Here’s a video of Pete Ciarrocchi from Chickie’s and Pete’s at the tryouts for the Sixers Dancers. Be sure to catch the “celebrity judges” at the 1:48 part, Jamison (he gets called “James”) Uhler from NBC 10 and (of course) Jennaphr Frederick from Fox 29. Later, there’s an interview with Roots keyboardist Kamal Gray.
I am shocked an appalled. Where’s Gervase from Season 1 of Survivor?!
Me, I feel bad for the kids. They come up to me and ask me about the joyous days of news like when I was in high school. It was all presidential blowjobs, school shootings and minute figure skaters (Infoplease: “At 4′ 8″ and 75 pounds, it seems the downsizing trend has extended from the board room to the ice rink”).
And now the high school kids are going to do something about it:
Tired of the negative what about the positive!!! Kensington Students will Hold Protest about Negative Press
Purpose – Students will demand more positive press coverage about their school and work they do in the community.
On October 1, 2008 at 3:00 Kensington High School students will protest at the Fox News studios. “What about the Positive? That’s the question that Kensington students are asking, we are frustrated with only negative press.” Says Dasha Scott a junior at Kensington High School for Creative and Performing Arts and member of Youth United for Change. Referring to the recent media coverage of students fighting at Kensington High School, Fox news reporters spent two days in front of Kensington High School Multiplex covering a fight outside of the school.
Then a newspaper columnist suggested imprisonment for a protest sign; the responses to her column are more art than commentary. thelastRepublicaninPhilly: “I can see it now; if we make the tragic mistake of electing Obama; he’ll take some advice from Goode and hire goons to keep away those pesty reporters (’just one second sweetie’). He’ll have his goons rooming around in press conferences just to make sure they ask the right questions. I know a few other countries that have socialized health care, high taxes and and restricted freedom of speech.” Djata: “It’s even funnier how this paper censors legitimate intellectual ideas.” And, finally, Philly Guy: “You can put nice suits on thugs, give them (they really don’t have to earn them) decent jobs, expect nothing from them, pay them an extremely nice salary, allow them to act like they are respectable in respectable surroundings and at the end they are what we all know they are ….. thugs. There has been this double standard where black behavior can sink to any level they want and there are no recriminations.” Comment number two, Philly Guy; that’s an impressive dedication to nonsensical racism.
Today, more developments: Councilman Goode both defended and bashed the media, Chris Brennan reports. His buzzword: Media diversity — rather, the lack thereof. While he loves freedom of speech, he also didn’t like being followed around by Jeff Cole.
“For the last week, it appears as if the press doesn’t care about my mission either. But I care about my mission. I believe in freedom of the press, even with its lack of diversity. Many black elected officials would never admit it but the lack of diversity in the press is a major issue for us. In fact, many don’t feel that the freedom of speech applies equally to them.”
Councilman Goode probably has quite a few insightful things to say about being a black politician covered largely by an all-white press. Could be a fascinating conversation. Of course, though, none of this would have gotten the publicity it did had his aide not held up a sign that read, “Fox 29 are racist.” Jeff Cole goes out and annoys local powerful people almost every week. “Fox 29 Investigates” saying a Philadelphia politician and his aide are screwing the public trust isn’t going to land on the front page of the Metro section. Hell, a timesheet problem is more notable.
Jeff Cole is apparently spending his time recording awesome promos; Claudia Gomez covered Goode in City Hall today. She seems a dogged enough reporter who appears to get bumped quite easily. There’s video on Fox’s site, but the real treasure is the photo gallery, which I’ve excerpted above. Larger (~1MB) version after the jump. Deinterlace your video before taking screenshots next time, guys!
If you asked me how Fox 29 could make this Jeff Cole/Fox 29 are racist sign story even better, I might have come up with some decent ideas. But I never would have come up with the idea of slying asking Al Sharpton to weigh in! Yes, this is incredible; but what makes it better is how he talks in general terms, making everyone wonder: Was he just asked about it in general terms, too?
Really, though, who cares. This is some of the best entertainment from a news station in months. The summer doldrums are over!
In case you didn’t notice, here’s a screengrab from yesterday’s Fox 29 promo. I’m not so much befuddled about the “Fox 29 are racist” construction but by this thought: Nobody had a Sharpie to make sure the sign showed up better on TV? Geeze, that’s just kind of poor planning.
There’s so much in this little promo from yesterday for Jeff Cole’s report about the woman who called the station racist that it might be the best 20 second promo ever. First, the awesome sign that reads, “Fox 29 are racist.” Then, Cole’s insinuation that there’s no way people could be racist against this woman — she makes $90,000 a year! Then the case of beer, the shots of her washing her car, the classic Philly rowhome she’s walking out of. Man, can Tuesday at 10 come fast enough?
Do you know who Latrice Bryant is? Right. Apparently, she’s an aide to Councilman Wilson Goode. And Jeff Cole and his team of crack Fox 29 reporters have been following Bryant around for some report about “city employees slacking off on the job” or something.
Cole confronted Goode after Council’s session wrapped up, asking if he thought Fox29’s reporting was racist. Goode didn’t break stride as reporters rushed after him.
Cole’s questions involved videotape he says Fox29 has of Bryant, while listed as working in City Hall: a) working out in the gym and b) walking with Goode into his house with a case of beer and c) leaving Goode’s house looking as if she had spent the night there.
Goode responded that a) his employees had not been filling out their work time sheets daily, which led to mistakes that have been corrected and b) who he goes to his house with is his business and c) Cole’s question was disrespectful.
Jeff Cole is following Wilson Goode all the way to his house and seeing who he kicks back and gets drunk with? Man, this is the best thing this station has done since May.
And don’t think I didn’t notice Wilson Goode’s clever strategy: Have an aide hold up signs calling Jeff Cole racist, then when questioned about it by Cole himself, call him disrespectful. That’s a rhetorical strategy usually reserved for a blog! I am impressed.
On Fox 29’s front page not only is there a story about the abnormally large cat, there is interactivity. And there will soon be many more abnormally large cats, one can assume.
So, uh, the mayor helped Dorothy Krysiuk do traffic this morning on Good Day Philadelphia. Apparently the economy is so bad, Mayor Nutter needed to pick up a part-time job, just like how Ed Rendell does Eagles Post Game Live.
Redlasso clip after the jump. (P.S. Somebody get the mayor to dance with mascots next time.)
With the economy in freefall, a presidential election no longer about hope and 
Do you know who Latrice Bryant is? Right. Apparently, she’s an aide to Councilman Wilson Goode. And Jeff Cole and his team of crack Fox 29 reporters have been following Bryant around for some report about “city employees slacking off on the job” or something.
