Roanoke TV Reporter Was Threatened After WDBJ Killings

NABJ’s Sidmel Estes Hit by Mystery Illness

Philly’s Fee for Covering Pope From Risers: $1,500

Natives Object to Canonizing Friar Accused of Cruelty

Ex-Publisher Says Newspaper Diversity Efforts Have Failed

Marvel Hires Coates to Write Black Panther Comic

Egyptian President Pardons, Frees Al Jazeera Reporters

Black Publishers Honor Roland Martin, 4 Others

Carson Condemned for Muslim Comment; Sees Donations Rise

Clinton Talks Black Colleges, Birthers on Joyner Show

Short Takes

Duke Carter, reporter at WSLS-TV in Roanoke, Va., reports on an Aug. 27 vigil after the shooting death of two WDBJ-journalists. Carter won a protective order Wednesday against a man who made a threatening gesture in the wake of the killings. (video)

Roanoke TV Reporter Was Threatened After WDBJ Killings

A black television reporter in Roanoke, Va., who was threatened in the wake of the on-air killings of two WDBJ-TV reporters was granted a protective order Wednesday against the man who made the threats, Cameron Austin reported for the Roanoke Times.

The order is to remain in effect for two years. During that time, the man, who is white, will not be allowed to own a gun and was ordered to have no contact with the reporter.

“Donald ‘Donnie’ Visel Jr. made a shooting motion at WSLS reporter Duke Carter while he was reporting in the field, according to court testimony in Montgomery County, where Carter resides,” Austin wrote Wednesday.

“Based on other court evidence and testimony Wednesday, here’s what happened on Saturday, Sept. 5:

“Carter said he was working on a story at the Smith Mountain Lake Kroger on a fundraiser for WDBJ shooting survivor Vicki Gardner. WDBJ journalists Alison Parker and Adam Ward were killed as a result of the shootings at Bridgewater Plaza at the lake.

“Around 11:30 a.m. that day, Carter said he heard a man’s voice yelling at him from a nearby truck.

” ‘Hey, Frankie Jupiter,’ the man, later identified as Visel, yelled at Carter.

“Jupiter is a former WDBJ reporter.

“Carter said he was confused by the comment, ignored Visel, and continued filming his shot.

” ‘I thought, he must be talking to the Channel 7 guy who was filming next to me,’ Carter said.

“But again, the voice rang out at Carter, yelling ‘Frankie Jupiter!’

“Carter said he eventually realized the man was trying to get his attention, and Carter said he responded, ‘I’m not Frankie Jupiter.’

“Visel, 28, who had been circling the parking lot said to him, ‘Oh, you’re right. You’re dead,’ and then proceeded to make a shooting motion with his hands directly at Carter.

” ‘I was frozen in fear,’ Carter said. ‘This was the exact same road where Alison and Adam were shot.’ . . .”

As reported in this space on Sunday, Kelly Zuber, WDBJ-TV news director, told journalists at the Excellence in Journalism convention in Orlando Saturday that an African American reporter from WDBJ-TV and another from the competing WSLS-TV were reporting in the aftermath of the shooting incident when a man in a pickup truck formed his hand like a gun, pointed it at the reporters and called out the name of the shooter.

Carter sent word through a colleague Sunday that he did not want to discuss the incident or speak with Journal-isms because the perpetrator was unaware of the order. The colleague told Journal-isms never to call the station again.

Austin also wrote, ” ‘All of the news journalists in the area were on high alert,’ Carter said.

NABJ’s Sidmel Estes Hit by Mystery Illness

September 23, 2015

Friends Start Online Fund Drive to Provide Health Care

Sidmel Estes, who became the first female president of the National Association of Black Journalists in 1991 while working as executive producer and co-creator of WAGA-TV’s “Good Day Atlanta,” is facing health challenges so serious that friends have undertaken a fundraising drive to help her.

“I was stunned when my friends rallied to help me,” Estes, 60, messaged Journal-isms on Wednesday. “And there are a lot of Sidmels out there. I didn’t ask anyone to do this. I’m still confined to bed as we try to figure out the medical treatment for what’s happening. But it is serious. I’m scared because I have never had this kind of thing happen. Please keep me in your prayers.”

Ce Cole Dillon, a former president of the Northwestern University Black Alumni Association and co-founder of Student Loan 411, a firm that aids student loan borrowers, posted an appeal on fundrazr.com that in its first day raised $1,825, or 5 percent of its $36,000 goal, by 7 p.m. on Wednesday.

“Sidmel Estes was our big sister at Northwestern University [donation site],” the appeal begins. “For many people the big sister role ends at college. It wasn’t that way for Sid. She never stopped being our big sister. And now she needs help. We are Ce Cole Dillon and Dianne E. Earley.

“The list of accomplishments Sidmel has as a journalist is impressive. . . .”

Dillon also wrote, “Despite all of those accomplishments, in the last decade the vicissitudes of the journalism industry [have] left Sidmel as one of many talented people without a place to ply her trade. It didn’t mean that she stopped being a journalist. It really meant that it became difficult for Sidmel to live when she couldn’t make an adequate living. Lately she was an adjunct college professor. Her contract was terminated when she got sick.

“Sidmel has several serious health challenges that don’t have a name right now, but have devastating symptoms. They are trying to figure out what is wrong and what to do about it. Sidmel has been hospitalized twice in the last month. She needs expensive medicines and she can’t work.

“Now Sidmel is facing a series of whammies. She has lost her health. She lives in a state that didn’t accept the Medicaid expansion under the ACA [Affordable Care Act]. And she earned her living in a [declining] industry that has limited options for senior workers. Declining industry, declining health, and no health care is her triple whammy. Sidmel’s triple whammy means that she needs help with living expenses and medicines.

“She is too young to retire, and without a diagnosis she can’t qualify for other kinds of government aid for now. When she was young, strong and healthy Sidmel gave a lot to her employers, her industry and her colleagues. Now she needs to us to give. If, a lot of us give a little, we can help Sidmel get past this challenge. . . .”

Georgia’s percentage of people without health coverage last year was the fourth-highest in the nation, trailing only Texas, Alaska and Florida, Andy Miller reported Thursday for Georgia Health News.

Estes lost more than 150 pounds after undergoing gastric bypass surgery. “I reached my peak at 360 pounds…. I had the surgery in 1999,” she said in 2013. “I have kept the weight off and now weigh 190ish.”

After Estes left WAGA-TV, she started BreakThrough Inc., a consulting company, and became a media consultant and trainer in addition to keeping her shingle as an executive producer. As the turmoil in the news industry led to more layoffs and buyouts, she helped others reorient their thinking.

She led a 2011 workshop, called “LaidOff, Bought Out & Scared: Managing My Life and Finances” and presented in conjunction with longtime NABJ members Neil Foote and Jackie Jones, that “targets journalists who may have recently lost their jobs or fear they may lose them,” according to a description at the time.

“We’ll discuss what you can do now to prepare for the worst, how you adjust to life without the office and offer Budgeting 101 tips. An attorney also will discuss what you need to know before you sign any exit paperwork.” The workshop was presented over BlogTalk Radio.

She has two sons, Joshua and Sidney.

• The HistoryMakers: Sidmel Estes

Philly’s Fee for Covering Pope From Risers: $1,500

“Here’s a Pope Visit story you may not have heard,” Denise Clay, a Philadelphia-based independent writer, wrote friends on social media last week.

“Today, I got an email telling me that I had been approved for an on site credential for the Papal mass on Sunday the 27th.

“But there was a catch.

“I’d have to pay $1,500 for the spot.

“I looked at the email for a minute and decided to call the number at the bottom to make sure I wasn’t seeing things.

“The gentleman on the other end of the phone assured me that I wasn’t. He apologized and explained that the reason why reporters were being asked to basically pay to cover the Papal mass was because of how much the risers cost the World Meeting of Families to build.

“(The inner smart ass in me wanted to ask if they used Cherry wood, but I didn’t.)

“Since I’m doing this for small news outlets that can’t — or won’t — give me the $1,500, and I don’t have it myself to use and write off as an expense, I won’t be up on the riser, I guess.

“Now I don’t mind paying for certain things when I do assignments. As long as I have a place to sit, I don’t need a plate at your rubber chicken dinner. If I do want a plate, I’ll buy a ticket.

“I’ve bought concert tickets to review shows, movie tickets to review films, and I even paid my own way to cover the 2008 DNC in Denver and both Obama inaugurations with some help.

“But being asked to pay $1,500 to, basically, cover a church service is a new one.

“But I guess it could be worse. I could be a photographer.

“The fee for the standing risers they need to do their jobs ranges from $4,500 to $7,500.”

Hadas Gold added Tuesday for Politico Media Pro: “Kenneth Gavin, the director of communications for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, said the costs were due to the lack of existing infrastructure in the city and that it wasn’t under the control of the Archdiocese or the World Meeting of Families.

” ‘Due to the significant media infrastructure that had to be built from scratch on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and in the Pennsylvania Convention Center, the associated costs were necessary to provide quality resources for media to properly cover this momentous event,’ Gavin wrote in an email.

“This vastly differs from the events in New York and D.C. as they already have an existing infrastructure and did not require any expansive build out needed to accommodate media coverage. . . . Additionally, it is possible for reporters to cover the events on the Parkway without paying for space on the risers. . . .”

“The problem is that Serra is also documented as being an extreme and unapologetic abuser of the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Coast,” Simon Moya-Smith wrote for CNN. (Credit: CBS News) (video)

Natives Object to Canonizing Friar Accused of Cruelty

“Fifteen years ago, Pope John Paul II apologized for hundreds of years of violence and subjugation that the indigenous peoples of the Americas suffered at the hands of Catholics. Pope Francis, speaking in Bolivia, followed this up in July by expressing remorse over the cruelty committed against the indigenous peoples of the Americas,” Simon Moya-Smith wrote Wednesday for CNN.

” ‘I say this to you with regret: Many grave sins were committed against the native people of America in the name of God,’ he said. ‘I humbly ask forgiveness, not only for the offense of the church herself, but also for crimes committed against the native peoples during the so-called conquest of America.’

“So why is he set to canonize someone whose actions would seem to fly in the face of such encouraging words?

“This week, during his first visit to the United States, the Pope is expected to canonize 18th-century Franciscan Friar Junipero Serra, who arrived in 1769 and founded nine of California’s 21 Spanish Catholic missions.

“The problem is that Serra is also documented as being an extreme and unapologetic abuser of the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Coast.

“Indeed, according to Elias Castillo, author of ‘A Cross of Thorns: The Enslavement of California’s Indians by the Spanish Missions,’ Serra would brutally beat and whip men, women and children in order to force obedience among the Indians. Castillo also writes that Serra celebrated the demise of Indian children, referring to their deaths as a ‘harvest.’ . . .”

To their credit, some media outlets, such as the “CBS Evening News” and Pacifica Radio’s “Democracy Now!” did not overlook the Native perspective on Serra.

“It was an actual — a culturecide of the indigenous people there,” Valentin Lopez, chair of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band, said on “Democracy Now!”

“The missions would use shackles, and they used stocks on the Indians. The women that were — when they separated the families, the women were repeatedly raped by the soldiers. There [were] no other women in California at that time. And so, the men would go into the women’s dormitory or barrack at nighttime and just repeatedly rape them. Those dormitories were locked, but the soldiers would just go on in and repeatedly rape them . . . . “

He also said, “It wasn’t unusual to have 10 — I mean, 1,200 Indians dying at one time. . . . “

CBS’s Carter Evans presented the church’s side as well as that of the Natives.

” ‘But Serra doesn’t see that. He sees Indians as naked, as hungry, as hungering literally for food and for salvation in Christ,’ said History Professor Steven Hackel.

“Hackel says for many Hispanics in California, Serra is seen as a founding father. . . .”

• Maurice Chammah, Marshall Project: A Letter to Pope Francis
• Stephanie Condon, CBS News: Pope Francis canonizes 18th-century missionary
• Mary C. Curtis, NPR “Code Switch”: Pope Francis Inspires Black Catholics, Despite Complicated Church History On Race
• Marcia Facundo, Fox News Latino: Pope Francis’s thorniest point in his U.S. agenda: Making Junipero Serra a saint
• Juan Gonzalez and Amy Goodman with Valentin Lopez, “Democracy, Now!”: Native Groups Protest Pope Francis’ Canonization of Junípero Serra over Role in California Genocide
• Emil Guillermo, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund: All the anti-Muslim talk in the presidential campaign, and Pope Francis’ Asian American numbers
• Suzan Shown Harjo, Indian Country Today Media Network: Suzan Shown Harjo to Pope Francis: Don’t Canonize Junípero Serra
• Ron Howell, Daily News, New York: Catholicism, Francis, NYC & me: Reflections on race and a changing city
• Jesse L. Jackson, National Newspaper Publishers Association: Pope Francis Offers the World a Prophetic Voice
• Melody Kramer, Poynter Institute: How the Philadelphia media gets around during Pope’s visit
• Media Matters for America: Univision D.C. Highlights Why Pope Francis’ Climate Action Is Important For The Latino Community
• Mark I. Pinsky, Religion News Service: Did soon-to-be-saint Junipero Serra meet his era’s highest moral standards? (COMMENTARY)
• Roque Planas, HuffPost LatinoVoices: Here’s Why The Pope Is More Popular With Latinos Than Pretty Much Any American Politician
• Ruben Rosario, Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.: He survived 9/11, and now the pope may get to meet him
• Diamond Naga Siu, Washington Square News, New York University: Journalism students to cover papal visit with social media app
• Annie Waldman, ProPublica: As Pope Pushes to Help the Poor, Catholic Universities Leave Them Behind
• Erik Wemple, Washington Post: BuzzFeed protests credential denials for Pope Francis events
• Vivian Yee, New York Times: Pope Francis’ Popularity Bridges Great Divides

Ex-Publisher Says Newspaper Diversity Efforts Have Failed

“We all know the names: Michael Brown, Freddie Gray and Eric Garner,” Tim Gallagher wrote in his “Business of News” column Thursday in Editor & Publisher. “At least part of the reason they are household names is because American newsrooms continue to do a terrible job covering race issues.

“After 37 years of trying, it is time to call the effort by American newspaper companies to improve coverage of minorities and diversify their newsrooms what it is — a failure. This failure hurts American newspaper readership and, in a much larger sense, hurts the nation. . . .”

Gallagher is a public relations consultant in Ventura County, Calif., with 30 years in the newspaper business. Most recently Gallagher was publisher of the Ventura County Star, where he was editor from 1995 to 2004 and publisher from 2004 through 2007. He told Journal-isms that he wrote the column after seeing the latest diversity figures for print and online newsrooms, released in July by the American Society of News Editors.

“I am pretty pissed off about this. Talked to the ASNE Minority Chair Karen Magnuson. Good person. Trying hard. But there are so many newspapers that don’t make the effort,” he said by email.

Gallagher also wrote, “There are places where issues of race are covered well — in social media channels, not mainstream media channels. If you want to learn about the roots of racial division, it’s easy to find talk of it throughout the Web and on Twitter. In an encouraging and ironic move, The Los Angeles Times hired a reporter to cover ‘Black Twitter.’ So now the mainstream media is assigning a reporter to cover what the mainstream media does not cover.

“It seemed that everyone had an opinion after the subsequent riots following the Gray, Garner and Brown incidents. But little of the coverage provided the depth, the background, and the reasons why there is such mistrust between law enforcement and minority communities. Fewer yet spotlighted the communities where law enforcement reaches out to minority communities and builds relationships.

“It’s the height of hypocrisy for newspaper opinion writers to offer commentary on race relations in America when nearly nine of 10 people in their newsrooms are white. When other industries fail to represent ethnic communities (for instance, the hand-wringing over the lack of African-Americans in Major League Baseball), newspapers are quick to slam them. But they are blind to their own failings. . . .”

• Lyanne Alfaro, Latino Reporter, National Association Hispanic Journalists: New CUNY [graduate] journalism program will serve growing Latino population
• Meredith D. Clark, Poynter Institute: Are relationships a missing link in media’s ongoing diversity problem?
• Noor Wazwaz, Huffington Post: As a Journalist, I’m Ignoring the Producer Who Called My Head Covering ‘A Distraction’

Marvel Hires Coates to Write Black Panther Comic

“Ta-Nehisi Coates can be identified in many ways: as a national correspondent for The Atlantic, as an author and, as of this month, as a nominee for the National Book Award’s nonfiction prize,” George Gene Gustines reported Tuesday for the New York Times. “But Mr. Coates also has a not-so-secret identity, as evidenced by some of his Atlantic blog posts and his Twitter feed: Marvel Comics superfan.

“So it seems only natural that Marvel has asked Mr. Coates to take on a new Black Panther series set to begin next spring. Writing for that comics publisher is a childhood dream that, despite the seeming incongruity, came about thanks to his day job. ‘The Atlantic is a pretty diverse place in terms of interest, but there are no comics nerds,’ besides himself, Mr. Coates said in an interview.

“His passions intersected in May, during the magazine’s New York Ideas seminar, when he interviewed Sana Amanat, a Marvel editor, about diversity and inclusion in comic books. . . . .”

• Arturo Garcia, the Guardian: Ta-Nehisi Coates’s Black Panther is a hopeful first step for diversity at Marvel
• Jason Concepcion, Grantland: Ta-Nehisi Coates Is Writing the ‘Black Panther’ Comic for Marvel

Egyptian President Pardons, Frees Al Jazeera Reporters

“Al Jazeera journalists Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed walked free from an Egyptian jail on Wednesday after being pardoned along with scores of other prisoners by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi,” Al Jazeera reported on Wednesday.

” ‘I’m feeling ecstatic knowing that I don’t have to worry about lawyers, police officers following me all over the place and knowing that I’m going to share my apartment tonight with my beloved wife,’ Fahmy said.

” ‘We’re very, very happy. But we’re a bit surprised about how it was done,’ Mohamed added.

“Al Jazeera’s acting director general Dr. Mostefa Souag, also released a statement Wednesday, welcoming the release of the two men.

” ‘We’re delighted for them both and their families,’ the statement said, while adding that it was ‘hard to celebrate’ because ‘this whole episode should not have happened in the first place.’

” ‘They’ve lost nearly two years of their lives when they were guilty of nothing except journalism,’ Souag said.

“He added the network would continue to call on Egyptian authorities to drop convictions against seven of its journalists tried in absentia, including Australian reporter Peter Greste, who was arrested alongside Fahmy and Mohamed. . . .”

• Committee to Protect Journalists: CPJ welcomes Al-Jazeera pardons, calls for all other journalists in Egypt to be freed
• Rebecca Hetzer, International Press Institute: IPI welcomes Egypt pardon of Al Jazeera journalists
• Jane Martinson, the Guardian: Al-Jazeera expected to cut hundreds of jobs

Ben Carson’s “beliefs that being Muslim bars Americans from being civically engaged, upholding our nation’s laws or serving in elected positions of leadership comes from a place of bigotry,” Robert McCaw, government-affairs manager at the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told TheRoot.com.”(video)

Carson Condemned for Muslim Comment; Donations Rise

“The super PAC supporting neurosurgeon Ben Carson for GOP president has seen a surge of donations since his appearance Sunday on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press,’ where Mr. Carson said he wouldn’t advocate for a Muslim to be president of the United States,” Kelly Riddell reported Tuesday for the Washington Times.

” ‘We sent out an email to Carson supporters, and we’ve never had an email raise so much money so quickly — it’s unbelievable,’ said John Philip Sousa IV, who chairs the 2016 Committee super PAC. ‘My phone has exploded over the last 48 hours — of people wanting me to pass on to Dr. Carson how much they respect his truthfulness and believe in the American system, and how absolutely not should anyone who believes in Sharia law come close to the White House. The people are on Dr. Carson’s side on this one — sorry NBC you lose.’ . . .”

However, Carson’s comments were roundly condemned elsewhere, with many pointing out the Constitution’s provision that religion should not be a litmus test in running for office.

• Chip Berlet, Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting: Corporate Press Fails to Trump Bigotry
• Doug Clark, News & Record, Greensboro, N.C.: Religious tests were wisely ruled out by our founders
• Ta-Nehisi Coates, the Atlantic: Ben Carson, Bigot
• Jelani Cobb, the New Yorker: Ben Carson’s Exonerating Racism
• George E. Curry, National Newspaper Publishers Association: Trump Refuses to Withdraw False Claim that Obama is a Muslim
• Jeff Darcy, Northeast Ohio Media Group: Dr. Ben Carson Muslim quackery: Darcy cartoon
• Jarvis DeBerry, NOLA.com | the Times-Picayune: Anti-Muslim sentiment pervades the GOP
• Editorial, Daily News, New York: Ben Carson, one sick doctor
• Editorial, New York Times: The Republican Attack on Muslims
• Charles D. Ellison, TheRoot.com: Ben Carson Might Want to Brush Up on the Long and Active History of Muslims in America
• Gromer Jeffers Jr., Dallas Morning News: GOP must face the elephant in the room — bigots in its ranks 
• Philip Kadish, NBCBLK: Trump, Ben Carson’s “Energy” and the Long Shadow of Scientific Racism
• Don Lemon, BlackAmericaWeb.com: Should Being A Muslim Disqualify Someone From Becoming President?
• Tony Norman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Dr. Carson descends to Trump’s ignorance level
• Clarence Page, Chicago Tribune: Muslim? What’s so wrong with that?
• Dan Sewell and Julie Carr-Smyth, Associated Press: Republican presidential hopeful Ben Carson blames ‘PC culture’ for furor over Muslim comment
• Blanca Torres, Seattle Times: One way for Latinos to shut up Donald Trump: register to vote

Clinton Talks Black Colleges, Birthers on Joyner Show

“CNN’s Don Lemon asked Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton during a radio interview Wednesday morning whether she started ‘birther’ rumors about President Barack Obama during their bitter 2008 election battle,” Catherine Thompson wrote Wednesday for Talking Points Memo.

“Speculation about Clinton’s role in the debunked conspiracy theory began anew after an incident involving Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump on Thursday at a town hall event in New Hampshire. Trump was roundly criticized for failing to correct a supporter who said Obama was a Muslim and not an American.

“Trump attributed the start of the ‘birther’ movement to Clinton Tuesday night on Twitter:

“In an interview on “The Tom Joyner Morning Show,’ Lemon asked Clinton whether she started the rumors and whether Obama confronted her about them.

” ‘People have been saying on-air here, and I’ve been reporting it on CNN and I’ve been reporting it here, that you were the person behind the whole birther thing and that the senator at the time, the President-elect, actually confronted you about that. Do you care to respond?’ Lemon asked, according to audio posted by Mediaite. ‘Did you or your campaign start the whole birther thing? And did you have a confrontation with the President?’

” ‘That is so — no,’ Clinton responded. ‘That is so ludicrous, Don. You know, honestly, I just believe that — first of all, it’s totally untrue. Secondly, the President and I have never had any kind of confrontation like that.’ . . . “

Joyner’s BlackAmericaWeb.com posted audio and the complete transcript of the interview.

• Charles M. Blow, New York Times: Bernie Sanders and the Black Vote (Sept. 12)
• Dylan Byers, CNNMoney.com: Presidential campaign receiving record TV coverage
• Maria Hinojosa, Huffington Post: A Response to Hillary Clinton’s ‘To Latinos, I Stand With You’ Op-Ed
• Ruben Navarrette Jr., Washington Post Writers Group: The Obama-Clinton feud lives (Sept. 8)
• Rochelle Riley, Detroit Free Press: Someone tell Hillary the White House isn’t hers — yet (Aug. 28)

Clinton Talks Black Colleges, Birthers on Joyner Show

“CNN’s Don Lemon asked Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton during a radio interview Wednesday morning whether she started ‘birther’ rumors about President Barack Obama during their bitter 2008 election battle,” Catherine Thompson wrote Wednesday for Talking Points Memo.

“Speculation about Clinton’s role in the debunked conspiracy theory began anew after an incident involving Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump on Thursday at a town hall event in New Hampshire. Trump was roundly criticized for failing to correct a supporter who said Obama was a Muslim and not an American.

“Trump attributed the start of the ‘birther’ movement to Clinton Tuesday night on Twitter:

“In an interview on “The Tom Joyner Morning Show,’ Lemon asked Clinton whether she started the rumors and whether Obama confronted her about them.

” ‘People have been saying on-air here, and I’ve been reporting it on CNN and I’ve been reporting it here, that you were the person behind the whole birther thing and that the senator at the time, the President-elect, actually confronted you about that. Do you care to respond?’ Lemon asked, according to audio posted by Mediaite. ‘Did you or your campaign start the whole birther thing? And did you have a confrontation with the President?’

” ‘That is so — no,’ Clinton responded. ‘That is so ludicrous, Don. You know, honestly, I just believe that — first of all, it’s totally untrue. Secondly, the President and I have never had any kind of confrontation like that.’ . . . “

Joyner’s BlackAmericaWeb.com posted audio and the complete transcript of the interview.

• Charles M. Blow, New York Times: Bernie Sanders and the Black Vote (Sept. 12)
• Dylan Byers, CNNMoney.com: Presidential campaign receiving record TV coverage
• Maria Hinojosa, Huffington Post: A Response to Hillary Clinton’s ‘To Latinos, I Stand With You’ Op-Ed
• Ruben Navarrette Jr., Washington Post Writers Group: The Obama-Clinton feud lives (Sept. 8)
• Rochelle Riley, Detroit Free Press: Someone tell Hillary the White House isn’t hers — yet (Aug. 28)

Short Takes

• Terrance Harris, a sports reporter with NOLA Media Group, which includes NOLA.com and the Times-Picayune, confirmed Wednesday that he was among the 21 percent of the company’s full-time employees who were cut, bringing the reported count of laid-off African American journalists to three. “They eliminated my sports enterprise role, largely because NOLA.COM has become far more interested in the metrics than doing good journalism,” Harris messaged Journal-isms. “The proof is in the aggregation posts. I have returned to my Houston home. I am currently looking for opportunities in sports journalism in Houston or that will allow me to remain anchored in Houston. I am also launching my own writing and editing business called Wording It Right. The website is www.wordingitright.com. So anyone needing help can hit me up.”
• “NBC-owned WCAU in Philadelphia has added Aundrea Cline-Thomas as a reporter,” Mark Joyella reported Wednesday for TVSpy. “She starts at the station on Monday.” Anzio Williams, WCAU vice president of news, said, “She’s warm, engaging and passionate about storytelling, and we know she’ll be a great fit with our viewers.” 
• “The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) will be launching its first annual Spanish-language conference in 2016 and it will do so in conjunction with Hispanicize 2016 at the annual Latino trendsetters and newsmakers event,” Hispanicize announced on Tuesday. “The industry first, weeklong track of NAHJ-produced Spanish-language journalism sessions will be held within Hispanicize 2016, scheduled for April 4-8 in Miami’s InterContinental Hotel. . . .”
• “A gunman shoots his way into a radio station and goes undetected by New Orleans police. That’s what some employees at WBOK are saying happened Friday night in a series of events they describe as terrifying,” Meg Gatto reported Sunday for WVUE-TV in New Orleans. “Friday around 9:30 p.m., WBOK board operator Kendall ‘Jazz’ Williams says he heard a popping noise while working at the radio station. Next, he saw a gunman standing in his doorway. Williams recalls, ‘He says I had to shoot the glass to get in, I’m running from somebody outside.’ . . .” The suspect, Rance Dunbar, 33, was to appear Tuesday in Orleans Parish Magistrate Court, Ken Daley reported for NOLA.com | the Times-Picayune.
• “Of all the terms used to describe Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour — ice queen, icon, the devil in Prada — warrior for racial equality is typically not one of them,” David Kaufman reported Tuesday for the New York Post. “Yet Tuesday, when Vogue’s October issue debuts with actress Lupita Nyong’o on the cover, it will mark the second time in as many months that a black woman has fronted America’s leading style bible. . . .”
• “Are the problems plaguing black men due to systemic wrongs or a lack of personal responsibility and self-governance in the black community?,” Jonnelle Davis asked Wednesday night in the News & Record in Greensboro, N.C. “It’s both, according to the speakers at Wednesday’s PNC Bank/[News] & Record forum on the untapped potential of young black males. The forum, held at the Carolina Theatre, drew a packed house of more than 1,000. . . .” Star Parker, columnist, author and conservative activist, and Leonard Pitts Jr., Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist of the Miami Herald, spoke.
• “Regional Spanish-language sports net Time Warner Cable Deportes has eliminated all of its original sports shows and most of its staff,” Veronica Villafañe reported Monday for her Media Moves site. “About 30 people from TWC Deportes lost their jobs, including all staff and freelance on-air talent. Elmur Souza, Ricardo Celis and Martin Zuñiga are among the network’s original staff sports anchors laid off. An inside source says about 4 people remain on staff — for the time being. . . .”
• Rohan Preston of the Star Tribune in Minneapolis posted a photo essay Friday of the National Association of Black Journalists convention, which took place in the city Aug. 5-9.
• “The Dow Jones News Fund will host its first Alumni Awards Reception Oct. 9 in New York City honoring six outstanding former participants in its college internship programs,” the fund announced Sept. 9. “Proceeds from the event will help underwrite the Fund’s various educational programs. . . .” Honorees are Mario R. Garcia, Garry D. Howard, LaSharah Bunting, Ashley Thomas, Royce Hall and Vinny Vella.
• “A while back, we were about to publish a story when three short and seemingly innocuous words jumped out at us: ‘dry and dusty,‘” Barry Malone wrote Tuesday for Al Jazeera. “They had been used to describe Chad’s capital, N’Djamena.” Malone also wrote, “Descriptions like this . . . signal to readers that this city is not like their city, that these people are not like them, that this is happening very far away. But not like what city? Not like who? Happening far from where? Would a news story from London ever remind us that city was ‘grey and wet’? . . .” Noting that many news organizations are seeking global audiences, Malone added, “You can’t simply go international by covering stories in more places. You have to think about how you’re covering those stories. And, if you want a new and more global audience, you have to think carefully about who those new people are. . . .”

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