Mika says gay artists don't have a social obligation to be out

This  cut of my interview with Mika concerns the issue of his sexuality, which has become an issue in the gay and mainstream press.

The Mika Interview (Long Version)

Full version of my interview with Mika (above)

I'm a fan of Mika, and was thrilled to have him visit our studio.  I love his story.  He was a shy, dyslexic, daydreamer as a boy.  Now 23, he has grown into an effervescent, articulate, dreamboy performer.
His musical style is compared to that of Freddie Mercury, the Scissor Sisters, and Elton John.  Yet for all the fawning of his gay fans, Mika won't discuss his sexuality.  That wasn't the only thing I wanted to press him on, but I did raise the issue.

Here's Mika's bio, cut and pasted from his web site:

Mika is a true young internationalist. Born in Beirut in the middle of the 80s, Mika’s family soon found themselves having to move to Paris at the height of the war. When his father was subsequently taken hostage and held at the American embassy in Kuwait the family eventually settled in London. An inevitably turbulent experience for our young hero, he found himself bereft, lost in the chasm of a displaced upbringing. “It was the combination of moving as well as a horrible time I had at school in the first few years of living in London that lead me to forget how to read and write, and stop talking for a little while. I was pulled out of school for over six months; in order to sort my self out and find a new school. This is when music really became important. It got me back on my feet.” He says now that by the age of 9 he knew that songwriting was his destiny.

Week In Review

I decided to try a new week-in-review segment.  The idea is to review and discuss the week in news with a different guest each week.  New Now Next blogger John Polly was my first victim.  Would love to hear your feedback on this segment, and whether we should do more.

VOD: Ask a Gay Man

This 23-year-old gap manager and YouTube star has landed a development deal with Bravo.  His fashion wit and cutting commentary has attracted millions of hits, presumably from the teenage girls whom he advises on what to wear and what not to wear.  William Sledd tries to post a new video every week.  In this one he warns of the dangers of "mom jeans" and advocates low-rise boot cuts.

Political VOD: Crush on Obama

'08 Race VOD (Video of Day): Richardson Job Interview 3

Viral Vid of Day 2: Japanese Treadmill Challenge

One of the great things about online video is that enables you to learn about other cultures, by watching what they're watching.  Case in point:  The Japanese Treadmill Challenge.  The object of the game is to get as far as possible on the treadmill without falling and being subsequently dumped into very hot water. As you get further along you must eat the cookie which speeds the treadmill up. 

Viral Vid of Day: Paris Hilton Music Video

It didn't take long... the Paris-in-jail spoof video has hit the web, already garnering over three million hits.  The Paris look alike isn't half bad.  The lyics kind are, half bad:
"They put me in the big house/ Sounds like a movie pitch/ Heiress goes up the river/ Ends up as somebody's bity/ They can't do this to me, I'm rich/ And now I am digging a ditch/ My roommate's a woman named Mitch." 
For the record, Paris has been separated from the general prison population.  No roommates.  No Mitches.  But I guess they couldn't resist...

Rosie Rocks!

Rosie made her post-View debut  in Vegas  on Friday.  I interviewed her, and filed this report for CBS .

Viral Vid of day: Girl humiliates herself at Ice Hockey Game

Gotta feel bad for this girl...  in the age of YouTube, one night of humiliation can turn into international laughter fodder.  Here name is Caroline Marcil.  She's from Montreal.  She was scheduled to perform the anthems for both countries at a hockey game between Canada and the U.S.  She sang neither after twice failing to complete the "The Star Spangled Banner."  After apologizing to the crwod, Marcil left the ice, presumably to get the words.  When she returned to the ice, the carpet slipped out from underneath her, causing her to fall hard.  She left on her own and did not return.  After Marcil left, the decision was made to proceed with the opening face off without the singing of either anthem.