Letters.REID ROCKS When I got the December 2000 issue of BLACK ENTERPRISE in the mail, my daughters (students at Baltimore School for the Arts Baltimore School for the Arts (BSA) is a public high school located in Baltimore, Maryland and is a part of its public school system. BSFA offers concentrations in classical music, theater, dance, theater production and visual art. ) and I screamed and started reading immediately because we knew "L.A." Reid ("The New King of Pop") was up to something creative and devastating dev·as·tate tr.v. dev·as·tat·ed, dev·as·tat·ing, dev·as·tates 1. To lay waste; destroy. 2. To overwhelm; confound; stun: was devastated by the rude remark. . Moves such as snapping up the team of Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis proves that he is a Clive Davis Clive Jay Davis (born April 4, 1932) is an American record producer and a leading music industry executive. From 1967-72 he was the President of Columbia Records, was the founder and president of Arista Records in the late 1970s through 2000 until founding J Records. in the making, although, as the article states, Reid and [creative partner] Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds “Babyface” redirects here. For other uses, see Babyface (disambiguation). This biographical article or section needs additional references for verification. Please help [ to improve this article] by adding additional sources. have always smelled talent and a hit. As my daughters and I always say, great; job, BE, because this team in Baltimore is watching the industry, learning, and as usual, BE added another great class to our lessons in the business side of entertainment. Sharon Wright Baltimore, Maryland swright64@aol.com SELLING BLACK FILM BE has again unleashed the fact that filmmaking is a business first; the art of it is secondary ("Fade To Black," December 2000). The challenge with black filmmaking is that there has to be more positive films of all genres geared toward the general public. Blaxploitation blax·ploi·ta·tion n. A genre of American film of the 1970s featuring African-American actors in lead roles and often having antiestablishment plots, frequently criticized for stereotypical characterization and glorification of violence. is still leaked into our films as a means of making dollars. What is demeaning de·mean 1 tr.v. de·meaned, de·mean·ing, de·means To conduct or behave (oneself) in a particular manner: demeaned themselves well in class. is when one of our films disrespects our culture in a way that causes people of other ethnicities to believe that what is represented reflects the way all African Americans live. I commend Spike Lee for telling his story in "Bamboozled," which didn't get the well-deserved audience the feature film should have, as well as for his pushing of digital technology. Independent filmmakers and studio filmmakers need to look back at Oscar Micheaux's pioneering efforts and fight to diminish the racial stereotypes. Pattie Thomas, Founder African American TV & Filmmakers Chicago, Illinois africanamericantvfilmmakers@att.net BLACK WEBSITES Just wanted to shoot a quick congratulations to Technology Editor Sonya Donaldson on her articles in the December 2000 issue of BE. The article on the failure of black dotcoms ("Black Dotcom Shake-Up") was excellent. Many of your points are right on target and the truth about what's going on What's Going On is a record by American soul singer Marvin Gaye. Released on May 21, 1971 (see 1971 in music), What's Going On reflected the beginning of a new trend in soul music. needed to be reported to be spoken of; to be mentioned, whether favorably or unfavorably. See also: Report . The article was deeply insightful, relevant, and without the usual smoke and mirrors of other articles I've read. L. Kareem Geiger Chief Operating Officer TechnikOne Charlotte, North Carolina lkgeiger@technikone.com EMPOWERED! Thank you, BE, for being you! I attended a job-sponsored financial planning Financial planning Evaluating the investing and financing options available to a firm. Planning includes attempting to make optimal decisions, projecting the consequences of these decisions for the firm in the form of a financial plan, and then comparing future performance against seminar last September that provided essential information on budgeting, debt reduction, retirement and financial planning. Shortly afterward, I was standing in the grocery line and I saw your October 1999 issue with the [cover story] "Investing For A Lifetime." I bought this issue and have been hooked on the magazine ever since. I am now a subscriber who just renewed my subscription so that I can continuously become financially empowered. I have learned so much about saving and investing from your publication. I also love your Black Wealth Initiative (I have signed the Declaration of Financial Empowerment included as part of the initiative) and your many articles on consumer empowerment, motivation, entrepreneurship and features on the greater well-being of African Americans. I encouraged and have ordered BE Wealth Building Kits for some of my co-workers. Since I first purchased BE, I have increased my retirement savings, started an investment club, purchased my first stock, started an IRA Ira, in the Bible Ira (ī`rə), in the Bible. 1 Chief officer of David. 2, 3 Two of David's guard. IRA, abbreviation IRA. and invested in mutual funds. God has blessed me so much, and one of those blessings is the opportunity to read BE. Thank you again for your powerful display of African American empowerment and leadership toward a brighter future, and happy 30th anniversary! Shelia Miller Washington, D.C. |
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