August 28-September 7, 2005

• August 28, 2005: After crossing South Florida and causing nine deaths, Hurricane Katrina pushed its way toward southeastern Louisiana, intensifying into a Category 5 Hurricane with severe wind speeds approaching 160 miles an hour, prompting a mandatory evacuation and sending hundreds of thousands of residents fleeing New Orleans, a city of 485,000 people, and located below sea level, right in the eye of the storm.

The mayor of New Orleans, Ray Nagin, issued a grim warning to residents: ``We are facing a storm that most of us feared''

The storm shut down oil production in the Gulf of Mexico, sending the price of oil soaring to more than $4 a barrel.

Area residents, including scores of tourists without any form of transportation, numbering 10,000, began pouring into the Louisiana Superdome seeking shelter.

• August 29, 2005: Hurricane Katrina landed at 7:10 a.m. Eastern time near the Louisiana bayou town of Burasin, approximately 63 miles southeast of New Orleans, as it battered parts of the city for eight consecutive hours; but according to preliminary reports, the city was spared the devastation it feared, as most of the levees held with only one reported being damaged.

Katrina appeared to have inflicted the heaviest damage in neighboring Mississippi, where roofs were ripped off homes and 55 were reported killed, including 50 in Harrison County, Miss, which includes Gulfport and Biloxi.

  Insurance experts estimated the damage would exceed $9 billion, placing it as one of most devastating hurricanes in the United States. The loss of operating casinos in Mississippi alone was costing the state $400,000 to $500,000 a day in lost revenue.

The governors of Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi declared search and rescue their top priority, while President Bush promised immediate assistance to storm victims.

• August 30. 2005: Just when New Orleans thought it had escaped the fury of Katrina, 80 percent of the city found itself below-sea-level, after two levees broke, sending a surge of water through the city, 20 feet deep.

Death tolls began mounting at unprecedented levels; Mississippi was reporting at least 100 dead. In New Orleans, thousands of people were said to be stuck on roofs and attics, the carnage had become so devastating that rescue boats were left with no recourse but to push aside dead bodies in order to save the living.

Every few minutes brought new chilling accounts of horror in a city that just a few short hours ago was known as ``The Big Easy’’--looting in the streets (with one police officer shot critically), tens of thousands of homes shattered, no electricity, gas leaks erupting into flames, hospital running out of room for patients, not even the water was drinkable. 

20,000 people were sandwiched inside the Superdome, a facility that normally requires 9,000 tons of air conditioning equipment to keep it a comfortable 72 degrees, had no place to go, no place to bathe, bins were reported overflowing with trash, the stench unbearable, prompting the New York Times to describe the stadium ``unfit for animals.’’  Three patients died in the dome.

The Associated Press reported one woman giving birth while fleeing New Orleans.

The staff of the Times-Picayune was forced from its editorial offices at 9:40 a.m., and could only publish online.

Storm damage estimates increased to more than $25 billion, making it one of the most catastrophic natural disasters in U.S. history, even worse than Hurricane Andrew, which racked up $21 billion in insured losses in 1992.

President Bush freed up some federal aid as he declared parts of Mississippi and Alabama major disaster areas; while the Pentagon ordered six Navy ships and eight maritime rescue teams to the region.

• August 31, 2005: President Bush cut his vacation short from Texas and ordered an additional 10,000 National Guard troops to the Gulf Coast to help with the evacuation effort, making it one of the largest military responses in U.S. history to a natural disaster, as the total number of troops stood at 28,000.

It was announced that the 23,000 refugees shoehorned in the Superdome would be bused to the Astrodome in Houston.

    Mayor Nagin, while acknowledging the death toll might reach into the thousands, called for a total evacuation of New Orleans, describing the city as uninhabitable for the 50,000 to 100,00 who remained, and said the city wouldn't be functioning again for another two to three months.

The Army Corps of Engineers estimated that it would take three to six months to drain New Orleans of the water that flooded the city.

Lawlessness was still in full swing. One man reportedly shot his sister in the head over a bag of ice; and another dozen carjackings were reported by the Associated Press, including a nursing home bus.

    The Red Cross was reporting $21 million had been received in relief aid.

• September 1, 2005: As the Bush administration was fending off heaps of criticism for not responding to the flood victims fast enough; Congress rushed through a $10.5 billion relief and rescue package for victims.

    The slowness of the aid to victims in a predominantly black metropolitan area quickly ignited a political firestorm, when some accused the president of abandoning a region of the country to which he owes no political favors.

``Last year, when the president's election was in question, his response to the hurricanes in the swing state of Florida was tremendously fast,” Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Fla. told the Associated Press. "Where was he in the immediate aftermath for the Gulf Coast? Where were the trucks of food?"

As the Houston Astrodome filled to capacity, San Antonio and Dallas were preparing to absorb 25,000 more refugees.

New Orleans was still filled with angry mobs, crying for help, and storming the helicopters bringing in food supplies.

• September 2, 2005: Five days after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, medical and food supplies begin pouring into the region on the same day President Bush visited the area to offer support and to defend the government's slow response. Another 10,000 National Guard troops were reportedly being dispatched to the region, bringing the total number to 40,000.

• September 3, 2005: Homeland Secretary, Michael Chertoff told The Associated Press that more than 100,000 people had received humanitarian aid and the Coast Guard had rescued 9, 500 people; President Bush ordered 7,200 more soldiers and Marines to the Gulf Coast, while commenting `in America we do not abandon our fellow citizens in their hour of need."

    Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao announced an emergency $62 million grant to provide 10,000 temporary jobs for displaced workers. Amtrak was also planning to pitch in by transporting stranded residents from New Orleans.

• September 4, 2005: What had long been feared, but only now acknowledged by the federal government, the death toll from Hurricane Katrina is likely to be in the thousands, according to Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt.

    That sentiment was echoed by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, who told Fox News Sunday, "We need to prepare the country for what's coming. We are going to uncover people who died hiding in the houses, maybe got caught in floods. It is going to be as ugly a scene as you can imagine.''

    President Bush, still trying to make amends for reacting so slowly to the cries of help from flood stricken New Orleans residents, dispatched his top advisers to the region: Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Richard Myers, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice; while the first lady accompanied her husband to the Red Cross operation center to thank employees for their efforts.

    But the crisis was far from over.

    Chertoff told CNN that the ``we are still in the middle of an emergency. This is not the time when we can draw a sigh of relief''

    New Orleans Mayor Nagin worked the airwaves as well, telling NBC the way the federal government responded to his city helplessness was "a tragedy, a disgrace."

• September 5, 2005: Thanks to sheets of metal and helicopters unloading 3,000-pound sandbags along the 17th Street canal, engineers begin plugging a 200-foot-wide gap of the broken levee that inundated New Orleans with floodwaters nearly a week ago.

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told The Associated Press water was being pumped from the canal back into the Lake Pontchartrain.

    Reports of missing New Orleans police officers continue to be a growing concern for local and state officials.

    Four hundred to 500 officers of New Orleans' 1600-member force have not reported for duty. Two officers committed suicide; and another was shot in the head during the uncontrolled mayhem of the storm.

    While the final death toll from Katrina was far from final, New Orleans Mayor Nagin didn't rule out the possibility it could be as high as 10,000.

    President Bush continued to get pounded for his mismanagement of the disaster response; especially by the staff of the Times Picayune, who published an open letter to the president in the Sunday edition, calling for the firing of every official at the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

    Bush visited with victims in Poplarville, Miss., and Baton Rouge, La.

• September 6, 2005: The laborious task of draining New Orleans of an estimated 30 billion gallons of water continued at a snails pace, with the Army Corps of Engineers giving a time frame ranging from three weeks to nearly three months.

    Engineers started filling 45-foot hole with rocks and sandbags, so than more pumps can start running.
    Only three of the 148 drainage pumps were operating.

    With a patch of residents still refusing to leave New Orleans, the Pentagon sent 5,000 paratroopers in an attempt to clear the remaining 10,000 residents from the city; and Mayor Ray Nagin issued an urgent warning that fetid water could carry a disease, while natural gas was leaking throughout the city.

    With the lack of water, sporadic fires were reported throughout the day; and doused by National Guardsmen and helicopters.

    The Associated Press quoted New Orleans Police Superintendent Eddie Compass as saying the lawlessness had ``subsided tremendously''; and warned anyone caught looting was looking at up to 15 years in prison during a national emergency.

    Paul Getman, chief executive officer of Economy.com, estimated the economic loss from the hurricane would total around $175 billion.

• September 7, 2005: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, government tests showed the amount of sewage-related bacteria in the floodwaters to be lat east 10 times higher than the acceptable safety level, prompting Mayor Nagin to step-up his evacuation of the remaining 5,000 to 10,000 residents from New Orleans even by force if necessary.

    CDC was reporting three deaths in Mississippi and one in Texas from exposure to Vibrio vulnificus, cholera-like bacteria found in salt water.

    The Associated Press reported 100 military officers and seven armed personnel carriers arrested a suspect who was firing a gun at workers trying to restore cell phone towers in a housing project.

    The Federal Emergency Management Agency had ordered 25,000 body bags. The official death toll was still under 100.

    The number of water pumps working was only 23 or 10 percent of the city's normal contingent of 148 pumps

    Back at the nation's capital, the House and Senate said a joint investigation into the government's slow response to Katrina would be undertaken. ``Americans deserve answers'', said House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert.

    President Bush was expecting to make his second budget request for hurricane relief, this time for $51.8 billion;  while FEMA director Michael Brown  announced debit cards totaling $2,000 would distributed to those affected by Hurricane Katrina for clothing and other immediate needs.
    The New York Times was reporting more than 319,000 had already filed for federal disaster relief.

-Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com
***
 Select Quotes:

    August 28, 2005
    `We are facing a storm that most of us have feared...God bless us.''
    -New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin issuing a dire warning to New Orleans residents of the impending Category 5 hurricane bearing down on the city and urged all residents to evacuate immediately.

    September 2, 2005
    ''Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job.''
    -President Bush in Mobile Alabama with words spoken to FEMA Director Michael Brown for the job he was doing in responding to the federal response to Hurricane Katrina. Brown ended up resigning for his incompetence 10 days later.

    September 5, 2005, ``We have advised people that this city has been destroyed,” "There is nothing here for them and no reason for them to stay, no food, no jobs, nothing."
    -Deputy Police Superintendent W.J. Riley

September 5, 2005
``We're still fighting over authority. "A bunch of people are the boss. The state and the federal government are doing a two-step dance."
    -New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin

    September 5, 2005 (From The Washington Post)
"Nobody, especially the president, would have left people unattended on the basis of race,"
    -Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice

    September 5, 2005
"They were told like me, every single day, the cavalry's coming, on a federal level,’’…."I have just begun to hear the hoofs of the cavalry.''
    -Aaron Broussard, president of Jefferson Parish, just south of New Orleans, on NBC's "Meet the Press''

September 6, 2005 (From The New York Times)    
We're making great progress now," New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin said on the "Today" program on NBC. "The momentum has picked up. I'm starting to see some critical tasks being completed."

***

Update on New Orleans since Katrina:

• June, 2008: The entire St. Charles Streetcar Line reopens, including the S. Carrollton Avenue leg. The St. Charles Streetcar Line had been a New Orleans tradition since the 19th century.

• December, 2008; New Orleans ends the year with 7.6 million in total visitors and $5.1 billion in spending.

• Louis Armstrong International Airport announced that the airport served 7.94 million passengers in 2008, a 5.5 percent increase over 2007.

• January, 2009: The new Mardi Gras World opened on the East Bank of New Orleans, adding thousands of square footage of venue space.

• January, 2009: After a $27 million renovation, The Mahalia Jackson Theatre of the Performing Arts re-opens, which includes a new orchestra shell and enhanced lighting.

• February, 2009: The Mardi Gras reached pre-Katrina crowd levels of approximately one million visitors

• February, 2009: The Lakewood Golf Course reopens to the public after undergoing a $9 million redesign.

• March, 2009: Jazz returns to Bourbon Street, when the Irvin Mayfield Jazz Playhouse at the Royal Sonesta opens to the public.

• April, 2009: New Orleans is awarded the site for the NCAA's 2012 Men's Final Four and the 2010 Women's Final Four basketball tournament.

• June, 2010: New Orleans is awarded the site for Super Bowl 2013, making New Orleans the site of the Super Bowl for the 10th time, tying them with Miami.

• June, 2010: The historic Roosevelt New Orleans, a Waldorf Astoria Collection, opens after a $145 million restoration.

• July, 2009: Approximately 428, 000 music fans attend the ESSENCE Festival, a three-day event at the Louisiana Superdome, featuring musical sensations: Beyonce, Maxwell, Anita Baker and Lionel Richie for the 15th annual festival.

• October, 2009: Broadway returns at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts, with the presentation of’ Broadway Across America-New Orleans'', which included performances of ``CATS’’, ``Wicked’’, ``The Color Purple’’ and ``Mamma Mia.’’

• December, 2009: New Orleans ends the year with 7.5 million total visitors and $4.2 billion in spending

• February, 2010: A record breaking 106.5 million television viewers tune into to watch the New Orleans Saints claim their first Super Bowl with a convincing 31-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts.

• March, 2010: $400 million of improvements and modernization projects are being worked on at the New Orleans Louis Armstrong International Airport with an expected completion date scheduled for September, 2011.

• April, 2010: The annual French Quarter Festival announces a record attendance of 512,000 over a three-day weekend

• August, 2010: Approximately $10.5 million will be spent to upgrade the former Dominion Tower into a sports entertainment venue now known as the Benson Tower, named for Saint’s owner Mr. Tom Benson and his family.

Source: New Orleans Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau Inc.

A Nation Divided

It’s the best of times; it’s the worst of times.

America’s tale of two cities is the story of a nation deeply divided over health care reform and what the future holds.

It doesn’t matter which poll you read; half of the country welcomes health care reform as long overdue; the other half dismisses it as another government intrusion-and with it-the potential of bankrupting our country for generations to come.

The bitter split over health care, actually embodies the division taking place among American voters, the U.S. Congress, and the national media; with its cast of characters situated on the fringes with little representation in the center.

How did a country which survived the ravages of the Civil War, who came together during the Great Depression, spoke with one voice in defeating Nazi Germany; and later Communism become so divided in such a short period of time?

Alan Brinkley, Professor of American History at Columbia University, thinks the United States has always been divided; it’s only become a little more evident with the explosion of the Internet, which has made it easier for people to express sharp opinions.

Brinkley believes health care isn’t really what’s dividing the country, but rather the ``sense among many white Americans that the United States is changing (as it is demographically).’’   ``It doesn’t help’’, Brinkley writes in an email, ``that we are in a recession with 10 percent unemployment.’’

Looking back at history over the last 50 or 60 years shows how as the Cold War withered away, the country lost its collective purpose and became torn apart at the seems over the Vietnam War, the race riots which engulfed many major U.S. cities, the flood of immigrants to overpopulated urban centers, and a whole host of intrest group politics: from women rights (including abortion) to gay rights (including marriage).

The disaffected, the rebellious, the resentful, and all those left out the political narrative, who didn’t find their interests being represented in Washington, moved away from the Democratic or Republican party (even if in name only) and voiced their concerns with the excess of nonprofit interest groups sprouting up and growing larger every year. The most recent issue of the Encyclopedia of Associations lists 24,421 nonprofit organizations representing a range of special interests dealing with labor issues, pro-life, health care, religious organizations, social welfare, you name it—if you have a pet peeve-chances are there’s a nonprofit out there all too willing to welcome you into their tent.

The defeat of President Clinton’s health care reform in the 1990’s wasn’t so much that it was a bad proposal, as much as the bill didn’t have the support of the American Medical Association, the largest and most influential  medical lobbying group in Washington.  ``Hillary-Care’’, as it was labeled, never stood a chance.

In 1987, it wasn’t so much that Robert Bork was ill-equipped to serve on the Supreme Court as was that there were 185 liberal organizations, including Norman Lear’s ``People For the American Way’’, the AFL-CIO, the National Organization for Women, and the National Abortion Rights Group, all flooding the halls of the Capitol and pushing the ``swing voters’’ of the Senate Judiciary Committee to their corner of the ring. The Committee voted down Bork’s nomination 9-5 and the full Senate likewise rejected the controversial nominee 58-42.

Increasingly more public officials aren’t looking to the party platform on how to proceed or vote on an issue as they are taking cues from the most influential interest group who are usually equipped with the deepest pockets.

Just take a look at which representatives are receiving the most financial support from the top 50 industries (as compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics) and you’ll get a better sense of how politics is drifting away from the party and into the arms of special interests.

The polarization of the United States Congress has become more pronounced by the increase (some say reckless increase) of filibusters over the years. President Obama, moreover, wasn’t able to pick up a single Republican supporter on his final heath care bill, and the Republicans are threatening more intransigence on other pieces of legislation (financial and immigration reform etc) right up until the mid-term elections in November when the President’s party traditionally loses support with voters.

What’s causing such sharp division?

Congressional historians’ often attribute this polarization to the explosion of electoral gerrymandering (redistricting) which builds tailor-made constituencies along racial, ethnic, and religious lines, to benefit a particular party or an incumbent. Matthew Baum, Professor of Public Policy at Harvard University thinks gerrymandering effectively weakens the accountability of the legislature to majority opinion, by facilitating a shift from having relatively "more" moderate representatives of so-called "swing" districts to having relatively fewer of those and relatively more ideologically extreme representatives of more ideologically homogenous districts.’’ This partisan ploy, while building safe seats, also ends up creating representatives on the extreme sides of the political divide, with fewer and fewer representing the middle, according to Baum.

Arguably the most damaging feature of our poisoned political environment, which has lent a destructive voice all its own, has been the advocacy journalism offered by FOX News and MSNBC. These news organizations aren’t interested in presenting both sides of issue in a fair and balanced way. Keith Olberman and Rachel Maddow represent the left; both seem only interested in booking guests whose ideology meshes with their own or whatever personal crusade they’re promoting on any given week.

On the other extreme over at FOX--Glenn Beck and Bill O’Reilly are especially adept at distorting issues, tapping into pent-up prejudices and stirring up a vicious atmosphere of fear and hate.

What’s worse, members of Congress, representing their extreme views appear on FOX and MSNBC, not so much to be put under the microscope by an inquisitive journalist, but to advance their agenda and speak to their base.

Words escape me just how destructive FOX and MSNBC has been to the political dialogue, they have done such a disservice to both parties, and are  partially responsible for causing such a toxic division among America voters.

If it wasn’t for the superb work done by Charlie Rose over at PBS; or  Anderson Cooper on CNN,  Bob Schieffer on CBS with ``Fact the Nation’’, David Gregory on NBC with ``Meet the Press’’, or ABC’s ``This Week’’ would viewers ever benefit from any constructive news analysis?

It’s much too soon and unfair to blame Mr. Obama for failing to represent the transformative change he promised as a candidate so early into his administration.  Who knows, after health care reform starts to take shape, when more people are put back to work in the coming months, and consumer confidence rises again, Obama might very well have lived up to his billing.

But the extreme views advanced by representatives on both sides of the aisle; the fear and hate mongering voiced among some members of the Tea Party Movement, death threats to both Republican and Democrat representatives from deranged citizens, and distorted views disseminated by talk show hosts are only a few of the most disturbing obstacles that are keeping the United States a divided nation.

-Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com

Oscar Coverage on the Web

 
The clock is now ticking.

On Sunday, March 7, 2010, ABC will televise the 82nd annual Academy Awards from the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center, beginning at 5 p.m. PT/ 8 p.m. ET with hosts Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin.

If you find yourself away from your television set and still want to catch the live experience of Hollywood’s big night, don’t stress, there’s plenty of available options to you online. This is the age of the Internet, after all; when all things are possible as long as you have access to a computer or a smart phone.

At Oscar.com , for instance, the official site for the 82nd Academy Awards, users will be provided with an interactive Red Carpet experience through ``Facebook Connect’’, beginning Sunday from 3:00 to 5:00 pm PT, an online event which will be hosted by Lisa Guerrero and Brett Chukerman, along with “Modern Family” star Rico Rodriguez (‘Manny’), who will be reporting live from the Red Carpet Bleachers waiting anxiously for the arrivals and the crowds’ reactions.

In addition to watching stars parade down the Red Carpet, users will be able to read what other viewers are saying about the event through Facebook’s Connect application, while sharing their comments with other Facebook members.

And during the Sunday night ceremony, those logging on to Oscars.com will be able to view exclusive footage of backstage coverage of the night’s events from the ``Backstage Cam’’, capturing behind-the-scenes action,; a ``Thank You Cam’’ which allows Oscar winners an opportunity to thank their supporters immediately after they’ve left the stage; along with the ``Press Room Cam’’, featuring winners in the press area after they leave the stage.

As usual, The New York Times have rolled out a banquet of online coverage for viewers to feast on.

For beginners, The Carperbagger, Melena Ryzik is out in LA, and will be blogging throughout the weekend; as will A.O. Scott and others; and just on Friday, The Times launched an impressive interactive graphic that shows users all the major winners stretching back to 1975.

For those who like to compete, The Times has posted an interactive ``Oscar Ballot’’ , that let’s viewers see how they’re doing with their picks compared with other Times' users.

The Times also will be featuring their robust Twitter module in which staffers like David Carr, Dave Itzkoff, Ryzik, Scott and others will providing up to the minute updates, comments, and observations.

Meanwhile, The L.A. Times, has raised the curtain on a new celebrity blog,``Ministry of Gossip’’ in which a group of bloggers provide users with the latest from the Red Carpet, inside tips during the ceremony; and slices of gossip from the Oscar parties.

The Times additionally unveiled a new film blog ``24 Frames’’, which features the latest Hollywood news, videos from staffers, Oscar predictions and a ton of other useful tidbits.

The Times has assembled a striking blog `Gold Derby’’ in gathering links to some of the best Oscar reporting from not only the Times but from other national publications as well. Viewers will also want to pop in on Pete Hammond’s ``Daily Dose of Awards’’  for the latest Oscar buzz.

The Washington Post will be feeding readers with Red Carpet updates and chime in about things as they happen on their Celebritolgy blog

And for those who only watch the Oscars to see which designers the celebrities chose, both The Washington Post and L.A. Times will be featuring fashion galleries on Sunday night.

While Hulu.com won’t be providing live streaming, they do have a collection on of ``Oscar Picks’’ on their homepage; and on Monday they will feature Barbara Walters Oscar special, including Red Carpet footage provided by E! and TV Guide as it comes in. A small collection of short clips will be streamed live on Hulu as early as Sunday night; with the longer versions available on Monday.

E! Online have a fun new gallery,  Real Men Take (Red Carpet) Risks; and a Prediction Quiz, which allows user to find out  they’re a Box Office Brainiac, Red Carpet Rebel or Total Indie Nut . And beginning Sunday, E! Online will begin posting their TwitPics.

Finally, the popular entertainment blog, Gawker will be blogging away beginning on Friday night.

If you’re miffed I missed pointing out any other major Oscar night blogs, write your Congressman or Congresswoman; I did my best.

Enjoy the show!

-Bill Lucey
WPLucey@gmail.com

***

Oscar Footnotes:

• Douglas Fairbanks Sr. served as host when the first annual Academy Awards was held at the Blossom Room of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel on May 16, 1929.
The winners had been announced three months prior to this black-tie awards ceremony, where approximately 300 guests were in attendance.

• In the 3rd year of the Academy Awards (November 5, 1930), a new selection criterion for selecting nominees had been established: winners would now be chosen by the full members of the Academy, numbering over 400, instead of a handful of judges. This policy would continue until 1936

• Song and Film Editing were introduced as new categories beginning with the 7th annual Academy Awards (February 27, 1935).

• Cinematographer Hal Mohr became the only write-in Academy Award winner during the 8th year of the awards (March 5, 1936). Write-ins on the ballot were discontinued the following year.

• Best supporting actors were recognized for the first time during the 9th annual Academy Awards (March 4, 1937) --but the awards came in the form of plagues, not full-sized statues. The first winners were Walter Brennan in Come and Get It and Gale Sondergaard in Anthony Adverse. Full-sized statutes for supporting roles would not be handed out until 1943.

• Beginning with the 13th annual Academy Awards (February 27, 1941), the winners were not made known to anyone in advance, except a select few from the certified public accounting firm of Price Waterhouse & Co, until the envelopes were unsealed on the night of the awards. Thus, the Oscar tradition: ``The envelope please!'' came into being.

• During the 13th annual Academy Awards presentation (February 27, 1941), FDR addressed the Academy through a piped in radio address that lasted 6 minutes, making him the first U.S. president to address the academy.
NOTE: In order to give the Republicans equal time, Wendell L. Wilkie, the Republican nominee during the 1940 presidential election, was the principal speaker at the Academy Awards the following year.

• On March 13, 1947, for the first time in the Academy's history, the general public was allowed to buy tickets and attend the awards ceremony, which was held at the Shrine Civic Auditorium in Los Angeles.

• During the Academy's 25th Anniversary show (March 19, 1953), the awards were broadcast on television for the first time.

• Sophia Loren earned an industry milestone during the 34th annual Academy Awards (April 9, 1962), when she became the first Hollywood actress to win an Oscar in the best actress category for a non-English speaking film, for her role in the Italian film (Two Women).

• Make-up artists were recognized in a new category beginning with the 54th annual Academy Awards (March 29, 1982). The first film honored in that category was An American Werewolf in London.

Showstoppers

• April 9, 1962: During the 34th annual Academy Award ceremony, Stan Berman, a notorious gatecrasher, managed to slip past 125 police guards and presented MC Bob Hope with a hand-made Oscar.

• March 27, 1973: During the 45th annual Academy Awards, a shocked worldwide television watched as an Indian woman: Sachen Little-Feather (later identified as actress Maria Cruz) stepped to the podium and informed the audience that Marlon Brando, whose name had just been announced as best actor for his role playing Don Vito Corleone in the Godfather, was turning down the award due to the film industry's distorted depiction of American Indians.

• April 2, 1974: During the 46th annual Academy Awards, Ropert Opal, 33, came on stage directly behind presenter David Niven and dashed naked across the stage in front of an astonished auditorium and live television audience. As if on cue, Niven shot back in what is considered to be one of the best ad libs in Academy history, when he replied: ``Isn't it fascinating, to think that probably the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off his clothes and showing his shortcomings.''
NOTE: Opal was found murdered five years later in a paraphernalia sex shop in San Francisco.

Crimes and Misdemeanors

• When Zbigniew Rybczynski won an Oscar during the 55th annual Academy Awards (April 11, 1983) for an animated Short Film (Tango), he became the first Oscar winner to spend time in jail the night of the Oscars. Rybczynski got into a fight with security guards after he tried to re-enter the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion after stepping out for a cigarette break. He was arrested and sent to jail. It was a brief stay. Once he was identified, charges were dropped.

• The 60th annual Academy Awards (April 11, 1988), made history for having a nominee on the ballot, who was actively being sought by police for grand theft involving an extensive collection of library books. Gustav Hasford, who was nominated but didn't win in the screenplay division for Full Metal Jacket, was either a no-show or he didn't make his presence known.

• On March 20, 2000, two employees of the Roadway Express Co., in Bell Ca., Anthony Keith Hart and Edward Ledent, both 38, were arrested for stealing 55 Oscar statutes. Willie Fulgear, a junk salvager, eventually found 52 of those statutes as he sifted through a garbage bin in L.A.'s Koreatown.

Other Oscar Records:

• Wings is the only silent film to win an Academy Award (1927-1928).

• Cimarron (1930-1) was the only western ever to win best picture.

• It Happened One Night became the first comedy to win best picture; and additionally became the first motion picture to sweep all 5 major awards.

• Gone with the Wind (1939) was the first motion picture in color to win an Oscar.

• Haitti McDaniel became the first African American to win an Oscar (Gone With The Wind, 1939); and Rita Moreno, the first Latina to win an Oscar (West Side Story. 1961).

• The only person to actually go home with an Oscar for playing a character who lost at the Academy Awards was Maggie Smith for California Suite (1978.)

• Ben Hur (1959) became the only remake to win Best Picture.

• The Apartment (1960) was the last black and white film to win an Oscar.
Note: Schindler's List (1993), another Oscar recipient, was partially shot in black and white

Oscar Primer

Who makes the Oscar?

R.S. Owens Co. of Chicago

Dodge Tropy Co., in Carson Calif., about 20 miles from Hollywood, originally began manufacturing the statutes in 1931 until it closed its operations in 1984.

How big is the statute?

13 and one half inches tall; it weighs 8 pounds and one half pounds

What is it made of?

The exterior is gold plated.: 92.5 percent tin and 7.5 percent copper

What happened to the statutes George C. Scott and Marlon Brando refused?

In reality, their names were never engraved. They were immediately returned and put back in stock.

Are the statues copyrighted?

Yes. As of September 2, 1941, when the statute officially became copyrighted, Oscar winners were prohibited from selling their statute without first offering it back to the Academy for $10.00.

Also, since 1949, the statutes were issued a number, which started with the number 501.

-Bill Lucey

Source: 70 Years of the Oscar: The Official History of the Academy Awards'' By Robert Osborne