Today is the last day for us in the glass tower that has been our home for the past 15 years. It’s moving day and we are taking our toys and moving from First Tennessee Plaza, the tallest building in downtown, to the Miller’s Building, about four blocks north on Gay Street.
I will explain the reasons [...]

Filed under: Downtown, Historic preservation, Journalism, Public Relations | 12 Comments »

Some of us (including me!) shook President Obama’s hand.
We cried when national treasure, poet Maya Angelou, recited a poem about slavery and black history with rapper Common.
We were astounded to see the media crush around Congressman Charles Rangel, who sat at a table next to us at lunch the day before a House ethics committee announced 13 charges against him.
We [...]

Filed under: Events, Journalism, Knoxville, Media, Politics | 8 Comments »

Wow! I love our nation’s capital!
Alan and I spent last week in Washington, D.C., with our friends Phyllis and Jim Nichols and Peyton Hairston. The purpose of the trip was to attend a National Urban League convention (which I’ll write about in the next blog post), but during the course of a week in such [...]

Filed under: Journalism, Media, Politics, Uncategorized | 13 Comments »

There was so much material this year that the annual Front Page Follies show was bound to be funny! Held Saturday at the Knoxville Convention Center, it did not disappoint.
The Follies show is the annual performance by area journalists and PR folks to raise funds for communications scholarships and poke fun at area newsmakers in the [...]

Filed under: Events, Journalism, Knoxville, Media, Music, Politics, Public Relations, UT sports | 2 Comments »

Last night was the second annual “Peeling, Eating and Politicking” event sponsored by the Knoxville Chamber. Things worked out much better this year.

Filed under: Events, Journalism, Knoxville, Media, Politics | 1 Comment »

Who doesn’t love a trivia quiz? Especially when there are prizes involved!
Last week, as part of the 30th anniversary celebration of the Executive Women’s Association, members Dawn Ford and Jeannie Dulaney challenged us to a trivia quiz about the history of women in Knoxville. Prizes? Susan B. Anthony dollars: one for each correct answer and [...]

Filed under: Events, Journalism, Knoxville, Media, Politics | 5 Comments »

In 1985, I was assigned to write a series of articles for The Knoxville Journal about women in power in Knoxville. The conclusion of the series, which was called “Silent Majority: A Woman’s Voice in Knoxville,” was that women were not at all powerful in Knoxville.
There had never been a woman mayor, UT President or [...]

Filed under: Events, Journalism, Knoxville, Media, Politics | No Comments »

You feel like you know them. They read you the news every morning. One writes for the newspaper, covering the staid  education beat. And another conducts the Knoxville Symphony. But trust me when I tell you you’ve never seen these local celebrities the way a couple of hundred folks saw them last night. The event [...]

Filed under: Events, Journalism, Media, Music | 1 Comment »

Tuesday was a big day for the University of Tennessee’s public radio station, WUOT-FM. In celebration of its 60th anniversary, the station brought in one of National Public Radio’s most beloved personalities, Carl Kasell, and was feted at a cocktail reception hosted by another beloved personality, Howard H. Baker Jr.
Kasell, who will turn 76 next month, [...]

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A year and a half ago, the Coq Chante orphanage in Haiti got its first light bulb. To celebrate, the some 18 children there stayed up until midnight playing board games.
The bulb was powered by solar panels on the roof. The children also had filtered water to drink. And someone made sure their education continued.
Who [...]

Filed under: Journalism, Knoxville, Media | 6 Comments »