• This is Webbie. When did rap names get so weak? [C+D]

• Is "white Oprah" well on her way to being just that? [DListed]

• "…we’re seeing an increase in areas where you saw low black voter turnout earlier and this is actually, I believe, would be a plus for the Democratic party in the future. One of the things we see about voting is that it’s habitual so just like brushing your teeth, going to church, once you get into a habit you keep doing it over and over again and so if you can kind of start this routine, people will turn out to vote.." [News8]

• Morris Day and The Time are playing the Essence fest! Hey, somebody's gotta work while Prince's hip recovers. [Fox]

• "…11 of the 15 states with the highest poverty levels are in the South." [FS]

• The St Mary's County Sherrif's Office in Maryland has signed a pact with the local chaptr of the NAACP chapter saying that they agree that they employ too few minority officers. Headway! [WP]

The votes aren't all counted, but Super Tuesday is officially over. The pundits predicted that the Democratic race would be far from over after last night, and that's the outcome they got. But considering how many states in which Hillary Clinton was leading in the weeks leading up to the big day, Barack Obama far exceeded expectations.

Hillary Clinton took the big prize, which was California, despite the fact that Barack Obama won the majority of both the white and black votes. Latinos and Asians in that state voted overwhelmingly for Clinton. Exit poll data from CNN.com shows that the vast majority of white women and most Latinos voted for Hillary Clinton, while Barack Obama won most of the youth vote and the black vote.

CONTINUED »

Here's the problem with the media's obsession with stories about what "black voters" are going to do or how we feel (since we all do and feel the same things, obviously). Where to find a sample of people that represents all blacks? Well, thanks to its geographical location, the New York Times has an easy solution. Just go to Harlem, stand outside of a Bill Clinton's office building*, and ask the black people who walk by! That's what they did to find out how black people really felt about Bill Clinton's controversial campaign remarks, making sure to add this disclaimer:

To be sure, interviews conducted on a single day, in front of a single building, are apt to produce a narrow point of view. Yet the building, at 55 West 125th Street, is an important piece of real estate in Mr. Clinton’s world.

But when you take into account the disclaimer, what's the point of writing the story to begin with? No matter what, the casual reader would come to the conclusion that all of the black people in Harlem feel this certain way and most likely because they consider him to be an honorary black man. No wonder Bill O'Reilly gets confused when he visits.

P.S. Star Jones agrees with the NYT interviewees. And she doesn't even live in Harlem! The whole world is upside down.

*The reporter does get props for not going to a barber shop or beauty salon.

CNN is getting flack for a story yesterday that begged this question of black women in South Carolina: "Will You Vote For Your Race Or Your Gender?" Of course they went to a hair salon — where else does one find black women??? — for their answers.

It really shouldn't have taken a barrage of emails for CNN to realize that it was a pretty ridiculous question that minimized black womens' political choices. Did they consider the possibility that — although I'm sure many women and men of all races are taking gender and skin color into consideration in this race — they are voting primarily on issues, not gender and race? And what about the ones who choose John Edwards? Are they self-haters? If white men are allowed to pick their Democratic candidate of choice in peace without being either encouraged to or accused of making their decision based on race or gender, then women and blacks should be able to do the same. I'll be happy when the South Carolina primary is over and everyone — from the candidates to the media — stops treating black voters in South Carolina like some fascinating, unpredictable sideshow attraction.

• Today is supposed to be the most depressing day of the year. Did the people calculating this know it was a three-day weekend? [Time]

• Today is the day for everyone to measure how much race relations have changed since MLK's day. Hmm, maybe this most-depressing-day thing has merit. [DMN]

• Forget about this election splitting democrats apart. Is it splitting black voters apart? [KHOU]

• Mike Huckabee wins an endorsement from the leader of the Coalition of African American Pastors and is the only presidential candidate set to attend services at Dr. King's church today. The world feels all topsy-turvy. [AJC]

• No worries. Obama gave a speech at King's church yesterday. [WP]

• At least one person isn't using MLK's name for political gain. [NYT]

Saturday was a busy day in the primary race, with both the Nevada caucuses and the GOP primary in South Carolina. Hillary Clinton won Nevada with 51 percent of the vote (although Barack Obama's camp is quick to report that he won more delegates), Obama got 45 percent, and John Edwards got his butt kicked and earned just 4 percent of the vote. Apparently, Clinton did very well with women and Latinos, while Obama got the support of black voters. Foreshadowing for South Carolina? Definitely.

Romney took 51 percent of the vote, with Ron Paul garnering 14 percent in a very distant second. In South Carolina, McCain beat Southern-boy Mike Huckabee by three percentage points. Democrats, are you terrified of John McCain?

Check out the primary stats after the jump.

CONTINUED »

• If Nate Dogg's alleged stroke had happened a few years ago, all popular black songs would have had to have been recorded with no hooks. [GW]

• How well do you know your 2007 entertainment trivia? [BG]

• North Carolina black voters aren't getting the same love that their southern counterparts are, but they still care! [State]

• R.I.P. Thomas Morgan III, the first openly gay president of the National Association of Black Journalists and a New York Times reporter. [ND]

• So long, Kwanzaa? [WP]

• DMX's rep denies that his client ever collapsed in NYC because the rapper was apparently with his wife at that house in Arizona where they cops found those dead pit bulls. [EUR]

• Blacks in San Francisco are still lamenting the mass exodus from the city. [SJMN]

• The woman Remy Ma allegedly shot is suing her for $10 million. She must not have realized that last week, Remy Ma's lawyers were begging the judges to let her go on a European tour, for which she stood to make about $40,000, because she is completely broke. [EN]

• Black women read tawdry supermarket romance novels, too! [CBC]

• Black voters in South Carolina are primed and ready…but who are they going to vote for? [CT]

Barack Obama has responded to the controversy surrounding his decision to include anti-gay gospel star Donnie McClurkin in his last ditch, please-vote-for-me-black-people gospel tour in South Carolina. To the disappointment of anti-McClurkins, he did not respond by booting the "formerly gay" Pentecostal minister from the tour.

“I have clearly stated my belief that gays and lesbians are our brothers and sisters and should be provided the respect, dignity, and rights of all other citizens. I have consistently spoken directly to African-American religious leaders about the need to overcome the homophobia that persists in some parts our community so that we can confront issues like HIV/AIDS and broaden the reach of equal rights in this country," Obama said in the written statement.

"I strongly believe that African Americans and the LGBT community must stand together in the fight for equal rights. And so I strongly disagree with Reverend McClurkin’s views and will continue to fight for these rights as President of the United States to ensure that America is a country that spreads tolerance instead of division," the statement added.

Not to generalize blacks in South Carolina, but this issue might not be as controversial for them as it is for Obama supporters (of other races and/or religious backgrounds and/or sexual orientation) in other parts of the country. Still, if the gospel tour buys you a few votes in South Carolina but costs a lot more everywhere else, is it worth it?

[BS]

• Yung Joc continues trying to have a a hit as big as "It's Goin' Down." [PE]

• Black women in South Carolina struggle to choose their favorite presidential candidates and administer relaxers at the same time. [NYT]

• Jamie Foxx is a sad clown. [SP]

• If Tiny is really pregnant, and I hope she's not, considering her boyfriend's current situation, then whose marijuana and Ecstasy was she carrying when T.I. got arrested? [SR]

• Speaking of T.I. he was just denied bail. Tough break. [AHH]

• Favorite headline of the morning: "Bowling Not Always An Option For Blacks." What if it's an option, but it bores you to tears every time you do it? [DFP]

• Your 401(k)? Please don't forget about it. [AP]

• And now for the obligatory Beyonce. She and her mom are launching a line of House of Dereon prom dresses. Oh no yay!

• John Edwards isn't giving up on black voters. It's a good thing, because we're all going to die or go to jail if he doesn't get elected. [CNN]

• Kim Fields got married, and Us Weekly didn't even notice. I wonder why. [People]

• Is that really you, Percy Miller? [Politico]

• Ten years later, Biggie's murder case gets a shaken up, but is still no closer to being solved. [MTV]

• How we've missed you, Q-Tip. [BS]

• Don't worry, says Bill Clinton, we've got black voters in the bag. [USNWR]

• It's certainly true in South Carolina. [LAT]

• I guess Rocawear Arena doesn't sound any worse than the Verizon Center or FedEx Field. Okay, yeah it does. [AHH]

• The cynicism starts young these days. [BS]

• Who's afraid of the big, black voter? [CNN]

• Museum patrons dying to catch a glimpse of the new Smithsonian museum dedicated to black history before it opens can now do so online. [FOX]