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Want More BET Programming? You're in Luck

BET's parent company Viacom is increasing the network's budget for original programming by 30 percent and will continue that growth in upcoming years. Over the years, BET has been criticized for its lack of original programming, historically filling airtime with provocative hip-hop videos interspersed with repeats. Viacom Chief Executive Philippe P. Dauman promised "at least 10 new shows this year" and said that BET seeks to expand across multiple media platforms to satisfy its predominantly black audience. Read more.

Many Blacks, Latinos Misinformed About Alzheimer's

A new survey conducted by Harris Interactive for the Alzheimer's Foundation of America showed that black and Latino caregivers were more likely (37 percent and 33 percent, respectively) than caregivers of other races (23 percent) to believe that Alzheimer's is a normal part of aging. Moreover, 67 percent of black and 63 percent of Latino caregivers were more likely to say that they did not know enough about Alzheimer's to recognize the symptoms, compared with 49 percent of caregivers of other races. However, 33 percent of blacks and 26 percent of Latino caregivers were more likely than caregivers of other races (12 percent) to think that they were at a higher risk for Alzheimer's. Read more.

Wal-Mart Out of Banking Business

Wal-Mart is nixing its plans to enter into the banking business, citing delays and the "manufactured controversy" surrounding the company's effort. The world's largest retailer's effort to enter the banking industry created a peculiar troika of critics that included Congress, activists and bankers. Reportedly, Wal-Mart had a pending application to establish an industrial-loan company (ILC) in Utah. "Unlike dozens of prior [industrial loan company] applications, Wal-Mart's has been surrounded by manufactured controversy since it was submitted nearly two years ago ... at no stage did we intend to use the ILC to establish branch banking operations as critics have suggested--we simply sought to reduce credit- and debit-card transaction costs." Read more.

Gay-Baby Article Pits Baptist Leader Against Christians, Gays and Lesbians

Suggesting there's a biological basis for homosexuality has gotten the Rev. R. Albert Mohler Jr., one of the country's pre-eminent evangelical leaders, into much trouble. Earlier this month, Mohler wrote an article saying scientific research "points to some level of biological causation" for homosexuality. Proof of a biological basis would challenge the belief of many conservative Christians that homosexuality--which they view as sinful--is a matter of choice that can be overcome through prayer and counseling. However, Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., was assailed even more harshly by gay-rights supporters. They were upset by his assertion that homosexuality would remain a sin even if it were biologically based. They were also upset by his support for possible medical treatment that could switch an unborn gay baby's sexual orientation to heterosexual, reports The LATimes.

Gonzales Loyal to Bush

Over the years, embattled Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has been rewarded by President Bush for his loyalty: Texas gubernatorial counsel, Texas secretary of state, Texas Supreme Court justice, White House counsel, attorney general. He has a long history with the Bush family that dates back to 1990 when he worked in the senior Bush's White House. At the time, Gonzales was an attorney with Vinson & Elkins, a massive Texas law firm that boasted Enron and Halliburton among its clientele. Once he became the current President Bush's White House counsel, Gonzales' priorities appeared to turn to protecting the administration. When the General Accounting Office wanted information about Enron officials meeting with Vice President Dick Cheney's Energy Task Force, Gonzales said no. He later insulated Bush from congressional records requests and publicly defended the president's order making non-American terror suspects eligible for military tribunals. Read more.

Screen Actors Guild Forms LGBT Caucus

The Screen Actors Guild, a Los Angeles-based labor union representing about 120,000 actors in film, television, commercials, music videos and industrial film, has created an LGBT caucus to provide support and protect the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender actors. Los Angeles' SAG branch held its first LGBT meeting in February, and SAG branches throughout the nation will hold LGBT caucus meetings throughout the year. The New York chapter will convene its LGBT caucus in April. Actor George Takei, who is famous for his role as chief navigator Hikaru Sulu on the science-fiction series Star Trek and who is gay, said, "I was proud to be a part of [the] historic first meeting of the SAG LGBT Actors Caucus. The Caucus is undertaking an important mission--to help actors feel free to be open and honest about who they are, without fear of reprisal or career damage." Read more.

Lawmakers Attack No Child Left Behind

Complaints about annual deadlines that punish schools and coupling English-as-a-second-language students and students with learning disabilities with English-speaking peers are being taken up by both Republican and Democratic lawmakers. Lawmakers say a major flaw is that schools that miss achievement targets by a little are treated the same way as schools that miss those goals by a lot. Schools then are labeled as needing improvement and face the same penalties. Currently, any state that does not adhere to the requirements of the $23-billion program cannot get the federal dollars that come with it, reports CNN.com.

Immigration Groups Tap Into War Debate

Immigrant-rights groups plan to focus their rallies on both immigration reform and ending the Iraq war as more recent immigrants die in the Middle East conflict and Congress continues to ignore the immigration issue. Both issues are personal for protest organizer Juan Jose Gutierrez. His 22-year-old nephew was killed last year in Iraq after emigrating from Mexico and becoming a U.S. citizen while serving with the Marines. "The war is something that affects immigrants dramatically right now," said Gutierrez, president of the Los Angeles-based group Latino Movement USA, to The Associated Press. "It's important people understand that the anti-war and immigration movements are connected", according to The Atlanta Journal Constitution.

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