“Your rights in Philadelphia as it pertains to anti-discrimination in your employment are solid”

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

Really? There’s something about catching up on a newspaper or magazine when you’ve fallen behind in your reading. This past weekend, I read both last week’s and this week’s editions of PGN, Philadelphia Gay News. (Yes, it’s the same paper I freelanced for in the beginning of this year.) http://www.epgn.com/news/local/15312-city-raises-more-color-more-pride-flag-to-kick-off-outfest In the Oct. 18-24 edition, … Continue reading “Your rights in Philadelphia as it pertains to anti-discrimination in your employment are solid”

Martin Luther King Day, a victim of the (official) Women’s March

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

First off, yes, I may be a day late, but this is definitely not a dollar short! I wanted to make sure this post was as perfect as I could make it, like I do with all others. Of course, it’s just a coincidence that Martin Luther King Day, which commemorates the birthday of the … Continue reading Martin Luther King Day, a victim of the (official) Women’s March

Odds, ends and new beginnings

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

It’s always good to be remembered, and hopefully being your last new year’s message of the year will keep some of my thoughts on your minds. (I’d be embarrassed to post something like this more than a week late, even by a few minutes!) Let me start with the most important: that I became an … Continue reading Odds, ends and new beginnings

Banned from Facebook pages twice in 2 days!

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

Sometimes, interesting things happen when you read friends’ Facebook pages. I’m not talking about going to look on purpose, which I’ve done before. I’m just referring to seeing something on your news feed and clicking on it. That got me, as the title clearly says, banned from Facebook pages twice in 2 days! The one … Continue reading Banned from Facebook pages twice in 2 days!

Exposing hate, close to home (as if acceptable anywhere)

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

My interest started when I was looking at my Facebook feed over the weekend and saw this post from a former coworker. Obviously, we’re Facebook friends. Otherwise, his post wouldn't have come up. He’s a former Marine. We’d always worked well together and even though he is the most right-wing person I know, he’d never … Continue reading Exposing hate, close to home (as if acceptable anywhere)

Level-headed moderation needed now in The Birthplace of America

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

Philadelphia is a great place to live. It has so much, so close-by: history, museums, sports. It’s walkable, livable, has green space. No, it didn’t get Amazon’s HQ2 and yes, it’s often overshadowed by New York and Washington. Too bad it has people in charge who don’t care about serving the public. This goes along … Continue reading Level-headed moderation needed now in The Birthplace of America

Difficult week, from anger to sadness, as election approaches

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

I don’t remember a seven-day period like the time since last Saturday. That’s when I woke up, turned on the TV, and saw what was happening in Pittsburgh. I got very angry and couldn’t stand to hear anything about it after two hours. It took until Wednesday for the anger to turn to sadness. I … Continue reading Difficult week, from anger to sadness, as election approaches

Political pondering, 3 weeks before Election Day

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

The “game” of politics is no fun anymore. Discussing anything having to do with it used to be educating and entertaining, and sometimes enlightening, among friends and on social media. Not anymore. These days, it’s all for the kill. Saturday, NBC Nightly News showed skirmishes in New York and Portland, Oregon. As correspondent Matt Bradley … Continue reading Political pondering, 3 weeks before Election Day

Cher’s surprise: Stopping by The Cher Show while it gets ready for Broadway

Posted on by Todd Sussman

Hi! This is Lenny with the first of what I’m hoping will be regular guest columns. Just use the contact form to let me know if you write up something you’d like to share here. I’ll be happy to post it if the work is all yours and may appeal to the audience. Then, you’ll … Continue reading Cher’s surprise: Stopping by The Cher Show while it gets ready for Broadway

More moderation in politics, not so in casting calls

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

I’ve had a lot on my mind lately. There’s too much going on, between job stuff, the news and that last blog post I wrote. It was about being attacked on Facebook by someone who was angry I don't think Barack Obama is my favorite president and made nasty knee-jerk comments when I simply asked … Continue reading More moderation in politics, not so in casting calls

In defense of Emma González, not that she needs it but deserves it

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

I have a lot more on Marjory Stoneman Douglas hero Emma González, not a hero for surviving but for her activism after. She has probably suffered more than her surviving schoolmates after February’s shooting massacre. In late March, USA Today reported Iowa Republican Rep. Steve King drew criticism when someone from his campaign team mocked González’s ‘look’ … Continue reading In defense of Emma González, not that she needs it but deserves it

Who says everything I write is negative (but correct)?

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

This is my 90th blog post and like most journalists, I identify mistakes all over and somehow -- often through publicity -- try to get them fixed. But not on this milestone. There's too much good to write about. I also want to point out the page CohenConnect Headlines Sitemap has a list of all the blog … Continue reading Who says everything I write is negative (but correct)?

Be nicer to Mike Jerrick, and other thoughts on what’s making news

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

People who know me can never, ever say I’m not loyal to people I like and respect. You’ll see that in a moment, along with an example of the opposite. (Is your mouth watering yet?) Yesterday, one of Philadelphia’s daily newspapers published an article called “Is the morning news format that fuels Mike Jerrick's 'weird … Continue reading Be nicer to Mike Jerrick, and other thoughts on what’s making news

Don’t post your content on Facebook if you don’t want readers getting it for free!

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

Time for the obvious, yet again.   News organizations post their news on Facebook and other social media sites. Those articles, videos, slideshows, etc. also get picked up on search sites like Google, Yahoo and Bing (Microsoft). If they use the correct SEOs (Search Engine Optimization words) and have a little luck (or pay a … Continue reading Don’t post your content on Facebook if you don’t want readers getting it for free!

More details on Israel after the gay paper

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

I got up extremely early this morning to take Pedro to work, since he didn’t get the holiday off. Soon after getting home, I noticed my Facebook friend Mark Segal -- founder, owner and publisher of the renowned Philadelphia Gay News -- had posted his column from last week. I'm two weeks behind in reading. … Continue reading More details on Israel after the gay paper

What is conscience? Elusive in the media, unfortunately

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

It seems every day in the news, I read about another powerful man resigning, taking time off from a high-profile job, or under police investigation for inappropriate sexual conduct. The stories just keep coming, or the allegations against the men simply increase. CNN offered a list of recent cases more than a week ago, on … Continue reading What is conscience? Elusive in the media, unfortunately

Lots of updates in a few short months

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

This is my 22nd blog. I hope you’ve enjoyed them as much as I’ve enjoyed writing them. I didn’t think I could come up with so much material. I was thinking last week’s edition would’ve been a review, an update, because I had 20 previous under my belt and so much has changed since I … Continue reading Lots of updates in a few short months

Who cares what Bruce Jenner is doing?

Posted on by Lenny Cohen

I'm so glad I haven't had to cover this story. Apparently, Bruce Jenner has been looking more and more like a woman, with longer hair, manicured nails, and makeup. The tabloids and some people (not me) have been talking about it for months. But yesterday, it was reported the former Olympic star is transitioning into … Continue reading Who cares what Bruce Jenner is doing?