XIAM007 - Making Unique Observations in a Very Cluttered World: 03/07/14

Friday, 7 March 2014

After pledging transparency, PBS hides details of new deal with billionaire owner of NewsHour -

Last month, in response to Pando’s revelations that anti-pension mogul John Arnold secretly was financing PBS’s “Pension Peril” series, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting issued a scathing report demanding immediate reform. Criticizing “the lack of transparency” at PBS, CPB’s ombudsman Joel Kaplan declared that public broadcasting outlets must let the public access details of their financial dealings.

So how’s that new commitment to transparency going?

Here’s how: Once again, a PBS flagship station is in the process of negotiating a deal with a politically active mogul. Once again, the deal involves the NewsHour — the same iconic PBS program that stealthily promoted Arnold’s anti-pension programming. And once again, PBS is refusing to disclose the deal’s financial details to the public.

The major difference this time is that this new story of secrecy isn’t about who funds the journalism on the NewsHour. It is about who actually owns the NewsHour.

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http://pando.com/2014/03/07/after-pledging-transparency-pbs-hides-details-of-new-deal-with-billionaire-owner-of-newshour/

More Than Half Of Brides And Grooms Have Slept With At Least 2 Wedding Guests -

A wedding is supposed to be a time of celebration, love and excitement -- but for modern newlyweds, it can also be a stressful, ex-filled affair that ends with the bride and groom passing out, too tired from the shindig to even get it on.

A new survey from Paper Shaker -- a UK company specializing in wedding stationary -- is shedding light on the modern bride and groom and after interviewing 1,000 newlyweds, here it what they found:

60 percent of newlyweds said they had slept with two or more of the wedding guests.
32 percent said they would like to keep their partner in the dark about who those guests are.
25 percent of couples said they did not consummate their marriage on their wedding night because they were too drunk or too tired.
Women were more than twice as likely as men to have second thoughts the night before the big day.
20 percent of men surveyed admitted to being attracted to female guests on on their wedding day.
Do these stats ring true for your wedding experience? Let us know in the comments below.

Read more -

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/06/newlywed-survey-sex_n_4913608.html

O-O-P-S. President Obama had a spelling blunder - Misspells ‘Respect’ While Praising Aretha Franklin - R-S-P-E-C-T -

O-O-P-S. President Barack Obama had a spelling blunder Thursday while praising Aretha Franklin.
Obama misspelled “respect” while lauding the “Queen of Soul” before a White House concert featuring several musical legends.
“When Aretha first told us what R-S-P-E-C-T meant to her,” Obama said, before the audience in the East Room erupted into laughter. He then continued, “”She had no idea it would become a rallying cry for African-Americans, and women, and then everyone who felt marginalized because of what they looked like or who they loved. They wanted some respect. Later, when somebody asked her why it had such an impact, she said, ‘I guess everybody just wants a little respect.’ Today, they still do.”
First up in the East Room lineup was Patti LaBelle, with a thundering delivery of “Over the Rainbow” that had the audience on its feet.

It was a mutual admiration society of sorts as LaBelle thanked the Obamas for their tenure in the White House, declaring, “Baby, you got swag!”
Ariana Grande, the youngster in the group at 20, seemed in awe of her fellow performers and the august audience. Her lead-in: “What’s up? How are you? Good to see you. Thank you for having me.”
The emotional high point came when Franklin, 71, sauntered in, gave a shimmy and declared “Let’s have a party.” Then she went right into “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You)” She was back later to close down the show with what Obama called “one more treat,” – a slow, soulful rendition of “Amazing Grace” that turned rowdy at the end.
But first, all the other ladies – including Melissa Etheridge, Janelle Monae, Jill Scott and Tessanne Chin – collaborated on a rollicking delivery of “Proud Mary.”
The concert was livestreamed at WhiteHouse.gov/live and will be broadcast as “In Performance at the White House: Women of Soul” on April 7 on PBS.

Read more -

http://washington.cbslocal.com/2014/03/07/obama-misspells-respect-while-praising-franklin-before-white-house-concert/

Bob Costas’ Olympic pink eye from ‘botched Botox’ -

Bob Costas got his infamous case of Olympic pink eye from botched Botox, a source claims to Page Six.
NBC’s prime-time Olympics host, who had to take a six-day absence after coming down with viral conjunctivitis in both eyes, contracted the infection after a Botox procedure to smooth out wrinkles prior to the Olympics. Our source said, “Bob’s eye infection was due to botched Botox. This isn’t the first time he’s had it.”
NBC strongly denies that Costas — who arrived to host the games in Sochi with a forehead smoother than the Olympic luge track — developed the infection from a Botox procedure.
A spokesperson from NBC Sports insisted to us, “This has zero truth to this. Zero.”

Costas was forced to take nearly a week off from the Olympics, with Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira sitting in for him after the infection spread from his left to his right eye. He told reporters later that it caused light sensitivity and blurred vision. “The worst three days of it I was primarily in a darkened room,” he said.
Doctors say it is rare to contract an infection from a Botox injection, unless there was contamination or the patient suffered an allergic reaction. New York plastic surgeon Dr. Mark Warfel, who has not treated Costas, told Page Six: “If the Botox procedure is done properly, the patient shouldn’t get pink eye. It is highly unlikely unless the procedure was unclean, when the patient could contract cellulitis of the eyelid [symptoms include redness and swelling of the eyelid].”
Costas interviewed President Obama on Feb. 6, the night before the opening ceremonies. But the next morning, “My left eye was like a slit, and I’m thinking, ‘What the hell? . . . I’m also thinking maybe I put a few eye drops in and it resolves itself,” he told reporters. But his doctor immediately “realized something was wrong.”
Costas valiantly tried to cover up the redness by wearing thick glasses. But after five nights, his blurred vision and light sensitivity made it impossible for him to be on air. He took six days off and returned on Feb 17.

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