Uppity-Negro.com

The above subject line was a joke -- a joke! -- from Aaron McGruder (pictured above), creator of the daily comic strip, Boondocks, which premieres as an animated TV show for Cartoon Network's Adult Swim on October 2. Check out Riley below!

McGruder presented a clip of the show, along with the main cast of voice actors--including veteran actress Regina King, who voices both Huey and Riley, as well as John Witherspoon, who's perfect for voicing Granddad--at the San Diego Comic-Con, before going on to the Television Critics Association (TCA) summer press tour the following week.

By far the biggest stir at the TCA summer tour was caused by Chris Rock for his upcoming UPN series, Everybody Hates Chris, so much so that the question became that the show is too good for UPN and shouldn't it be moved to CBS--?! An African American show too good for the U People's Network? Now that's ironic!

Speaking of African Americans on TV, cool lil' sis Karen made a memorable appearance on the local ABC News affiliate last week, talking about blogs -- although she didn't get to mention Uppity-Negro.com. In the story, she's specifically speaking about some crazy comments that she got on the blog she kept while she was overseas earlier this year for an international newspaper internship. Read the (kinda sketchy) transcript below, which is from the ABC News web site:

Entering the Blogosphere
By Alan Krashesky

[NOTE FROM VAL: This transcript contains errors which I went through and corrected.]

July 19, 2005 - Most parents may not have a clue, but millions of teenagers are now posting their personal lives for anyone to see. They are using a new online form of publishing called "blogging," which gives virtually anyone a voice to the world.

Blog is short for the word "weblog." An estimated 8 million people across the country blog online everyday. Still, most people don't know who bloggers are. Many are ordinary people who post their opinions on political issues and news events, but now that the blogosphere is especially popular with teens, the craze comes with some concerns.

Welcome to the blogosphere. Just do a Web search and you can spot the bloggers. Many are teens who post their personal details, stories, favorite songs online. Think of it as an interactive teen diary, although not a secret one. It's for all to see.

"I can write things, and people can comment back to you. It's kind of like e-mail only more personal," said Karina Anglada, teen blogger.

Sixteen-year-old Chicagoan Karina Anglada lists her daily life events on her blog, complete with pictures.

Danny Gutman takes his love for sports from the tennis court to the blogs.

"I get to tell people about how I am thinking creatively and tell them about my interests and what I like to do, while I also get to read about their blogs and see their interests," said Danny Gutman, teen blogger.

About 21 million teens use the Internet. One recent study found that about one out of every five of them has a blog.

"Blogging is a phenomenon and is one that is particularly attractive to young people because it gives them several benefits," said Peter Zollo, Teenage Research Unlimited.

Those benefits include creativity and self expression, says Zollo. He runs a research firm that studies teenagers.

But Zollo and other experts also warn teens not to fill blogs with wild stories and provocative pictures.

"Because I realize that 10 to 15 years from now, if I am applying for a job, my future possible boss could put my name into Google and see I put something I shouldn't have on the Internet," said Gutman, teen blogger.

Experts also warn of online predators. Blogging teens should not use last names or exact locations, and they should never meet strangers in person.

Karen Hawkins wants to warn teens about her recent bad blogging experience.

"I was very vulnerable, very exposed. Anyone who knew anything about the place where I worked knew who I was," said Hawkins.

With her personal details made public, Hawkins says threatening people posted insults and racial slurs about her because they did not like the content on her blog. Nothing happened but she sure was frightened.

"Be careful about how many personal details you reveal about yourself. Don't say 'I'm a junior with blonde hair who goes to New Trier,' " Hawkins said.
[NOTE FROM VAL: Corrected spelling from "New Treir."]

Teens are not the only blogging trendsetters. Many bloggers are adults using sites to talk about the latest news or even to cover news and political events. It's a new way to get information, but you need to now that when you read someone's blog, they may not be objective.

"We definitely have an opinion, and you can care to agree or disagree with that. We'll say what we think, and a lot of times, the news, they have to filter that out," said Chicagoist editor and founder Rachelle Bowden.

Chicagoist's staff of young professionals all work in the Loop. During the day they work in jobs like public relations and web design, and in their off-time they run Chicagoist, a news blog.

"We can let everyone know what we are thinking at the same time. If our readers don't agree with us, they are happy to let us know about it," said Andrew Peerless, Chicagoist.

Nationwide, news bloggers have gained the attention of politicians who now watch bloggers carefully.

One example came just last month when bloggers, along with Jewish and Republican groups, became outraged over comments made by Senator Dick Durbin. Durbin compared the alleged treatment of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay to Nazi Atrocities and genocide. A week later he apologized.

"My guess is, if you are a savvy politician or perspective politician, you are keeping an eye on the bloggers," said Steve Jones, UIC communications professor.

Such is the blogosphere, serious business for some, while others are flying along, just enjoying the ride.

"If you want to go visit your friend's site you just type in their name and there it pops up," said Katrina Hawkins.
[NOTE FROM VAL: Actually, the news story ends with Karina Anglada again. There's no one named Katrina Hawkins in the story--! Told you it was sketchy...!]

Whether juicy details on blogs will come back to haunt teens remains to be seen. Experts say that while teens should be cautious, many people may just consider blog entries as teenagers having fun.
[NOTE FROM VAL: Eliminated the repeated "that" in the sentence.]

And now I go on into the Las Vegas heat... right here in Chicago! Everybody take care and keep blogging!