Thursday, December 13, 2012

Rhonda Lee Fired: TV Station Responds To Meteorologist's Claim She Was Fired For Facebook Comments About Her Natural Hair

 The Huffington Post  |  By

Rhonda Lee

The news that Louisiana television station KTBS fired meteorologist Rhonda Lee is getting a lot of folks ... well, fired up.

Twitter is ablaze with outraged comments like "KTBS owes Rhonda Lee an apology & shld [sic] give her back her job!" and "sistah just can't win!!! Meteorologist fired for responding to ignorant posts." Online petitions are also starting to pop up in support of Lee.

Lee was terminated from her position at KTBS 3 News, an ABC affiliate in Shreveport, La., after responding to racially charged remarks about her short natural hairstyle. The exchange between Lee and a KTBS viewer happened back in October on KTBS 3 News’ Facebook page, where a viewer, Emmitt Vascocu, posted a comment that referred to Lee as the "black lady that does the news" and suggested that she should "wear a wig or grown some more hair." Lee responded to Vascocu's comment at length on the Facebook thread, saying, "I’m sorry you don’t like my ethnic hair. And no I don’t have cancer," Lee wrote. "I am very proud of my African-American ancestry which includes my hair. For your edification: traditionally our hair doesn’t grow downward. It grows upward."

In the end, Vascocu apologized to Lee via Facebook and reportedly called KTBS’s station manager to express his regret as well.

However, in the wake of all the publicity surrounding Lee's firing, KTBS has issued a statement making it clear that they do not typically comment on personal matters, but felt that due to the interest surrounding the issue, it has decided to speak out. Here is KTBS' official statement:

On November 28, 2012, KTBS dismissed two employees for repeated violation of the station’s written procedure. We can confirm that Rhonda Lee was one of the employees. Another employee was a white male reporter who was an eight year veteran of the station. The policy they violated provided a specific procedure for responding to viewer comments on the official KTBS Facebook page. Included is an email that was sent to all news department employees informing them of this procedure. This procedure is based on advice from national experts and commonly used by national broadcast and cable networks and local television stations across the country. Unfortunately, television personalities have long been subject to harsh criticism and negative viewer comments about their appearance and performance. If harsh viewer comments are posted on the station’s official website, there is a specific procedure to follow. Ms. Rhonda Lee was let go for repeatedly violating that procedure and after being warned multiple times of the consequences if her behavior continued. Rhonda Lee was not dismissed for her appearance or defending her appearance. She was fired for continuing to violate company procedure.

Wednesday morning Lee spoke with CNN's Soledad O'Brien about KTBS's statement.
"I have yet to see this policy. Upon my termination I asked, 'Could I see it?' and I was told, 'No,'" Lee told CNN. "I pled for my job again just this past Friday and asked to see the policy and was told that there isn't anything written down."

While that may be true, KTBS provided O'Brien with an email that was issued to the staff on Aug. 30, 2012, that outlines how employees should respond to Facebook complaints from viewers. In short, employees are encouraged not to respond, but if they do, the "only proper response" is to provide the viewer with the contact info for a designated staffer that can help with any pressing issues.
Lee told CNN that she did see the email, but that she feels as though she is being harshly punished for defending herself.

The station provided HuffPost with a copy of the email sent


rhonda lee

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Examiner.COM: Study finds Fox News viewers more misinformed than non-news watchers

Study finds Fox News viewers more misinformed than non-news watchers


The University of Maryland conducted the poll. Among the results it was found that Fox News viewers were 30% more likely to believe that "most scientists do not agree that climate change is occurring." Further embarrassment was found when Fox viewers were 14% more likely to believe that "the stimulus bill did not provide any tax cuts." The stimulus bill included one of the largest tax cuts ever for middle class Americans.

The study's findings were first mentioned by usnews.com, who reported that a stunning 31% of Fox viewers honestly believe that "it is not clear that Obama was born in the United States."

Those who claim non-partisanship of the poll might be interested to learn that there was no difference in terms of Republicans who watched Fox, and Democrats who watched Fox. Both groups of people were, surprisingly, equally as misinformed.


http://www.examiner.com/article/study-finds-fox-news-viewers-more-misinformed-than-non-news-watchers

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Webinar: Wednesday, Dec 12, 2012. 12:00 Noon. Pre-Disaster Recovery


Pre-Disaster Recovery Planning

Avoiding the Rush to Normalcy

December 12, 2012 -- 12:00 Noon Eastern

For our last program of 2012, EMForum.org is pleased to host a one hour presentation and interactive discussion Wednesday, December 12, 2012, beginning at 12:00 Noon Eastern time (please convert to your local time). Our topic will be the importance of developing a recovery and reconstruction plan well before a catastrophic disaster strikes, to incorporate efforts to mitigate against future hazard events and other improvements, and to resist community pressures to "return to normal" that frequently overwhelm a more planned approach.

Our guest will be Carolyn J. Harshman, MPA, CEM®, President of Emergency Planning Consultants, and subject matter expert in the fields of hazard mitigation, risk assessment, and recovery planning.

Please make plans to join us, and see the Background Page for links to related resources and participant Instructions. On the day of the program, use the Webinar Login link not more than 30 minutes before the scheduled time. Please note: a password is no longer required for login.

As always, please feel free to extend this invitation to your colleagues

In partnership with Jacksonville State University, EIIP offers CEUs for attending EMForum.org Webinars.  See http://www.emforum.org/CEUs.htm for details.

Women as Agents of Peace


11 December 2012

In 2011, the United States established a national action plan to implement a U.N. resolution that calls for the equal participation of women in resolving conflicts and building peace.

The U.S. National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security reflects that countries are more peaceful and prosperous when women have equal rights and opportunities. The plan ensures that gender concerns are fully integrated into diplomatic, military and development activities.

The plan specifies how U.S. international engagements involve women — half the world’s population — as equal partners in preventing conflict and building peace in countries threatened by war, violence and insecurity.

According to President Obama’s executive order establishing the plan, achieving this equality is critical to U.S. and global security. The United States joined more than 30 countries that have adopted similar plans. These are among the U.S. plan’s guidelines:

• Promote gender equality and advancement of women and girls in areas facing conflict.
• Support the full participation of women in preventing and resolving conflict and building peace.
• Protect women and girls, who are disproportionately affected by conflict, from gender-based violence, exploitation, discrimination, trafficking and other abuse.
• Promote stability by investing in health, education and economic opportunity for women and girls.
• Provide for disaster and humanitarian responses that respect the specific needs of women and girls.

IMPLEMENTING A VISION

In October 2000, the U.N. General Assembly adopted Resolution 1325 to recognize “the important role of women in the prevention and resolution of conflicts and in peace-building … and the need to increase their role in decision-making with regard to conflict prevention and resolution.”

Lessons from Northern Ireland, Liberia and other areas already had shown that, when involved, women are more likely to support agreements that restore security and services to their communities, without regard to “winning” or “losing.”

Women participants tend to focus on issues critical to peace but sometimes overlooked in formal negotiations, including human rights, justice, national reconciliation and economic renewal. They tend to build coalitions across ethnic and provincial lines and speak for other marginalized groups. They may act as mediators and foster compromise during the rebuilding process.

EARLY LESSONS

The significance of including women in peace and security issues has been demonstrated in many places. Women from rival communities in Northern Ireland built bridges through the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition and contributed to the end of a decades-long conflict. Rwandan women helped put their communities on the road to peace and prosperity after the horrific violence between Hutus and Tutsis, and they laid the foundation for the highest percentage of women in parliament in the world.

U.S. APPROACHES

The U.S. plan requires government agencies working with other countries to help increase women’s skills for political peacemaking; this includes training women to take active roles in their local and national governments. Other tasks include helping develop laws and policies that promote women’s rights; increasing the capacity of U.N. systems (law enforcement, military and others) to prevent and respond to conflict-related violence against women; and helping ensure women’s equal access to aid distribution and other emergency services.

The State Department is helping to implement the U.S. plan by supporting the roles of women in peace-building and recovery in Afghanistan, South Sudan and Burma, among other countries. In “Arab Awakening” countries, the State Department is supporting women’s participation in politics and promoting their roles in reforming security.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nepal and El Salvador, the State Department works with women’s groups to pursue justice for survivors of gender-based violence related to conflict. In addition, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) builds women’s negotiation skills in the Mindanao region of the Philippines, trains police in Nepal, and increases the number of registered women voters in Yemen, among other initiatives.

GUIDING BELIEFS

The United States recognizes that millions of women and girls worldwide are excluded from public life, subjected to violence or barred from education. Such exclusions inhibit economic growth and opportunity in the countries where they are practiced. They defy America’s sense of justice — the belief that no country can advance when it suppresses half its population and fails to apply those talents, energies and gifts in building a future. The United States will continue to empower women as agents of peace.


Read more: http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/pamphlet/2012/12/20121204139563.html?CP.rss=true#ixzz2EnJuYdbI

Internship Opportunities: USAID. Washington, D.C.


GHFP-II is currently accepting applications for Two On-Demand Internships with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) in the Agency's Washington, DC headquarters. These internships are separate from our Summer 2013 Internships.

If you would like to learn more about what it's like to be a GHFP-II intern, check out this great video made by a GHFP-II 2012 Summer Alumna.

Internship Timeframe: Winter 2013

GHFP-II's Winter 2013 internships in Washington, DC include:

Office of Population and Reproductive Health; Commodities Security and Logistics Division
Contraceptive Commodities Security & Logistics Intern
OND-P2-001
Office of HIV/AIDS; Strategic Planning, Evaluation, and Reporting Division
Global Health Monitoring and Evaluation Intern
OND-P2-002

APPLICATION DEADLINE: All applications must be submitted by 5:00 pm Eastern Time December 18, 2012

To apply: Detailed information, including an online application and instructions, is available on our website at www.ghfp.net.    

NOTE: All internships require US citizenship or permanent resident status

Applicants can apply for up to two internship positions. If you apply for a Winter On-Demand Internship, you will only be allowed to apply for one Summer 2013 Internship.

We are proud to be an EEO/AA Employer.

To learn more about GHFP-II, please visit www.ghfp.net. To learn more about USAID, the largest government donor organization in the development field, please visit www.usaid.gov.

Webcast: 2013 Public Safety Funding. Dec 13, 2012. 2PM


GO Logo 

You Are Invited to Attend this FREE Webcast
2013 and Beyond:  
A Forecast of Homeland Security and Public Safety Funding

Sponsored by 
IBM  
           

2013 and Beyond: A Forecast of Homeland Security and Public Safety Funding
   
Sponsored by IBM

Thursday, December 13, 2012 at 2:00 pm EST    


In the wake of the 2012 election, political considerations will continue to drive trends in homeland security and public safety funding into the future.

Join Grants Office CEO Michael Paddock as we discuss the near and long-term landscape of homeland security funding, highlight the best opportunities, and review some best practices for getting your technology project funded in 2013.

If you have been looking to expand your grant funding this year, you won't want to miss this event!




About Grants Office, LLC
Grants Office, LLC is a national grants development firm based in Rochester, New York, providing federal, state, and local information and grants development support to municipalities, nonprofits, and industry partners.     

Contact:
585-473-1430

Join our Community of Grantseekers:

Find us on Facebook  View our profile on LinkedIn  Follow us on Twitter

FBI Releases 2011 Hate Crime Statistics

 
 

FBI Releases 2011 Hate Crime Statistics

Washington, D.C. December 10, 2012
  • FBI National Press Office (202) 324-3691
According to statistics released today by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 6,222 criminal incidents involving 7,254 offenses were reported in 2011 as a result of bias toward a particular race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity/national origin, or physical or mental disability.

The statistics, published by the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program in Hate Crime Statistics, 2011, provide data about the offenses, victims, offenders, and locations of the bias-motivated incidents reported by law enforcement agencies throughout the nation.

Due to the unique nature of hate crime, however, the UCR program does not estimate offenses for the jurisdictions of agencies that do not submit reports.

Hate Crime Statistics, 2011 includes the following information:
  • There were 6,216 single-bias incidents, of which 46.9 percent were motivated by a racial bias, 20.8 percent were motivated by a sexual orientation bias, 19.8 percent were motivated by a religious bias, and 11.6 percent were motivated by an ethnicity/national origin bias. Bias against a disability accounted for 0.9 percent of single-bias incidents.
  • Of the 4,623 hate crime offenses classified as crimes against persons in 2011, intimidation accounted for 45.6 percent, simple assaults for 34.5 percent, and aggravated assaults for 19.4 percent. Four murders and seven forcible rapes were reported as hate crimes.
  • There were 2,611 hate crime offenses classified as crimes against property. The majority of these (81.4 percent) were acts of destruction/damage/vandalism. Robbery, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, arson, and other offenses accounted for the remaining 18.6 percent of crimes against property.
  • Fifty-nine percent of the 5,731 known offenders were white; 20.9 percent were black. The race was unknown for 10.8 percent, and other races accounted for the remaining known offenders.
  • Most hate crime incidents (32.0 percent) occurred in or near homes. Eighteen percent took place on highways, roads, alleys, or streets; 9.3 percent happened at schools or colleges; 5.9 percent in parking lots or garages; and 4.4 percent in churches, synagogues, or temples. The location was considered other (undesignated) or unknown for 11.3 percent of hate crime incidents. The remaining 19.1 percent of hate crime incidents took place at other specified or multiple locations.
- View entire report: Hate Crime Statistics, 2011

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