Michael Jordan & Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to get Presidential Medal of Freedom

NBA greats Michael Jordan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar along with Cicely Tyson and Diana Ross are among the 21 recipients of this years Presidential Medal of Freedom being awarded for the last time by President Obama.

The other recipients are Vin Scully, Ellen DeGeneres, Diana Ross, Bruce Springsteen, Robert DeNiro, Tom Hanks, Robert Redford, Bill and Melinda Gates, polymath physicist Richard Garwin, architect Frank Gehry, designer Maya Lin, “Saturday Night Live” producer Lorne Michaels, attorney Newt Minow, mathematician and computer scientist Margaret H. Hamilton,Eduardo Padrón, president of Miami Dade College in Florida, Native American advocate Elouise Cobell and Rear Adm. Grace Hopper.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is an award bestowed by the President of the United States and is—along with the comparable Congressional Gold Medal—the highest civilian award of the United States. It recognizes those individuals who have made "an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace, cultural or other significant public or private endeavors".

'Doc McStuffins' renewed for a 5th season

Disney Junior has ordered a fifth season of its beloved and critically acclaimed series “Doc McStuffins,” which will bring more stories of Doc, a girl who aspires to be a doctor just like her mom. S05 will premiere in 2018.

The renewal is likely to assuage fans who took to social media this past summer wondering why a fifth season for the program had not been announced, even though the series at the time was in the middle of its fourth cycle. W. Kamau Bell, the comedian, activist and CNN host, helped intensify speculation about the fate of the program when he took to Twitter and asked similar questions, sparking a grateful reaction from Chris Nee, the program’s creator.

Doc McStuffins” won a Peabody Award in 2015 and NAACP Image Awards in 2015 and 2016 in the “Outstanding Children’s Program” category.

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Bounce TV to bring back 'Cosby Show' reruns

Reruns of "The Cosby Show" are returning to television, even as the comedian's sexual assault trial looms next year.

Bounce TV announced in social media posts that it will resume airing reruns of the 1980s sitcom on Dec. 19. Atlanta-based Bounce, programmed for black audiences, says it takes the allegations against Cosby "seriously," but says its research shows African-Americans "see a distinction between Bill Cosby, the man, and the iconic TV character Cliff Huxtable."

The announcement has drawn criticism from some, including Judd Apatow. The director and producer tweeted Tuesday, "Presenting a violent rapist to viewers like he is a lovable dad is inappropriate."

In July 2015, Bounce pulled reruns of the comedian's CBS sitcom "Cosby." Other networks - including TV Land and Centric - dropped "The Cosby Show" after the sexual assault allegations began in 2014.

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West Virginia Mayor Resigns After Racist Facebook Post About Michelle Obama

Clay County Mayor Beverly Whaling who faced backlash after agreeing with a racist comment about Michelle Obama on Facebook has resigned. The racist comment refereed to our elegant, intelligent, and classy First Lady Michelle Obama as an "ape in heels".

The Clay Town Council accepted Mayor Beverly Whaling’s resignation in a meeting late Tuesday afternoon and said it would act quickly to name a replacement for the remaining three years of her term.

Council member Jason Hubbard issued a brief statement condemning the “horrific” post and said “racial intolerance isn’t what this community is about.” He apologized on behalf of the town to anyone who is offended, including Michelle Obama.

Carson declined cabinet position offer from Trump

Many of us who thought that Ben Carson was all book sense and no common sense may have to admit that he may have an ounce of the latter. Ben Carson declined an offer from President-elect Donald Trump to join his cabinet as Secretary of Health and Human Services on the basis that he like Donald Trump has no experience running a government agency. George L. Cook III AfricanAmericanReports.Com

Carson confidant Armstrong Williams said the former neurosurgeon and top Trump surrogate will continue to advise Trump from outside the White House but declined Trump's offer to join his administration as a cabinet-level official.

"He's never run an agency and it's a lot to ask. He's a neophyte and that's not his strength," Williams said, despite the fact that Carson vied for the Republican nomination to be the next president of the United States.

Williams told The Hill newspaper, "Dr. Carson feels he has no government experience, he's never run a federal agency. The last thing he would want to do was take a position that could cripple the presidency."

Carson told The Washington Post that he is "leaning" toward working "from the outside and not from the inside."

"I want to have the freedom to work on many issues and not be pigeonholed into one particular area," he told the newspaper.

[SOURCE:CNN]