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Regina Hopper Joins Miss America Board of Directors

August 25th, 2010

The Miss America Organization has a new set of high-powered Washington hands to help prepare for its 90th anniversary and return to network television. Regina Hopper, President and CEO of America’s Natural Gas Alliance and Miss Arkansas 1983 has joined the Miss America Board of Directors.

“Regina’s unique experiences and expertise at the crossroads of law, business, political advocacy and media will add an important dimension to the diverse group of influential professionals serving on the Miss America Board of Directors,” said Board Chairman Sam Haskell, III.

Hopper has served as executive vice president of the United States Telecom Association and the American Trucking Associations, and won an Emmy while at CBS News for her work on 48 Hours. Prior to her time in media, she practiced corporate and securities law and litigation communications.

“I am honored to be joining this remarkable American institution,” said Hopper. “The Miss America Scholarship Program has advanced my many educational and work opportunities. I am now privileged to further these opportunities for today’s intelligent, giving and talented young women and to recognize the thousands who are a part of this incredible program.”

Hopper joins fellow Board members John Bermingham, Miss America 1971 Phyllis George, Tammy Haddad, Miss New Jersey 1973 Sue Lowden, Ed Peterson, Corinne Sparenberg, Barrie Jane Tracy, Paul Turcotte, Miss New Jersey 1971 Lynn Hackerman Weidner, Miss America 1964 Donna Axum Whitworth, and Ryan Wuerch.

As the world’s largest scholarship program for women, last year the Miss America Organization and its state and local organizations made available more than $45 million in cash and scholarship assistance. The pageant is returning to network television in January under an exclusive multi-year deal with ABC.

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Los Angeles Plays Itself Against Obama

August 17th, 2010

U.S. President Barack Obama prepares to depart Los Angeles International Airport aboard Air Force One for Seattle, Washington, August 17, 2010. The president will continue on to Ohio later today.  REUTERS/Larry Downing (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS)

The people of Los Angeles found out there is a price for their idyllic weather and sprawling commute last night: $1 million.

That’s how much a private fundraiser held for President Obama garnered according to TheWrap.  Held at the home of producer John Wells, Hollywood came out to hear the president explain his upcoming legislative agenda and other remarks in the relaxed atmosphere of a walled garden.

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Much Ado About Obama’s Game

August 9th, 2010

President Obama’s charity basketball game brought out the best in the Beltway boys giving their all when it comes to sports reporting.

Basic round-ups from New York Post, Huffington Post’s The Hill and Time’s The Newsfeed flesh out the all-star pickup game at Fort McNair while USA Today pointed out the shrimp came straight from the Gulf.

Fishbowl DC replays the White House pool report for the top bill of the guest list:

Carmelo Anthony, Shane Battier, Chauncey Billups, Kobe Bryant (not playing), Derek Fisher, Grant Hill, LeBron James, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Maya Moore, Alonzo Mourning, Chris Paul, Derrick Rose, Bill Russell, Etan Thomas, Dwyane Wade, David West

Everyone notes Kobe didn’t play. But it was only Washington Post’s 44 that pointed out the above video of Obama’s insane three-point skill.

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Why Campaigns Can’t All Be About Meme

August 9th, 2010

The progression of a modern campaign is a double-edged sword–especially whether or not you’re as serious as Basil Marceaux.
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4600 Hours So Far for A Life In A Day

August 6th, 2010

Like cribbing a line from RENT, it turns out there’s 276,000 minutes in A Life In A Day.

The crowdsourced documentary experiment from executive producer Ridley Scott and director Kevin Macdonald is a partnership between LG, YouTube and the Sundance Institute to document one day (July 24th 2010) around the world. According to a press release from yesterday, the great culling of digital ‘celluoid’ has begun under Macdonald and 20 other editors.

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Elena Kagan Confirmed to the Supreme Court

August 5th, 2010

Samantha Power and Elena Kagan at HBO's screening of "Sergio," based on Power's' book about Sergio de Mello, Chief of the UN efforts in Baghdad.

The Senate confirmed Elena Kagan by a 63-37 vote as the 112th justice to the Supreme Court. Kagan, 50, is President Obama’s second appointment to the court in the past year and marks the first time in history that three women are serving on the high court – Kagan and Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

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“Sad Birthday Obama” Not So Sad. Really.

August 4th, 2010

Screencap from NY Daily News. Pete Souza/White House

For the 49th birthday of the President of the United States, you’d think it was the saddest day ever if you were the New York Daily News.

The Gotham tabloid started this piece about the President’s special day in true fashion: “It’s your party, Mr. President. You can cry if you want to.” It doesn’t hurt to run a file photo of the President staring at a plate of cupcakes like it was a handful of oil.

Back to the plate at hand: the photo (left) shares a strange similarity to when Helen Thomas celebrated her 89th birthday and received a plate of cupcakes from the President (and he’s smiling too!)

In fact, the photo is from last year while Obama “watches the flame on the candle as he walks to the Brady Briefing Room to present cupcakes to Hearst White House columnist Helen Thomas in honor of her birthday, Aug. 4, 2009.”

So if you thought the President was sad due to A-Rod’s 600th hit or his birth date still being debated, don’t fret. Even if he didn’t get to eat his cake from the AFL-CIO according to  Yahoo, we’re sure he’ll enjoy Wendy Williams’ Gift Bag and a birthday tweet (via Savannah Gutherie) from Russian President Dmitri Medvedev.

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John Lichman DC, News, News Media, White House History, White House Staff , , , ,

Controlling Campaign Brands in New Media

August 4th, 2010

Image is the most important tool in campaigns and social media. This isn’t a startling fact or groundbreaking for anyone remotely connected to the upcoming primaries in 2010. It becomes something worth exploring when candidatestry to promote themselves through new media concepts, when the established idea of a TV ad feels as fake as the faux-humility it promotes.

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Piers Morgan Takes King’s Throne

July 30th, 2010

LONDON - 15 JUNE: Piers Morgan sighting in London on the 15th June 2009. (Photo by Richard Johnson/Entertainment Press)

Long live the king of CNN’s prime-time block: Piers Morgan.

The rumored hopeful was confirmed as headed to the cable news network according to The Wrap.  Jeff Gaspin, president of NBC Universal TV, confirmed the former host of America’s Got Talent joining the network during a press tour earlier today.

The rest of the details aren’t publicly available yet;  Gaspin gave a brief answer to Morgan having  dual duty at NBC and CNN (“Yes,” Gaspin  said.)

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The Kerrey Stays Out Of The Picture

July 30th, 2010

NEW YORK - APRIL 01:  Senator Bob Kerrey attends The NRDC's 10th annual 'Forces For Nature' gala at Cipriani 42nd street at Cipriani 42nd street April 1, 2008 in New York City.  (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images)

Like the ending for any Inglourious Basterd, Bob Kerrey’s bid for Motion Picture Association of America Chairman is up in celluloid smoke. The former senator and president of New School rejected the MPAA’s offer as the organization’s head lobbyist.

The Wrap reached Kerrey for comment, We couldn’t reach agreement and I called to suggest we break off talks. They agreed…[t]he decision was mutual.  I like them a lot and wish them well.”

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Ed Henry Wins WHCA Presidency

July 16th, 2010

Ed Henry, 2009 Gridiron Dinner. Haddad Media

The 2012-13 White House Correspondents Association election results are in–and so is President-Elect Ed Henry of CNN.

FishbowlDC shares the other incoming elects: Politico’s Carol Lee takes the At-Large Chair, Time’s Michael Scherer the Magazine Chair and Henry also won the TV Chair.

While congratulating Lee, Mike Allen shares the WHCA voting tally, proving the At-Large vote was the closest of the four races. Under the President write-ins, however, it’s hard not to notice one sarcastic vote for Helen Thomas.

Now that a new board has been selected, the eerily-quiet anticipation for who’ll inherit the abandoned front row seat may continue.

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John Lichman Correspondents, DC, News, News Media, Schedules and Announcements, WHCA Dinner , , , ,

Fingers Crossed for This Week and This Fall on TV

July 14th, 2010

LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 15:  Piers Morgan attends a photocall for the new Burger King fragrance 'Flame' at Selfridges on June 15, 2009 in London, England.  (Photo by Tim Whitby/Getty Images)

The Beltway’s TV presence is going wider–if not global–in the coming weeks

TVNewser confirms August 1st as the start date for Christiane Amanpour’s premiere at This Week, which sadly ousts Jake Tapper from the temporary position. Meanwhile, Rick Sanchez is being bumped up to 8 pm on July 22nd until the Fall premiere of the Untitled Eliot Spitzer/Kathleen Parker Show.

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CNN Goes One For The Money

July 12th, 2010

Monday turned out pretty well if your name is Money Magazine.

CNNMoney and the social networking/geo-tagging site Gowalla teamed up, according to Fishbowl NY, to correspond with the “100 Best Places To Live” feature in the current issue; users can sign up for specialty mobile alerts at both CNN Money and Gowalla.

In case you were wondering, yes, this does mean the heat wave has lifted in NYC and the Beltway is still trying to get out of the muggy malaise.

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Five Days Until Helen Thomas’ Seat Is Claimed

July 12th, 2010

WASHINGTON - AUGUST 2: (FILE PHOTO) Senior White House Correspondent Helen Thomas reads the newspaper while sitting in her chair in the White House press room August 2, 2006 in Washington, DC. Thomas, 89, announced her retirement as a columnist for Hearst News Service June 7, 2010 after controversial comments she made about Israel created an uproar. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images)

DC is coming out of a devastating heat wave, but we’re five days away from ending another event: which outlet inherits the seat that Helen Thomas built.
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Rolling Stones Freelancer Michael Hastings Gets Book Deal

July 7th, 2010

In two weeks, freelance journo Michael Hastings managed to get General Stanley A. McChyrstal sacked from his command in Afghanistan and score a book deal.

Hastings penned the now infamous Rolling Stones profile The Runaway General in which the loose-lipped McChyrstal and his aides criticized administration officials.

No publishing date or title yet, but according to publisher Little, Brown the book “will offer an unfiltered look at the war, and the soldiers, diplomats and politicians who are waging it.”

As the WSJ points out this isn’t the first publishing deal for Hastings. The former Newsweek correspondent released the memoir “I Lost My Love in Baghdad” in 2008 about his time covering the Iraq war and the tragic loss of his girlfriend who was killed in Baghdad while working with the National Democratic Institute, a Washington-based NGO.

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