This edition of Pop & Circumstance is all about the “youngins” — from the tragic tales of Precious Jones in Lee Daniels’ latest film and Rihanna’s triumph over domestic abuse, to the underage vixens of Gossip Girl. Join us as we take a look at the young stars who are making headlines — and, at times, making many of us adults a little nervous
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If the stories in this edition of Pop & Circumstance have a common theme, it’s the call for audiences — viewers, listeners, and users of media — to exercise more compassion, discernment, and responsibility in the way they interact with pop culture. Come to think of it, those are themes found in many editions of P&C. Anyway, we talk about them more explicitly this time around. So let’s get started.
Ever since Chris Brown’s taped apology was released on Monday, people have been questioning whether or not he deserves the public’s forgiveness? Call me crazy, but I forgave Chris Brown for beating then-girlfriend and fellow R&B singer Rihanna nearly six months ago when the story of his violence first made headlines. While most of the media raked him over the coals for his actions, culminating in a series of domestic violence shows on Oprah, my heart softened for the boy who became the poster child for teen violence.
For the purposes of this discussion, I’ll assume I’m talking to the fellas on this one. (But the ladies are welcome to eavesdrop.)
Have you ever had the urge to hit a woman? Most of us were raised with a mental line in our behavior code. Hitting females is over that line. But truth be told, the notion lurks stealthily beneath the surface. The mental picture that forms in a man’s head just before the cowardly deed tends to bubble up in times of stress. When a man feels powerless, he can always fall back on physical force, like a scared dictator with armies at his disposal.
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Chris Brown's career and freedom may be jeopardized by his alleged actions.
As more and more information gets released about the alleged domestic violence situation between Chris Brown and Rihanna, we will be in the position to do one of two things, continue to gawk and be fascinated with it, sharing every detail we get from other news sources with friends and laughing about how the situation must of went down or we can pray.
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