Brazil and Ireland Lace Up for Africa!

Tomorrow 2nd March Brazil and Ireland are showing their support for (NIKE)RED. The stadium is turning (RED) – players will be wearing (NIKE) RED laces in their boots and the Brazil team will run out onto the pitch wearing (NIKE)RED track jackets. Tune in to ITV1 at 8:05pm to catch the action.


More details.


Buy Tickets

Brazil vs Republic of Ireland Live - Stream, Live Scores, TV ...

Andrew Jaffe, Noted Journalist-Author and Former Editor of Adweek Magazine (1938-2010)

For the record.


Andrew Jaffe, Noted Journalist-Author and Former Editor of Adweek Magazine (1938-2010). (PRNewsFoto/Jaffe & Co., Inc.) NEW CANAAN, CT UNITED STATES

26 Feb 2010 20:38 Africa/Lagos

Andrew Jaffe, Noted Journalist-Author and Former Editor of Adweek Magazine (1938-2010)

NEW CANAAN, Conn., Feb. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Andrew Jaffe, a noted foreign correspondent for Newsweek, editor of Adweek Magazine, head of the international advertising Clio Awards, and finally a consultant to the advertising and marketing industries, died today after a courageous ten year battle with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the bone marrow. He was 71.


(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100226/LA61715)


Fresh out of Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, Jaffe began his career as a newsman for the Associated Press where he won notice for his coverage of the 1965 Watts Riot. He then joined Newsweek Magazine, first as a domestic correspondent in Atlanta covering race relations, and then in 1969 as a correspondent and later bureau chief for its Africa bureau in Nairobi, Kenya. While there, he covered the Biafran civil war, the end of Haile Selassie's rule as emperor of Ethiopia, and Idi Amin's rule in Uganda, as well as the end of Portuguese colonialism in Mozambique and Angola. In 1975 he accepted a post back in the U.S. as bureau chief in Miami. He left Newsweek in 1977 to become business editor for the Los Angeles Herald Examiner.


In 1984, he set off for New York, where he worked as marketing director of the international travel firm, Special Expeditions. In 1986 he was hired by Adweek Magazine as editor of a regional edition based in Atlanta. And in 1988, he moved to New York to become editorial director of the magazine's six editions.


Jaffe spent the next 15 years immersed in advertising. In 1992 he was made a vice president of Adweek responsible for starting Adweek Conferences and other brand extensions; and, in 1997, he managed its acquisition of the Clio Awards. He headed the Clios for the next six years, until he retired from the company in 2003 and set up his own consultancy in Norwalk, Connecticut.


Before going to Columbia Journalism, Jaffe was a student at Phillips Exeter Academy and then Pomona College. From 1960-1962 he served on active duty in the U.S. Army in Korea and Alaska, with the rank of First Lieutenant.


Opening his own consultancy, Compass Consulting, in 2003, he worked for various New York agencies and for the One Club, helping it introduce the first awards show for branded entertainment, One Show Entertainment. He also served on the board of the Brandcenter, a graduate program at Virginia Commonwealth University that offers a masters degree in the creative side of advertising. As a board member, he helped establish its executive education program for mid-career professionals. In 2003, he authored a book, "Casting for Big Ideas," published by John Wiley & Co.


Jaffe was a member of the Cornell Club, the American Society of Magazine Editors and the Overseas Press Club. He was chairman of the Neal Awards program, sponsored by American Business Media to recognize excellence in business-to-business journalism.


His hobbies included fly fishing, travel and experiments with fiery cooking recipes. Jaffe was married to communications executive Eileen Ast in 1994. Their home is in New Canaan, Connecticut. Jaffe is survived by his wife, his son, Christopher, a computer executive, Chris' wife Katie and a granddaughter, Stella, all of whom live in Burlingame, California; a stepson, Nicholas Ast, a student at Eckerd College; and two brothers, Steve, a crisis PR expert in Beverly Hills, and Bruce, a computer specialist and photographer in New York City.


The family requests that in his memory people consider a charitable contribution to the Andrew Jaffe Scholarship Fund at the Brandcenter, Virginia Commonwealth University or to the Whittingham Cancer Center at Norwalk Hospital. Memorial services are pending.


For more information contact: Steve Jaffe, Jaffe & Co., Inc., public relations (310) 275-7327, info@stevejaffepr.com; ekharrington@vcu.edu for Brandcenter


Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100226/LA61715
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Jaffe & Co., Inc.

CONTACT: Steve Jaffe of Jaffe & Co., Inc., Public Relations,
+1-310-275-7327, info@stevejaffepr.com; or ekharrington@vcu.edu for
Brandcenter

President Barack Obama on the Earthquake in Chile

View this important video of President Barack Obama on Conscience of Democracy.



Photo of a collapsed house in the earthquake in Chile from The Telegraph




Conscience of Democracy also reports Crime and Justice in America.

Obama Improves Race Relations but Media Fails to Advance Goal of Post Racial Society

For the record.

26 Feb 2010 15:49 Africa/Lagos


Obama Improves Race Relations but Media Fails to Advance Goal of Post Racial Society According to Survey by TheLoop21.com & UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc.

CNN Cited as Most Trusted Cable News Outlet for "Fair and Unbiased" Coverage of Racial and Cultural issues; FOX Least Trusted

Diversity of Views is the Key to Improving Coverage of Racial Issues

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- One year after the historic election of President Obama, a panel of journalists of color view the election as a positive turning point in U.S. race relations; however, an overwhelming majority thought that mainstream media did not contribute to improved race relations, according to the 2010 Journalism in Color Survey on "Race and the Media."


(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080723/UNITYLOGO )


The Journalism in Color Survey tracks the views of professional journalists of color on issues of race and media. The survey -- commissioned by TheLoop21.com, a leading African-American web site for economic and political news in collaboration with UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc., a strategic alliance advocating fair and accurate news coverage about people of color - provides a unique perspective on racial coverage in the Age of Obama.


For the second consecutive year, the vast majority of respondents (95 percent) did not think mainstream media adequately covered stories regarding racial issues in a multiracial society. Reasons topping the list were "too little diversity in newsrooms" and "lack of understanding by editors/producers." The most telling example of the inadequacy of diversity in newsrooms is that only 14 percent of survey respondents thought that their producers/editors were very knowledgeable of the minority group that they were covering.


Only 1 in 7 thought that coverage of racial issues by the mainstream media had improved U.S. race relations, while nearly twice as many believed it had worsened race relations. And, despite much discussion since the election of a post-racial society, this year's panel of journalists indicated that racial coverage by the mainstream media was just as likely to be "detrimental to the reality of a post-racial society" as it was to further that reality.


A majority of respondents indicated that while "racial and cultural issues are more likely to be covered" the overwhelming majority do not think that "journalists of color cover more high profile stories," or that additional coverage translates into creating opportunities for newsroom advancement for journalists of color. Similar views applied to women and gender issues.


"The persistent lack of confidence in the journalism industry is startling," said Darrell L. Williams, Ph.D., and publisher of TheLoop21.com. "At this critical juncture in U.S. race relations, there is a need for discussion of standards for unbiased racial coverage. What decision-makers in media choose to report, how they report it, and what they choose to ignore affects racial perceptions." William added, "Although the survey answers questions regarding the views of journalists of color, more importantly it highlights opportunities for change and further study."


David C. Wilson, Ph.D., a political scientist specializing in public opinion and political psychology, said the nation's trust and confidence in the media "has been slipping dramatically since the 1970s," and that "there's pretty much a consensus that the media is out of touch with average Americans."


"Media images and language" can prime subtle thoughts and beliefs related to stereotypes that can lead to bias and support faulty beliefs. Greater sensitivity through diversity of ideas among producers and editors is the key. "Diversity is not about 'sheer numbers,' it's about highlighting the different takes on different issues," said Wilson.


MOST TRUSTWORTHY NEWS OUTLETS


The survey also asked journalists of color to rate news outlets and select which types of media, in regards to objectivity and trust, provide "fair and unbiased reporting" of racial and cultural issues.


-- CNN was the most trusted news outlet by journalists of color to
provide "fair and unbiased reporting on racial and cultural issues"
with 69 percent indicating that they "somewhat trust" or "highly
trust." FOX was the least trusted with only 3 percent indicating that
they "somewhat trust" or "highly trust." Ninety-one percent
distrusted FOX to provide "fair and unbiased reporting on racial and
cultural issues."

MOST TRUSTWORTHY TYPES OF MEDIA

-- Public Radio is the most trusted media type to provide "fair and
unbiased reporting on racial and cultural issues" with 80 percent of
journalists of color surveyed indicating that they "somewhat trust" or
"highly trust." Cable news (31 percent) and Internet bloggers (10
percent) were least trusted to provide "fair and unbiased reporting on
racial and cultural issues."


To gain a broader perspective on how media impacts racial perceptions, TheLoop21.com is collaborating with NewsOne.com, and TV One's "Washington Watch with Roland Martin" to poll African-Americans and people of color nationwide from February 24 - March 5th. The "Truth in Media" poll further explores how minority audiences view the media's coverage of racial issues in the Age of Obama. To vote in the "Truth in Media" poll go to http://www.theloop21.com/truthinmedia or www.TheLoop21.com.


The "2010 Journalism in Color" survey was commissioned by TheLoop21.com for members of the alliance partners of UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc., to evaluate the attitudes of journalists of color regarding their experiences in mainstream media during one of the most significant presidential campaigns in American history and beyond.


Journalists were surveyed on a variety of topics, including the quality of coverage of issues affecting African Americans, Latinos, Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders and Native Americans following the 2008 Presidential campaign as well as their professional experiences in mainstream media, perception of opportunities for advancement in their news organizations and suggestions to improve and increase coverage of issues that are important to people of color.


To vote in the "Truth in Media" poll go to: http://www.theloop21.com/truthinmedia or www.TheLoop21.com.


To get more on the 2010 Journalism in Color survey results or get a copy of the survey go to: Slideshow: 2010 'Journalism in Color' survey results or www.TheLoop21.com.


About TheLoop21.com


TheLoop21.com is the premier online destination for in-depth analysis of economic and political news presented from the minority perspective. TheLoop21.com not only highlights problems, but also offers insights and solutions, plus a platform where everyone is invited to join the conversation. The site is an alternative to mainstream media with a mission to lead the discussion on economic progress for people of color. For more information go to www.TheLoop21.com.


About UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc.


UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. is a strategic alliance advocating news coverage about people of color, and aggressively challenging its organizations at all levels to reflect the nation's diversity. UNITY, representing more than 10,000 journalists of color, is comprised of four national associations: Asian American Journalists Association, National Association of Black Journalists, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and the Native American Journalists Association. In addition to planning the largest regular gathering of journalists in the nation, UNITY develops programs and institutional relationships that promote its mission. For more information on UNITY, visit www.unityjournalists.org, email info@unityjournalists.org or call (703) 854-3585.


Media Contacts:
Martine Charles | Comment Communications for TheLoop21.com
T: 206-295-9114 | martine@commentpr.com
Katrina Florence | Comment Communications for TheLoop21.com
T: 310-995-3619 | katrina@commentpr.com


Source: UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc.

CONTACT: Martine Charles, Comment Communications for TheLoop21.com,
+1-206-295-9114, martine@commentpr.com; or Katrina Florence, Comment
Communications for TheLoop21.com, +1-310-995-3619, katrina@commentpr.com


Web Site: http://www.theloop21.com/


Hot Topics
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Top 10 Companies Using Social Media Strategies for Financial Success

1. Starbucks

2. Dell

3. eBay

4. Google

5. Microsoft

6. Thomson Reuters

7. Nike

8. Amazon

9. SAP

10. Yahoo! and Intel

The results are in and social media is a winner. Social media has been heartily embraced by most of the world, and a new study from Engagementdb shows that when companies use social media and use it well, they are almost certain to reap quantifiable financial rewards.
This truly groundbreaking social media study written by Charlene Li and Wetpaint, uses a robust statistical analysis to measure how Business Week’s top 100 brands are using social media to achieve financial success. The study’s goals were to measure “how deeply engaged the top 100 global brands are in a variety of social media channels and, more importantly, understand if higher engagement is correlated with financial performance”.

~ from Social Media Engagement Correlates To financial Performance


Another company thar has achieved remarkable success using social media is Nokia since the beginning of the Nokia Nseries Blogger Relations program.

View this video on YouTube - Blogger Meet-Up with Forum Nokia Champion Robin Jewsbury.

Our Music Is Dying Slowly, And Still Smiling 3

Fela Anikulapo Kuti

LIFE-LINES

~ By Femi Akintunde-Johnson

Our Music Is Dying Slowly, And Still Smiling 3

When you look at the staying power of redoubtable musicians like King Sunny Ade, Admiral Dele Abiodun, Sir Shina Peters, Femi Anikulapo Kuti, Majek Fashek, Ras Kimono; and performers/singers like Alhaji Agba Sikiru Ayinde Barrister, Kollington Ayinla, Wasiu Ayinde (K1), Onyeka Onwenu, Christy Essien Igbokwe, Orlando Julius Ekemode, Salawa Abeni, and a number of others; the most significant common ground is the fact that they have sustained and solidified their relative musical reputation, legacy and relevance in the past 20 years, at least. After those mentioned, the second generation of artistes digging hard and deep into our consciousness include Lagbaja, Adewale Ayuba, Pasuma, Sunny Neji, and few others.


Christy Essien-Igbokwe

Most of these artistes, with few exceptions, were trained professionals, instrumentalists and long-standing band leaders. You see, music business is first a business, then an art-form. These unfading and constant-as-a-northern-star musicians and singers built their bands painstakingly, to run smoothly and professionally, such that even if they are not there as headliners, the band will sail without losing steam. That was the reason Egypt 80, Fela’s band, rallied and sallied from when Fela died (and Femi with his own band could not possibly sustain his father’s), until Seun, the last of the Anikulapos, was old enough to ascend his father’s “throne”. Now, Egypt Band is contesting the grounds, and reclaiming the glory, “gradually, gradually”.

My point is this: any music form (it doesn’t matter by what tag it’s called) which joints and sinews are not firmly rooted in a solid band management infrastructure, its end has begun even at the first album. The hottest music of today are recorded on CD’s and DVD compilations; sold on the streets and corners; played endlessly on radio and (if they cobble up a video production) on television… and pronto a star is born. But the cornflakes can only taste sweet for a moment.


Lagbaja, a top Nigerian musician

The poor artiste does not bother that he has begun the burial ceremony of his musical talents and relevance with his excitement to “get out there and be appreciated”. He cares only that he can enter the studio without any inkling of how to play any instruments; beg or bribe a studio rat to pretend as his producer; lay his voice to beats he has never heard before, or lifted from pirated beat-making software. Yeah! He’s got a great feeling “this thing” will blast. He runs to the profiteer marketer otherwise known as pirate; begging him to slot his “single” (if not all the entire tracks) into one of the pirate’s numerous “Hottest Hits In Da House!” If the pirate is reluctant, unsure if the untested “hit” being canvassed by the aspiring star would catch the unquenchable thirst of the Hit-loving music freaks, the young man flings himself up, amusing the pirate with his readiness to pay so as to get just a song on the “compilations”. And yes, he pays the pirate to help him ‘pirate’ his own work (no contracts; no indemnity; complete ‘dash’). Frankly, he doesn’t catch the macabre irony. He just wants his chance to be a star.

Shocked? He has just begun. If he’s “lucky”, you begin to hear the song on radio…he makes the rounds, getting in the faces of notable DJs. If need be, running errands for them. He joins a posse (a group of creative malcontents), showing up at shows on the apron strings of more accomplished, more pirated “superstars”…he gets photographed…interviewed, and ghost-written…and viola…a new star is born. He starts getting shows, concerts and “mouth-watering” deals. He goes ballistic! Mission accomplished.

His sense of importance is exploded by unquestioned and pedestrian media adulation; uncritical fawning of fans and admirers. And the singer/pretender-musician loses the plot. He forgets the reason he was blessed with the raw talents: to make the world more tolerable, and sustain a profitable and pleasure-giving posterity for himself, his family and community. He does not ask about Pa Fatai Rolling Dollars, Commander Ebenezer Obey…how they came back after long hiatus. What makes them still tick…?

fajswhatnots@yahoo.com or faj-alive.blogspot.com


(First published in Guardian on Sunday, February 21, 2010)

Our Music Is Dying Slowly, And Still Smiling 2

P Square, very popular Nigerian Hip-hop Singers who are twin brothers.

LIFE-LINES

~ By Femi Akintunde-Johnson

Our Music Is Dying Slowly, And Still Smiling 2

My final line last week: “The Nigerian music industry is dying; and frankly, it will, or probably have to die patapata, before it can truly rise, and take its due position, in the light of things. Incidentally, the best hands to give it life, are the same starving it of the elixir for irreversible success – the young Nigerian artistes. How?”

Yes, piracy is bad for any intellectual work, especially if the product is mostly driven by profit (as it is with Nigerian popular music). All over the world, the fight against piracy is fought at frenetic pace, because the killer-disease is spreading faster than earlier thought. Nowadays, in the US, the sale of recorded CD’s is panting far behind the sales of blank CD’s. You can guess where CDs are going. Music executives are storming the courts to put legitimate e-music dispensers out of business so as to prolong near-certain extinction of the more than 150-year old American music industry. And that is America where piracy has gone absolutely and bizarrely digital, and which has a clear cut infrastructure. However, in Nigeria, the first big case involving a major pirate (an Alaba marketer) came up at the Federal High Court on the first day of this month! We routinely sweep hideouts of small-time Chinese and Hong-Kong CD multipliers masquerading as music and movie pirates. We treat copyright infringement and rights collection with childish naiveté in this climate. In such situation, only death will “do them part”.

Pirated CDs are sold on the street. Photo Credit: Medindia

But of even deadlier dimension is the mentality of young Nigerian artistes: his understanding of his role, and the appreciation of his artistic contribution to social realities. Many years ago, I wrote a series of articles that won the first entertainment reporting award at the Nigerian Media Merit Awards. It was entitled “Creative Rogues”. In the articles, I tried to juxtapose the musical arrangements of the leading lights of the 80’s and 90’s in Nigeria, alongside their foreign counterparts from whose works they literally lifted several lines and riffs without any attribution whatsoever. We basically called them what they were: creative ‘pirates’ of others’ creative nous. That was more than 15 years ago.

Today, the artistes are more brazen; more impatient and couldn’t care if an entire chorus line was lifted verbatim from “reigning” songs of their local or foreign counterparts. They just don’t care. And the fans, as it is now clear, appear not to be bothered. But therein lays the trap. You don’t need a seer to tell you that barefaced robbery, as it being churned out by starry-eyed characters that populate our studios and airwaves, will sooner or later collapse the music business into an economical cul-de-sac.

Apart from music beats sounding alike, and with fast disappearing wholesomeness in syncopation and timbre, the lyrical depth is thinning out rapidly. Now, we seem like a nation of unthinking jingoists and flippant abusers of our traditional mores on the flimsy excuse that our socio-economic realities have condemned us to this state. We fool ourselves that we reflect what is happening on the streets. We have become repeaters, and not creators. We sing complete nonsense, gibberish, and lazy repetitions that leave neutrals wondering how we got to this place.

It is such complete absence of care or self-restraint that gives light to a St. Janet. Why are we scandalized at her cheap, lust-filled “business model”, when we amusingly condoned and back-patted her forerunner, Abbas Akande Obesere (Omo Rapala) who strutted drunkenly and, I can assure you, profitably across the nation casting spells on devotees of his brand of minstrelsy? So, who can wager that St. Jezebel does not have a coterie of lewd-lappers savouring every rotten limerick trolling from her plucky bosom?

Yet, more dangerous is the professional attitude and work ethics of our latter day music magicians. More on that next week.

fajswhatnots@yahoo.com or faj-alive.blogspot.com

(First published in Guardian on Sunday, February 14, 2010)

Our Music Is Dying Slowly, And Still Smiling 1

King Sunny Ade is a legendary Nigerian musician of the Juju music genre.

LIFE-LINES

~ By Femi Akintunde-Johnson

Our Music Is Dying Slowly, And Still Smiling

Music is now so pervasive and in-your face that we dare not imagine a life without it, irrespective of your status or location. It’s that “bad”! But just as we are often propelled by inspiring musical presentations; so are we sometime dismayed at the irreverent hollowness of some “hip” music. And we are told the producers of these music types are profiting from their sweat, or more precisely, from their prodigious talents. I corrected myself about the level of “sweat” our music makers put into their music from reports I got while making enquiries on the state of the Nigerian music business; but more on that later.



Asa, a world class Nigerian musician

Now, that technology has made access to music more flippant, it is quite trendy to see foreign and local rave music downloaded from entertainment search engines, YouTube, Napster…free of charge…. Go to the campuses, and see students clamping MP3’s, 4’s into their earlobes, as they grind out body moves in tune with those sound blasters. As the sounds of the 21st century flies in the face of monumental deprivations, especially in developing and under-developed countries, the promoters and producers of today’s music tend to flow with the tide and stench of their climate, and make a living along the way. So, we are happy that Nigerian artistes, especially singers and wannabe musicians appear to be making tidy lump of money, as they spew out strings of musical presentations that their contemporaries, fans and well-wishers love to buy, dance and queue to watch when live shows come to town. It is good. But that is not my worry.


I know from recent bric-a-bracs in the media, following an article by my friend, Reuben Abati that tended to rile the tender underbelly of the hip-hop motley crew…the singers went on and on about the sacrilege of a grumpy old newspaper intellectual with a giant-sized ego, big enough to attempt ridiculing their hard-earned reputation and well-oiled fiefdom. You would think Abati was a snooty frustrated 60-year old pensioner moon-lighting as a journalist. I laughed at the indignation of the latter-day counter-critics, and their feverish protestations. Many people were stunned at the remarkable adroitness of the leader-writer, Banky W and the extensive disputations with Abati’s profiling of a misdirected youth in the prism of confused commercialization of an art form. He lampooned the historical mishaps in Abati’s intervention, elaborating ceaselessly on the embellishments, rather that the substance of the journalist’s clarion call.


Banky W


Now, I have come to remind the young Turks that the consequence of what Abati was warning against is coming pretty close to its cataclysmic eruptions. The decadence in the Nigerian music “industry” is bellowing near rupture; and the scattering, unfortunately, will engulf the good and the bad. Sadly, people like Abati will have no choice but smirk “Didn’t we tell them” at the remnants that will remain after the storm. Of course, noisemakers and warriors of the current raving nonsense would have fled to whence they came from…leaving the larger body of the follow-follow singing peperempe to froth in the mouth, and grovel for unavailable visas.
Why am I worried? Because the way the business of music is set up today, catastrophe is merely around the corner. Sometime last year, I sat down with a long-time friend and a foremost song-writer, instrumentalist and musician. We analyzed the trends in music production, promotion and dissemination; and came to a unanimous conclusion: the Nigerian music industry is dying; and frankly, it will, or probably have to die patapata, before it can truly rise, and take its due position, in the light of things. Incidentally, the best hands to give it life are the same starving it of the elixir for irreversible success – the young Nigerian artistes. How? Stay with me next week. Katchya.


fajswhatnots@yahoo.com or faj-alive.blogspot.com


(First published in Guardian on Sunday, February 07, 2010)

UN and Africa to Discuss Mercenaries and Private Military and Security Companies

25 Feb 2010 21:15 Africa/Lagos

UN and Africa to discuss mercenaries and private military and security companies


ADDIS ABABA, February 25, 2010/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- Representatives of some 25 from African States will meet on 3 and 4 March in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with the UN Working Group on the use of mercenaries* to discuss the presence and activities of mercenaries and private military and security companies (PMSCs) on the continent.


“This regional consultation in Africa is of particular importance given that the region is becoming a key market for the security industry”, said Shaista Shameem, who currently heads the Working Group. "However, PMSCs have remained largely unregulated, insufficiently monitored and rarely held accountable for the international crimes and human rights abuses they have committed.”


This meeting is the fourth of a series of five regional consultations which will end with the consultation with the Western European and Others Group in Geneva in April 2010. “This mandate was created in 1987 in a context in which the right of peoples to self-determination in Africa was often threatened by mercenary activities”, said Ms. Shameem.


State representatives will exchange good practices and lessons learned on the monitoring and regulation of the activities of private military and security companies and in particular on the adoption of a possible draft convention regulating their activities.


The Working Group said it “welcomes this opportunity to build on national experience in the continent to discuss general guidelines and principles for national and international regulation and oversight of the activities of private companies with the aim of encouraging the protection of human rights.”


(*) The Working Group is composed of five independent experts serving in their personal capacities: Ms. Shaista Shameem (Chairperson-Rapporteur, Fiji), Ms. Najat al-Hajjaji (Libyan Arab Jamahiriya), Ms. Amada Benavides de Pérez (Colombia), Mr. José Luis Gómez del Prado (Spain), and Mr. Alexander Nikitin (Russian Federation).


Source: Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)

Releases displayed in Africa/Lagos time
25 Feb 2010
21:20
African Union / Press statement of the 217th meeting of the Peace and Security Council


21:15
UN and Africa to discuss mercenaries and private military and security companies
21:15
The African Union Commision and UNESCO discus ways to strengthen cooperation ties
21:14
South Africa / Media body wants legislation to protect journalists' sources
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Côte d'Ivoire / UNOCI chief attends 18th meeting of heads of UN peace missions in west Africa
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African Union commemorates eighth Africa Environment Day

Grace Jones to Perform at 18th Annual Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Viewing Party

26 Feb 2010 05:00 Africa/Lagos


Grace Jones to Perform at 18th Annual Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Viewing Party

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Legendary entertainer Grace Jones will perform for guests at the 18th annual Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Award Viewing Party. The gala event, which will take place March 7, 2010, at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood, has brought some of the most iconic musicians to the stage over the years, but none as theatrical as the incomparable Grace Jones.


(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100203/LA48779LOGO)


"Grace Jones is not only an amazing performer, but a dear friend and a fellow activist in the fight against HIV/AIDS," says Sir Elton John. "Without a doubt, Grace will put on a show for our guests that will have them talking for years to come. It is an absolute honor to have Grace as part of this evening that means so much to the Foundation."


Ms. Jones' first album, Portfolio, released in 1977, resulted in a string of dance-club hits that transformed the international club scene. Her following albums "Fame" and "Muse" generated considerable success in the market and solidified her as a major recording artist. Jones later adapted to the emerging New Wave music to create a different style for herself. This resulted in the acclaimed albums "Warm Leatherette", "Nightclubbing" and "Living My Life."


Equally known for her roles in the fashion, art and film communities, Jones has established a presence that has stood the test of time. Born in Jamaica and raised in Syracuse, New York, she began her career as a successful high-fashion model. Starring roles followed in such films as the James Bond blockbuster "A View to a Kill", "Conan the Destroyer" with Arnold Schwarzenegger and the vampire thriller "Vamp." Jones took the art world by storm when she became the muse to famed artists Andy Warhol and Keith Haring, resulting in an iconic series of portraits by Warhol and Haring's famous series of body paintings. With her dramatic visual makeover created in partnership with Jean-Paul Goode, Jones starred in the concert special "A One Man Show" and created a persona that has intrigued fans and established her as an international entertainment icon.


Follow the Elton John AIDS Foundation on Facebook: http://apps.facebook.com/causes/5321


ELTON JOHN AIDS FOUNDATION: The Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) was established in the United States in 1992 (EJAF-US) and in the United Kingdom in 1993 (EJAF-UK) by founder and chairman Sir Elton John. Together, both entities have raised nearly $175 million for worthy HIV/AIDS programs in 55 countries around the globe since inception. Today, EJAF is one of the world's leading nonprofit HIV/AIDS organizations supporting innovative HIV prevention programs, efforts to eliminate stigma and discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS, and direct care and support services for people living with HIV/AIDS. EJAF-US's current grant-making priorities target HIV prevention programs in the Southern United States, the Caribbean, and Latin America; HIV prevention and care services for highly marginalized and vulnerable populations; and HIV/AIDS prevention education and the promotion of sexual health for adolescents.


CHOPARD: There are few jewelers in the world whose designs are immediately recognizable. At the forefront of that list is Chopard. For 150 years, the "World of Chopard" has embraced elegance, originality and individuality. Renowned internationally for its award-winning "Happy Diamonds" creations, the Chopard collection also includes an array of designs that adorn celebrities around the world. Meticulously crafted in Geneva, Switzerland since 1860, Chopard has distinguished itself worldwide for luxurious jewels and impeccably crafted high-precision timepieces that embody imaginative design and sophistication. To mark Chopard's 10 years of support of the Elton John AIDS Foundation, Caroline Gruosi-Scheufele has designed a new watch collection in collaboration with Sir Elton John himself. A testament to their friendship, the watch collection reflects the artist's extravagant personality as well as his tremendous generosity. A percentage of sales from these watches benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation. For further information, phone 1.800.CHOPARD or explore Chopard on line at www.chopard.com.


JO and RAFFY MANOUKIAN: Jo and Raffy Manoukian are honored to be one of the sponsors of the annual Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Awards® Viewing Party. They have been personal friends of Sir Elton John since the early 1990s and are actively involved with the Foundation in the capacity of both Trustees and Board Members. The Elton John AIDS Foundation forms only one part of Jo and Raffy's philanthropy. Their charitable efforts span the globe with special emphasis on health, education, human rights, music, sports and media ventures.


NEURO DRINKS: Neuro is a groundbreaking brand of great-tasting functional beverages that provides nutraceutical blends formulated to promote health and well-being. Neuro Drinks contain natural, exotic tropical flavors and essential vitamins, minerals, amino acids and botanicals to enhance and support a demanding round-the-clock lifestyle. The line features seven blends: NeuroGasm, NeuroSonic, NeuroBliss, NeuroSport, NeuroTrim, NeuroSleep and NeuroAqua, all individually crafted to provide beneficial elements that help you stay well. Drink smart. Drink Neuro.


AMERICAN AIRLINES: American Airlines, American Eagle and the AmericanConnection airlines serve 250 cities in over 40 countries with more than 3,400 daily flights. American Airlines is the official airline of the Elton John AIDS Foundation.


Contact: Christina Lee/ Jeff Raymond
ROGERS & COWAN
310-854-8100

Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100203/LA48779LOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Elton John AIDS Foundation

CONTACT: Christina Lee or Jeff Raymond, both of ROGERS & COWAN,
+1-310-854-8100, for Elton John AIDS Foundation


Web Site: http://www.chopard.com/