V Wire

BET Talks to Prez Hopefuls in New Show, "What's in it for US?"

Posted 01/02/2008 at 5:27 PM  |  Comment?

This is pretty excellent news: BET interviews the 2008 Presidential Hopefuls in series of programs called "What's in it for Us?" The first show debuts January 8 at 10 pm EST, and will feature Barack Obama in conversation with BET News Correspondent Jeff Johnson, talking about his life and views on important topics like education, the prison complex, and immigration. In the program, he tells Johnson, "I did not run for the presidency to fulfill some long-held ambition or because I believed it was somehow owed to me. I chose to run in this election - at this moment - because of what Dr. King called 'the fierce urgency of now.' Because we are at a defining moment in our history. Our time is now."

Obama is kind of a head - he told VIBE he listens to and admires his Chi-city cohort Common - so he of course had some things to say about hip hop: "The thing about hip hop today is it's smart, it's insightful, and the way that they can communicate a complex message in a very short space is remarkable...I understand people want to be rooted in the community, they want to be down, but what I always say is that hip hop is not just a mirror of what is. It should also be a reflection of what can be."

BET is talking to Hillary Clinton, as well, in the separate program, "What's in it for Us? Hillary Clinton and the Black Vote," which airs January 15, at 10 pm. According to a press release, "The Obama and Clinton WHAT'S IN IT FOR US? specials are the first in a series of BET News specials that will explore how life in Black America would change if a particular candidate wins in 2008." BET, make America proud.

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Iowa Caucus Run-up: Obama Leads Poll

Posted 01/02/2008 at 12:31 PM  |  Comment?

The Iowa Caucuses begin tomorrow - and the Des Moines Register's influential poll put Obama on top for the Democrats, and Huckabee for the Republicans. The numbers between Hillary Clinton, Obama and John Edwards are close in every state, generally with Obama or Clinton leading each poll. Today the New York Times runs a very good, very disturbing article about those Iowans who cannot caucus: soldiers stationed in Iraq, parents who work night shifts or have to stay home to care for their children - the working voters who are often hit hardest by presidential decisions. -JSHEP

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