The End of Jet Magazine-Another Black Institution Falls

This week, Johnson Publications announced the end of the Print edition of Jet Magazine. Sad to see another Black institution fall due to the carelessness of Black people.

I bought Jet quite a bit in late 1989-1990. For the articles about celebrities, Black businesspeople , theBeauty of the Week And to see what Black people are on TV. I used to read Jet, Ebony, and Ebony Man back in the day.

I admit I didn’t buy Jet much after high school, But that was for two reasons: One I just couldn’t find it. The digest sized magazine was never on the rack with the comics.

And the other reason I didn’t buy Jet was the dumbed down language of its content. Even at 16, I had a serious issue with many of Johnson’s publications. At that young age I quickly noticed that the reading level of the content was dumbed down to about a third or fourth grade reading level. As a teenager I devoured words and I loved content that allowed me to expand my vocabulary.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find that in an issue of Jet. Yeah, the beauty of the week was always sexy, but I wanted to expand my knowledge too.

One of the big problems Black publications like Jet or Ebony have is that they just don’t challenge the reader. Magazines like Ebony and Jet don’t adapt to a larger audience, so as the audience of readers tastes change they leave the magazine on the rack. There’s only so many stories you can read about Black celebrities or pictures you can look at rich Black people showing off their homes and cars.

The publishing world changed in 2008. But Johnson publications, the publishers of Ebony and Jet still produce content fit for 1986 at best.

Seriously, look at other nonblack magazines like GQ, Cosmopolitan, More, and even Playboy. Where are the short stories? The novel excerpts? The political and social commentary? The stories about Black history? Black art? Articles on Parenting? Ebony and Jet were supposed to show Black readers the Black world. Unfortunately their picture of it was always a shallow one focused too heavily on celebrities.

Who needs to read a magazine about a celebrity when there’s Google?

The other big problem with Black publications such as Ebony and Jet is that they haven’t adapted to the times. In an information age most Black magazines are still talking about celebrity gossip and telling us about the comings and goings of rich Negroes like it’s 1945. That’s not what people pay to read about anymore. I can go to a dozen YouTube Channels featuring Black people and get more substantive and relevant information than in any of today’s Black magazine. Heck, readers have come to this blog for more substantive and relevant information than in most Black magazines.

Yes we need Black publishers like Johnson to control the image of Black people. That’s the only way positive images of Black people are going to be presented to the world. Unfortunately, Black publishers like Johnson are just not ready for a 21st Century world of publishing where content is king. The days of fluffy content like soul food recipes, and celebrities bragging and showing off their toys isn’t going to move magazines off the rack or get many hits on a webpage. In a world where content is king and information moves at the speed of light, Black publishers are going to have to produce more thought-provoking content like I’ve seen on YouTube Channels such as The Black Authority, Voire Dire, and The Iceman.

I hate to see Jet off the stands. But I’ve come to understand that Black people have to stop taking their institutions for granted. In order for us to preserve our storied brands we have to value them and give the next generation a reason to care about them.

Bad News The Isis Series Kickstarter Was Unsuccessful- Moving on and Moving Forward

Bad News Isis fans: This Sunday the Isis Series Kickstarter did not get funded. I want to take a moment to thank all the brothers and sisters who took the time to pledge money towards the project. I appreciate you taking the time to support me and my project. 

Over the last two months I received donations from brothers and sisters all over the United States and as far as the United Kingdom.  From 8 backers I raised $131. Unfortunately I still needed another $379 to get the funding to hire the artist to design the cover for Isis: Wrath of the Cybergoddess

What does this mean for Isis: Wrath of the Cybergoddess? The book will still be released in paperback and eBook later this year.

But as for the cover…That’s still up in the air. All I can tell readers is that the prototype cover I drew up for the Kickstarter will NOT be final.

I’d love to hire that comic artist to design the cover. It’s always been a dream of mine to give a comic artist a job and to see my characters rendered by a professional.

I’m still working towards that goal. I know how many comic artists struggle to pay their bills. How they go from convention to convention making their money on commissions and sales of merchandise. I still want to help out an artist. I’m just still trying to find a way to pay them. Artists don’t work for free, and their time is worth money.

One of the reasons I did this Kickstarter was to promote Group Economics in the Black community. To show Black people how easy it is to support Black –owned businesses. And to Show Black people how their dollars directly impacted the expansion of a Black owned business. I planned on doing a series of YouTube videos to show readers how their dollars were going to be used towards the creation of Isis: Wrath of the Cybergoddess. At the end of the series of videos I wanted to show viewers their finished books before I shipped them.

The other reason for the Kickstarter was to see how serious my critics were about working on solutions. Many have complained about the art on my book covers. However, when I presented critics of my art with a solution it seemed they had no interest in being a part of it.

Why did the Kickstarter fail? I can’t speculate. I thought the rewards were fair. A copy of the finished book for $20 and the entire Isis series in paperback for $100. And I did an effective job of promoting it on YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIN and Blackbloggersconnect.com. And several of my Facebook friends helped promote it as well.

But all I can say is I’ve learned my lesson about trying to do business with Black people. Black folks talk a good game, but at the end of the day most Black people don’t back that talk up with action. For all the talk about supporting Black-owned businesses and participating in Group Economics I’ve yet to see a large majority of Black people spending their money on my books.

I’m not going to get upset about the Isis series Kickstarter failing. All I know is I gave it my best efforts. I gave Black customers a chance to help me address their complaints about the product. To take action. To participate in Group Economics. And outside of a few brothers and sisters, most Black people have decided that they aren’t interested in putting their money where their mouth is.

Now I’ve done what I can to reach out to Black customers first for the past five years at events like the Harlem Book Fair and with this Kickstarter. And after experiencing all the indifference and resistance from Black customers, I’m starting to understand why nonblack executives don’t take the time to target African-American customers. For all the time, money and effort a businessperson invests in trying to create products to target Black audiences and reach African-American customers, African-Americans rarely ever reach back to the companies trying to support them.

At the end of the day, there’s only so much money anyone can lose dealing with a demographic of indifferent customers before it’s time to move on to a more profitable audience. Watching the actions of Black people from a business perspective I understand the main reason why most companies don’t take Black customers seriously: It’s because Black customers won’t put their money on the table. For all Black people’s whining, complaining and bitching about the lack of positive Black books, movies and other forms of media, they never follow it up by taking action and buying those products in force when businesses like mine produce them and put them in the marketplace.

Here’s the deal: Talk is cheap and it doesn’t pay my bills. Business is about making money, not talking about it. And I don’t have any more time to listen to hot air.

Donald Sterling and the Co-dependent Negro

Donald Sterling and The Negro Partners In Crime

In a previous blog last year I discussed how racism created a co-dependent relationship between Blacks and Whites. And the Donald Sterling Scandal illustrates the dysfunction between the races.

For all the talk about change over the last six years with our first Black President, Most Negroes showed how enslaved they still are with this Donald Sterling scandal. From the so-called Civil Rights leaders to Negro on the street to even V.Stiviano, the woman who decided to be Sterling’s bed wench, the Negro community has shown the world how backwards it truly is.

From what I’m seeing the Negro is co-dependent on White Supremacy. And rich Whites like Donald Sterling are co-dependent on Dysfunctional Negroes. Both work hand in hand to keep AmeriKKKa in a state of perpetual dysfunction with their Shuck n’ jive blame n’ shame game where everyone is a victim.  

Instead of calls to take direct action such as Black group economics, we get Civil Rights leaders such as the NAACP making apologies to Donald Sterling and trying find ways to give him a lifetime achievement award. Instead of Black people voting with their wallets and not buying NBA merchandise, and not watching these damn games we have coons making excuses for Donald Sterling so they can have an excuse to wear those new Jordans this summer so they can Simp and trick on some big butt heifers in the neighborhood. And instead of Black women denouncing V.Stiviano for her whorish behavior, we have women praising this side piece as a hero.

And instead of White people being utterly and completely embarrassed by Donald Sterling’s egregious behavior, we get the press trying to turn him into a victim. He has cancer…Big whoop. But he’s healthy enough to continue cheating on his wife with a whore half his age.

From what I’ve seen, no one Black or White wants to change. Both sides want to remain in their state of dysfunction. And they want to remain in their state of dysfunction so they can have the same free pass to get away with their own bad behavior in the future.

From this Donald Sterling incident I’m starting to see why no one takes the Negro seriously. When the rubber hits the road The Negro is All TALK and NO ACTION.

And the Negro takes no action because they’re too afraid of offending their White Slave masters. Yes, the Negro is still on a Plantation. And instead of picking cotton he dribbles a basketball, runs with a football or sings and dances onstage. And the women don’t wash clothes, they just work in an office.

The modern-day Negro is a JOKE. He doesn’t have the backbone or the BALLS to stand up and make a statement like his ancestors. He’s a docile, submissive coward who lives to do two things in life:

Buckdance and coon for his White masters,

Or

Try to cut down the Black man beside him so he can appear to be great in the eyes of White people who don’t care about him.

And his white bosses like Donald Sterling are just as dysfunctional. If it weren’t for the Negroes working at their slave plantations, these men would have driven themselves into poverty living far beyond their means. If they weren’t wasting their money on expensive toys like cars and homes, they’d be tricking their money off on side pieces like V.Stiviano.

The truth is Donald Sterling is just as pathetic as the Negroes who work on the NBA plantation with him. Just when his team gets some success in decades he doesn’t rise to the occasion. He falls into the sewer with the rest of the vermin like V.Stiviano.

The saddest part of this whole mess is that no one understands how BAD America looks to the rest of the world with this scandal. America is supposed to be a superpower. But this shuck n’ jive Blame n’ shame co-dependent game between Negroes and Whites is making the country look like a cesspool of imbeciles. People incapable of leading themselves out of bed let alone run multi-national corporations. An embarrassment to the country and the world. We want to take the mote out of the Ukraine’s eyes, but can’t see the plank in our own. Clean up America’s sewer before you wash out the rest of the world’s.

For the first time in my life I’m utterly disgusted with Black America. Watching the actions of the NAACP I can honestly say our leaders are not fit to lead. They truly are a conclave of minstrels who will buckdance and coon for whatever White man will throw them a crumb from the table.

And I can honestly say our people are at their weakest state since slavery. A bunch of cowards too afraid to flex their economic muscle and use their $1.1 trillion dollars in spending power towards building their own economy.

Why won’t the Negro build his own economy? Because he’s too scared of losing.

And that’s why no one respects the Negro. He doesn’t want to take the time to do the hard work. He doesn’t want to fail. He doesn’t want to try again. He doesn’t want to push As long as he can find a job at one of Mr. Charlie’s companies where there will be someone to do his work for him he has someone to blame when things go wrong. And as long as his White Slave master gives him that chance to work for him he has someone to blame for his own shortcomings. It’s a harmonious relationship where no one EVER takes responsibility for their individual actions and makes efforts to change for the better.

I dare to say The Negro is too busy living on their knees to die on their feet. Too afraid of offending his white corporate slave masters to stand up and show the world why that the Black man needs to be taken seriously. If a White man does not approve of it, the Negro won’t support it. Which is why the Negro is afraid of participating in Group Economics with Black-owned businesses.

Even though the Emancipation Proclomation was signed over a century ago, nothing has changed since 1865. The Negro is still a slave and White people still need his labor to give themselves a false sense of superiority. It’s a co-dependent relationship that keeps America falling further and further to the bottom as countries like China, India and Russia rise higher and higher to the top. Why doesn’t Vladimir Putin respect America? Take a look at Donald Sterling.

Donald Sterling, Economics, and The Negro

\I wrote several blogs about this Donald Sterling scandal. And I wasn’t happy with any of them. Seeing how the Black masses and our so-called Black leaders have responded to this scandal by buckadncing, cooning, kowtowing and even making excuses, for a “good white man” like Donald Sterling I’ve come to understand nothing has changed about the sorry state of the Negro.

However, in spite of my disgust and disappointment at the Black masses, and moreso at ourso-called Black leaders I felt I needed to explain the economic shell game being run on the Black community by the wealthy with this alleged scandal. For all the talk of change in the NBA, the flow of money is going to remain the same. And that’s all Black people’s fault.

What’s happening with Donald Sterling is no different than what happened with Paula Deen in 2013 and Don Imus in 2003. Rich White person makes a racist statement, Black community reacts with outrage, threatens to boycott sponsors, protests, marches and make a fuss. And then wealthy people who control the paychecks of the rich person pretend to punish the individual making the racist statement by firing them or in the case of Mr. Sterling, “banning” them for “life”.

In the aftermath of the scandal the Negro masses believe they’ve won. But in actuality they’ve lost. Why? Because the Negro never understands the game is chess, not checkers.

In chess, a player will sacrifice a less powerful piece on the board like a rook or a bishop if it’ll allow them an opportunity to protect more powerful pieces such as the king and queen. Moreover if they can gain a strategic advantage by sacrificing that piece, they’ll use it to checkmate their opponent.

This is the third time I’ve counted in a decade that the Negro has been checkmated by wealthy Whites in corporate AmeriKKKA using the exact same play. As the Negro reacts to Donald Sterling being “banned for life” from the NBA, in the same way they reacted to Don Imus being fired from WABC and Paula Deen being fired from the Food Network they can’t see they’re about to lose the game.

The Negro doesn’t understand that the corporate oligarchies that control the United States will sacrifice a less powerful player like Donald Sterling to keep the economic infrastructure intact and other more powerful players in the game. Sure Donald Sterling is banned for life and is forced to sell his team for $788 million.

But that’s a small sacrifice to keep $1.1 trillion Black dollars flowing out of the Black community into nonblack businesses.

The Negro is so caught up in his and her emotions that they can’t see economics. While the sacrifice of Donald Sterling makes the Negro feel good it does not lead to any serious or significant change. In fact, all it does is ensure the Negro’s spending habits will remain intact.

After being pacified by Donald Sterling’s removal from the NBA, the Negro will continue to support the economic infrastructure of Sterling’s associates with their $1.1. trillion dollars in spending power. Making other White men wealthy by buying the expensive Air Jordan sneakers, basketball jerseys, T-shirts, ballcaps and other NBA licensed merchandise without thinking once about what they spend their dollars on and more importantly who they’re going to. After all, the Civil Rights Dinosaurs of the NAACP and former FBI informants like Al Sharpton have told them everything is okay and they can go back to business as usual financing their very own poverty and unemployment.

Again, sacrificing Donald Sterlings’ $788 milllion dollars saves these other NBA oligarchs and their licensing associates like Phil Knight, President and CEO of Nike, $1.1. trillion Black dollars. It’s a profitable loss. But the Negro can’t understand this. Why? Because the Negro has no critical thinking skills.

And because the Negro just can’t think critically and plan long-term they always lose. Most are satisfied that another White racist has been taken down. But what they don’t understand is that he hasn’t been taken out of the game. Rest assured, like Don Imus and Paula Deen, Donald Sterling or someone in his family will be back in the NBA. And making more money off the Negro than ever.

The saddest part of this whole Donald Sterling situation is that the Negro continues to fall for the same old plays on the chessboard a child could figure out. Unfortunately the Negro continues to think doing the exact same things like protests, marches and making demands of White racists will yield a different result: Economic equality for Black people. The rest of the world calls this kind of thinking insanity, but in the Negro community this kind of crazy makes perfect sense.

The only response Black people need to have to an incident with a Don Imus, Paula Deen, or a Donald Sterling is simple: Participating in Group Economics and spending Black dollars with Black-owned businesses. But the Negro would rather continue to follow the same failed integrationist approaches presented to them by Civil Rights Dinosaurs such as the NAACP and the race hustlers like Al Sharpton. Insisting Black people have a right to go into businesses where they’re not wanted.

Not understanding it’s your hard-earned money. And the merchant has to EARN it if they want it in their till. The sad part of this whole scandal is the Negro still hasn’t learned to value the spending power of their Black dollars. And that’s why no one else values them.

When Donald Sterling said he didn’t want Black people at his games, Black people should have responded by walking away from the NBA over to Black-owned businesses. Instead, the Negro continues to fall for the same game at the chesstable of life taking the vulnerable White bishop off the board not knowing they’re about to be checkmated by the Queen. The times may change, but unfortunately the Negro’s game plan remains five steps behind everyone else when it comes to economics. It is what it is.

The Thetas Now Available on Nook and Smashwords

The Thetas is Now Available for Nook!  And It'll also be available on Smashwords! Now Nook and Smashwords  readers can enjoy this inspiring, uplifting, sophisticated sorority story! After a successful run on Kindle, I've decided to take The Thetas to a larger audience this weekend

Here's the synopsis:
Nineteen-year-old rich socialite Colleen Anderson has just completed her sophomore year at New York University. On the last day of the semester she receives a mysterious letter on fancy salmon colored stationery with a single Greek letter on it. It’s a letter that will change her life and redefine the woman she’ll become.

And Paperback fans will have a chance to read this smash hit  next month!

Also, this is your last weekend to donate to the Isis series KICKSTARTER! So far $131 has been pledged and I need another $379 to have enough money to hire the artist to design the cover for the next book in the Isis series. I have to have all $500 pledged by May 4 to get the funding so if you can donate $1 I appreciate it!

Again, this is your opportunity tohelp me take my business to the next level. I'd love to launch Isis: Wrath of the Cybergoddess with a cover designed by a professional artist. With your help I can make a powerful first impression on readers all over the globe!

Support Salli Richardson-Whitfield's Kickstarter A Lady Must Live

I’ve been a fan of Salli Richardson-Whitfield’s acting for over 20 years. Her performances in Posse, A Low Down Dirty Shame, The Jamie Foxx Show and Gargoyles inspired me to create several characters in my novels such as E’steem from The Temptation of John Haynes and Cassandra Lee from A Recipe For $ucce$$. Currently she’s got a Kickstarter going to put on a Broadway play A Lady Must Live where she’ll be portraying the legendary Lena Horne.  She’s looking to raise $40,000 to finance it. And I’d love to help her achieve her goal.

Being familiar with Salli’s work I know she’s going to give a great performance in the role of Lena Horne. Salli always gives performances with lots of heart, humanity, and soul. The chance to see her portray the Legendary Lena Horne on stage is a once in a lifetime opportunity audiences need to experience.

Salli often picks rich, complex, multi-dimensional roles in independent Black films such as I Will Follow that present Black women in a positive light She has great acting range and I know she’ll pay respect to the late Lena Horne in her portrayal.

Salli’s project is a great example of Black Group Economics, and it’s a great opportunity for Black people to support another Black person and use Black dollars towards making a difference in a business venture. Opportunities to see positive images of African-Americans in the media are rare. And in most cases they’re not produced unless Black people finance them.

I’d love to see Salli play this role on Broadway.  But the show can only go on if brothers and sisters help get this project kickstarted!

Less Than A Week to go on the Isis Series Kickstarter!

The clock is winding down on the Isis series Kickstarter. The project is 25 percent funded with $126 pledged and I need to raise another $384 in the less than a week! I know it’s a challenge but I believe we can do it! 

 Brothers  and Sisters, the project can only be funded if I receive all $500 by May 4. And those who pledge will receive rewards A $20 pledge gets a donor a copy of the next book in the Isis series Isis: Wrath of the Cybergoddess. And a $100 pledge gets a donor all the books in the Isis series.

Brothers and Sistas, this Kickstarter is an opportunity for you to see the power of Black Group Economics in action. When Black dollars stay in the Black community, they give Black business owners such as myself the capital we need to improve the quality of our products and expand our businesses. The money you pledge will be used towards the development of a finished product, a book in the Isis series.

You’ll see the process used to design this book from start to finish. If I get the funding, I will be updating the process of its publication on my blog and on YouTube videos.

I want readers to know I’ve been listening to their concerns about the art on my covers and this Kickstarter was my way of trying to address the issue. The money I spend towards hiring this artist to design my cover will help me towards leaving a powerful first impression on readers all over the world with a professional cover for my book. It’ll be a way to persuade readers on the fence towards taking a chance and trying a book in a unique genre such as African-American fantasy fiction.

I want to say thanks to Brothers and sistas have made contributions to the Kickstarter. I truly appreciate your support towards getting this project kickstarted. I’ve received donations from brothers and sistas all over the country and even from the UK.

There’s not much time left for you to take this opportunity for to participate in Group Economics and have your money make a difference in a Black-owned business.  My Kickstarter ends on May 4. If $384 Brothers and Sisters donate $1 or $2 a piece I’ll Still meet my goal and be able to take the Isis series to the next level. Please, help me get this project Kickstarted and take my business to the next level!