Well, we should all be thankful that the DC coroner did not choose a career in the ER. #NewDefofSlow
@DCProper
Bornin Bred
Media
From newspapers to neighborhood blogs, all the media we are consuming and considering.
RECENT POSTS
Tweet of the Day, 12.20
wow, cool fact about Metropolitan AME Zion: the church was a stop on the Underground Railroad #BloomingdaleDC
@evoque
Elle Cayabyab Gitlin
The tweet below was a close runner-up, though. I love when people exceed someone else’s expectations– and when we watch out for each other:
Tweet of the Day, 12.17
Tweet of the Day, 12.16
Oy vey. In no other city would a 9-story building be characterized as a "damn near skyscraper."
@lydiadepillis
Lydia DePillis
3 out of 10 D.C. Kids Lived in Poverty Last Year
sendusout
I saw a link to this essay in my Twitter timeline; it’s not D.C.-specific, but the issue it addresses is one this city struggles with…and I can’t stop thinking about it, though I finished reading it an hour ago. It’s powerful.
I remember my brother whining. He was hungry. I felt it too.
I climbed up onto the counter to get a good look inside the kitchen cupboards. I found only jars of dried lentils, spices, and boxes of tea. A bag of cereal hidden away in the back of the cabinet caught my eye. I poured the contents into two bowls, only to find worms crawling inside. I screamed, and then quickly pretended there was nothing wrong. I didn’t want to frighten my baby brother. It was important to be responsible and be a good older sister. I shouldn’t scare him with details…
I did the only thing I could think of. I grabbed my green winter coat, put on my boots, and headed for the door. I didn’t have a specific plan. All I knew was that we needed a snack. I told my brother I’d be right back.
What happened to that child next is going to haunt me for the rest of the day:
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The Intersection of Crime and Social Media
DCentric
Obligatory screen-capture to illustrate that this post is about a popular social networking program.
This is shocking. Washington Post columnist Marc Fisher‘s home was burglarized– and though he wasn’t home when the dastardly deed occurred, he saw the perp’s face:
Sometime between 10 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. Friday, a burglar busted through our basement door — simply kicked through the 80-year-old wood panels — and took a bunch of stuff. My son, 15, got hit hardest; his laptop, iPod, savings bonds and cash were gone.
Just one more example of life in the big city. Except that the apparent thief didn’t stop with taking our belongings.
He felt compelled to showboat about his big achievement: He opened my son’s computer, took a photo of himself sneering as he pointed to the cash lifted from my son’s desk, and then went on my son’s Facebook account and posted the picture for 400 teenagers to see.
Think that chutzpah-powered picture will lead to an easy resolution of this crime? Wrong.
Continue reading
DCentric is hiring!
Zervas
You already knew that Project Argo’s Matt Thompson is guest blogging here for a week, but I also received a bit of help with the morning roundup today, for which I am very grateful. A DCentric applicant contributed one of those six links and since I’m down with the flu, I am very happy for the help. That reminds me– WAMU is hiring another blogger for DCentric!
The new, open position is part-time (think: 25 hours a week), but I can vouch for how amazing an opportunity it is– in my email signature I refer to this as my “dream job” and that’s not hype. If you have experience with podcasts, never leave home without a video camera, understand why it’s redundant to “sign” blog comments and promise to never call a “post” a “blog”, holler at us.
If you have to ask how to reach us, this may not be the job for you (hint: my email is always on the site, even when we’re not looking for talent). Interest in race, class, history, gentrification, awkward situations and pancakes is a must. Your ability to follow directions, write clean copy and think outside the blog will be rewarded with an interview (or three) and quite possibly, the best job ever. Ready? GO!
The 5 biggest culture clashes on DC reality TV
Almost since the concept’s beginning, reality shows have existed to exploit cultural conflict. Take a mix of strangers from a variety of backgrounds and throw them together for a few weeks, and you’re almost certain to spark some quality reality television.
This might be why DC, with its mix of classes and cultures, loomed large in 2010 as a reality TV destination. Yet the contrast between DC and the city portrayed in the reality shows couldn’t be sharper, as Mike Riggs aptly pointed out in a recent City Paper essay. Reality television celebrates luxury lifestyle products, conspicuous consumption, haute cuisine. DC has all of these things, to be sure, but they don’t define life here for most of us. So we’re curious, what do the culture clashes of DC reality shows reveal?
Here are our picks for the best culture clashes of the year in DC reality television. Add your picks (and your thoughts) in the comments. Continue reading
How to put the “Happy” in our Holidays
DCentric
SOME's 40th Anniversary Thanksgiving Day Trot for Hunger
I had a lovely thanksgiving. I rarely get to see my only sibling on that day which is dedicated to families, but this year, I spent it with her, eating pizza. That’s a tradition she unwittingly created while serving in the Air Force, overseas. Like me, she’s a strict vegetarian, and when she was stationed in certain countries, the biggest treat she could find was pizza, so every year for almost a decade, that’s what she ate. I’m proud to continue that tradition with her, because of the poignant story behind it.
So that’s how I spent my Thanksgiving– with family, eating cheese, introducing everyone to the wonder that is “Boardwalk Empire“. We even indulged in some eye-roll-worthy retail shenanigans at midnight. But what stands out to me most about this Thanksgiving–even more than the Gino’s pizza which was lovingly carried here from Chicago for us to enjoy– was how we started that morning; we were up by 6 and on the Mall by 7am, looking for parking so that four of us could participate in the So Others Might Eat 5k. I am embarrassed to admit that aside from being excited about naming our team (“Pilgrim and Wrong Indians”), I was grumbling about my lack of sleep and the lack of sun (or warmth) at such a cold, early hour.
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Matt! Be our Guest (Blogger), Be our Guest!
A quick administrative note: please welcome Matt Thompson of Project Argo/npr to DCentric!
Matt Thompson is an Editorial Product Manager at National Public Radio, where he’s helping to coordinate the development of 12 topic-focused local news sites in conjunction with NPR member stations. Before moving to DC, Matt served as the interim Online Community Manager for the Knight Foundation. In May 2009, he completed a Donald W. Reynolds Fellowship at the Reynolds Journalism Institute; his explorations into creating context-centric news websites have been widely cited in discussions about online journalism’s future. He came to RJI from his position as deputy Web editor for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, where he led the creation of the Edgie-award-winning, socially networked arts-and-entertainment website vita.mn. While managing the development, community and production of vita.mn, he also managed technology and interactivity-related projects for StarTribune.com, from creating an internal taxonomy to transforming the online opinion section into a blog…
Matt graduated with honors in English from Harvard College in 2002, after writing his senior thesis on the television show “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” Outside of work, he blogs at Snarkmarket.com, has completed one Twin Cities Marathon, and is itching to get ready for another.
I stole that bio from here, where you can also find a picture of the man who encouraged me to apply for my dream job at WAMU: writing for DCentric. Matt kindly offered to pitch in and contribute to the blog for a week. Consider it an early holiday gift, because even though you might not realize it yet, that’s what it is.