Negro Leagues now part of Major League Baseball, stats counted in MLB records

Major League Baseball has officially recognized the Negro Leagues as major league teams — 100 years after their creation. The seven leagues, which played from 1920 to 1948, will have their stats and records added to MLB history.

"All of us who love baseball have long known that the Negro Leagues produced many of our game's best players, innovations and triumphs against a backdrop of injustice," Commissioner Robert Manfred said in a statement Wednesday. "We are now grateful to count the players of the Negro Leagues where they belong: as Major Leaguers within the official historical record."

The new recognition also means that players who beat MLB records while they were in the Negro League could receive recognition for their accomplishments. The MLB is working with the Elias Sports Bureau to review how the new designation changes affect the record books.

The Negro League was comprised of seven leagues: the Negro National League, the Eastern Colored League, the American Negro League, the East-West League, the Negro Southern League, the Negro National League (II) and the Negro American League. The leagues were formed because Black players were banned from joining the National and American leagues.

[SOURCE: CBS NEWS]

NAACP TO HOST VIRTUAL TOWN HALL ON NAVIGATING THE COVID-19 VACCINE

On Wednesday, December 16 at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT, the NAACP will host a virtual town hall series entitled UNMASKED: COVID Vaccines. Over the last year, the NAACP has presented virtual town halls that focus on how the coronavirus pandemic impacts African Americans. In the next episode of the series, congressional leaders, guest speakers, and health experts will join Derrick Johnson, president and CEO of the NAACP, to provide the latest research information, slowing the spread, vaccine availability, and distribution.

“As we’re hearing more about the potential end of COVID-19’s devastating grip on the lives of Americans and people around the world, African Americans are voicing understandable concern and skepticism about the vaccines and treatments being developed,” said Dr. Marjorie Innocent, NAACP Senior Director of Health Programs. “The dynamic speakers in this installment of our COVID: Unmasked town hall series will provide clear information to help us understand vaccine development, approval, availability and distribution.”

It is no secret that the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged communities across the country, particularly the Black community and frontline workers. The lack of consistent leadership and coordination on a federal level from the current administration led to state and local governments taking on varied approaches to combat an unprecedented public health crisis. This town hall will include champions at the forefront of stabilizing the crisis and ensuring a healthy recovery.

Callers can participate via interactive toll-free conference call that will stream LIVE on the NAACP’s website naacp.org. To join via phone, dial (866) 757-0756 and to join the conversation on social media by following @NAACP. Click here to RSVP.

Moderated by correspondent and author, April Ryan, the town hall will include:

• Cory Booker, U.S. Senator, New Jersey
• Patrice A. Harris, MD, MA, American Medical Association, Immediate Past President
• Dr. Marcella Nunez-Smith, Co-Chair President-Elect Biden Advisory Board on Coronavirus
• Kizzmekia Corbett, Ph.D., Senior Researcher, National Institutes of Health
• Dr. Gigi El-Bayoumi, Professor, George Washington University
• Donald J. Alcendor, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Meharry Medical College
• Derrick Johnson, President & CEO, NAACP

 

Keisha Lance Bottoms declines role in Biden Administration

President-elect Joe Biden offered Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms a position in his Cabinet, but she did not accept it, according to a statement from Rashad Taylor, Bottoms’ senior adviser.

“Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms was honored to have been offered a role in the Cabinet, which she respectfully declined,” Taylor said in a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Taylor declined to say what position was offered.

Several prominent Georgia Democrats have reported that Bottoms was in the running to lead the Small Business Administration, a Cabinet level post.

“The Mayor’s focus remains on the people of Atlanta and the great state of Georgia,” Taylor said. “Out of respect for the process, and the other candidates under consideration, no additional comment will be forthcoming on this matter at this time.”

Bottoms has a year left on her term and has said she plans to run for reelection.

[SOURCE: AJC]

Rashida Jones named next president of MSNBC

Rashida Jones will become president of MSNBC, and the current president, Phil Griffin, will step down after 25 years at the cable news channel, NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde announced Monday.

Jones, who will take over at MSNBC on Feb. 1, is a senior vice president at NBC News and MSNBC, where she leads breaking news and major events coverage. She also oversees MSNBC's daytime and weekend programming. She will become the most prominent Black woman in the cable news industry.

"Rashida knows and understands MSNBC, in part because it's where she started when she first joined NBCU seven years ago," Conde wrote in an email to NBC News employees. "She knows that it is the people who work here that make it great, and she understands its culture. She also appreciates the impact and potential of the brand."

Conde noted that in the past year Jones has helped guide MSNBC's coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic, the unrest and social justice protests that broke out over the treatment of Black Americans and the 2020 election. She also helped with two influential series at the network, "Justice for All" and "Climate in Crisis."

Jones takes over at an uncertain time for cable news. MSNBC's ratings grew during President Donald Trump's tenure and in the run-up to the presidential election. But it's unclear how the network will fare during a Joe Biden presidency, as cable viewership overall continues to decline.

[SOURCE: MSNBC]

36 year-old Brandon Scott sworn in as Mayor of Baltimore

Brandon Scott, a 36-year-old Democrat, was sworn-in as Baltimore’s new mayor Tuesday afternoon in a private ceremony inside City Hall.

Scott, who’s the city’s 52nd mayor, is starting his new job at a historically tough time. The city has recorded more than 300 homicides for the sixth year in a row, and its population, businesses and tax revenues have not been spared by the coronavirus pandemic.

Watch the story below:

" num_posts="20" width="450">