This is Barack Obama's third Ebony cover in the past 18 months. He has been featured with wife Michelle for the February 2007 issue, as well as by himself for the March 2008 edition.
Now, for the August issue, he is one of 8 men selected to promote a set of collector's edition covers. Other honorees include *ugh* Prince, Denzel Washington, Jay-Z, Marvin Gaye, Samuel L. Jackson, Billy Dee Williams, and Muhammad Ali. But who should really be on the cover?
Here's my controversial suggestion:
Put men on the cover who actually do something for the black community! What about the doctors who work in the ER saving our kids from dying due to gunshot wounds or other injuries? The attorneys who help our convicts fight mandatory minimums? (I got one in my immediate family who is being punished because of that law) What about the teachers like fellow bloggers Cool Cee Brown, Zackory Kirk, or Jose Vilson that toil in our classrooms to make a difference? Or what about the average Joes who stayed with their wife (or their baby momma) and go to work to support their family?
THEY ARE THE REAL EXAMPLES OF A COOL BLACK MAN!!!!!!!!
Where's their cover Mrs. Johnson Rice? If Ebony wants to really distinguish itself as a magazine, maybe it should become a publication that is "by us, for us, ABOUT us".
Putting the same celebs on cover after cover of boring issues will ensure that Ebony loses its swagger. On second thought, maybe that has already happened....
16 opinions:
D@mned Zack, you calling 'em out! You know Folk like that kinda illumination.
I agree that Ebony has become nothing more than a publication interested only in sales. When once it was a highlight of advancement of the Black Race in America.
Happy Fourth.
Sadly, real folks don't sell magazines. Who cares about the cat working hard to change lives who only earns 25K a year and is barely getting by financially but is making a difference.
I hate to say it but it seems the Black rags like Ebony and Essence only glorify stuff that IMO we really could do without. We talk about change yet we see glossy pictures of the beautiful folks combined with ads designed to make us spend money. Bad, bad stuff.
Ebony does include those brothers quite often on the inside of the mag. I agree that they are the heroes. But, truth is your brothers and sisters are NOT gonna buy it with these folk on the cover. Print magazines are hard pressed to stay alive nowadays. The fact that Ebony is stull around is amazing. So, it comes down to not only what sells, but the survival of the mag. I think we're better with it than without it. We gotta support it and then maybe it can get more real and less glossy.
Zack happy Independence Day. You can look to see him on the cover of the November 2008 issue after, he wins the election. They will not go to print until after the votes of counted.
Jet and Ebony haven't been relevent
since the civil rights era...but I
admit..I like the pictures. Still,
what you say is true...it's the "real" people in the community that make a difference...but unfortunately..they won't sell magazines. Once again, another great post.
Sorry about that.....My wife just got off my grandson's blog and forgot to log out...but I'm sure he shares my sentiments on that matter.
Everybody, thank you for your insightful comments on today's post. I apologize for not revealing a big surprise for the 100th post. But I promise, when I do share a surprise on here- it will be big.
You all are absolutely right- REAL FOLKS DON'T SELL MAGAZINES.
But I just want to see some new celebrities. Black Enterprise magazine rarely features celebrities. They usually feature movers and shakers in business instead of the typical household names. This is why I thought Ebony should try it out for once.
But what can you do?
I hope that everyone had a fantastic Fourth of July.
And welcome to "Booga Wooga"! :)
You are VERY SMART for a 2 year old. :)
[No, as Keith stated- he and his wife were still logged in under the grandson's blog that is written ostensibly by Keith and his wife.]
The truth has already been spoken here, so there's no need in me repeating it.
At the same time, I will not deny enjoying looking at some of the beautiful photos of a few of our Black men grace any cover.
100 post will be here soon enough jones
yes Ebony has already lost its swagger but this cover is fly as hell... I love it!
Great cover!
wow, what will that 100th post be about, I wonder? Will it be about one of Obama's kids' pet hamster saying 'whitey', or something?
Just wondering out loud in anticipation. :-)
Here are some cover suggestions:
Walter E. Williams
Thomas Sowell
Clearance Thomas
Larry Elder
Niger Ennis
Micheal Steele
Bill Cosby
Condoleeza Rice
Look for MY new magazine "IVORY" coming to a news stand near you.
Man, everyone jumped on this one. Ebony, like the majority of newsmagazines aimed at the black community, continues to sell us out for fluff and puff information that will sale issues. People are collecting Obama covers so it was a wise marketing scheme. The real issues are barely grazed and when Ebony and Jet and Vibe really get to the issues that truly resonate within the black community, we will be one step close to reaching the inherent potential of our community.
Thanks for the shout out…
Preach brother Zack!!
Preach!!!
I can't believe I missed a shout out from you man. Thanks for it, really. And I kinda agree with you: I'm tired of seeing Obama on the cover of every magazine known to man, but at the same time, what sells sells, and this is kinda history, and it's being documented by everyone. Let it be.
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