Tag: jessicajohnson

Controversy has arisen again regarding the upcoming performance of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” that is scheduled for Super Bowl 58. During last year’s game, “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” also referred to as the “Black national anthem,” was sung by Sheryl Lee Ralph, affectionately known to “Abbot Elementary” fans as “Miss Barbara.” Grammy Award-winning artist Andra Day will sing it before a packed and star-studded Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada. The other highly anticipated pregame selections of the national anthem and “America the Beautiful” will be sung by Reba McEntire and Post Malone respectively.

Toward the end of January, the Pew Research Center published results of a 2023 summer survey it conducted through its American Trends Panel on religious “nones,” people who identify as “atheist, agnostic or nothing in particular.” Out of a targeted sample size of 12,932 U.S. adults, 11,201 participated, resulting in an impressive 87% response rate.

PBS NewsHour’s senior correspondent Judy Woodruff traveled the country for six months last year to get more insight on the partisan divisions, economic struggles and continued skepticism many people have regarding our nation’s institutions. I had some time recently to watch one of her November reports on Steubenville, Ohio, which hit close to home for me.

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation recently presented its seventh National Day of Racial Healing town hall on NBC News NOW, which was broadcast from Los Angeles. The town hall is always held following Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and this year it was hosted by NBC anchors Kate Snow and Zinhle Essamuah.

I happened to catch the recent CBS Morning news interview of Yolanda Renee King, the only grandchild of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. While promoting her new children’s book honoring her grandparents titled “We Dream a World,” Yolanda gave a profound answer when asked what she would say to them if they were alive today.

Colleges and universities are preparing for the spring 2024 semester, and one current trend will be obvious at many campuses throughout the nation: There are fewer young men enrolled at four-year schools.

As 2023 draws to a close, one of the things that I improved this year was my time management.

One of my favorite songs to listen to during the holiday season is the soulful rendition of “Handel’s Messiah” that was arranged by Quincy Jones and Mervyn Warren, an original member of the gospel a cappella group Take 6.

The first day of December marked the 68th anniversary of Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat to a White man on a city bus in Montgomery, Alabama. That simple but defiant rejection of the segregation laws of Southern public transportation was the catalyst to spark the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955. It also ushered a 26-year-old Martin Luther King Jr. into the leadership of the modern civil rights movement. In remembering Parks’ dauntless courage this month, members of the Congressional Black Caucus advocated for Congress to designate Dec. 1 as “Rosa Parks Day,” which would become the first federal holiday to honor a woman.

The College Football Playoff committee’s recent decision to deny undefeated ACC champion Florida State a chance to play for a national title sent shockwaves of disbelief that escalated to anger among FSU alums and fans. During the inception of the CFP nine years ago, it was always believed that an undefeated Power 5 conference champ would never be left out of the two semi-final games. Well, in the current state of college football things have gotten a little more complicated to where it isn’t just good enough to win.