I wasn’t expecting an answer, let alone an acknowledgement, but it turns out the social media folks at SportsCenter and ESPN were listening dutifully to the social conversation. Within an hour and a half of my Tweet, my question was chosen, a reporter on the ground asked the question to Patriots running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis, and the answer was taped, put online, and Tweeted out to me and the general public.
Think about those dynamics for a moment. Through following a brand on Twitter, I was able to connect with a major athlete about to play in the Super Bowl about a show we both watched as children. Now that’s successful social engagement.
And it certainly didn’t hurt the answer was pretty good (though the right answer is Leonardo – sorry BenJarvus):
Coming of age in metropolitan Washington DC in the late 90′s, I was fortunate enough to be a participant in and observant of the high water mark of the electronica scene in the area. Ushered in by Buzz and Yoshitoshi, the Washington EDM scene was marked by high-profile appearances while cultivating local talent in distinct sub-genres from deep house to jungle to psytrance.
Needless to say, I would be considered a part of (relatively speaking) the old guard of the electronica subculture, distinct from the developments of the last 10 years — most notably the rise of dubstep. Some of the older clique have viewed the popularity of dubstep as diluting the rest of the electronic scene while rewarding a form that is seen as more produced than created. However, having no distinct opinion and having never been to a dubstep show, I jumped at the opportunity to see the world-renowned Nero presented by Beats by Dre.
Within the confines of a cozy store in SoHo, I was one of approximately 100 individuals to enjoy an hour long set by Nero. The audience trended younger but was comprised of obvious fans of the music, meaning the atmosphere as well as the music had a noticeable bounce. While I was unfamiliar with a majority of the Nero catalog, the ambiance and acoustics harkened me back to headier days spent in lilliputian outposts filled with young rave acolytes and the requisite sensory overload.
There continues to be very real and pervasive elements of racism and classism in the American justice system. Though elements of the law seem colorblind and judicious, the practice of policing, identifying, and punishing ‘criminal’ behavior have taken very serious racial undertones.
Criminal profiling is the process of using known principles of psychology and criminology to create the profile of a potential offender. That’s usually what you see when all the detectives of Law & Order: Criminal Intent get together and start putting pictures, pins, and evidence up on a cork board. There is little evidence that this criminal profiling is actually effective, as it mostly relies on common sense justifications. It is, nonetheless, a tactic that is used in police stations across the country.
The ugly stepsister of criminal profiling is racial profiling. On the surface, it seems to make sense. If reported suspects include a 5’4 white woman and a 6’2 black man, why would the police search for anyone else? Unfortunately, eyewitnesses are often incorrect and influenced by outside factors, and racial profiling can have damaging effects on those innocent people who “fit the profile.”
One of the biggest stories to hit the press in recent years occurred in a vibrant college town in Virginia. For over six years, a serial rapist haunted the town of Charlottesville, home of the University of Virginia. From 1997 to 2003, the police were unable to catch the man who raped at least six women, and devised a plan to acquire the DNA of every person who met the suspects profile. Unfortunately, the information was extremely limited: police had a series of sketches depicting very different people, with the only common denominator being the suspect was a black male:
It’s been a while since I’ve done something like this. Back when ProseBeforeHos got started in 2005, it existed as an outlet for personal musings without a direction or purpose. Up until 2008, we were lucky to get 100 hits a day.
With a little perseverance and a lot of internet addiction, ProseBeforeHos developed into 5 different sites that would form the PBH Network. By April 2010, we hit a new marker of over 2 million visitors in a month. This April, we surpassed 4 million visitors a month.
Needless to say, I never imagined this happening, as I had always thought that PBH would be a hobby-horse as I meandered through life. Now, PBH has become a full-time commitment, not only for me, but a couple of other people. Truth be told, it’s really intimidating and isolating, and I still haven’t found a way to explain what we do to others (what do you do when the most serious website you run is called ProseBeforeHos?).
I want to say thanks especially to Kit — the intrepid PBH co-founder, contributor, and all around tech wizard — for his help in this transformation, our fans and visitors for enjoying our content, and everyone else that’s been along for the ride. We have some really exciting things going on with PBH that we hope will improve the experience of using our sites and increase the community and caliber of the PBH Network. Thanks again everyone.
a soliloquy from the men behind the curtains to the collective:
sometimes you find the one, sometimes you give it up sometimes you do get broke, sometimes you be on need sometimes its whats up, sometimes you play the fool so now we’re getting all this money so now we’re getting all this love so now we’re living with no regrets as we get over our vain scenesteresses
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