Notorious is a B.I.G. hit"Biggie Biggie Biggie can't you see. Sometimes your words just hypnotize me. And I just love your flashy ways. Guess that's why they broke, and you're so paid." These lyrics, that are part of the chorus of the song "Hypnotize" that is on Notorious B.I.G.'s second album called Life after Death, could not describe his career and his affect on the genre as a whole. Salmonella causes peanut butter recallThe Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has traced the recent outbreaks of salmonella to the Peanut Corporation of America's processing plant in Blakely, Ga., according to an article from NPR.org. While peanut butter sold in retail stores is not at risk, products containing peanut butter are at risk for contamination. LC sports program recieves national honorsLynchburg College's student athletes were on top of their game in the fall semester. LC was ranked 39th nationally among division III schools according to the Learfield Sports Directors' Cup Standings. |
Obama brings celebrity status to the White HouseNewly elected President Barack Obama is already being considered as more of a celebrity than almost any other politician in history. According to CNN.com, Ebony magazine named him one of the "Top 25 coolest brothers of all time," along with Tupac Shakur, Muhammad Ali, Jay-Z and Marvin Gaye. This past Sunday, HBO hosted an inauguration celebration called "We Are One" for Obama. Actor Denzel Washington opened the festivities while performers such as Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Garth Brooks and Stevie Wonder took the stage. The inauguration of the 44th president has brought a rise in attention to the amount of pop culture coming into the White House. The Presidential Inaugural Committee spoke publicly about the significance of the "We Are One" celebration. "The Sunday afternoon performance will be grounded in history and brought to life with the entertainment that relates to the themes that shaped Barack Obama, and which will be the hallmarks of his administration," the committee said. People living in the District of Columbia area noticed a significant difference with Obama's inauguration as opposed to those past. Charles Gottenkieny, a Lynchburg College sophomore and resident of Ashburn, Va., spoke about the drastic difference between the inauguration of Obama and that of Bush. "It wasn't half as crowded [for Bush] and there weren't nearly as many changes. Just a couple of streets were shut down," Gottenkieny said. Gottenkieny was particularly pleased not to be in D.C. for Inauguration Day. "I'm kind of glad that I'm here because it's so crazy there," he said. According to the BBC, an estimated 2 million people were in attendance at the inauguration. There were a total of 10 official inaugural balls, all of which Obama attended at some point that evening. Senior Megan Donnelly noticed one special change regarding Inauguration Day this year. "For the first time ever, the bars in D.C. are extending their hours until 5 a.m. They don't even do that for New Year's," Donnelly said. Public Relations professional and Communication Studies Professor Melissa Bogacik had some insight toward the significance of the popularity and role of celebrity that Obama is filling. "He is more of a celebrity than Bush. Part of that is that it has been a larger trend for celebrities to be socially responsible," Bogacik said. Bogacik used Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie and their adoption of children from third world countries as examples. Oprah Winfrey is another celebrity who has not only supported Obama, but has donated millions of dollars to various international foundations. Bogacik spoke of the image that these celebrities are sending to the general public and the impact that they have. "Obama has all of these causes suggesting to the American people that it is important. It's cool to support a charity. That it's the way to succeed as a nation," Bogacik said. Sophomore Ashley Delaney had similar ideas about the subject matter. "As far as celebrities supporting Obama, now that he is president there is a bigger impact. People will want to be more involved and I think celebrities help with that," Delaney said. Not only were celebrities involved with this term's inaugurations, but superheroes were as well. Communication Studies Professor and notorious comic book enthusiast Dr. Mike Robinson shared some interesting details in an e-mail concerning the Amazing Spider-Man # 583 that revolved around Inauguration Day 2009. Robinson said the demand for this collector's item was so high that the issue is already in its third printing. "This is certainly unusual in comic book history. Each president has appeared in stories over the years (heck, Clinton delivered Superman's eulogy when DC comics temporarily killed Superman off), but I can't think of a time when this generated a collector frenzy," Robinson said in the e-mail. According to CNN.com, John Quelch, senior associate dean at Harvard Business School, attributes four major components to Obama's "cool." "He's street cool, family cool, technology cool and culture cool," Quelch said. |
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