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CO C 2.9t1 hr CarMa ©mes 90 - NUMBER 44 DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2011 TELEPHONE (919) 682-2913 PRICE: 31 Wealth Disparities Likely to Grow er’s Day speaker Dr. Clarence Williams and his wife, Mildred Cogdell i, joined North Carolina Central University Chancellor Charlie Nelms Ihe podium after Williams’ address to present Nelms with a $50,000 endowed arship. Williams, who graduated from NCCU in 1961, presented a speech “Letters to Dr. Shepard” that told the story of how the university shaped his id career.(NCCU Photo by Lawson) la Treats Obama Much than GOP Challengers By George E. Curry NNPA Columnist lews media coverage of iident Obama is much more ative than stories about each his Republican challengers, ing him almost four negative ies for every positive one. ihat’s the conclusion of an insive study by the Pew earch Center’s Project for ellence in Journalism. Ac- ling to the report, titled “The Jia Primary,” Texas Gov. i Perry received the most erage and was subject to the it favorable coverage until era! weeks ago, when he was rtaken in that category by man Cain. ‘One man running for presi- thas suffered the most unre- ling negative treatment of all, study found: Barack Obama, 'ugh covered largely as presi- irather than a candidate, neg- eassessments of Obama have weighed positive by a ratio of ost 4-1,” the report stated, lose assessments of the presi- ihave also been substantially re negative than positive ev- one of the 23 weeks studied. I in no week during those five iths was more than 10% of coverage about the president live in tone.” The analysis of coverage in 500 news media outlets was lucted from May 2-October Mule 57 percent of Obama’s crage was considered neu- 9 percent was positive and percent was negative. At the J end of the spectrum, 32 lent of Rick Perry’s coverage ‘rated positive and 20 per ¬ ■very Republican candidate in the race except Newt Gin- had favorable coverage at double that of President ^a. In the cases of Michele han and Herman Cain, it triple the positive coverage Obama and nearly triple for tiblican front-runner Mitt Wy Gingrich had a higher Outage of negative coverage ‘Obama with 35 percent, just Percentage point higher than President. However, Gingrich’s favorable coverage stood at 15 percent, six points higher than Obama’s. Interestingly, although Perry did not enter the race until Au gust - three months after the study began - he received more coverage than any other candi date. Moreover, even after poor performances in the Republican presidential debates, he received the most flattering coverage over the period studied - 32 percent positive, 20 percent negative and the remainder neutral. Coverage of Cain was 28 per cent positive - two points higher than Romney - and 23 percent negative, which was four points lower than Romney’s negative coverage. Cain’s recent coverage has more positive than his over all numbers reflect because prior to his winning the Florida straw poll, he was largely ignored and received more negative coverage than in recent weeks. The sour economy and Re publican attacks are responsible for much of President Obama’s negative coverage, according to the study. “In many stories, Obama was the target of not only the whole roster of GOP presidential con tenders. He was also being criti cized in often harsh terms by Republicans in Congress,” the study found. “Added to that, members of his own party began criticizing him on both policy and strategy grounds, particular ly as his poll numbers fell. And for much of this period, the pres ident’s coverage reflected the biggest problem on his watch - a continual flow ofbad news about the U.S. economy.” Even the killing of Osama bin Laden did not reverse the president’s poll numbers. “One reason is that many of the references to his [Obama’s] role in the hunt for bin Laden were matched by skepticism that he would receive any long term political benefit from it. Another was than bin Laden news was tempered with news about the nation’s economy.” And that is the problem. While journalists are compelled to cover stories about political warfare and the economy, they should not attack Obama or any one else in news stories under the guise of providing context for readers and viewers. An Associated Press story on May 2 is a textbook example of this problem: “A nation surly over rising gas prices, stubbornly high un employment and nasty partisan politics poured into the streets to wildly cheer President Barack Obama’s announcement that Osama bin Laden, the world’s most wanted man, had been killed by U.S. forces after a de cade long manhunt. The out come could not have come at a better time for Obama, sagging in the poll as he embarks on his re-election campaign.” The news of bin Laden’s death was almost buried. The story could have also been presented this way: “Despite former President George W. Bush’s promise to capture Osama bin Laden “dead or alive,” it was his successor who delivered on that promise in grand fashion, prompting thou sands of U.S. citizens to take to the streets in noisy celebration.” Another option: “President Obama, who had his foreign policy credentials questioned re peatedly during the 2008 presi dential campaign, delivered on a campaign pledge to kill Osama bin Laden if ever presented the opportunity, a surprise action that led to impromptu celebra tions across the United States.” Either approach would have provided more relevant context than AP wrapping its story in the highly-charged language of his Republican challengers. President Obama knew he would be double-teamed by GOP congressional leaders and Republican candidates hoping to unseat him. But he probably didn’t expect the stealth attacks from major media outlets. Vote November 8 By George E. Curry TheDefendersOnline.com A widening gap between the mega-rich and the rest of society, documented in a recent congres sional study, is likely to create even larger economic disparities between African-Americans and whites. NEWS ANALYSIS The Congressional Bud get Office (CBO) issued a re port that stated: “Fori^^Othe. 1 percent with the highest in come, average real after-tax household!^ ^Oincome grew by 275 percent between 1979 and 2007.” By contrast, 60 per cent of the population in the middle of the income scale (the 21st through 80th percentiles), the growth in average real after- taxi^^Ohousehold income was just under 40 percent. For the 20 percent with thei^^Olowest income, their after-tax income grew by only 18 percent over thati^^Osame period. The 47-page CBO report is ti tled, “Trends in the Distribution of Household Income Between 1979 and 2007.” It showed that the share of after-tax household income for the top 1 percent more than doubled over the pe riod studied, rising from nearly 8 percent in 1979 to 17 percent in 2007. The most affluent 20 percent of the population received 53 percent of after-tax household income in 2007, an increase of 10 percent over 1979. Put an other way: The top 20 percent earned more after-tax income in 2007 than the combined income ofthe other 80 percent ofAmeri- cans. These figures are fueling the heated debate over the Occupy Wall Streeti^^Omovement that has spread throughout the country and around the world. But that discussion has virtu ally ignored the plight of blacks, who havei^5620already seen the wealth gap widen during the most recent recession. A State of the Dream report issued earlier this year by United for a Fair Economy chronicles African-Americans’ stalled eco nomic progress. “In 1947, blacks earned 51 cents to each dollar of white me dian family income,” the report’ recounts. “By 1977, blacks were earning 56 cents on each dollar in white income, a gain of five cents. Most of those gains were made in the 1960s. “Then, as the backlash took hold, progress slowed - and stopped. By 2007, blacks earned slightly over 57 cents (57.4 cents) to each white dollar, a gain ofjust one penny in thirty years. Two years later, as the Great Re cession set in. Blacks lost a half- cent, ending at 57 cents to each white dollar of median family income.” Such erosion has led to the widest wealth gap on record be tween blacks and whites. In July, the Pew Research Center issued a report that stat ed, “The median wealth ofwhite households is 20 times that of black households and 18 times that of Hispanic households.” It explained, “These lopsided wealth ratios are the largest since the government began publish ing suchiT^Odata a quarter century ago and roughly twice the size ofthe ratios that had pre vailed between these groups for two decades prior to the Great Recession that ended in 2009.” The bursting of the housing (Continued On Page 15.) NCCU Chancellor Charlie Nelms, left, presided at a wreath-laying ceremony last week during Founder’s Day. Milton “Toby” Fitch, right, grand master of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge ofthe Free and accepted Masons, offered reflections. (NCCU Photo by Lawson) House votes to honor first black Marines Montford Point By Kevin Freking WASHINGTON (AP) - The nation’s first black Marines received a rare national tribute Oct. 25 as the House voted to award the Mont ford Point Marines with the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honor given by Congress. History books and Hollywood have chronicled the Army’s Buf falo Soldiers and the Army Air Corps’ Tuskegee Airmen, but the men who integrated the Marines during World War II often have been for gotten. That is starting to change, beginning with the House’s 422-0 vote. The black Marines received their basic training adjacent to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, where conditions were harsh and the treatment from their fellow Marines could be even harsher. The black Marines were not allowed to enter Camp Lejeune unless ac companied by a white officer. In the few times they participated in training exercises, they could not eat until the white Marines had finished. They were routinely passed over for promotions. “People forget they were fighting two wars - both foreign and domestic,” Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-Ga., said. More than 300 lawmakers were co-sponsors of the legislation, providing Republicans and Democrats with a rare moment of bipar tisanship. Lawmakers from both parties spoke in favor of the resolu tion, which was sponsored by Rep. Corrine Brown, D-Fla. In 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered the Marine Corps to accept blacks. The Marine Corps was the last military branch to do so. Rep. Brad Miller, D-N.C., noted that the Montford Point Marines were presumed unsuited for combat and not allowed to fight along side their white counterparts until the Korean War. Still, they under went intense fire in their supporting roles in the Pacific during World War II, serving at Okinawa and Iwo Jima. “They served with great valor and distinction and loved their country more than their country loved them at the time,” Miller said. Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., said he hoped that the awarding ofthe Congressional Gold Medal would “soothe the pain ofyesterday with the glory oftoday.” About 19,000 men trained at Montford Point between 1942 and 1949. Most have since died. Eugene Groves, a staff sergeant who fought in Korea, was one of four Montford Point veterans on hand for the vote Tuesday. The lawmakers gave the four a standing ova tion shortly before the vote. (Continued On Page 2)
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