The NBA has long considered itself the most progressive league among American team sports. So when it finds itself in a dilemma over a social justice issue folks tend to take a much tougher, more critical look at what is happening. But in a current case involving Detroit Pistons majority owner Tom Gores, things aren’t quite so simple. It seems he ha taken steps both publicly and privately to signal his support for organizations and causes that fit the league’s profile, most notably Black Lives Matter. However Gores’ public statements are viewed as hollow by prison reform advocates. They instead…
Author: Ron Wynn
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — The Tennessee Titans face a team that once dominated the AFC South, but is now in disarray in the Houston Texans Sunday as the regular season concludes. The Texans season has been a disaster, one that saw them fire Bill O’Brien as head coach/general manager Oct. 5. Romeo Crennel has filled in as interim head coach, but it doesn’t seem he’s going to get a serious shot at the top spot. The Texans recently interviewed former Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions head coach Jim Caldwell, and they’ve also interviewed former Cincinnati Bengals head coach…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Jamie Foxx has enjoyed a great amount of notoriety and fame, as well as winning both an Oscar and a Grammy. But he feels his latest role as the principal voice in Disney’s “Soul” is a career highlight. He told Variety last week it was vital for him to be himself in any role, and to be an advocate for positive Black images. “In my career, I’ve never had to apologize for being Black,” Foxx said. “I was on ‘In Living Color’ — I had a Black boss [Keenan Ivory Wayans, who Foxx touts…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — It will be interesting to see the reaction that comes with last week’s release of Lifetime’s first trailer for their upcoming documentary “Whitney Houston & Bobbi Kristina: Didn’t We Almost Have It All.” The documentary is set to air Feb. 6 at 8 p.m./7 p.m. CT. It will be followed by an encore presentation of Lifetime’s original movie “Whitney.” According to preliminary press material, the documentary will take a closer look at the tragedies affecting Houston and her daughter, including their shared struggle with substance abuse. “The two-hour documentary presents an in-depth look at…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — Molly Secours is an acclaimed, nationally recognized writer, author and filmmaker whose work, both in print and on the screen, has long been highly respected throughout her two plus decades on the local scene. But Secours, who’s made social justice and racial equality a prime focus among her interests, has now become a runaway area best seller with her latest volume White Privilege Pop Quiz – Reflecting on Whiteness (Darkhorse Books). With a host of distinguished scholars, activists and academics ranging from Juvenile Court Judge Shelia D. Calloway to journalist Ellis Close, Professor Robin…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — With the Titans on pace for their first double digit victory total and AFC South title since 2008, the toughest test among their final four games looms this week. The Green Bay Packers have already clinched the NFC Central, and look primed to challenge the Saints, Rams and possibly Seahawks for a Super Bowl berth, as well as get the first-round bye for best NFC record. All the stories that ran early last season about tension between former Titans offensive coordinator and current Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur and star QB Aaron…
Bigtime college football and basketball has always had a fundamental consistency problem. While colleges are supposed to be institutions of higher learning where education takes precedence over everything else, sports included, Power 5 football and Division 1 basketball makes big money for the institutions. Networks aren’t lining up with millions of dollars to donate to chemistry labs or lectures on literature, even if those things are much more part of a college’s general mission than winning football and basketball games. But critics have frequently attacked the NCAA for hypocrisy in its insistence that these schools were engaging in “amateur” activity.…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — The Vanderbilt Commodores will only play nine games this season. Plagued all year by a combination of roster shortages caused by transfers, opt-outs, and the imoact of COVID-19, the Commodores’ scheduled game against Georgia was cancelled Monday. It will go into the record books as a no contest. Vanderbilt concludes the first winless season in school history at 0-9. But there was some positive news emanating from Vanderbilt as well, namely the selection of a new head football coach. Current Notre Dame defensive coordinator Clark Lea was officially named to the position Monday. Lea…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — The Tennessee Titans are heading into their final three games in excellent shape, especially offensively. Derrick Henry comes off a 215 yard game, and is positioning himself to be the league’s first repeat rushing champion in 13 years. A.J. Brown had another big game against Jacksonville, and the Titans often maligned defense only allowed one touchdown in a 31-10 victory that improved their record to 9-4. The Titans remained tied atop the AFC South with the Indianapolis Colts, who also won over the Las Vegas Raiders. But the Titans still own the tie-breaker, as…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — A case that HBO thought might be resolved in their favor regarding the controversial film “Leaving Neverland” is instead headed back to arbitration because of a clause that dates back to the last century. A federal appeals court ruled Monday that an arbitration clause contained in a 1992 deal between the network and Michael Jackson for a concert film was still valid 28 years later. This is the aftermath from a lawsuit filed in February 2019 by Optimum Productions and the two co-executors of the Jackson estate. They claimed that HBO agreed not to…