Photographs of Legends from Madonna to Obama

artnet Launches Icons: 20th-21st Century Photographic Portraits Sale Featuring 200 Photographs of Legends from Madonna to Obama

200 photographs by 70 renowned photographers Estimates from $1,000 to $20,000

June 15 - 25, 2009


Actress Grace Kelly, 1955
New York / Berlin, June 15, 2009 - From June 15-25 artnet Auctions will feature Icons: 20th-21st Century Photographic Portraits, a special sale of 200 original fine art photographs of legendary figures including The Beatles, Madonna, Marilyn Monroe, President Barack Obama and Elvis Presley.

Screen Sirens
Leading the sale is an exceptional group of fifteen photographs of screen stars Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly and Marilyn Monroe from the 1950s-1960s. Highlights include a rare photograph of Audrey Hepburn taken at the pinnacle of her career in 1956 by renowned portrait photographer Yousuf Karsh. This work has never before been seen at auction and is offered in pristine condition (estimate: $15,000-$20,000). Also featured in this section are two luminous portraits of Grace Kelly taken in 1955 by fashion photographer Howell Conant shortly before she became Princess of Monaco (estimates: $3,000-$3,500 each). Among the other highlights are some of the most recognizable photographs ever taken of Marilyn Monroe, including Marilyn Monroe Singing "Happy Birthday" to President John F. Kennedy, 1962 by Bill Ray (estimate: $2,500-$3,500) and Marilyn Monroe and Billy Wilder On The Set Of The Seven Year Itch, 1954 by George Zimbel (estimate: $5,000-$6,000).

Music Legends
The sale celebrates music legends including Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Johnny Cash, Kurt Cobain, Bob Dylan and Madonna. Madonna's rise from a virtual unknown to pop icon is chronicled in five photographs by artists from Lee Friedlander to David LaChapelle. Friedlander's Nude (Madonna) is a rare nude portrait taken of Madonna in 1979 before she became famous (estimate: $25,000-$35,000) while LaChapelle's Madonna: Mythical Swans, 1998 captures the radiant pop megastar two decades later (estimate: $12,000-$14,000).

The sale also chronicles the evolution of Rock 'n Roll in the 1960s and 1970s featuring classic photographs of the Beatles, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and Jimi Hendrix. The Beatles Land in Los Angeles, 1964 by Bill Ray captures the young musicians on their second world tour (estimate: $2,500-$3,500) while John Lennon, New York City taken by Bob Gruen in 1974 reflects the change in both the artist and the times (estimate: $1,400-$1,600).

Fashion Icons
Fashion icons also figure prominently in the auction, with works ranging from the 1930s to the present. Leading this group is a collection of 20 rare vintage portraits by Louise Dahl-Wolfe from the 1930s to 1950s. One of the great fashion photographers of the 20th century, Dahl-Wolfe photographed a cross-section of fashion and film stars for Harper's Bazaar and Vogue. The collection includes photographs of Lauren Bacall, Josephine Baker, Balenciaga, Christian Dior, and Spencer Tracy (estimates: $1,000-$3,000 each). Also featured in the sale are contemporary fashion icons such as Kate Moss Veiled, 1993 by Albert Watson (estimate: $7,000-$9,000) and Naomi Campbell, 1995 by Sante D'Orazio (estimate: $8,000-$10,000).

United States Presidents
Two U.S. Presidents are also the subject of photographs in the sale, including a pensive 2008 profile of Barack Obama taken by Kwaku Alston, who photographed the Obama family extensively on the 2008 campaign trail (estimate: $3,000-$3,500). President John F. Kennedy and first lady Jacqueline Kennedy are the subject of five photographs in the sale, including John Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy, a beaming 1960 photograph by Bill Ray (estimate: $1,000-2,000) and Will McBride's John F. Kennedy, Willy Brandt & Konrad Adenauer, Brandenburg Gate Berlin, which documents Kennedy's historic 1963 trip to Berlin (estimate: $2,500-$3,500).

Athletes, Artists and Literary Figures
Among the other outstanding works in the sale is a group of thirty photographs of legendary athletes, artists and literary figures. Sports legends featured in the sale include Bobby Jones, Jackie Robinson and Muhammad Ali. Ali's rise from a young boxer in training to three-time World Heavyweight Champion is chronicled in five portraits from 1963-1967. Also offered in the sale are photographs of renowned artists Jean-Michel Basquiat, Willem de Kooning, Pablo Picasso, Jackson Pollock, and Andy Warhol. Included in this section are three intimate 1979 photographs of Jean-Michel Basquiat by Nicholas Taylor (estimates: $400-$600 each) and a group of six photographs of Andy Warhol, among them an exuberant 1981 photograph of Warhol, Steve Rubell, and André Leon Talley by Bob Colacello (estimate: $3,000-$5,000). Rounding out the sale are ten photographs of celebrated literary figures including Samuel Beckett, William Burroughs, James Joyce, and Jack Kerouac.

About artnet:
artnet has been online since 1995 and is host to approximately 2,000,000 visitors each month. Through its Price Database of over 3.8 million auction sales results and its Gallery Network of over 2,200 galleries worldwide, artnet is the leading online resource for the international art market. With the new Online Auctions, artnet has added a transaction platform to its successful information services.

www.artnet.com | www.artnet.de | www.artnet.fr

artnet Worldwide Inc., 61 Broadway, 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10006-2701, U.S.A.

Press Contact:
Sarah Bradley
artnet Worldwide Inc.
+1-212-497-9700 ext: 197
sbradley@artnet.com

Barack Obama Named the Most Stylish Man

15 Jun 2009 16:39 Africa/Lagos

Male Style Icons

LONDON, June 15/PRNewswire/ -- US president Barack Obama was yesterday named the most stylish man in a poll of men.



The 47-year-old father of two, who moved into the White House in January, has wowed people across the globe with his sharp suits and smooth sense of style.



Hollywood superstar Brad Pitt came second thanks to his ability to look stylish in a sharp suit and dressed down jeans.


His chiselled looks and good style have bagged him a string of beauties including Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie.


Jonathan Heilbron, President & CEO of luxury shirt company Thomas Pink, which carried out the poll, said: "Barack Obama has a great sense of style, which no doubt adds to his popularity. World leaders and politicians are not known for their dress sense, so it's refreshing to have Obama who seems to genuinely care about his appearance."


Third place in the poll of 3,000 men is footballer David Beckham, whose trendy style has seen him become one of the most photographed men in the world.


But the AC Milan player hasn't always been so stylish - previously stepping out in a sarong and wearing a matching PVC outfit with wife Victoria.


James Bond star Daniel Craig is at number four, followed by The Godfather actor Al Pacino.


Suave George Clooney was voted into sixth place, with designer Giorgio Armani even saying that the former ER star makes a suit look "simply fantastic".


Bill Nighy, who has recently been on the big screen in The Boat That Rocked, came seventh, while painter and filmmaker Andy Warhol was at eight.


Clint Eastwood and Will Smith completed the top ten.


Other style icons to feature in the poll include actor Danny Dyer at 11, former 007 Pierce Brosnan at 15 and Elvis Presley at 16.


The poll also asked what they considered to be the most essential fashion items in a man's wardrobe; a crisp white shirt came first followed by a pair of blue jeans and a casual t-shirt. The nominated 'most stylish' men have all been photographed numerous times wearing white shirts, each adding their own individual stamp to this most timeless of looks.


Jonathan Heilbron, President & CEO of Thomas Pink, added: "These guys have access to the latest designer trends and can get away with wearing virtually anything, yet time and time again they are seen in a sharp white shirt with jeans or a suit. And they have all dated or married the world's most beautiful women - it would seem that simple good taste wins out over extreme fashion when it comes to sex appeal for a man."


Thomas Pink now has a White Shirt Bar at its flagship Jermyn Street store and online, which offers men a choice of 21 year round styles plus seasonal limited editions. The White Shirt Bar offers men a one stop shop, where they can choose the perfect white shirt whether it's for work, the weekend or a special occasion.




TOP TWENTY MALE STYLE ICONS



1. Barack Obama
2. Brad Pitt
3. David Beckham
4. Daniel Craig
5. Al Pacino
6. George Clooney
7. Bill Nighy
8. Andy Warhol
9. Clint Eastwood
10. Will Smith
11. Danny Dyer
12. Johnny Depp
13. Dean Martin
14. David Bowie
15. Pierce Brosnan
16. Elvis Presley
17. Justin Timberlake
18. Sean Connery
19. Steve McQueen
20. Vernon Kay




Notes to editors:


3,000 men aged 25-55 took part in the poll which quizzed them on their fashion habits and views on stylish male icons. Conducted by market specialists OnePoll.com, the survey was commissioned by Thomas Pink, the British luxury shirt brand.


Source: Thomas Pink

Karin Silverstein, Senior PR Manager, +44(0)20-7498-4148, karins@thomaspink.com


Releases displayed in Africa/Lagos time
16 Jun 2009
10:07
Celebrate this Independence Day with a 4-for-3 Promotion from New York's Hotel Pennsylvania
10:00
PROJECT GLOBAL TRADESHOW Announces the Debut of SPECIAL CUT, to Premiere at PROJECT LAS VEGAS
04:55
PUMA(R) Golf Athlete Anna Nordqvist Wins McDonald's LPGA Championship
15 Jun 2009
22:56
BoaterExam New Mexico Launches Interactive Boater Education Course
22:41
BoaterExam Mississippi Launches Interactive Boater Education Course
22:31
BoaterExam Washington Launches Interactive Boater Education Course
22:23
BoaterExam Nevada Launches Interactive Boater Education Course
21:47
Sex and Love in the City
21:15
BoaterExam Michigan Launches Interactive Boater Education Course
19:45
Photos: High School Artists Open Their Eyes to Art
19:16
Luxottica Releases Information According to Article 84 BIS of CONSOB Resolution 11971/99: Announcement of the Completion of Its Reassignment Program of New Options for Employees Domiciled in the U.S.
17:11
Glamorous Hollywood Hills Provides Backdrop for Fourth Season of 'HGTV Design Star'
17:01
VIDEO: artnet Launches Icons: 20th-21st Century Photographic Portraits Sale Featuring 200 Photographs of Legends from Madonna to Obama
15:00
CKX's 19 Entertainment Announces Signing of American Idol Superstars to Record Contracts
14:00
Angel MedFlight Provides Air Medical Transportation for Accident Victim Needing Transport from France to U.S.
14:00
Xactly Named to JMP Securities' Hot 100 Software Companies
14:00
QVC to Broadcast Live from the FOOD & WINE Magazine Classic in Aspen - the Country's Premier Culinary Event
13:46
Sean 'Diddy' Combs Hosts the Annual White Party in Los Angeles
13:16
RRsat Chosen to Distribute Fashion TV's New High-Definition Channel to the US and to DISH Network

Dreams Do Come True

17 Jan 2009 00:10 Africa/Lagos

Dreams Do Come True

ST. LOUIS, Jan. 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following is a statement by Benjamin Ola. Akande, Dean of Webster University School of Business & Technology:


As a child growing up in Nigeria, I was a dreamer. My parents never dismissed my dreams. They were always encouraging. No matter how outright unbelievable my dreams were, they would assure me that dreams do come true. Dreams provide a glimpse of what the future will look like. I wish I could have recorded all those dreams.


Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream was recorded. It was a dream that was played out in front of thousands of people and like most dreams, no one really knew how it would play out. As the dream was recalled over the years, it became clear that this was a significant and compelling vision of the future. Martin's dream was in the form of a remarkable prose on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Most of us can hear him recite this dream in our subconscious. "I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together." It is a dream that visualizes a future where all those things that seemed impossible and improbable will happen despite overwhelming obstacles.


Barack Obama

The election of Barack Obama was a manifestation of Martin's dream. I would like to believe that Martin Luther King's dream highlighted how difficult it is to make change happen. Martin spoke about how mountains and hills (obstacles) shall be made lower and rough places (institutional changes) will be made straight. The recognition was that monumental changes of this magnitude take considerable time. Indeed, it takes the force of nature to break through the harsh reality of status quo and history.


Dreaming enables us to transcend the present and position us on the balcony for a better view of the future. And, because dreaming offers no restrictions, the greatest dreamers are often characterized as crazy and out of touch with reality. What history has shown us is that you may vilify them, you can criticize them, and you may even assassinate them. But, you can't kill a dreamer's dream. MLK's dream took a long time to come to fruition, with small significant steps and some big setbacks along the way. But on Nov. 4, 2008, the full realization of the great civil rights leader's dream came to pass with the election of a junior senator from Illinois as the first African American President of The United States of America..


Martin Luther King taught us that adversity is a lot easier to overcome than success. And that is the power of dreams. He knew it would happen. He even foresaw that his own demise may keep him from seeing his dream come true. "I've seen the promised land," he said. "I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the Promised Land." Forty-five years later, his vision is still unfolding. But one thing is crystal clear. Dreams do come true.


Source: Webster University School of Business and Technology

CONTACT: Susan Kerth of Webster University, +1-314-246-8232


Web Site: http://www.webster.edu/

Celebrity News - Soma Celebrity News: Oprah Likes Kate's Boobs 01/14/09

Celebrity News - Soma Celebrity News: Oprah Likes Kate's Boobs 01/14/09
January 14, 2009



Obama Daughters Hire Jonas Brothers, Jennifer Hudson Performs At Super Bowl, Britney Moves, Estelle Denies Love For Kanye, Amy Winehouse Acts, Victoria Beckham Shed Clothes, Hayden Gets Booted.

Obama Baby!

Barack Obama's name isn't only famous, it's starting to spread. A South Florida couple became among the country's first to bestow it on their newborn, and it happened before most had declared the Illinois senator the winner. (Nov. 5)

Exclusive Interview: Barack Obama on Health and Fitness

8 Oct 2008 14:00 Africa/Lagos

Exclusive Interview: Barack Obama on Health and Fitness

On Newsstands October 21st, 2008

NEW YORK, Oct. 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Senator Barack Obama opens up in an exclusive interview in the November issue of Men's Health magazine, on newsstands October 21, 2008, about how health and fitness has driven his success in life, love and leadership. Only weeks from the presidential election, Obama shares how he balances his time on the campaign trail, the promise he made his daughters, how he avoids disappointing others and his personal battle to stay fit and healthy while running for President, which he admits has not been an easy road, "I wish I was getting a 90-minute workout. Most of my workouts have to come before my day starts. There's always a tradeoff between sleep and working out."


(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081008/NY37704 )


On Why He Works Out:

"My blood pressure is pretty low, and I tend to be a healthy eater. So I probably could get away with cutting [my workouts] back a little bit. The main reason I do it is just to clear my head and relieve me of stress. It's a great way to stay focused."


On Staying Healthy On The Campaign Trail:


"I wish I was getting a 90-minute workout. Most of my workouts have to come before my day starts. There's always a tradeoff between sleep and working out. Usually I get in about 45 minutes, 6 days a week. I'll lift one day do cardio the next."


On Trying To Quit Smoking:


"There have been a couple of times during the campaign when I fell off the wagon and bummed one, and I had to kick it again. But I figure, seeing as I'm running for president, I need to cut myself a little slack."


"There wasn't some dramatic moment. Michelle had been putting pressure on me for a while. I was never really a heavy smoker. Probably at my peak I was smoking seven or eight a day. More typical was three. So it wasn't a huge challenge with huge withdrawal symptoms."


"Eliminate certain key connections--that first cigarette in the morning, or after a meal, or with a drink. If you can eliminate those triggers, that should help."


On How He Would Improve The Health Of Americans:


"We need to have an awareness built in throughout various agencies charged with improving health. I'll give you a specific example. My grandfather died of prostate cancer. As men age, regular checkups are critical. But it's hard to get them to go in for that mildly unpleasant checkup. Increasing awareness of the difference it could make shouldn't just be the activity of the Department of Health and Human Services."


"A good friend of mine who was the head of the Illinois department of public health designed this wonderful program targeting black men, where health information was provided through barbershops. The idea was that black men underutilize doctors and don't talk about health much. But they go to the barbershop, and that's where they kind of let loose. The department designed programs where clinics at different barbershops would provide various health screenings, talk about prevention. Those kinds of strategies have to be developed and targeted, perhaps, because a lot of the time we're most resistant to going to doctors. That kind of thinking should be embedded in a lot of the work we're doing."


On What He Would Change In The White House:


"We're going to do a thorough evaluation, but it may need an upgrade. The bowling alley, I understand, offers us some potential for expansion."


On Managing His Time on the Campaign Trail:


"I'm part of an organization, and one of the things I really try to push in the organization is to make sure that everybody is focused on the two or three things that are really going to be game changers. I ask them to design my schedule in a way that focuses not just on what's coming at us, but on being active instead of reactive. I think we've been pretty successful. I don't spend a lot of time returning phone calls or e-mails. If somebody needs something, most of the time there's somebody else who can handle it.


"Eliminating TV has been helpful-- I'm still a sucker for Sports Center."


"The most difficult thing is to carve out time to think, which is probably the most important time for somebody who's trying to shift an organization, or in this case, the country, as opposed to doing the same things that have been done before. And I find that time slips away."


On Being a Father and Presidential Candidate:
"The pledge is, they'll get their dog, win or lose."


"Their main concern was, 'When are we going to get a dog?' They did ask about what they called 'secret people,' which were the Secret Service folks. 'Are we going to have to have these people with sunglasses and earpieces following us around all the time?' And I told them, well, not right away. They've adjusted wonderfully. And I've tried to make sure that they haven't had to participate too much in the political process."


"What I've been able to do is create a zone of normalcy for my kids. I have been able to transmit to them my absolute interest in them and my absolute love for them."


"I don't miss the important things. I haven't missed a dance recital. I haven't missed a parent-teacher conference. But there are some things I do miss, and those are some of the tradeoffs you make."


"But, look, there's no question there are sacrifices involved here. I'd like to say that quality time replaces quantity, but sometimes it doesn't. You know, a lot of the best moments of family life happen spontaneously. If you have less time to devote to them, there are fewer of those moments."


What Being A Father Means To Him:


"I would like to think that most of the issues related to my father have been resolved." "That's part of what writing Dreams from My Father was about: understanding him, his own personal tragedy. He wasn't a presence in my life, he was an idea that I had to wrestle with for a long time."


"Somebody once said that every man is either trying to live up to his dad's expectations or make up for his dad's mistakes. And I'm sure I was doing a little bit of both. But I feel that somewhere in my late 20s or early 30s I sort of figured out what his absence had meant. It is part of what I think has made me a pretty good dad. I don't think it would have too much of an impact on my decision-making as president. There's no doubt that it has contributed to my drive. I might not be here had it not been for that absent father prodding me early in life."


On Not Disappointing Himself Or Those Around Him


"I always try to make sure that my expectations are higher than those of the people around me."


"A lot of people have a lot at stake in this election. The American people are having a tough time."


"I never want people to feel as if I've overpromised to them. I try to explain in a real honest way how difficult some of the changes I'm talking about will be. But I never want the effect to be that I'm not working as hard as I can on their behalf...that I'm not continually trying to improve. I'm actually glad for the high expectations."


"One of the interesting things about a campaign like this is that it really does push you to the limit and then some. And it turns out that you have more in your reservoir than you expected."


Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20081008/NY37704
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN7
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com/
Source: Men?s Health magazine

CONTACT: Allison Falkenberry of Men's Health, +1-212-573-0524,
Allison.Falkenberry@rodale.com; or Meghan Holston of Coburn Communication,
Inc., +1-212-382-4450, Meghan.Holston@CoburnWW.com

The American Dream of Tyra Banks

American Dream is the romantic dream of Tyra Banks, 34, as Michelle Obama in the Oval Office if she becomes the First Lady of the United States of America!

Click here to see more of the photographs

Tyra’s Michelle Obama Photos Hit Stands This Week!
Snag your very own copy of Tyra’s “Harper’s Bazaar” spread (available August 16)!
You've seen her strut down the runway, and you've seen her host your fave talk show on your TV screen -- now you can see Tyra working it … in the Oval Office?! Yep, that's right! Our fave television host and supermodel is bringing her fabulosity to the White House!

Tyra posed for a new “Harper's Bazaar” magazine spread, which hits stands August 16. It’s an amazing photo session with replicas of some ultra-famous White House spots. Tyra plays the part of First Lady hopeful Michelle Obama. Tyra even worked her magic behind the camera with a Barack-alike, who looks just like the candidate himself, Illinois senator Barack Obama!

You won’t want to miss these fierce photos! To see the spread with your own pretty eyes, grab a copy of the “Harper's Bazaar” September issue -- on newsstands this week!

Paris Hilton Responds to McCain's "Celeb" Attack Ad watch!

See more Paris Hilton videos at Funny or Die

Barack Obama's Message To the Boys and Men Who Abuse and Take Sexual Advantage of Women

"Respect the girls. Abusing or taking sexual advantage of women does not make you a big man. It makes you a small man to do that."
~ Senator Barack Obama

Keli Goff said that this message is important, because according to the Centers for Disease Control, AIDS is now the leading cause of death for young, black American women.
Are you surprised?
African-American girls and women are careless and reckless in their lust for sex.

The sexploitation of African-American girls and women in pornographic musical videos and movies is promoting indiscriminate sex as the promiscuous girls and women have made themselves cheap sex objects for the pleasure of boys and men who see them as sex toys.

Senator Barack Obama should charge the TV Networks and entertainment content producers and providers to produce musical videos and movies showing diligent and intelligent American girls and boys making their grades and going on to college and not shaking their buttocks in-front of cameras like wild animals in the African jungle.

Only an abnormal and sick girl or woman will be shameless to dance half naked in musical videos or movies.

I am a professional artist and producer and I do not tolerate such nonsense. Being sexy does not mean dancing half-naked and shaking your buttocks like a beast of no nation.

I have used some of the best professionals in choreography in my production and dancing like a diabolical prostitute is not CHOREOGRAPHY.

It is degrading womanhood for young teenage girls and women to allow desperate boys and men to use them as sex objects to sell their CDs and DVDs.

Sexploitation in Hip-hop or Ragga musical videos is not choreography, but pornography.

Move Over Obama Girl - Obama Babe is Here!!

7 Apr 2008 12:00 Africa/Lagos



Move Over Obama Girl - Obama Babe is Here!!

OMAHA, Neb., April 7, 2008 /PRNewswire/ --

Omaha's Obama Babe is gaining ground in the competition with that young Obama Girl! Songwriter Karen Sokolof Javitch still has her sights on victory in becoming Obama's #1 video Diva!


Come on ... Have some FUN! Click in and enjoy the hilarious video as Karen, aged 57, frolics with "masked" Obamas and in the end gives Obama Girl "the boot" while laughing at the efforts. Send the link on to all your friends and create an Obama Babe mania!!


Karen remarks, "Just because she's young and beautiful doesn't mean I can't compete with her!" Obama Babe or go to YouTube and type in Obama Babe - Javitch.


Hollywood's babes who are around Karen's age are pulling for her. They have already shown that "You can be a babe at any age!" Just look at Goldie Hawn, Suzanne Somers, Michelle Pfeiffer. They are all babes!"


Karen stars in the YouTube parody video recorded in response to Obama Girl's 'I've Got a Crush on Obama,' but from an older, more mature woman. It's meant to be funny, of course."


The video is guaranteed to make you laugh, whether or not you're for Obama. And oh, yeah, she only needs 7 million more hits to catch up to her competitor.


TAKE THAT -- Obama Girl!

Contact: Norma Johnson
JMR Productions - Producing the Music of Karen Sokolof Javitch
Omaha NE
Phone: 402 393-3893

Source: Karen Sokolof Javitch

CONTACT: Norma Johnson of JMR Productions, +1-402-393-3893, for Karen
Sokolof Javitch


Web site: Obama Babe

Clinton and Obama Battle for Votes at BlueBeat.com

Photo Illustration: Clinton and Obama Battle for Votes at BlueBeat.com: Hillary's Choice Cuts and Barack Around The Clock, America Is Listening! (PRNewsFoto/BlueBeat.com) SANTA CRUZ, CA UNITED STATES 01/17/2008

18 Jan 2008 00:13 Africa/Lagos


Clinton and Obama Battle for Votes at BlueBeat.com

America Is Listening!

SANTA CRUZ, Calif., Jan. 17 /PRNewswire/ --

Popular online music streaming site http://www.bluebeat.com/ is hosting the race between the Clinton and Obama musical performances, Hillary's Choice Cuts and Barack Around The Clock, in a competition that will continue through the national primaries. As of mid-January, Barack's stream was ranked at #7, just ahead of Hillary's at #9. The ranking of the performances is based on the number of listeners tuning-in to each station.


(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080117/AQTH145)


Hillary's Choice Cuts contains songs that she told the New York Post were some of her favorites, including the Beatles "Hey Jude", Aretha Franklin's "Respect", the Eagles "Take It To The Limit", and U2's "Beautiful Day". "I've got everything -- a total smorgasbord," Senator Clinton said, "I'm a child of the '60s and '70s."


Barack Around The Clock contains music that embodies his cool jazz, Motown roots. "I'm old school, so generally, I'm more of a jazz guy, a Miles Davis, a John Coltrane guy, more of a Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder kind of guy," Obama told New York City radio station Hot 97, "But having said that, I'm current enough that I've got a little bit of Jay-Z, and a little Beyonce."


CEO of BlueBeat.com, Hank Risan, comments: "Of the leading Democratic hopefuls, we can better relate to them not only as politicians, but personally through their expressed musical tastes. Hillary and Barack have chosen songs from artists that helped shape and change American culture. It's good to know that our candidates are still listening."


BlueBeat.com offers listeners the opportunity to create their own music playlists for webcasting, called "Be The DJ." These performances are made available for anyone in the world to enjoy through http://www.bluebeat.com/.


About Media Rights Technologies and BlueBeat.com:


Media Rights Technologies, http://www.mediarightstech.com/, creates and licenses content management and enablement solutions, empowering the effective distribution of digital media. BlueBeat.com is a subsidiary of MRT dedicated to supporting the arts and providing access for users to create and transmit musical performances worldwide.


Media Contacts: Jasleen Matharu, Media Rights Technologies


831.426.4412, jasleen@mediarightstech.com


Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080117/AQTH145
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN9
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: BlueBeat.com

CONTACT: Jasleen Matharu of Media Rights Technologies, +1-831-426-4412,
jasleen@mediarightstech.com


Web site: http://www.bluebeat.com/
http://www.mediarightstech.com/

The New York Times Non - Fiction Best Seller List for January 2008

ThisWeek

1
EAT, PRAY, LOVE, by Elizabeth Gilbert. (Penguin, $15.) A writer’s yearlong journey in search of self takes her to Italy, India and Indonesia.

2
THE INNOCENT MAN, by John Grisham. (Delta, $16; Dell, $7.99.) Grisham’s first nonfiction book concerns a man wrongly sentenced to death.

3
THREE CUPS OF TEA, by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. (Penguin, $15.) A former climber builds schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

4
INTO THE WILD, by Jon Krakauer. (Anchor, $12.95.) A man’s obsession with the wilderness ends in tragedy.

5
CHARLIE WILSON’S WAR, by George Crile. (Grove, $14.95; $14.) A chronicle, by a veteran producer for “60 Minutes,” of a congressman’s efforts in the 1980s to steer billions to the anti-Soviet side in Afghanistan.

6
THE AUDACITY OF HOPE, by Barack Obama. (Three Rivers, $14.95.) The Illinois senator proposes that Americans move beyond their political divisions.

7
90 MINUTES IN HEAVEN, by Don Piper with Cecil Murphey. (Revell, $12.99.) A minister on the otherworldly experience he had after an accident.

8
THE OMNIVORE’S DILEMMA, by Michael Pollan. (Penguin, $16.) Tracking dinner from the soil to the plate, a journalist juggles appetite and conscience.

9
* SMOKE, MIRRORS, AND MURDER, by Ann Rule. (Pocket, $7.99.) Tales of true crime.

10
THE GOD DELUSION, by Richard Dawkins. (Mariner, $15.95.) An Oxford scientist asserts that belief in God is irrational.

11
THE GLASS CASTLE, by Jeannette Walls. (Scribner, $15.) The author recalls a bizarre childhood during which she and her siblings moved constantly.

12
THE TIPPING POINT, by Malcolm Gladwell. (Back Bay/Little, Brown, $14.95.) A study of social epidemics, otherwise known as fads.

13
BLINK, by Malcolm Gladwell. (Back Bay/Little, Brown, $15.99.) The importance of instinct.

14
THE WORLD IS FLAT, by Thomas L. Friedman. (Picador, $16.) A new edition of the Times columnist’s analysis of 21st-century economics and foreign policy.

15
* THE PORTABLE ATHEIST, edited by Christopher Hitchens. (Da Capo, $17.50.) Dozens of readings for nonbelievers

16
I HOPE THEY SERVE BEER IN HELL, by Tucker Max. (Citadel, $12.95.) Reflections of a self-absorbed, drunken womanizer.

17
THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON MUSIC, by Daniel J. Levitin. (Plume, $15.) A rocker-turned-neuroscientist on the connection between music and human nature.

18
THE END OF AMERICA, by Naomi Wolf. (Chelsea Green, $13.95.) A defense of democracy and civil rights.

19
THIS I BELIEVE, edited by Jay Allison and Dan Gediman with John Gregory and Viki Merrick. (Holt, $14.) Eighty essayists complete the thought begun in the book’s title; based on the NPR series.

20
THE LANGUAGE OF GOD, by Francis S. Collins. (Free Press, $15.) A geneticist argues that faith in God and in science can coexist within a person.

Also Selling
21
DREAMS FROM MY FATHER, by Barack Obama (Three Rivers)

22
THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY, by Jean-Dominique Bauby (Vintage)

23
TOO LATE TO SAY GOODBYE, by Ann Rule (Pocket)

24
THE LIFE AND TIMES OF THE THUNDERBOLT KID, by Bill Bryson (Broadway)

25
NOT ON OUR WATCH, by Don Cheadle and John Prendergast (Hyperion)

26
THE LOOMING TOWER, by Lawrence Wright (Vintage)

27
KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL, by Anthony Bourdain (Harper Perennial)

28
A SHORT HISTORY OF NEARLY EVERYTHING, by Bill Bryson (Broadway)

29
KABUL BEAUTY SCHOOL, by Deborah Rodriguez with Kristin Ohlson (Random House)

30
UNIVERSE IN A SINGLE ATOM, by Dalai Lama (Broadway)

31
THE END OF FAITH, by Sam Harris (Norton)

32
THE FAITH CLUB, by Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver, and Priscilla Warner (Free Press)

33
WHOLE NEW MIND, by Daniel H. Pink (Riverhead)

34
LEFT TO TELL, by Immaculee Ilibagiza with Steve Erwin (Hay House)

35
THE WORST HARD TIME, by Timothy Egan (Mariner/ Houghton Mifflin)

Click here to read the editorial reviews and buy any of the best selling books on Amazon

Rankings reflect sales, for the week ending Jan. 5, at many thousands of venues where a wide range of general interest books are sold nationwide. These include hundreds of independent book retailers (statistically weighted to represent all such outlets); national, regional and local chains; online and multimedia entertainment retailers; university, gift, supermarket, discount department stores and newsstands. An asterisk (*) indicates that a book’s sales are barely distinguishable from those of the book above. A dagger (†) indicates that some bookstores report receiving bulk orders. Among those categories not actively tracked are: perennial sellers; required classroom reading; text, reference and test preparation guides; journals and workbooks; calorie counters; shopping guides; comics and crossword puzzles.

NEWSWEEK: Cover: Hillary Clinton: 'I Found My Own Voice.'

NEWSWEEK: Cover: Hillary Clinton: 'I Found my own Voice.'

"What I realized is that the reason I do this, why I get up every day, why I believe in our country and the importance of leadership, was not getting across the way that I wanted it to," Clinton tells Newsweek.

Editor Jon Meacham on Hillary, Race and Gender

NEW YORK, Jan. 13 /PRNewswire/ --

In the January 21 issue, "'I found my own voice.'" (on newsstands Monday, January 14) Newsweek Editor Jon Meacham examines Hillary Clinton's dramatic comeback win in New Hampshire and whether the battle for the Democratic nomination is one that will be determined by the historically complicated issues of race and gender.


(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080113/NYSA004 )


To say it is late in the game for a major politician to have found one's voice is too glib, Meacham writes. Many public figures are works in progress, and they are all certainly human. Clinton's primary victory is a new chance for voters to get to know her beyond the caricatures, positive and negative, that have so long defined her. "Everyone forgets she went to law school when women were not 50 percent of each law-school class, and certainly not seen as litigators," says Maria Echaveste, a senior adviser to Clinton's campaign. "When you were breaking down walls, it wasn't enough to be equally tough. You had to build a shell to protect yourself. That's what she did."


That shell cracked a bit in New Hampshire, Meacham writes, and Clinton now believes it has to stay cracked. "What I realized is that the reason I do this, why I get up every day, why I believe in our country and the importance of leadership, was not getting across the way that I wanted it to," Clinton told Newsweek about Iowa.


She continued, "I get so focused on what I want to do as president that I get a little wonky. I get a little out there, with details, with five-point plans for this and 10-point plans for that, and I think that what I'm proposing really is both achievable and important, but it's not what gets me up, so why should it get voters excited?" she says. "But in the presidential campaign I think I sort of pocketed too much of that. I thought, well, I've been in the public eye for so long now ... I don't think that was a smart assumption for me to make, or for my campaign to make, very honestly."


This is not the year for making any assumptions. Meacham reports that many Democrats have been waiting a lifetime for a viable female presidential candidate or a viable black one -- and now they have one of each, and in the aftermath of Iowa and New Hampshire, the two camps are fighting over a great deal more than just endorsements. "I understand that," Clinton tells Meacham in an interview last Friday. "What a good problem to have. Two leading candidates for president, a woman and an African-American ... I wish it didn't have to be a choice. I think a lot of people who are torn between us feel that way," she says.


"Torn is a tough word," Meacham writes. "But it aptly captures how many Americans, and not just Democrats, already feel about 2008 ... And these are early days: we are only just beginning to grapple with the questions of race and gender that the campaign will raise again and again through November." The campaign now moving out of the largely white states of Iowa and New Hampshire to the rest of the country will soon mean that the politically engaged across America will be presented with the likelihood that a woman or an African- American will be the Democratic nominee and perhaps the president. And, as Clinton says, it's a good "problem" for America to have, he reports.


"But this is a contest," Clinton says, "and the contrasts have to be drawn and the questions have to be asked because, obviously, I wouldn't be in this race and working as hard as I am unless I thought I am uniquely qualified at this moment in our history to be the president we need starting in 2009. And I think it is informed by my deep experience over the last 35 years, my firsthand knowledge of what goes on inside a White House."


Also in the interview, Clinton discussed issues that ranged from her childhood in suburban Park Ridge, Ill., to John Wesley, Reinhold Niebuhr, Martin Luther King Jr. and, of course, Barack Obama. When asked if Senator Obama is right enough or experienced enough to be vice president, Clinton tells Meacham, "Well, I'm going to stay focused on where I am right now. I'm an admirer of his; I campaigned for him; I raised money for him... I am a very big admirer of his, and I think the sky is the limit for him -- in the future. [Laughs.]"


Also in the cover package:
-- Senior White House Correspondent Richard Wolffe and Chicago
Correspondent Karen Springen report on the reality of Barack Obama's
central claim as a candidate -- that he is a change agent, a lifelong
reformer who will heal Washington by bringing together feuding
politicians of both parties -- examining his voting record in the U.S.
Senate and in the Illinois Senate.

-- Senior Editor and Columnist Daniel Gross reports that America's
faltering economy may be the deciding factor in the 2008 election.
-- Investigative Correspondents Michael Isikoff, Mark Hosenball and
Editor-at-Large Evan Thomas report that 2008 promises to be a banner
year for gutter politics, and technology serves as a force multiplier
for crude partisan passion. A Newsweek investigation suggests that
political hit jobs are already rampant and likely to get worse.
-- White House Correspondent Holly Bailey talks with John McCain on the
campaign trail, two days after his New Hampshire primary win, about how
he found his footing, the war in Iraq -- and his lucky nickel.

-- Senior Editor and Columnist Jonathan Alter profiles the chief
strategists for the Clinton and Obama campaigns. "Hillary's man Penn is
a pollster by profession and the quintessential Beltway guy. Obama's
'Axe,' is a hardheaded reformer," Alter writes. "Penn's weapon is his
brain; Axelrod's is his gut."

-- Senior Political Correspondent Howard Fineman writes that, "Rudy
Giuliani sees Florida as his Cape Canaveral: the launching pad for his
better-later-than-never campaign ... Of the three groups that compose
the modern GOP ... Rudy has yet to find a home in one."

(Read entire cover package at www.Newsweek.com)


http://www.newsweek.com/id/91795 - Letting Hillary Be Hillary Cover Story by Jon Meacham


http://www.newsweek.com/id/91756 - Meacham Interviews Hillary Clinton


Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080113/NYSA004
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN11
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Newsweek

CONTACT: LaVenia LaVelle of Newsweek, +1-212-445-4859


Web site: http://www.newsweek.msnbc.com/


Read an excerpt from "A Woman in Charge: The Life of Hillary Rodham Clinton"