The Problem With Republicans.

The problem with Republicans is that they don’t know where to shoot from. Watching them awkwardly try to bash Judge Sonia Sotomayor is simply embarrassing. You may not agree with her on everything, but we must all agree that she knows the law.

While her 2001 remark (“I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life”) might have been a bit gauche, do we not understand what she was trying to say? Whether you are a lawyer, a welder or the President of the United States, your life experience will – thankfully – shape your views. As a judge, Sotomayor knows that her role is not to interpret the law as she sees fit but rather to apply it as it should be.

I welcome this fresh view on the Supreme Court because a country that still, in 2009, has Black children expulsed from an all-white Country Club, desperately needs a wise woman making sure its Constitution is applied, whether she is Latina or not.

I'll Miss The Vibe.

In a week marked by a heartbreaking loss in Pop Culture, here I am, mourning another staple. Vibe Magazine is no more. Founded by Quincy Jones in 1993, Vibe was the reference for the Hip, the Hop, the Rock, the Roll and the very cool. And, for a kid who could never get her Hip Hop fix on neither Montreal radio nor television, Vibe Magazine was a lifeline.

The mag was politics, it was social issues and it was fashion. But most of all, it was Music. Today, Hip Hop is mainstream and even my mom knows of Kanyé West. But for a long time, it wasn’t and Vibe Magazine was our ear to the ground. This Bible of what’s hot was a badge of honour for all those who graced its cover. The covers’ catalogue is like a history course in Hip Hop and R n’ B. Way before Mary J. sang with Elton John at the Grammys, she was on the cover of Vibe. Way, way, waaaaay before Kanyé had a sneaker line with Louis Vuitton, Vibe was telling us to rush out and grab his “College Dropout” album. And, a decade before he was gracing the cover of Cigar Aficionado, Jay-Z was preaching the Rock-a-fella gospel in the pages of Vibe.

Vibe was an important soap box for a generation that felt marginalized, misrepresented and in many ways, ahead of its time. It’s unfortunate the magazine couldn’t adapt to the realities of new media and those of its diverse readership. It’s a bitch-of-a-time for the publishing world and I’m sorry to see Vibe Magazine be a victim but it has never failed its mandate to be the voice of the Hip Hop generation and we should never forget that.

So Cool He Only Needed One Glove.

This morning while watching the Today Show, music genius L.A. Reid delivered the wisest words: “Turn down the chatter, turn up the music”.

As a student of Michael Jackson – because if you can recite the lyrics to most of his songs, that’s what you are – I choose to remember the Greatness, not the drama.

I choose to remember that he made music videos an Art form.
I choose to remember that he was so cool, he only needed one glove.
I choose to remember that when he walked, the sidewalk lit up.
I choose to remember that in popular-music history there are two periods: before Michael and after Michael and that he has single-handedly influenced all aspects of the latter.

As a publicist, I have a love-hate relationship with the media. Unfortunately, in the case of Michael Jackson, the balance definitely tilts towards hate. When you peg someone as “Wacko”, you kill him. Slowly, but you do kill him by striping him of his dignity while humiliating him in front of his family, his children, his friends and his fans.

Has Michael Jackson made mistakes? Yes, definitely. Haven’t you? His behaviour with young boys was an error in judgement and wrong but as court papers and countless accounts have confirmed, not pedophilia. For every news article vilifying him for his behaviour with young boys, there should have been three vilifying the unfit parents who sent their children to sleep over at his house.

For every news article lapidating Michael for his extravagant spending, there should have been three stoning his bloodsucking entourage.

And yes, Michael was different and extravagant. Thank God. If I want boring and predictable, I’ll turn to my accountant.

So today, and for the rest of my life, when I’ll think of Michael Jackson, I’ll choose to remember the Greatness and not the drama.

MJ & Alfonso Ribeiro do Pepsi. So cool.

Brains & Style.

Dambisa Moyo. Perhaps the name doesn’t yet ring a bell and the face isn’t quite familiar either. Her work, however, requires your attention.

Dambisa is the author of Dead Aid, a wake-up call not only for Africa but also for the nations seeking to help it out.

I like Dambisa because she’s so smart that when she speaks, you forget how stylish she is and you ignore the fact you desperately want to know where she got her fabulous stilettos.

Dead Aid might as well be a manifesto. The message of the book has the merit to come from a messenger that not only understands Africa but is Africa. As impressive is the fact that Dambisa Moyo went to both Oxford & Havard universities, the fact she is African makes her view of the Continent and the effects of the aid it has received more on point that those of a Bono or a Bob Geldof. I applaud most aid sent to Africa and think critique from one of its own deserves attention.

Dambisa Moyo isn’t a prophet nor does she hold all the answers. Still, this is one badass we need to listen to and perhaps, learn from.

Meow! When Female Columnists Attack.

No, you haven’t been experiencing Groundhog Day: you have been seeing Elizabeth Edwards everyday on TV for the past week. On all sorts of tribunes and formats, Mrs Edwards has been promoting Resilience, her latest book. Recounting a life that has little to do with ordinary, she shares such transforming events as the lost of her son, her battle and momentary win over cancer a few years ago and today, a new battle against a cancer that seems terminal. Much of the book recounts her relationship, partnership, kinship with her husband, former presidential pretty boy, John Edwards. Obviously, there was no way she could escape writing about John’s much publicized affair and possible love child with a one of his staff member.

Because she’s still standing, I suppose Elizabeth Edwards was expecting well-deserved cheers. Instead, her book has been received with a chorus of jeers, lead by such tenors as New York Times’ Maureen Dowd and The Daily Beast’ Tina Brown. Brown & Dowd have been throwing stones at Edwards, questioning her loyalty to John & blasting her attacks on the mistress. Why are these women concentrating solely on that aspect of Elizabeth Edwards’ life? What about her brilliant career as an attorney? Her role as a mother to kids of different generations? Her role in American politics? Dowd and Brown instead chose to kick someone who’s down and still found strength to talk about it.

How a woman responds to infidelity is as particular as her DNA. I’ve never been married and can only imagine the pain, humiliation and betrayal one must feel. I also know that often, staying in the union takes more strength than leaving it. On the flip side, I choose to see Elizabeth Edwards as a master strategist. Would her book have generated as much buzz had she left John a year ago?

Round 1: On CNN’s AC 360

The Confessional | Juliette Powell

Juliette Powell, New York | Sure, the name might sound familiar. To many of us who grew up on music videos in Canada, Juliette was that VJ. Long gone are the celebrity interviews with chart toppers and the gossip. Juliette is now a badass in her life’s next act as an author and as webmaster and she’s the poster girl for style meeting substance. The former model and self-proclaimed geek now enters The Confessional.

What is more invasive? Shooting a music video with not much clothes on or entering The Confessional? As long as you are comfortable with yourself, neither... You’ve already faced your own fears!

When you were a Veejay on MusiquePlus and then on MuchMusic, I pegged you as a ditz. Now, I read you diligently on Huffington Post and in ASW magazine and follow you on Twitter. You have really shut me up. Is the web your redemption? I was studying finance and international business at McGill and had already received a mechanical engineering scholarship (thanks to my calculus II teacher who recommended me to the dept.)… that’s what I was doing when I wasn’t on TV doing celebrity interviews. MusiquePlus empowered me (and paid me well) to learn everything I could about the business of broadcast and broadband. I wrote and produced my 1^st show at MusiquePlus and then moved on. Ditzy is as ditzy does ;)

You’ve written the very insightful 33 million people in a Room. Are people surprised to see a former model when they are expecting a geeky author? I was a model for all of 3 months. I sucked at it because I never was comfortable with the idea of being a walking hanger. A geek is born not made ;)

Social networking consumes much of our online-surfing time. How has the web influenced Love? If you ask my mom, she’ll tell you that she had more Valentine’s messages than I did a couple years ago- She had 14 to my 0 to be exact- She was dating online; I wasn’t.

You’ve been a consultant for The Biography Channel, Women's Entertainment Television, E! Entertainment Television, Cirque du Soleil, and Bravo. What are top two rules corporations must understand about the web to insure their online success? Authenticity and transparency.

You’ve met Nelson Mandela. Give me three epithets that describe him. Courageous. Self-actualized. Empowering.

There are heated debates fueled by the Bloggers vs. Journalists duel. Where do you stand on the issue? I’m a big believer in delivering information to people where they live. Like most people, I want to get the stories that matter to me when and where I want them and whoever can deliver is ‘favored’, at least for the moment. Most of the shows that
I create and produce are for TV, internet radio and for the web.. Why limit ourselves?

Name three things you can’t get from the Web. Full kinetic experience, Silence, a 6 handed massage.

What are three songs in heavy rotation on your i-Pod? I’m responding from Helsinki and just discovered Siiri Nordin, then there’s subswara and ana sia (going to their party in NY as soon as I land).

What are some of the most fashionable tech accessories every trendy-geek should have? 3 things that don’t go out of style: an empathetic ear, a helping hand and an entrepreneurial spirit… all very fashionable both on and off the web…

I have to say it: you look even better than you did 15 years ago. Name two things that keep you so radiant? My happiness comes from aligning what I believe in with what I do. I’m also incredibly lucky to have inherited great genes: thanks mom and dad!

Besides your smartphone and your Amex, name three things you would bring on a deserted island. A satellite phone, a laptop and my very own boy Friday to bring all the food, water and other supplies (think burning man). (PS: why would I bring an Amex to a deserted island?)

When will I see you next? New show and video series. Check in at juliettepowell.com for details in the coming weeks… ~> Jx

Bleeding Red, White & Blue.

If you live in Montreal, you are a Montrealer no matter where you were born. Montrealers have the same religion: hockey, no matter the name of the God they worship. The City’s hockey team, The Canadiens (also called the Habs), are celebrating their 100th anniversary this year.

The Habs made it to the playoffs and the City now has its mojo back. I love hockey but don’t know my team’s statistics like die-hard fans do. Still, I have rarely felt the big “CH” on my chest like I did a few days ago.

The Montreal Symphonic Orchestra and its rock star musical director Kent Nagano performed for 12 000 faithfuls at the Bell Centre: the house the Habs built. It wasn’t a concert … it was a spectable. Yes, the Orchestra is exquisite and yes, watching Kent Nagano is like watching a mad scientist concocting the world’s musical cure for apathy. But what truly made the event a multi-sensorial experience were of course, the 12 000 Montrealers present. Beaming with pride at their history flashed on the giant screens andplaying in their ears the revellers were drenched in hockey – the religion that unifies them all, if only one season at a time.

The MSO played Beethoven, movie soundtracks, Pin de Roma and Sports hymns. When Montreal speaks of being Canada’s cultural metropolis, this is what it is talking about.

Happy playoffs!